One way I’m doing this is by using science riddles. Each riddle refers to a science concept or term. And, students need to look at the clues in the riddle to come up with the term.

Here are a few ways I’m using them in my class:

1. Posting slides on the projector as bellringers, for review or discussion. Have students discuss with each other what they believe the solution to the riddle is and how they know (drawing from their own knowledge and hints in the riddle).
2. Posting slides in my classroom as words students will learn during the unit.
3. Printing riddles onto my tests to assess vocabulary definitions. Instead of just having students provide the solution, I’ll have them explain how they came to their solution (by drawing on what they know and hints in the riddle).

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Those are all great questions that lead me back to the same answer every time. That is, I need to teach to the needs of my students in my classroom in a way that reflects who I am and what I value. A textbook written by a publisher or a TPT worksheet won’t address those needs because they are tailored for a different teacher or student. Unfortunately, to write a unit plan can take a long time. That time often goes into researching and collating relevant information. So, how do I do write a unit plan quickly and thoroughly and still reflects my teaching philosophy? One way is to write your own textbook to the unit.

Best. Unit. Planning. Session. Ever.

The main benefit of writing your own textbook is that it helps to organize your thoughts. In my case, as I am writing my textbook on mendelian genetics, I am looking at the curriculum and thinking, “what do I need to teach before I can teach a certain concept, and what can I teach after?” Therefore, in my textbook, I start by reviewing what DNA is, the differences between mitosis and meiosis, and then tackle Mendel’s pea pod experiments. After, we talk about Punnett squares, dominance and codominance, and sex-linked inheritance.

Sure, I can find all this in a textbook, but I can also see – as I am writing the textbook, doing my research, and thinking about my students – where I can insert some fun videos, activities, and projects. I am also reviewing the material myself, actively thinking about what I’ll be teaching and assessing. And, as a side benefit, I will end up with a textbook I can give my students. It’s a surprisingly efficient and effective activity. It requires no more than a computer, internet connection, and a quiet morning to hash out your thoughts.

Of course, writing a textbook can be a time consuming and arduous task. And, if you’re doing this from scratch, it would be. That’s why I like to use ck12.org (note: I have no affiliation with them – I just like their platform). The website allows teachers to build their own textbooks (otherwise known as flexbooks) by providing reference, practice, simulation and assessment materials. Teachers can mix, match, and insert those materials into their flexbooks. Also, members of the community can also include materials that may come up during searches and may be added to flexbooks.

The Nuts & Bolts of Writing Your Own Textbook

The whole process of creating a flexbook is quite straightforward: sign up for an account, start a flex book, search for read, practice, simulation and assessment materials, and add materials to flexbook. This first step is great to help organize ideas. Also, it’s a great chance to review what is out there.

Once you create a flexbook and populate it with reference material, you can also edit the material. Essentially, you can cull what you don’t like and insert other materials – whether it be reference materials, videos or simulations – into the text. This next step is great to make the textbook (and unit plan) yours. At this stage, you can think about all that you want to put into the flexbook. In the end, you can hand out flexbooks to students or give access to them digitally.

Besides printing off flexbooks to give to students, share your flexbook with colleagues and have them share theirs with you. By comparing your flexbooks, you can start a conversation as to the content, activities, and assessment important to the unit. This makes for a good professional development opportunity – and a good way to discuss the strategies that work.

Wrap up

At its core, ck12.org is just a website, a platform, a tool. It is how we use the tool that informs our practice. By writing our own textbooks (aka flexbooks), not only do we gain something we can hand out to students, we also organize our ideas to write a unit plan. And, we also open up a conversation with our colleagues that can help further our own practice. To continue our conversation, please sign up for our weekly newsletter and join our Facebook Group (Super Science Teachers’ Co-Lab).

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Until next time, keep it REAL.

Unfortunately, I don’t like to use file folders or letter trays to organize my work. I find file folders to be too restricting and bulky. And, I never seem to have enough during busy times (and then I have a whole bunch laying around when it’s quiet time). I dislike letter trays because it takes up space on my desk. Like constructing a multi-level parking lot on waterfront land, the land on my desk is valuable space. So, how DO I stay organized?

Paper Organizer to the Rescue

Some of the best solutions are sometimes the simplest. I like to use paper as my organization tool of choice. Taking a sheet of 8.5” x 11” white paper, I fold it “hamburger” style (ie. if holding it in “portrait” orientation, in half top-to-bottom). Then, I fold this innovative piece of technology around a stack of labs or assignments. Instant organization! This set of student work is now separate from the rest, and I can take this stack around with me easily.

