Moving On!

Nearly a decade ago, I stepped into the role of Primary Years Programme (PYP) Coordinator in an International Baccalaureate (IB) school. A significant aspect of my responsibilities involved fostering connections among the teachers I collaborated with, aiming to disseminate best teaching practices. While predecessors had opted for newsletters, I envisioned a broader reach, extending beyond the audience of my school's educators.

Thus, the blog "Making Teaching Visible: Observing and documenting best teaching practice in order to connect one good idea to other educators" was born. Infatuated with the book "Making Thinking Visible," many of the initial posts revolved around the thinking routines advocated by authors Ritchhart, Church, and Morrison. The blog's title obviously paid homage to these influential figures and their groundbreaking work.

Over the years, this blog facilitated connections with educators globally and served as a platform for analyzing and reflecting on the essence of effective teaching. My goal has always been to share practical ideas that could make teachers' jobs easier and their efforts more effective.

However, my journey has evolved, and I am no longer in the role of a PYP Coordinator. In the past four years, I've returned to the classroom, and the need for this blog has waned - along with the time I have to write posts! The transition of domains has rendered many embedded pictures as mere "!", serving as warnings that the images are no longer available. I've explored alternative avenues, such as TikTok, to share the ideas I've been learning and implementing - check me out there. Given the lapse in regular updates, I believe it's an apt time to officially bid farewell to this blog.

While I acknowledge the wealth of valuable ideas archived in the over 100 posts on this blog, I've decided against archiving the entire thing. No new posts will be added, at least for the foreseeable future. It's time to embark on a new chapter, and I appreciate the enriching journey this blog has afforded me. Thank you to everyone who has been part of this endeavor. It's time to move on!

Be an Inquirer

Teacher leaders embrace an inquiry stance to focus on learning while not stopping forward progress.

As a former Primary Years Programme Teacher and Coordinator, I know that taking an inquiry-approach to classroom instruction is fundamental. However, inquiry shouldn't just happen in front of students. It's about taking an inquiry stance all the time, which means being a curious learner as a teacher leader, with oneself and with one's students.

As a leader, if you notice something happening in a mathematics classroom that confuses, angers, frustrates, or saddens you, your first steps should be to ask questions to understand. Avoid blaming, shaming, sharing your anger, belittling, or accusing. Instead, ask simple, open-ended, non-confrontational prompts like "Can you help me understand?" As a teacher leader, your goal is to ask questions not to challenge, but because you're curious.

This inquiry stance should also be applied to your own classroom. When something doesn't go quite right, ask yourself, "What can I learn from this experience?" Instead of getting bogged down in shame and embarrassment, focus on what you can do to improve.

To model this inquiry stance with students, start by showing them how to be curious and how to ask questions. You can also model how to solve a problem and the questions you ask yourself as you tackle it. When asking students questions, try to understand their thinking instead of trying to fix it.

You’ll also want to keep in mind the balance of confusion and understanding in your classroom. As MaryAnn from the Making Meaning of Operations case book said, "This situation made me wonder about the wisdom of leaving students in the middle of a misunderstanding," (Case 14, p. 52). We need to find a balance between acknowledging when students' lines of thinking are incorrect with not stopping their forward progress. And as case 18 and case 9 from the same book illustrate, we can find fascination and value in discussing different ways to approach a problem and different perspectives. By embracing an inquiry stance, we can create a more collaborative and engaging learning environment for ourselves and our students.

Repeat to Understand: Improving Math Discussions through Repetition

When students share their mathematical thinking in a group, it's important that everyone's voice feels heard. One effective technique to ensure this is to have another student repeat the thinking of the person who shared. This strategy, which we saw in many Developing Mathematical Ideas (DMI) videos (as part of the Master of Arts in Teaching Mathematics at Mt Holyoke College), was also recommended by my colleague Louisa for my Student Thinking Assignments in the 2021-22 school year.

There are several benefits to using this approach. First, it amplifies the voice of the student who originally shared their thinking and communicates to the class that their ideas are valued. Second, when a student's thinking is repeated, more students have a chance to hear and understand it. In a busy and distracting classroom, hearing ideas twice can help students pay closer attention. Third, repeating the thinking provides an opportunity to check for understanding. If the repetition is incorrect, we can quickly identify any misunderstandings or communication issues.

Echoing student voices by having another student repeat their thinking is a simple and effective technique to use in your elementary math classroom. It promotes inclusion, helps clarify ideas, and encourages active listening among students.

