Mila just joined our group, and read A Natural Approach to Stories over the holidays. She took over for a teacher who left at the semester break and is just in her fourth day of teaching in this non-targeted way. Here is her report:
My classes are small so the day after Card Talk they all remembered the information from each other (and said it in French!). Even the French 2 class with 9 kids. So I was wondering if I should do a Write and Discuss about their cards next class but if you think I can go straight to OWI then I can do that.
Yes, I have read about the Walk Before You Talk technique. It is really helpful! I “see” their brains working as I walk 😀 They look like they are thinking hard.
Your rules on the wall work perfectly. They barely blink in class and they participate. Amazing focus and discipline so far. Thankful for the Bite-Sized Book of Classroom Management which I love so much. It has been helping me immensely as I feel prepared to act properly when needed, thank you!
Mila