Have you heard of name tents? I hadn't until I had the opportunity to hear Sara Vanderwerf speak on them. Here is her blog on them. Sara taught in a large, urban school and used them to make a connection with her students in the first week of school, so important! Each night she writes a response on their paper and gives them back the next day. Make sure to read her blog to learn more about her experiences with name tents. I have two big differences in my experiences with name tents. Difference number 1: I teach in a small, rural school (k-12 in one building). I know most of my students before I have them in class for the first time. I know their parents' names and where they live. So when I heard about name tents, I thought it was a great idea, but I also thought it was not necessary since I already knew my students. I was right and wrong. I didn't need the name tent part since I already knew their names. But I did need the inside response piece, even for the students I knew really well, even for the students I am related to. What I have found doing the name tents is that students use them as an avenue to tell you all kinds of things. The biggest thing I find out: how they feel about math. Many of them come to me feeling inadequate with their math abilities. Telling me this on the name tent opens the door to a conversation we need to have. It also cues me into knowing where this student stands and that I need to help nurture their self-image with math. Difference number 2: I don't have paper name tents, I do them digitally using Google Docs and Google Classroom There are some pros and cons to doing them this way. Pros:
I designed my "feedback form" to be personal to me and my school, but very similar to what Sara uses (see below). If you would like to use it as a template, and make it personal to you and your school, please help yourself. Here is my form. I have also done shorter versions of this in the middle of the school year as a check in, per student request. I called it "Holiday Confessions". I ran it the same way using Google Classroom and doing one question a day.
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AuthorI teach mathematics for grades 7-12. Teaching mathematics is my passion. Archives
August 2022
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