How Video Games Are NOT Like Teaching: My Reflections on Closing out the Fall Trimester

I love playing video games. Not those new ones with all sorts of maps and graphics that make you feel like you’re watching a movie. I like old school video games with graphics that make you feel like you’re playing a really old video game. I like when I can see the pixels. I like not having hints and maps cluttering the screen. I like simple games from a simpler time when controllers only had a few buttons. Who needs an X, Y, L, R, toggle stick, and seventeen other buttons? Give me my start, select, A, B, up, down, left, and right. That’s all I ever needed to play Super Marios Brothers and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

My only problem with video games is my inability to finish what I start. I loved playing Super Mario Brothers for hours, but I could only ever get so far. I never used cheats and always tried to finish levels the hard, right way. I could never seem to defeat Bowser in the final level. After months of trying, I finally gave up. Then, another game came along and stole my attention. I would then play that for hours until I got to an unbeatable level. Then, I would stop playing that game too. I love playing video games, I’m just not a finisher. While my goal was always to beat a game, I found that I was never able to do so. I still don’t know what happens at the end of Super Mario Brothers. Does the castle blow up? Does Bowser die a fiery death? Does the princess kiss Mario and Luigi? What happens? Unfortunately, I may never know.

I sometimes find that teaching is very much like playing an old school video game. If one method to beat the boss doesn’t work, you try something new. As a teacher, I’m always trying to find new and creative ways to engage my students. Unlike video games though, I persevere through every challenge thrown my way. When I struggled to connect with a student earlier this year and allowed his behaviors to get the best of me, I kept trying new approaches. Finally, after finding a way in, I was able to get through to him and we are now working to build a strong connection in the classroom. He is working hard, being kind to me and his classmates, and seems to be having fun in my class. I didn’t use any cheats to get to where I am, I just kept persevering through my challenges until I found a solution that worked.

My lack of finishing video games has sometimes seeped through into my teaching though. There have been moments when a trimester or project ends and I don’t effectively wrap things up or foster any sort of meaningful closure. Last year, when we went remote during the last week of the fall trimester, I did not end the marking period well. I didn’t focus on all of the wonderful things we had done and all of the progress the students had made as a whole class. I just allowed the trimester to come to an end. Sure, teaching during a Pandemic is hard work and I was feeling very overwhelmed by remote teaching; however, that’s not an excuse. I should have better closed out the trimester, but I didn’t. Unlike my video game playing, I wasn’t going to give up on trying to finish this new fall trimester in a more substantial and meaningful manner. This year, as the end of the fall trimester approached, I took the time to reflect on last year’s closure and worked hard to find a more relevant and appropriate way to end the trimester this year.

This week, as the students finished their big Google Maps virtual cross country project in Social Studies and wrapped up reflecting on the trimester in their ePortfolios, and we finished our read-aloud novel Harbor Me by Jacqueline Woodson in Language Arts, I took the time to review the fall trimester. On Thursday, after the students had presented their amazing Google Map road trips to the class, I had the students provide me with feedback on all of the work we had done in Math, Social Studies, Language Arts, and Science during the fall trimester. I had the students share their favorite activities and projects from each class, as we took a jaunt down memory lane together.

• The students love the independent and individualized approach to Math class. They love that they can work at their own pace and not have to sit through a lesson on a skill they have already mastered. One student shared, “Last year, my teacher taught us all the same lesson at the same time, and I was bored because I was one of the most advanced students in the class. I had learned everything she was teaching. I like that you allow us to learn what we haven’t learned in Math by gong at our own pace. This really works for me.”
• The students also enjoyed our story writing unit in Language Arts. They liked having the freedom to write about whatever they wanted to. They felt far more creative that way.
• They really liked the Science Fair and being able to conduct their own experiments. They loved making a display board and then talking to their peers and families all about what they learned from conducting their science experiment.
• They liked the field trip to Hopkinton in Social Studies class. They liked being able to see the history of Hopkinton first hand.
• They liked our class read aloud novel because it was about a class of students coming together as a community. One student said, “I loved our read-aloud book because it was about a class like us growing together like we have.”
• The students liked the culture project that we did at the start of the year in Social Studies class. They loved being able to learn more about their family and then share it with the class.
• The students loved playing games in Math class. They liked Prime Climb and Don’t Break the Bank best.
• They liked the Google Maps project in Social Studies class because they got to work with a partner and learn how to use Google Maps. They also liked being able to learn about new places in our country.

