“Tell about a professional read (book, article, blog post) that has had an impact on you. Why/How?”
Recently I read Practice productive procrastination from Blue Skunk Blog by Doug Johnson. He asks,
“Should we be encouraging student to practice productive procrastination as well? Should kids be working on math in our English class when they get tired of reading their novel? Could they read that novel during social studies? Are we allowing kids to choose better options than Twitter?”
I commented on this post the following:
This is exactly why I loved teaching a special ed self-contained class. I taught 4 subjects to my students over 4 periods a day. I would have a weekly assignment sheet with all of their assignments for each subject and each day. This allowed me to individualize the lessons and sometimes students with the same assignment could work as a group. It also allowed students the flexibility to work on the assignment that they wanted to do first. I was able to help students who needed help and those waiting could start on an assignment that didn't require my help. Students remain engaged instead of bored waiting for help. Some students liked to start on the hardest subject for them and get it out of the way. Others liked to do the easiest and leave the hardest for last. Sometimes I could let students who already completed an assignment help others who were working on it. I love having many options throughout the day for myself so why wouldn't I allow my students to have the same flexibility?
How would you answer Doug’s questions? Please share.
Image: 'Flexibility'
http://www.flickr.com/photos/16462767@N00/3983734887
Found on flickrcc.net
No comments:
Post a Comment