Using the online classroom to create a cohesive lesson so that students get all of the benefits of a face to face classroom is not all that difficult, as it turns out, when using all of the panes in Jigsaw properly. Let me walk you through an example lesson... some might ask themselves: WWRD? What would Rita do? It's a great question! Let's take a look:) Step 1: Start with review to link to prior knowledgeThis lesson will go over the construction of commands in Spanish while using vocabulary dealing with the house. The assumption at this point in the curriculum would be that students have already been exposed to the vocabulary and have learned how to formulate informal commands. The beginning half of the lesson will help them recall that prior knowledge so that they will be able to link their new knowledge to it.
Step 2: Review grammarAfter between 5-10 minutes (some of that time being before the class officially starts... to be early is to be on time), I would ask the students to come back together. Because they have already learned informal commands and I will ask them the understand them in spoken language in the next session, I would play a song (used as a mnemonic) so that they review the process of informal command conjugations. ResourceIf you are a Spanish teacher and you would like to use this resource, it is the hard work of another classroom (sadly, not my own) but they are posted on youtube, so feel free to use it! It's very entertaining for the students.
Step 3: Listening ActivityI would then allow students participate at a higher level by reading off some commands that I have prepared. I will use panes 3 and 4 for this. Well, pane 3 will do the front work for us by uploading the images and then I would copy them to pane 4. We will have an image of a house and an image of a cartoon woman. I will read my commands and students would take turns moving the mom to the appropriate room where she could complete the activity that I command her to do.
Step 4: Learn new materialAt this point, there has been a substantial amount of review, with both recall and production. Now it's time to learn something new! I then introduce negative informal commands and formal commands (since these forms use the same structure). Using pane 2 I go through a presentation, giving information to the students. Once I have presented the rules, we do a little guided practice within the presentation so that students can attempt to answer the questions, but in a risk free way so that they are assessing themselves. I open up for questions and encourage the "why" so that students can see how to follow the steps to get to formal commands. Finally, I give the students a short activity for them to do independently (a ticket out the "door"). When the students submit that to a dropbox created just for the lesson, I can assess the effectiveness of it and the understanding of the students! Video of Fluid Lesson Using All Panes
JigsawU 104 ReflectionAfter using Adobe Connect for so long, like anything new that I didn't choose to try, I experienced resistance toward Jigsaw. After learning about the use of the different panes, watching the JigsawU videos, and attempting different ideas myself, I realize that Jigsaw causes me to be more intentional about the activities that I am using in the classroom during each class. I appreciate that the requirements for a badge included attempting to use each of the panes because it forces us as teachers to grow with what types of materials we are willing to try. Reflection is of utmost importance at all times as an educator and is the most common step to skip in what we do because we get caught up in just going through the motions. Completing these activities, especially the reflections, I see the benefits to each of the capabilities and appreciate the importance of employing so many different aspects to a synchronous chat. Just like in the classroom, we must practice all different abilities so that all learning preferences are touched and each student has the opportunity to grow. I think the reflection step is something I will add to my own weekly practice because as I branch out and try different things, reflecting helps me tweak what I am doing to be more effective at all times. My lesson as given had many different parts and the Jigsaw panes helped me decide what to add and what to leave out. I have learned a lot about the system during this process but also a lot about my own teaching practices as a result.
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This is how we do it!
Reflection: JigsawU 103These panes are probably the least painful for me because I can come up with some creative ways to use them:) As when we had to practice panes 1 & 2 in the previous assignment, it helps me focus on the different ways to utilize the capabilities of these two panes alone. I have enjoyed learning to upload the images to pane 3 and transfer them to the whiteboard, but there are actually a variety of ways to employ these two panes! I can teach a cultural lesson and use the map to indicate where in the world that particular place is located, the distance between us and that place, etc. I often use the whiteboard in pane 4 to have students write on it to answer conjugation questions, fill in blanks, etc. For me, these two panes elicit the most engagement. When using panes 1 and 2, it's not as easy to ensure that all students are engaged in the lesson. Looking at it from a different point of view, panes 1 and 2 can be used for input and panes 3 and 4 can be used for student production. As I focus on the different parts of Jigsaw individually rather than the product as a whole, I am coming up with more ideas as to how to take advantage of the different capabilities of the program (yes, even after so much time, I am still "getting used to it"!) and I will hopefully learn more strategies to use as we continue this process!
