Why teaching with Tinkering, Team Work and Critical Thinking is so Important

For me as a teacher and a learner, the three facets of learning are play, talk, and apply. I have Dyslexia and growing up I was never diagnosed. I was simply told by the teachers in my Catholic school, "You are being lazy." I was never lazy as a student. In fact every A or B I received was accomplished with twice as much dedication and work as any other student in my class. I had to study for hours to be able to pass a test. I comprehended the information, I was just never taught how to process it or make it my own. I was never given an option of how to learn I was put in a desk in a row, told not to ask to many questions, and to stay in my seat.

I was about twelve when I realized teaching was my calling. I never wanted any other student to be bullied, I had a speech impediment, I was teased by my teachers for not keeping up in class, I was isolated from my peers because of my Dyslexia and shyness. I also knew that there needed to be teachers out there who understood how I thought and how I learned. I wanted to create a classroom where every student had a voice but used it as well. I wanted to bring my learning style and all learning styles into the classroom. Most importantly, I wanted to share the learning experience and learning design with my students.

What is play? Tinkering is just play. Getting some materials together and just designing and creating something you enjoy and connect with. Why not bring this simple skill, everyone has by the way, into the classroom. A makerspace full of recyclables, tools, art supplies, broken machines parts, electronics, etc. It does not need to be elaborate and technology based. Mine is being created from scratch by me with very little money. But, I will have students fill it in too with what they love to use.

My makerspace is not just for play but for constructive, purposeful play. Tinkering to make connections in the science units. My favorites from last year were when students were asked to "simply demonstrate your understanding of this concept" The ones where "make it move and demonstrate the structure and function of this human body organ or system." were used. Then students were asked to write 2 sentence reflections of how your model demonstrated the task or concept. Reflection is key. Students had a choice, a voice, and then made connections.

As a student and a teacher I make that first A ha! moment when I talk to a colleague or partner. I heard the information, but not until I collaborated and shared ideas did it sink in or did the new information connect with my prior knowledge. Team work is so important whether in PBL's or simple think-pair-share tasks. Often the information does not fully compute until it is said to you by a fellow student who struggled with it as well. Collaboration build camaraderie.

Many schools and teachers shy away from PBL's (problem or project based learning) because they feel students can not work well together. But they can. A great PBL needs to be organized and explained to students in a clear and specific manner. A complete and thorough rubric needs to be given. 90% of the work needs to be done in class with teacher supervision. I say 90% because there are always those students who go up and beyond and will do some art work or final touches at home.

My school requires one PBL per semester. My favorite is the Children's Cell Book. Students are given a rubric and clear instructions on what to include and that the book is a narrative not a dictionary or an expository paper. They have to illustrate it by hand as well. We share these books with the class and the students vote and the top 2 from each class. The winning books are taken to our elementary school-read aloud to 2nd and 3rd grade students-and donated to their class libraries. It is a fantastic learning experience for the students.

Applying knowledge is probably the hardest task for students. Taking new information and making those bigger connections and fitting it into the framework of their learning experiences is a step often missed. This is also a challenge for teachers to incorporate into the classroom. It takes time in class to allow for these A ha! moments or light-bulb moments. It takes longer to make them stick. But giving students access to a makerspace helps with this allowing it to flow easier into lessons.

A makerspace is a place where students can visually create a relevant and meaningful model, a Socratic seminar is where students can discuss and share ideas, and well-designed extensions like Genius Hour, is where the knowledge is truly applied to the real world. Together these make true learning and true growth for students and teachers as well. Together they take tinkering, teamwork, and critical thinking to an elevated level.

As a Dyslexic learner, I struggled with making new information stick. Without relevance and passion most things just fell to the wayside. But when I was inspired because my teacher was passionate and excited to teach me something, well...I wanted to learn it too. When a teacher let me speak and have a say in how I learned it gave me the confidence to keep going when I was struggling. The best moments for me were when I was given a choice on how to demonstrate my knowledge, because I could verbally or visually explain concepts much better then I could take a written exam.

For me play, talk, and apply are still concepts I use daily. I have sketched out my classroom, researched new styles of desks and classroom layouts. I have even tinkered with design software. I have talked things through with my colleagues, administrators, my husband, and my invaluable online PLN. Finally, I have seen and heard about so many great new ideas being launched by teachers all over the country and beyond. That has truly inspired me to create a student-centered seating arrangement.

Finally, my makerspace is full of tinkering, team work, relevance and critical thinking all in one place. Flexible seating and Genius Hour, a Sharing Board for student comments and concerns, are other ways to bring my classroom into the student-centered generation. The list is long but my goal is to utilize what works. To allow students to help me decide what works best for them because isn't that what a classroom is for, for students to learn, not for teachers to teach.