Inner outer circle activity is successful again

I have new students and am teacher the same thing I taught in trimester 1.  Spanish 1 is just beginning and getting into phrases you would use when meeting someone for the first time.  I took my classes down to a large open area near the auditorium and had them form 2 circles, one inside the other.  They conversed on assigned topics and rotated in order to switch partners each time we did a different piece of the conversation.  They did a fantastic job and ALL were actively participating.  It was also nice to leave the room and learn in a new setting.  Today, I had a student ask if we could do that activity again and she said, "I learned so well when we did that activity."  She actually called it a game, meaning she had fun doing it. 

This continues to prove to me that movement is a great tool one can use in the classroom.  The kids are full of energy and it is an effective avenue to allow them to utilize their energy for learning.  At the same time, too much of it could hamper their interest of those types of activities, so I think using a variety of activities is important.

What's new?

This was the final week of the trimester for my school, so I will have a number of new students next week.  This week, Spanish 1 was learning about food.  One activity the students engaged in was an interactive questionaire about foods.  They had a list of quesetions in Spanish like, ¿Te gusta el pescado? (Do you like fish?)  They had to find someone in the room that would answer "yes" to that question.  They had a list of questions, so it was their job to gather signatures speaking Spanish and using the new vocabluary.  I monitored their participation.  Their participation was excellent; a very high percentage if not 100% engaged and participated in the activity, but not everyone used Spanish the entire time.  I think they enjoyed it and learned from it.

As I get new students next week, it will be interesting to see how they react to all the activities we do involving movement.  I saw great results with the students I had first trimester, so we will see if the data continues to say what it has said up to this point.

More data collection

This past week, my assistant principal observed my classroom.  We did a review activity where the class worked with individual white boards.  We met the next day to talk about what she saw.  She said that there is no doubt that there is a very high level of student engagement during my lessons.  She said that it is difficult for students to hide in my classroom.  If they don't participate in the activities, they stand out and standing out is awkward, so they choose to participate. 

I think my data definitely tells me that student engagement is extremely high in activities that involve movement.  Student engagement is still high in my classroom where movement is not a factor, but less than when it is.  It would make sense to me that if student engagement is high, learning happens.  At the same time, there are students out there that don't learn well in interactive activities that require movement, so I need to utilize other types of activities as well.

There is something to be said for students enjoying your class.  I think my students have enjoyed my class, and I credit a lot of that to the types of activities we do in class.  Students don't just sit in their seats all class period listening to me, but rather they are interacting with classmates and engaging in active activities.  I think they enjoy this, which is another reason for the level of participation I have seen. 

I would still like to do another survey asking them more questions about how they learn best and what types of activities they enjoy or don't enjoy. 

Survey Results

I have a lot of data telling me that students are very engaged during activities that involve movement, but don't have too much data telling me about student learning.  One question on the survey asked the students how well they understand the material we study in class.  57 out of the 59 surveyed, answered with "Great" or "Pretty Good."  Also, about 70% of the students surveyed said they prefer an interactive learning environment over a quiet more individual-based learning environment. 

I think overall, the majority of the students enjoy and do well in an active learning environment where they engage in many activities that incorporate movement.  There are certainly still kids that like a quiet environment where they are able to work alone at times, so I need to do a good job of balancing the types of activities I do.  I need to mix in a variety in order to reach the different learning styles if all students. 

I am pretty happy with what has transpired in my class.  I think the kids have enjoyed the activities we do in class and I truly think a high percentage of them have a strong understanding of the material.  It could just be the group of kids I have, but the class average on the last quiz and test I gave was the highest I remember in my 6 years of teaching. 

New Observations

The past few weeks, the students have been quite rowdy.  It has been more difficult to keep their attention, partly because this chapter has been prolonged due to MEA and other things, and partly because they are becoming more and more comfortable with their classmates and the environment of the class.  I promote interaction and sometimes that has its cons as they are too chatty when it is time to do some whole-group teacher-directed instruction.  This is an opportunity for me to use some "brain breaks" to give them a quick opportunity to release their energy. 

I think this also reaffirms to me that my students need active learning opportunities.  They are full of energy and I have to find a productive ways for them to use that energy.  I feel like whenever I do make my students engage in activities that involve movement, they seem more engaged. 

Did movement affect student learning?

I have collected a lot data on how movement affects student engagement, but haven't collected data on what effects it has on student learning.  I gave both sections of my Spanish I class a quiz yesterday, however, I did an activity involving movement before the quiz with one of the classes, and did not with the other.  The average score of both classes was within one point of each other, so this particular case didn't have a significant difference on student performance.  I need other ideas of how I can collect data on how movement affects student learning.  Suggestions???

At the Fall Conference, I picked up some great websites I can use with my Spanish classes.  It is another great opportunity for me to incorporate movement in the classroom by changing locations and going to the computer lab.  I think the students will be very engaged in the activities as they enjoy technology very much and I think a change of scenery is necessary every once in a while. 

