Cohort 21 | bnichols | Activity https://cohort21.com/members/bnichols/activity/ Activity feed for bnichols. Wed, 03 Jun 2026 23:13:21 -0400 https://buddypress.org/?v= en-CA 30 hourly 2 75da92e5e40a5c56ef16557e0083829a bnichols wrote a new post on the site Beth Nichols http://cohort21.com/bethnichols/?p=71 Mon, 14 Nov 2016 19:23:44 -0500 Well, I’ve marked and returned Test #2 and they went pretty much the same as the first round. With reports and long weekends, we didn’t get time to go through the rubric, which means it will have to wait until […]

]]> e6ea52a09a201af08b68cff11835166a bnichols posted a new activity comment http://cohort21.com/bethnichols/2016/10/30/revised-and-revising-assessment-strategy/#comment-32 Mon, 14 Nov 2016 18:50:24 -0500 Hi Leslie!

I’ve really struggled with getting students to read and reflect on feedback too. I’ve tried reflections in the past (although never without giving grades, that’s a great idea!), but I came across that same problem that the strongest students had the least to reflect upon while those who were already struggling, had another big task on…Read more

In reply to - bnichols wrote a new post on the site Beth Nichols Not only have we chosen to completely restructure our lessons and where are questions are sourced from, we’ve also gone a new route in summative assessment. We […] ]]> ff237cc2adcee4fc78c61b8af5036a46 bnichols posted a new activity comment http://cohort21.com/bethnichols/2016/10/30/revised-and-revising-assessment-strategy/#comment-31 Mon, 14 Nov 2016 18:44:12 -0500 Hi Mackenzie! We are lucky this year to have a group of boys who mostly came in with a growth mindset. I had anticipated more resistance to asking them to present in front of the class, but most of them are eager to get up there and open to feedback!

I really like the phrase – “the power of YET”! Thanks!

In reply to - bnichols wrote a new post on the site Beth Nichols Not only have we chosen to completely restructure our lessons and where are questions are sourced from, we’ve also gone a new route in summative assessment. We […] ]]> d56ceb7b3f95a4372fe6cf28cdb22b44 bnichols posted a new activity comment http://cohort21.com/bethnichols/2016/10/30/revised-and-revising-assessment-strategy/#comment-29 Fri, 04 Nov 2016 18:20:30 -0400 Thanks so much Garth! I would guess that time is on almost every teacher’s top 3 constraints. What I’m finding is that since the feedback is so valuable to them, and I can ask them more challenging questions, and I can hold them to highest standard for notation and communication, I’m willing to take the time it costs me to go through the tests…Read more

In reply to - bnichols wrote a new post on the site Beth Nichols Not only have we chosen to completely restructure our lessons and where are questions are sourced from, we’ve also gone a new route in summative assessment. We […] ]]> bb8ad3dfa329f9ccd334a4aefcffd1a4 bnichols wrote a new post on the site Beth Nichols http://cohort21.com/bethnichols/?p=58 Sun, 30 Oct 2016 22:41:28 -0400 Not only have we chosen to completely restructure our lessons and where are questions are sourced from, we’ve also gone a new route in summative assessment. We still have lots of formative assessment that looks […]

]]> 8ba9578a415a9348812dadc27b02f5b0 bnichols posted a new activity comment http://cohort21.com/bethnichols/2016/10/23/beginnings-of-problem-based-learning/#comment-26 Fri, 28 Oct 2016 13:02:56 -0400 Thanks Justin! I’ve really been enjoying teaching PBL!

So far, I don’t think students have found anything difficult about the method that they wouldn’t find difficult in a traditional math classroom. Some of the boys have trouble communicating their ideas in a way that others can understand, but I’ve always found that to be true at every grade…Read more

In reply to - bnichols wrote a new post on the site Beth Nichols I’m planning to use this space to talk about what it’s like to teach Grade 9 math using problem-based learning (PBL) at my school. I hope to be honest about my […] ]]> c8298b783323f34b87b8a584ed8c1c4a bnichols posted a new activity comment http://cohort21.com/bethnichols/2016/10/23/beginnings-of-problem-based-learning/#comment-25 Fri, 28 Oct 2016 12:50:33 -0400 Hi Ruth! I’m actually not a part of C21 this year, I’m just continuing to use my blog from a couple of years ago. I’m happy to chat more about our routine, etc. and I’ll certainly be posting more this week about assessment. I’d also be interested to hear what you’ve done with your Grade 11’s because I’ve always found MCR to be a challenging course to teach

