The Flipped Classroom Model

The Flipped Classroom Model, founded in 2007 by John Bergman and Aaron Sams, replaces traditional classroom instruction. Students first explore the content at their own pace, usually at home, then complete activities and engage in deeper thinking and discourse in the classroom. There are many different types: 

o  Group Based

o  Standard Inverted 

o  Microflipped

o  Discussion Oriented

o  Demonstration Based

o  Faux Flipped 

o  Virtual Flipped 

o  Role Reversal

The Flipped Classroom Approach is beneficial because it helps struggling students. Teachers can engage in more one on one time with students to accommodate for their individual needs. The flipped classroom increases engagement and improves classroom management. It helps teachers educate parents on the content because they have access to the videos that provide the instruction and example problems. It is compatible with all learning styles. Students are exploring the instruction themselves, so they can listen, collaborate with peers, or study alone if they choose to. Then, in class, they participate in more hands-on and interactive activities. 

The Flipped Classroom Model follows these steps:

1.    Plan Outcomes- what do you want students to learn/do?

2.    Record when appropriate 

3.    Share with Students – give students access to content

4.    View Video- students do at home/ on their own time

5.    Group discussions- students are held accountable for obtaining the material needed for the discussions.

Things to remember concerning the Flipped Classroom Model: Noise is great, as long as it is task focused. Alwaysprovide in-class instruction when needed. Students are not meant to fend for themselves the whole time. Make your own videos to make instruction more personal. Make notes of who to pull for one on one instruction and DO IT! Do not make excuses, such as, “I’ll pull them tomorrow!” The Flipped Classroom Approach is designed for the teacher to serve as a facilitator and assist students in any way necessary. 

Some tools for the Flipped Classroom Model include, but are not limited to Google Classroom, EdPuzzle, Padlet, Quizizz, BrainPop, and the Khan Academy. All of these sites allow teachers to share instructional materials to students. Incorporating the Flipped Classroom Model is free; however, some resources may require paid subscriptions, such as BrainPop. 

In an upper elementary classroom, it may be more beneficial to use the traditional model. In 2^ndand 3^rdgrade, I would use the faux flipped model, meaning that the students would explore the instructional materials on their own, but in class/stations. Then, during whole group instruction, we could discuss their learning and dive deeper into the content together.

The Orton-Gillingham Approach

   The Orton- Gillingham Approach is a direct, explicit, and multisensory way to teach literacy designed to help struggling readers. Although it was designed and is widely used to teach students with dyslexia, it works with all students by helping them use their senses to make connections between letters and sounds. The Orton- Gillingham Approach is meant to provide students with tools to keep kids engaged and give them tools to attack new words, rather than the students simply asking the teacher what a word is. Using the three-part drill, students say the sound they see, write the sound they hear, and then blend the sounds together. The Orton- Gillingham Approach focuses on the needs of students, builds off of previous lessons, and helps all students read, write, and spell. 

   Some strategies that can be used include:

o  Card drills

o  Letter formation techniques

o  Decoding activities

o  Tapping out words- students may say C, A, T as they tap their shoulder, elbow, and hand then slide down their arm as they bled the word ‘cat’. 

o  Repetition 

Click here for 4 DIY Ideas!

I have always tried to incorporate multisensory activities in Science and Math lessons, but in the beginning I struggled with incorporating multisensory activities into reading. Not only have I learned the importance of multisensory learning, but I have also seen the benefits of it. The Orton- Gillingham Approach is a wonderful way for teachers to train and continue finding new ways to teach phonics. Orton- Gillingham conferences can be expensive, but there are tons of resources online so teachers can incorporate OG-style activities in the classroom. Students can listen to phonics instruction all day long, but chances are they will not pick up as quickly as they would if they were engaged, involved, and explicitly guided through phonics instruction. Students learn all kinds of different ways, so educators must accommodate to these different learning styles by incorporating the different activities that will help them learn. 

The following video is an example of a teacher using the Orton- Gillingham three-part drill in the classroom. The teacher is using sand trays for multisensory learning and is keeping students on task.

STEAM in K-2 and 3-6

STEAM stands for Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Math. Integrating STEAM in the classroom has many benefits. Students are required to use the left hemisphere of their brain for logic, and the right hemisphere of their brain for emotion and creativity. STEAM also encourages inquiry, discourse, and critical thinking, while piquing curiosity. Research tells us that there are not enough people pursuing engineering and technology careers. Since integrating STEAM into the curriculum, there has been a 36% increase in students seeking technology jobs and a 55% increase in engineering. A common misconception is that STEAM is too hard, but failures lead to self-reflection and success. STEAM actually comes naturally to learners. Everyday activities include natural investigation and exploration skills that are encouraged by play.

