Spend a moment defining the following terms with your partner and discussing their relevance to your teaching:

MAKING MEANING

RELEVANCE

TRANSFERENCE

Take “Reflection and Closure” handout and roll again!

JOURNALING FOR MAKING MEANING

Close the day's activities with a directed journal activity. Ask students to silently reflect on and write about the following:

1. What did we learn today about...

2. How does this connect or relate to what we already know about...

3. How can this help you or how can you use this in the future?

ref: How the Brain Learns

OPEN THIS BOX AND SEE THE KEY TO THE FUTURE

(prop: a small box with a mirror inside)

Turn your partner's collar out and read the label, find out where the clothing was made and what materials went into it. Have your partner do the same to you. How do your clothing choices connect you globally?

"Every decision you make effects the price of fish in China."

-Echo Purtell

(To set up the following card, attach the top part of the activity to one side of a card and the completed chart with the explanation on the other side. Cut out the small words “low”, “moderate” and “high” and scatter near blank chart. Students should fill the chart in with what they believe is the best fit to predict remembering whether meaning and sense are present or absent.)

Think about your favorite lesson to teach. Do you think it makes sense to your students? Does it have meaning or do students care about the information? How important are each of these aspects of learning?

M | :

E YES | :

A |_ _ _ _ : _ _ _ _ _

N | :

I NO | :

N |__ __ __ __ __ __

G NO YES

SENSE

In each of the four quadrants, predict the probability of

remembering information based on presence or absence of sense and meaning. Turn this card over to check your response.

M | :

E YES | moderate : high

A |_ _ _ _ : _ _ _ _ _

N | :

I NO | low : moderate

N |__ __ __ __ __ __

G NO YES

SENSE

Based on the above diagram, students remember better when both sense and meaning are present.

Teachers spend about 90 percent of their planning time devising lessons so that students will understand the learning objective. Teachers need to be more mindful of helping students establish meaning. We should remember that what was meaningful for us as children may not be necessarily meaningful for children today.

Ask yourself: do I spend as much time assuring my students care about the information as I do assuring they understand it?

HAVE YOUR PARTNER LAY DOWN. QUIETLY DESCRIBE TO YOUR PARTNER YOUR FAVORITE PLACE TO SET UP YOUR STUDENTS TO DO A REFLECTION ACTIVITY.

REFLECTION - CONCENTRATION OF THE MIND; CAREFUL CONSIDERATION

WHAT ROLE DOES REFLECTION PLAY IN EFFECTIVE TEACHING?

IN WHAT WAYS DO YOU WEAVE REFLECTION INTO YOUR TEACHING DAY?