In your next math class, give it a shot and see how it goes. Then leave me a comment and let me know how it worked for you!

Questions to Reflect & Refine

• In what ways could echoing student voices benefit my classroom math discussions? How could it support student learning?
• How might I use or adapt this technique to suit the needs of my classroom and my students? How might I regularly incorporate this strategy into my practice?
• Can I think of any other strategies to ensure that all my students' voices are heard in math discussions?

Ideas that came up based on feedback from others:

• When students are hesitant or afraid to vocalize their ideas/processes, being the "repeater" is actually much lower stakes. They can still be a part of the conversation, but they don't have to vulnerably share their own ideas if they aren't ready to, yet. (Larry)
• This technique is described above in the context of a small or large group, but could also be a strategy students would use in pairs as a way to show their partner was actively listening. The way the technique is used is dependent on the purpose. (Melissa)
• What happens if the math thinking originally shared is incorrect? Do you still have that thinking echoed? (Melissa)
• Repetition is a super important technique. Students teaching, after gaining expertise, can really boost the repetitions. Giving students multiple modeling opportunities advantages all. (Amy)
• This community has potential to build community. (Judi)
• An important precursor to using a technique like this is to lay out norms and expectations for the group. It is also important students know the purpose; to amplify voices, promote inclusion and clarify ideas. This "echoing" technique shouldn't be looked on as a listening quiz, but rather a chance to restate and reframe. (Louisa)
• When students get used to listening to other students' math thinking and sharing their own thinking, the ownership for learning, thinking and teaching shifts towards the students, giving them agency. (Jennifer) 
• This strategy would be useful in other areas as well, not just in the mathematics classroom (Ashley)

The Horse & Rider: A helpful metaphor for emotional regulation

Being able to regulate your emotions is a learned skill, just like being able to multiply or decode multi-syllabic words. Helping students develop this skill of emotional regulation is just as important as literacy and math instruction. And one helpful part of teaching students this skill is helping them understand what's going on in the brain.

Now because I teach elementary-aged students and because I am no brain expert myself, I rely on metaphors to help me understand and communicate that understanding to my students.

What follows are three ways of thinking about what's happening in the brain when we're emotionally regulated that I have found extremely helpful. I've labeled them as good, better and best.

Good: "The Lid"

Image taken from https://i.ytimg.com/vi/zJqH_Ogxle0/maxresdefault.jpg on 6/28/2022

When I first learned about emotional regulation during a Conscious Discipline training, I learned about the hand model of the brain. Watch Dr. Becky Bailey from Conscious Discipline explain this hand model.

With this model, the thumb represents your limbic system, which is the emotional part of the brain. Your prefrontal cortex, which is represented by your middle and ring fingers, is the thinking part of the brain. When you're in your thinking state, your prefrontal cortex regulates your limbic system and in the hand model of the brain, your middle and ring fingers physically cover up your thumb. To show emotional dysregulation, your fingers come up and we say, "you've flipped your lid." When we're in this state, we are driven by our emotions.

Better: "The Balance"

Image taken from https://pxhere.com/en/photo/1585031 on 6/28/2022.

In fourth grade at my school, we teach students a different metaphor using the social-emotional learning curriculum called Second Step. In the unit called "Emotional Management" we teach the students about the balanced brain. Just like with Conscious Discipline, the students learn about these two states of the brain, but the Second Step curriculum uses the language of "logic center" and "emotion center".

A further difference is that rather than talk about one system regulating or taking over the other, we talk about how both the logic and emotion centers of our brain need to be in balance. These parts of our brain need to work together so that we can make good decisions. We shouldn't ignore either part of the brain.

I prefer thinking of keeping these parts of our brains balanced, instead of one system taking over or regulating the other one, but Second Step doesn't provide a helpful visual metaphor to easily talk about or communicate this idea to kids. That is why I prefer this last way of thinking about the brain and emotional regulation.

Best: "The Horse and Rider"

Image take from https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:2006-07-28_-_United_States_-_Wyoming_-_Cody_-_Rodeo_-_Cowboy.jpg on 6/28/2022

My best friend Brenda, a mother and nurse practitioner, shared a way of thinking about the thinking and logic centers of the brain in a way that I have used in my classroom ever since. Just like how the fingers rest on top of the thumb in the hand model of the brain described above, we can think about the logic center as being the rider on top of a horse, which represents the emotion center. Both horse and rider need to work together to be successful.

