Exploring Learning

For the past few weeks I have been working on scaffolding my IGCSE Second Language English class. These lessons arose out of the start of year assessment we conducted to determine levels and needs. This is pure assessment for learning. The writing was very weak and in reality, way below the prerequisite for success at this level. However, as I am a big believer in self-fulfilling prophecies, I told them what a great start they had made and proceeding to dig deep to form some solid foundations to allow them the success they deserve. The IGCSE exam requires learners to write two essays of between 100-200 words each, depending on the level of paper they sit. One requires formal register , and one, informal register - normally a letter. AfL dictated that a letter was at present out of reach and so, my little unit on postcards was born. Previously, I have written about the first two weeks of this plan which involved: labelling an image of a beach to provide and expand vocabulary ...

Source: The Use of Social Media in School

Last week, I wrote about how I broke down informal writing for my second language IGCSE class. This post outlines the second part of the learning - you can read about the first part,  on my post, Scaffolding Beginner ESL . Briefly, the first part involved: using an image of a beach to label and provide vocabulary cloze  sentences using the vocabulary writing their own sentences using the vocabulary scanning  and skimming postcards for language patterns drafting postcards to someone in the room writing responses to these drafts This week, I included some speaking and listening using FOTOBABBLE.  Fotobabble is an easy to use website that allows learners to upload a photograph or image of their choice and then record themselves talking about it. First, we found images of  either places they had been, or places they have always wanted to go to. They also had the opportunity to use Facebook or Instagram to use photos of them...

Our school is 1:1 but in its infancy. It is a new initiative that will revolutionise  our learner's experience of education. However, teaching learners to manage themselves in a paperless way is posing somewhat of a challenge. Homework in particular is a problem; the recording of homework specifically, is an issue. I use Edmodo to post homework. I use Google Calendar, which is embedded in their page on my Learning Site , and shared with them to add to their own calendars. I also use the school site, which is the party line. Homework is therefore recorded for them in three places, so they have many ways to find it. Are they doing it? No, not always. Part of the problem might be the lack of transference. We know that the physical act of writing helps learning. If they are passively receiving homework instructions, perhaps they are not actively engaging with it. Ever-searching for solutions to help my learners organise  themselves digitally, I recently found out abou...

My Year 11 class are working on informal writing. As part of their IGCSE assessment, they have to to be able to write using appropriate register and style. This involves their being able to interpret the question in order that they are able to identify the correct language to use. It means they also have to have the language ability to choose the correct diction, tone and formality level. Last week, we worked on PAT - Purpose (why), Audience (who) and Text Type (what) and they had a go at identifying these three things in a number of different tasks. This means they have some skills at begin able to unpack a task and make decisions about how to format their answer as well as the kind of language they need to use. Informal letters are a common assessment task in the IGCSE exam. Planning backwards from this final outcome, I designed the following lessons. Build vocabulary: I found an image of a beach with plenty of things going on and asked learners to label it. After a ...

My Year 8s are working on autobiographical writing in a unit I have called, 'Scraps of Me'. The final outcome is a scrapbook of five important life events. They will create a scrapbook and each page features an image and a paragraph describing the event and the impact it had on their life. A final paragraph explores how these events have contributed to their sense of self; of who they believe they are. Scaffolding up to this, we have been working on time lines that graph out positive and negative experiences with short descriptions. We have also been focusing on nouns and adjectives, as our assessment focus is to write imaginative and interesting texts. Yesterday, I tried "Running Dictation", an idea suggested to me by a colleague. Learners were in differentiated teams according to ability and given a team colour - red, blue, green and orange. Each team was given a space in the classroom, a large piece of paper, a marker and a set of (differentiated) in...

I have started this year with a commitment to develop literacy through reading and writing. I dedicate the start of every lesson to ten minutes silent reading. Sometimes I listen to the learners read, sometimes I ask them to tell me about their reading. Read about this in my post, Inspiring a Reading Community . We also write for fifteen to twenty minutes each lesson. This writing is done in a separate book to their lesson work. It is an opportunity to explore and play with language and is a chance to write what they want to write. Read about how I set this up and where I got my inspiration in my post, Spilling Ink. Each lesson they are given the option to: - write something they need to write about - re-work or continue with something they have previously written - use the writing prompt. I provide a new writing prompt each week - and they can write a poem, a list, a story, a letter, a speech, a script - whatever they want. Some prompts I have used so far this ye...

I have started this year with a commitment to develop literacy through reading and writing. I dedicate the start of every lesson to ten minutes silent reading. Sometimes I listen to the learners read, sometimes I ask them to tell me about their reading. After each session, learners complete a reading log . They summarise or ask questions, predict or write about how they reading made them feel. Sometimes I ask them to talk about their reading with a partner or small group. Sometimes we share reading as a class. We use Edmodo as a learning portal, and I am amazed at the sharing that has been going on about books. My Year 7 class in particular are constantly writing on Edmodo to each other about the books they are reading or making recommendations. I have also set up a Reading Buddy programme. In the first week of the academic year, I asked all my classes to write to me about things they would like to do in English this year. My Year 7s asked to read with primary learners. I appr...