What the students thought of our lecture time.

Up to this point, I have collected most of my data on how engaged the students are during activities which involve movement.  So far, I have found a high percentage of students to actively participate in these types of activites.  Today, we started a new chapter, so there was about 15 minutes where I was in front of the class explaining some new concepts.  Students were supposed to be listening and maybe taking a few notes.  At the end of my lecture, I asked students to show me (by raising their hands) how many of them had "zoned out" and weren't really paying attention during the last five to ten minutes of my lesson.  I would say about 15 of the 33 students raised their hands.  It goes to show that it is tough for teenagers to sit and listen for extended periods of time.  I realize I have to get lots of information to students; the tough part is finding ways to present it that will keep the students' attention.  Lecturing seems to be something that may only work in 5 minute intervals. 

I have done some research on "brain breaks," so the next time I have to do some direct instruction for more than five or ten minutes, I am going to do a quick 2 minute "brain break" to see if it makes a difference.  Brain breaks are quick movement exercises that look to refocus one's energy and prepare the brain for more learning.  It will be interesting to see if I lose as many kids as I did today.

A simple way to incorporate movement into the classroom

In my Spanish 1 classes today, the students engaged in an activity that didn't need movement to complete, but I added that element it in hopes it would increase levels of participation.  Each set of tables was given two pictures that the students used to form sentences in Spanish.  About every two minutes, the students had to get up and move to a different set of tables with a new set of pictures.  I could have easily kept the students in their seats and just had them pass the pictures from table to table, but I thought movement would help.  I monitored the students during the activity and nearly 100% were engaged and participating.  Looking back, I wish I would have made one of the classes move from table to table and the other just pass the pictures.  It would have been interesting to see if there was a big difference in student engagement. 

I definitely see the benefits of using movement in the classroom.  On the other hand, you have to be willing to deal with a classroom atmosphere that is a little chaotic at times.  Also, some days students just aren't in the mood to move around, so there are movement activities that may hinder the participation of some, but overall, I am finding that the pros outweigh the cons.

Action Research Update

Yesterday, both sections of my Spanish 1 class participated in an inner/outer circle activity.  We went outside to do this because we needed the extra space.  Up to this point, they have learned several pieces to a conversation one would have when meeting someone for the first time.  During this inner/outer circle activity, the students conversed in Spanish the different pieces of this conversation.  They asked each other things like:  What's your name?...Where are you from?...How are you?...How old are you?...etc.  It was a great review activity as they have their oral presentations today.  I think the movement and the changing of locations to do this activity really engaged the students and they did a great job with it.

As I implement more activities that incorporate movement, I will encounter some challenges.  Many of the activities I have in mind are somewhat simple activites that don't require the student to think critically.  How can I incorporate movement as well as make the activity challenging? 

So far....

I have already collected some data on a few activities my Spanish 3 classes did involving movement.  I had each student's name on a chart and while observing the activity, I marked each student as "engaged" or "not engaged."  I wasn't completely satisfied with the results, but was very pleased.  In one class, I marked 16 out of 18, "engaged" and the other class, 20 out of 23 were marked "engaged."  I would love to have it be 100 percent, but it was still a high percentage that were actively participating.  I think I could have been a bit more enthusiastic about the activity.  I beleive if I would have fired the students up about the activity and got them more excitied about it, maybe the numbers would have been a bit better.  Overall, things have been very positive and I think the students really enjoyed and got something out of the activity. 

Action Research Plan

How can movement affect student learning and engagement?

I will be exploring the effects movement has on my students.  An important goal of any teacher is high levels of student engagement.  I feel doing activities in class that involve movement will increase student engagement.  I feel they will be more actively involved in class.  I have done research in this area and will continue to explore it.  In doing my research, I have also learned how movement can affect the brain.  It stimulates the brain in ways that are conducive for effective learning.  I plan on observing students in activities that don't involve movement and in activities that involve movement.  I will then make comparisons in regards to their levels of participation and engagement.  I anticipate there will be higher levels of student participation in the activities that incorporate movement.  I hope I am correct, but we will find out as I collect the data.

My Vision

There are many goals I have for this upcoming school year.  Ultimately, I want students to have memorable experiences, learn a lot of Spanish, and enjoy themselves.  I hope to achieve these goals through an active and energetic classroom.  I will be exploring movement and the effects it has on student learning.  Movement also does a lot for the brain, so I will be exploring that further as well.

Spanish is something that is quite new to most of my students.  I hope it sparks their interest.  I also want them to understand the importance of learning other languages and learning about other cultures. 

If you walk into my classroom, I hope you would see students actively participating without fear, engaged in the material, and having fun.  I hope you would see students that feel very comfortable amongst their peers and teacher. 

I want my students to have a positive experience socially and academically.

Welcome to my blog.

Hello everyone.  This is Joel Lund.  It was easier than I thought it would be to create a blog.  This blog will be dedicated to my action research on the effects of movement in the classroom.