Presentations Galore!

Group work! It is an important part of teaching and learning. This was a huge week for group work. The whole class took turns in teaching this week a different part of Direct Instruction.The first group to go was the Anticipatory set, with Dawn, Jessica and Heather S. They did a great job describing how to start up a Direct Instruction lesson plan by using a Voki. It was also great that they had us split into groups and had our create our own Anticipatory set. For example, our topic was rainforests. They followed the "I do it" "We do it" "You do it" model perfectly! The next group to go was "Explanation, Modeling, and Demonstatrion. Christina and Nicholas did a great job presenting. They started out with giving us spider rings and singing the "Itsy Bitsy Spider". They also showed modeled demonstration by creating a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. It was a great example on how the teacher shows "I do it". Our group was next with "Guided Practice" It was me, Dennis and Laura. I feel like we did ok but could have done better. I know I would have spoken less from the PowerPoint and my paper. Overall, I think we did give all the information that covered Guided Practice. Guided Practice helps the students grasp and understand the lessons. There are three ways to check for understanding, Didatic Questioning, Reciporcal Teaching, and Recitations. Feedback is also very important in this stage. The next group to go was Drill and Practice with Pam, Wendy, Kelly and Sally. They had a great way of getting the classes attention by marching into class. They were very knowledgable about Drill and Practice by following the I do, We do, You do. Homework was up next with Bridgett and Brian. They did a awesome job going through the pros and cons of homework. Such as it gives the students a chance to practice, but a con is that parent involvment can be to much. I also like the 10 minute rule, by Harris Cooper. When the grade should determine how much homework they get. For example first, should get ten minutes. Fifth should get 50 minutes. I think its smart because of course the older a student gets the more homework they can handle. The last group to go was Closure and Evaluation by Kellie, Susan and Emily. I think they did an awesome job decribing how to close a Direct Instruction lesson. They had a great opener, they showed all these pictures such as doors, drawers, and gates. They got the point across that whatever you open you have to close.
Overall, I think that everyone did an excellent job and it gave us a great practice of teaching. It also really drilled in our hand the Direct Lesson Plan.