Mind, Brain, & Education at Far Hills

Inspired Students, Self-Aware Learners, & Resilient Innovators at Far Hills Country Day School MIND,

BRAIN, & EDUCATION: The Science of Learning

IN THIS ISSUE

Thinking About One’s Own Thinking

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The Science of Learning

The Art of Forgetting

4

9

By Jennifer Phillips and Peter McBride

History Repeats Itself

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By Christina Sopko

Empathy...the Underutilized Tool

By Kathy Iuliano and Peter McBride

How Do You Get to Carnegie Hall?

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By Adele Marky

By Gemma Keremedjiev

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By Emily Seelaus and Natalie Young

Using the Science of Learning for Learning Science

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By Julie Blanco, Cathy Cirrotti,

Jennifer Wagar, and Mary Wagner

Julie Blanco Science Teacher

Cathy Cirrotti Science Teacher

Kathy Iuliano Math Teacher

Gemma Keremedjiev Learning Support Teacher

Adele Marky M.A.L.L. Manager

Peter McBride Grade 4 Teacher and MBE Coordinator

Jennifer Phillips Former Director of Teaching and Learning

Emily Seelaus English Teacher/House Director

Christina Sopko Grade 5 Teacher and DEI Coordinator

Jennifer Wagar Math and Science Teacher

Mary Wagner Science Teacher

Natalie Young English Teacher

A MESSAGE FROM PETER MCBRIDE

Early on in my teaching career, student teaching to be precise, an administrator once said to me, “As teachers, we are trying to get better everyday and the day that we stop trying to get better is the day that we should stop.” As a fresh faced teacher, it really resonated and seemed pretty obvious. However, I’ll admit, I didn’t fully appreciate what she meant until I became a teacher with my own class and my own set of challenges.

Everyday, as teachers, we are always trying to get better. We look to EdTech to see how we can use technology to engage with every student. We attend professional development sessions hoping to find a strategy that we can bring into our classrooms the very next day. At times it can be frustrating and finding ways to connect or engage with that one student or one class can often become elusive.

Over the last few years, the faculty at Far Hills has taken a deep dive into the world of Mind, Brain, and Education (MBE) which brings together the work of cognitive psychologists, neuroscientists, and educational leaders. As a team, we have delved into retrieval grids to support student memory, we have incorporated choice into final assessments to help with intrinsic motivation, and used formative assessment to enhance learning...and these are just a few examples. Everyday our teachers are striving to get the best out of their students and are not only using their deep and extensive knowledge that they built throughout their career, but now they are also relying on research from the MBE world to help make the experience better for each and every student. In this publication you will get a flavor of how our teachers are using the latest research to inform their daily practice. We have intentionally included a section in each article to hear about student experience. Was it difficult in the beginning or was this technique the missing part? Did you have to adjust your plan initially, or was it later that you noticed a nuance?

Having spent time reading, listening, and talking to experts from the field of MBE, it is my belief that we, as educators, possess a unique ability to impact those around us. A dear friend of Far Hills, Glenn Whitman likes to use the phrase “teachers as brainchangers.” Each and every day, every single student will bring his or her brain to the classroom.

By having a faculty that is informed and armed with information around memory, emotion, stress, etc. they can then inform their own practice and make the difference for every student.

We are so incredibly excited to be able to share this publication with you! There are so many people to thank and not nearly enough time or characters in which to do so. But I would be remiss if I did not mention a few! First and foremost, to our friends at the Center for Transformative Teaching and Learning. Our journey started in Potomac, Maryland and it is thanks to your friendship, guidance, and support that we can put something like this together. Secondly, to the leadership team at Far Hills. Your commitment to professional development is what defines us as a school and a community. Not to mention, the Marketing and Communications department at Far Hills. You have spent many hours pouring over our work, listening to our stories of student success, and finding the right way to share it with the world. And finally to the teachers! Not just the team that has contributed to this publication but to every teacher who strives to get better each and every day. Your commitment to your students is the foundation of their success. We hope that you enjoy reading some of the articles included in this publication!

—Peter McBride, Grade 4 Teacher and MBE Coordinator Read more about MBE at Far Hills.

THE SCIENCE OF LEARNING and Why it Matters We live in an era where innovation occurs at an unparalleled rate. Many aspects of today’s world would be unrecognizable and unfathomable to those living just twenty years ago. As we look around, we see change in the fields of architecture, technology, and communication, to name a few. But what about our classrooms? How have our school environments transformed?

On the surface, they appear to have changed quite a bit. We have more technology, better resources, and more learning support for students. However, if we look a little deeper at the actual teaching going on in classrooms, how can we measure a clear and compelling difference from how students learned decades ago? At Far Hills, a Preschool–Grade 8 private school in New Jersey, our faculty is on a mission to find out.

CUTTING-EDGE RESEARCH Over the last ten years, there has been a quiet revolution happening in education. A concerted effort to bring together researchers in the fields of neuroscience, cognitive psychology, and educational theory, commonly known as Mind, Brain, and Education (MBE), has transformed educators’ best practices for teaching and learning. The research in the field of MBE isn’t new, but the application of this research into practice is in its infancy. One of the leading organizations in MBE is the Center for Transformative Teaching and Learning (CTTL). Far Hills has partnered with the CTTL to bring the most research-informed strategies into the classroom, and to benefit our students.Over the last two summers, twenty-one Far Hills teachers have had the opportunity to study at the CTTL’s Summer Academy 4 | fhcds.org

and have been amazed by what they discovered.

For example, did you know that researchers have learned that the brain can continuously change and adapt according to its experiences? The concept is called Neuroplasticity, and it indicates that the brain has incredible elasticity, continuously rewiring itself in response to experiences. So, the saying “you learn something new every day” is not too far fetched.

Let’s pause for a moment.

THIS IS MONUMENTAL! Contrary to the long-held and widely touted myth that the brain finishes growing by the time children reach puberty, current research has found that brain maturation continues to change well into later life! Let’s combine this with another myth that says we only use 10% of our brain. Well, we know this also be false since the brain is continually making new neural connections and pruning unused ones. If we combine this fact with Neuroplasticity, it is easy to see that in every moment of a student’s life, his or her brain is constantly changing.

Teachers truly are brain changers.

But that isn’t all. Have you ever considered the role of forgetting in learning as a strength? Research d ocuments that the best way to strengthen memory is by allowing the brain to forget the information and then begin a process of “spaced retrieval” to remember the information and store it for long-term use.

By applying current MBE research to classroom practice, Far Hills faculty understands how to help our students learn faster, deeper, and longer. From the intentional feedback that we offer to how we ask students to reflect on their understanding, MBE research provides a gateway to better learning outcomes for every student.

TIME FOR CHANGE Brain research has continued to evolve and develop over the years, but not all learning institutions haven’t necessarily kept pace with new findings. In what other fields would this happen? Imagine going to visit with a medical specialist, such as a cardiologist. You would expect this doctor to have current, in-depth knowledge of the heart, as this is the major organ that they work with every single day. What if their knowledge of the heart was from reading a few books and from trial and error? What if they said, “I’m not entirely sure of what I’m doing, but I promise to work hard and as passionately as any doctor you know!”

Think about how you would react. Most likely, you would reconsider any medical advice this doctor gave you. Most likely, you would move heaven and earth to get out of that office as quickly as possible.

The same is true for teachers and the brain. Every day, every student brings his or her brain to class. So, of course, teachers should understand current research about how their brain best learns and works!

