This past school year I tried something new in the mornings with my students for lunch count. In previous years, students had moved their little icon on the SmartBoard to mark what they were having for lunch, but I realized I wanted more information from them when they arrived. Since we are a GAFE district, I decided to utilize a Google Form for this task. As we started, I changed the questions every few days until I got to a set that I felt were accomplishing what I wanted. Here is a screen shot of what we used for most of the year. As you can see, from the data I got from this form I was able to complete my lunch count, but also, I was able to see how my students were coming into my classroom. I could instantly know if I needed to check-in with any students based on how they were feeling. Allowing them to set a goal for themselves was an interesting process. Some students started off by writing, "have a good day." Well, what does that really mean or look like? Over the course of the year, we worked on setting goals that were more clearly defined. Data Example:This snipit of my data shows you some of the goals my students were coming up with (names and id numbers have not been included). Is spelling great? No, but that wasn't the purpose of this task. Over time, my students grew to be thoughtful about the goals they were choosing. For example, you can see a goal in the data that says, "not scare students." That particular student had an outburst the day before that scared some younger students and we had met and talked about that. I could tell from this goal that he had really thought about our discussion and wanted to make a change. There are also a lot of "picking up trash" goals because our principal was making frequent morning announcements about the amount of trash at lunch. An unexpected result of the morning check in form was the practice of tech skills! I had my kindergartners through third graders working on this form. They "checked in" on desktops, Chromebooks, and iPads. I wanted to help them become fluent on many types of devices. And guess what? Even kinders can use a trackpad on a Chromebook! Have questions? Don't hesitate to ask!
14 Comments
Cori
6/8/2016 04:27:36 pm
I'm so glad you are sharing this! I had previously told many people about your system. I love that you know in "real time" how your students are feeling as they come in the door and the goal setting is amazing! Keep it up!
Reply
Jamie Reese
6/8/2016 05:40:25 pm
Well, I figured I should start sharing things I am actually doing IN my classroom! Hopefully it gives someone an idea or place to start especially with going 1:1 next year in our own district.
Reply
Dianne
6/8/2016 04:43:35 pm
Love it Jamie! Cori told me about it. I'm going to give it a try next year. I've had the same morning procedure for too long! Time to switch it up. What do they do after they've checked in?
Reply
6/8/2016 05:39:20 pm
After they finish checking in they go to the carpet to sit for calendar. If some kiddos are taking awhile they would look at books until we were ready to start. You could also do a Youtube video of the day while kids were finishing up. :)
Reply
Yvonne Baird
6/9/2016 01:48:02 pm
Looks interesting. I really like the goals. Is there a way I could organize the lunch data by lunch?
Reply
Jamie Reese
6/9/2016 02:43:26 pm
oooo, I bet that there is!!! I'll play with it this summer and let you know... or look on Alice Keeler's blog, alicekeeler.com, as she posts tips with sheets frequently.
Reply
Jennifer Reinhart
6/9/2016 02:49:38 pm
I love this idea. You had shared it at our staff development in March. How do you then get the lunch count to the office?
Reply
Jamie Reese
6/9/2016 02:58:03 pm
I created a Google Form for our office (in honesty, it needs revamping) and all teachers just plug their numbers into the form and send it! :)
Reply
Aldo
6/9/2016 03:18:34 pm
I love stuff like this. Too many times we get so busy just starting the day we just don't get a chance to get a pulse on how the students are. This is a great way to not only teach and practice the tech skills, but more importantly, to see how the students are before we start instruction.
Reply
6/20/2016 06:11:49 pm
Thank you! I loved it this year and am hoping is gives some other teachers new ideas for how to start their day next year!
Reply
Erika (Abes) Bassett
6/16/2016 10:16:24 pm
Hi Jamie!
Reply
6/20/2016 06:11:06 pm
Wow! What a small world!! Thank you so much and for reaching out! Our district is going 1:1 next year! I've been fortunate to already been mostly 1:1 in my SDC class. I would love to share ideas! Are you on Twitter? That's where I'm at usually :) @teachermsjamie
Reply
Jessica Vannasdall
7/21/2016 12:31:53 pm
I really like the feelings check in. It just gives you that little bit of extra information that may give you insight during the day. Just another way to build relationships with students. Love this.
Reply
7/21/2016 02:53:37 pm
YES! That is exactly right, it totally lets me know who I need to check in with before we even get going. Let me know if I can assist you with anything!
Reply
Leave a Reply. |
Ventura County Teacher of the Year 2016.
On a journey: Special Ed Teacher, Mentor, EdTech Advocate, Book Nerd, Knitter, Risk Taker, LA Kings Fan, #Whole30 lover, #SVTChat, GCE Level 1, Daring Greatly Categories
All
|