Pop into Primary with Mrs. Palmer: Daily 5 Chapter 3: The 10 Steps to Teaching & Learning Independence

Happy Tuesday!! I am thrilled to be back with you all discussing one of my FAVE teacher books...Daily 5-2nd Edition. This study is brought to you by the lovely Brenda over at Primary Inspired.

Today we are discussing Chapter 3: The 10 Steps to Teaching & Learning Independence. I know that some of these steps are ~~scary~~ terrifying for some teachers. It can be so hard to turn our back and let those kiddos have their independence.
Let's get started!

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Like the sisters say....it seems simple but think back to lessons you have taught. Did you..just maybe...forget to tell the kids what they will be learning? Simply tell the kids what they will be learning in that (hopefully mini) lesson. :) Simple right? The sisters use Step 1 to introduce Daily 5 choices, but an I-chart and stating the learning objectives works for any subject area. Wait....I-chart you say? Let's get into that now...

I LOVE that the sisters point out that most of us have an internal voice that asks, "What's in it for me??" Don't you agree that our students feel that way? They want to know why they need to pay attention and learn what we are trying to teach them.

Introducing the I-Chart. The sisters, (Oh..and I am going to MEET THEM in August....eek...so pardon me if I mention them 8,231 times in this book study.)

use I-charts to let the students know what is expected, or the sense of purpose for each Daily 5 choice. Pinterest and TpT are FLOODED with I-charts FREE and already created for you! Click below to see some of the FREEBIES!!! When you DO have an I-chart make SURE to write what they will be learning at the top of it. Keep it up on that cabinet awhile too! :)

TpT

The I-chart is great because not only does it list what the students should be doing during choice time, but also what the teacher should be doing. My students love discussing the teacher side of the I-chart with me. One time a student said, "You should write drinking coffee on the teacher side because you always are." OOPS. :)

**One BIG CHANGE the sisters made in the 2nd edition of Daily 5 is that instead of having the students brainstorm the "desired behaviors" during choice time, you, the teacher, just simply writes them down and then model, model, model, practice...practice...you get the drill. I like to keep my I-charts up all year. (Believe me..you will revisit them! Especially after Christmas break!!) Since I like them up all year, I usually hand write them when we first learn about it in a minilesson, and then type them up.

I have students model the desirable behaviors from the I-Chart. This is visual learning in action!

Then comes the FUN part....every year my kiddos LOVE watching someone model the least desirable behaviors. I like to choose my off-task student. This might give them the attention they crave, in a positive way! Be ready for the laughter during the least desirable time. (This gives that off task kiddo the laughter they desire...but the next part....) Then. that student/performer will instantly model the correct, or most desirable behavior. This gives that kiddo approval and respect not only from you the teacher, but from their peers. Win Win!! :)

Now that your little smarties have seen the correct and incorrect behaviors for choice time, it is time to practice!! In the beginning you should choose where they sit around the room.

I KNOW I have shown this pic before...but I like to have several places around the room to place my students. The deck is one. I also have adirondack chairs, pillows, crate seats, and Christmas lights under the computer table.I make sure to rotate them around so every student finds the right spot for them.

Stamina is a word your students will learn through Daily 5! We like to put up a stamina bar graph and color in our progress each day. The sisters give 3 minutes for your first session. (This is just meant as a guideline.) I keep going as long as everyone is on task. As soon as someone breaks stamina, we stop. I don't give my teacher ~~glare~~ look at the student who broke stamina, we just go on with our next task. By October/November my 2nd graders are at about 15 minutes of stamina where they complete, quiet, independent work time....giving me a great amount of time to work with my groups or individuals!

This is the one that can be a TOUGHIE for some teachers. Letting go of the reins and letting your kiddos take control of the classroom environment. I don't make eye contact with kids while they are independently practicing the choice time behaviors. I simply flit about the room doing "teachery things" and keeping my super teacher ears in tune to any off task behavior. By staying out of the way you are teaching your students to be independent workers/learners/readers/writers. When I do hear that off task noise, we stop and move on to the next lesson.

I'm not going to get into this too much because there is so much more to say about this with Chapter 4, but you will need a signal to get your students' attention and regroup. I use a small bell, a few friends of mine have a doorbell, some use music wands, still others use a simple wind chime. Start shopping! :)

Lastly,

By having my kiddos check in with me after each choice time, I am holding them accountable! I have them hold their hand close to their heart and give a thumbs up (I did great and am awesome), thumbs sideways (eh...I did alright), or thumbs down (Oh man...I talked to my bestie and played with my bookbox the ENTIRE time.) We then discuss what they did, what the saw, heard...etc.

Click the link below to return to the linkup and read some other amazing posts!

Until next time, thanks for stopping by!