Striving for Accuracy and Precision
Teaching Importance of Striving for Accuracy and Precision
My students have been growing as writers and readers and have been taught many skills to express themselves through writing. Now that they all know their letter names, sounds, and many writing patterns, we are working toward improving our writing and operating with a mindset of striving for accuracy and precision. Costa and Kallick in "Habits and Mind Across the Curriculum," explain the habit and mindset of striving for accuracy and precision as maximum investment in their work and valuing accuracy, precision, and craftsmanship by continuously reworking and revising. To explicitly teach students to show that they are striving for accuracy and precision, students have learned to use written feedback to revise their writing and spelling until it is correct. This may seem discouraging for a young child to be hearing what they are doing is incorrect or needs improved. To explain to students that is it okay to get feedback and we learn from our mistakes, we engaged in a Kimochi lesson during community meeting teaching how to be resilient when things don't go well. Below is the Kimochi lesson to teach students how to act when something doesn't go well and that striving for accuracy is a learning experience.
My students have been growing as writers and readers and have been taught many skills to express themselves through writing. Now that they all know their letter names, sounds, and many writing patterns, we are working toward improving our writing and operating with a mindset of striving for accuracy and precision. Costa and Kallick in "Habits and Mind Across the Curriculum," explain the habit and mindset of striving for accuracy and precision as maximum investment in their work and valuing accuracy, precision, and craftsmanship by continuously reworking and revising. To explicitly teach students to show that they are striving for accuracy and precision, students have learned to use written feedback to revise their writing and spelling until it is correct. This may seem discouraging for a young child to be hearing what they are doing is incorrect or needs improved. To explain to students that is it okay to get feedback and we learn from our mistakes, we engaged in a Kimochi lesson during community meeting teaching how to be resilient when things don't go well. Below is the Kimochi lesson to teach students how to act when something doesn't go well and that striving for accuracy is a learning experience.
After this lesson, we created a class agreement of strategies to use to turn a mistake into a happy mistake. This gave students a chance to explain what they learned from the lesson and reflect on strategies they may already use when working or revising their work. The agreement stays in the classroom for students to reference when working.
Written Feedback to Aid Striving for Accuracy
As a reinforcement and to provide clarity of feedback, I have created feedback codes and use those codes on student writing. After being given the written feedback, students revise their writing to show their persistence and passion for accuracy. Students demonstrate striving for accuracy and precision in the classroom through writing, but this also enables their personal growth and not settling for something they don't want, deserve, or that is low quality. This will reflect in their future as leaders striving for accuracy and expecting accuracy from others. Students will be able to use feedback and constructive criticism to continuously improve themselves.
During a writing lesson, I explicitly taught the various forms of feedback I will give and what I look for in their writing. Below are the feedback codes and revising criteria I use and what students use during writing to strive for accuracy.
As a reinforcement and to provide clarity of feedback, I have created feedback codes and use those codes on student writing. After being given the written feedback, students revise their writing to show their persistence and passion for accuracy. Students demonstrate striving for accuracy and precision in the classroom through writing, but this also enables their personal growth and not settling for something they don't want, deserve, or that is low quality. This will reflect in their future as leaders striving for accuracy and expecting accuracy from others. Students will be able to use feedback and constructive criticism to continuously improve themselves.
During a writing lesson, I explicitly taught the various forms of feedback I will give and what I look for in their writing. Below are the feedback codes and revising criteria I use and what students use during writing to strive for accuracy.
In addition to the feedback codes and charts students can access, they also get a lot of written feedback on their work. The written feedback targets specific errors for students to fix to ensure they are writing with accuracy and precision. During any lesson that includes written work I provide an exemplar and narrate my writing habits. By narrating my writing students are hearing what I am doing and seeing it on paper. For example, I would say "as a good writer, I am using a capital letter to start my sentence. I am checking the end of my sentence for punctuation. I will re-read my sentence to check it makes sense." Students are very receptive to feedback and get excited to have me write on their paper using the feedback codes. Students are quick to revise their writing because they are truly striving for accuracy and precision.
Below are images of student writing, from multiple blocks of the day, that show my feedback and student revisions as they are striving for accuracy.
Below are images of student writing, from multiple blocks of the day, that show my feedback and student revisions as they are striving for accuracy.
In addition to me giving feedback, students also give each other feedback during writing. Once students have finished their writing, they meet with a partner at the carpet for feedback to further improve their writing. Not only are students getting additional opportunities to improve their work, they are also being critical consumers of their peers work by looking for areas of improvement to strengthen their partners work. Students are showing they have internalized the Kimochi lesson and understand when they get feedback or make a mistake, they can fix it and learn from that mistake. Below are pictures of peer to peer feedback opportunities.
Student Reflections
Students have become open to feedback and actually excited to get feedback. When sharing their work, they say the feedback they were given and what they did to improve their work to show them striving for accuracy. Students have begun to internalize why it is important to strive for accuracy and precision and how it is necessary in helping us achieve our big life goals, such as graduating college. Below are samples of student reflections highlighting the important of striving for accuracy.
Students have become open to feedback and actually excited to get feedback. When sharing their work, they say the feedback they were given and what they did to improve their work to show them striving for accuracy. Students have begun to internalize why it is important to strive for accuracy and precision and how it is necessary in helping us achieve our big life goals, such as graduating college. Below are samples of student reflections highlighting the important of striving for accuracy.
Conclusion
My students are on a pathway to college and know striving for accuracy is what they need to do to get to college and achieve their goals. Students have become receptive to feedback and love giving each other feedback to help others improve their work. Students ask to have their work checked because they know professionals have neat, clean, accurate work. I am proud of my students for already demonstrating this mindset and their young age because it is something that will stay with them through the rest of the academic and professional careers.
My students are on a pathway to college and know striving for accuracy is what they need to do to get to college and achieve their goals. Students have become receptive to feedback and love giving each other feedback to help others improve their work. Students ask to have their work checked because they know professionals have neat, clean, accurate work. I am proud of my students for already demonstrating this mindset and their young age because it is something that will stay with them through the rest of the academic and professional careers.