Giving Student Choices

“Our students deserve opportunities to grow as critical thinkers, to be given purposeful feedback, to develop their passions and independence in pursuing meaningful work. And sometimes that requires us as teachers to take a step back and just make space.” - Maricela Montoy-Wilson

As a teacher, I really love the idea of empowering my students learning by giving them more voice and choice in the class. Embracing this technique gives my students opportunity to discover and learn on their own phase. Allowing them to make further progress as they understand will give them pleasurable learning journey. Since I am teaching Kindergarten, I thoroughly facilitate my student choices by guiding and directing them to achieve their goals. Here are some activities where my students are fully engaged with their choices. I will state here the process how I have been doing it.

Giving them opportunity to choose research skills. Before we unlock our How We Organize Ourselves unit, my students and I will collect information about what do they know about “Community and Community Helpers” using the KWL approach (Know, Want, Learn). After hearing their ideas, they will be given a task to research and find more information about the unit. As their teacher, I will motivate them by guiding and providing them how they will excel in their planning, collecting data and presenting their research. I will set up the four colored tables in my classroom with the different research approach. (Speaking) Blue table will interview people around the school, (Using technology) red table will use the Ipad to research about community helper together with my teaching assistant, (Using books) green table will use different books, and (Fine motor) the yellow table will use community helper puzzles. When the tables are ready, I will tell my students about the expectations of the activity and our rubrics. They can choose any of the four ways they prefer to research. 

 
- My students need to have a significant purpose in their works and they become engage when they identify their own style to learn. By giving them the opportunity to choose how they want to know more about the community and community helpers will encourage them to work hard particularly knowing that the approach they choose is interesting for them. This approach will increase their self-confidence because they feel competent. They can also discipline their behavior by being aware they belong to a group. Hearing positive feedback will encourage them more.

Task force team of Inquiry. Using my magic Popsicle stick (as we call it in the class), I will call names of students written on the stick to forming their task force team. Each team will select a Community Helper from the brainstorm list. My student’s mission consists of investigating the community helper they choose, explore roles and duties and discover responsibilities in the community. While the teams are busy doing their research, my duty is to remind everyone to stay focus on their work. Assist them when they need additional assistance. When they are finished with their task, we will celebrate it by inviting other classes to listen to our final discovery.
By allowing them to choose from the brainstorm list, it will give my students motivation to do their inquiry and each team member is given a chance to make decisions. This approach will give time for my students to coach and help each other by sharing their ideas. They are given opportunities to enhance their communication skills by creating their own knowledge and giving responses as to what and how they learn. 

Choose different ways to present information about their summative task using different form or media. They will choose a partner to create a presentation of their favorite season of the year. I have given them different approaches to how they can present. Since I am already familiar with my students’ intelligence, I know that some of them will have a role-play, dance to a song, create a diorama, read a storybook, create a weather template using the Ipad, or draw and paint their favorite weather. 

 
This is one of my favorite classroom activities where my students are able to exhibit what they have understood in the unit. This will give students a higher motivation to do their task and will feel more competent because they like what they are doing. When my students are taking ownership of their work, they will feel that their work is very important. When my students take charge of their learning process, they are able to channel their energy into activities that matter.
I also have to add the importance of “Class Jobs” as I have successfully incorporated this approach. My students are given choices to what jobs they can do each week. They choose from Captain Calendar, Snack Stewardess, Paper Passer, Line Leader and Caboose Leader. They feel important when they take responsibility for the class. It gives them opportunity to boost self-esteem. As young as 5, I am really happy with what they can do and how they take their job seriously.

In my kindergarten class, I give emphasize of the importance of their choice as it is a great tool for learning. Giving them privilege of making their own choices gives them the opportunity to learn better. Though, I need to modify these choices according to what they can achieve since they are young to decide. I ensure that I plan accordingly by providing and offering student choices. Some of the successful list that I have done with them include choose their reading buddies, invite students to create questions on our “I Wonder” wall, and add their ideas on our big brainstorm list. I also instill appreciation, tolerance, commitment and creativity. I also ascertain that in each activity done, I provide constructive feedback I truly find this teaching strategy most effective and promote students independence.

Actual activities of K2 students

Jai's Linkedin

Resources:
Schneider, E. (2016). Educational Leadership:Creating a Climate for Learning:Giving Students a Voice in the Classroom. [online] Ascd.org. Available at: http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational-leadership/sept96/vol54/num01/Giving-Students-a-Voice-in-the-Classroom.aspx [Accessed 1 May 2016].