It's been a seven year fight, but we finally have honors English classes at each grade level. After a brief victory dance, I had to face a frightening reality: I don't know how to teach an honors class. For seven years, I have had classes with freshmen through seniors whose reading levels ranged from third grade to college. Now I have one class (my biggest at 36), all students who scored advanced (or very close) on their ELA CST and got and A or a B in language arts in middle school. In August I was faced with creating a full curriculum using 1:1 iPads, and then figuring out how my honors curriculum would differ. All I knew is I didn't want honors to just be more work, I wanted it to be different work.
I found part of the solution at Cue Rock Star in August at Minarets High. Dr. Mark Wagner brought up the idea of using Google's 20% business model in class. I immediately knew I wanted to try it, especially since my students would have iPads.
The idea in action: I had my honors class start reading Of Mice and Men and after the first chapter we had a discussion about the setting, especially how time is just as important as place. We brainstormed what they knew about the Great Depression, taking notes in Smartnote (http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/smartnote/id362165952?mt=8). Then I gave them a list of topics related to the Great Depression (i.e. the Stock Market crash, poverty, education, etc) and they had to find a partner and choose a topic. These days are fun because topics are first come, first served and we end up with bribes and rock-paper-scissors match-ups. I then give them one day/week to work on the project. The only direction they get is they have to create a presentation in iMovie or Keynote to present to the class. I want them to use creativity that's not restricted by assignment requirements.
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