Thinking Routines exist in all classrooms; they are the patterns by which we operate and go about the job of learning and working together in a classroom environment. A routine can be thought of as any procedure, process, or pattern of action that is used repeatedly to manage and facilitate the accomplishment of specific goals or tasks. Classrooms have routines that serve to manage student behavior and interactions, to organizing the work of learning, and to establish rules for communication and discourse. Classrooms also have routines that structure the way students go about the process of learning. These learning routines can be simple structures, such as reading from a text and answering the questions at the end of the chapter, or they may be designed to promote students' thinking, such as asking students what they know, what they want to know, and what they have learned as part of a unit of study. Visible Thinking routines and strategies will be used to enhance our second grade curriculum and strengthen students’ thinking. The Visible Thinking routines will provide students with the skills they need to become more thoughtful learners. Students will have opportunities to express their ideas and reflect upon them. Below is an explanation for a few different routines and how we are using them in Room 7!
What Makes You Say That? "What makes you say that???" is common language used throughout the day in our classroom learning. It helps students identify the basis for their thinking by asking them to elaborate on the thinking that lies behind their responses. Students are asked to share their interpretations backed with evidence so that others have an opportunity to consider multiple viewpoints and perspective on a topic or idea. Try this with your child at home!
Think, Puzzle, Explore The purpose of this routine invites students to connect to their prior knowledge, to be curious, and to plan for independent or group inquiry. This routine is typically done at the beginning of a new unit and provides the students' current understanding of a topic. In Think-Puzzle-Explore students are asked. What do you think you know about the topic? What questions or puzzles do you have about this topic? How might we explore the puzzles we have around this topic?
I Used to Think..., But Now I think... A routine for reflecting on how and why our thinking has changed. This routine helps students to reflect on their thinking about a topic or issue and explore how and why that thinking has changed. It can be useful in consolidating new learning as students identify their new understandings, opinions, and beliefs. By examining and explaining how and why their thinking has changed, students are developing their reasoning abilities and recognizing cause and effect relationships.
See, Think, Wonder A routine for exploring interesting things. This routine encourages students to make careful observations and thoughtful interpretations. It helps stimulate curiosity and sets the stage for inquiry. This routine is used to encourage students to think carefully about why something looks the way it does or is the way it is.
Circle of Viewpoints A routine for exploring diverse perspectives. This routine helps students consider different and diverse perspectives involved in and around a topic. Understanding that people may think and feel differently about things is a key aspect of this routine. Circle of Viewpoints is used at the beginning of a unit of study to help students brainstorm new perspectives about a topic, and imagine different characters, themes and questions connected to it. It is also sometimes used after reading a book.
Tug of War This is routine builds on children's familiarity with the game of tug of war to help them understand the complex forces that "tug" at either side of a fairness dilemma or opinions on topics. It encourages students to reason carefully about the "pull" of various factors that are relevant and appreciate the deeper complexity of fairness situations or opinions.