ALL PARTICIPANTS PLEASE READ THE NOTE BELOW!!!
Although your course packet asks you to post to blog for parts A, B, C, and D…we are asking that you only post part D to the blog (especially since it's summer term and many of us aren't working with students). We’re also trying to make the blog more user-friendly and easier to read. Thanks!
A. Self Assessment of Current Beliefs and Practices: This component asks you to reflect on how and why you currently use the instructional strategies of Nonlinguistic Representations in your classroom. The intent of this is to activate your prior knowledge of your strategy use so that you can make comparisons as you read the chapter. Below are the questions to help you complete your self-assessment. After completing your self assessment please post a thought or two as a comment (click on comment link below) to this posting labeled Week Six: Nonlinguistic Respresentions.
• Nonlinguistic representations help us to recall and use information every day. Think of a topic that you understand very well and notice how many images related to this topic you can generate in your head. Now identify a topic with which you are familiar but that you do not understand well. Try to generate images and notice how difficult it is.
• What would be the purpose of representing knowledge in different forms everyday in our classrooms across curriculum areas?
B. Read & Reflect “Research & Theory”: This portion of the assignment asks you to read chapter 6 and reflect briefly on your thinking after reading the “Research and Theory” section for both Nonlinguistic Representations. After completing your chapter reflection, please post it as a comment (click on comment link below) in the posting labeled Week Six: Nonlinguistic Representations.
C. Practice: Choose one of the specific “classroom practice” strategies or techniques shared in this chapter to teach to your students (If you are not currently teaching, you may share how you would use this strategy in your classroom). You may want to consider the bullets below.
• This chapter explains that nonlinguistic representations are powerful ways to learn and recall information but that many classrooms are very linguistically oriented. Think of classroom experiences that are often effective but that are inherently linguistic (e.g., reading the textbook, engaging in a discussion, listening to an explanation). Suggest several specific ways that these linguistic experiences could be even more effective by guiding students to generate and use nonlinguistic representations, such as graphic organizers, multimedia, and role-plays.
• When do you ask students to represent knowledge using forms other than words?
D. Final Strategy Reflection: Use the following sequence of questions/prompts to reflect on what you’ve learned about both the strategies presented in the chapter and what you’ve learned about yourself as both a teacher and a learner.
How has the information you read in this chapter on Nonlinguistic Representations effected your thinking about teaching and learning? What have you learned about yourself as a teacher and learner? Use the following questions to assist you in writing a brief strategy reflection:
• How might I change how use nonlinguistic representation in my classroom?
• What is something you now understand better about nonlinguistic representations?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
21 comments:
Assignment 6 - Nonlinguistic Representations – Paula Stepankowsky
Visualization and its association with learning and its function as a bridge to long-term memory is a big focus for MAT students at the University of Portland, so the information in this chapter reinforced what I learned in my master’s program. The authors say this is an underused technique, but I do think a growing number of teachers are using it.
It’s true that, particularly in Language Arts, linguistic learning is the primary focus, so I have worked to integrate non-linguistic elements into my classes already. However, this chapter is a reminder that I should take the time to add even more graphic organizers and visual elements where needed. Sometimes I am so focused on getting through the necessary curriculum that I don’t slow down to think how additional visualization might help
I did my graduate school research on the use of graphic organizers to teach Shakespeare to special education students and discovered that the graphic organizers helped all 80 students, not just the 13 who were on IEPs. The array of graphic organizers available can be confusing, so it was good to see the examples in the chapter that associated the type of graphic organizer with the task at hand.
Examples of other methods of nonlinguistic representation are also good reminders for use in class. I will think about how students could build models, draw pictures or use a kinesthetic activity to represent certain themes or concepts in complex texts. For example, my 8th grade last year initially had trouble understanding the concept of the third-person limited point of view and how Stephen Crane used it to make a point about the confusion of battle in The Red Badge of Courage. I see now that I might be able to make that concept easier to understand if use one of these techniques.
I do use kinesthetic activities with Romeo and Juliet, although I didn’t have time for the entire class to participate this year. I teach them a simple fencing routine using foam swords, and I also had a group demonstrate a dance of Shakespeare’s time for the class when we read the scene where Romeo and Juliet meet.