I also asked the students to share their feedback and suggestions for what they would change about each class if they were the teacher.

• The students would like to play games at the end of Math class instead of at the beginning, like we did during the fall trimester.
• They want more time to complete projects in Social Studies, as they felt a bit rushed during the Google Map project. They want more time to work in class on projects.
• They want more hands-on projects in Science class, as they loved the Science Fair project.
• They want more story writing activities like the Quick Write activity we did at the start of the year in Language Arts class. They love writing and they want more chances to do it in class.

I then provided the class with a preview of the winter trimester.

• In Math class, the students will continue working independently on their assigned tasks. We will continue playing games like we did in the fall trimester. We will also be completing a new activity that I call the Date Game. I briefly explained how to play the game on the board. The students seemed excited and relieved, as I think some of the students thought that the Date Game would be something completely different. Some of their eyes got really wide when I said, “Date Game.” Oh, fifth graders.
• I also told the students about the Stock Market unit that we will be doing in January and February. They seemed very excited to play the Stock market Game.
• In Social Studies and Science classes, we will be completing a unit on Academic Integrity and being Internet Aware. We will learn how to conduct an effective Google search, assess the credibility of online sources, properly cite our sources using the MLA format, and paraphrase information found from other sources instead of plagiarizing.
• In January, we will begin our Physics unit in Science as we learn about speed, velocity, momentum, and many more concepts. The students will construct pinball machines to apply the concepts covered to a hands-on project. They seemed really excited about this unit.
• In Social Studies class, we will dig into ancient Mesopotamia in January as we learn about one of the first civilizations in the world.
• In Language Arts class, we will begin a new read-aloud novel Leepike Ridge by N. D. Wilson. It’s all about a boy upset about the person his mother is dating after the disappearance of his father a few years prior.
• We’ll also be learning about complete sentences, paragraph parts, and expository writing in Language Arts class beginning after Thanksgiving Break.

Then, on Friday, the students played a fun fall trimester review game I created using the online application Blooklet. I had the students brainstorm questions and answers on Thursday, as we reviewed and discussed what we had covered throughout the fall trimester. I then added in a few of my own questions. The students loved playing the game and reviewing the big concepts covered during the fall trimester.

These review and preview activities felt like a meaningful and beneficial way to close out the first trimester of fifth grade for my students. I felt like I was able to more effectively ensure that the students might have a better chance of retaining more of the information learned throughout the fall trimester by reviewing the major concepts covered. If I hadn’t taken the time to review all that we had learned and covered during our first three months together as a class, I wonder how much of that information would have been retained by my students. I also love receiving feedback on my teaching methods and felt as though I got a ton of good feedback on what the students liked and didn’t like about how I covered the curriculum in each of the major subjects throughout the past ten weeks. I can’t grow as a teacher without knowing what I need to work on, as I constantly remind my students about themselves. Turning the big ideas and lessons learned from the fall trimester into an engaging and fun game was also a big hit with the students. They loved playing the game via Blooket. These summative activities and discussions felt right and meaningful for me and my students. It was a beneficial way to end our first trimester together while also getting the students excited about what is to come following the big Thanksgiving Break. They can’t wait for our new read-aloud novel and all of the fun new units we will be starting in a little more than a week.

