Reflect
As we mentioned in our introduction, if we were to change the stripling cycle, we would have the reflect stage in the middle as it should be a continuous and ongoing action instead of a separate and final stage.
Children should reflect and think critically throughout the investigation, forming new questions along the way, and, therefore, improving their understanding and adding to their learning.
Reflecting on their own learning
This poster can be placed on the main wall near the whiteboard so that the children can glance at it after every lesson.
The teacher can then discuss it as a class and write down or orally convey something new that the children learnt, what they don't understand about the water cycle, and any new inquiries they have about the topic of rain.
This is a great way to evaluate the children's comprehension of the topic and identify what needs to be covered in more detail in the upcoming lessons. Also, it helps the children realize how much progress they have made in their understanding of the topic through various stages.
Guided teacher reflection is crucial as some students may struggle with knowing what to reflect on. Prompt questions can be helpful, but they should also be able to add their own thoughts and reflections throughout the topic and inquiry cycle.
Example of questions to put up on the board:
Do you find the formation of rain easy to understand?
Did you learn any new vocabulary from studying the water cycle?
To encourage children to reflect, using a quote that explains the importance of the reflect stage can be useful. The following quote emphasizes that without reflection, we cannot truly learn. It suggests that we need to think about what we did, how we did it, and ask questions in order to learn from our experiences. Therefore, reflection is a crucial step in the learning process.
When children reflect on a topic and share their thoughts with the class, they gain new perspectives from different ideas and understandings.
Classroomscreen.com is an excellent web-based tool that can be projected on a whiteboard for all children to see. It offers a variety of features to help teachers engage with their students.
For instance, the website provides a timer that helps students reflect individually before sharing their thoughts with their classmates. The teacher can set a 3-minute timer for individual reflection. Children can see and hear the countdown, ending with a beep.
Additionally, it allows teachers to put up a traffic light vote to gauge students' understanding of the content. Students can pick a face and color that represents their comprehension of the lesson. For instance, a sad red face means they didn't understand the topic, a happy green face means they understood everything, and an orange face means they are confused about some parts of the topic but understand the rest.
This website is a great tool for teachers to keep their students engaged and on track during lessons.
Book Creator is an excellent tool to reflect on the topic of rain in weather.
A classroom setting provides an opportunity for students to create a book titled "Our Favorite Weather" using various forms to cater to different learning styles such as voicememos, coloured pictures and text based.
They used voice memos, drew and colored a picture of rain for their favorite type of weather, and typed out a sentence about it. This activity can be adapted for 3rd-4th class students by adding more details about what they learned about the stages of the water cycle. They could choose a stage of the water cycle and explain it using a voice note and draw a picture of what they think it looks like. For example, for precipitation, they could draw a cloud and droplets.
Teachers can create a survey using surveymonkey.com. Children can anonymously provide feedback on their overall understanding of the key concepts using school iPads. Which will indicate any new questions they may have, and express any parts of the water cycle they don't understand. This approach provides a safe space for children to ask questions without feeling embarrassed and also helps the teacher to understand the percentage of students who have grasped the ideas being taught by providing the results in the form of a bar chart.
Quizlet is an excellent online resource to use in the classroom, whether on iPads or interactive boards. On this platform, you can find many educational materials, including a flip flashcard that defines the Water Cycle, which is a fun way to review the topic of rain.
Additionally, there are alternative options, such as matching definitions with vocabulary words, that can help reinforce learning.
https://create.kahoot.it/details/4885a24c-23fb-4444-a8ab-833c1e8f07eb
Kahoot is an excellent tool to summarize the understanding of the class topic of the water cycle in this case. It provides a chart that shows how many students answered correctly, which helps you determine if you need to review the topic further.
The platform is anonymous, and students can use emojis or fake names.
Kahoot is interactive, fun, and motivates students to compete for the top spot. Finally, it is a great way to revise and end the lesson nicely.