Interactive Notebooks to a whole new level

Taking my interactive notebooks to a whole new level- Kaisha Dunne
I read a blog post this summer on flexible seating and Students Taking Charge which stated- “Teachers can never base what happens in our classroom this year on what next year's teacher may or may not do. If it's best practice for our kids, do it now. Remember, our classrooms should be student-centered, not teacher-centered.” As I took my move from one school to another for my first time as a full-time teacher this summer, this article reminded me WHY my classroom is the way it is. I shouldn’t change it as I change schools. I read blogs and keep up on trainings all the time, but listening to my students and allowing them to take leadership roles within my classroom is the most beneficial thing I could ever do for me and them. I conference with my students every unit, at LEAST once. They go at their own pace through the Understanding by Design/ Backwards Design Model. We glue their lesson strips into their interactive notebooks and items needed to complete the unit on day 1. Then they fill out a learning goal chart full of the “I can” statements they need to accomplish by the end of the unit in blue to show a starting point. In the end, we take a standard based exam and refill out that same chart in pink. We conference 1-1 and I allow them to tell me the correlation between their test scores and their learning goal chart. What helped them in their notebooks? What didn’t? The students help me be a better teacher and in turn I help them be better learners and informed citizens of tomorrow. By making these connections they teach me more than anything in any of those many trainings I have been to could ever teach me.

 So here's how it works in ten steps, which may seem like a long read, but worth every word:
Step one: 
Find all the items that you believe best demonstrate the knowledge and understanding of the standards you will need to meet in the unit. 
The item that I look at to do this is my learning goal charts. They have all the "I can" statements students need to achieve for the year based on the academic plan, test specs, and standards being used per unit.
Examples:
6th Grade World History
7th Grade Civics
8th Grade US History

 Step two:
Organize the items you have found into left and right items. 
Right: goes into the brain.
Left: can they put it back out?
You can organize them by creating yourself a simple graphic organizer. I just fold up a piece of computer paper to keep my thought process in check, but if your at a beginner level try using an actual graphic organizer for the first few times.
Remember to set it up as a gradual release. 
My inspiration for my design process comes from the following books:
Armstrong, T. (2009). Multiple Intelligences in the Classroom 3rd Edition. ASCD: Alexandria, VA.
Maine Department of Education (2007). State of Maine Learning Results. Maine Department of Education: Augusta, ME.
Tomlinson, C. A. & McTighe, J. (2006). Integrating Differentiated Instruction & Understanding by Design. Corwin Press: ASCD: Alexandria, VA.
Wormeli, R. (2006). Fair Isn’t Always Equal: Assessing and Grading in the Differentiated Classroom. Stenhouse: Portland, Me.

 Step three:
Add some creativity!
Double check that it's not always just the boring prompts and readings. Work should be meaningful and should never be busy work. But make sure your left sides aren't just basic checking for understandings. 
Example for 7th Grade Civics Standard SS.7.C.1.9:
Scenario: The President of the United States has cabin fever! She decides to steal a secret service vehicle and take it for a joy ride. Driving down the Beltway and jamming out to music, she is oblivious to the fact that she is driving 75 mph in a 65 mph zone. Not knowing who the woman is, Officer Adams pulls the president over.
Directions: Write a newspaper article illustrating the situation from above. Finish the story with what may have happened to the president.
Step four:
Think about your test! 
Why not have your students work through some of the questions ahead of time?! My 7th graders take an EOC at the end of the year that is 30% of their total grade. This test ranges from 56-62 questions, with four testing categories counting for 25% of their 1-5 scale score each. Crazy, I know! I never thought I would teach to a test. But as a bad test taker myself I had to think about what helps me. I have ADD and I believe that this makes me a better teacher. This helps me differentiate like there is no tomorrow. Meeting Multiple Intellegences in one unit is the way to go! Your students will shock you time after time again with their comic strips, lyric analysis, and so much more. But no matter what, those test people don't factor in Multiple Intellegences. They put kids in one box and it's called the Multiple Choice box. Where some kids seem to think it's Christmas time and deside to "Christmas Tree" the test and just LIGHT-IT-UP! But if given tools to put in this box, kids are more likely to be successful. 
Escambia County County, FL has created an awesome Civics EOC Prep site and has used the items from Florida Joint Center for Citizenship to help students break down their test questions. I created blank sets of copies for my students to use to study for their test and give them to them. But I have also created a huge variety of Left Side processes that are themed like the FJCC's question analysis. This allows students to think: "what is the question asking,"what answer is correct, why," and "what answers are incorrect, why." This allows students to process and elliminate the wrong answers. If you are a school that uses UNREAL or UNRAVEL this is a perfect strategy. If you are an AVID school, this is a great AVID Tutorial strategy & your AVID Elective teacher will greatly thank you. 