Click here to explore STEAM activities!

            STEAM can be incorporated into the curriculum at any time. In the K-2 classroom, STEAM and play go hand in hand. Students can build and design their own structures out of blocks, for example. Arts can be integrated by drawing, designing, or incorporating language arts, liberal arts, fine arts, or music. STEAM also encourages exploration and reflection. Students find what works and doesn’t work to improve their designs. 

Click here for a Step-by-Step!

    STEAM changes the way the classroom looks. STEAM takes the place of traditional classrooms, where the teacher teaches, and students “listen”. Students are no longer bored by what they feel is pointless information. They are engaged and collaborating with their peers to find solutions to real world problems. Students reach the highest level of Bloom’s Taxonomy, in which they are able to combine facts, generalize information, and explain content. Students are also prepared for their future jobs.  However, STEAM is not just for those students who want to work in technology or engineering fields. Even teachers with STEAM education are more desired. 8 out of 10 most wanted employees are those with STEAM degrees. Those with STEAM education make approximately 70% more money than those without. 

            One of our jobs as educators is to make sure our students are prepared for their future. The best way to do so is to incorporate the best approaches to learning so that they are engaged and continuously thinking. I plan to incorporate STEAM in my classroom no matter what I teach. There are so many ways to incorporate STEAM activities into any lesson. There are plenty of FREE resources available, and teachers can use every day materials instead of buying new ones. 

Building Your Professional Learning Network

“Together, we are better.”

            Building your Professional Learning Network is important. You cannot possibly think that all of the best ideas belong to you. That you are the best of the best. However, you have the ability to access resources and best teaching practices from all over the world at the click of a button. There are professional learning networks for teachers, videos, social media pages, and lesson plans available for teachers to access. Teachers can follow education chats, Facebook groups, blogs, Pinterest boards, and subscribe to educational YouTube channels. 

So, what does research say about Professional Learning Networks? 19 to 30 percent of teachers quit in the first five years of their career due to limited resources and supports. That’s terrifying! However, through collaboration with other teachers, they can combine ideas to be more successful. Through collaboration, teachers can contribute different backgrounds and strengths to find what is best for their individual students. 

Why do I need a Professional Learning Network? You get to choose how to network. You can either stand back and browse ideas, or you can contribute your own. You can find and/or share resources and lesson plans. You can get support when needed. (Keep in mind that only about 3 percent of first year teachers receive appropriate supports!) You can also seek ideas outside of the four walls of the classroom so that you never run out of new things for students to try. Your personal learning network may be for inspiration or learning new trends, but it will never be a waste of time. 

Where do I start? Building a PLN is easy. Start by joining educational chats or create a twitter page that focuses explicitly on following other great educators. Then, invest some time on finding those great educators. Don’t follow sites that are going to bog down your news feed with negative energy. Follow those with great ideas and positive stories. Search for those that align with your own ideas about teaching and learning. 

The following link will take you to a list of excellent teachers to follow on Twitter: WeAreTeachers: Who to follow on Twitter

Using Nearpod in the Classroom

Nearpod is a FREE, engaging, interactive power point platform. 

What's so awesome about Nearpod? First of all, the teacher's device and students' devices will display the same screen, but each student can submit their own response to a question. Then, the teacher can provide the students with immediate feedback! With Nearpod, the teacher can deliver instruction and move through the slides, or the students can move through lessons on their own. Nearpod allows students to submit comments or answer problems on a collaborative board. It will also notify the teacher if a student leaves the screen or opens a new tab on their screen. 

Features of Nearpod:                           Activities in Nearpod:                

Draw it!                                                Time to Climb                           Compatible with sites such

Open ended questions                        Memory Test                               as Canvas, Schoolology, 

Fill in the Blank                                   Virtual Field Trips                     and Google Classroom!

Multiple Choice                                   3-D Models

Nearpod slides can be transferred from Google Slides and Microsoft PowerPoint. However, the designs/ templates are limited on Nearpod. Links can be copied and pasted, or, you can embed links to avoid students leaving the Nearpod screen. Progress of each student is shown to the teacher. The photo to the left is an example of data collected from students who took a quiz and how it is presented to the teacher.