Mind, Brain, and Education concepts such a metacognition, and feedback help students understand and express themselves more clearly.

Thanks to the work of universities, researchers, and institutions such as CTTL, we can dispel the myths about the brain (dubbed neuromyths) that have slowly crept into thinking over the years.

For example, 30 years ago, researchers thought that the brain stopped developing after a certain period of time, meaning that your knowledge and brain capacity was fixed and could not be substantially changed. We now know that this information is categorically wrong and, in fact, when believed, is hugely detrimental to our students. The time for change is upon us, and we are equipping our Far Hills teachers with the latest MBE research to ensure that every one of our students fulfill their learning potential.

WHY DOES IT MATTER? We believe that the science of learning isn’t something that should be chatted about informally or skimmed over during a one-day professional development workshop. Rather, the science of learning needs to be at the forefront of education.

From the newest teachers to the most

experienced veteran, every teacher needs to know how the brain works and how to help our students harness it to learn and grow.

While it’s all well and good to talk about the research, the question quickly becomes, “How do we take the concepts and make them count for our students?”

Through our studies, we know that there are clear applications of brain research that can be made in every grade, every classroom, and, most importantly, for EVERY student.

We can take the concept of Neuroplasticity and use it to inform our practices around building empathy. By exposing students to more situations that demand empathy skills, we can support the elasticity of the brain to be able to develop the appropriate response.

We can use our knowledge of memory and apply it to how we implement our math curriculums. Have you ever sat through a test and thought, “I remember learning this concept, but I

have no idea how to answer the question?” MBE research gives us the answer!

We can help students discern how and what they know and don’t know. Sounds confusing! This concept is called metacognition, and by using it, we can better support students to understand their strengths and areas that they need to hone.

We can provide better feedback to students so that they can use it to solve the next problem or express themselves more clearly.

STUDENT VOICES The CTTL, located on the campus of St. Andrew’s Episcopal School in Potomac, Maryland, has a unique insight into how the science of learning translates into classroom practice. Why? Because the students they work with benefit from this research. Because the teachers they inform are the teachers who can make a difference in the classroom that same MBE at Far Hills | 5

LEARN BETTER, DEEPER, LONGER. day. A central pillar in the CTTL’s work is putting students front and center. Last winter, our entire faculty had the honor of working with the Director of the CTTL, Glenn Whitman, when he visited our day school in Somerset County, NJ. During his visit, we heard from four Far Hills students on their experiences as learners. Listening to their stories and how they fit seamlessly with what the research says was truly validating.

her learn, said, “Instead of always having to take a test on the material we were studying, I appreciate being able to show my understanding through group projects or writing pieces.” This experience is supportive of the work done around student engagement and achievement, which indicates that by providing more choice in assessments, teachers engage students in a way that allows them to show their best learning.

Take “Cognitive Load Theory,” for example, the idea that students can hold, on average, 4–5 pieces of information in their active working memory. One Far Hills student commented that a hurdle for him is “having to memorize lots of steps in one question.” He elaborated that he could remember “about five things at a time.” Another student, when asked what her teachers did best to help

Again, every student brings his or her brain to school each and every day. As educators, it is incumbent on us to understand how that organ works best for learning. Teachers must understand that the first step in remembering something is to forget it. Teachers must know that the brain has tremendous elasticity and is constantly rewiring according to its experiences. But teachers must also

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remember that the students in front of them provide a unique insight into what makes them learn best. Giving flexibility to teachers to experiment and fail and then try again ultimately creates long-lasting success.

At the beginning of this article, we noted the “quiet” revolution that is happening in education. Well, it’s quiet no more! In our hallways, classrooms, labs, fields, and stages at Far Hills, we are bringing together our knowledge, expertise, and passion for ensuring that the learning experiences and outcomes of Far Hills Preschool–Grade 8 students are the best they can be. Our students learn better, deeper, and longer.

—Peter McBride and Jennifer Phillips

HISTORY REPEATS ITSELF ITSELF ITSELF ITSELF

ONE OF MY FAVORITE QUESTIONS TO ASK my history

students is, “Have you seen or heard of this happening before?” They typically respond with a resounding, “Yes!” The opportunity to make connections to learned material and share their prior knowledge begins. Showing students how a previously learned concept reveals itself multiple times throughout history is remarkably effective at helping them to retain that concept. It also includes them in the teaching and learning process.

IT’S BEEN A LONG ROAD As a teacher of a variety of subjects over the years, I have observed and implemented multiple teaching strategies.

There are those that resonate with the

students and help promote their learning, and there are those which, unfortunately, crash and burn.

Additionally, there are those strategies that evolve based on the experience of being in the classroom and witnessing first hand what works within a specific teaching style. These strategies are typically based on outstanding results from students and not necessarily part of an educator’s professional development.

They are a rewarding acknowledgment of effective teaching.

One of the strategies that was effective for me was to ask students to retrieve information that they previously learned and connect it to their present learning.

This idea wasn’t a strategy that I had been told to implement. It just made sense for my classes. Occasionally,

I would worry that it would take time away from learning new material, but it seemed like it needed to be done to secure overarching concepts.

Fortunately, it turned out to be a research-based approach to helping students keep information in long-term memory.

IN OVER MY HEAD Far Hills Country Day School has partnered with the Center for Transformative Teaching and Learning (CTTL) over the last two years. Part of this collaboration has seen multiple cohorts of teachers attend their annual Science of Teaching Academy. This professional development experience allows teachers to learn about research in the field of Neuroscience, Cognitive MBE at Far Hills | 7

Psychology, and Education, commonly referred to as Mind, Brain, & Education (MBE). Through this professional development opportunity, teachers are learning powerful strategies to ensure optimal student success and help bridge the achievement gap.

The focus is on using research-based information to guide teaching practices. A fundamental part of this experience is being able to listen to experts in these fields.

end of the year, students grasp the interrelated elements of a culture, leading to a deeper understanding of the role of farming, trade, and an economy. Students become confident using these terms in a myriad of assessment situations with successful results.

During my time at the CTTL, I learned about the overarching concepts of interleaving and the spacing effect. When I first heard the terms “interleaving” and “spacing,” I thought I was in over my head.

This year I made a concentrated effort to incorporate interleaving into my class. As the Ancient Civilization class began a new lesson, I decided to include time for retrieval of information from a previous lesson about how a civilization developed. I explained the interleaving process to students so that they would have an awareness and vested interest in their success. Once the explanation was complete, I told the students we would discuss the development of a civilization.

Interleaving is the intentional process of consistently revisiting learned material throughout new lessons to reinforce retention and to make connections to current learning. For example, rather than learning about one topic and then moving onto another, we integrate the themes with the point being that students will touch the material in regular and short bursts.

The concept of spacing refers to providing opportunities in the lessons and studying time to review previously learned concepts at a reasonable pace, rather than a mass cram of information.

I soon discovered that these were instructional strategies that I had been utilizing all along. Research has shown an increase in student performance when using these strategies. It makes sense, but I wondered if it was realistic to have enough time to go back and reintroduce previous concepts and include them in assessments. The answer is absolutely. This aids long-term memory consolidation and leads to enduring learning, moving between topics that are continually building on each other.

