Rethinking Time in the Middle School Classroom

Rethinking Time in the
Middle School Classroom
Presented by
Mindi Rench, Literacy Coach
Northbrook Jr. High, Northbrook, IL
mrench@northbrook28.net Follow me on Twitter: @mindi_r
http://slideshare.net/mindi_r
Monday, August 18, 14

Think about your
typical class
period:
How much time is spent in:
• teacher talk;
• teacher directed Q & A;
• students talking to each
other;
• students working
independently?

Why do we need to make
time for students to talk?
Giving students time to talk collaboratively provides important
opportunity for rehearsal before writing or large-group
discussions.
Human beings are social creatures who learn best through
conversation. Teens, especially, are social, and leveraging that
need increases engagement.
“Oral language is a cornerstone on which we build our literacy
and learning throughout life.” (Zwiers & Crawford, 2011)

Turn & Talk
What are you thinking about in terms of
your instruction and how you might
incorporate more time for students to talk?

So how do teachers create space and
time for thinking and talking?
Consider the workshop/gradual
release of responsibility model:
The workshop embodies the philosophy of
I do...
We do....
You do....

See the model in action
https://www.teachingchannel.org/videos/improving-
teacher-practice

Components of a Workshop
Choice
Instruction
Time
Talk
Periods of focused study
High expectations and Safety
Structured management

Large group meeting area
Well-organized classroom library
Taking ownership of learning.

Structure of a
Workshop
Minilesson (Whole class instruction, guided
practice)
Independent work time (shoot for 70% of a
week’s worth of class time for independent
work)
Reﬂection/Sharing

Planning
What do students need to know and be able to
do in order to be better adults? How can I
help students come to know what they know and
are able to do? What will I do if they don't get it?
That Workshop Book by Samantha Bennett, p. 7

But.....
What about the curriculum we
have to cover?
More and more brain research tells us that students are
not retaining most of what teachers cover over the course
of the school year.
Interval research shows that when students are learning a
new concept, they will retain and reapply newly learned
information for about 6 days. When you go back at look at
6 week mark, they are still retaining concept, can describe
it, but cannot apply it. At six month mark, both are gone
with there is lack of depth.
Teach FEWER concepts of GREAT IMPORT to GREAT DEPTH
over A LONGER period of time.

Instruction
What daily systems, structures, routines, and rituals
will help me uncover what my students know and
are able to do so I can teach them more today and
teach them better tomorrow? What will
help students know so they can become intrinsically
motivated agents of their own learning?
That Workshop Book by Samantha Bennett, p. 7

A Closer Look at Small Groups
Invitational Groups
Teacher chooses a group of
students and invites those and/
or others who are interested in
the instruction to a small
group session. Instruction is
targeted and specific. Groups
are flexible.
Literature Discussion Groups
Small groups of students (3-5)
read and discuss a common
text. The teacher serves as an
observer/facilitator of the
groups. Choice and flexibility
are key.

Assessment
How will I know what students have learned? How
will I use the data I collect to make decisions on
what will happen next for both whole class
instruction and individual students. Are my
assessments truly assessing the learning targets I
have set for my students? Do I provide useful
feedback to students following both formative and
summative assessments?

Conferring
Conferring, both individually and with groups of
students, provides immediate formative
assessment.
Conferring also provides a platform for
differentiation, as instruction can be tailored to
each individual student’s needs.
Consider using reﬂection and short writing
prompts as exit tickets for another formative
assessment.

Stop-Think-Jot
Take a minute to think. What is going on in
your brain right now? What sounds doable?
What questions are at the forefront? Now
take a few minutes to explore one of these
ideas or questions in writing. Write for three
minutes. Don’t stop to think, just write. See
where your writing takes you.

Things to Consider Before You Start
Rituals and Routines
Physical Space
Management
Time (both yours and the students’)
Curricular considerations

One LA Teacher’s Typical Schedule
10-15 minutes: Opening Activity (vocabulary, article of
the week, poem, read aloud)
10-20 minutes: Whole Class Instruction(minilesson,
discussion, shared reading)
30-40 minutes: Independent Work (writing, independent
reading, conferring)
5 minutes: Closing Remarks & Wrap-up

A Science Teacher’s Workshop
Schedule (40 minutes)
15 minutes: Whole class instruction
20 minutes: Group activity or independent work
5 minutes: Wrap-up/Sharing

Setting Yourself and Your Students
Up For Success
Think about the rituals and routines you’ll need to
teach the students in order to create a classroom
environment that encourages and celebrates student
voices and choices.
Develop structures for pairs, small groups, and
individuals to work within the classroom.
Teach students how to work together in groups. Build
on the adolescents’ natural need to be social.

Final thoughts.....
Making time for students to talk to each other results in
deeper learning and greater retention.
Two of my favorite quotes:
“School should not be a place where young people go to
watch old people work.” - Harry Wong
“The person who is doing the thinking is the person who is
doing the learning.” - Ellin Keene
Using the workshop/gradual release of responsibility model
gives students choices and a sense of agency which in turn
results in increased motivation.

Rethinking Time in the Middle School Classroom

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