Ok, so a folded piece of paper really isn’t that innovative. However, just recently – and out of nowhere – I decided to write a few things on the front of the folded paper organizer. Three things: a line on which the class name will appear, a checkbox with “Marked” beside it, a checkbox with “Recorded” beside it. This little twist changed everything. Now, when I have a stack of such paper organizers with assignments stuffed into them. I can tell which ones need to be marked and which can be handed back to students. Part of the reason my desk is a mess is from assignments that have been marked but not handed back yet. This small twist helps to resolve that issue.

I also love the act of checking off lists (I seem to get a good kick of endorphins every time I check a box off), this twist is also fun and gives me a sense of accomplishment. That I’m finally making a dent into the pile of marking that accrues on my desk. You can download the sample I use myself at the end of this post.

Field notes

There is a vast number of ways you can modify this to suit your needs.

• Add the date on which you received the assignments.
• If there are multiple parts of the assignment, perhaps have multiple “Marked” boxes to split up the work.
• Perhaps have a few lines that allow you to indicate who hasn’t handed in an assignment or test so that you can better track them down.

These are just a things I plan to do in future versions.

Wrap up

Staying organized will help to stay sane in the teaching profession. Every hack that helps to shave some time off a task – or at least helps to conserve and rest a few more brain cells – can go a long way. Click on the link below and join our email list. You’ll get our sample paper organizer template delivered to your inbox and you’ll be on our list to get our weekly newsletter.

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Until next time, keep it REAL.

Unfortunately, such web apps do not save teachers that much time. Teachers still need to spend time developing questions, forms, and answers for the video activity. Teachers still need to watch the videos before making questions too. And, they may still need to review/mark forms. Furthermore, students also need to have access to videos at home (and students may not all have computer or internet access at home). Ultimately, the challenge is having students learn important details from a video without making it too stressful for students and teachers. How do we do that? Our video activity helps to overcome this challenge. and you can also download our template at the end of this post.

The Pen is Mightier Than…

The video activity that continues to work for me in my practice (for 12 years!) comes in the form of a simple t-chart that students use to take notes from a video I show in class. Before watching a video in class, students draw a 2-column table (ie. t-chart). Students write “What I Learned” as the heading for one column and “What I Know” for the other. During the video, students write down notes from the video that pertain to either row. I give them the freedom to write anything down, so long as it’s from the video. I tell students to write down 15 points (if the video is 30 minutes long). At the end of the video, students tally up the number of points they on their chart and hand in their work. I read over their notes and give them a mark (most of the time). It’s that simple.

I came across this video activity when I worked as a substitute teacher years ago. Christopher Rozitis, a teacher who I substituted for in Vancouver, used this with his students. I’ve been using it with my students ever since. And why not? This video activity has a lot of advantages:

1. It requires little to no set-up

I don’t need to watch the video ahead of time and make questions. Students write down their own notes and I collect those notes. It’s that simple.

2. It’s engaging

I use this strategy for every video we watch, and whether it’s the first time or the fifteenth time, students work hard at getting the 10, 15, or 20 point minimum.

3. It’s student centred

When writing down 20 points, students do not need to write down 10 points for each column. Nope. The choice is up to them. Thus, if they already know a lot of things, then they’ll write a lot of points under the “What I know” column (and vice versa). This strategy is completely open-ended and

4. It gets the job done

Even though students have the freedom to write whatever notes they want, students still end up writing pretty much the same thing. What this means is that most if not all students end up getting the same information out of the video. And, whatever students miss, I usually review afterwards.

5. It’s a great snapshot of student understanding

When I review their worksheets, I get to see what each student already knows or just learned. If most students already seem to know something really well, I don’t spend as much time in class teaching it. If there’s a concept most students seem to struggle with, then I spend extra time going over the misconceptions. These student notes help me do this.

6. Technical issues outside of class are generally resolved

Most if not all students will see the video. There are no excuses from students who say the internet wasn’t working at home or they didn’t have access to a computer. No, all students get to see the video and everyone is on the same page afterwards.

Field Notes

• I ask for a minimum of 12 notes for a 25 minute video. Usually, I try to ask for about a note every 2 minutes to a maximum of 20 notes.
• I tell students NOT to provide one or two word points. I will not count them as notes.
• I mark each note out of 5. For example, if I ask for 20 notes, I award 5 marks to students who write 20+ notes, 4 marks for 16-19 notes, 3 marks for 12-15 notes, 2 marks for 8-11 notes, 1 mark for 4-7 notes, and 0 for less than 4 notes.
• If students are absent from the day of the video, I ask students to watch the video at home (if the video can be found online). Or, students can come in for a lunch hour viewing (I’m toying with this idea as I am writing this blog post).