Even though I have played around with Jigsaw before taking the JigsawU course, I am finding it more than helpful. My favorite aspects of the videos are when others share what they are doing in their online classrooms. Even if the specific activities that they do don't correlate exactly with my online class, they always inspire me to adapt those lessons in some way so that students benefit from my own professional development. Pane 1: WebcamIn this particular case, I have been inspired to use my webcam. I usually do not like to use the webcam. Teaching online has the benefit of teaching in our pajamas, but I have come up with what I think is a pretty clever idea. In our Spanish classes, we have writing assignments in each of the modules that are given relevant topics to the unit. I want to give an alternate prompt that students can use as their topic of choice (I love voice and choice in the classroom!). While the topic will need to be similar so that they are still practicing the unit vocabulary, the situation can be diverse. I set it up so that the students are writing a different part to a children's book in each unit. Students can earn enrichment points by choosing this option and using their webcam to read the book the rest of the class! I think students will be excited to earn extra points and try something new! The video below shows how I would use pane 1 for the students to share themselves to make the classroom a little more personable while giving them the chance to read to us and earn Enrichment points. Pane 2: DocumentsIn pane two you can see that I uploaded a copy of the assignment that the students were reading (their own work!). I have used presentations in this pane, as well, but the video demonstrates what it would look like if the students were able to see their product and share with the class as they read. I think a lot of students will take advantage of this option! Reflection: JigsawU 102As I stated previously, even though I have been using Jigsaw for a while now and am just now taking advantage of the JigsawU videos, this type of professional development inspires new ideas. I always like to take what someone else is doing in their classroom and adapt it to my own. I'm not even sure what specifically from this video inspired this idea, but this is what happens when you have educator talk and sharing! It's quite powerful if after nearly a year using Jigsaw, the videos are helping me come up with brand new ideas!
I have been reluctant to use some of the capabilities (like webcam use) prior to these lessons, but as the focus is narrowed to what each pane can do, I am branching out and trying new things. I suppose resistance is natural since the change to Jigsaw was a choice made for me rather than made by me, and teachers are so guilty of unconsciously perpetuating those barriers. This made me realize how resistant to change I can be. No matter how flexible and open I view myself, there are situations where comfort wins. This course is helping me grow for sure! JigsawU 101 offers information on adding different types of documents to our asset library so that they are readily available for us to use in the online classroom. To be straightforward, using different resources in Jigsaw is not the easiest. I previously played around with Jigsaw and was able to add assets, however I did not know how to add tags or even know exactly what that meant until following the video through it. Tagging assets certainly does make it easier when you have multiple options to filter through for a lesson. Having moved from a different program, the abilities of each of the panes is a new concept, and it was not easy to understand what could be used where. I am not necessarily a fan of the use of only 4 panes since the program we moved from would allow you to add as many as you wanted, but I am getting used to it. I am excited to become more Jigsaw-literate, video by video. If you check out the clips below, you can see that I have successfully learned how to add assets to my asset library, tag the assets that I add to make them easier to locate, and I learned how to use panes one and two (although I only demonstrate using pane one in the clip, I do have an asset uploaded in pane two).
JigsawU 101 ReflectionWhile I have been playing around with Jigsaw for some time, there are many things that I had not noticed. I am a little embarrassed to admit this, but I had not even realized how to upload different types of assets into the asset library. I truly thought we were limited to, for example, ppt as a document, not seeing the menu at the left side of the asset library that required us to choose what type of activity it is we are uploading (document, presentation, etc.). This information could have been missed because I didn't teach for a semester, but it just reinforces how important our PD sessions are and reminds me that even if I cannot make it for the real time session, watching the videos is very important.
As I followed the requirements of this assignment, I was using different types of activities in the course. While on the part of the instructors of JigsawU, I am sure this was purposeful, I was not intentionally using these different types of activities but rather just trying to get through a lesson that felt at least partially successful. Using the different panes is actually very important to break up the lesson and attempt to use different abilities and learning styles. Rather than focusing on the lesson as a whole, we had to focus on just these two panes and their uses in the classroom. It has been very helpful to break this down so that I make more intentional choices in my online lessons. |