The horse needs the rider to help know where to go and the rider needs the horse to get places quicker. When the horse bucks off the rider, it runs wild and won't be very successful until the rider gets back on. When this happens, we're emotionally dysregulated and we can't get regulated until the horse slows down. This is a key aspect to this metaphor and it is why I LOVE it so much. We can not think or communicate logically when we're dysregulated - when our rider is off the horse. So our first order of business when this happens is to breathe, slow our horse down and get the rider back on so that we can get back into balance.

These three metaphors that I have learned along the way help me think about balanced and regulated brains. What are ways you have learned that you use in your practice?

Teaching Signposts with Patricia Polacco

Several years ago, along with friends and colleagues, I learned about "signposts" by reading the book Notice and Note: Strategies for Close Reading by Kylene Beers and Robert E Probst.

Image retrieved from https://www.heinemann.com/shared/covers/9780325046938.jpg

Close Reading

Close reading is a process that typically involves re-reading a text to progressively dig deeper. The initial pass allows the reader to understand what the text says, which correlates with the first three Common Core Reading Standards: key ideas and details. The second read compromises an analysis of the author's craft and the text's structure (CCSS standards 4-6). Last, students are invited to revisit the text for a third time to integrate knowledge and ideas (CCSS standards 7-9).

Image retrieved from https://www.smekenseducation.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/CR_3_PhasesMini_Poster.jpg

In their book, Beers and Probst argue that whereas these three reads help students examine texts more closely, the process is often teacher-driven and doesn't provide a gradual release of responsibility so that students eventually apply these reading behaviors independently.

Instead, they suggest readers look for six signposts that "alert readers to significant moments in a work of literature and encourages them to read closely."

To introduce these signposts to my fourth graders in the middle of our author study on Patricia Polacco, we read Pink and Say, a book where all six signposts were present.

Image retrieved from https://www.amazon.com/Pink-Say-Patricia-Polacco/dp/0399226710

Introduce the Signposts

First, I divided the class into six groups and assigned them each a signpost. They were responsible for defining their signpost to the class, along with sharing the question readers are to ask themselves once they've identified a particular signposts.

• Contrasts and Contradictions: Sharp contrasts between what we expect and what we observe characters doing or feeling.
• Why is the character doing that?
• Aha Moments: Characters’ realizations that shift their actions, understanding or thinking.
• How might this change things?
• Tough Questions: The characters ask questions that reveal their inner struggles.
• What does this question make me wonder about?
• Words of the Wiser: Advice or insights wiser characters, usually older, offer about life to the main character.
• What’s the life lesson, and how might it affect the character?
• Again and Again: Events, images, or particular words that repeat over and over again.
• Why does this show up again and again?
• Memory Moment: Recollections by a character that interrupt the forward progress of the story.
• Why might this memory be important?

Identify the Signposts

Next, I hung up six pages from the book around the room. These were selections from Pink and Say that represented each of the six signposts. I asked the groups to find the page where their signpost was and be ready to justify their selection to the group.

Once every team was stationed at a page, we went around the room to see if the students had correctly identified the signposts.

Invitation to Independence

To finish the mini-lesson, I gave students a signposts bookmark (printed on cardstock) and encouraged them to look for these signposts in the texts they read and those that are read to them.

Since that initial lesson, we continue to look for signposts in the books I read aloud to them (first Front Desk by Kelly Yang and now Gregor the Overlander by Suzanne Collins), along with books we read in book clubs. The conversations we have, spurred by the signpost questions, are some of the deepest, most student-driven conversations that I have had in my 16-year educational career.

Using Chalk Talk to Set Distance Learning Norms

From Hybrid to Distance

After roughly 10 weeks of teaching fourth graders in the hybrid model (half the class in-person, two days a week), our county has superseded the COVID infection rates that make it safe to continue in-person teaching and learning. So, we're shifting to distance learning, which will mean new routines, new procedures and new norms.

Essential Agreement

Just like at the beginning of the year when we collaboratively created our classroom norms, we needed to collectively develop agreements about how we would behave in our new online setting.

At the beginning of the year, we agreed to be empathetic, responsible, helpful and trustworthy.

Chalk Talk

During our last days of in-person learning, we used the thinking routine "Chalk Talk" from Making Thinking Visible (Ritchhart, Church and Morrison) to get our thinking out on paper about how we will continue to honor our essential agreement in our new distance learning setting. This routine worked particularly well as the two cohorts of students contributed their ideas on two different days. I enjoy this routine because it is a silent conversation; it gives time and space for students to think, contribute their own ideas and respond / react to others.

