Changing My Teaching Style

After a lot of thought I changed my teaching style to the facilitator. This meant good bye to groups and hello to teaching students the skills for learning. So it means that each day we begin with looking at the tasks and breaking down what it is that I need to learn in order to complete the tasks over the next week. We still do writing, reading , maths and inquiry.

By planning the tasks for learning it has guided my teaching but also allows more time for conferencing to meet the students needs as well as being able to target learning areas.

Today I felt a state of discomfort and was ready to go back to groups and maths being done at maths time rather than students having choice over when they want to do things.

After calling a meeting and asking the kids what they thought. They wanted to carry on with the new system. They were honest that they found time limits hard to stick to. We decided that I would provide them with a print out of the learning tasks as they find it hard to look at all of the tasks online.

After lunch today we sat down and went through the learning in each of the tasks. Highlighting what it is that we may need to learn. Students reflected on how they needed to take responsibility for their learning and they felt that the new system allowed them to feel in control of their learning.

I think for me as a teacher I was concerned that I wasn't doing what I needed to. But on reflection now I had not thought through the process of how this could pan out. I expected the kids to be able to do it. By going back to a pen and paper timetable and unpacking the tasks and the learning. I feel better and the kids are more confident.

Next year I would like to spend the first two weeks just breaking down tasks.

On Friday I am going to go through the tasks that I have set with the kids and ask them what I need to teach them to plan the following weeks teaching.

We plan together!

Carol Session -3

Be uncompromising in what you expect to be delivered but be patient with the people delivering it.

I agree

· Everyone has their own style and are able to teach it in different ways

· Provide reflective time afterwards

· Goal the same but how people get to it different.

It is about people work not power work. Sometimes people abuse their position of power when others don’t have the tools to get it.

Key Point Today :Working through Others

ü It is impossible for the Principal to do everything. The tasks, responsibilities etc can be delegated.

ü Accountability is always with the person delegating.

ü Through my role I have to delegate through others but I am still responsible for the outcome.

In order to work through others

1. Trust- in the others that you are asking to do

2. Accountability

3. People work

The Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership

Reading from ICT Cluster

I found this reading fantastic, I could relate to all 5 practices and it has allowed me time to reflect on where I can improve.

First I want to summarise a few points under each of the five practices as I feel they are of value to me and are the sections that I was able to reflect on my leadership in ICT throughout the school.

Model the Way

• Leaders need personal credibility
• If people don't believe in the messenger, they won't believe the message
• Titles are granted to you, leadership is earned
• Leaders have to stand up for their beliefs and be clear about their guiding principles
• As leader you can't impose your values on others and expect them to commit. (This is where I have reflected and we are running workshops on the purpose of blogs and class pages so that staff see a purpose and can create a shared belief.)
• Engage others to common goals
• Create shared values and embrace these

This final statement really stuck with me as a sign of leadership

"Leaders do what they say; whether their words and deeds are consistent. Leaders set an example and build commitment through simple, daily acts that create progress and build momentum."

I feel that I do this I model good practice of ICT and support others in their journey meeting their needs along the way.

Inspire A Shared Vision

• Leaders inspire a Shared Vision by envisioning the future and enlisting others in a common vision. (I think I need to do this better so have set up a workshop on the purpose of blogging)
• Leaders passionately believe that they can make a difference.
• Leaders cannot command commitment; they can only inspire it. What may begin as "my" vision emerges as "our" vision

Challenge The Process

• Those who lead others to greatness seek and accept challenges
• Leaders challenge the process by searching for opportunities and by experimenting, taking risks and learning from mistakes.
• Leaders must remain open to receiving ideas from anyone and anywhere
• Leaders know that experimentation, risk and even failure are involved when taking up challenges

Enable others to Act

• Leaders know they can't do it alone. Leadership is a team effort. (This has been my greatest achievement over the last year, realising that I don't have to do it on my own and to use my team to help me out. Celebrating their successes in leadership with them.)
• Enable others to avt by fostering collaboration and strengthening others.
• Leaders proudly explained how teamwork, trust, and empowerment were essential to strengthening.
• At the very heart of cooperation is trust.
• The work of leaders is making people feel strong, capable, informed and connected.

Encourage The Heart

• Part of the leader's job is to show appreciation for people's contributions and to create a climate of celebration.

I have been sending emails to staff who have been showing and sharing blogging with others to congratulate them on their efforts. I had fantastic responses from people.

Team Meeting 3.5

To we had an indepth discussion on planning. After sharing our planning and talking about the purposes, I feel confident that my planning is meeting the needs of the students as well as any other teacher that walked into my room and needed to teach.

One part I am still unsure about is the purpose of the unit plan. When it was being discussed I interpreted that the unit planning was for you only. However after reflection I don't think I agree. I think that the unit plan is for everyone and is just as important as the daily planning. I see it as the back bone to your classroom. If it is not sound and strong then you spend your weeks searching for resources. The unit plan to me should be detailed and focus but have room for movement dependent on the students as they develop through the unit.

Writing Reflection Term 1

Teacher Inquiry Focus: Student Conferencing
What have I done so far?
Students have a log and I have worked with 3 students a day on identifying parts of the matrix that they have meet well. Getting the students to tell me what they think they did well and where they would like to go to next. I record the conversation in their logs.
Successes:
Students are aware of the matrix and examples of each aspect of the deeper features.
Students are able to identify what they did well.
What hasn't worked:
Some students that are more dependent struggle to write without support when I am conferencing.

Students struggle to identify where to next.

Joy Allcock DVD Chapter 1 - Blending, deleting and substituting sounds

Some key main points that I got out of watching the first section:

• Words are strings of sounds


• That we use letters in various combinations to write these sounds down.


• That the same sound can be written in many different ways


• That the same letter or spelling pattern can be pronounced in different ways.

She also drew attention to it doesn't matter how old you are you can always relearn the sounds as long as the four main understandings are ingrained.

So where to for me and my practise

Teach the sounds and let students that this can be written in many differnet ways.

Over the holidays to read parts that I need to teach in relation to the GAP analysis test.

Maths Action Plan

1) To teach mathematics in context.
• Make connections between Maths and other curriculum areas.
• Teach maths in context in non Number Strands. For example, teaching decimals when working with measurement.
• Teach maths in any situation e.g. EOTC, camps where relevant.
2) To track progress in Mathematics
• To ensure we are using GLOSS to test for Numeracy Strategy stage throughout the year whenever our team is teaching a particular domain.
• To ensure teachers are familiar with the mini GLOSS test questions and Dinah’s sheet for recording students’ responses.
• To record data on MUSAC to show beginning and end of year levels and stages in every strand.
• Dependent on Team planning as to how often these are done.

3) To use the data we have to change and inform our teaching
• To use Knowledge and basic facts tests to identify next learning steps.
• After completing the Mini GLOSS tests on students, identify their next learning steps, and ensure these are covered in Mathematics programme.
• To analyse all the data from all the strands of Mathematics and identify trends, strengths or weaknesses of students. If there is a specific trend e.g. if students are failing in Measurement, then make that a focus for Dinah to help us improve our practise in this area.
• Use the PAT Maths Data to identify gaps and use these to create our Thinking Thursday Problems.


• Use grouping sheets provided in Maths folder to group students according to strategy. Record Knowledge percentages beside their names and arrow over any movement/progress.
• Twice a year for Knowledge test. Four times a year for basic facts.
• Dependent on Team planning.