I love the changes that I made this year to be sure that I closed out the fall trimester in a meaningful and relevant way for both me and my students. I loved that I was able to finish the marking period strongly instead of allowing the time to slip through my fingers like flour in a sifter. I didn’t allow my challenges from last year prevent me from trying to finish the trimester in a more effective way this year. While I still love playing those old school video games, they are no longer a parallel to my life as a teacher, as I make sure to finish everything I start in a powerful and beneficial way. Take that, Bowser!

Teaching Students the Stages of Group Development

Amazing things take time to grow and flourish. It takes about 15 years for a spruce tree to grow tall enough to become a Christmas tree. It takes most people about six years to learn to see letters as words and words as stories. It took me almost ten hours to learn the Jennifer Grey parts from the final Dirty Dancing scene. It took James Cameron almost 10 years to create and release the beautiful film Avatar. It takes some bands months or even years to write and produce lyrical and haunting albums like City & Colour’s Little Hell. Greatness doesn’t happen over night, it’s a lengthy and sometimes challenging process.

Helping to mold and shape a class of students into a family of learners is also a rewarding, difficult, beautiful, and arduous task. It requires patience, time, lots of talking about compassion, reminders, and many lessons on kindness and self-awareness. Transforming a class into a community of curious and creative students is a challenging process. The first few weeks of a new school year are definitely difficult, as teachers are setting expectations and helping students learn the routines, but the students tend to be on their best behavior as they are testing the waters and trying to see if this new class is safe and something they should trust. Teachers refer to these first few weeks or month as the Forming stage of group development. The students are generally nice and kind to each other. There are very few social or behavioral issues during these first few weeks of school. Things seem good, but then the honeymoon ends. Once students start to feel safe and let their emotional guard down, friction tends to increase. The students argue with each other more as they figure out how they fit into the puzzle of the class family. Students tend to test the boundaries and rules during this time as well. Unkindness, disrespect, and other not nice things will generally happen during the Storming phase of group development, as the students are trying to see what happens when they push and pull. Will their teacher still be there to support them? Will their classmates have heir backs and take care of them? They test each other a lot during this most challenging phase of a class’ transformation to a family. The Storming phase is the most difficult part of any school year because of the behavioral and social issues that arise. Tons of Social and Emotional Learning lessons and activities are utilized during this time of the academic year to support and help the students learn to transition from Storming into the final stage of group development. Once the students learn their place in the class community, feel more safe, and begin to trust everyone a bit more, a class moves into the Norming stage of group development. This is every teachers favorite part of the school year. As students enter this phase, you can trust them to take care of each other and work together as a cohesive unit. Fun activities can happen during this time without students derailing them. The length of each stage of group development depends on the group and individuals. Some years, the Forming stage lasts a month and then the Storming stage happens in under a month. Last year, it took my class until January to transition into the Norming stage. Each class is unique and different. While this process of group development is difficult and challenging, it is also powerfully amazing and wonderful. Helping students overcome their fears and learn to trust each other is magnificent. Observing students who used to argue and fight at every turn, help each other with a class task is simply breathtaking. I’ve been moved to tears on several occasions as my students move from the Storming to the Norming phase of group development. Guiding a class towards becoming a family is a lengthy and difficult process that yields glorious results. The outcome is totally worth all of the hard work.

Earlier in this current school year, I found myself often commenting to my class during Closing Circle about how well they are working together and taking care of each other. I would cite specific examples and everything. Then, about two weeks ago, those comments stopped, as I noticed that my students were disagreeing with each other more and not being kind and helpful. That is when I realized that we had entered the Storming phase of group development. That explains why I had been leaving school feeling a bit disappointed with how the day went or upset with how the students were treating each other. My students had started testing me and their classmates. We were entering the murky waters of Stormy Lake. Once I realized that the challenges I was facing in the classroom were not a direct result of something I had done but were all part of the process of growing and learning together, I became a bit less melancholy. I simply put on my emotional rain jacket and got to work. This past Wednesday, during our Morning Meeting, I talked to the class about the issues and struggles I had been noticing and observing within the class. I then talked about how these difficulties were all part of the process of group development. I introduced the three stages of group formation and explained how we had just entered the Storming phase. I then shared how we now need to figure out how to move into the Norming phase. I told the students how last year’s group was in the Storming phase until January, which made November and December very challenging months for the class. I closed the discussion by having the students each brainstorm and then share one thing they could do as individuals to help our class move from the Storming phase to the Norming stage more efficiently. They all had great ideas.

