For your mini lessons, I want you to employ the classic LEARNING CYCLE used in science, but also applicable in language arts.
The learning cycle (LC) consists of 6 E's:
1) Engage
2) Explore
3) Explain
4) Expand
5) Evaluate
6) E-Search
I have emailed you all my ppt about the mini lesson on WHO vs. WHOM, as well as the quiz we have taken today in class (for those who have missed today's class: you should take the quiz at home, and read through the material).
After our mini lesson on WHO vs. WHOM, please click on this LINK and take the corresponding grammar quiz.
HOMEWORK: Write a short comment on this blog what you think about the learning cycle (is it just for science, or does it work to use it in English? Is it beneficial as a teaching strategy? Why, or why not? Have you been taught this way? For education majors: do you/will you teach this way? Etc......
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The Learning Cycle seems like a pretty good learning tool for any teacher, no matter the subject. It's just a great way to continually give kids new information and keep them asking questions, gaining further knowledge and reincorporating it with what they've already learned.
ReplyDeleteThe only potential problem I can see with this method is just that: it is a method. There are a lot of teaching methods out there that sound great, but when used they fall flat. I'd have to see the method in practice before I make any final judgement on it. As an education major, however, I can say that I would try it out in the classroom when given the opportunity.
The Learning Cycle is a great way to present any type of information. As a teacher, or as someone providing information that desires to present an effective presentation, the learning cylce needs to be used. Information has to first be presented ('Engaged') so that it perks the interest of the individuals it is directed towards. Then 'Explored' allowing the hands-on learners to grasp the concept. Once these first two methods have been accomplished, explaination of the topic is like a reveiw. Hence, allowing for expansion and positive evaluations.
ReplyDeleteAs an education major, I will definitely be using this, in some form, in my classrooms. I agree with the Learning Cycle because it doesn't block creative teaching methods. Instead it is more like a foundation to build from.
The Learning Cycle does seem to be more appropriate for science than for language arts, although most of the elements can be fitted to any subject. The cycle reminds me of the Stripling Model of Inquiry that includes connect, wonder, investigate, construct, express and reflect. Many of those categories are interchangeable (engage-connect,investigate-explore, express-explain).
ReplyDeleteFor a teacher, engagement (connect in Stripling) is the entry point for any lesson. After that point, both Stripling and the Learning Cycle shift the responsibility to the student. Some materials (grammar rules, tables of elements) are finite and need to be committed to memory. When it comes to those skills where students are taught how to learn, the Learning Cycle's relevance increases. For example, literary analysis would benefit greatly from exploration, expansion, explanation, evaluation and even E-searching.
Is the Learning Cycle an all-purpose model? There are probably lessons which would be an awkward fit if you tried to incorporate all of these elements. Still, the Learning Cycle is a useful model which should be part of every teacher's tool box.
I believe that the learning cycle can be used by any teacher of any subject. The steps in the cycle are very basic steps that everyone can follow. When writing a paper for English we must engage in the topic, explore the topic, explain the topic, expand on the topic in greater detail, evaluate our work, and e-search the topic to make our paper even better. I think that this can help us produce the best paper that we are capable of writing. Howevever, I also think that there could be a better learning cycle for the english language. This cycle seems to be more for scientific experiements.
ReplyDeleteI am not an Education major. However, I believe that this tool is a useful device for any community. The learning cycle provides an obvious structure for the scientific community, but the cycle is so generic that it can and should be used in many other fields. The study of the English language is no exception to the advantages of the learning cycle.
ReplyDeleteI have seen this method of teaching in several classes. I believe it works, because the learning cycle actively engages the student through the entire learning process. By keeping the student engaged, the information being taught becomes easier to comprehend.
I am both a Psychology and English major. After reading about the Learning Cycle, I find that it is a useful way to introduce a new topic to students as well as a good way for the teachers to know how much and how well the student understands the new material. This is a beneficial tool because it enables students to see how much they know before the material is presented and what they want to know; in that case, when the material is given the student will have a better idea of where they stand on the topic.
ReplyDeleteI have used this learning method in classes and it has helped because it lets me ask myself things I would like to know about the topic and enables me to test myself in what I know (or don’t know). Since I am a Psychology major, I believe that Piaget's method is one in which works well because it is giving the learner the opportunity to think for themselves how something is done and not just given the answer right away. The entire Learning Model once put all together, is an excellent tool in which the person learning something new feels accomplished and like they have truly learned and understood something.
The learning cycle can definitely be used for teaching English, along with other subjects as well. I am currently an English Education major, and I could see myself using this teaching method in the future. The first step of the learning cycle, engaging, is vital to every single subject in school. Teachers want their students to be somewhat interested in what they are teaching. The other steps of the learning cycle could be extremely useful tools for the writing process. The exploring and explaining stage could consist of peer-reviewing, the extending stage could consist of re-writing and fixing past errors, and the evaluating stage could show how much a student has improved with their writing skills.
ReplyDeleteThe learning cycle seems to have its advantages but it may not always work in most classes. I am an English Education major and I probably won't use the learning cycle, not because its not useful but it doesn't work for all students. It makes it hard for the student to understand the full lesson when certain points are not made to show the whole learning cycle. I prefer to teach toward a more alternative style of learning.
ReplyDeleteI feel that the learning cycle is a very good method and can be used for more than just teaching. The learning method can be used for writing essays as well as planning presentations of all sorts. I believe that the learning cycle can be used to teach any subject, not just science. The steps are very basic which allows teachers to use the method when teaching a lesson from any subject. I believe it is beneficial in many ways, it allows the audience/studens to remain focused on what the presentor or teacher is explaining. By using the three E's one is almost guarenteed to remember what he or she is being taught because of the various methods being used. Although I am not an education major I feel that I could use the learning cycle in other ways, and plan to do so.
ReplyDeleteSuprisingly, I never knew about the learning cycle but I think that it is a great method to teach with. It could be also applied to other areas like writing papers or giving speeches which I think is great. In a sense, it's like a rubric or guide to go by which is good to adequately produce a good lesson, paper, or speech all the time.
ReplyDeleteI think that the Learning Cycle is a god method and can be used in the classroom for any subject like Math, English, science, etc. It can be a beneficial teaching strategy, because its a simple and easy guideline to teaching new concepts, and it will allow students and teachers to remain focused on the task at hand. When looking at the Learning cycle it basically reminds me of all of all of my classes now, I think all teachers in some way model this form, because in class there are the lectures, the taking notes, homework, quizzes, projects, and then the big final test to test your knowledge of the material. By using the Learning cycle it will be easier for students to follow along with the teacher, because they will always know which one of the E's they are on, and are able to grasp why they are being taught certain material in class.
ReplyDeleteI am not an education major but I believe that this method would work well in the classroom. With the Learning Cycle system it allows for the teacher to teach their students in one constant way while allowing for changes to different personalities to be engaged in different ways. Although it is just a method it all depends on the teacher and how they choose to execute it.
ReplyDeleteAs an education major, I believe there are many different methods to use when teaching a classroom. This method may work on a certain group of students such as auditory learners where they can sit in a classroom and listen and think critically. A group of visual and kinesthetic learners may not learn as well by the learning cycle and may need to skip a few steps and focus more on explaining, engaging and exploring.
ReplyDeleteThe learning cycle is a very good tool to use for anytype of subject. Even though Im not an education major, I feel that this would be a great and useful method to teach a classroom . The learning cycle would be great for little children also. The learning cycle is great for people who are learners by sight and learners by doing because the student can see the cycle chart (sight) and they can also use the chart to do daily learnings (action).
ReplyDelete