Think of an activity or lesson component that explicitly teaches one or more metacognitive and one or more problem solving skills.
I found there to be many skills taught in one of my lessons I did in my math and science methods classes. It was a lesson about an oil spill and how spills can affect our environment. The students are able to explore a real life situation through this hands-on activity and decide on the best ways that we could clean up the spills. We are able to get the students to start thinking before the lesson by questioning them. What happens to animals when oil gets on their skin/feathers? Do we think the oil will mix into the water? (some examples) The students are able to see where they stand with this knowledge at the beginning, and then at the end of the lesson they are able to reflect on what they learned. Children are able to reflect by both a journal entry as well as incorporating a whole group discussion. Students are able to think about their thinking.
This real world situation provided an ill-defined problem. The students can come up with many different solutions on what they think the best method of clean up would be, and then they are able to discuss this with their peers. I liked how this activity focused on a real world problem and allowed for social interaction. The students are able to problem solve by manipulating different tools/materials to see what works best to get the oil out of the water. I can see where these metacognitive and problem solving skills are essential in learning activities.
This link provides good examples of how to get children to think about their thinking.
I thought it was really neat that you used an example of something you've taught before. Using a real life example for the kids is a great way to help them understand the concepts better and get them thinking about their thought processes.
ReplyDeleteI really think the idea of having students keep a journal throughout the activity is a great way for them to see their knowledge expanding and how it develops over time within the classroom discussion. I too like that you were able to pull in something we are learning in other classes as well. It is good to see everything coming together.
ReplyDeleteThis is a great example of an ill-defined problem. The journal entry really helps students reflect more on what they know, and helps you see what they're thinking and how they're learning.
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