To facilitate Chalk Talk, follow the directions from the book Making Thinking Visible:

Looking at the topic or question written on the chart paper:

• What ideas come to mind when you consider this idea, question or problem?
• What connections can you make to others' responses?
• What questions arise as you think about the ideas and consider the responses and comments of others?

The following four charts represent my class's collective thinking about how they will be on Zooms so that we can continue to learn, think and grow.

Respond in a happy, clear voice
Mute yourself when others are talking
Think about other people's feelings
Golden rule
Use the blue hand
Have a nice and loud voice when you talk
Don't blurt
Listen to other people
Wait to talk. It could hurt someone's feelings if you don't.

Make sure you don't do funny business on Zoom
Do not unmute when its not your turn
Listen when someone is talking
Stay muted unless called on
No backgrounds
Do your best
Try your hardest
Keep your head in front of the camera
Be in a quiet place
Be on time
Do what the teacher says
Use the buttons instead of talking
Come prepared

Listen
Sit still
Raise your blue hand button
Do your best to not screw off
Don't do funny business
Remind people to grab something if they forgot it
Help kids that are stuck
Don't interrupt and talk nice
Help others
Only unmute if you're allowed to

Do all assignments
Be on time
If the teacher asks you to do something, you do it
Don't play with the buttons
Do not unmute yourself if someone else is speaking
Don't do funny business
Be ready before the call
Always be nice and just unmute yourself if someone says you can talk
Be prepared
Don't lie
Be prepared

Making students' thinking visible helps me as a teacher because it allows me to respond appropriately. and in a timely manner. Using the thinking routine "Chalk Talk" to set distance learning norms gives students voice in this process and helps me best understand their thinking as we shift from hybrid to distance learning.

Windows & Mirrors in Planet Omar: Accidental Trouble Magnet

Windows and Mirrors

In an August post (Organizing a Representative Classroom Library During a Global Pandemic), I wrote about the importance of making sure that the books available for students to read are both windows and mirrors; books in which students can see themselves (mirrors) and also books that help them see the world's different perspectives (windows). This metaphor was originally used by Dr. Rudine Sims Bishop to explain to educators, librarians, parents, and children themselves how we must read books that are self-affirming and books that offer us views that differ from our own.

A display in my classroom library. Credit for the images goes to Grant Snider. 

To make these books available to children certainly is a good first step. But giving students the opportunity to reflect on the ways in which the books they read are both windows and mirrors is a critical part of the reading process.

Global Read Aloud

During the 2020 Global Read Aloud (sadly, its last year), I read Planet Omar: Accidental Trouble Magnet (written by Zanib Mian, illustrated by Nasaya Mafaridik) to my fourth grade students. During the Global Read Aloud, our school's learning model was hybrid, meaning half of my students were always at home when I was reading aloud to my in-school students. A shout-out to the 24 other educators from across the globe who helped record chapters of the book so my at-home students could still keep up with the story!

Theme

After we finished the book, we reflected on the book's themes. By identifying these timeless, abstract, universal and transferrable ideas (aka concepts), students were able to more deeply connect to the text. To help students identify the themes, I ask them, "What do you think Zanib Mian wants us to understand? What is she trying to teach us?" Students respond by using the sentence stem, "The author wants me to understand that ..." During this brainstorming process it is imperative that students give evidence from the text that backs up their theme idea.

Themes students brainstormed are pictured below.

Students' Thinking

Next, I asked my fourth graders to thoughtfully answer these two questions:

• In what ways was Planet Omar a window for you?
• In what ways was Planet Omar a mirror for you?

For those in-class, we quickly made our thinking visible on a t-chart. For those learning at-home, I gave students the option to share their thinking in whatever way they wanted. I intentionally left it open-ended, so students could creatively respond. The following are some examples of responses I received.

"It was a window to me because it gave me a view of what some people experience when they’re different from us or from different places. And that did give me an experience of how some people might feel because they’re bullied because they’re from a different place. Kind of like Omar was bullied from Daniel. But that can all change. Just like how Daniel did. So I’m pretty sure this is more of a window to me."

Other video responses that thought the book was more of a window (I'm including the transcript of the students' responses here, as they recorded themselves and I'd like to protect their privacy)

• Omar is a window for me because he’s from a different culture. In that way, it is pretty interesting to read a book about a different culture from us.
• Planet Omar was a window for me because I don’t celebrate Pakistani traditions or any traditions like that, but I celebrate different traditions like Christmas and Halloween. I’m sure some Pakistanians do celebrate those.
• I’ve never been to London. I’ve never been out of the United States. I’ve never had a bully either.