In reply to - bnichols wrote a new post on the site Beth Nichols I’m planning to use this space to talk about what it’s like to teach Grade 9 math using problem-based learning (PBL) at my school. I hope to be honest about my […] ]]> 7fb03542f80a952e8d2d5f5ae97ae328 bnichols wrote a new post on the site Beth Nichols http://cohort21.com/bethnichols/?p=48 Sun, 23 Oct 2016 13:09:08 -0400 I’m planning to use this space to talk about what it’s like to teach Grade 9 math using problem-based learning (PBL) at my school. I hope to be honest about my challenges as well as celebrate the successes of t […]

]]> f9b40bafe53861bbc1d99f725ac50580 bnichols wrote a new post on the site Beth Nichols http://cohort21.com/bethnichols/?p=40 Thu, 16 Apr 2015 12:44:43 -0400 ThumbnailMy action plan is here, in the form of a Google Slide Presentation.

 

In writing up my presentation for my action plan for next week, I realized that I had much more to say than I could fit into my slides. I […]

]]> 853a9f6377b9c4bb68db88181174337b bnichols posted a new activity comment http://cohort21.com/ckirsh/2015/01/03/the-three-rules-of-reflection/#comment-1225 Thu, 15 Jan 2015 14:50:40 -0500 I love the three part breakdown of goals for meaningful reflection, I will absolutely be keeping this in mind as I begin the action part of my action plan tomorrow!

From the section on metacognition in the article, I love the way she phrased the need for “explicit practices to nudge [students] toward quality reflection”. I think this is…Read more

In reply to - Celeste Kirsh wrote a new post on the site [We Are] Teaching Tomorrow I was “himming and hawwing” (spelling suggestions welcome on that one) on how my exploration of portfolios as a means of teaching growth […] ]]> 7a2b512b546ffe9a8df291ea5bc804fc bnichols wrote a new post on the site Beth Nichols http://cohort21.com/bethnichols/?p=37 Thu, 15 Jan 2015 13:40:47 -0500 ThumbnailI began this whole process last year with a problem: my Grade 9 math students made the same mistakes over and over again, and my feedback wasn’t helping.

So I then I did some research, found a reflection […]

]]> 400f6e259e892ff5558dd79d3d04144e bnichols posted a new activity comment http://cohort21.com/andrewruston/2015/01/12/creating-in-math-class/#comment-19 Thu, 15 Jan 2015 13:29:24 -0500 I love that students are not just playing around with the coding, but actually creating a product, a tool in fact, that they can see is useful to them.

What a great way to challenge students as well as help them develop additional 21st century skills!

In reply to - Andrew Ruston wrote a new post on the site Andrew Ruston   When I began Cohort 21 I knew I wanted to focus on how I could integrate computer science and coding into my Math classroom. I wrote about the p […] ]]> 85ccb8da7be2f953f2cb3a391f15ca75 bnichols posted a new activity comment http://cohort21.com/bethnichols/2014/12/07/fighting-inertia-an-action-plan-requires-action/#comment-13 Wed, 14 Jan 2015 21:52:39 -0500 Thanks for the article link! I think I’ll use this in forming my next blog post.

I miss Pi Week too! And this year, Pi Day is a big one. 3-14-15 (March 14, 2015) although technically it would round to 3.1416, but who’s counting? 😉

In reply to - bnichols wrote a new post on the site Beth Nichols For me, firsts are difficult. The first day of a new school year always makes me nervous. Meeting someone new for the first time can be intimidating. Writing my […] ]]> 9b1287503a90ee257a5b6728a2deac0b bnichols posted a new activity comment http://cohort21.com/bethnichols/2014/12/07/fighting-inertia-an-action-plan-requires-action/#comment-12 Sun, 11 Jan 2015 23:20:10 -0500 Thanks for the article link! I think I’ll use this in forming my next blog post.

