Who Killed Mr. Xavier Pression?

I just got back from AMLE 2016, and what an amazing experience.  I met some amazing people, including many that I've been talking to during #MSCHAT and #TLAP talks.  I know many of you want to hear all about it, but honestly this graphic kind of explains where I am currently at:

I think I need to install some new RAM.

So for now you'll have to read about my latest activity.  

This year my 7th grade math class has been immersed in a game world.  They are in guilds named after mathematicians (Kepler, Nother, Euler, and Brahmagupta), exploring a world, and helping to bring together two nations.  They were introduced to Mr. Xavier Pression, the main diplomat brokering the truce between the nations of Gunthar and Sancrist.  Last week they received a message that Mr. Pression has gone missing.  They completed a series of quests to find him, which all four guilds did successfully.  

Unfortunately at the end of the last quest they found this on the screen at the end of the period:

It took a minute, but they eventually got the pun.

There was shock on everyone's face.  He was dead? How could that be?  They did everything they could to find him.  The next morning they walked in determined to find his killer.  

I purchased this activity from Teachers Pay Teachers.  It is a clue-based activity to have students write algebraic sentences as expressions.  In fact the whole game is set up like the boardgame Clue.  Here is the link to the product - I highly recommend it: Who Killed Mr. X. Pression

Now here is where Dave Burgess would say it is time to kick it up a notch.  They could have just come in and done the activity. I could have had the worksheets with the clues out and they could have just completed them and discovered the person, place, and thing.  However, this was a murder mystery. This was drama.  This was a crime investigation.  So instead of coming in to a worksheet laden room, they came in to this:

SO much positive feedback about the atmosphere.

Dark room, chilling music, the only thing out was the title.  By the way, students were actually working when I shot this video - that's the murmuring you hear in the background.  There was so much excitement and chatter.  They wanted to finish this assignment.  They learned that their sponsors were offering rewards including kingdom points, renown points, and new items to anyone that correctly completes the problems and solves the mystery.  They begged to get it started. 

How often can you say that has happened while teaching writing algebraic expressions?  

Where have you been? Mediocreing?

The problem (for me) with blogging is twofold:

a) not having anything to write about because
b) I have so much I WANT to write about.

It becomes an endless cycle of 'list topic, start blog, ohh squirrel!'

Then I realized something.  This is what happens with teaching as well.  By this point of the year we're all 'in our groove', first term (or so) is finished, and we're hitting the main stretch of the school year.

Of course by groove I mean not-being-able-to-get-into-a-rhythm-due-to-all-the-holidays-and-days-off.

It is really easy at this point of the year to just lean back on the culture and routines you've established and just coast through winter break.

"What's the point of getting this fantastic lessons ready when I have a 3 day week then a 4 day week then a 2 day week, then just about two weeks, then winter break? I mean the students are going to be so disengaged that I'll just do this easy lesson and it will basically do the same thing."

Fortunately for you, the amazing teacher inside of all of us is shouting at full lung capacity:

As teachers, we need have many responsibilities, but there are also things we are NOT responsible for doing.  We are not responsible for 'getting through material' with 'easy to create' lessons.  We are responsible for sparking life long learning.  We are not assigned to stuff knowledge into student's heads.  We are assigned for opening, and then blowing up, our students' minds (more on this on my next blog!) 

A big push in education is student engagement.  Are students asking questions? Are they showing grit?  Are they moving up Bloom's taxonomy? 

Here's my question: How can you expect your students to be engaged if the TEACHER isn't engaged?  

You are responsible for your students engagement, and it starts with you.  If you are creating safe lessons, lessons that don't excite you to teach, lessons that you are bored even thinking about, how can you expect your students be engaged to learn?

As Dave Burgess, author of Teach Like A Pirate says, "Safe lessons are a recipe for mediocrity at best."

And you did not wake up today to be mediocre.

Meet My New Baby, Neon!

I have a new baby!  I adopted one of the elements last night!

