If you have not heard about Project Zero's Visible Thinking I recommend you clear your evening and spend some time reading up on it. Fascinating! I have had the privilege of attending a couple of conferences/workshops held by many of Harvard's PZ researchers and my school has begun implementing visible thinking practices into our classrooms. One of my favorite resources is Ritchhart, Church, and Morrison's
Making Thinking Visible: How to Promote Engagement, Understanding, and Independence for All Learners.
This book is full of thinking routines that are easy to implement and applicable to all ages of learners. For the last few months of the school year, my colleagues and I experimented with a routine each week and then met on Friday mornings before school to discuss our experiences. This was SO helpful to know that teachers throughout the building were experimenting with the same routine in their classrooms and might be facing the same challenges, successes, etc. that I was dealing with. Having these weekly meetings held me accountable for trying these routines and allowed me the chance to get my feet wet with them. :)
Here is an example of a Chalk Talk my students did a few weeks ago on plants.
Chalk Talk is a thinking routine that calls for students to communicate through writing- without spoken words. I began by writing the parts of a plant on chart paper. My students rotated through the charts with a marker and were asked to write down their thoughts, questions, etc. In the beginning, students were writing down facts such as "We eat seeds." Then, students began to extend on previous students' writing by adding to their thoughts such as "like pumpkin seeds." Then someone else would come along and take it further such as "Are beans seeds?" We ended up with a chart full of facts, arrows, questions, answers to questions, etc. I love how the students took responsibility for their thinking and understanding as well as the thinking and understanding of their classmates.
P.S.- I've started a Pinterest Board for ideas that go along with this book and thinking routines. Make sure to check it out and follow it {
here}! I've pinned some great YouTube videos of some of the PZ Researchers that are definitely worth checking out.
I am linking up with Deanna Jump's Book Talk Tuesday because I think
Making Thinking Visible is definitely worth the read especially if you are looking for some ways to help your students think outside of the box. Happy reading! :)