I miss Pi Week too! And this year, Pi Day is a big one. 3-14-15 (March 14, 2015) although technically it would round to 3.1416, but who’s counting? 😉

In reply to - bnichols wrote a new post on the site Beth Nichols For me, firsts are difficult. The first day of a new school year always makes me nervous. Meeting someone new for the first time can be intimidating. Writing my […] ]]> ecd162d915660c352ba05d932885228a bnichols posted a new activity comment http://cohort21.com/bethnichols/2014/12/07/fighting-inertia-an-action-plan-requires-action/#comment-11 Sun, 11 Jan 2015 23:11:24 -0500 Excellent to hear another vote for the value of Socrative! It’s quickly moving up my list of methods to try.

I’ve used Kahoot a couple of times and really love it for assessment for learning. The only problem I’ve had so far is that once students get down on the points board, they tend to lose their engagement and it really disadvantages those…Read more

In reply to - bnichols wrote a new post on the site Beth Nichols For me, firsts are difficult. The first day of a new school year always makes me nervous. Meeting someone new for the first time can be intimidating. Writing my […] ]]> 912ef4f5568e8fadbe986b0e2e9d2d72 bnichols posted a new activity comment http://cohort21.com/bethnichols/2014/12/07/fighting-inertia-an-action-plan-requires-action/#comment-10 Sun, 11 Jan 2015 23:02:35 -0500 What a great reminder to keep my eye on all types of technology!

Perhaps one way that I could photos would be to take photos of student solutions when they solve problems in different ways and reflect as a class or in groups about how they did it. Students are sometimes uncomfortable when there are multiple correct solutions in math and…Read more

In reply to - bnichols wrote a new post on the site Beth Nichols For me, firsts are difficult. The first day of a new school year always makes me nervous. Meeting someone new for the first time can be intimidating. Writing my […] ]]> b4841284a0fc913275ee0b95696c77fd bnichols posted a new activity comment http://cohort21.com/bethnichols/2014/12/07/fighting-inertia-an-action-plan-requires-action/#comment-9 Sun, 11 Jan 2015 22:59:15 -0500 Thanks for your feedback. I think your idea to revisit the purpose of assessment as learning reminds me how I want students to eventually be able to do this independently.

It also ties in well with Ryan’s comment that digitizing the reflections would be important. Although I’ve been focused on the action of reflection, the management of their…Read more

In reply to - bnichols wrote a new post on the site Beth Nichols For me, firsts are difficult. The first day of a new school year always makes me nervous. Meeting someone new for the first time can be intimidating. Writing my […] ]]> cb1eefd321df40db4504f8899c7f444d bnichols posted a new activity comment http://cohort21.com/bethnichols/2014/12/07/fighting-inertia-an-action-plan-requires-action/#comment-8 Sun, 11 Jan 2015 22:53:45 -0500 I agree with you that the tech tool I choose should be an early decision as well as an important one in shaping what comes next.

Thank you for your kind words and the advice!

In reply to - bnichols wrote a new post on the site Beth Nichols For me, firsts are difficult. The first day of a new school year always makes me nervous. Meeting someone new for the first time can be intimidating. Writing my […] ]]> 7d9e0097e7e0f556340b7f912cf9a2c3 bnichols posted a new activity comment http://cohort21.com/bethnichols/2014/12/07/fighting-inertia-an-action-plan-requires-action/#comment-7 Sun, 11 Jan 2015 22:52:30 -0500 Wow, those are some excellent suggestions! I had never thought about keeping track of the reflections and allowing them to look for trends.

You also make a great point about the importance of digitizing the reflections in order to ensure that students don’t lose them. They could easily be scanned and stored somewhere as PDF’s. This would make…Read more

In reply to - bnichols wrote a new post on the site Beth Nichols For me, firsts are difficult. The first day of a new school year always makes me nervous. Meeting someone new for the first time can be intimidating. Writing my […] ]]> ead294e97a65dfb60fac132056ccf68c bnichols wrote a new post on the site Beth Nichols http://cohort21.com/bethnichols/?p=34 Sun, 07 Dec 2014 18:37:06 -0500 ThumbnailFor me, firsts are difficult. The first day of a new school year always makes me nervous. Meeting someone new for the first time can be intimidating. Writing my first blog post about my work with Cohort 21 has […]

]]> 0da66050ab8363c8d516053ab604ada7 bnichols changed their profile picture https://cohort21.com/activity-streams/p/2059/ Tue, 02 Dec 2014 16:41:01 -0500 0 f832ad70b0ce2fce2357f08e2b8f47bf bnichols's profile was updated https://cohort21.com/activity-streams/p/2058/ Tue, 02 Dec 2014 16:39:02 -0500 0