The Bailey Times
March 2, 2020
Lesson Structure and Pacing
You will never have great pacing if you are winging it and trying to go off your years of experience to get you through the lesson. The problem is that many times teacher talk gets in the way of pacing which is another subject in itself!
The first place to look is at your lesson planning. We all plan together but it is up to each individual teacher to tweak the plans to meet the needs of their classroom and then to make sure that they are ready to initiate all parts of the lesson and have all materials and activities ready. There are two videos below that I feel are pretty straight forward and helpful even for experienced teachers. One of the main points of one of the videos is that pace is not about speed! I think we all know that, but I still feel some of us have not actually gotten what this indicator is really about. Pacing is the "illusion" of speed and there are many ways to do this in a lesson. Pace creates a sense of progress and change and one way to do this is by looking at the format for your lesson.
First, students need to know what they are expected to accomplish for the day with an agenda on the board, sheet of paper, or Promethean Board. Quickly walk them through the class period.
Here is what they are talking about when referring to format:
1. At the beginning of the lesson do a Quick Do Now and then move to a mini-lesson on what your trying to teach for that day and the criteria you are looking for.
2. Use entertainment as a reinforcement if possible such as a song, a video, or hand movements.
3. Give 3 or 4 guided examples for practice.
4. Let the students work together to generate content on the objective
5. Independent work with teacher walking around to see where trouble spots are and reteach as necessary.
6. Quick review
7. Exit Ticket
In a lesson you need variety in the format and activities so that you are spending no more than 10 minutes on one part of the lesson. Brain research says you lose focus after 10 minutes and I think all of us will agree with that. When you change the format for a minute you are creating a sense that they are moving forward and changing things up which helps your students feel they are getting somewhere and not just stuck listening to the teacher talk or in a group working on problems that has gone past the time for constructive work and is getting into students being off task. Activities such be a good mix of active and passive and you should shift between in order to create that "pacing" that keeps students engaged.
This is really an interesting area and there is hundreds of articles, blogs and videos on it. Take a moment to listen to the two videos below which are very short! You might learn something new!
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Great short video on Gratitude!
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Word for March and April is Self Awareness!
Self Awareness is having a clear perception of your personality, including strengths, weaknesses, thoughts, beliefs, motivation, and emotions. Self Awareness allows you to understand other people, how they perceive you, your attitude and your responses to them in the moment. ... This is a state of heightened awareness.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Medicare Information Meeting - March 10th
Please sign up if you think you might be coming!! We have to make sure there are enough people signed up to make it worthwhile for this guy to come to the school. Last year he came to the district only and people asked if he could come to the schools so Central Office is accommodating that request!
All staff and family members are invited whether you are retiring or not! This is just good information!
Please sign up for this meeting on March 10th! There is a sign in sheet by the teacher sign in books and there is one on my office door. Hopefully there will be enough people interested so that we can hear more about this subject since all of us will have Medicare in the future if not ourselves we will with our parents!
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Please take a moment to take the TNED Research Alliance Survey from the State of Tennessee - This is the survey we take every year to determine how all stakeholders feel about teaching, standards, professional development, administration, central office....you name it they try and cover it. All information is then shared with the district and published on the state website.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Please take a moment to look at some of the articles/blogs that are below! You might find some great information that can help you in the classroom or in this profession!
a ** by a change as a reminder. I know that some of you do work before school and try to plan accordingly with the calendar given, but I cannot guarantee that there will not be changes so you will need to be flexible with that.
March & April 2020
March
Wednesday 3/4
Principal's Meeting
Thursday 3/5
PD & Popcorn 4:45 - 6:15
Faculty Meeting 7:30 Library
Friday 3/6
5th Grade Bio Tech Day
Tuesday 3/10
POP UP Book Stop 9:15 - 1:45 and 5:00 - 6:30 (PTA meeting)
4:30 Medicare Meeting in the library (all staff is invited) Must sign up to make sure that we have enough to have the meeting!!
PTA Meeting 6:00
Thursday 3/12
CEF Trivia Night 5:30
Friday 3/13
Vocabuary parade
Mon - Fri 3/16 - Friday 3/20
Spring Break
Monday 3/23
Dress Down for Downs
Tuesday 3/24
PTA Board Mtg. Cafeteria
Wednesday 3/25
Wear Green for Cerebral Palsy
Thursday 3/26
Spring Pictures
Tuesday 3/31
Rotary Teacher of the Year 6:00 at National Golf Course
April
Wednesday 4/1
Assistant Principal Meeting
Memphis In May PreK, K, 1st
Thursday 4/2
Kindergarten Kickoff 5:30 - 6:30
Memphis In May 2nd and 3rd grades
Friday 4/3
Memphis In May 4th and 5th grades
Monday 4/6 through Thursday 4/9
Teacher Appreciation Week
Tuesday 4/7
Barnes and Noble Book Fair 5:00 - 7:00
Thursday 4/9
Faculty Meeting 7:30 Library
Friday 4/10
Holiday - Good friday
Monday 4/13 - Wednesday 4/29
TNReady Testing and Makeup Testing
Thursday 4/23 - Monday 4/27
I will be out of school
Tuesday 4/28
PTA Board Meeting 9:30 in cafe
Wednesday 4/29
Penny Wars
Thursday 4/30
Penny Wars
Tesreau Retirement Celebration 5:00 - 7:00