A Day for You to Read!

“We read to know that we are not alone.”
― William Nicholson

Good Morning!  We have had a week full of hard work, deep thinking, failures, and accomplishments.  As we sit down to confer with you, Mr. C. and I are consistently amazed at what we learn about you as learners.  Keep getting connected and plugging in, keep staying engaged and challenging your mind, keep creating meaning and collaborating with each other.  The journey may be long, and bumpy at times but believe us when we tell you, it's worth it. 

In Lang. Arts today, please finish your Mosaic of Thought and then you may move onto free reading of a book of your choosing, as long as it is a just right book for you.  Take your time on your Mosaic of Thought as we really look to these pieces of your thinking to help us plan next steps for you all.  The thoughtful time you spend on it is more important than the due date (today)!

We will see you all this afternoon!
Dubbs

"I was living peaceably when people
 began to speak bad of me"

      Side note from C...

      The previous two paragraphs could not have been said any better.  We are so very proud of you all, your thinking, your abilities, and your latent potential just waiting to be unleashed.  Please remember...  IT'S NOT A WORKSHEET!!  IT'S NOT ABOUT COMPREHENSION.  IT'S ABOUT CONSTRUCTING MEANING, SYNTHESIS, & INQUIRY.

"I cannot think that we are useless or God
would not have created us."  

      You will be watching a documentary on Geronimo.  Please take at least ONE FULL PAGE of CORNELL NOTES!!  

"The soldiers never explained to the government
when an Indian was wronged, but
reported the misdeeds of the Indians."   

ONE FULL PAGE.
ONE FULL PAGE.

Seminar: Moving Forward...

Please survey the information below...


Inquiry:
- Levels of Questions
Examples:  Costa, Bloom, Marzano

- Skilled Questioning

-Socratic Seminars, discussions

   

-Critical Thinking Activities

- Student ownership of learning

               through critical thinking skills,       

               through writing questions

-Analyzing a prompt, question or academic task  (fr. ACR) *   

Please view the following videos with a partner:
True Grit

Inquiry Skills: 5 E's

Mosaic of Thought 1
Mosaic of Thought 2



From the cluttered mind of C & Dubbs, Teachers
School District of Waukesha
Waukesha STEM Academy

Seminar: Moving Forward...

Happy Camel Day to You All,

      Your teachers are immensely proud of you.  Most of you were pushed out of your comfort zones yesterday.  Some of you were pushed to your limits.  Some of you had breakdowns.  GREAT!  Now is the time for us to learn.

      BREAKDOWNS LEAD TO TO BREAKTHROUGHS!!

      There is a word known to some in education called "GRIT".  Grit is what is needed to pick yourself up after a fall.  Grit is what is needed to try again if a first try doesn't go your way.  Grit is perseverance.  Grit is the "I Can..." attitude.  Please take this with you as you go through your day today.

   

BREAKDOWNS LEAD TO TO BREAKTHROUGHS!!

      Moving forward, there are three things we need to think about:
1.  Go over and pore over the "Back Channel" transcripts.
2.  Conclude our seminar with FINAL THOUGHTS.
3.  SELF-EVALUATE: How did you meet the learning targets and how would you evaluate yourself?


The Learning Targets:
I can effectively communicate in a variety of settings in a way that is
appropriate for the task, purpose, and audience.

I can identify main ideas, analyze supporting details, and
evaluate inferences.



From the cluttered mind of C & Dubbs, Teacher
School District of Waukesha
Waukesha STEM Academy

Socratic Seminar Is Here!!

Happy Tuesday to you,

The present meets the past with Socrates and Socratic Seminars!!

      We would like to extend a warm and heartfelt welcome to our friends from Waukesha West.  Thank you Mr. Jonas and all the students who have come to not only visit us but also to work along side us.  Without further ado, here is what our day will look like:

7:25-8:58  Electives
9:01-10:00 Core1
10:03 - 11:00 Core 3
11:00 -11:30 Lunch
11:30 - 12:00 Core 2 Connect

12:00-1:15  Core 2 

1:18-2:31 Core 4

Notes on our day...
**West Folks arrive in two shifts: Approx. 9 a.m. and 11:45ish**

Each core will be broken up into 3 parts
1.  We have a meet/ greet session.  Once you have a pair or triad we will engage in the Tribes activity One-Minute History.  Think about the question.  "If you could choose a line in a song that represents you, what would it be and why?"  

2.  Socratic seminar begins (approx. 30-45 minutes). Waukesha West kids will be using the evidence gathering sheet and other resources to document what they observe and provide suggestions/ feedback.  Waukesha STEM kids will be using their text sets & NOTE CARDS to drive the Academic Conversation.  

3.  Break at the 30 min. point of the seminar (if we feel necessary - if the pox is on, let the blood continue to flow!). This would be a time for partners to give feedback/ suggestions on evidence, position, lines of argument, etc.

Here are the Socratic Seminar questions.

The Seminar Questions:
What exactly is "genocide"?  How is it defined?  What are the warning signs?

What evidence throughout history proves that the Holocaust is an example of genocide?

Decide whether you think what happened to the American Indians was a true genocide or not.  If not, what label would you use to describe what happened to the American Indians.  Either way, what evidence throughout history supports your position?

The Back Channels
Histlit 1
Histlit 2
Histlit 3
Histlit 4
Histlit 5
Histlit 6
Histlit 7
Histlit 8
Histlit 9

The Learning Targets:

I can effectively communicate in a variety of settings in a way that is
appropriate for the task, purpose, and audience.

I can identify main ideas, analyze supporting details, and
evaluate inferences.

The Text:
What is Genocide?




From the cluttered mind of C & Dubbs, Teachers
School District of Waukesha
Waukesha STEM Academy

Socratic Seminar II: Guidelines & Contributions

Happy Monday,

      We hope you all had a great weekend, and can't wait to hear about it in circle.  Please read through the blog carefully and click on the links provided.  You will see a Youtube video, the blog post from Thursday last week, the seminar questions, and 11 contributions that Beth and I will be grading you on tomorrow during seminar.  Enjoy reading and have a great Monday!

What is a Socratic Seminar and what is it not?

Blog post from last Thursday. TALKING POINTS

The Seminar Questions:
What exactly is "genocide"?  How is it defined?  What are the warning signs?

What evidence throughout history proves that the Holocaust is an example of genocide?

Decide whether you think what happened to the American Indians was a true genocide or not.  If not, what label would you use to describe what happened to the American Indians.  Either way, what evidence throughout history supports your position?

11 Contributions to academic conversations and your evaluation:

1. Adds new ideas

2. Gives evidence to support by referring to text and/or media

3. Asks questions

4. Starts conversation

5. Gives positive comments/affirmations

6. Agrees or Disagrees appropriately

7. Builds on or challenges partners ideas

8. Elaborates or clarifies

9. Paraphrases

10. Actively listens

11. Exhibits distracting behavior

From the cluttered minds of C & Dubbs, Teachers
School District of Waukesha
Waukesha STEM Academy