BRAIN POWER!!!

I remember my first year of college and the local blockbuster video had an entire shelf dedicated to DVDs. Now, both DVDs and Blockbuster Video Stores are fading into the background. If you are like me and have witnessed the technology wave hit, it is time to succom to the vast ocean of high-tech information and communication.

Like flip phones and cassettes, many educators are relics of the past and are being asked to teach to ‘digital natives’ who have know nothing except a world consumed by technology.  High-tech environments are their way of life. So how do we teach to ‘digitally native’ students? Certainly not the way we were taught. I don't even know if our students would recognize a typewriter or a disc drive. The good news is they are still using one tool that we used too...THE BRAIN!!!!!

In the classroom we will have to create an environment that supports brain-based learning and recognizes the impact of technology in the process. As educators we need to take note of all the high-tech advancements in the last 15 years and teach our students to thrive in a future that will only be more-and-more technology laden.

The BRAIN is too complex to understand!

Come on...we are educators. We're practically SUPERHEROS. We can totally figure this out, right? We just need to completely simplify how the brain works in order to establish a good foundation to work from. Here is my completely over simplified version of how the brain works and how, as awesome ‘superhero’ educators we can teach students using the most powerful tool known to man….The BRAIN!!!!!!

The brain SENSES the environment

The brain adds up what it sees and INTEGRATES the information
Then it generates the appropriate movements and ACTS.

Knowing this, we need to create lessons that connects content to these three main processes of the brain, particularly with the innovative use of technology. Simple, right?.....WRONG. That’s why we leave teaching to superheros like us.

SENSING

Information is processed through the emotional center of the brain BEFORE the ‘thinking’ cognitive center. This means that we need to create a positive emotional environment for our students.  When considering environment, it is made up of two parts: the way it looks physically and the way it feels. 

The physical environment needs to be stimulating by infusing visuals that evoke emotions and connects to a students self (culture/history/etc) and interests (sports/hobbies/etc). We can do this through posters, physical artifacts, literature and even the digital images we display (video/powerpoints/etc).  In addition, we need to consider what elements promote or hinder this process. For example, the use of music and art connect with the emotional centers of the brain allowing information to connect with the ‘thinking’ part of the brain. On the other hand, stress hinders this process. We can work to minimize stress through calm lighting, relaxation zones, etc.

What does a student need to FEEL emotionally connected?

Let’s face it, superheros love being the center of attention, but these days students are the CENTER of education, not the teacher. This allows our students to feel like their interests/lives are being valued, building their self-worth. Having pride in their lives and for their work is incredibly motivating and essential to learning. We can support this by connecting content to their culture/interests and giving them choice in their work. Allowing them to use digital sources to not only research these areas, but also connect with them via communication forums (blogs/email/etc).

INTEGRATING

Now we need our students to take the information we are giving them and harness its amazing power.  We can do this by ‘planning multiple activities to activate the brain’s memory systems.’ Stations can be created in the classroom to not only meet the needs of differentiated learners, but also reinforce content knowledge through multiple activities. Next, we need to give the student time to reflect on what they learn and connect it to previous learning.  For example, if I am teaching a student about pyramids they can read a text, discuss in a group, watch a video, research online, build a model. Then we can give the student time to reflect on their learning and then report their findings (verbal/written). “When this "deep meaning" connects with "surface knowledge," you have what we call felt meaning, which is this "Aha!" experience that we now define as learning.’

ACTING

We do all of this so that our students can actually do something with everything they learn. They can show learning through many different actions as follows:

DEVELOPING 21st CENTURY SKILLS: Students are learning skills that will allow them to compete in the real world, such as collaboration, technology use and expanding their learning beyond the classroom.

TEST TAKING: Let’s face it….we live in an era of ‘high-stakes accountability for student performance.’ By integrating technology into brain based learning we are not only promoting 21st century skills, but also preparing them to take tests, which is an integral part of student achievement.