Confused? Want to know more?  So did so many of my students - and that is the beauty of using hooks when you teach.  Students want more information - they crave it.  It's torture to NOT give them knowledge.

Here is how a typical science lesson can go:

Teacher - "OK, we've been studying about elements.  We know how to arrange the electrons in the first twenty elements pretty well, and I'm pretty sure you know how to calculate the number of protons, neutrons, and electrons, so now you will all become an expert on one element.  You'll have to pick an element and do research on it.  You need to find out the key components of that element - the ones we have been talking about: melting and boiling points, period, group, as well as some interesting facts about the element.  Be sure to also include a Bohr's model.  You'll put everything on a poster and present it on Monday. I'll give you some class time today to get started."

The teacher is giving the information, telling the students what they know, and letting them know what the expectations are.  Picture what the students are doing while this information is being disseminated.  Are they focused? Are they interested? Are they engaged?  Are they looking interesting  facts up before you even tell them to do so?

Would you want to be in this classroom?

Most students in this classroom tuned out by the word "research."  Nobody is engaged, unless they have a strong internal desire to learn about the properties of elements.  The teacher is assuming knowledge that may or may not be there.  And the poor elements are literally all around them - in the air, the paper, the drool on the desk from the student that fell asleep -  thinking, "Is this what we've become? How drab!"

(Drab is elemental for "boring and non-pirate-esque")

In the book Teach Like A Pirate by Dave Burgess, you get dozens of great hook ideas, ways to transform lessons, and a chance to reflect on your pedagogy within the classroom.  I always felt I was a pirate-type teacher, but his presentation at The Association for Middle Level Educators really tied it together for me.

Here is how my science lesson looked:

First, as the students came into the classroom they saw me in the back of the room around a small doll bed.  I look down at the bed, smile, say I've gotta go teach now, cover up something in the bed, and head to the front of the room.

Props - one of the keys to teaching like a pirate!

I load up Kahoot and we review concepts presented in the past  couple of weeks.  I get some great formative feedback, including the fact that my students need more practice calculating the number of neutrons in an element, but I'm really happy with how well students have internalized the learning objectives.

A girl named Lauren was the winner, pulling ahead on the final question, and got to do her victory lap dance around the classroom as we applauded.

This was the final question that gave her the win. There were massive protests.

The students - now fully engaged in the class - are told a bit about my evening.  I got approval to adopt a new baby.  His name is Neon and he's gorgeous - a beautiful orange red baby!  I show them the adoption papers and explain that the adoption agency allowed me to let students also adopt elements that weigh between 3 and 20 AMUs.  

Students are directed to their notebooks.  They look at what elements this might include.  They connect that these are the first 20 elements except for Hydrogen and Helium.  My class is only 16 students, so I tell them that each baby element can only be adopted once.  I also told them I'm not giving up my baby, so Neon is also out!

We then use instant classroom to hold a 'draft' as to which element they get to adopt.  After a student makes a selection, I give them their new 'baby' - with artwork designed by Kacie D.  

From there I shared both my example adoption paper as well as a template for them to create their own paper.  Students already had links to resources to complete the assignment.  I explained that adoption papers were due by Monday.  It didn't matter - many of the students wanted to get started right then.  

Now, this lesson wasn't without issues.  Upon reflection, I didn't do as well as I could have during the 'draft' portion.  Students were choosing elements that they knew other students wanted, and at times were laughing at how some of the elements looked.  I did address this the next day, but  I could have done a much better job of community building by addressing these issues immediately. 

However, this lesson got every student EXCITED to have a deeper understanding of one specific element.   Students were asking if there was a limit to how many fun facts they could research - can they do their own art work - could you make a bigger poster?   Teaching like a pirate changes student engagement WITHOUT changing content.  In fact the content tends to go deeper and becomes more intrinsic because of the thrill that comes with the learning.

Teaching like a pirate transforms your classroom - what pirate stories do you have?  How do you hook your students?