Drawing literary concepts is another interesting idea. A number of my students are artistically talented, and I have to think of ways they could respond to an assignment with a visual representation. Again, the need to master certain types of essays, such as the critical analysis, by 8th grade tends to make me less open to visual detours, but I think it would be particularly useful for some students.
One thing I will emphasize again in the coming year is sentence diagramming. I will be teaching an extra period of grammar and composition to each grade in sequence this year, so I hope I will have more time for diagramming. It was considered old fashioned for a time, but when you think of it as a visual representation of the skeleton of a sentence, it really does play in to what the authors are suggesting in this chapter.
Assignment #6: Nonlinguistic Representations
Marika Conrad
This chapter reminded me how important it is to meet the learning styles of all of my students by teaching outside the linguistic realm. As a teacher who loves to talk, I have to slow down and remind myself how important it is to have students create mental pictures, represent things visually, and get up and get moving.
I use graphic organizers a great deal in my classroom, especially for writing, but use the general web and concept pattern organizers the most. I realize I could use graphic organizers to represent learning in regards to other subjects such as social studies and science more often. I would like to try and use the more complex process/cause-effect, episode pattern, and generalization organizers this year. I have students compose a lot of short responses to their learning, but I could easily convert those responses into a graphic model.
In regards to physical models, I feel I do a good job of meeting that learning need in mathematics. Our Bridges math program is extremely hands-on, using manipulatives almost daily. I enjoyed reading the example the teacher uses to show her students the phases of the moon. That’s a lesson I could recreate in my classroom this year! I need to look for ways to include models in subjects other than math.
Generating mental pictures is an area covered in this chapter that I feel I work hard to address in many subjects. It’s a big component of my reading instruction and I have students stop and create mental pictures as we read picture books and novels together. I also help students to create mental pictures of science concepts. In addition to creating mental pictures, it’s reassuring to know that having my students drawing about their learning is a valuable activity. One of my mini-lessons for our reading strategy Café bulletin board focuses on just that! It’s called, “creating a mental picture” and I teach it by reading a short piece and stopping to have students draw what they see in their minds. I’m able to combine this nonlinguistic approach with linguistics by having students tell the story of their pictures to their neighbors. In addition, I often have students draw pictures to go along with the words and definitions of new vocabulary words.
When I can, I strive to get students up and moving. We did a dance to the math transformations (sliding across the floor to complete a translation, turning in circles to model rotation, and jumping in the air and flipping around for reflection). It was very engaging and students did a great job remembering the transformations! Just like the example in the book, my students also use their arms to show the different types of angles. After attending GLAD and CRISS trainings, I found more ways to include kinesthetics into my classroom by using new vocabulary as signal words. I would say a new vocabulary word and students would repeat the vocabulary word, a student friendly definition, and complete a gesture to go along with the word. Linking the movement, word, and definition together helped students retain their knowledge of new vocabulary longer. I could use several different signal words in a day to transition students from one activity to another, regroup the class together for new instruction, line students up, and more.
This chapter reminded me of the importance to quit talking at times and make sure I am meeting students’ needs to record their learning in an organized way, represent their learning in methods other than words, and get moving!
Marika:
Yes, I agree that sometimes we have to slow down, stop talking and allow more time for students to process. There is so much pressure to get through the curriculum that sometimes it is difficult to remember that. Paula
Theresa Muller
Assignment #6 Nonlinguistic Representations
I was surprised to read that creating nonlinguistic representations is probably the most underused instructional strategy! It actually is one of the strategies I use most. Perhaps, this is due to the fact that I teach in the primary grades and young learners seem to grasp information much better when it is presented in a more concrete, graphic way.
I enjoyed reading this chapter. It really reaffirmed my belief in the effectiveness of using this strategy, and I could relate each classroom practice covered to my own first grade classroom. I was also envisioning other graphic organizers and nonlinguistic representations that I could use with my students.
I typically use descriptive patterns, episode patterns in the form of story maps, concept patterns or word webs, and the occasional timeline. After reading this chapter, I feel I can add even more graphic organizers. I would especially like to create a simplified Cause-Effect organizer since this is a much harder concept for younger students to understand. Also, I would like to use different organizers in subjects where I may not use them as much, for example, episode and concept patterns in science and other content areas.
