See Think Wonder

So, last year when I first learned about this visible thinking routine, I was so excited.  I thought to myself, "WOW, this is a great way to help my students really think about things or introduce topics." The very next day, I spoke to my 2nd grade co-teacher and we planned to use it.  I got all of my resources together and my copies made and I was ready!  Well, it was an epic fail.  My second graders were very confused.  The 'see' section was fine- they were able to tell me what they were looking at.  However, the 'think' section and the 'wonder' section were very confusing to them and I was having a hard time explaining to 7 year olds the difference.

Well, needless to say that I got discouraged.  I did not want to try anything else because I felt like I just couldn't do it.  I couldn't possibly bring in these new routines and make them work effectively!

As in terms of 'A Growth Mindset', I did not give up and I was determined to learn how to do it. From there I went to different resources, via other teachers, google, and my director to try to figure out how to make this work for my students and my needs.  

HOORAY!!!! Two weeks later, after research and many conversations, I slowed the routine down and allowed the students to collaborate and work in pairs.  I also modified the worksheet and added sentence frames and question words to guide the students and aide in their thinking.  (not in a direction- just to get them started)  My second grade students really responded positively to this routine and we ended up to do this activity a few more times throughout the year.  My students really enjoyed doing this activity as well as other visible thinking routines!  This made me motivated to continue to practice this routine as well as try others.