WOA...WOA...WOA...STOP the Clock!!!! Not everything about digital integration is good. We need to be aware of the downfalls in order to try and avoid them. First, increased technology use means less face-to-face interactions. This means our students struggle more and more with traditional modes of interaction, such as conversations and opt for texting/twittering/etc. We need to create opportunities to develop our students 21st century skill of face-to-face communication.

Second, students brains of changed. In my day, we had less simili and we had longer attention spans. With the influx of technology, our students are bombarded with stimuli and at a very quick rate. This has trained their brains to search for stimuli. This leads to shorter attention spans and an associated higher anxiety rate. Balancing between creating an environment that is stimulating enough, but not too overwhelming is a task only for a SUPERHERO.

1. The Art of Changing the Brain. (n.d.). Retrieved February 20, 2014, from file:///home/chronos/user/Downloads/the%20art%20of%20changing%20the%20brain-zull.pdf  
2. The Talking Page Literacy Organization - The Twelve Principles for Brain-Based Learning. (n.d.). The Talking Page Literacy Organization - The Twelve Principles for Brain-Based Learning. Retrieved February 19, 2014, from http://www.talkingpage.org/artic011.html
3. Brainbasedoverview. (n.d.). Brainbasedoverview. Retrieved February 19, 2014, from http://www4.uwsp.edu/education/lwilson/brain/bboverview.htm
4. Advice & Support. (n.d.). Teens and Social Media. Retrieved February 20, 2014, from http://www.childmind.org/en/posts/articles/2013-11-26-self-esteem-and-anxiety-digital-age
5. Building a Better School with Brain-Based Learning. (n.d.). Edutopia. Retrieved February 19, 2014, from http://www.edutopia.org/brain-based-learning-key-largo-school-video
6. Building a Better School with Brain-Based Learning. (n.d.). Edutopia. Retrieved February 19, 2014, from http://www.edutopia.org/brain-based-learning-key-largo-school-video 
7. Elementary-Age Learning. (n.d.). Videojug. Retrieved February 19, 2014, from http://www.videojug.com/interview/elementary-age-learning-2
8. School of Education at Johns Hopkins University-The Brain Targeted Teaching Model. (n.d.). School of Education at Johns Hopkins University-The Brain Targeted Teaching Model. Retrieved February 19, 2014, from http://education.jhu.edu/PD/newhorizons/Journals/spring2010/thebraintargetedteachingmodel/index.html

Planning for English Language Learners at Every Level

“Egypt gave birth to what later would become known as 'Western Civilization.” -John Henrik Clarke

How did the Egyptians influence our lives? Let me count the ways!!!

To do this I will teach a lesson on ‘A Day in the Life of an Egyptian.” During this lesson I will have students read a short story detailing the life of both a Nobleman and a Farmer. The story will detail items in the home, clothing, jobs, etc in conjunction with the use of pictures to visually describe the world of the Egyptian.  Then the student will do the same for a day in their life (1).

Let’s face it...when the world of ESL standards mixes ‘students of various linguistic and cultural backgrounds (2)’ in one classroom, teaching can get pretty tricky. Good news though, there are strategies to help not only our ELL students develop their English Language Proficiency, but also help our native speakers achieve even more.

So what’s the MAGIC combination? Well, not so much magic, just some pretty cool strategies. Here is how I will incorporate in my lesson plan to get the BIGGEST BANK FOR MY BUCK (because who wouldn't want that?).