RESEARCH INTO ACTION There are a variety of ways to incorporate interleaving and spacing into teaching practices, no matter the topic. In my Grade 5 Ancient Civilizations class, students learn how humans evolve from nomadic hunter-gatherers to citizens of civilizations. At the beginning of the year, students learn the essential elements that create a civilization. With this understanding, they are then prepared to understand the complexities of specific civilizations they will learn about throughout the year. They can explain the necessity of farming to establish a village; once there is a surplus of food, individuals can select a job they prefer and barter or trade for food, which ultimately leads to job selection and business opportunities. This then leads to trade and a stronger economy, which promotes the expansion of an empire. These concepts and terms repeat themselves in the lessons of each civilization we study. Students start the year with little concept of the complexities of human organizations. By the 8 | fhcds.org

STUDENT VOICE

As a response, the students sat quietly in their seats and stared at me, ready to learn. I had to take a step back. They had no intention of retrieving prior knowledge. They were prepared and willing to learn this information all over again. I couldn’t get over it. They had been successful on the assessments and projects of this previous material. It was incredible that they thought I was going to start all over again. It made me wonder how many times students have sat through learning material they had already been taught at some point. I empathized with them and understood that some necessary strategies were about to be implemented.

I quickly realized how genuinely useful interleaving and spacing were going to be at this point. Asking students to retrieve prior information took some warming up and reminders to spark them thinking about the previous topic. I decided to put them in small groups with the hope that they would help each other to use resources and memory for retrieval. It was a huge success. Each group had a secretary that recorded their information, and once they started remembering what they learned, they were excited and enthusiastic to share. When I asked the students what the benefit of interleaving was, one responded, “It helps to stretch your brain out. Even if you don’t think you know it, you find out you do.” Another student responded, “Some people don’t have a long-lasting memory. They forget things easily, so it could be a reminder.” This was a pivotal moment in student learning and metacognition.

Now the trick was to incorporate and make connections to the new material. It was a relatively smooth process. The students readily applied the concepts of developing a civilization to the new one we were studying. Not only did it bring back discussions on the immediate topic, but also the students made connections to other aspects of the previously studied ancient civilization material. They developed confidence in demonstrating the connections they were making.

According to MBE literature, timing plays a vital role in securing information in long-term memory. Research shows that just at the time when the student begins to forget the information, it is the critical time to interleave it back into the lesson for them to review and lock into long-term memory.

One of the students identified that the interleaving served that purpose for him. He explained that interleaving “is helpful because right when you are starting to forget things, it brings it right back into your mind again.”

spacing their review rather than doing it all at once. According to retrievalpractice.org, “Critically, both approaches involve the same amount of time learning but differ in how that time is scheduled. Simply spacing learning opportunities across multiple days leads to much higher achievement than studying the same amount of information all in one session.”

When students use retrieval to obtain the information that has been spaced over a few study sessions, it goes into their long-term memory.

So my students spent a class reviewing and discussing the information and then presented it briefly the next day. This may have been more time than I planned, but the benefits for and the enthusiasm of the students were exceptional. It was a powerful teaching moment.

Teachers may provide students with an assessment or project date well in advance, but how they get the student to space their preparation is a perpetual challenge. By providing opportunities in class to retrieve information over a spaced period of time, teachers will help their students to develop a useful lifelong skill for putting information in long-term memory. Ultimately, the goal is to have students plan for spaced retrieval on their own. When I asked my students how many of them begin to study a week before an assessment, three out of 17 raised their hands. One of the three students said, “I like how you explain it and give us a week to study, so we have enough time.” She is a planner who already understands the benefits of spacing. Modeling this behavior and using spacing as part of your teaching are the most effective ways to help students ensure success and peace of mind.

IT’S ALL ABOUT TIMING

CONCLUSION

When discussing the strategy of spacing in teaching, it is important to keep in mind that students need ample time to prepare for assessments. When ensuring preparedness, a time crunch and cram session are going to create stress with little retention. Spacing out studying is a critical practice that teachers fundamentally know. It is the students who need an understanding of the benefits of spacing to achieve their best results. As mentioned earlier, spacing in learning refers to making sure there is ample time for students to study and review the material a few times before an assessment or presentation.

Research documents that a student will have more success when

It is a natural process to include interleaving and spacing when teaching a concept. Many teachers may find that they consistently reference previously taught material to latch onto an idea that students already understand. It makes sense to make a connection. Helping students to use the best research-based strategies to learn the material deeply and retain it over time is essential. The repeated successes of interleaving and spacing are motivators to keep these practices at the forefront of teaching.

The Art of Forgetting (and the Science Behind It.)

Imagine this: two colleagues, seemingly separated by division, student needs, and curricular content, but united through the science of learning. One of us is a Grade 8 math teacher and student advisor. The other is a Grade 4 homeroom teacher. So there are many differences in our daily goals as educators and how we approach our students. At Far Hills, we are always looking to improve how we are supporting our students throughout their academic journey. A common interest we share is memory, and, specifically, how we help students learn for and beyond the test. We like to think of memory as a system of folders where information is stored as it’s learned and can be taken out when needed. Right? It’s a beautiful thing. The only problem with this is that memory, from a neurodevelopmental perspective, is highly complex and has many factors that influence it. Take the idea of memory and deconstruct that. Are we talking about long-term memory, active working memory, short-term memory? For the sake of this article, we are going to explore long-term memory and active working memory.

—Christina Sopko

Let’s begin with a common scenario: walking around the supermarket, we often can’t remember the final item on the list.

“I got the eggs, milk, bread, cheese, cereal, and...what was that other thing that I needed?!” Sound familiar? This experience happens because your active working memory has been overly taxed and, as a result, forgotten information. Active working memory is the ability of your brain to hold information with the intention of using it in the immediate short term. Research suggests that working memory is incredibly limited and usually can hold only four to five pieces of information at a time. That’s why, when you are walking around the supermarket, you can only remember the eggs, bread, cheese, and cereal. That sixth item becomes elusive. We live in a digital age where so much in our lives is “smart” and operated by a phone, tablet, or even a watch.

Together with applications, we can recall facts in a mere nanosecond or create a list to help us keep track of what we need for the weekly shopping trip! What we don’t realize, though, is that these devices are supporting the limited nature of our working memory by allowing us to create lists that help us remember what that final item is on your shopping list.

But what about students? How are they coping with the vast amounts of information presented to them in a classroom every day? Well, students are no different, and, in fact, their working memory may face more limitations than that of a fully-developed adult. Our brains are wired to forget things, literally! Thanks to research in this space, we know that students forget information almost as soon as they have learned it. The saying “in one ear and out the other” isn’t too far fetched. So, if students are only able to hold four to five pieces of information at a time, and they forget information almost as soon as they have learned it, how do they remember anything? This is where long-term memory comes into play. Long-term memory is much more powerful, and its ability to hold information is almost limitless. Typically, longterm memory stores valuable information, such as phone numbers, birthdays, and other information that we can recall quite quickly. The downside is that while long-term memory is incredibly powerful, the information it stores needs to be encoded, and that takes time.

THE FORGETTING CURVE Our interest in memory was piqued when we read the research about the “Ebbinghaus Forgetting Curve.” To our surprise and dismay, we learned that information is forgotten almost immediately after it has been introduced. The visual below illustrates this point. Not only did this piece of research blow up nearly everything that we thought we knew (and made us a little depressed), it also gave us an insight into how we can support students.