• “I could talk to my peers when they seem like they are struggling or not feeling happy. I could ask them what I could do to help.”
• “I could help my table partner with their work if they are having trouble or need help.”
• “I could fake it ’til I make it with activities that aren’t my favorite so that I am not so negative and learn to like things that I didn’t think I could.”
• “I could work on self-regulating myself better and faster so that I don’t freak out or say something mean to someone.”

The rest of the day went well, for the most part. The students were kinder to each other and held themselves to higher standards. They were more self-aware of their actions and choices. Mistakes were made and some students struggled a bit, at times, during the day. Overall though, things were better for the class on Wednesday because they realized that the challenges they’ve been facing were all a normal and natural part of the process of a class becoming a family. Yesterday also proved to be a much better day than Monday or Tuesday. The students generally used kind words when communicating with each other and helped one another at every turn. It was really cool to see them taking action to help us move from the Storming phase to the Norming phase of group development. Were there bumps in the road? Oh, yes indeed there were; however, that is to be expected. Perfection does not exist as I often tell the students. This is a long process. We won’t move from Storming to Norming overnight. Being aware that the struggles the students have been facing are part of a typical class process helped to normalize things for the students. I am hopeful that we will move into the Norming phase sooner rather than later now that the students are more self-aware. We still have plenty of work to do on our journey together, but we are cresting Story Mountain prepared and ready to tackle all that it throws our way. We are beginning to see the glint of sunlight through the thick clouds.

Would what happened later in this week have been possible had I not introduced the concept of group development and explained the stages to my students? I don’t think so. I do believe that by pointing out what was going on, it made the students more self-aware. It’s my perception that they started to think a bit more before they acted or spoke on Wednesday and Friday because of our chat. Now, how did I come to this realization so quickly? I’m in the trenches with the students every day and so how was I able to step away and take a more broad look at what was happening with my class? Fortunately, I am a part of the STEM Teacher Leader Program in conjunction with the Montshire Museum in Norwich, VT, and we had a professional development workshop session on Tuesday; therefore, I was not at school that day. I spent the day talking to other teachers of self-contained classrooms from around NH and VT. It was super beneficial and also provided me with the time and space to reflect on the challenges I have been having in my classroom. It was in that time that I realized that these struggles were all a part of the process of learning and growing together as a community. That’s when it hit me that I should share my epiphany with the class. I should equip them with the knowledge that I now have. I believe that I needed to step away and take time to reflect on what had been happening in order to come to the realization that these struggles we had been facing as a class were normal and natural. What if I hadn’t had time on Tuesday to think and reflect? Would I have come to this same realization eventually? Probably, at some point during a break or weekend when I had time to reflect and ponder, I may have been able to realize the source of our class challenges, but maybe not either. It’s possible that I might not have realized what was happening and we would eventually move into the Norming phase later in the school year. Having the time to reflect and learn from my mistakes and failures as an educator is clearly crucial to me being an effective teacher for my students. All teachers need time to hone their craft, learn something new, and develop themselves as teachers. We all need to be able to attend professional development workshops and conferences so that we can best support and help all of our students in meaningful and effective ways. Self-care is huge for teachers. We need to take care of ourselves so that we can take care of our students. Wonderful things don’t come from nothing; they happen because of hard work, time, and reflection.

