Routines and Procedures

5th Grade Social Studies: Primary vs. Secondary Sources

Collaboration

To encourage students to pair up to listen to the instructional video and take notes together, I have a collection of earbud splitters. I also encourage students to find a partner for the practice activities.

For some lessons that require reading or listening to a text, there’s a choice for students to read with a partner, read with a small group, or sign up to read in a group with me.

My Aspire To Do's are project-based and students almost always end up finding a partner to do them.

For any type of writing or speaking work, students have peer writing reviews or a speaking practice partner.

Somewhere in every unit is a multi-lesson project that requires more intensive collaboration with an assigned partner or small group.

Teacher Time

One-on-one instruction: I work 1:1 with students who need to revise their mastery check. We go back to their notes to see where misconceptions are happening, and I reteach the content with them before they try the mastery check again.

I also work 1:1 with any student who needs help staying on track and with students who might show mastery in a different way. For example, they might need to orally explain a topic instead of writing it.

Small group instruction: If a small group of students needs to revise their mastery check, I will pull them to my back table. We revisit their notes to see where misconceptions are happening, and I reteach the content with them before they try the mastery check again.

If we are reading text, students can sign up on the board to read in a group with me, or I will select a group of students to read with me during that class period. I won’t use the whole class block to do this, but I’ll stay focused on them for at least 15 minutes before circulating around the room to check in on other students.

Whole group instruction: When students come into class, an agenda slide is projected on the board. They have a writing or vocabulary warm-up at their desk with emojis at the top to circle how they are feeling. After everyone has entered class, I ring the singing bell for our mindful moment, which lasts one to two minutes. Then, we do our warm-up (10 mins) as a whole class. Here’s a Writing Warm-Up example.

I reserve the last five minutes of class for whole group closure to name and celebrate lesson all-stars and do shout-outs.

I also use whole class time if we are engaging in class discussions such as Socratic Seminars, peer reviews, or if we are sharing performances.

Teacher Tips

At the beginning of the school year, during Unit Zero, we work on routines around building our focused attention. We even track the minutes we demonstrated sustained attention. We honor that it looks different for all of us, but after students feel they have successfully attended to their learning, they can take a break during class to walk down the hall, to the hallway exercises posted on the wall, or take a little lap outside the classroom. Building an individual sense of responsibility, self-awareness, and self-advocacy is an important part of our work together from the start. And it takes lots of intentional reflection throughout the year to keep it ongoing!

We also spend time together discussing how a classmate can be supportive and what it might look like if a classmate isn’t showing support. For example, a friend who interrupts the learning to bring someone off-task isn’t helpful to the learning environment. In those scenarios, we practice what to “lovingly” say to that peer. By practicing these routines, the students gain more self-control, and I have less micromanaging to do as a teacher. Everyone’s happier!

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