What I love about Nearpod:

I love that Nearpod is an EXCELLENT digital formative assessment tool. I also love how the teacher can control the students screen if necessary, but if not, then the students can move through lessons at their own pace. Nearpod makes it easy for teachers to give immediate feedback and progress monitor in order to know which students may need further instruction in certain content areas. 

Whole Brain Teaching

Whole-brain teaching is an effective strategy for engaged learning and classroom management. Research shows that using whole brain teaching in the classroom reduces disruptive behaviors and increases student learning and retention. Whole brain teaching engages the whole brain because students are using the different parts of the brain for moving, speaking, listening, and visualizing. 

Whole brain teaching usually begins with an attention getter, such as “Class! Yes! Classity-class! Yessity-yes!”. When the teacher says class, the students say yes in the same way. Then, the teacher uses different variations of ‘mirror’ to involve the students in instruction. Then, he or she will say, “Teach!”, and the students respond, “Okay!”. For example, if the teacher says, “Mirror with Words!”, the students will mirror the teacher’s words and gestures to their partner. During instruction, the students must listen intently, and they are constantly engaged. I love how a whole brain classroom is loud and fun.

During instruction, the teacher only introduces one new point at a time. The teacher also assesses throughout the lesson. Both of these tips are important in any classroom. The longer the teacher talks, the less the students focus. After the teacher has lost the students’ attention, there is no learning taking place. By introducing one new point at a time and discussing with one another, the students are more likely to retain the new information.

Whole brain teaching also uses effective classroom management, such as learning the classroom rules and using a ‘scoreboard’ system. The classroom rules are not just displayed on the wall in the back corner of the room. The students mirror and teach the rules with their partner until they have been committed to memory. The scoreboard system allows the teacher to recognize good behavior and bad behavior, as well as good and bad techniques during instruction. If the class does something good, the class gets a point. If the class does something wrong, the teacher gets a point. Students are then rewarded at the end of the day/week. There are many different ways to do the scoreboard, so as a teacher it’s important to find what works best for each class.

I love how interactive the whole brain teaching approach is. I can see myself using it in my own classroom. It takes more time to master the rules and procedures, but there are rewards. I look at it like this: you can spend the first few weeks working toward mastering WBT, or you can not do WBT and three weeks into the school year you’re trying to figure out new classroom management strategies and engaging activities. Whole brain teaching for the win!

Virtual Field Trips

Have you ever thought about taking your 2^nd graders to Italy or The Great Barrier Reef in Australia? If you’re from small town Alabama like me, I’m guessing your answer is “No way!” You couldn’t possibly get on a school bus and drive down to the middle of the ocean unless you are Mrs. Frizzle. So, how exactly do you take your students on the trip of a lifetime without leaving the four walls of your classroom. If you said, “virtual field trips”, then you’re ahead of me. 

A virtual field trip is exactly what it sounds like. It offers guided exploration of (almost) anywhere in the world behind the screen of a computer or tablet. There are loads and loads of resources available for students to explore for  f r e e! 

Research shows that assessments yield higher scores from students that take virtual field trips versus a regular field trip. This is because students are more likely to engage in learning and exploring online, than they would walking around chatting to their pals (and ignoring the tour guide). Weighing the pros and cons, students are able to “travel further”, they can explore virtual reality worlds, it is cheap or free, and ultimately- it’s SAFE! However, virtual field trips cannot replace the senses of a real-life field trip (unless you bring in things that they can smell, touch, or taste related to the topic) and internet access may be limited in some places. 

Resources for virtual field trips:

Virtualfieldtrips.org – browse by grade/state/standards

Annefrank.org – explore Anne Frank’s hideaway and read about different items you click on

Describingegypt.com – explore ancient temples, tombs, etc. 

Skype field trips - students can speak directly to tour guides and ask them questions

YouTube- Virtual reality/ 360 degrees videos

ClassFlow – create your own virtual field trip and tailor it to the needs of your own students

Google Cardboard – explore apps that can be used for virtual field trips

Reflection: In my opinion, Virtual Field Trips should be used often. However, virtual should not replace the fun of real field trips. Students should still be able to go to the Pumpkin Patch or the state capitol, but if you’re talking about submarines and ocean life, students need to be able to get an idea of what those things look like in real life without swimming to the bottom of the sea.