Video responses that thought the book was more of a mirror (I'm including the transcript of the students' responses here, as they recorded themselves and I'd like to protect their privacy)

• Omar is a mirror for me because he showed me that standing out is not always a bad thing.
• Planet Omar was kind of a mirror for me because I can relate to him having to move to a new place and go to a new school and being kind of worried because I’ve done that a bunch of times.
• Omar’s parents are scientists, my grandpa is a scientist. He studies rocks and stuff.
• When I was in first grade, someone was mean to me and then they were nice to me.

When we expose children to all kinds of books - ones that reflect their experiences and ones that let them live through new situations from perspectives different their their own - we give them the opportunity to learn more about others and more about themselves. Helping students reflect on the ways that the books they read can be both windows and mirrors is an essential part of the reading process that we must lead students through with the books we read to them with the ultimate goal of them independently reflecting with the books they read on their own.

Exploring Humanity, Protest & Justice: 4 ideas for teaching BIG ideas to little kids

For a long time, but especially ever since George Floyd was tragically killed earlier this year while in the custody of four uniformed Minneapolis police officers, I've been reading, thinking, reflecting on and discussing how best to help elementary-aged students explore the concepts of humanity, protest and justice. Surely, these young students have heard the news, their parents and older kids in their lives talking about these issues, so avoiding the topic all-together would not a responsible approach.

Here are four big ideas that I will continue to consider as I plan the most developmentally appropriate ways to help my class of 9- and 10-year-olds navigate these important, yet sensitive ideas.

1. Dialectical Thinking

Dialectical Thinking is being able to look at an issue from multiple perspectives and to arrive at the most "reasonable reconciliation of seemingly contradictory information". It is our jobs as educators to help students understand the importance of looking at an issue from several possible angles; to weigh the many sides of very complex events and issues so that they might then come to a rational conclusion on their own. Using Project Zero's Thinking Routines such as Circle of Viewpoints or Step Inside (or the version that includes Stepping Out and Stepping Back) are essential tools for any classroom where dialectical thinking is a goal.

Disclaimer: this does not mean that all viewpoints should be explored and considered. Especially in our current public discourse, there are individuals who share views that are not based in fact, reason and/or civility. These perspectives do not get a place at our table. 

2. No Tragedies Before Fourth Grade

In his book Beyond Ecophobia: Reclaiming the Heart of Nature Education, David Sobel suggests that "big, complex problems beyond the geographical and conceptual scope of young children" should not be considered, in most cases, well beyond fourth grade. He offers teachers the question: "When do children have the emotional and cognitive readiness for dealing with overwhelmingly sad and conceptually complex issues?" This is not to say that concepts of humanity, protest and justice should not be explored with children, even those much younger than fourth grade. But it is to say that horrific details of specific tragic events should be avoided, as many children do not developmentally have the capacity to take on such subject matter. We must remember that far too many young children in our classrooms are living through adverse situations and experience trauma first-hand on a daily basis. This unfortunate reality only strengthens our commitment to sheltering our students from further trauma, not exposing them to more of it. 

3. There Are No Monoliths

Ibram X. Kendi, who wrote How To Be An Antiracist, reminds us to attribute racist behavior - nay all behavior - to the individual. We must avoid the temptation to generalize the actions of individuals to an entire group. Individuals do not, and should not, represent an entire race. Humans are biologically wired to look for patterns in order to survive and we instinctually form biases, unconscious and conscious, to better make sense of the world. But our logical brains must overcome this temptation because ascribing particular thoughts, motivations and perspectives of individuals to a large group of people is not fair and it does not represent truth.

4. Involve Families

Public school teachers are charged with helping shape the next generation of an informed citizenry. We are tasked with developing young people into active citizens who are ready and able to participate in their communities and have the skills of critical thinking to weigh all evidence before they do. We mustn't back away from our charge of exploring complex issues and ideas with students so that they are prepared to live in our increasingly changing and complex world. However, we are not our students' only teachers. Students' families must be informed of what we're doing in the classroom and invited to be involved, so they can help their child process and reflect the big ideas that we're exploring in the classroom. Further, when we bring families into the conversation, we broaden the perspectives to which students are exposed and thus they're better able to develop their dialectical thinking (see #1).