Trying a More Effective Approach to Goal Setting for my Students

Setting goals is how progress is made. The most happily successful people in life got what they wanted because they set goals and worked towards them. I was able to become a teacher because I set a goal for myself when I was in high school. When I accomplished that goal, I set another and then another until, wallah, I was a credentialed educator. Goal setting is a crucial part of life that leads to drive and forward momentum. When we have goals that we are working towards, we have a purpose, motivation to keep us going. Working towards our goals is challenging and difficult, as we only set goals that force us to push ourselves to do hard things; however, the rewards and self-satisfaction that come from accomplishing our goals are truly sweet and wonderful in every way. Once we practice setting goals frequently, the act becomes a habit. I find myself setting daily or hourly goals for myself. During my 40-minute free period yesterday, I set a goal for myself: I want to finishing tabulating the current grades for my students so that I can share them with the students when I conference with them prior to lunch. Having something to strive towards and hold myself accountable for provides me with the energy I need to live a happy life.

As I see the value in goal setting, I want my students to learn to see how beneficial setting goals can be to their overall growth and progress in school and life. Since I’ve been teaching goal setting to my students, I have seen exponential growth over shorter periods of time from my students than when I wasn’t having them create goals. Goal setting works. However, the tricky part for teachers can be how to implement effective goal setting programs in the classroom. Goal setting is not a one-and-done type of activity. Goal setting needs to be a year-long endeavor. As there are also so many different ways to teach students how to create effective goals, teachers have many options from which to choose.

For years, I used the SMART Goals approach to goal setting, which had students create goals that were specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and timely. It made sense to me in the moment when I first learned about this model of goal setting instruction. Having specific goals that are contained to a fixed time period just seemed to make sense to me. Why have students set broad goals with no end point when they could create more powerful goals focused on one task. So, I ran with this idea and taught my students how to create SMART Goals. When I taught sixth, seventh, and eighth graders, this model of goal setting was easy for them to pick up. They quickly figured out how to transform a goal like, I want to focus more in class, into a more specific and focused goal like, I want to pay attention to the teacher by making eye contact, showing positive body language, and taking notes when she is teaching us a lesson. Developmentally, their brains seemed to be able to process all of these rules and structures regarding the creation of a goal. It worked for them.

When I began teaching fifth grade about three years ago, I utilized the same SMART Goal method for teaching goal setting. While this model was very challenging and difficult for most of the students to learn and apply, I pushed through and kept at it. Even after a full year of practicing this approach, many students struggled to craft effective SMART Goals. While they all seemed to learn and understand the value of goal setting, the way that I was teaching it didn’t seem to work for them. It is my perception that the SMART Goals model of goal setting is too cumbersome and confusing for younger students to master, as there are so many steps and rules. Many of my students had never even been introduced to goal setting in their past schools and so the whole idea of goal setting was new to them. Trying to teach goal setting with so many rules and restrictions was just too much for my fifth graders to handle; however, I didn’t have any other plan or approach in place for the next school year, and so I kept using the SMART Goals approach.

Fortunately, I discovered a new approach to teaching goal setting to younger students this summer. I happened to be perusing my Twitter feed one morning when I came upon a post from an elementary school teacher. She had taken a picture of her board that was set up to teach goal setting that day. She used the WOOP acronym for goal setting, which stands for Wish, Outcome, Obstacles, and Plan. As I gazed at the picture on my laptop screen, my brain started humming with activity. Now this model of goal setting instruction makes sense to me. It’s way more tangible and manageable for fifth graders to wrap their heads around, as there are no rules to setting a goal or wish. You simply create a goal or wish, think about what you want the outcome to be at the end of the time period, contemplate obstacles that might get in your way when working towards your goal, and then you set a plan to meet accomplish your goal while avoiding the obstacles. I immediately fell in love with this approach. I responded to the tweet with gratitude and excitement. Then came the time to implement this new approach to goal setting.

