Muslim Teacher

Grading with Rubics

Both students and teachers can benefit from using Rubics. At this point, you might be saying to yourself: Roo-who? Let me explain.

First, you did pronounce the word right. It’s roo-biks. So, what is a rubic? Well, a rubic is a performance assessment. What is a performance assessment? Okay, a performance assessment is an assessment tool, a way to let you and the student know how well they performed on a task. A rubic It has two parts. One part is the “task” and the other part is the grading criteria that is used to score the task.

Rubics are great for those hard to grade tasks such as writing, works of art, research projects, literature interpretation, performances and more. Using rubics removes “subjectivity” when making judgements about a students work. Every student participating in the assignment are held to the same standard.

Providing students with rubics at the time an assignment is given, will help the student know what areas she will be graded on. It helps the student to focus on their performance.

So what makes a good rubic? A good rubic will do many things.

• help teachers define excellence and plan how to help students reach it.
• communicate to students what excellence is and how to judge their own work.
• communicate goals and results to parents.
• help teachers use an unbiased and consistent scoring method.
• finally, a good rubic will provide documentation of procedures used in evaluating student work (Chicago Public Schools).

Rubics can be general enough to be used for many different assignments or then can be specific to one assignment. General rubics are the most useful. The general ones do not need to be changed to match assignments (i.e. less work on the teacher). Rubics that are usually found in books and on websites are the general type of rubic.

Now that you know what a rubic is, you might want to know where to you find them. Well, you can create your own. But if you are not interested in re-inventing the wheel, then I will let you know about my two favorite sources for my rubics. One is the Rubics for Teachers  , and the other is the Teach-nology Rubic Generator. You might also want to see what the Rubic Bank has to offer. Click on the links to get to these sites.

If you want to read more about rubics, and I recommend that you do, then The Teachnology Applications Center for Educator Development has a great deal of information about rubics.

Happy rubics!

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Mad Libs are a fun way to teach grammar. Students love them! Here is a link to some Mad Libs for you to print out and use.

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This video workshop shows grade 3-5 teachers how to help students
become effective and engaged readers of literature. A 9 one-hour video
programs, workshop guide, and Web sit.

There are other courses available on the site. You can view
Annenberg Media programs [for free] online with a broadband connection
whenever you see this icon.

Free sign up is required for first-time users.

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If you are looking for a way to create tests, then this site might be for you.

The online software lets you create multiple-choice, fill-in-the-blank,
matching, short answer and true and false questions all on the same
test. You can also insert instructions and divide your test into
multiple sections.

All you do is enter the information.

You will have to register before you can use the product. There is a paid version, but the free one is adequate.

If you want the paid version, maybe you and a couple of friends can split the costs.

Anyway, here is the website, enjoy! —> EasyTestMaker.com

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You know who they are but do you know how they operate? Do you know how to stop ‘em dead in their tracks?

See this article on this blog: Raising Helpless Handraisers

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Oh yeah, after (or even before) we exercise their brains, we gotta work on the rest of their muscles too! Gotta keep ‘em movin’ folks so the little cutties won’t turn into marsh mellow puffs.

Try these sites for some good activities to help beef up those kiddie abs:

PE Central
 Physical Education and Health programs, Activities, Lesson Plans, and more

Adventures of CyberBee
 Games, Lesson Plans, Organizations, Handouts, Links, and more

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How to Improve Reading Comprehension

Education World has a great article on how to help improve a child’s reading comprehension titled, Improve Comprehension Through Active Reading. To get the maximum benefit, read through the article, then use the teacher and student resources below with any book, article, or other written material. I have outlined how to do that.