I do feel I could use other nonlinguistic representations more often in my classroom. Like Marika, we too use the Bridges math program, which relies heavily on the use of manipulatives to teach concepts and practice skills. But, my students could benefit from using even more physical models. My kids really enjoyed rolling different colors of clay together to demonstrate the idea that rocks are composed of various minerals. So I know the power of having students create concrete representations to form images of learned information in their minds.
Having first graders draw pictures to represent knowledge is common practice, mainly because it is difficult for them to express themselves through writing. Now I feel that it is perhaps just as meaningful, if not more so, for them to engage in this practice. I also use pictorial input charts to teach content and to present new ideas. I like to have students reproduce these and then use them to review the information with their fellow classmates. (This is a strategy I learned from GLAD training.)
I regret to admit that I do not incorporate physical movement as much as I could or should in my classroom. Sometimes when you encourage young children to get up and move around, it can quickly get out of hand, and getting these little guys back on track can be very challenging. Letting go of control a little and allowing my students to express themselves physically may very well help those children who learn best kinesthetically.
The greatest difference I have realized in how I approach this subject is how nonlinguistic representation is utilized in my teaching practice. I use graphic organizers in presenting concepts but after reading this I can see the importance of how much more my students could get from creating their own graphic organizers.
This is how I would change my approach in using nonlinguistic representation in my classes. One of the lessons that I do is the classifying substances at mixtures versus solutions. Each of the concepts for a mixture and solution can be difficult to differentiate and to be able to create an organizer that forces them to organize characteristics for each concept. In the past I have just presented graphic organizers of these concepts in PowerPoint or through handouts. I think in this situation it would be of great value to have students create a descriptive pattern or concept pattern organizer on their own. As in the research stated, this would allow students to elaborate on the material and hopefully make it stick with them for a longer period of time.
I feel I have a better understanding of the importance of having student’s process major learning objectives through the use of nonlinguistic representation. I feel the utilization of these can be invaluable to achieve the deeper level processing that is needed especially with concepts that can be very challenging.
Name: David Lee
Assignment Six: Nonlinguistic Representations
As a visual learner, I remember information more deeply if I see something in print, and if I create a drawing or picture, it is stamped in my mind. So, as a teacher, I will try to use more of this with my students. I took an Art/Music class with Annie Painter last year, and most of her work was doing this sort of thing. We used blocks to recreate the Portland Symphony’s arrangement of instruments and it was amazing. We had to pick blocks to represent different families of instruments and we had to be able to tell our group what was what. Something different happens in the brain when you have to use models rather than just words.
I am reminded that class discussions, role-plays (which my students love), multi-media projects, (they also love our computer time and my Activeboard presentation and interactive lessons). During our read aloud time, I will sometimes have my students draw what I am reading. I thought this might be a waste of time, but this is a nonlinguistic task, and they seem to like it. Once again, if I think about myself as a learner, what is good for me is usually good for my students. I will not hesitate to use different kids of graphic organizers in language arts, and across the curriculum.
This chapter was exciting, because this is one of the ways to access learning that kids find fun. I think I use this method often, but this chapter helped me see the way graphic organizers fit in. I have never thought of graphic organizers as nonlinguistic since, besides the bubbles, boxes, and arrows, they boil down to written words. But now I see better that the fact of organizing your words in a graphic organizer takes it to a nonlinguistic level. I also like that it combines with the note-taking strategies from chapter 3. I use a decent amount of graphic organizers but I plan to integrate them more.
Drawing pictures and pictographs- One activity I do in class is called “poem drawings”. I have the kids read or listen to a poem, and then draw a picture of what they visualize. That is a great launching point for really getting at the meaning of the poem, or of writing their own poetry. The students love it too. Sometimes I’ll have them choose one line of the poem that they think is important and write it on the drawing somewhere (“Two roads diverged in a yellow wood…”) and the combination of art and words looks very cool.
We used composition books this year as science journals. They kept track of all vocabulary, reflections, and experiments in their journal. Every time we did an experiment, I had them draw in the journal as well as write it up. I think the drawing they did really helped deepen their understanding of the scientific concepts.
I use a lot of kinesthetic activity in my class too. Whether it’s just a quick stretch break to allow their brains to reboot or kinesthetic activity related to learning, I know that my kids need it. I especially use a lot of music. I make up little songs for all kinds of concepts and we sing them together. I add movements to the songs most of the time. Even the coolest 6th graders always seem to be willing to sing along! There are also tons of songs other teachers have made up on YouTube. There’s great stuff for math and science. The bottom line in this chapter for me was to integrate more graphic organizers and visualizing into my classroom practice.