• Vocabulary - I will introduce the following vocabulary words: Farmer, nobleman, meal, servant, jewelry, bedding, clothing, basket, lamp, lotus, reeds, kilt, linen, temple. I will then show the vocabulary in conjunction with an image to support the meaning.
• Guided Interaction- We will read the stories as a class and write down on the board which vocabulary items were written in the text. Then we will find the images that correlate to the vocabulary. In order to increase attention and participation I will let the students know that we will be assigning images to text by calling on students randomly and that they can ‘dial a friend’ if they get stumped and collaborate with them to reach an answer.
• Authentic Assessment: I will have the student break up into groups and ask them to read the story again, but this time the vocabulary words will be missing. They will be asked to write/draw in the vocabulary words in the spaces provided.
• Explicit Instruction - In order to check for understanding, I will ask the students to detail the events/objects in their daily routine and return to class prepared to share. They will detail the following in 1-2 sentences for each category as follows: Sleeping area, first meal of day, travel to school, classroom, returning home, final meal of day, bedtime routine.
• Meaning-Based Context- We will have each student share their day in groups. During review of student’s individual story they will identify how it is similar to a day in the life of an egyptian. What is similar? What is different? and will be asked to write the group responses down. As a class we will chart responses on the board in two respective columns (using text and pictures)
• Use of Visuals/Modeling- I will have students support their stories by illustrating their personal vocabulary, such as drawing their bed and what they ate for breakfast. They will be provided with an array of ways to do this: art supplies, magazines, computer/printer, etc. (3).

So, that concludes the magic portion of my lesson. Now I need to produce the rabbit from the hat (so to speak) in order to adapt my lesson for four separate students at four different stages of their language acquisition:

Stage I: Pre-production

I will partner this student with a fluent English speaker to complete the task. During the reading of the story this student will be given a handout with the rest of the students, but the handout will already have the vocabulary highlighted with a picture provided. Next to the text will be a line and next to the picture a box of equal size. The student will be asked to copy the word and picture in the corresponding spaces.

For the at home portion, the student will be given a handout (same as the rest of the class), but the handout will have all the sentences filled in except for spaces for a word and picture is to be filled in for each category. On the right side of the page there will be common vocabulary and images already provided (bed, breakfast, toothbrush/bath) that the student just has to transfer to the written text completing the story.

Stage II: Early production

For this student they will also be paired with a fluent English Language speaker. Their handouts will be the same as for Stage I, but instead of the words/images being provided for the storytelling portion, the vocabulary/images will be provided on the side. For the take home portion the student will have to write/draw their responses themselves. During the group collaboration portion, with the help of their partner they will share their personal story to be used for the group to further discuss similarities/differences.

Stage III: Speech emergence

The student’s handout for the storytelling will have the story only, with no vocabulary or images filled in. For the at home portion they will be given a handout with the description of what is to be completed along with a brief description of each category to be filled out in chronological order. During the group section they will actively participate in the conversation on similarities/differences.

Stage IV: Intermediate fluency

The student’s handout for the story will be blank as in the previous stage. In addition, to the right of the page each vocabulary word will have a space to write some additional descriptive words used in the story to describe the vocabulary. For example, if the story says, ‘The farmer slept on bedding that was rough and made of straw.’ the student can fill in the blank space next to BEDDING  with words like ‘rough’ and ‘straw.’

For the take home portion, the handout will describe the assignment, but offer no additional aids. During the group portion the student will actively participate in the discussion on similarities/differences and may be called upon to share either their personal story of ideas(4).

“A dream doesn't become reality through magic; it takes sweat, determination and hard work.” -Colin Powell

MY DREAM: Be creative in finding ways to meet my students at their level and working to bring them up to a level they can be proud of academically and socially. Ta Da!!!

Work Cited:

1. Egyptian Life. (n.d.). Egyptian Life. Retrieved February 14, 2014, from http://www.ancientegypt.co.uk/life/story/main.html
2. WHAT LANGUAGE INSTRUCTION EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS DO STATES USE TO SERVE ENGLISH LEARNERS? (2011, November). Retrieved February 14, 2014, from http://www.ncela.us/files/uploads/5/LIEPs0406BR.pdf
3. Six Key Strategies for English Language Learners. (n.d.). Retrieved February 14, 2014, from http://suu.edu/ed/fso/resources/esl-six-key-strategies.pdf
4. Stages of Second Language Acquisition. (n.d.). Stages of Second Language Acquisition. Retrieved February 14, 2014, from http://www.everythingesl.net/inservices/language_stages.php