While working with 2nd graders in Writing, I noticed that the students struggled with an assignment. Reflective person that I am, later that night, I thought about how I presented the assignment and what I could do differently the next day. I thought about specific things that I noticed during Writing and what support I could offer the students.
The following day, I explained my thought process to the students. I told them exactly what I mentioned above - how I noticed that they seemed to struggle with getting their thoughts on paper and that after thinking about it a little more, I started thinking of what I could do to make the assignment more feasible and I concluded that maybe they needed additional visual support to refer to as they wrote their stories. They agreed with my assessment of the problem and with my solution.
Next, I asked them to reflect about other problems they felt they had with the assignment and to share one (1) problem with their teammates. Once a student stated their problem, the teammates offered possible solutions for the student to try.
This activity served a few purposes. First, students had to reflect on and articulate their own struggles. Secondly, students had to listen to their colleagues’ in order to provide appropriate advice. Lastly, it showed students that they had similar problems with the assignment and that they could seek advice and learn from each other.
Click the video below to see students in action:
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