Erinn Carrillo
Assignment #6
Nonlinguistic Representations
This chapter was reassuring to me that using graphics, teaching songs, using movement and generally getting kids to think with a different part of their brains will help them to think and recall information. When I was a fourth grade teacher, I tried to use as many story maps, songs, and movement activities to teach my students. I found teaching concepts in science and math were especially suited to nonlinguistic representations.
In math, building arrays for multiplication was a way that our fourth grade teachers helped the students to understand the concept. How do you group? Groups of three, groups of four and the equations to go with the models were helpful to kids. Manipulating squares of paper and gluing their equations on a chart helped them to really understand multiplication.
To learn types of angles, we would use our arms to motion. Make an acute angle with your arms. Make an obtuse angle with your arms. Show me a right angle. The physical motion helped solidify the concepts for my students.
Now, as an ELL teacher, I have to draw pictures, use models and explain many things for my students. They are trying to understand so much and learn new words for the world around them. It is exciting and affirming when my students practice and learn a concept while using nonlinguistic representations.
@ Amy: I agree that most of the “cool” kids will sing a song or do motions to learn a concept too. It’s a fun way to learn.
@Theresa: Sometimes the movements do get the kids a bit silly or crazy, but I think it helps solidify learning. I would have to reign in my fourth grade students occasionally or would put some parameters on how we would do movements. Maybe a bit of wiggle time before…silly shaking or stretching will help them to focus on the upcoming concept. : )
@ Marika: Your comment about the CAFÉ strategy is intriguing to me. I haven’t read my CAFÉ book or my Daily Five yet, but I plan to before school starts. Creating a mental picture is a great way for kids to think about their learning and their thinking. Having a visual image is HUGE for some kids. I am excited to learn about this more in reading the books.
Because of my specialized training in autism instruction and my SIOP training, I utilize a wide variety of visuals in my classroom. The graphic organizers I use tend to be very simple however, and I would love to try some of the more complex ones in the chapter. The Process/Cause Effect to teach hygiene and health for example. For myself, I am going to try the Concept Pattern Organizer to help map out a thematic unit. I have used the pictoral/drawing method to support comprehension but as student needs and abilities changed have moved more toward my making the visual connections through window paning and drawing as I read stories aloud. These are fine but this chapter makes me realize I need to put students more in charge and encourage them to draw their own pictures more. This chapter also makes me want to try more kinesthetic activities involving movement, touch and using physical representations of concepts. Currently we do a math movement exercise to show the different kinds of lines using our arms. I will be looking for ways to expand the ways we can do more math exercises this way. Brain Gym is a program I have dabbled with and will look into again. It is actually difficult for me because of my own directional dyslexia issues. Who knows it might help me! I have long felt that teaching with a multiple intelligence framework is the best way to teach. It is easy to get into ruts though and forget to try new things. After teaching for awhile it is even more likely it is a process of rediscovering great ideas that got left behind! My something new is that it is not just about visual. Non-linguistic representation is where a lot of creative, fun teaching can take place. It isn’t just for “special” students either. All learners benefit, including the teachers.
@Paula I LOVED diagramming sentences. I have been thinking about how much it helped me understand the underlying structure of grammer and writing. It has been many years since I have diagrammed a sentence though so I just got a book from Amazon. I can see using this with my students,if only for the most basic parts.
@Marika - Ditto on talking. I also use too big of words but have developed the habit of defining the word in the sentence as I talk.
@Marti "Something different happens in the brain when you have to use models rather than just words." That is a good reminder. The learning really feels different to me, it becomes body knowledge not just head knowledge. Guess I might also be a kinesthetic learner myself. (-:
@Erinn Thanks for the @ idea. (-:
Thanks Paula, Marika, Theresa, David, and Marti for sharing your thoughts on nonlinguistic representations.