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A key component to the “forgetting curve” is the idea of spaced retrieval. When the brain is forced to recall information, research shows that this helps students remember information for the long-term. That means that if we introduce a new topic on Monday, we should force the recall of this information on Tuesday morning. But on Wednesday, we should not discuss it to maximize the amount of time that the brain has to forget the information. With enough time elapsed between Tuesday and Thursday morning, again, we should force the recall of this information. With each spaced recall, we are strengthening the neural pathways in the brain and creating an opportunity for what is called “myelination.” You see, each neuron in the brain is covered in a fatty sheath called myelin. As information is recalled and pushed through that neuron, this fatty sheath gets thicker and thicker, allowing the information to travel faster. The opposite happens when we don’t recall the information, and this process is called “neural pruning.” When neurons are not used, the brain will actually start to prune these to make room for new neurons.

So, let us bring everything back together. We know that students start to forget information as soon as it has been introduced. We know that their active working memory is highly limited to holding four to five items at a time, and we know that the solution is to get this information into the long-term memory, but this takes time. Thanks to the work of cognitive psychologists and research such as the Ebbinghaus Forgetting Curve, we know that the way to strengthen the memory is through a process of spaced retrieval practice.

RETRIEVAL PRACTICE In our classrooms, we have focused our efforts on using retrieval grids as the primary method through which we strengthen memory. A retrieval grid is a low-stakes task intended to force recall of information that has previously been taught. Students are given points, not on the difficulty of questions, but on the recency of when they were studied. For example, if we are in math class in May, there would be more points given for a concept that was taught in September as opposed to April. The focus is on recalling the information that has been forgotten. We have included some examples.

Active retrieval of information not only benefits previously taught the material, but it also primes the brain for incoming data. Re-

search shows that if we can effectively connect prior knowledge with new information, that it is hugely beneficial to long-term understanding. For example, when introducing decimals for the first time, have students retrieve their prior knowledge on place value, a concept that has been taught from their earliest years at school. This strategy helps students make connections with the new material and supports the retention of this information when it has finally been learned.

CONCLUSION Part of the fabric at Far Hills is not teaching students what to think but how to think. We want them to grapple with concepts that are difficult and challenging. We don’t just want to help our students learn for the test, but to be informed beyond it and use this understanding in the world. Knowledge is essential, and too many times in society, we find this to be lacking. Inspired by experts such as Pooja Agarwal, Patrice Bain, and Mark McDaniel, to name a few, we wanted to help our students remember better. Our intentional application of the research-driven strategy of retrieval practice grids is just one way that we have looked to achieve this goal. We believe passionately in the importance of applying MBE research to our classroom practice. The one guarantee that we have is that 100% of students bring their brain to school each and every day. Understanding the science of learning allows us to transform our teaching and, therefore, the experience of our students.

—Kathy Iuliano and Peter McBride

STUDENT VOICE You may have heard that math is a somewhat polarizing subject among students, particularly Grades 4-8. So, imagine the excitement that filled the room when we first introduced the retrieval practice grid. We bet that if you close your eyes, you could hear the audible groans! But, much like encoding into long-term memory, give it time, and you will start to see the results. The more that students did this, the more we began to notice a change.

First, it actually worked. Students showed more retention over the long term. Secondly, students became more confident, over time, when embracing concepts that they found to be particularly challenging. Now, you may be thinking that math teachers have got some hard numbers to show. In fact, we don’t. We have anecdotes. We have stories and interactions that reaffirm for us the power of retrieval practice. Take a recent interaction with one of our Grade 4 students: “Are we going to do one of those practice things today?

“A retrieval practice grid? Yes.” “Okay, good. I like those a lot. They help me.”

Short and seemingly trivial, but significant nonetheless.

A Grade 6 student echoed a similar sentiment when asked to recall a math concept she had learned in Grade 5. She asked, “How am I supposed to remember something I learned last year?”

Providing more retrieval practice is an important answer to that question.

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HOW DO YOU GET TO

CARNEGIE HALL?

“Low-Stakes” Practice For Middle School Writers Writing...the very thought of it can strike fear into the heart of even the most diligent students. Academic writing, such as an essay discussing a character’s motives, presenting the main causes of a war, or outlining the parameters and outcomes of a science experiment, can be incredibly daunting to middle school students communicating this way for the very first time. A brain research-informed routine of “low stakes” writing practice can support students’ learning process.

PERSONAL VS. ANALYTICAL When a child writes about events from her/his own life, ideas flow naturally. A story that you have lived is a story you know well and–bonus–you’re the star of the show! Students intuitively understand that they should write it the way they would tell it to a friend. Sentences are mostly complete. Thoughts proceed in chronological order. Occasional lapses in grammar and mechanics are easily remedied by asking the student to read the text aloud, which usually produces a flurry of insights: “Oh! I left out a word there.”

“I think a period goes here, right?”

“I think I need to say this before I say that.”

Personal narrative writing typically produces pleasing results and solid learning for the fledgling writer without much difficulty.

Contrast academic writing, in which suddenly self-conscious and grade-conscious students struggle to understand the highly structured, analytical, and somewhat formulaic writing that punctuates the sophisticated learning in which they are now engaged. Unlike their prior experiences writing from the place they know best–their own lives–students traverse a new and alien landscape.

And their writing often reflects it. In Grade 5 and 6 English classes, students pen sentences that soldier on for several lines, beginning one way and then trailing off into oblivion, either failing to express a complete thought or, for that matter, any thought at all. Repetition, profoundly effective in poetry but deadly in an academic essay, abounds. Well-intentioned yet utterly random vocabulary words are muscularly wedged in for good measure, sprouting like gaudy weeds in an untended garden.

In a word: Gobbledygook. It’s as if the kids think they need to speak a new language to accomplish the task. Unfortunately, it’s a language no one understands—including the writers themselves.

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Mind you, it’s not that our students have no ideas about their reading. They most certainly do; in fact, they have very good ones. We teachers have quite wonderful class discussions with them about myriad aspects of the texts they’re reading. The problem enters when asking them to translate these ideas into a written exploration.

Grading further complicates matters. For those for whom writing is not a strong suit, the typical single round of teacher feedback and revision before grading–though it sounds quite fair and reasonable–often doesn’t remedy students’ confusion. The result can be disappointing grades on the finished products and discouraged students.

ENTER “LOW-STAKES” LEARNING Research of British Educationalist and Emeritus Professor Dylan Wiliam indicates that students work hardest when given highly specific feedback but no grade. This research intrigued me; I had always thought that feedback plus a grade would be the biggest motivator. However, students need many more opportunities than we usually give them to “fail forward”—i.e., to make mistakes that lead to understanding, unencumbered by the final judgment a grade represents.

Isn’t this what sports coaches have known forever? If you give a team member enough time to practice, praising progress and tweaking technique along the way, you eventually wind up with someone who can skillfully execute the plays. Described as

“That sentence sounds like it’s missing something.”

“You left out the period.”

“Don’t forget to underline the book title!”

“You used that word too many times in that paragraph.”

“That sentence doesn’t go with that idea.”

I was pleasantly surprised and, at times, mildly shocked to see how dedicated they were—even though the workshop occurred on Monday afternoons and ran for a full hour after a long school day! Also, their writing was pure practice; no matter how well they did, it wouldn’t count toward their grade. As Professor Wiliam correctly posited, it didn’t matter: they attended regularly, stayed focused for the entire hour, and took their work very seriously.