Ron's Big Mission

One way that our teaching team decided to help our fourth grade students explore the timeless, abstract, universal and transferable ideas of humanity, protest and justice was to do a deep dive into the book Ron's Big Mission by Rose Blue & Corinne Naden, illustrated by Don Tate (listen to the book here).

Our team chose this book from a collection of approved books our district had given us to use during our integrated unit of study at the beginning of the year. The book details an episode (based on an event in the childhood of astronaut Ron McNair) where a young black boy in South Carolina is denied a library card. After peacefully, but forcefully, demanding the right to check out books, he is eventually given that right. During his on-the-counter stand-in, several people are called to help intervene, including police officers.

Before reading the book with our students, our team had a thoughtful conversation where we discussed the importance of providing students a safe place to explore ideas presented in the book, but also not steering the conversation in any particular direction. We agreed Blue and Naden's book would help our fourth graders explore the concepts of humanity, protest and justice in a developmentally appropriate way.

In addition to exploring the aforementioned concepts, our goal was also to help our students as readers develop their abilities to deeply think about texts. Our instruction was carefully designed to give students the opportunities to meet these two Minnesota reading benchmarks:

• 4.1.1.1. Refer to details and examples in a text when explaining what the text says explicitly and when drawing inferences from the text.
• 4.1.2.2.Determine a theme of a story, drama, or poem from details in the text; summarize the text.

Gist

To kick off our study, we had the students listen to the book and then write out what the book was "mostly about" or the book's gist. We had the students reflect on what the book was mostly about in ~20 words so that we could check for their understanding of the big idea of the book. We had the students use this character counter website to help them keep their gists to around 20 words.

Story Structure

Next, we had the students map out the story's structure, which gave them the opportunity to "see" the action and gave us the chance to see the students' thinking. We had them use a story structure map and the framework "Somebody, Wanted, But, So, Then".

Summary

Next, we had the students use their story structure maps completed previously to write a summary of the book Ron's Big Mission. We gave them success criteria to help them know if they had a successful summary. 

Ron's Big Mission: Ron wakes up. He gets offered breakfast. He said, "no." He went outside. He starts to walk. He gets offered a donut. He said, "no." He walks. He gets offered to play basketball. He said, "no." He goes to the library. He gets his books. He tells the librarian, "I'd like to check out." The librarian doesn't answer. He steps on the table. "I'd like to check out." She calls the police. She calls his mom. She said, "Get off the table." He doesn't get off. The librarian gets him a card to check out with.

Theme

Next, we had students infer the theme of the book; the big idea that the author wants the reader to understand. First, the students brainstormed big ideas they thought the author was trying to communicate. Then, they picked one of those ideas and provided evidence from the text that would support their selection. Although our chosen text took place in the past, exploring the theme helped the kids understand how big ideas presented in the book can apply authentically to our lives, regardless of time, place or circumstance.

Application

Finally, we asked students to reflect on the character traits Ron showed and think about how they too could demonstrate those same traits. 

By using the text Ron's Big Mission, we were able to help our 4th graders begin to explore the concepts of humanity, protest and justice. Continued exploration of these and related concepts will continue with books from our district-approved E.B. Lewis [Illustrator] unit of study like The Other Side and Across the Alley. Clearly, simply reading books, however thoughtfully, will not give students enough of a chance to understand these abstract and complex concepts. Discussion and out-loud thinking will have to continue to take place throughout the academic year. Why? Because our students deserve it. Ignoring that our students hear about tragic events isn't an option. We must insist on helping them, with their families, make sense of our sometimes chaotic world in developmentally appropriate ways.

Organizing a Representative Classroom Library During a Global Pandemic

The classroom library is the staple of any elementary teacher's classroom. Making sure that students can access interesting texts at their level is an essential component of our pedagogical approach. We want students to improve their thinking and reading skills, but more importantly, we wish that they develop an intrinsic and deep love of reading.

Selecting and organizing the books is a fun and exciting task, but can be a bit overwhelming as there are many factors to consider. I am aware that these factors have been discussed at length by experts with more education and experience than I have. Nevertheless, I'm interested in sharing what was going through my head as I rebuilt my classroom library in preparation for heading back into the classroom this fall.

• REPRESENTATIVE: The books in our classroom's library should both reflect the perspectives and experiences of the students in my class AND give students the opportunity to learn about and from others' experiences and perspectives different from their own.
• ORGANIZATION: The collection should be organized in a way that makes using (finding books and checking them out & in) the library easy.
• SAFETY: There needs to be a system in place so that books can be borrowed and shared safely during this (hopefully) very unique time of COVID-19.