Paula – I agree with your comment that more teachers are beginning to understand the benefits of incorporating nonlinguistic representations into their daily instruction. I’m glad that this chapter has reinforced (and not conflicted) learning in your MAT program. It definitely sounds as though you’ve done a great job trying to infuse some of this work into your LA instruction already. You are right…diagramming sentences for grammar is a visual technique, although I’m not sure it’s one that ever helped me learn grammar :)
Marika – In my district, we use Pearson’s Investigations in math. This is an extremely visual program and the kids have had a lot of success in math. It sounds as though you’ve done a great job integrating both visual and kinesthetic strategies into your instruction as well. Best of luck as you work on keeping your mouth zipped more this coming year….I know how hard it is :)
Theresa – It’s great that using nonlinguistic representations is one of your strengths! As you stated, I do think that this may be a strategy that more primary teachers have already been incorporating into their instruction. I can’t remember if you had mentioned working with “The Sisters” and their CAFÉ menu of strategies, but I think they’re doing a great job of trying to incorporate both movement and visuals into strategy learning for kids in reading instruction.
David – I think it would make a big difference in your students’ learning to be able to take more ownership of their work through creating their own graphic organizers to represent learning and information. Even at the H.S. level, kids most if not all students will need to see this modeled for them for them to be most successful.
Marti – The Annie Painter course sounds like a great. Are you working on a dual certification? I love the idea of children drawing their visualizations during read alouds….as with everything it’s all about the balance of time!
Ashley Madison
Assignment #6
Nonlinguistic Representations
This chapter is very validating to my teaching practice. I use this stuff all the time, and I am glad to learn that it is more than Ms. Madison being silly or creative, it is actually a research-based strategy. Actually, the two most recent trainings at my school—SIOP and RA—use this practice, too; so most teachers at my school have fine-tuned their teaching to utilize this strategy. I see SIOP and the like mentioned in many posts here. Again, since I am a writing teacher, I use graphic organizers all the time. I also use physical models (manipulatives, usually foldables) to teach concepts, and I love to come up with kinesthetic activities for whatever I can—especially teaching punctuation. One of my favorite assignments is a little two-paragraph book we make to teach anecdotes (it also re-teaches proper paragraph structure). It is a really fun set of lessons where students learn about different words for personality traits by wearing hats (literally), tell a specific story about two of their own personality traits, then publish them in a folded book. It is called the “I Am Book.” One thing I wondered about as I went through this chapter is: what happened to diagramming sentences? We certainly don’t teach that anymore, but I definitely see it as a nonlinguistic way to evaluate sentence structure. I don’t really want to teach diagramming sentences, but I do wonder why it went out of edu-fashion. I see that Paula is thinking the same thing, but is bringing it back! Good for you!
Thanks Amy, Erinn, Robin, and Ashley for adding your comments about Nonlinguistic Representations.
Amy – It’s great to understand the research behind the effective instruction we’re already doing isn’t it? :) It sounds as though you do a great job reaching the learning styles of all learners in your classroom when you add drawing, movement and music to your instruction!
Erinn – As a teacher of ELLs it is even more important that your students are supported with nonlinguistic representations. I loved the examples that you shared from your math instruction as a 4th grade teacher. Definitely pick up the CAFÉ and Daily Five books….best PD books I’ve read in a VERY long time!!! I’m actually teaching a course on CAFÉ through TINT in the fall.
Robin – You’ve got some great thoughts on how you might incorporate more of the “multiple intelligence” philosophy into your classroom. Your learners in particular need to have the opportunity to shine in ways that more traditional teaching and education might not let them. Brain Gym sounds like an interesting program, one that’s new to me. I’m going to actually mention it to our special education teacher in the building.
Ashley – As I said to Amy above, it’s great to have the confirmation and support behind your instructional decisions isn’t it? I’ve been hearing about the SIOP training, but what’s RA? I loved the idea of kinesthetic punctuation and your “I Am Book”. Still not sure how I feel about diagramming sentences….some of my worst middle school memories are about diagramming sentences in Mrs. Large’s 6th grade LA course…. :)
I found this chapter fascinating on nonlinguistic representations. I also have enjoyed reading all of the other comments of what each of you are doing in your classrooms to incorporate nonlinguistic representations. It is another teaching strategy that is important but I could see how it is underused especially if you are feeling pressure to get through a certain amount of curriculum.