THE LAST WORD On the final day of the workshop in early June 2019, I asked the students to complete a survey about their experience. All five unanimously agreed that it helped to have repeated opportunities to practice their writing without worrying about grades. Here are some of their specific comments: “I could just think of how I could improve with no stress.” “...working without a grade helped me concentrate on learning...”

“It made the class easier for me...Grades make me feel a little worried about asking for help.”

“low-stakes” learning, this kind of work is messy and strewn with errors, yet ultimately is highly productive.

PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE. I wanted to see if my struggling writers would commit to a weekly effort where there was no grade to be earned, but simply as much coaching (in the form of specific feedback) as I could give them. I invited a group of five of my Grade 6 students to chat with me after they had submitted writing, which indicated they could use some support.

To my surprise, all expressed delight at the opportunity to work after school to practice writing together. They elected to work on Mondays because extracurricular activities took other days. I was deeply skeptical that they would be able to work productively after school on the very first day of the week, but forged ahead.

At our first meeting, I explained that they’d be helping one another by reading their work aloud to each other and receiving specific, sentence-by-sentence feedback from all of us. Further, there would be no such thing as a “bad” question; students were free to ask about whatever they didn’t understand, and every question would be answered. Then they got to work, crafting paragraphs and, eventually, short essays on questions I had created for them based upon their current reading.

They dug in and worked hard, commenting honestly and specifically on each other’s writing, and revising accordingly:

“It was the start of a better grade in English. Because the parents are worried about your grade. It was easier to learn.”

“It affected me because I would not ask questions as much as I did in this workshop.”

WHAT NEXT??

Armed with this positive outcome, I requested permission to set up a “Writing Support” time during the school day beginning in September. This way, students could receive writing coaching on an as-needed, daily basis. Our Director of Teaching and Learning, Jennifer Phillips, our then Director of Upper School, Georgia Zaiser, and English Department Head, Emily Seelaus, agreed that this was an idea worth trying.

Consequently, this year, my schedule was designed so that Monday–Thursday, during both morning and afternoon conference times, I am available in the Upper School Library for any student who wishes to come for Writing Support. I was skeptical that any student would give up time to do homework, which is how students tend to use their conference periods; nevertheless, I waited hopefully.

At the invitation of Ed Thompson, our new Upper School Director, I began giving short “commercials” about Writing Support during our Monday morning Upper School Community Meetings. Each commercial consisted of a single question that a student might have about her/his writing, followed by an explanation of how I could help. The goal of these rather simple advertisements was twofold: MBE at Far Hills | 13

Ensure that students knew that writing help was available to them.

NUMBERS TELL THE STORY

Reinforce the idea that, no matter the size or type of writing problem, I was there for the students to support, coach, and encourage–nothing more. Everyone who came would receive assistance.

At our last Community Meeting of the first trimester, I shared with the students the anecdotal data I’d been collecting regarding how many students had come for help. I hadn’t realized the extent to which students were availing themselves of Writing Support until I sat down to tally my records.

Gradually, students began to drop in. And they started to ask questions about their writing.

What was and continues to be so marvelous to me are the great questions they ask! Here are a few examples: “Can you help me with my conclusion? I can’t get it to work.”

“I have an idea, but I don’t know how to say it.”

“How should I structure this?”

“I’ve finished my draft, but does it sound good?”

“Could you help me add descriptive words?”

As I began to address the questions they were bringing to Writing Support, I was and continue to be genuinely blown away by how much Far Hills students care about their writing. By the way, you’ll be pleased to hear that they’re doing tons of it. In this first trimester of the Writing Support project, students came to me with questions about written work in English, Science, History, and even writing some of them were creating just for fun!

In every case, the student was committed to doing the best job possible, dutifully returning for a second and even a third session if necessary. Their interest and dedication to this learning opportunity has been tremendously inspiring.

It turns out that the results of this academic experiment have been quite remarkable: So far this school year, September through November 22, 2019 (53 school days), a total of 40 students made 73 requests for writing support.

Only 13 of those visits were because a teacher directed the student to come.

The other 60 visits were by student choice!

Sheepishly, I must confess that I never expected such a ringing endorsement of Mind, Brain, and Education research. Yet, this outcome resoundingly confirms what researchers are telling us about the benefit of providing opportunities for students to share their work and receive specific, constructive feedback without the encumbrance of a grade.

The powerful, brain research-informed strategy of “low-stakes” practice is one that encourages engagement and helps build mastery. Ultimately, it’s just good teaching.

— Gemma Keremedjiev

THINKING ABOUT ONE’S OWN THINKING Metacognitive skills allow us to think deeply about learning and helps to improve the effectiveness of our own learning processes. These skills are scaffolded throughout elementary school and continue to be taught explicitly throughout higher education. While some students develop strong metacognitive skills early on, others may need additional support to hone these skills.

Metacognition is broadly defined as “thinking about one’s own thinking.”

Metacognition is identifying, through self-awareness, the way our strengths and weaknesses affect how we learn.

Once we establish an understanding of how we learn and what obstacles stand in our way of learning, we can begin to truly understand our own learning processes.

There are different approaches to learning. In the Matthew’s Academic Learning Lab (M.A.L.L.) here at Far Hills Country Day School, we focus on a personal, individualized learning process. Students learn what works very well for them, may not work for others, and vice versa.

When we identify what works best for us individually, the better equipped we are to receive support and implement the evidence-based strategies needed for success.

THE ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS AND MAKING CONNECTIONS A critical component of teaching metacognitive skills is to have students ask critical questions in themselves: “Do I understand the objectives of this lesson?” “Are the expectations clear?”

Teaching goals include building higher-order thinking skills and thinking with accuracy and depth. The development of these goals is contingent on the student first understanding and appreciating the lesson and the corresponding tasks that have been assigned to reinforce new ideas and concepts. Considering the value of the learning–and how it will affect future understanding–is a way to bring meaning to the learning process and the motivation required to engage in it. When we pose upon the students to think like a scientist, historian, mathematician, or author, they practice metacognition. “Where would a historian travel?”

“How would a scientist research more information?”

Effective learning occurs when previous knowledge connects with new

information in a meaningful way. We want our learners to recognize how classroom instruction is scaffolded to build upon previously learned concepts while further solidifying a more profound understanding through the introduction of more complex ideas and concepts.

SELF-REGULATION When teaching metacognition skills, a key focus is on developing selfregulation skills. Students become independent learners when they monitor and address their own thought processes and planning. An example of this is when students who work to understand math concepts are prompted to consider the following self-monitoring questions: MBE at Far Hills | 15

surprises, questions, and realizations so that students are collaborating and expanding their learning. Most importantly, students strengthen their comprehension skills through the process.

In the M.A.L.L., additional time outside the classroom is available to practice these skills. Not only will you find Grade 5 and 6 plot diagrams in the M.A.L.L, but also you will find students with a pencil and book in hand–ready to record and take notes as we continue to analyze texts. Small groups and pairing of learners in our space allows us to focus on the metacognition needed so that the main events and the theme of the text can be examined closely.

GROWTH MINDSET

“Which questions are difficult for me to solve? Where are my errors?” “How did I prepare for my quiz?” and “What will I do differently the next time?” Self-questioning is effective as it allows students to be reflective and adjust their future thinking.

• • •

“What do I already know?”

“Where am I confused?”

“What is the most effective/efficient approach to face my difficulties?”

