When my kiddos work in teams, something magical happens in
my classroom. No, really, not even being a sappy blogger full of hyperboles! I
LOVE getting my students into teams to work on an assignment or task.
Most teachers, including myself, spend the bulk of their
instructional day working with small groups of students that are mixed
homogenously during center work time. This is a GREAT instructional strategy,
especially for differentiating lessons. However, I would like to emphasis the
need for more TEAMWORK time in our school day!
Below are five easy ways to start and use teams in your
classrooms:
1. Create teams of 4-6 children that are of mixed abilities
(and personalities—not exactly data driven but we teachers do have brains in our heads!).
After teams are created, I let my children work together to come up with a team
name. The teams in my classroom are Minion, Odd Squad, Alabama, and Kevin. Yes,
I have a team called Kevin. No, I did not provide input into team naming. I do
know some teachers that name their teams first and then have a big ceremony, sorting kiddos into their places (much like in Harry Potter).
2. Teach and PRACTICE accountable talk or age appropriate
academic conversation stems. Read more here and here. I can not emphasis the
word PRACTICE enough… PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE! I also suggest practicing
them content free first. For example, engage students in conversations about
something relevant to them; social media, Justin Bieber, Taylor Swift, frozen
waffles, etc.
3. I also assign turn-n-teach partners within my teams. We
do a team-based activity called “T-TAP” that I will blog more about later. Essentially,
we rotate within a lesson between solving problems in teams, solving problems
alone, and then discussing the solved problem with a partner. Just trust me…
Assign partners within your teams!
4. Create a space for teams to work together. I have a
flexible seating style classroom that you can read more about HERE. So, it is a
little easier for us to move into teams since we have the space to do so. We
use Target bathrugs for our teamwork time. They simply grab a rug and a
clipboard, then get in a circle on the floor with their teams. I have also seen
teachers have clusters of desks in their rooms for group or teamwork. Whatever
works for you, your kids, and your classroom, just make sure you have a spot! I also would suggest using the same routine to get
into teams over and over so that it cuts down on confusion and transition time!
5. THIS IS THE MOST IMPORTANT THING YOU WILL READ ON THIS BLOGPOST
ABOUT TEAMWORK. (OBVIOUSLY, BECAUSE IT’S TYPED IN ALL CAPS!)
***** WHEN STUDENTS START WORKING IN TEAMS, REWARD OFTEN, LOUDLY, AND SPECIFICALLY!
For example, “Chloe I love how you used accountable talk to disagree with
Nolan.” Or “Wow! I love how team Alabama is working together to teach each
other how to solve that problem!”
My classroom behavior management system that you can read more about
HERE uses pom-poms for positive praise. Each time I say a student’s name during
team time, they know they automatically get a pom-pom! I AM ALSO UP WALKING
AROUND THE ROOM CONSTANTLY! I have a clipboard in my hand to take formative
notes, and performance notes that I share with the students and use to drive instruction.
Click on the links to see videos of my scholars working in teams!
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