This post was inspired by a recent question in one of my teacher groups: “How are other 3rd grade teachers filling in the learning gaps for their students? We don’t have options for small group intervention or support programs.”

Learning gaps aren’t new. However the learning gap due to Covid is unique because of the extended school closures, the disparate access to remote instruction, and varying degrees of household supports. This gap resembles more of a chasm, for students of colour. In fact, a recent McKinsey study reports students remain behind in both math and reading, with chronically disadvantaged students being up to a grade level behind their peers.  

Where we are vs Where we should be?
Ensure you've a clear understanding of what your students' abilities are at this moment and where they'll need to be, by the end of the year. 

Diagnose
A diagnostic will highlight exactly where your learner has gaps. It can be a worksheet, a test, and even an oral assessment. If you're able to, offer a choice board for assessments. The objective is to gather as many details as possible. With Math assessments, stress the importance of showing all the work so that they're making their thinking visible. That way, you're able to see exactly where their process goes offline. Humming the chorus to "Step by Step" by NKOTB usually gets everyone's attention in my class (swiftly followed by pleas to stop). Reading comprehension? Try an oral approach for retelling and summarizing. Timelines and photo walls can test dates and key figures. 
Reassure students that this is just a snapshot, of their current knowledge base. Knowing that it doesn't count to their final grade will ease the stress.

Prioritize
What do they absolutely need to know, by the end of the year? What would be nice to have, it you can fit it in? Think of your material in terms of a decision matrix - need to know, need to know, can catch this up later, etc.

Concurrent teaching
Build in about 10-15 minutes for review and reteaching of old material, then move on to teach at grade level.  If they hit a bump during grade level teaching, ask them to make a note; encourage the observation so that they have a grasp on what they need to review.

Look for opportunities to collaborate and cross teach.
Think of your fellow teachers as part of your students' learning team and look for ways to work on concepts in other classes. Learning about The Crusades in Ancient History? Maybe you can assign reading comprehension to a Crusade themed passage, for example. 

Build in small wins. 
It's a great way to measure progress for you and them.

Book this film for professional development or watch online at www.vimeo.com/ondemand/greymatters.
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Recently I overheard a student complain, "I hate Math!" followed by a large, dramatic sigh and an eye roll.

Remind you of anyone in your class?

Deciding to accept the discussion invitation, I responded, "Hmm, Math is a really large subject. Can you possibly narrow down what portion you find distasteful?" 

"Fractions. I hate fractions...I just don't get it," she replied.

"Do you remember long division?" I pressed.

"I love long division. It's so easy," she responded.
 
"You love long division now...you didn't love it so much, when we first started doing it," I gently reminded the not-loving-fractions 5th grader.

"I didn't? Are you sure? I'm pretty sure I loved it as soon as I started doing it," she replied in a puzzled tone. "I'm really good at division," she continued.

"You're right, you are really good at division. And soon, you'll be great at fractions." I high-fived her as she headed to her seat. 

Students often forget how they felt at the beginning of learning a new concept or subject area; focusing only on how they're doing in that moment.  A portfolio illustrates early mistakes, the progress made, ultimately showing their overall grasp of the concepts, and in some cases, the time it took to fully grasp the concept.  

For more on portfolios, check out: ​http://www.greymattersdocumentary.com/blog/grades-versus-growth

Read this for a 3 minute overview on how to enhance your teaching practice to engage your students and help them connect the knowledge:  https://www.teachthought.com/learning/6-targets-teach-way-brain-learns/

If you believe the learning styles theory, you’re showing up to class with 3 different versions of your lesson plan - one for the kinesthetic learner, another for the visual, a third for the auditory, right? 

No, you’re not doing that?

But…but what the different learning styles of your students?? 

Clearly, no one is showing up to class with three lesson plans.  (Unless you are, in which case, please comment below…I’d love to talk about what you’ve found).

In 2008 four psychologists collaborated and cohesively studied the existing literature on learning styles; they concluded that there was no strong evidence to support the learning styles theory but they didn’t completely rule it out. You can read the paper by Pashler, McDaniel, Rohrer, & Bjork, here:  https://www.psychologicalscience.org/journals/pspi/PSPI_9_3.pdf

Yet we continue to talk about learning styles in education.

Veteran Baltimore City Public Schools educator, Dr. Mariale Hardiman, now Professor of Education at Johns Hopkins University, recommends teachers think big picture learning goals and let those learning goals drive the activities and assessments, “When teachers focus solely on the individual points students often miss the larger concepts or the “big picture” essential for deep understanding and memory.”

I look at it as giving the main idea rather than just the bulleted points, as in, “Here’s what you’re going to learning in this section/unit building on previous knowledge of x,y, and z.” I also like to outline the takeaways, as in, here’s what you’re really learning to do.  If you’re more of a sports analogy person, think big play, instead of move by move.  

But, what about my kinesthetic and auditory and visual learners, teachers will say at this point.

Vicky Krug, a college professor at Westmoreland County Community College, featured in Grey Matters, says, “I take a multi sensorial approach to what I teach and I design the learning experience using multiple senses. I know that getting students up and about in class helps their engagement and focus so I incorporate that.  Some material naturally lends itself to movement and with other stuff, I find a way to work it in.  I add visuals, I have students repeat things out loud”  

Want to try a multi sensorial approach in your classroom? Try backwards planning.  What are the key things your students need to master at the end of the unit?  Then, think about the best ways to make that happen from both an activities and assessment perspective.

Invest in planning
When Jeremy Mettler planned a unit on the importance of the Suez Canal he started with an in class unit to give him an idea of the collective knowledge base of his students, incorporated flash cards with vocabulary cartoons to help students quickly grasp the basics, and then designed an experience that brought home the differences of travel pre-canal and post-canal.  “The biggest thing fear for teachers is the lack of content time but when I invest in planning and using some kind of visual organizer to highlight the key concepts of the unit, it strengthens my teaching practice in class.  I teach, instead of just covering content”.

Mix it up
Krug teaches college level developmental reading and writing; she often chooses different instruction materials to help her students grasp concepts simply because they’re more interesting.  It’s not uncommon to hear Dr. Seuss or debates on the 14th Amendment in her classes. “I’m a big believer in fun and I give students multiple ways to experience the material so that they have multiple ways to retrieve the material”.

Incorporate Real Life
Justin Holbrook, a 4th grade STEM teacher at Roland Park Elementary, tries to show the real life applications of things, “When students see what I’m teaching them is applicable in the real world, they pay more attention. Place value translated nicely into pay cheques; calculating area was a great way to weigh in on some of the proposed changes to various spaces to our school”.

You can see Mettler, Krug, and Holbrook in the education documentary Grey Matters: Teaching The Way The Brain Learns.  
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