Ready? Show-Down! These are common words used in our classroom for cooperative learning activities and to showcase our work. Whiteboards are a staple of our learning environment, as they allow us to move from place to place in the classroom, taking our work with us. They are a safe way to learn
We are a 4th and 5th grade combo class, in a low-income Title 1 school, in the heart of a large metropolis.
Most students at our school are second language learners, filled with optimism, ambition and the desire to learn. We are authors, illustrators, scientists, engineers, mathematicians, explorers, and a "family". We help one another learn, through whatever means it takes, and for as long as is needed to reach mastery. We believe in ourselves! We are proactive and goal oriented and our classroom is our home away from home - a safe place to learn.
My Project
Every day we use whiteboards to help us learn. The boards we currently have are small, cracked, and stained. We use them anyway, because they allow us to transition from one spot to another, from one partner to another, and from one activity to another easily. They make learning fun and safe. It's fun to write on a whiteboard and it's safe to make a mistake, as it is easily erased. We use our whiteboards for one-on-one tutoring, small group practice, partner games, and to demonstrate our learning. We use Kagan's Showdown cooperative learning strategy regularly. Ready? Showdown! We show our answer on our individual boards and a quick and easy assessment has just taken place. These boards are great because they can stand on the desk and are magnetic - creating even more uses than our current boards. The possible uses for these boards to enhance our learning is limitless.
With these magnetic, standing whiteboards my students have a way to practice their learning in a way that is functional, portable, and safe.
Students will push themselves when using a whiteboard because if they make a mistake it is easy to correct and to continue on. We do a lot of partner and small group practice using whiteboards - activities such as math games, hangman, vocabulary, test prep, and problem solving are done using these boards. To have a set of clean, undamaged boards = heaven
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