Learning From The Field

Please consider contributing to this regular column on the Learning Forward Colorado website. Send your essays about learning and professional learning to Joan Watson at watsonj2@comcast.net.

A Celebration of Classroom Magic
Many Thanks to the Teachers who Shared Their Classrooms
by Joan Watson

Budget cuts. Increased class size. Fewer support personnel. Reduced supplies and decreased access to technology. At the end of this school year, amidst these very real threats to quality education for our students, magic exists in classroom after classroom created by teachers whose wizard-like powers call Harry Potter into question. Here is just a brief sampling of what any school visitor would observe any day in the excellent classrooms filling our Colorado schools.

World Regional Geography students questioned their teacher, Lance Boyd, about China, beginning to realize that the Chinese and their history can be examined in many ways including languages, economic development, Maoism, and Pearl S. Buck. This history fosters an energetic, engaging dialogue about "Why are they taking our jobs?" Students generate their own questions and realizations reinforcing the relevance of this curriculum.

Stephanie Frankenfield was in the midst of the "Daily Five" of her kindergarten literacy block (Read to Self, Listen to Reading, Work on Writing, Word Work, Read with Someone). Groups were involved in choral reading determined by who had a similar piece. All readings emphasized word or sound families. Stephanie worked tirelessly and successfully at keeping every one of these fledgling kinesthetic learners engaged, e.g., "Get your finger ready, point to the lockers, point to the calendar, wiggle your finger, put it under the title."

Students wanted this visitor to know that Terri King is the best teacher at this high school. Her area of expertise: math. In her classroom, graphing calculators were in every student's hands. Students worked in teams of four to solve problems, pushing each other to think more deeply and more precisely. When they became stuck or when they arrived at a solution, they sought and received the teacher's help. These high school students were totally engaged in high level mathematical exploration and learning.

"Kiss your Brain" for your good thinking is a routine that brings smiles and laughter in Sharon Rowan's First Grade Classroom. Sharon brings researched based reading and writing strategies coupled with an appreciation for art and child development that result in a joy filled classroom in which every student honors and compliments every other student in a genuine celebration of learning and improvement. Jeff patted himself on the back when his classmates told him they liked his story illustrations. Happy faces and confident learners could describe every student.

Ninth graders required to write a research paper don't just go to the library or access a computer database. Dawn Schafer's students spend time thinking about many aspects of a topic or problem before starting their research. "What has been done about this problem in the past? What is the current legislation concerning this topic? If nothing is done, will this problem become worse? What immediate action is required?" Students were anxious to get to the library to find answers to their own questions. These ninth graders, teens often characterized as incapable of serious intellectual discourse, were deeply engaged in their own learning, planning not only a written paper but also a persuasive oral presentation as the final products of this assignment.

Fourth Graders in Carrie Clough's classroom listen to her read, ask questions and make comments, and then move to prompts for their own writing. She asked students to think about their answers "in their own heads" and then to share their answers out loud. Research tells us that allowing students to think and formulate an answer rather than demanding an instant response allows students to give more confident and competent responses. These forth graders asked questions and made comments articulately and intelligently, posing thoughtful inquiries that made their teacher shake her head and smile. These students were aware of and engaged in their own learning.

These stories are just a microscopic sample of what happens in classrooms everyday across this state and across the country. Teachers are teaching students using the most effective research based teaching strategies, and students are learning with joy and a deepening belief in their own individual abilities, unique qualities, and creative personalities. Let us celebrate that Public Education is alive, and well, and thriving in many, many classrooms in school districts throughout the country.