Day 78: 2nd Grade Student Reflection

Learning the Power of Setting Goals

A student in Mrs. Potter's 2nd Grade Class wanted to share how he set a goal for himself to go above and beyond when it comes to meeting the expectations for behavior in his class.

Here's his submission:

"One day I set a goal for myself and I learned [I] learned to try to get a certificate and I reached my goal.  I learned that if I try I will reach my goal."

He shared that it was hard sometimes to work towards his goal.  "I got frustrated when I saw others [doing well].  But I set my goal and I got to be student of the month."

This 2nd grader has learned that setting goals for himself can help him stay focused on what he wants to accomplish and that hard work pays off.

Day 74: Roger, 5th Grade Student

Fractions Were the Worst Thing in My Life.

"I couldn't get anything right.  I didn't understand it.  It was confusing.  I felt like I would never catch up and that I failed myself."

Many of us can relate to the feelings Roger, a 5th grade student in Mrs. Humm's class, felt about fractions.  When we don't understand something, it can affect us in different ways.  If we know it is important to understand something, yet find ourselves constantly not "getting it", it can make us feel very defeated as learners.  This is where persistence pays off.

Roger worked with Mrs. Humm to keep at it when it came to understanding fractions.  "Mrs. Humm found a way to make it easier.  [For example], I always thought you had to subtract the denominators from each other.  Like 1/5 - 2/10 would be 1/5.  She said not to subtract the denominator and that cleared up everything.  That one thing opened the door for me."  After that, Roger felt confident about the work he was doing with fractions.

Lessons like these stick with us as we continue to grow as learners because we proved it to ourselves that we can set goals for ourselves and achieve these goals.

Day 66: Student Goal-Setting

Students Set Goals In Order to Motivate Themselves

Most adults spend each day working towards accomplishing goals.  It could be a goal to run to the grocery for a few items, completing your taxes, or finding time to read.  Whatever it is, creating a goal to complete a task can be motivating.

One of the most effective ways to increase motivation with students is to have them set learning goals for themselves. Goals for students are slightly different than goals most adults set for themselves. Student goals are tasks students want to be able to do independently to help them accomplish something larger, like solve complex math problems or increase their ability to comprehend.

Recently, Mrs. Litterer, a reading intervention teacher at Hilliard Horizon, helped student reading groups set goals they would work towards in order to help them make progress with strengthening their comprehension.  These goals are very specific and within the reach of each student.  This helps students feel motivated to work a little harder while at the same time strengthening their ability to comprehend texts more effectively.

Take a look at some of the ways Mrs. Litterer and her students set goals and celebrate their achievements.

Student Learning Goals from HZN165 on Vimeo.