A 21st century learner needs Awareness of BIG picture (myself in the world/how the world works) -Sense of control of learning -Time to work out thinking -Collaborative learning experiences -Access to technology to create and share learning This presentation features some of the work I did with students as a 4th grade teacher.

1. Purposeful Instruction for the 21stcentury Learner
HCSD Summer PD
June 7, 2010
Herb Higginbotham
4th Grade Teacher
Hilliard Horizon Elementary

2. Agenda
● Essential Questions
● What a motivated learner needs
● How I have supported learning
● How the environment supported learning
● Break? (5 minutes)
● Examples of motivated learning
● Reflection and setting goals

3. Goals for today
✦ “I know that a 21st-century learner needs choice,
collaboration, differentiated instruction, and
access to creative tools to learn. This
understanding will help me support my
students.”
✦ “I know the classroom can support 21st-century
learning by providing a safe, collaborative
environment. This will help my students
become risk-takers and problem solvers.”

4. Essential Questions
✦ How can I support the needs of a 21stcentury learner?
✦ How can the learning environment
support the 21st-century learner?

5. The times, they are a-changing’
Advice from Lincoln about CHANGE…
“The dogmas of the quiet past, are inadequate to
the stormy present. The occasion is piled high
with difficulty, and we must rise -- with the
occasion. As our case is new, so we must think
anew, and act anew.”
--Address to Congress, 1862

6. A motivated 21st Century
Learner needs…
✦ Awareness of BIG picture
(myself in the world/how the
world works)
✦ Sense of control of learning
✦ Time to work out thinking
✦ Collaborative learning
experiences
✦ Access to technology to
create

7. Creating learning targets:
Purpose is everything!
✦ I consider what I want student to be able to do
first.
✦ Then I think like a student and ask, “Why
should I care?”. That helps me determine the
purpose and connection to the real-world.
✦ If I get stuck, I go to the district curriculum
guide or think about my essential
questions/enduring understandings.

8. How can we support this?
✦ Rely on Inquiry/UbD/Quality Work frameworks for instruction
planning.
✦ Used guided learning approach when teaching skills;
project/performance task approach to allow
application/creation using skills. Allow students to choose
activity in both situations.
✦ More problem-solving, investigative, and creative learning
experiences. Shift focus of lesson to the “why” instead of the
“what”.
✦ Let go of control and see what the students do. Maybe that
means failure, but failure is just another opportunity to reflect.
✦ Anticipate all readiness levels and have support/enrichment
activities ready.

9. How can the classroom
support this?
✦ Goals for day’s activities posted in
specific “activity/purpose” format:
✦ “I know how to identify different cloud
types (activity). This will help me predict
the weather (purpose).”
✦ “I know what caused the Frontier Wars in
Ohio (activity). This helps me explain
what can happen when different cultures
interact (purpose).”

10. How can the classroom
support this? (continued)
✦ Designated area where discussion and
reflection takes place.
✦ Taught how to have a conversation. “I would
like to add on to Michael…”
✦ Posted pictures of students demonstrating
skill-based activities.
✦ eCampus!

11. Examples of motivated
learning: Social Studies
✦ Social Studies inquiry questions
✦ Students are responsible for finding information that
supports a response to a BIG question.
✦ Post response on chart paper.

12. Examples of motivated
learning: Science
✦ Science Inquiry…
✦ “Does fruit size determine the number of
seeds inside?”
✦ Students worked in groups and made
predictions based off of circumference of
fruit.

13. Examples of motivated learning:
Math
✦ Math “Workshop”/Guided Math
✦ Follows literacy framework (10 minute minilesson/think along/demo, student practice,
share/reflect)
✦ Guided groups are formed based off of short,
formative assessments (homework, observations,
bell-ringer question)
✦ Whole class responsible for main task (assessment of
whole)
✦ When finished, student chooses an activity to
continue practicing skill (game, enrichment,
challenge problem)
✦ At the end of session, we gather at the carpet to
share out what we did an some new understandings.

14. Guided Math
✦ Show students multiple strategies
for solving problems
✦ Use manipulatives
✦ Use “Readiness”, “Enrichment”,
and “Open Response” activities in
Everyday Math lessons
✦ NCTM “Illuminations” website

15. Examples of motivated
learning: Writing
✦ Narrative Nonfiction projects
✦ Studied narrative nonfiction mentor
texts read aloud by me; looking for a
writing style that suited them.
✦ Choose a topic relevant to Ohio
✦ Researched information using various
sources
✦ Wrote narrative using style of mentor
text.

16. Narrative Nonfiction Titles
Abe’s Honest Words, by Doreen Rappaport
Atlantic, by G. Brian Karas
…and so many more!
Surprising Sharks, by Nicola Davies

17. Living Anthology
(Georgia Heard)
✦ Found areas/objects in the school to
write a poem about
✦ Students created and published poems
for display around the school.

18. Poetry Motivates!

19. Read Aloud Notebooks
✦ Students write, draw thinking in
notebooks as teacher reads aloud
✦ Track characters, setting
descriptions, figurative language,
etc.
✦ Share thinking before, during,
after reading.

20. Response to BIG
questions: Student choice
and reading response
✦ After chapter book is finished, we generate a
list of questions that are still lingering, or ones
that ask about themes we read about
throughout the book.
✦ Students pick a question they’d love to
discuss.
✦ Get into discussion groups to talk about
question; take notes and rehearse what they
will write to me.
✦ Write a response to the question for me to
read. (assessment)

21. Book Clubs: The ultimate
control of learning!
✦ Students generated sign-up lists for
books or themes they wanted to
discuss.
✦ I taught them how to manage their
schedule by using a calendar.
✦ Used an group evaluation rubric (posted
on wall) to self-assess and reflect.
✦ I sat in on group to facilitate (if needed)
or make observations.

22. Reflections
✦ Students are happier when learning this way; motivated, not
just compliant.
✦ Kids/parents had to get used to this.
✦ When I became frustrated with how students were working, I
paused and listened to what they were saying to me and to
each other.
✦ When a student wasn’t working, I conferred with them to seek
out the problem so that I could help them.
✦ I have to take risks…I gave myself permission to fail. When I
did, I was honest with myself and my students.
✦ I had to let go of control. I wasn’t so tired at the end of the
day!