Thing+Ten

toc =Classroom Management=

The **KEY** to a great eLearning environment is all about how you manage your classroom - and how the students work. Self-directed learning is an important part of eLearning. Giving the learners in your classroom a range of **purposeful** choices during key times in the classroom is important.

NE-Y2
If you typically have a shared writing time you can follow that up with a block of time for students to write their own stories - but give them the option to choose when they write during that block of time.

As part of my research in 2011 as a CORE eFellow I interviewed some NE learners. "It's fun being able to play before writing." "I like to do my writing when I want to."
 * I interviewed 5 NE students - 3 girls and 2 boys. They have been at school between 2 and 8 weeks in total. In class their teacher has changed the writing time. After modeling a story with the class the students are then allowed to choose when they write their story during the first teaching block of the day. Some choose to write their story straight away and others choose to go off to the discovery or play dough table or on to the computers or another activity that's set out for them. Benefits of this are that the teacher is able to work with smaller numbers at a time. She has also noticed that those who go away and play for a while before writing, come back to the writing table with their story ready in their head. //I wonder if this is similar to what James Nottingham talks about with the different between introverted and extroverted thinkers?// While this section doesn't specifically reference the use of ICTs, it does look at the importance of enabling students - right from the age of 5 - to begin taking charge of their own learning. This is an important skill for them, especially if they continue on through school with teachers who recognize the importance of student choice and student directed learning.<span style="background-color: #ffffdd; border-bottom-color: #9999aa; border-bottom-style: solid; border-bottom-width: 1px; border-left-color: #9999aa; border-left-style: solid; border-left-width: 1px; border-right-color: #9999aa; border-right-style: solid; border-right-width: 1px; border-top-color: #9999aa; border-top-style: solid; border-top-width: 1px; display: block; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 30px; margin-right: auto; margin-top: 10px; padding-bottom: 10px; padding-left: 10px; padding-right: 10px; padding-top: 10px; width: 90%;">I asked the students what they liked about their writing sessions.

I also asked them what they did - play or write first. One student chose to write their story first, one went to the orange table (play dough) and the other three went onto the computer.

I then asked them if they'd like to go back to everyone writing at the same time. "No, it's more fun playing then writing." "I like to be able to choose." "It makes writing more fun." ||

Literacy/Maths
Traditionally during Literacy/Maths time students are in ability groups and participate in various activities in those ability groups. Another idea would be to give them a range of purposeful activities but allow **them** to choose when they do those activities.

Tracking the work
Something that needs to be considered is how to track what work the students are doing. When you have a range of activities you need to make sure that each student is completing the full range over the specified period of time. Some different ways are:
 * individual tracking sheet that is filled in at the start/end of each learning block
 * tracking sheet that is filled in at the start of the day ... see photos


 * [[image:IMG_5177.JPG align="center" width="244" height="326" caption="Blank laminated timetable"]]||[[image:IMG_5178.jpg width="244" height="326" caption="Filled in and ticked off when done"]]||[[image:IMG_5181.jpg width="244" height="326" caption="Similar timetable from a different class"]]||

Daily Five/CAFE
A number of NZ teachers are using a version of the Daily Five which is a framework for managing teaching of literacy (and maths) in your classroom. Basically your literacy session is broken up into blocks of 20 mins with short teaching sessions between. Students choose what activity they are going to do (from a list of five) for each session, leaving the teacher free to work one-on-one or with small groups during that time. It's a great way to help students take control of their own learning.

Further information can be found here: @http://www.thedailycafe.com/. Books are available via Amazon Softback version- The Daily Five Softback version - The CAFE book

CAFE is an acronym for: **C**omprehension, **A**ccuracy, **F**luency, & **E**xpanding Vocabulary