Week 8 - Big 6 Rocks!

Now that we have unraveled the Big 6 from all sides, I hope you are all a little more comfortable finding ways to plug it into your curriculum.  As library media specialists we have the luxury of finding ways to connect the Big 6 to all content areas and help our students learn how to solve the problems.  After teaching this problem solving process my students all agree that having a strategy they can use to break down a task into more managable pieces helps them successfully tackle problems. The six-step process provides them with a goal, a plan and focus to help them reach the goal, and a more satisfying conclusion knowing they have greater control of the outcome.  In a nutshell, most students belief the Big 6 is EASY.

There are many problem solving processes available to us, but Needham points out some clear advantages of using the Big 6 in Ch. 20.

• Other processes assume students already know the best sources of information and where to find them, while the Big 6 helps students identify both instead of leaving this important piece to chance.  Most of our students make the automatic jump to online research, which is not all bad if we teach them how to evaluate resources to identify the "best" resources for the task and not just Google.  
• The vocabulary used in the Big 6 can be applied to many type of problems.  Students sometimes don't realize that they have problems to solve outside of school.  The "How Much is That Doggy In The Window" presentation we referenced earlier in our book study is a great way to show students how application of the Big 6 is useful outside of school.
• Finally, use of the Big 6 process supports many other research-based strategies proven to support how students learn.

Needham closes this chapter with a "Teaching Big 6" chart.  Figure 20.1 should help you take a closer look at your program and provide you some guidance in implementing the Big 6 into your program, or examining strengths and weaknesses of your program in its current form.

There are no discussion questions this week, but please post your own parting thoughts as comments.  Remember, we will have our final face-to-face meeting Mon., Nov. 1, to share lessons developed over the past weeks and take a closer look at the things your have posted on the website.  The "blended" format of this book study is definitely a work in progress and needs your thoughts on ways to improve the process as a way to collaborate regularly.  Please check your syllabus to make sure you have completed all of the assigned tasks for the book study.  See you tomorrow! 

Week 7 - Big 6 in the Content Areas

In reading chapters 16-19, you probably had some of the same ah-ha moments I did about integrating the Big 6 into content areas.  Prior to reading this book and taking part in Needham's workshop I had not considered how the Big 6 tied to classroom management or math.  Science and social studies were more likely to tie in because of the research opportunities with both of those content areas.  The sample lesson forms in figures 17.1-17.3 made the use of the Big 6 in math make more sense to me.  The framework of the Big 6 helps make "solving the problem" in math a no-brainer.  Math truly provides students a first-hand opportunity to see how problem solving without Big 6 versus problem solving with Big 6.  Math is difficult for me, but using the Big 6 actually makes math make sense--kind of...  The bottom line is use of the Big 6 in content areas lead to a deeper understanding of not only problem solving, but content as well.  Assuming the problems are authentic, students essentially are killing two birds with one stone--learning content and how to solve problems.
  
You know I can't go without saying that as we develop our lessons we need to consider how to integrate technology into the picture.  Berger has given us some valuable Web 2.0 tools to use, all we have to do is challenge ourselves to learn more about them and allow students to extend their learning beyond the walls of their schools.

The final discussion question is:

1.   Now that the book study nears its end, identify some of the things we were unable to cover but which you would like to know more about.

REMINDER:  Post your search engine chart, if you have not already done so.    Also, check the "Lessons" page of the website as Corliss will be posting a sample Revolutionary War lesson.  Finally, put the finishing touches on your lesson to share with others.  Please have it posted by next Monday so that everyone can access it at our face-to-face meeting.

Week 6 Plugging in the Big6

Up to this point in class we have been exploring the six steps of the Big6.  We've learned that each step has required its own skill set and hopefully you have seen the importance of giving the students plenty of opportunities and time to learn them.  Remember incredible things can be built once a solid foundation is in place.  Now it is time for you to develop an open-ended problem where your students, with your support, can practice using the Big6 problem-solving model.  Chapter 13 has some great examples if you are still struggling.

