The
Wharton Borough Public School District holds firm to its commitment
to meeting the needs of all learners in the least restrictive
environment. This includes differentiation of instruction, whenever
possible, within general education classrooms. Differentiation is
done in order to accommodate children with special needs and those who
are English Language Learners (ELL). In keeping with this commitment
the district applied for and was awarded the NJDOE INCLUDE Grant .
The Wharton Include Grant Web Page
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ReplyDeleteWhat are some ways you organize your classroom to manage the menu/choice board activities your students do?
ReplyDeleteHow do you handle students who are always losing completed menu activities?
In our class, we store all menu activities in a "menu crate". All materials needed for the menu are labeled by letter corresponding to the letter on the activity.
DeleteThe way I find helpful to avoid loosing materials for completed menu activities are the use of classroom folders. Students place all completed activities in the folder at the end of each period and place it in the class crate. If students are going to work on activites outside of school, they may only take home incomplete assignments.
Like other inclusion classes, we store all menu activities in a "menu crate". All materials needed for the menues, including the student folders, are in the crate. In the beginning of the crate, each student has a pendaflex folder with their name. The folders are in alphabetical by last name. Inside the pendaflex is a manilla folder with their choiceboard materials to date. Behind the student folders are pendaflex folders labeled A-Z.
DeleteFor each choiceboard, we create a mirror image with a checkbox and area for teacher signature. The students check the box of the activities they have chosen and use the check list as a guide through the activities. After each activity the student completes, they show their proof of completion to either Ms. Goldberg or myself, then one of us signs in the teacher signature box for that activity.
Students may only bring home activities they do not complete during class time allowed.
Thusfar, this procedure strategy has worked well.
V & M
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ReplyDeleteIn my 5th grade math/science classroom there are baskets for my students' folders. Most of the materials and resources for our choice boards are completely online, which is great since students can just print and edit items as needed. One way that I handle students who are always losing completed menu activities is checking in with students periodically. During these check-ins, I will record their scores for completed sections in my grade book. This way if the item is lost, then there is still some record of the student completing the task. This isn't fool-proof, however, since students sometimes lose things in between completion and meetings.
ReplyDeleteIn social studies Mr. Howes and I have collaborated to create menu boards that reinforce the curriculum standards. We organize the menu activities in folders that each student will submit and store their project results. The choice board is stapled to all activites and placed inside as they complete each topic.
ReplyDeleteSince we are still new to the grant program, I have not had a major problem of students losing their menus activities. One thing that we do encourage is using their time wisely as they only have limited time frames for completing their work.
I have a rack with file folders. I staple a copy of the activity on the front. students can help themselves. I put an answer key in there also, so students can self-check. Students keep their work in a file folder.
ReplyDeleteWhen working on a menu or choice board in our 7th grade language arts class, we first review the menu with the students. We provide examples or models of some the projects the students are expected to create. Around the room, we place wire baskets with the materials needed for each choice activity. In front of each basket, we have a sign posted marking each activity including the directions.
ReplyDeleteEach student has a folder which contains their completed work. The folders are kept in a plastic bin which is accessible to the students.The instruction sheets for the activities are each in a separate file folder.
ReplyDeleteThe Choice Baords are stapled into their folders. Many of the completed activities are signed off by a teacher so there are no papers to lose. If students do lose papers, the teachers try to help organize them.
In our 8th grade math class, Mrs. Silvestri and I have set up a bin that has all of the Choice Board choices with either the materials or directions for what they need to complete to earn those points. Also, each student has their own folder to monitor and keep all of their completed work in their folders which always stay in class.
ReplyDeleteWe make sure that the folders stay in class to minimize them losing any of the materials. They are allowed to bring assignments home, but the folder with all the completed work has to stay in class to keep tabs on what has been completed.
We have been using a file folder for each student. Students are given extra time to check their work and ensure that items are checked off by the teachers.
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ReplyDeleteEach of our 5th grade students have a choice board folder for each subject. They use these folders to hold all completed assignments, as well as the choice board itself. We have found that it helps to have students check in with one of their teachers as soon as they complete an assignment. The teachers then initial each student's choice board to indicate completion of the assignment. When the students check in with us, we also make a record of their performance on the activity. This helps avoid problems later on, if completed assignments are lost or misplaced. In addition, we have all choice board materials available online so that students can print out any materials they may need. We have also found that having a "Log Sheet" stapled into each choice board folder helps the students achieve the work goals that they set for themselves.
ReplyDelete