Students are encouraged to take these reflective learning opportunities by: • • • • •

seeking the assistance of their teachers; doing an internet search; reviewing materials; collaborating with peers; and/or discovering information in M.A.L.L.

Our specialists help develop these metacognitive skills, which are essential for critical thinking and problem-solving.

Self-regulation skills are further practiced in the M.A.L.L. when, in sequence, students: • • • • •

check their Google Classrooms; update their planner accordingly; review the assigned rubrics; check to understand teacher expectations; and answer “What is the value in this learning/assignment?”

Know the expectations

• • Similar to executive functioning skills, metacognitive skill development requires specific short and long-term goals.

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Priorities need to be clearly set and recorded. Task steps need to be achievable, manageable, and meaningful. Success is realized when students know the expectations, make and stick to a plan, reflect on progress, evaluate the outcome, and make adjustments in this sequence as necessary. We know from research that these skills don’t fully develop until our mid-twenties, as the prefrontal cortex is still developing, and therefore this practice often requires teacher support.

METACOGNITION STRATEGIES Teachers in the M.A.L.L. support students tasked with a reading assignment by utilizing metacognitive markers to complement their close reading. Metacognitive markers are symbols or codes used to express reactions to reading. Close reading is an approach to analyzing the details and meaning of a text.

When using metacognitive markers, paragraphs are chunked into smaller sections, summarized, and the main idea and author’s choices are then identified.

Metacognitive markers annotate text, which prompts students to write their predictions, circle unfamiliar or new words, draw connections to prior learning, and underline essential facts. Students also share their reactions to their reading by addressing thinking prompts such as, “What did the author assume you already knew?” “What surprised you? What do you wonder about?” and “What connections can you make from learning in other classes?” Together, we share predictions,

Metacognitive skills strengthen when we recognize and analyze why and how failure has occurred and how to tackle it.

“Why am I distracted?” “How can I study after school?” Self-monitoring, paired with teacher feedback, can help our learners remain positively challenged with a sense of academic progress. Times of struggle present opportunities to show students how learning frustrations lead to brain priming, and eventually, mastery! New information consumes cognitive capacity, such as processing, memory, and retrieval, all of which are mental exercises that can lead to feelings of defeat. This is why learners need to be provided the time and space to practice being active participants in their learning, with teachers modeling what active learning and metacognitive skills looks like.

STUDENT VOICE More and more often, we witness our students openly and freely share their own personal learning challenges with one another. Our learners are becoming more comfortable expressing their learning challenges, which often results in other students chiming in with their own difficulties too. Expressing our challenges in a safe and supportive environment allows us to further discover our perceived limitations and to identify the “height” of the hurdles.

The discussions that come from these moments will remind us that we will persevere through these obstacles.

At the start of this school year, we introduced the concept of metacognition to our Grade 5 and 6 classes and revisited metacognitive concepts with the Grade 7 and 8 classes.

We began with definitions and posted these definitions on a wall and discussed the meaning as a group.

Our students created a slide show entitled “About Me.” This was a fun back-to-school ice-breaker activity. The requirement was to create three to seven slides that highlighted personal interests, activities, hobbies, and family facts, etc. However, one slide was to include self-perceived strengths and weaknesses. Students had the option to share their completed slide presentations; 100% of them were more than eager to do so! After sharing, peers had the opportunity to ask questions specifically about the “Strengths and Weaknesses” slides only. We discovered that many of us share similar and opposite strengths and weaknesses. We discussed how and why we believe we have been bestowed these “gifts.” We also thought about how we should address these challenges. Which strategies are best for strengthening a specific weakness?

This experience helped set the tone for the type of work we do in the M.A.L.L.

That is, we focus on areas of weakness by drawing on the skills of our strengths, and by using evidence-informed strategies that are modeled, implemented, and evaluated throughout the year. Educators know that establishing trusting, personal relationships is important for linking emotional connections to academics.

talking about this and facing it can help build general overall confidence and well-being. And that can transfer to other areas in which a weakness exists. We are modeling metacognition by thinking about our own strengths and weaknesses and developing a strategy to address these personal challenges.

Our opening activity provided a segway into understanding what motivates and interests our learners so that we can draw on these connections as we work together throughout the year. For example, one student shared one of his weaknesses is “being allergic to bees.” We can refer to that when studying for vocabulary. Consider, for example, the vocabulary word “panacea.” “What is a panacea for bee stings?”

In learning about ancient civilizations, that connection can be applied as such when discussing which civilization was recorded to have first harvested honey from beehives. This particular student is an avid soccer player, so being allergic to bees is a big deal in his life. And this weakness creates vulnerability and discomfort. But,

Some areas of academic weaknesses and strengths shared by students included “reading comprehension, reading fluency, creative writing, research writing, memory, and problem-solving.” It is important that learners know that neuroplasticity provides the ability for our brains to change and learn, and therefore, current weaknesses can become strengths! As educators, we desire to help students strengthen their weaknesses. Thus, we come to school every day to help change brains, mindsets, and to strengthen metacognition.

— Adele Marky

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EMPATHY...

an Underutilized Tool As the 3:40 p.m. bell rings and students race out the school doors to dismissal, phones come out of backpacks and are switched on in one fluid motion.

Reconnected to social media, Google, and video games, students disconnect with their peers and stand around in small groups in silence staring at the devices in their hands. Names have to be called several times for pick up in order to be heard because while the students are physically on school grounds they are no longer present to the community around them. The smartphone, an amazing invention, allows students to be both more connected to the world while at the same time less present to the people standing right near them. It is in

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this paradox that we are challenged to teach. In this moment in time, how do we help students relate to and understand the important figures of history or literature. What is it like to be a young Jewish girl in Amsterdam in 1942 hiding with your family? What does it mean to be a member of a community that requires sameness from everyone? And, even more importantly, how can the lessons of these lives be relevant for today’s middle school students?

All English teachers know the importance of checking reading comprehension as students begin a new book, news article, or short story. It is important to ensure the student

understands what they are reading before proceeding. Beyond the basic plot and character questions, all of which students can Google the answers to, we are challenged today to help students feel empathy with the experiences of others. When students are faced with questions they are unable to Google the answers to, we find that they become frozen and fearful. Class discussions, writing assignments, and various projects become frustrating experiences for both the teachers and the students. Again, we confront some important questions: What can today’s middle school students learn from Anne Frank? How is the harrowing, dystopian tale of Lois Lowry’s The Giver relevant and important for students?

Excerpt 1 from student writing (Grade 6): The Memory of Hide and Go Seek

When the memory started, Jonas was in a small field with beautiful flowers and the smell of damp grass. When he looked around, everything around him was filled with bright colors. He could not understand why he would feel pain in this memory. He did not feel pain, in fact, he felt exhilarated. “Ready or not! Here I come!” Jonas was crouched down behind a tall plant. His eyes followed a girl as she walked by not aware of Jonas’ presence. When she left out of sight, he got up and started to run away from her. As he ran, Jonas was drowned in the sensation of the fresh thick breeze that cooled his damp skin, as a trickle of sweat softly trailed down his cheek.

On what level can students relate to or empathize with these characters and tales?

Realizing that research suggests that empathy is an underutilized tool (Neuroteach, 56), we set out as a department to use this pathway into greater appreciation and understanding of literature.

These texts, The Giver by Lois Lowry and Anne Frank’s diary, highlight two aspects of literature that we aimed to maximize in our development of empathic middle school readers and writers: the understanding of a human-centered dilemma and the ability to find a personal connection with the person or character.