Ideally, the students will quickly identify exactly what their task is and be able to come up with ideas for resources and how to access them.  Steps 1-3 should really be done before they ever get on a computer.  Step 4 is still going to be a struggle for many of them.  Chapter 14 goes into how to help students stay focused when searching for information.  Success in this area really comes once students understand good note taking strategies. I will send out a Trash & Treasure Template  that was created by a SPED teacher in our district.  We found that her students could really identify the "nuggets of treasure" when given this template. Organization is VERY IMPORTANT at this step as well.  (A two-pocket, three-pronged folder works well!)  Synthesis and Evalution can be completed much more efficiently if your students really "get" how to use information.

Your students may get a little frustrated with the Big6 in the beginning because you are slowing them down and walking them through each step pretty slowly and they just want to jump in and start getting information.  I can honestly say that once they understand the process of the Big6 they will see how the problem-sovling method works for so many tasks. It is not always a long drawn out process, sometimes it is a quick check-list.  Chapter 15 shows us how to help students apply the Big6 in other areas.  This is a chapter I think a lot of core content teachers would appreciate.

Discussion Topics:

1)  Needham provides sample lessons in Chapter 13.  Select one and discuss some of the strengths and weaknesses of that lesson.

2)  After reviewing the Trash and Treasure template I sent to each of you, share your ideas for a note-taking device that would be helpful for your students.
     

Week 5 - Choosing a Form of Synthesis & Evaluation

Students must be able to synthesis any problem in order to solve it, but we all know that this is often the most difficult step for students.  Now that they have all the information, what do they do with it?  Needham has some great strategies to improve synthesis and provide them with strategies likely to strengthen the overall outcome of the process.  Students often rely on graphic organizers, which can even add an element of excitement by incorporating a little Web 2.0.  The Table 4.1 (p. 84) in Berger's book outlines the features of four different organizers available online.  More and more of these free downloads and interactive sites are popping up every day.  In the course of this book study you have also discovered many ways by which students can share their information.  Needham offers possible forms of synthesis which are more traditional (p. 128), while Berger offers suggestions for us to integrate technology (Ch. 6), all of which can help students better synthesis the information.   

1. Explore two of the graphic organizer sites from Table 4.1 of Berger's book (or others you find online) and offer your feedback as to their usefulness with your students.

Traditional evaluation usually takes the form of a scoring guide provided by the teacher, but Needham makes a very valid point (Ch. 11) regarding students' need for self-evaluation.  Self-evaluation helps our students practice those essential critical thinking skills.  "Change and growth are the result of evalution."  The Big 6 encourages students to evaluate not just the product, but the process as well.  Students who can identify their strengths and weaknesses in these areas are improving their problem-solving skills and thereby student achievement. 

2. Consider the pros and cons of teacher-created scoring guides and student self-evaluation.  Share your thoughts on the importance of students becoming effective evaluators. 

After responding to the discussion questions, begin thinking about what the synthesis and evaluation pieces will look like in the Big 6 lesson you are developing.  Challenge yourself to incorporate technology tools such as blogs, wikis, or other Web 2.0 tools in these steps.

Week 4 Social Bookmarking and Media Sharing

Our face-to-face meeting Monday was refreshing and we really liked the teamwork we witnessed when looking at the social bookmark site and glogster.  The exchange of lesson ideas and favorite sites was a good collaborative experience.  We hope you have spent some additional time exploring these resources and have more ideas to share in this week's discussion board.  If you get a chance check out Vicki's " Library Insider" Blog.  She is really doing a great job of guiding her staff into Web 2.0 resources.

For this week's discussion:

1) Part of this week assignment is to post 5 of your favorite websites on your delicious site. (Don't forget to include a brief description.)  Four weeks into this class, how has your perception of Web 2.0 changed?  Are you getting more comfortable out in cyberspace?  What ideas came to mind after the Glogster and Delicious demonstrations?  Will you continue to use them personally?  Will you share them with students?    


2)  Berger states "when students create their own media, they are active participants in their own learning, their interest and motivation increases because they are in control of their learning."  Monday, Vicki shared  how excited her students are when they get to blog.  As you continue developing your Big6 project how do you plan to bring the use of technology into your lessons?  How can you assure that your students will take control of their learning?