Teacher Resources You the teacher will need a copy of the above article and the following:

• Steps in a Process
  
• Establishing the Main Idea
• Predicting
  Events in a Book (Pre-K but can be modified for any age)
• Predicting Article (0-3yrs – 12)
• Using KWL Charts

Student Resources/Graphic Organizers Next, you will need to give each student his own copy of the following as it applies to his grade; any of these can be modified as needed:

• KWL Chart (all grades)
• Preparing to Read (grades 5-8)
• Main Idea Chart (grades K-5)
• Worksheet: Before, During, After
• Steps in a Process

Putting It All Together First read a copy of the Education World article. Then fill out the Steps in a Process chart according to Education World the article. Also, print out and read the other articles in the Teacher Resources section above. Now you are prepared to teach!

Print out and give the student a copy of the charts that are listed in the Student Resources above. Guide the student to fill out the “Steps in a Process” chart or give him a copy of the one you filled out. Use the completed “Steps in a Process” chart and the printouts in the “Student Resources” section with the child to take the child step-by-step through the reading process having him fill out the appropriate charts at the appropriate time.

Benefits The student will know what to expect and what to do when reading. He will learn that there is a process to reading by having it explicitly spelled out for him. He will get faster and faster at going through the process each time he goes through the process.

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Get a FREE Kindergarten Kit!

This year Colgate-Palmolive will offer the Dr. Rabbit and The Legend of Tooth Kingdom™ early literacy oral health classroom kit. Your kit includes:

    * Dr. Rabbit and The Legend of Tooth Kingdom™ VHS or DVD (choose below)
    * Dr. Rabbit and The Legend of Tooth Kingdom™ Teacher’s Guide
    * 2-Sided Classroom Wall Poster
    * My Bright Smile Read-together Storybook (Available in English and Spanish)
    * New! Bright Smiles at Home Family Booklet (Available in English and Spanish)
    * New! Kid’s Toothbrushes
    * Kid’s Toothpaste samples

Go to http://kindergarten.colgatebsbf.com/order/sign_in.php to sign up.

If you need to request materials for multiple teachers and classrooms, please call 1-800-293-4502. A representative will assist you.

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There are many gems within Imam An-Nawawi’s 40 Hadith collection. One of them is found in Hadith #29.

In this hadith, we learn something about Prophet Muhammad (sallallahu alayhe wa sallam) as a teacher that is useful to us as teachers.

The source I am using for the information below is the explanation of the hadith given by Dr. Saleh As-Saleh. The audio lecture of this explanation can be found online at Understand-Islam.net Hadith 29.

By the way, Dr. Saleh holds daily classes on PalTalk everyday approx 3:30pm EST. Go to Rooms/Social Issues and Politics/Human Rights and then choose “Understanding Islam”. Dr. Saleh was a student of Muhammad ibn Saalih ibn Muhammad ibn ‘Uthaymeen until the shaykh’s death.

May Allah make all of us better teachers.

To begin:

The Praiseworthy Characteristics and Abilities of The Prophet
(sallallahu alayhe wa sallam) as a Teacher

Use of Additional Benefit
One of the merits of the Prophet (sallallahu alayhe wa sallam) in teaching and educating is that he (sallallahu alayhe wa sallam) brought benefits [that was] not asked about [by the person] in a question. It was his (sallallahu alayhe wa sallam) habit to add what is
beneficial to the answer .

For example, when the Prophet (sallallahu alayhe wa sallam) was asked by some of the Sahaba if it was permissible to make ablution using water from the sea, the Prophet (sallallahu alayhe wa sallam) said that it was permissible. He also added that the animals of the sea are halal to eat, even the dead ones. The Sahaba did not ask about the animals of the sea, but the Prophet gave them some extra information related to the question they were asking.

Use of Action Along with Statements
The use of teaching by way of statements AND actions is an effective teaching method. For example, when the Prophet (sallallahu alayhe wa sallam) was answering a question that Mu’adh asked, the Prophet (sallallahu alayhe wa sallam) took hold of his own tongue and said, “restrain this.”

This method of teaching makes an imprint on the heart and mind and will not be forgotten.

Likewise, the Sahaba used to teach people by actions also. For example, instead of telling someone how to make wudoo, the Sahaba would make wudoo in front of the people to teach them.