 Step 5: 
After piecing it all together, create lesson strips that are student and parent friendly and give CLEAR expectations.
Unit: Forms, Types, & Systems of Government
Standard: SS.7.C.3.1 & 3.2
Left: Learning goal chart- Based on the work we have done thus far, please put an x in the box that best describes your knowledge of the "I can" statement. Before the unit please use a blue highlighter & before the test please revisit and use a pink highlighter.
SS.7.C.3.1 & 3.2
Essential Questions: What are the forms of government? How do they compare?
Right: Students will be reading a reading from iCivics.org called “Who Rules?” to Identify major forms of government (autocracy, monarchy, dictatorship, representative and direct democracy, oligarchy, theocracy, anarchy)
Left: Students will complete the graphic organizer by filling in the correct form of government. Use your notes from Forms of Government to help you.

 Note: Please note that I start each unit with Vocab Flashcards needed to understand the work at hand. As well as the learning goal chart with expectations. I include the standard on each strip. What students should do on the left and the right. This meets your IEP expectations, ELL & 504 expectations, and gives students a clear direction. I have parents who email me all the time thanking them for the easy communication. My students glue these strips on after they test out. The lesson strips go on the top right of their notebooks every unit. This makes communication home soooo easy. When I sent out an automated message through ParentLink or call home to ask the parents to check their student's notebook. It opens up a MUCH easier communication from parent to the student. You have to remember, in order to get parental support, the parent needs to know what you are asking. There is also NO better feeling than sitting in a Student Conference and THAT ONE KID we all have that tries to blame the teacher and say "I didn't know what to do" and you ask them to take out their notebook & you get to go "REALLY NOW.... tell me again you didn't know"... BOOM!

 Step 6:
The piecing it all together. 7th grade is an awesome age to teach. It keeps your cabinets stocked up on adult grape juice that you find so amazing from Trader Joes (teacher salary worthy adult grape juice). It allows moments of "why did you glue that in.... it's double sided?!" and "ummm did you just eat glue?!" It's like overly hormonal kindergardeners who believe that they are entitled to everything, yet can't remember what day it is. But to top it off they want to be treated like "mature teens" but when you bust out a stuffed animal unicorn to comfort them when you conference or do a lesson of the Top 5 Things That Make Ms Dunne Giggle (duties)... they somehow turn back to NORMAL pre-teens.
Step 6 takes a lot of patients, clear directions, pictures, and possibly a high need of adult grape juice the night before and after this process to take you back to earth.
Please keep in mind during step 6 that Thomas Paine wrote a book called Common Sense, because even the adult colonists needed a reminder of common sense items. If teaching middle school has taught me anything... common sense is NOT so common. Pictures, diagrams, and step by step instructions are needed, as well as patients. This step 6 is called: Gluing in a WHOLE unit at once... I know... it's crazy talk. I take pictures and insert them into a Google Slide. I have each student open and follow along. Each slide has a picture of my teacher copy of the notebook, lesson strip at the bottom, and arrows for instructions. See pics below:
Step 7:
Take a deep breath, the hardest part is over! Any Middle School teacher will tell you that trying to do arts and crafts is a nightmare.... well lesson strip day is like arts & crafts day but WAY more intense. But SOOOOO worth it!

