Problem Solving Approach Attempt 1: Selective Breeding

I looked back at my reflection of my first day of school lab before writing this reflection and realized I felt the opposite.  After this lab, I didn't feel quite as good about it, but that is okay.  I realized a lot mid lesson and after the lesson from my peers, Dr. Rice and how I was processing during the lab.  I am starting to realize that if we are not conscious of what and how we are teaching, or in our planning, or even comfortable, we tend to revert to how we were taught or exactly what the plan says.  My lessons will be better if I continue to adapt, be open to curiosity and own up to new ideas and even mistakes. 

Gems: The things I and others felt I did well

Creativity & Review
I chose to start with a review for this lesson, which originally I had planned as an objective, but I think it could be easily used as an interest approach.  I chose to use our Ipads and phones to play the game heads up.  In this lab we only played (I pre-entered words) but I would ask students to write key terms, and then descriptions.  They would enter the words and keep the descriptions, then create competition to review.  This app does cost .99cents, and then .99cents for the 'Build Your Own Deck' but it's worth it! Students seemed to really like this.  The transition here was essential, and I felt I did an okay job at this, more directed questions could increase the connection, but I think it was a great review into the 'why' of selective breeding.  

Grouping & Expectations
In my last few lessons I was not clear about how I expected students to work in groups, I felt it was better in this lesson.  Because students were in two rows, this worked out a little easier.  Beyond the groups, the expectations were more clearly defined for this.  I posed a question to students about what partner work should look like.  We clarified that we can work together, but have to hand in our own paper, and work together.  When I noticed two students had split up the worksheet, I clarified that we are responsible for the material even if we split it up, so sharing it is necessary.    



Gems the students and my peers shared: 

• Walking around and talking to students
• Head's Up!
• Topic was interesting
• Worksheet was helpful 
• Connecting with student experiences 

Opportunities: If you're not green, you're not growing. 

Clarity- Directions & Questioning 

I would love to say this soon be off the 'opportunities list' but it's going to take some time.  I think more directed, shorter, chunked directions are necessary.  Writing these out will help.  Also sharing the directions on the screen or on the worksheet again is necessary.  I wrote down some questions, but for my next lessons I need to think even more about questions, write down 10 even if I only ask 5, because quesitons are essential to transition, and more effective questions would have improved this lab even more.


Feeding Off Students

One of the students in lab brought up several good points, challenged the question and problem and continued to press into this.  In the moment, I chose to keep directing him to find 'positive and negative traits' those were the directions...but he brought up GREAT points! After this small struggle he mentioned it was 'stupid' which tied back to a conversation about expectations.  ALL of this could have been avoided and improved if I would have taken advantage of his curiosity and questions which would have made the problem and case study better and more realistic!  In hindsight I could have posed his questions to the class, asked him to provide a list of suggestions that were more realistic and economical to the rancher we were looking at.  It worries me that I say that my philosophy involves curiosity yet in the moment, I was not willing to deviate from my plan because of curiosity that was completely in line with what we were doing, he was problem solving!


Opportunities the Students and my peers shared:

• Student behavior
• Flaw in the scenario 
• Question crafting
• DIRECTIONS 

I learned so much from this lab, even though I didn't like that in the moment, I have lots of ideas of how to revise this and other problem solving lessons.