Use of Comparing Things
The Prophet (sallallahu alayhe wa sallam) used to compare the tangible to the intangible. For example, he said, “Charity extinguishes the sins like water extinguishes the fire.”

Use of Analogy
The Prophet (sallallahu alayhe wa sallam) used analogy to both help people understand and to convince them. For example, the Prophet used the expression, “My your mother be bereaved of you, O Mu’adh!” as a way to incline someone to do something. The Prophet used non-literal expressions in analogies.

Use of Evidence
The Prophet (sallallahu alayhe wa sallam) cited the Qur’aan as evidence.

The Praiseworthy Characteristics of the Sahaba as Students

The Emphasis on Understanding the Meaning
The keen-ness of the Sahaba was in seeking knowledge to know the meaning and not the ruling.

They Sought Action
They sought knowledge in order to act not just to know something.

Motivation Level
Mu’adh was highly motivated to learn and thus was the most knowledgeable Sahaba; he was sent by the Prophet (sallallahu alayhe wa sallam) to Yemen as a Mufti, Judge, Caller to Islam.

English Translation of Hadith #29

On the authority of Mu’adh bin Jabal, who said:

I said: “O Messenger of Allah, tell me of an act which will take me into Paradise and will keep me away from Hell fire.” He said: “You have asked me about a major matter, yet it is easy for him for whom Allah Almighty makes it easy. You should worship Allah, associating nothing with Him, you should perform the prayers, you should pay the zakat, you should fast in Ramadan, and you should make the pilgrimage to the House.” Then he said:” Shall I not show you the gates of goodness ? Fasting [which] is a shield, charity [which] extinguishes sin as water extinguishes fire; and the praying of a man in the depth of night.” Then he recited: “Their sides forsake their beds invoking their Rubb in fear and hope and they spend out of what we have bestowed on them. No person knows what is kept hidden for them of joy as a reward for what they used to do.” (As-Sajdah 16, 17)

Then he said: ” Shall I not tell you of the peak of the matter, its pillar, and its topmost part?” I said: “Yes, O Messenger of Allah.” He said: “The peak of the matter is Islam; the pillar is prayer; and its topmost part is jihad.” Then he said: “Shall I not tell you of the controlling of all that ?” I said: “Yes, O Messenger of Allah”, and he took hold of his tongue and said: “Restrain this.” I said: “O Prophet of Allah, will what we say be held against us ?” He said: “May your mother be bereaved of you, Mu’adh! Is there anything that topples people on their faces - or he said on their noses into Hell-fire other than the harvests of
their tongues ?”

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Okay. I believe I can’t say enough about using graphic organizers. They are wonderful tools for students. Graphic organizers are a different and more concrete way for students to understand information. I spent several years developing software years ago and we absolutely could not do our jobs with relying on flowcharts, which are also graphic organizers.

I’m going to list a couple of good sites where you can read about why to use graphic organizers and how to use them with students. Those sites also have a lot of (free) printable graphic organizers.

“From Now On” has a very compelling reason for using graphic organizers: “They convert complex and messy information collections into meaningful displays. They compress. They focus.”

The “Graphic Organizers in the Classroom” article on Eduscapes is another good one. Click the link to read the article and get access to lots of graphic organizers.

Still another good place to go is the TeacherVision website. TeacherVision allows only 6 items to be printed. However, if you clear your browser (especially of the cookies) and reload the site, you can print more items.

And finally, probably one of my fav GO sites is the one at “Go To Science.” They have a section that explains what GOs are, the theory behind their use, their benefits and how to help students create their own. Then, there are plenty of (free) printable GOs. Sometimes I will print a GO then white out the title to use it for a different purpose.

You can even have students make their own graphic organizers. Self-made graphic organizers allows a student to organize information according to how a student thinks. The process of creating their own GOs and filling them in with information also helps the student remember information.

Have fun using those GOs!

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