I don’t formally teach goal setting until the students have had several weeks to figure out the class expectations, settle into their new class, and feel safe and cared for. At this point in the school year, the students have had two months to figure things out, which felt like the appropriate time to teach the WOOP model of goal setting. I began setting the stage for goal setting during the one-on-one conferences I had with my students yesterday morning. After I reviewed their current grades with them, I had them think about a particular aspect of a class or subject that they wanted to improve upon. I then wrote their thoughts down on a sticky note. Then, that afternoon, I introduced the students to the WOOP approach to goal setting and had them all create their first goals. I used a handout that I had created, which outlined this model of goal setting, to guide my instruction. Although my students had some questions about the model and what was expected of them, they seemed to understand the heart of this new way of setting goals. I then handed out the sticky notes that I had created for them during our student conferences earlier in the day, just in case they needed a friendly reminder about something they might want to improve upon or work on in the coming weeks. The students then got right to work. They worked efficiently and diligently at creating their first goals utilizing the WOOP model. Aside from some minor revisions students needed to make regarding parts of their plan or obstacles, they had very few problems setting goals for themselves in this more simplistic manner. I was impressed. This new approach to teaching goal setting seemed to be far less confusing for my students. They picked up this new model easily and quickly. I was so excited that my new method for teaching goal setting seemed to work so well.

Here are some goals my students students created yesterday:

W: My wish is to get a higher grade in math.

O: I want my outcome to be at least an A- in math.

O:I will have many obstacles like persevering through the challenge and not giving up, or asking a peer for help and not going to Mr. Holt.

P: my plan:

1. Pay attention to the sticky notes directions.
2. During the work periods I will persevere through the challenge and not have a fixed mindset.
3. If needed, I will ask a peer for help.
4. If needed, I will use a fidget if it helps calm me down and focus more.
5. If I do not finish the work required, I will finish the rest as homework so I understand the math concept I am studying.

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W: I wish to get my math grade from B+ to either A or A- by the end of the trimester.

O: My desired outcome is that I complete this goal within a week before Thanksgiving. I would like to get it earlier, but that would be very tough. I would prefer to have an A instead of an A-.

O: Obstacles that I need to overcome are that sometimes I like to fidget, and sometimes I cannot focus well. I do not have a fixed mindset, so that would not be a problem. I am not very good at Properties So that might be a problem, but I will try hard to get better at them.

P: My plan:

1. Ask my partner for help more.
2. I might do extra homework with my math book if I do not complete much in class.
3. Pay more attention in class.
4. Try harder on assessments.
5. Use the problem solving strategies more.

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W: My wish is to improve my science grade and get A- for the trimester.

O: MY desired outcome is that I achieve this by the end of the trimester.

O: Obstacles that might get in my way are getting distracted in class a lot and I have trouble only focusing on Mr. Holt.

P: My plan is to…

1. Pay more attention to Mr. Holt when he is talking.
2. Get work done before the due date so he can check it and give me feedback.
3. I will try not to fidget or fidget appropriately.

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Not only did my students craft really effective goals for themselves, but they also brainstormed plans that they can use to work towards their goals. So cool! I love this new model. On Monday morning, I’m going to have my students review their goals so that they will be on their mind as they tackle the new week. This first practice session of goal setting was also perfectly timed, as the students will begin a more in-depth reflection and goal setting process when they begin creating their ePortfolios next week in preparation for their Student-Led Conferences at the end of this month. Now that they all know how to create a goals using the WOOP method, they will be creating goals for each of their major subjects within their ePortfolio using the WOOP style. There is indeed a method to my chaos and instruction. I’m setting up dominos for them to knock down, as they continue to grow and develop as students and humans. Although the SMART Goals approach to teaching goal setting works for older students, it did not work for my fifth graders. So far, I am liking the WOOP model of setting goals, as it is an easier method for my students to figure out and provides them with the opportunity to really think through their goals and how they might go about meeting them. Can I get a whoop whoop for the WOOP model of goal setting? Whoop whoop! Now that feels right!