I know for me as a learner I need nonlinguistic representations to retain information and also to be able to focus on what I am learning. I remember a few classes where the teachers lectured and my mind would wander. It is something I have always battled as a student through all of my years of schooling. It is embarrassing to admit but I was one in college that would fall asleep in any type of lecture class. It has always been a challenge for me. I can relate to students who need to get up and move and I love the idea of drawing pictures while a teacher is reading aloud. I have never had my own classroom but I know from my experience as a student teacher I always had some sort of nonlinguistic representation with my lessons. I think since it is how I learn it is easier for me to teach using the kinds of strategies in this chapter. I also student taught in the 2nd and 4th grade and I think it really is much more effective to have visuals or have students engage in kinesthetic activity in the younger grades. I also hadn’t considered the graphic organizers as such an effective way for students to generate nonlinguistic representations. This chapter reinforced my style of teaching and I will use these strategies even as a substitute teacher.
Sara Malvar
Assignment six: Nonlinguistic Representations
I am a visual learner. I never knew this about myself until I entered the education field. For the past couple of years my wife and I have been building a new home. As we moved through the process it became quite evident to me that at every level of the planning, I needed to see the drawings, pictures, colors, shapes, fixtures and much more before I felt comfortable with our decisions. My wife on the other hand could see these things in her mind already. I believe my students have similar experiences in their learning. I have been teaching in a school for the past eight years that has a huge ELL population and we have a school-wide ELD class each day for 30 minutes. A huge focus is placed on pictures, role-playing, illustrating and short clips off of United Streaming to explain a variety of educational concepts from hurricanes to health. Students learn to associate these images to vocabulary. The power of multi-media is strong. I also believe that when students are provided the information in a variety of ways, the brain stores the information in multiple places allowing for an easier recall.
I found many common threads with some of the earlier posts. I too was taught in my masters program about the use of visualization. I have only tried it a couple of times and there is lots of room for improvement but I know students enjoyed learning this way. I wasn’t sure about its effectiveness but it did make the learning fun. I also have my students illustrate as I do the classroom read aloud. Kids find it interesting to see what other people draw and how they are able to identify the part of the story without any words. I also do a storytelling unit in the spring where students pick a fairy tale and using 6-12 panels, they illustrate the key events of the story using only a pencil and piece of paper with stick figures if necessary. It really helps them when they go to tell their story to their classmates. I find it interesting that all the recent best practices in math all use non-linguistic representations. My DMI Base Ten class, the Nike math grant teaching, and even the new Bridges adoption that we are introducing this year, had a huge focus on using manipulatives. Students are then asked to explain their models as they share them with the class. What I did take away from this chapter was the multiple graphic organizers that can be created. I am going to incorporate the episode pattern organizer this year with our HM anthology stories to strengthen comprehension and concept pattern organizer for science.
Assignment #6 (8/11/11) – Non-linguistic Representations
Thanks Sara and John for your comments on nonlinguistic representations.
Sara – I completely agree that nonlinguistic representations are underused…especially as you go up in grades. It’s great that you are considerate of the different types of learners that you will have in your classroom. By the way, I think I was in those same lecture classes as you…drifting off and falling asleep.
John – Isn’t funny how our adult life experiences continue to show us what kind of learner we are and how this helps us reflect on how we need to teach to each type of learner that we have in our classrooms. It’s a really big job, and as you mentioned, multimedia can play a big role in supporting teachers. I loved your idea of using the illustrated panels for your fairy tale unit.
Amber Young, Assignment #6
This is my favorite chapter! Being a music teacher, my day is full of kinesthetic learning, manipulatives, symbols, and drawing, not to mention instruments that are used as physical models to represent concepts in sound. We also use mental imagery to visualize singing techniques. I'm a visual learner, so whenever I had a graphic organizer in classes, it was 'stamped' into my mind forever. I absolutely LOVED sentence diagrams in sophomore composition. I was the envy of all my classmates in grammar, but it was because of the visual format that I could digest and retain. Marti, I can't wait to use the "colored blocks idea" for the orchestra! Paula, good for you getting teenagers to dance-that’s quite a feat!! I’m so happy to hear that many of you are using songs and movement to cement learning. The neurological benefits are much deeper than just getting the kids moving. Our brains crave that whole-body experience, and not just the little guys. They also get a nice endorphin hit from the social aspect of moving and singing together, even the teenagers. (And they love seeing you go out on a limb and taking a risk!) This chapter affirms that although taking the time for each student to write notes, rhythms, etc. seems like a pain, it really does help my students have a deeper understanding and faster recall of a concept. I feel pressure to get more content ‘done,’ but what’s the point if my students can’t remember it after they’ve left me?
