I'll Have Some Sugar With My Coffee

It was sweet, no doubt about it.  Yesterday morning, my classroom was open for any student who wanted to come in and study for the upcoming state test. If it were up to me, there wouldn't be this feeling that students needed to study for this 65 question guessing game in order to be placed in next year's classes.  At the end of the year, we would just hand the next grade level the students' portfolios of creations and let those determine the placement of each student.  But, because we're in this pressured testing environment that we are, kids care about the test more than they should and I want them to feel supported in their endeavors.

To support the kids who wanted to have that extra chance for review, I took a page out of @CoffeCue's playbook and spin it to meet the needs of kids.  Why not have a cup of coffee with kids instead of adults?

Photo Credit: Antonio Carrillo (Ancalop) via Compfight cc

So, Saturday morning came around and students strolled into my humble educational dojo and I opened up the iPad cart.  My only instruction was this:

"You are here because you want to be, and not because you have to be. Make this meaningful for you.  Pick a topic that you want to review and make something that we can hang around campus to remind you before the test. I'll help you out as needed, but it's up to you to decide the topic and what you're using to create it.  Go"

Just like that, my instruction was done for the day.  As I went around the room and removed anything math related before testing begins, students grabbed an iPad and got to work. They devised a plan of attack on which standards they needed to review the most, which ones they felt comfortable with, divided up the work and began creating posters.

I'm pretty sure almost every "school rule" was being broken during this event:

• dress code was definitely not being enforced
• cell phones were being used
• kids (and I) were listening to music
• students were out of their seats
• students were eating in class (fruit & granola bars)

I wandered aimlessly around the room with nothing to do but clean up, which my room desperately needed, until someone asked for help or clarification.  Students were asking each other for help and quizzing each other on the formulas they needed, the steps that were required, and the little tricks and hints we discussed throughout the year.  It was pretty cool to watch.

Once we finished up, the attendees got onto wifi photo transfer to send me all of the screenshots from the day.  I printed up each of the pictures, we hung them near where the kids will be testing, and were done.  All in all, the session lasted 2 and a half hours and it was nothing short of impressive.  I'm just ashamed of myself for not doing this sooner, assuming that nobody would show up to a Saturday session.

"If you build it, they will come" applies to the classroom as well

Here are some of the products that students created during our time together:

Happy Fishing