#flipclass Flash Blog: The Planning Process

What a great #flipclass topic!

I think I blogged about my planning process for my flipped classroom early on, but I was still so fresh, and I've come a long way since then. I don't know that my planning takes any less time than it did early on, but I am more efficient.

When planning a flipped lesson, I first look at the topic/standard I want to cover on a particular day.

I have made guided notes in SMART for several years, now, so I go to previous notes I have made on the standard.

I modify these already-made notes to make them video-friendly. I add the "I can" stem (that students write in while they watch the video) and the "Questions?" at the end of the notes.

I try to do a week's worth of videos at a time, so I prepare and export several sets of notes at once.

The next part of the planning process is recording videos. That's usually my Thursday afternoon activity. I record 2-4 videos, depending on what the plan is for the next week.

Now the hard part. With direct instruction moved to videos, how do I fill class time?

I begin searching. I know there are those who are not huge fans, but I find the majority of my class activities on Teachers Pay Teachers. Some are free, some I pay for. I am thankful there are teachers who have or make time to create activities I do not have time for. And that there are individuals out there much more creative than I.

I go for scavenger hunts, discoveries, games (review days are almost some sort of game, now), coloring pages.

Sometimes class activity is an in-depth, written response lesson, using a Laying the Foundation lesson or something similar.

For skill-based topics, I like using pages from my "Punchline Algebra" binders, as they provide straightforward practice and are self-checking.

I *love* that I can do so many self-checking activities in my flipped classroom; my students always know if they are on the right track.

And, yes, some days are out of the book. Not often, but if I am ready to take a grade on a topic, I will sometimes use a problem set out of the book.

I try to find 3 things for each lesson, a la Strategic Teaching - Before, During, and After activities. I am not always successful at completing 3 activities, but that's always the goal.

My biggest challenge with planning is timing of activities. From my reading before jumping into a flipped classroom, I knew to expect this. And it is something, even nearing the end of the school year, I struggle with occasionally.

I don't often worry if a planned activity takes too long or doesn't get finished. If students got a good 30-40 minutes practice/application on a topic, I am happy.

I struggle most when the planned activities are too short and I have more extra time than I want/need. I need to get better at having meaningful fill-in-the-extra-time activities.

I probably enjoy planning now more than I ever have, because I am getting to pick out more interesting, fun, engaging activities than I ever did when each day was me standing at the board talking for 30-40 minutes.

#flipclass Flash Blog: Deciding What to Teach

There is so. much. to. cover.

Of course, I start with the state standards. In Alabama, Algebra 1 has all of the Algebra 1 standards and half of the 8th Grade standards (Advanced 7th Grade gets the other half of the 8th Grade standards).

That's a lot of standards.

And then there are the ACT standards for the End-of-Course test. They're similar to the state standards for Algebra 1, of course, but not exactly the same.

Standards need to be covered, and depth needs to happen.

How do I decide what to focus on?

I started my teaching career at the high school level, and we have great vertical relationships with the current high school math teachers, so I have a good idea about what standards I need to ensure my students are comfortable with and which standards are most needed to provide a proper foundation for my students when they reach their high school math courses. Those standards get more time.

The EOC standards are a little more focused than the state standards. Since the EOC standards are tested (currently; I heard that test might not be given after this year), I make sure I cover those.

I also focus on standards that build students' number sense and understanding of the most important mathematical foundations (the 8th grade standards I am responsible for often fall in this category).

Flipping my classroom has allowed me to go more in depth with the standards I teach. For one, it has slowed me down. If it can't be covered in a 15 minute video, it is too much for one lesson (and was probably too much for a 50 minute class period in my traditional classroom). I am able to answer students' questions about material as they are working with it; questions I might not have been around to hear if they were doing "normal" homework.

Since I have a much better feel for who is (or isn't) understanding what in the flipped classroom, I can no longer plow through with large numbers of lost students. I know when I need to reteach or even just clarify, and I now have time - and make time - to do that.

This year I am the happiest I have ever been with the depth I have been able to achieve with my students. I am more confident than ever in their understanding of the first of our "big three" concepts - linear equations. I have taken longer than usual to get it all covered, but I am not regretting the time I've spent.

I just hope I'm not in a panic when it comes time for the End-of-Course test, and I haven't covered everything....