#6
As a math teacher I understand how difficult if can be for students to conceptualize abstract ideas. I am always on the look out for new ways to incorporate more nonlinguistic representations. I do notice that when I introduce a new topic I tend to use more linguistic approaches. I also found that when I use both representations, explaining something with words and pictures, I reach more students.
One of the most challenging concepts for my students is geometric proofs. The first year I taught it my students really struggled with this idea and I wasn’t sure how to help them. A co-worker did some research and found proof blocks. These are manipulative that help students organize their proof into a flow chart. This helps students physically see how all the ideas are related and eventually lead to the conclusion. It was a great example of how using these nonlinguistic strategies help students organize and recall new concepts.
The other breakthrough I had involving nonlinguistic representations involved the difficult idea of factoring. The strategy I learned used algebra tiles as manipulative and eventually the students could just draw pictures instead of using the tiles. This idea represented the algebraic equation as a rectangle, then the length of the rectangle was one factor and the width was the other factor. This helps the students visualize this abstract idea and I can’t imagine teaching factoring with out using this approach.
The nonlinguistic strategy I use the least is the kinesthetic approach, but I would like to use these more (after all, I am a kinesthetic learner). In high school kids sit at desks for most of the day not moving, so getting them up and active is important but often overlooked. I agree that a physical movement associated with and idea helps students learn. This is something that elementary teachers use all the time and I think more high school teacher should incorporate this strategy.
Assignment #6: Nonlinguistic Representations
It was great to read this chapter as a reminder to slow down and take the time necessary to reach individual learning styles. I am a linguistic learner and definitely take too much time in class relying on talking as a means of teaching. If the kids don’t understand a concept, I will often use another verbal example to explain it in a different way instead of trying a more visual representation. Unfortunately I don’t consider myself much of an artist, so I sometimes avoid sketching, which I’m sure is very helpful for all learners (especially ESL students and other visual learners).
I have found success with GLAD to build visual examples and for graphic representation of difficult concepts. It really seems to work for all learners, regardless of their academic level, and I can plan in advance the pictures I’m drawing or the graphic organizers to be used as support of the material.
We spend time working on mental images as well. The first graders really seem to buy into this concept and often elaborate in great detail about their mental images when the right book is used. Having students draw their images while reading a passage aloud is a great assessment tool to see how much they comprehend.
This year the first grade team used a “hamburger” graphic organizer for writing, and the students’ writing organization improved dramatically. The hamburger includes the top bun (topic sentence), 3-5 toppings (supporting details, and a bottom bun (closing sentence). Having this seemingly silly graphic organizer simplified a very difficult task for a majority of students, and several students achieved mastery enough that they no longer needed the organizer.
Having such success with graphic organizers and now learning about their effectiveness has really increased my desire to use them in class more often. Not only will the concepts reach more students than just the linguistic learners, but the organizers will provide me with the framework for me to break down difficult concepts, which will help me teach and the students learn! I would like to use a few select graphic organizers often enough to go from guided practice to the students completing them independently so I’ll know that they can successfully organize the specific information on their own.
Assignment #6
Jennifer Flagel
Thanks Amber, Lynn and Jennifer for your comments of nonlinguistic representations.
Amber – You are lucky to be teaching in a field where it might be a bit easier to integrate different types of learning styles into your teaching. I think that’s why it’s so important that we have arts instruction in our schools….all different types of learners to be able to find success in school. Your last line stuck with me…”I (we all) feel the pressure to get more content ‘done’, but what’s the point if my students can’t remember it after they’ve left me?” It’s a very true statement, and one for us all to keep in mind as we attempt to RUSH through the curriculum this coming year!
Lynn – I think that in the last decade, math publishers have been trying hard to incorporate nonlinguistic learning into their programs (at least at the elementary level…but maybe not at your upper level of instruction???). It’s great that you have colleagues that you can bounce ideas off of and support each other in using nonlinguistic representations. Best of luck trying to incorporate more kinesthetic learning this coming year!
Jennifer – GLAD strategies are extremely beneficial for all learners, but especially for your ESLs because they have such a strong visual component. It is wonderful that you are able to integrate visual learning with such success in both your reading and writing curriculums.
Post a Comment