December 28, 2010

WBT is still alive and well in my classroom even though it's been a while since I have blogged.  A new granddaughter arrived right before Thanksgiving so I am devoting as much of my time as possible to being a grandmother(GIGI)

As I head into the New Year, I am going to focus on several of the WBT components. My students are good witht the rules, Class Yes, No Guff, and the Scoreboard. We have used the Teach Okay, but I plan to empahsize this strategy in the New Year. I also want to implement some of the games, especially the reading game. I also plan to spend some time on the WBT website so I can see what's new.

On the first day back, I am going to review everything we have done with WBT in all of my classes. I think this is important because students need repetition and reinforcement. This will also emphsize that this framework is an important part of our classroom environment.

Happy New Year to everyone!!

Thursday, November 5, 2010

My students are responding well to the WBT strategies. They constantly remind me of why they should get points and their "one second" parties are getting more enthusiastic.  The "No Guff" strategy is really working. One of the main "Guffers" has now started telling others to "Stop!" Some of the Prizes for "Prize Day" that I have tried are: Bingo, Chip Trading, Free computer time, and checking out some cool art and drawing sites. I am trying to come up with lots of different ideas.

My favorite rule is "Follow Directions Quickly." I find that Middle School students constantly "drag their feet" and try all kinds of tricks to avoid following directions. Adding the word "quickly" has definitely made a difference in their response time. I have always had Follow Directions as one of my rules, but never added "quickly" until now. I am working to keep a fast paced framework for my class and this rule helps!

Monday October 25,2010

I am continuing to be amazed with the results of the Whole Brain Teaching Strategies. So far they are all working well with my students. The Guff counter has really surprised me. I wasn't sure how the students would react to this strategy. However, lately they have started saying "stop" to anyone who is off task. It's gone beyond just "Guff."

I am not using the Teach Okay strategy enough and plan to focus on that more.

Wednesday October 13, 2010

The WBT stragegies really took a turn in my classroom this week when I added the "Guff Counter." In one of my classes, there was a student who was constantly "guffing" so I introduced the Guff Counter. Everyone just looked at me like, "oh yeah, what's next?" However on the second day it was in effect, the "Guffer" started "guffing" and one of the leaders in the classroom said, "stop!" The total atmosphere changed. Since then the Guff Counter is really working and I have started it in another class. The students have started telling the guffers to stop before I can say "that sounds like guff to me!"

I have been in the classroom about 30 years and the WBT strategies are the best I have seen for behavior management and reinforcing content! Give it a try!

Reflection About First Month

Overall, I have been pleased with the results so far using the Whole Brain Teaching Strategies. I am slowly adding the components, as Chris Bifel  suggests, and most of my students are accepting this framework for the classroom.

I have had two "Scoreboard Prize" sessions and they went well. Since my classes come to me every other day, we count up minutes on the Friday when they are in class and they are given extra time for something special. So far they have been given extra computer time and we have played Bingo with an online caller. Even though several complained about Bingo, they enjoyed playing and likde the online caller.

Currently, there is one class that is not "buying into" WBT and I am getting a lot of "Guff" from them. I am going to begin the "Guff Counter" on Monday. We will see how that goes.....

Next, I am going to add the "Reading Game." I used that last year and I liked the results. The WBT website is full of resources and ideas! I can't believe it's free! If you haven't taken a look at WBT, I encourage you to do so!!

September 20, 2010

We had our first Scoreboard prize day last Friday and it went very well. I think the students are starting to see how this WBT idea works!

Today I introduced the "Hands and Eyes" sign and told them we would be talking about "No Guff" soon!

So far I like what I am seeing with my classroom management. 

Here are some pictures of the new signs I have added to the wall.

Video of my class using the strategies.

Well, after a few some strange looks, my students are starting to see how this WBT stuff works. I really think they like the engagement and activity. The class yes is a real attention getter and I love the echo for reinforcement. We have used it for the 5 rules, but I think it will be great with any new learning. The teach okay makes sure that everyone is following and understanding the task at hand. Here is a movie of some of the first days of using WBT with one of my 6th grade classes.

Introducing WBT

I must say I was a little nervous today as I introduced the WBT strategies.  I used one of Chris Biffle's video showing the strategies with a middle school class. The visuals really helped. It was interesting to observe the student's responses. My 6th grade ESL students have moved to 7th grade and many of them are continuing to be served in my ESL class. One of the more difficult students came in and began his "normal" disruptive behavior. However, as we continued to practice the strategies, I  noticed a change in him. I think he will continue to test me, but at least I have some non-confrontational strategies to use with him. He wasn't able to pick a fight with me!! Hurray.

Beginning Whole Brain Teaching in My Classroom

Well, tomorrow I am going to introduce the whole brain strategies as I introduce the 5 rules. I think I am going to show a piece of one of the WBT videos to the class so they can see what it "looks like." I will keep you posted.

Here is a picture of the 5 rules in my room.