Windows and Mirrors

“Books are sometimes windows, offering views of worlds that may be real or imagined, familiar or strange. These windows are also sliding glass doors, and readers have only to walk through in imagination to become part of whatever world has been created or recreated by the author. When lighting conditions are just right, however, a window can also be a mirror. Literature transforms human experience and reflects it back to us, and in that reflection, we can see our own lives and experiences as part of a larger human experience. Reading, then, becomes a means of self-affirmation, and readers often seek their mirrors in books.” Dr. Rudine Sims Bishop

Dr. Bishop's words help remind me to include books in my library in which students can see themselves and also books that help them see the world from different perspectives. This is one way they can build empathy for others.

In recent years, I have finally woken up to the reality that my book collection lacks diverse characters, voices, authors and illustrators. Statistics show my collection is representative of all available children's literature. Luckily, publishers are taking note and the availability of books that are more representative of the children we teach is increasing.

To identify and purchase diverse books, We Need Diverse Books (WNDB) is a phenomenal resource. Specifically, I'd encourage you to check out:

• Their OurStory book-finding app (available through any browser or as an Android app)
• Walter Award winners and honoree
• Resources for Race, Equity, Anti-Racism, and Inclusion

"Classroom Library Organization Made Easy!"

In the past, I've organized my classroom library by level because I'm an advocate for helping students find books that are a good fit by their reading level. But I have realized recently that paying too much attention to a book's relatively arbitrary reading level is problematic for a variety of reasons.

For now, I'll stick to organizing my library like a book store, by topic, so kids can find what interests them easily. Helping students understand when a book is "just right" for them will have to be an important part to teaching them how to use the library at the beginning of the year.

Regardless of how I set it up, I knew that I wanted to utilize an app to catalog all my books, something I've never done before. After much Google searching and blog reading, I found that despite some flaws, Booksource Classroom is a fabulous app.

Pros:

• It is FREE!
• The app lets you scan books' barcodes as a way to add them quickly to your library
• The web interface has loads of features that help you audit your library (for diversity, for reading level, etc)
• Families and students can log-in independently to look at what books they have checked out and which books are available

Cons:

• The app and the web interface don't match. The app is good for adding, checking-in and checking-out books but other than those actions, you're better off sticking to the browser version.
• The app doesn't recognize about half of the barcodes that I scan. I wonder if this is because they're outdated? Are my books too old?! I've found a pretty easy work-around though: I look up the current ISBN on Amazon and then use that number to add the books on the web interface. Super slick!

Staying Safe

The pandemic has forced us to rethink the way we "do school" and interacting with our classroom library is no exception. Here are two changes I'm making to make sure my students and I continue to be safe:

• Online Browsing Only. Rather than allow students to physically go through the library in search of a book, I'll have them browse the online catalog through BookSource to find a book that interests them. That way, the only books they'll touch are the books they'll keep to read.
• Book Quarantining. The Preservation Administrators Discussion Group of the American Library Association (PADG) has shared that preliminary research suggests that the COVID-19 virus can only survive on paper/cardboard for 24 hours. To be safe, I'll set up a return system where books returned one day won't be checked back in for 3 days.

Personalized Labels

I had these stickers made at Label Value. The base price is $25 for a roll of 500. Discounts apply when you order multiple rolls. The greater the number of rolls, the greater the discount. I bought 2 and the price was knocked down to ~$20 / roll. Hopefully 1,000 labels is enough! Ha!

Favorite Books

As I scan and label books in my classroom library, I come across many books that I love dearly. 

Wilfrid Gordon McDonald Partridge by Mem Fox is my favorite. 

Personalized Messages

As I open up the inside cover of my books to put on the labels pictured above, I find these personalized messages from people in my life who have gifted me these wonderful books. These messages are so dear to me.

"AJ" aka Aunt Judy

From 2011, when I first joined the third grade team at Kaposia Education Center.

Hidden Surprises

I know this might be an unpopular choice, but I've decided to recycle the dust jackets on the picture books that come with them. I feel like they'll end up getting damaged or lost anyway and I'd rather not deal with that. I only do this, however, if the artwork on the jacket is identical to the art on the front of the book. If that's not the case, I leave on the dust jacket.

As I was taking off this book's dust jacket the other day to see if the art below was an exact match, I discovered this hidden surprise that Yuyi Morales snuck in, and I was so tickled to have found it! Can you spot the difference?

