Presenters: Pam Lange Barb Rowenhorst Janet Hensley April 3, 2008

1. Welcome Back Presenters: Pam Lange Barb Rowenhorst Janet Hensley April 3, 2008

2. Preparing All Students for Success Purposeful instruction, assessment, and staff development. Actively promote a climate of achievement: Incentives and celebrations. Structure strong school building leadership. Support students in building knowledge and skills for success today and tomorrow.

3. To understand the definition of a learning group. To learn about and create “learning group” activities to implement in the classroom. To extend knowledge of Marzano strategy implementation. Outcomes:

4. Welcome Learning Groups Cubing/Think Dot (revisited) Lunch Choice Boards/Menu Boards Planning Agenda

5. Janet

6. Exit Card • Easy strategy for • assessing student learning • Students respond to prompts or questions; turn in cards as they leave • Teacher uses card to help create groups, monitor student progress, revise lesson On Target, Strategies to Help Struggling Readers, page 27

7. Our Exit Card • List three things you learned today.

8. Our Exit Card • List two questions you’d still like to explore.

9. Our Exit Card • List two questions you’d still like to explore.

10. Our Exit Card • List one method of learning groups and/or choice that you might apply in your classroom.

11. To understand the definition of a learning group. To learn about and create “learning group” activities to implement in the classroom. To extend knowledge of Marzano strategy implementation. Outcomes:

12. Pam

13. Various names have been given to this form of teaching, and there are some distinctions among these: (adapted from Johnson, Johnson, and Smith, 1991) Learning Groups

14. Learning Groups • Learning groups work together to accomplish a shared goal. • It is the instructional use of small groups so that students work together to maximize their own and each others’ learning.

15. Learning Groups • On a note card, jot down what you think the research will say about learning groups.

16. Students learn best when they are actively involved in the process. Researchers report that, regardless of the subject matter, students working in small groups tend to learn more of what is taught and retain it longer than when the same content is presented in other instructional formats. Students who work in learning groups also appear more satisfied with their classes. Learning Groups - Research

17. Learning Groups - Research When learning groups are compared with individual competition and individual student tasks, the effect size is .78.

18. Learning Groups - Research Organizing students in heterogeneous learning groups at least once a week has a significant effect on learning. (Marzano, Pickering and Pollock, 2001)

19. Quickly draw a T-chart on a blank sheet of paper. On one side of the chart, list times you have used ability grouping in your classroom. On the other side of the chart, list times you have used other forms of grouping. T-Chart

20. Learning Groups - Research Research shows that ability grouping as currently practiced: • Shows no consistent positive value for helping students generally. • Produces a negative effect in lower ability groups that more than offsets slight gains in higher-grouped children. • Produces an unfavorable effect on affective development. • Relates more to socioeconomic and ethnic status than to performance ability. • Cannot be shown to be responsible for positive scholastic effects due to the many variables inherent in curriculum and instructional design and delivery. Ubben, Hughes, Norris

21. Learning Groups - Research • Enhance student satisfaction with their learning experience. • Develop students’ social skills.

22. Learning Groups - Research • Help students develop oral communication skills. • Promote student self-esteem.

23. Learning Groups - Research • Increase student retention. When you teach, you learn twice. Seneca, Roman philosopher

24. Learning Groups - Research • Promote inclusion of special needs students.

25. Learning Groups Based on the research, what changes, if any, might you make with the grouping you are currently doing within your classroom.

26. Forming Learning Groups • Informal Groups • Used for a few minutes or a class period • Formal Groups • Used for several days or even weeks • Study Teams/Base Groups • Long-term (semester or year)

27. Form a line using the criteria: • “How many siblings are in your family?” • Count all siblings. • Full, Half, Step, Other • Starting at the end of the line, create groups of four. • Select a place to work with your group. Sibling Line-up (Informal)

28. Student preparation Teacher preparation Classroom application Team information sharing Accountability Preparing for Learning Groups

29. Using the mat provided, prepare a graphic organizer of what you like and dislike about working in learning groups OR What you like or dislike about using learning groups in your classroom You can use one of the graphic organizers provided on the mat or create one of your own. Learning Groups

30. Designing Learning Groups • Informal Groups • Used for a few minutes or a class period • Formal Groups • Used for several days or even weeks • Study Teams/Base Groups • Long-term (semester or year)

31. Team Identity: Team motto Team cheer Team mascot Team song Teambuilding: Learning Groups

32. Designing Learning Groups Number in a Group: • Groups of 3-4 produce the largest percentile gain. • Pairs indicate the next largest percentile gain. • Groups of 5-7 indicate a negative result. Marzano, Pickering, Pollock, Classroom Instruction That Works

33. It is important to make sure you plan prior to using learning groups. Handout: Planning for Learning Groups Planning for Learning Groups

34. Form groups of two or three. Select one scenario. Discuss the guiding prompts on the “Planning for Learning Groups” handout. Create chart paper with main learning group ideas. Planning for Learning Groups

35. Designing Learning Groups • Informal Groups • Used for a few minutes or a class period • Formal Groups • Used for several days or even weeks • Study Teams/Base Groups • Long-term (semester or year)

36. barb CUBING/THINK DOTS

37. KNOW • Participant will know the key principles of Cubing and ThinkDots and the application of them using a fairy tale.

38. UNDERSTAND • Participants will understand that Cubing and ThinkDots are related strategies that support differentiated processing. • Participants will understand how to develop practical applications and skills of Cubing and ThinkDots.

39. DO • Effectively create and implement Cubing and/or ThinkDots strategies.

40. Cubing On Target, Differentiated Instruction, Grades 4-12, pages 12-13

41. CUBING Guide

42. CUBING diagram

43. Social Studies Level 1

44. Social Studies Level 2

45. Social Studies Level 3

46. cUBING demonstration

47. Use the article and website on Earth Day and develop some questions to correspond with the 6 sides of the cube. Post questions on chart paper. Cubing Practice

48. CUBING • Use the first cube as your average cube, create 2 more: one lower level and one higher level. • ALL cubes need to cover the same type of questions, just written to the readiness levels. • Color-code or label your cubes so you know which level of readiness you are addressing. • Always remember to have an easy problem on each cube and a hard one regardless of the levels. • Decide on the rules. Will the students be asked to do all 6 sides? Roll and do any 4 sides? Do any two questions on each of the cubes? • Use old quizzes, worksheets, textbook-study problems, student generated, internet, etc. to help with writing questions.

49. ThinkDots

50. ThinkDots Guide