Some of the strategies that I have implemented are:
- Giving instructions in a variety of forms.
- Making instructions clear, concise and easy to follow
- Buddy students up with more capable students.
- Provide visual reminders
- High floor, low ceiling tasks
- Personalised 'To Do' lists
- Now/Next systems
When setting up tasks I made a concerted effort to ensure that there is a visual aspect to instructions that students can refer back to later. One way that I have done this is through the use of QR codes. After giving instruction verbally, I will display a QR code that acts as a short cut to take students to the instructions if they don't understand or forget what has being said. I have also made an effort to show on the smart T.V what I am saying verbally. This has proven to be particularly useful during circle time as a reminder for students when completing T/P/S.
Making instructions clear and concise is still something that I am striving for. To shorten the amount of time that I talk I will often get the students to read instructions first and then share with a buddy the questions that they have or important information that they have noticed. After doing this I answer questions and provide a brief synopsis of what is required for the activity. I am still working on making my instructions concise and feel that sometimes I am still giving too many instructions in one go.
When students complete maths rich tasks I give them the option to buddy up to complete the work. I have noticed that there are several students that take advantage of this option and this has worked well helping to scaffold the less able students. I have also buddied my special needs student up in the afternoon to help him to complete his independent work.
My visual reminders are often in text form and one thing that I am conscious of is my less able students having difficulty accessing the task due to their low reading ability. There is one boy in particular that often finds it difficult to get started and this is often due to him being unsure of what he needs to do. To counter this, I need to be prepared with a similar or less complex task that I can use as a model to get him started. The modelling process will need to have a strong visual component so that he can actually see what he needs to do. Using materials to demonstrate how to complete a maths problem would work well for this. I have also considered using a visual to do list with this student so that he can see what he needs to do during his self direct learning time. This is something I am yet to do and will be a focus for next Term.
Having a high floor and low ceiling has been a big focus for me when setting maths rich tasks. I am always conscious of making the task accessible to my lower students while having the scope to extend my more able mathematicians. This has been a tricky balance and is something that I need to continue to work on. Maths has been the big focus, however I intended to extend this idea of Low floor and High ceiling to other areas of the curriculum for the remainder of the year.
One of my students is currently using a personalised 'To Do' list and this is working extremely well for him. I touch base with him in the morning to go through with him the set tasks and explain anything new. I have made an adaptation to the list from last year which has worked well. This year the student is required to complete at least 3 tasks from the list each block and there are also some tasks that are highlighted red which are the ones that he must do. Once he has completed the required tasks then he is able to move onto his 'can do' tasks. The student continues to respond well to this approach as he has choice and flexibility around what activities he choses and when he does them.
I have one student currently working on a 'Now' 'Next' programme. This system functions during self directed learning time. The student is required to complete one core learning task before moving onto something of his choosing. The basis for choosing this system was to have something is simple and easy to follow and which allows the student to have a break to help him to stay motivated to complete his learning tasks. At present the student requires my assistance with setting up and choosing a task each day. As the year goes on I would like him to be setting up his own learning independently. One way that I can encourage this is by using points as a positive motivator for him to set up and get started without the help of the teacher.
To summarise, some of the key things that I will work on in Term 3 are:
- Only giving a few instructions at a time.
- Preparing a parallel example with visuals that can be used to get students started.
- Create a visual To Do list that can help one of my students stay on track during S.D.L
- Applying the concept of low floor, high ceiling to all areas of the curriculum (not just maths)
- Using a positive motivator to encourage one of my students to have more independence during S.D.L
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