 Step 8:
Giving your students all their work for a whole unit may seem like a terrible idea, but it's actually GENIUS! Nancy Sulla wrote a book called Student's Taking Charge, which is the most reassuring book to express to you that YOU CAN DO IT! She does think that the whole unit should be organized together, but I chunk mine because when I made ALU's (alternative learning units) at her training's and gave them to my low-level middle school babies, they shut down. They need to focus on one task at a time but have the opportunity to go ahead. The BIGGEST take away I had from this book was extensions and learning to release the control. THEY have to learn it. We've all had those "not so professional" moments where you get frustrated with your kiddos and say "I'm not the one who needs to learn this, you do. I already went to college... I know this and I am trying to get you to learn it... so can we all just listen?!" Admit it! We've ALL done it in some way, shape, or form. But now they are going to be in charge of the learning. They know the expectations (lesson strips). They know where they are at when they start the unit & where they need to be at the end (learning goal charts). If they are done early, give them extension activities. My kids have 1:1 chromebooks (jealousy may sink in now), and I use the topics tab of my Google Classroom to organize my classroom. I load the unit opener in first, so it's at the bottom of the topic tab. Then I load in every lesson in order (separately) after that. So we do this Drake style "Started from the bottom now we're here." I title it with their lesson strip (so they match their notebook). Then add my power points/ google slides, links needed to complete (including tutotrials if needed), and attach an "if done early" item. This allows them to go at their own pace. I knwo it sounds like a lot. But I spend one night on Teacher hyper drive, then my lessons are done for a WHOLE UNIT! It's so nice! You don't have to worry about sub plans if you need to be out. You don't have to worry about students who are going to be out, because they have their work. You don't need to worry about ANYTHING other than checking their notebooks! Even if you don't have google classroom, your lessons are in with teacher guided instructions and all the tools needed to complete... kick up your feet.
Examples:
Step 9:
Grading: I take a blank gradebook sheet and determine what items are most important. I make sure my students know that each item is not busy work. I pick one item for each lesson. I label it at the top of columns & stick it on a clipboard. The first few lessons I walk around checking their notebooks when they raise their hand. Raising their hand means they completed something. Later on, in the unit, I took a page out of Nancy Sulla's book and got a conference table. I call my students up one by one and check their notebooks. I make a note in our systems that I had a student conference with them (to back myself up/ give evidence for IEPS, 504s, and parent conferences). If an item is still missing, I put a highlight on my paper. I then put all grades in the gradebook. If a student makes up the work later I put their score or checkmark above the highlight so I know that it's something that I need to fix in the gradebook. My gradebook then becomes a digital task list of missing items (z's), items they need to fix and bring back up to be checked, and items they scored well on. It makes a world of difference. They are in charge of their learning. They monitor their learning. They monitor their progress on their "I can" statements. They watch their growth (with those learning goal charts). Plus you get to take the stress of making lessons off so you can focus on helping them & having those important conversations. Those conversations you always wish you could have, but don't have the time. It also gives you the data and documentation you need for IEPs, 504s, and Student Conferences that you may not have had for Mykia who sits there quietly and you know she's a B/C student, but you haven't figured out why... she doesn't disrupt, but you don't have any time for her because your giving direct instruction & have total control of their learning... then when you pause you ahve to talk to Malahki and Dany because they are your attention seekers... and well, they get all your attention. That's not fair to those Mykia's you have in your classroom. 

 Step 10:
remind yourself your awesome. You can do this. It takes time and every time you try something new, there will be push back. Don't change everything mid year, but if you want to make this switch for next year, why not try some aspects of this strategy one at a time. You wont regret it. It's the best thing I ever did.

My thought process/ tips may be different than others, but here are my tips/ food for thought:

  • Why collect the notebooks?!
    • Then you have them & no student can do makeup work
    • They can't study
    • They don't have ownership of the learning if you have possession of their work
  • Why punish them for late work or not allow them to make up work that they didn't score well on?!
    • If our goal is for them to learn it, why should they be punished?!
    • If you put them in the A, B, or not done yet mentality... you will see a difference
    • If you punish how will they achieve Advancement Via Individual Determination... you just cut out all means for determination and individual advancement... you're saying that humans don't make mistakes, and when they do... you shouldn't have an opportunity to learn from them
  • Don't keep data to yourself
    • The kids should track their data and know where THEY ARE
    • They should look to improve themselves
    • Plus posting data in middle school isn't always the best idea... if they keep it in their notebooks and chart their learning... it's individualized & if they want to brag, they can. 
    • Note: posting whole class data is okay, but may make your low classes & SED classes feel defeated, but if it's school required... I get it... comply! We've all been there. 
  • Encourage a friend to join in. 
    • They will process different then you & this creates a healthy Professional Learning Community (PLC) where you can see what works for them & what works for you... plus gives you ideas to try something out of your comfort zone. Which may benefit your kiddos.

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