Chapter 7- The Strategies (Strategies for Knowledge Retrieval)
I am not really sure how to go about this chapter, so I think that I will just pick through some of the strategies and say how I might use them with my students, or suggest them to classroom teachers to use with some of their students.
Strategy 2- Find It:
I like this strategy and could see it used in many different ways. It could be used in math- find different numbers, novel studies- find sight words/vocabulary words, spelling words-finding vowel patterns/letter combinations like digraphs, double letters, blends
Strategy 3- Cross It Out:
I have used this super quick strategy for changing a worksheet for a student. I used it on a multiplication sheet where the student was expected to do double digit x double digit multiplication. I simply crossed out the tens digits, making it a basic facts sheet. It can be done with addition, subtraction, multiplication and division. In spelling, if you are doing something with different endings, crossing that piece out might be applicable- the same could be done with prefixes.
Strategy 6- Who, When, and Where Is It?
This would be an excellent way for students to be able to participate in novel studies with their peers. A simple graphic organizer to support the learning of characters and settings. It could likely be used in a Social Studies/History class to identify key events such as WWI.
Strategy 8- Highlight It:
Another easy adaptation for students reading below grade level. It could be done by the teacher in advance or together with an EA or a peer. Great way for students to learn how to summarize and pick out key pieces of information in a passage to answerspecific questions.
Strategy 9- Spell It:
This is a strategy I never would have thought about doing! Such a great way to give the students the same work, with more appropriate words. After practicing these words throughout the week, the test could be that the student needs to find and highlight their word within the spelling word given.
Strategy 13- List It:
I can see this strategy being used in any subject really- science, math (geometry, number sense, etc), language arts, social studies- any subject/lesson that requires students to sort between different concepts. The graphic organizer for this is not necessary or could be changed for your specific needs. To make it easier, it could have 1 column, for a bit more difficulty, you could add a third or fourth column (if the content allows).
Strategy 15- Show It:
This strategy would be great for students with an artistic side.
Strategy 16- Follow It:
I have done this with various math concepts- I made posters for in my classroom on the steps for multi-digit multiplication and long division. I have also had index cards outlining the steps for addition, subtraction, multiplication and division. My students loved these visuals.
Strategy 18- Choose It:
This strategy is great for helping students who are not reading at grade level. Finding the answers when the correct answer is right in front of you takes some pressure off. It could be done on any assignment- not quite multiple choice, but still giving an opportunity for success. In fact, when multiple choice is given on a test, it could be limited to 2 choices as well.
I will check out the next section of strategies- strategies for comprehension- next week.
What are some of the strategies that pop out for you?
Have you used any of these strategies?
What are your impression of these strategies so far? Would you/have you recommended them to your colleagues?
I really like the pages in Appendix B that we can copy and use for our students. Some of the strategies listed and described in this section of Ch 7 sound great. And I REALLY like that the students who are not at grade level are actually using the SAME page as their peers but just with different educational goals. In most cases, the concepts are still the same for the grade level, just modified to the student who is challenged and their ability levels. This reminds me of the MAP Math I mentioned a few chapters back where the EA said it was amazing for her student to have the same page as her peers, but with a much lower valued single digit as opposed to #s that were three and four digits for the other kids in Gr. 6. I also appreciate Eredics’s ideas for Extensions on the front page of most of the strategies. This way, if our first assumption about what the student with challenges can do is too low, we know what we can do to challenge them more, but still stay within their ability range.
I absolutely LOVE that we can switch up the worksheets for students so that they still participate using the same activity as the rest of the class. I have been using Strategy 4: Substitute it for years now. Math teachers were against it at first, as they feel that word problems are important to learn and understand when developing critical math sense. However, once I explained that the students are not ready for the addition of words and how teachers can provide extra practice at home – with simpler word problems – then teachers jump on board. One thing I did notice – and maybe I missed something, but I wish there were more hands-on, less paper to pencil type modifications provided. I’m often struggling to get the “butts out of the seats” for these kids as they shine when they can be more hands-on. If anyone knows of a great website or book that helps with this, please let me know!