Putting it all together

Videos are excellent resources to help teachers illustrate a point or something we can’t normally show students (like the formation of the solar system). I understand the need to have students complete a video activity (like worksheets) during videos, but such activities require time to generate and mark. Having students generate their own notes using a simple t-chart is a quick, simple, and effective way for students to learn the main ideas from a video. And, it also saves you time. If you want a copy of my template with instructions and sample notes, click on the link below and enter your email address. You’ll also be added to our email list (if you’re already on our list, you rock!).

Click Here To Get our Video Activity Template

Until next time, keep it REAL.

One of the biggest problems when it comes to retesting is that students almost expect a retest – therefore, they may not be as willing to try their best, learn the material, or fully prepare the first time around. This problem is only made worse in that there are policies in some school districts that students must be given the opportunity to have a retest. Thus, how do teachers make sure students take their own education seriously when it seems as though everyone around them is bending over backwards to give them yet another chance to do better? How do we ensure that students are actually putting forth their best effort?

Shifting the Responsibility

From a discussion question regarding retests I posted on several Facebook groups, a common thread can be concluded from many of the responses. To run better retests, allow students the opportunity to write a retest if they want – so long as students take control (and responsibility) for their own learning. The following are some tips and suggestions for running better retests.

1. Have students earn the right to write a retest

Have students complete corrections. Then, have students finish a review package or a set of review questions from the text. Finish with students having their parents sign a letter acknowledging all the work has been completed. Then, the student can schedule a date to write the retest.

Tiffany Floria (www.floriascience.com), teacher at Narragansett Regional High School in Templeton, MA, mentioned this in our Facebook group discussion: (note: click on the image to be directed to the google doc).

Giving better retests means students need to learn from mistakes before trying again. This strategy forces students to review material and relearn concepts before taking a retest. Thus, students have a greater chance for success the second time. Teachers can also alter this strategy to suit their needs or, potentially, the needs of each student.

2. Have students write retests in a timely fashion

I schedule retests no more than 2 weeks after the student receives their original test back. Any more time and (1) life gets in the way and other responsibilities will creep in and (2) students start to forget the material being tested.
Furthermore, make students come to you. Don’t schedule the exam during class time. Have them come during lunch hour or another scheduled time to write the test. Again, make students take responsibility for writing the retest instead of you bending over backwards for their learning.

3. Take the most current mark, not the best mark

Students often assume a retest can only improve their mark. Therefore, they may write a retest in the hopes of getting a better mark (like 95%) even though they got a great mark to begin with (like 92%). If they perform poorly on a retest, it doesn’t matter, right? Except, it does. The teacher is required to generate, administer, and mark a retest. And that’s precious time the teacher loses.

Ashley Krowl Reis, founder of Brilliant Biology at TpT, mentioned this in our Facebook group discussion.

With the possibility that students may have their mark drop in a retest will deter students from writing retests to get an increase of a few percentage points. More importantly, it forces students to think about whether their effort is best put to the task of retesting or another topic coming up. It makes them more responsible for their time and effort.

4. Cap or Average scores

Capping retest scores used to be one in my science department years ago. Basically, when capping retest scores, teachers are putting a maximum a student can achieve on a retest. For example, let’s say a student scores a 50% on a original test. If they write a retest, and if the retest cap is set at 60%, even if the student scores an 90% on their retest, the student will only receive a 60%.
I stopped capping retest scores a few years ago because I found some students do really try hard in their retests and score exceptionally well. And, I wanted to reward them for their hard work. So, averaging retest scores is what I do now. Basically, I average their original test score with their retest score (but only if the retest score is better). For example, if a student scores 50% on their first test but they score 90% on their retest, then I will replace their original test score will be adjusted to 70% (ie. [50% + 90%] / 2) This way, I find that students still need to take responsibility for their original score but still get the opportunity to get a higher score if they do better on the retest.

5. Making students pay for it (with classroom currency)

I find this to be one intriguing strategy mentioned on one Facebook discussion. One teacher uses a classroom currency known as BioBucks that students can use to exchange for or “purchase” certain perks. Retests represent one such perk. Much like an allowance, students learn to balance and spend resource wisely. This applies not just in currency but also literally in time and effort. Is it “worth it” to spend some currency on a retest right now or save the currency, time, and effort for something coming up. It’s an interesting model of taking not just retesting seriously but also our own time and effort.

Putting it all together

Better retests starts with having students take responsibility for their own learning. Whether it be earning the right to write a retest by working on review packages or determining whether or not putting the time and effort into preparing for a retest is worth it, students need to address these questions. That way, retesting is no longer just about a test – but also about how to approach learning in general. If you want to join our discussion group, our group is Super Science Teacher’s Co-Lab under Facebook groups. If you want a quick checklist of the tips I’ve provided, click on the handouts link below and enter your email address. We’ll also add you to our email list where you’ll receive our newsletter and updates.

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Until next time, keep it REAL.