Organizing a representative classroom library in the middle of a pandemic can be daunting, but it has been fun thinking about all the possibilities and putting it all together. It is a constant work in progress though and through continual reflection and hopefully some feedback on this post, I'll be able to continue to add to and improve upon this important staple of my pedagogical approach.

Using the PYP’s 7 Key Concepts to Talk about Race, Injustice and Change

NOTE: PYP Coordinator Melissa Powers and I collaboratively authored this post. In addition to being a PYP Coordinator in Arizona, United States, Melissa is a part of the IB Educator Network (IBEN), leading PYP workshops and participating in site visits. She and I first went through our initial IBEN training together. I am grateful for her partnership, her thoughtful perspective and her voice.

The International Baccalaureate’s (IB) Primary Years Programme (PYP) posits that “The Learning Community” is inclusive of everyone involved in the life of the school. Together, this community’s goal is to, “live peacefully together, prioritize people and their relationships, and assume shared responsibility for learning, health and well-being,” (A Community of Learners from PYP: From Principles into Practice > The Learning Community).

With the recent murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis, Minnesota at the hands of police officers, there is a sense of urgency from principled and caring elementary-school teachers to speak with their learning communities — their students — about issues of safety, race, justice, change and action.

As we engage with our immediate learning community, it is important to have a clear objective and structure. Successful teachers use thinking routines and discussion protocols so that conversations that center around seemingly controversial topics do not stray off course. As PYP teachers, we are empowered to take risks and should not be afraid to facilitate these discussions in our classrooms. 

Those who work in PYP schools can leverage the components of the PYP’s international framework to help structure spaces and opportunities for meaningful processing and reflective conversation. The PYP’s key concepts are seven powerful, broad and abstract organizing ideas that can frame conversations and drive learning. When PYP teachers identify topics and investigate them through the key concepts, students learn to be inquirers and think critically about big ideas. It is essential to explicitly teach critical thinking skills so that students learn how to think for themselves and not blindly emote. 

When teachers view the key concepts as a set of open-ended questions, they can more easily direct purposeful and manageable conversations (Concepts from PYP: From Principles into Practice > Learning and Teaching). Below, we have brainstormed key concept questions with the intention of provoking PYP teachers to think about how they will provide safe spaces and opportunities for their students to critically engage in meaningful conversations that lead to authentic and mindful action.

We sorted the questions by primary and intermediate, as the conversations that will take place in these two different settings will inevitably require different approaches, however we encourage teachers to use the questions that best fit the needs of their contexts; you know your students the best!

Think of the questions below as a start. We call to you, dear reader, to contribute questions that you'd want to ask your students. As you put forth ideas, we’ll update the collection below.

Form

• Primary
• What is racism?
• What is antiracism?
• What is a protest?
• Intermediate
• What is racial injustice?
• What is systemic racism?
• What does it mean to be an antiracist?
• What is a protest?
• What is implicit bias?
• What is prejudice?
• What is privilege?

Function

• Primary
• If someone does something wrong, how can they make it right?
• Intermediate
• How important is the study of racial injustice?

Causation

• Primary
• Why do people protest?
• Intermediate
• What effect do dehumanizing and devaluing black and brown people have?

Change

• Primary
• How can something unfair change into something fair?
• Intermediate
• What can young people do to promote change?
• How can you challenge any implicit biases you might have to make a change in your own beliefs and actions?

Connection

• Primary
• How are different people groups connected to each other?
• What sets us apart and makes us unique?
• Intermediate
• How is the US’s history of slavery and Jim Crow connected to current events?
• How are the seemingly separate incidents of violence against black and brown people connected?
• Are racism and prejudice the same thing? How are they different?

Perspective

• Primary
• What are the ways we can appreciate and celebrate others who don’t look like you / are different from you?
• Intermediate
• Why do we say “Black Lives Matter” and not “All Lives Matter”?
• What biases do you have about racial groups different from yours?

Responsibility

• Primary
• How can you show other people you care?
• How can you stand up for other people when wrong is being done to them?
• Intermediate
• What action can you take to fight racial injustice? Use the PYP’s 5 types of action to help frame your thinking: social justice, advocacy, social entrepreneurship, participation, lifestyle choices.
• How can you be a responsible inquirer and critical thinker? Why is it important?
• How can you show other people you care?
• How will you learn about racial groups that are different from yours?
• How can people examine their own privilege and use it to help?

For more information about facilitating challenging or difficult conversations, check out this resource from Common Sense Education: A best-of-the-best collection of resources for social justice- and equity-focused educators.