When you start your project with your students you need to first consider what materials are going to have to be used in order for your students to be successful in the project. I would first consider what you have in the classroom. Are their enough materials for your students to use in the classroom? Does the students have access to a computer or books or a source of information to research and learn more? Also you need to consider well ahead of time any funds that might be needed in order to complete the project. Some projects might include field trips or projects where the students build or create something. All of those things require you to have the funding in order to pay for necessary transportation, tickets, materials, and untold amounts of things that could come up. Some projects might require you to write a grant to ask for funding from the school district. These grants have to submitted months ahead of time and takes a long time to hopefully get approved (that alone is difficult) let alone receive the actual funding. Often times you might have to cooperate with parents and the community for funds to support the students.
Once the project is started there are some classroom management issues that can occur. I think it is very important for teachers to be flexible and know when to stop the project for the day and to continue tomorrow, or to encourage a topic and pursue it further and move other plans for the day. The Common Core State Standards are very rigid in design, so flexibility can be a huge issue. It can be difficult to encourage independent learning while also attending to what the student has to learn that year in the classroom. That is why intertwining the class management between the project and other coursework.
This connects to our project because we have to consider the materials that are needed to perform our project in class. Can we afford what is needed (cough task stream and books are expensive cough)? Do we have access to a computer in the classroom and out of the classroom? Are we able to keep in contact with our partner and support their material needs? These are all questions we answered when we started this course, we do it before we hash out multiple paychecks to buy what we need to hopefully succeed, and these are all questions that we will face in the classroom.
Hi Adam!
ReplyDeleteI really liked how you talked about first considering what you already have available in your classroom when beginning a project. I think all too often, even us as teachers forget to look right in front of us when it's time to make something happen! I have been in schools that searched outside of themselves to acquire materials and resources that were right in front of them! However, as teachers we must also be able to detect when we do not have the tools necessary for success and quickly work to find them.
Nice job!
-Sabrina
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ReplyDeleteI like the points you made about finding materials for projects. Looking in the classrooms first definitely makes sense, saves time and money. I also like how you are thinking about what students may or may not have access to, for a project to succeed students need to be able to have the tools to succeed. You also had some good point about staying flexible. Flexibility in the classroom is huge because the students are all different, and even an individual student can change moods day to day and need a change of pace.
ReplyDeleteAdam I like that you thought of the idea of writing a grant and the fact that it has to be done months in advance. I do not believe that we can acquire additional funding from our school district, if so a district like KPS your chances are slim to none. I do know there is a wealth of resources out there though. As you said, if we know what we are planning to teach its worth doing the research to find what grants your classroom could qualify for.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading your post. I agree with the point that you made about looking and considering what materials a teacher has in their classroom and accessible to them before getting to far into the project. I think if teachers take this into account then they will save money because they will try to make use of what they have. The questions you listed are all great things to think about. I like the point you also made about making use of grants. Grants are a great way for schools and teachers to receive funding so they can go on field trips or get different materials they need for the classroom. You brought up some great points about things teachers need to consider when starting and creating a project. I think the things you brought up would greatly help new teachers/teachers who are creating a project for their classroom.
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