I mentioned before that I was going to try @approx_normal's index card idea for bell ringers and exit slip. And I have been trying but I don't know how successful I've been.
First of all, I waste paper. Before, I made full page bell ringers for every student. My new ones are index card size with four per page. But I keep forgetting that and printing 24 copies when I should only make 6. Plus, on Friday, some of the pages were missing the question or the diagram and some were perfectly fine. And I always cut them crooked and mess them up. So I just made a big mess. I need left-handed scissors!
Second, I can't find the right questions to ask for the exit slip. The bell ringer is easy- either review something old or intro something new. I've been doing a good job of stopping and giving students time to complete the exit slip although it's still hard to judge how much time is needed. Sometimes I give too much and sometimes not enough. I'm dealing with the issue of two types of students: 1. The students who comes right into class and attempts to do the bell ringer and the exit slip. 2. The student who does the bell ringer side only and turns it in.
Third, I don't know what the heck to do with them. So far I've asked them more than one question so I couldn't really group them for data purposes because they would get different parts right or wrong and not the whole thing. I tried to sort them by which smiley face they picked but even then, what do I do next? I just have no idea what to do with data. You'd think this would come naturally to a math teacher...
Here are some of the exit slip questions I tried and the answers I got.
Write everything you know about midsegments.
- A lot!
- More than can fit in this space
- The middle line of a triangle.
- The middle of a line.
- Most of them were blank
Write a one sentence summary of today's lesson.
- It was easy.
- Ok I guess.
- It was fine.
Why is this method better?
- It's quicker.
Which form is the easiest to graph and why?
- This one because it's the one I know how to do.
- This one because I forgot the other ones.
- Vertex form.
What was the ‘main idea’ of today’s lesson?
So obviously we need to discuss writing complete sentences and answering the question. Of course I'm not taking a grade on this but I just can't them to grasp the importance of actually doing it. I explained that I am using these to tell me how many people understood the lesson so that I can go over it again or move on. But still, a lot of blanks. Almost everyone will do the bell ringer but not the exit slip and I don't know why. I don't pass out homework until after they turn it in so it's not that they are trying to get it done. I have to assume that they don't know the answer to the question and then where does that leave me?
I have not been happy with the results because I haven't felt like I got any actual results.
This week I am trying:
Restate the goal of today's lesson in your own words. (We have an 'I can' statement at the beginning of their notes. Well, sometimes we do. Working on that.)
Did you understand today's lesson? Smiley Straight Face Frown
What math did you learn today? (Thanks to @crstn85)
If this doesn't work, I'm not sure what else to try. I wanted the bell ringer to be a problem and the exit slip more of a reflection written in words but I may have to do a bit of both.