In the dystopian novel, The Giver, the author, Lois Lowry imagines a society where memories do not exist. Jonas, the main character, has operated without memories until he is called upon to be the “Receiver of Memory” at age 12.

Now, he experiences positive and negative memories. While reading The Giver, Grade 6 students grappled with the danger of sameness and considered the value of difference. Memory is essential

to all of our lives. We find joy calling on positive memory. We make decisions based on memories of past experiences.

We use our memory daily to complete tasks and to excel. To deepen their understanding, our students composed creative writing piece during which they “gave” one of their memories to Jonas as if he was experiencing it for the first time. When doing so, our students had to account for words, objects, and feelings that Jonas had never encountered. In order to convey the novelty of their experience, our students had to use empathy to recognize Jonas’ current understanding of the world and to call upon their knowledge of descriptive language, such as strong verbs and adverbs, and literary techniques, such as simile and metaphor.

After studying the memories Jonas “received” in the novel, the students were ready to complete their own. One student described a happy memory of an excellent golf swing as, “a tingling sensation...came to Jonas when the small, round ball hit the green and abruptly stopped.” Another student expressed the

awe of snorkeling, “At first he saw a torrent of bubbles swirling around him, and when his mask cleared, he gasped at the incredible sight of strange creatures of all shapes and colors surrounding him.”

Some students elected to share more challenging memories. When describing experiencing the pain of an injury, “After Jonas felt something puncture his foot, the sharp object quickly retreated and the throbbing foot released a sharp pain with each step he took.” Regardless of the mood of the creative writing, the personal relevance of sharing the student’s own memory increased engagement.

Simultaneously, the use of empathy assisted students in achieving the writing goals at hand.

Our Grade 7 students began reading Anne Frank’s diary almost 75 years after Anne and the other residents of the secret annex were discovered, sent to various death camps where, ultimately, everyone except Otto Frank, her father, met their death. Anne’s diary, published years after WWII, is a complicated read for students and without a narrative MBE at Far Hills | 19

Excerpt 2 from student writing (Grade 7):

I took this assignment very seriously. I first dug through my closet to find clothes that I could wear. I wore over 5 pairs of socks, 3 or more shirts/ sweaters, 3 to four pairs of pants, two hats, and more. I put two additional pairs of underwear in my pockets. Inside my backpack I decided to put games, books, and a puzzle to help with boredom. I also brought paper, pencils, sticky notes, and other things to write on. I left out some of my stuffed animals in my packing, which made me a little sad. I decided to bring what I did as an approach to help stop boredom. After reading the first part of the diary, I realized how hard it must have been for Anne. Throughout the experience, I knew it was just for pretend, but this really happened for her. It makes me feel awful.

driving it, students have trouble finding a way to identify with the story and the residents of the annex. In order to bridge this gap, we created the packing project to help students ‘experience’ a small part of what Anne Frank went through.

The aim of this project is for students to empathize with Anne and her family.

After reading the first few entries of the diary, students are asked to pack for an escape. They can only bring what they can carry, and they must look like they are attending school, as that was Anne’s aim. Students are then asked to take a picture of themselves once they are ready to escape and write a diary entry about the decisions they made when packing. What did they bring? How did they decide what to leave behind? Having only read about 15 pages of the diary, the students are obsessed with packing favorite objects, lucky items or sports equipment. One student wrote, “Some things special to me that I brought were my lucky hat, books, and a musical 20 | fhcds.org

instrument (in my case a ukulele). I love music, and I could not live without it for two years, so I took a ukulele, the smallest instrument that I play.” Students cannot relate to the idea of survival, silence and being hidden. They are unfamiliar with the boredom and loneliness Anne experiences over the two plus years she is hidden. While students are thoughtful about what they want to bring, they have a hard time empathizing with Anne’s situation or problem.

As we continue reading, the students’ understanding of what it meant to live in the annex changes. They are struck by the hours upon hours that Anne and her family were forced to be quiet and still.

They can’t believe the bathroom situation and the lack of privacy. Most importantly, they begin to understand Anne’s loneliness, her lack of contact with the world. When they are finished reading the diary, they look back at what they packed. At this moment, most students laugh or giggle at what they thought

about bringing. They realize they would have brought more books, no ukeles, and many more small objects that would have helped them pass the time and not feel so alone. Middle school students know what it is like to be lonely. It is in this small moment of quiet reflection that students truly feel empathy for Anne.

Ultimately, our goal is to help our students connect in a real way and to build community beyond Jonas and Anne Frank. We are hopeful the empathy built for the characters in the novels translates for the people they will meet across a variety of life experiences. Asking what is it like to be and what does it mean to be builds the foundation for students when confronted with the unfamiliar.

—Emily Seelaus and Natalie Young

Using the SCIENCE OF LEARNING for LEARNING OF SCIENCE

An essential part of professional growth is taking the time to reflect on current practice and how it relates to student outcomes. Our first introduction to the science of learning and Mind, Brain, and Education (MBE) was reading Neuroteach by Ian Kelleher and Glenn Whitman. It is fair to say that when we read Neuroteach, we reflected on how our current teaching practices either aligned or conflicted with what the research was saying. Ideas from Neuroteach connected with each of us in different ways. A recent addition to our MBE reading list was Powerful Teaching by Pooja Agarwal and Patrice Bain. Agarwal and Bain talk about the use of “Power Tools,” which are four evidence-based strategies to harness in your classroom. As luck would have it, these four strategies connected with each of our take-aways from Neuroteach.

Retrieval Practice | Julie Blanco

students’ heads, rather than cramming information into students’ heads.”

There is an advantage to teaching science to students at three consecutive grade levels. It’s a great feeling when Grade 7 students enter the room, read the Grade 6 diagrams and notes on the board that I haven’t erased yet, and exclaim, “I remember doing that!” It can also be disheartening when I look out into a sea of blank faces when I ask my students, “Remember learning this last year?” As I learn more about Mind, Brain, and Education, I’m convinced that we, as teachers, can use tools to help change the way our students “store” information so that it’s easier for them to retrieve later on, be it a month or even a year.

After winter break, Grade 6 students returned to their human body projects, and I decided to put retrieval practice to the test. Instead of lecturing to get them up to speed, I asked them to take out a blank piece of paper and write down everything they remembered about their body system. A few students moaned and groaned, some started listing words or pictures of organs, and others didn’t have enough time to get it all down on the paper. Once they completed this step, they shared their papers with their group, and suddenly it felt like the project wasn’t interrupted by the break.

They were able to recall some of the facts, just as they were starting to forget.

Retrieval Practice is the act of forced recall of previously learned information.

In Powerful Teaching, Agarwal and Bain highlight Retrieval Practice as a Power Tool saying, “Retrieval Practice boosts learning by pulling information out of

Another active retrieval exercise we use in science is called the challenge grid.

It is a 4x3 grid. The questions in column one pertain to what the students are currently learning. Column two is content that the students studied a month ago.

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Students need to think back to the beginning of the year to answer questions in column three. These grids are especially useful when preparing for final exams.

When reviewing for an upcoming quiz, students are more comfortable re-reading material to “review.” They often have a false sense of “knowing” the content just because they read it again. Answering questions from the blue column may make them uncomfortable because they have to “think hard.” However, re-reading information in front of them doesn’t require any memory retrieval. Information is learned much more effectively when it is recalled without supporting materials.

