I have found an AMAZING, FUN way to infuse life into Free Reading time, thanks to a little post via the MN TCI Facebook group. (Thank you, Lydia Ann!)
Enter: Game of Quotes. Here’s how it works. After Free Reading time is done, instead of returning their books to the shelf, students hang on to them and game time begins. Students form groups of 4-5 and compete to find the best passage that fits a specific prompt. Basically, a bit like Apples to Apples, but for books!!! For example, I post the prompt, “Overheard in the teachers’ lounge” and students scour their novels (or other reading material) to find a phrase, sentence or multi-sentence passage from their novel that could fit that prompt. When a student finds a passage, she yells, “Got it!” Now, the race is truly on and students have 2 minutes to find a passage to fit the prompt. At the end of 2 minutes of time, each member reads their passage and group members vote on a winner. The winners of each group share their passage with the class. A much more detailed explanation can be found on The Book Sommelier Blog, where it was originally posted. (The author was inspired by this game...which I secretly can’t wait to play with my nerdy book friends.) When playing the game, it doesn’t matter if all group members are reading the same novel or not. If they aren’t, students end up asking one another questions about their novels...kids are talking about books!!! If student are all reading the same novel, perhaps as a class, the game is just as fun because rarely do two students in the same group find the same passage. Now, students are asking one other where they found “X” passage...kids are talking about books!!! I played this game with my Spanish III class recently, and we all had a blast. The slideshow containing the prompts I used can be found here. There are 25 prompts, broken into 5 different “games.” The prompts are in Spanish, but the English translation is in the speaker notes as well. (If you see any grammatical errors, please let me know and I will get them fixed ASAP.) Of course, regardless of the language you teach, you could always write the prompts in English so that students are focused on making meaning of their texts as opposed to deciphering the prompt. If the prompts are given in English (or L1), they could also be more complex, and perhaps more creative, than those I have included. All in all, this is a powerful, engaging way to showcase student creativity as well as the books in your FVR library. Happy gaming!
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Every day, I greet students at the door. We say hello to each other, I ask how they are doing, and they tell me the class password to enter. (If you aren’t familiar with this process, check out Bryce Hedstrom’s blog post.) This mean that students are entering the classroom and are unsupervised (EEEEK!!) for a few minutes while I am at the door. What do they do during this time? Roam like pack animals, set the classroom on fire, figure out how to conspire against me for the day? Usually, no. (However, some days it seems like it.) While it is loud and bit chaotic, there is a method to this madness.
First, my classroom is deskless. At the end of each period, students “reset” the classroom by putting away their chairs so the room is empty for the next class. Therefore, if students want a place to sit, they need to take out a chair and set it down in the correct spot. (Yes, I have a seating chart.) By its very nature, this is loud and chaotic. Next, students direct their attention to the Daily Dashboard. This is not a warm-up activity, but information about what is coming up during the class period. (I have decided to break up with my bell ringer for various reasons.) By this time, I enter the room and we begin class. But what does that look like if some students are still getting their chairs, not yet seated, chatting with their BFs? Well, I start singing. I first saw Grant Boulanger do this in his classroom and was absolutely blown away by its effectiveness! Singing is the cue that students need to get settled because we will be starting class by the time the song is finished. It works like a charm. EVERY. Time. I sing a few lines of a song, and students join in singing the last few. By then I have their attention and we go right into our daily calendar and class calendar discuss. Class has begun and we are on our way! In Spanish I, I start the year with the rhyme “Bate, bate chocolate.” I start chanting the rhyme and students join my be the 3rd line and we all end together. In Spanish II, I start the year with the traditional children’s song, “Mi gallo se murio.” (This is the one I saw Grant using.) I sing a few lines and students join in by the end. When students seem to be getting bored with the song we are currently singing, I simply choose a different one to open class with. (It usually takes at least a month for this to happen.) I choose the opening song in a variety of ways; for the season, popular tunes, traditional children’s songs, etc. Sra. Chase often sings with her students; here are the song, chants, rhymes she uses. Now, everyone singing together doesn’t just happen. It takes purposeful instruction and I set the expectation that ALL students will participate. When I introduce the song (or chant or rhyme), we spend some time as a class learning the song, learning the meaning of the song, learning about the artist, learning about the country of origin, etc. Then we listen to the song (or just perhaps the chorus) and practice, practice, practice and sing, sing, sing! Below are a few examples of what I have used successfully in class. Each song sheet has the lyrics we will be singing (the students sing the bolded lines). I try to add cultural information and a personal connection as well, but sometimes I just introduce the song and off we go. Happy singing!! Traditional Spanish Round: Mi Gallo Se Murio Spooky Mexican Rhyme Day of the Dead Song: Chumbalaca Children's Game/Chant: A La Lata Traditional Christmas Song: Mi Burrito Sabanero |
Jessie Oelke
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