These examples are nothing new to the classroom. “What’s new is the research: In recent years, cognitive psychologists have been comparing retrieval practice with other methods of studying—strategies like review lectures, study guides, and re-reading texts. And what they’re finding is that nothing cements long-term learning as powerfully as retrieval practice.” (The Cult of Pedagogy Podcast, Episode 79, Dr. Pooja Agarwal)

students can build upon what they already know, but I am also looking for ways for students to “learn from forgetting.”

Now I look for ways to consistently jump back to previously learned concepts, which will boost their learning. One example of this is including photosynthesis within the Grade 8 study of atoms, elements, and bonding. As students gain an understanding of how atoms bond and what bonds are formed between different types of elements, we revisit the chemical reaction happening inside of plants during photosynthesis. Inevitably, when the topic of photosynthesis comes up in a Far Hills Grade 7 or Grade 8 class, a few students will begin singing the photosynthesis song. The catchy, corny song provides straightforward information about the process and helps students to remember important parts of the reaction. The students love to sing it. This “jump back in time” provides an opportunity for the Grade 8 students to recall a previously learned concept and to apply their knowledge of newly acquired content that relates to the elements and bonding. When asked if this review was helpful to discuss within our elements and bonding lesson, one student commented, “Yes, it brings back something that I learned a while ago. I enjoy reviewing because it refreshes my memory, and I feel I know the topic better than normal. I have a stronger understanding of the topics when I review them after a while.”

My goal is to implement more learning experiences like this that will provide students with the opportunity to solidify their understanding for the long term. I will continue to challenge my students to make more connections and draw from previously learned material to deepen their understanding of science.

Interleaving | Jen Wagar As both Julie and Cathy mentioned, spacing and retrieval practice both enhance long-term memory of taught concepts over time. Interleaving is yet another tool that complements long-term memory acquisition. Agarwal and Bain note it “boosts learning by mixing up closely related topics encouraging discrimination between similarities and differences.”

Spacing | Cathy Cirriotti Many years ago, during my teacher training, I studied “Constructivism” in science education. “Constructivism” involves probing what students already know, assessing current understanding and misunderstanding, and eliciting interest in a new concept that would result in enduring learning of important concepts. The Next Generation Science Standards uses this approach to build knowledge and make connections among science concepts.

Through my study of Mind, Brain, and Education, I have learned about a research-informed strategy called Spacing. Spacing is the intentional act of spreading out lessons and concepts so that time is given to forget and then retrieved, thus helping encode information into long-term memory. In Powerful Teaching, Agarwal and Bain say, “Spaced Practice boosts learning by spreading lessons and retrieval opportunities out over time so learning is not crammed all at once.” Building on the constructivist foundation, I now include the concepts of spacing and interleaving when I teach. I continue to look for ways that 22 | fhcds.org

Interleaving can best be described as practicing several related skills together. For instance, a soccer player will alternate 10-minute segments of dribbling, shooting on goal, and passing instead of practicing dribbling for an hour. These separate, but equally important skills gain strength in the player’s long-term memory through interleaving. In February of this year, we had the opportunity to work with Eva Shultis, Associate Director for Program Development & Research at The Center for Transformative Teaching and Learning. Eva shared that interleaving can happen on different scales as referenced by this pyramid, from most broad to most specific. One example of interleaving within my Grade 3 curriculum came after spending a few weeks observing, holding, researching, and learning about the monarch butterfly. I ask, “We know the butterfly is an insect, but is the caterpillar an insect?”

Surprisingly, many students answer this with a “No” because they now know that insects have three body parts, four wings, two antennae, six legs, and an exoskeleton. Of course, the caterpillar has none of these (or so they think). It is at this point that I introduce the concept of a life-cycle and that the caterpillar or larva is just one form within the life-cycle of the monarch.

As both a science and math teacher to Grade 3 students, I have the luxury of interleaving science and math concepts. Just after

returning from winter break, I greeted my young scientists in this way, “Today, we will NOT be having Science class.” Instead, I told them, “I’d like to name our class for the next few weeks ‘S’Math!’” They were immediately intrigued by what and how this would play out in the classroom. It was here that I intentionally revisited some geometric concepts about polygons from Grade 2, introduced and extended their understanding of symmetry and congruence, and had students share this new learning using their existing knowledge of butterflies and moths. Each student chose an insect to cut in half, draw the “symmetrical” missing side, and write a short reflection about their work.

As Agarwal and Bain state in their book: “Spacing is how we spread out content over time, and interleaving is how we mix things up. The critical difference is that interleaving refers to what happens in between spacing.”

mentors Ian Kelleher and Glenn Whitman. It was well-received by students, and they took action to improve their work promptly afterward. One student surprisingly added the note, “Thanks so much, Ms. Keremedjiev and Ms. Wagner!”

Four months later, a similar activity was assigned, and the results showed that less feedback was necessary. As advised by Neuroteach, the feedback was intentionally delayed and summarized to reduce dependence on our input. With the absence of grades, the pressure was off, and the students felt a sense of pride in having sharpened their scientific inquiry skills and gained some independence. Students have started giving each other peer feedback, and they are becoming quite astute with their comments. And, so far, it is done in a respectful, constructive way! This was a very successful academic experience for both teachers and students.

Feedback-Driven Metacognition | Mary Wagner One of the major takeaways that I have learned from reading Neuroteach and completing the online interactive course is the importance of giving just the right amount of feedback to students after low stakes or formative assessment. Quality feedback can strengthen metacognition skills and build strong synapses in the brain. Feedback gives a student time to reflect on what they know, what they don’t know, and the strategies needed to improve. And, the most important thing about feedback is what students do with it.

As a learner myself, I have been delving into improving the quality of feedback to students with hopes of promoting positive change and independence. My objective is to have self-reliant students get into the practice of reflecting on their work and developing lifelong learning strategies.

In collaboration with Learning Support teacher, Gemma Keremedjiev, we worked together to provide feedback to Grade 5 students on a “See, Think, Wonder” project. The intent was to have two different teachers offer unique perspectives to assess student work in the areas of scientific thinking, writing, vocabulary, and formatting skills. Students presented their learning in three modalities: written, verbal, and a graphic organizer presentation. A bonus for me was to observe some writing techniques from a respected peer of mine.

The “See, Think, Wonder” project had students select a specimen, then practice foundational science skills such as observing, making inferences, and practicing inquiry. The feedback was detailed, specific, and immediate, as advised by Neuroteach authors and our Mind Brain and Education

Conclusion Over the last few years, Far Hills has been on an amazing journey. We have taken a deep dive into the field of Mind, Brain, and Education to make the experience for every student a truly exceptional moment on their educational journey. During this time, teachers have grappled with concepts that have challenged their thinking, and this team is no different. Each of us has connected with various topics at different times, and we have and continue to try different things in our classrooms every day.

It is next to impossible for every classroom to look and sound the same, and this isn’t something that we should aspire to do. What unites us at Far Hills is to make the best experience for each student. By applying the science of learning to teach the learning of science and by using powerful tools such as spacing, retrieval, interleaving, and feed-back driven metacognition, our teaching is more effective and our students’ learning more tenacious and long-lasting.

—Julie Blanco, Cathy Cirrotti, Jen Wagar, and Mary Wagner

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A co-educational private school for Preschool–Grade Eight 697 US-202, Far Hills, NJ 07931 | 908-766-0622