Let Them Problem Solve with the Less is More Approach

Less is More

Something I've been wrestling with over the past year in my classroom is how much direction to give students on assignments. I've come to the conclusion that the less I lay out how to do it, the more critical thinking and learning takes place. Of course direction and explanation are needed, but finding the happy medium between spelling it out for them, and leaving them clueless, is where experience and experimentation come in. Let me explain.

My English assignments used to be a list of options:

I.e:
Choose one of the following:
a) Discuss the themes of fate & destiny in Romeo and Juliet
b) How does Romeo and Juliet explore the conflict between the young and old generation?
c) How does the Power of Love control the actions of characters in Rome & Juliet?

Additionally,  I'd provide a template for an essay: Intro, thesis, topic sentence, supporting details, concluding sentence. Repeat the body paragraph two more times, now write your conclusion. The standard hamburger essay. This type of thinking dominated my approach for the first few years of my teaching. Give them a few options, and a template to follow, teach them how to fit the mold. I'm not saying there isn't some value in this, or that it should be abandoned completely (more on that later) - but my approach has changed. Less is more. Motivation, enjoyment, quality, and creativity all went up, when I started giving less direction to start.

My new approach: spend more time discussing the learning goals and success criteria, and let them figure out how they can meet the criteria. Let me give a couple examples:

Example 1: Science class (grade 7): The lesson was on center of gravity. The textbook had an experiment laid out step for step on how to find the find center of gravity for an "L" shaped piece of cardboard. After teaching my lesson on Center of Gravity, I gave the groups the tools for the experiment. Nothing more than a string with a weight attached, needle, and marker, an oddly shaped piece of cardboard. Only I didn't tell them about the textbook directions - my only direction: "Find the center of gravity". They failed, at first. They told me "how can we do this if you haven't taught us?" It took time, some got frustrated when I pointed out their errors. But eventually, critical thinking, collaboration and disagreements began, - and the correct method was discovered. Had I showed them the directions in the textbook they would have found the center of gravity in minutes instead of the half hour it actually took. But there wouldn't have been any real learning.

Example 2: Grade 10 English Essay. As mentioned above, I used to lay out their options and spend a great deal time focusing on the hamburger essay template format. However, for Of Mice & Men this time around, I gave much less direction - for SOME of the class. After an in depth conversation about the objectives of the writing (ie: Write a convincing argument, show your knowledge and insight), I let my higher level writers decide how to attack this problem. Forget the template, forget the guiding questions - just write. Show me your insight and analysis of some aspect of the story. For my mid level writers, we discussed some themes and questions they could explore, made sure they understood basic formatting etc... And for the low level writers, I ran small workshops on standard essay formatting, sentence structures etc...the hamburger essay. In other words - every student gets what every student needs.

Wherever possible, less is more. Let students explore, problem solve, and find the path. Where's the value in doing a science experiment with every step laid out for them, only to reach a pre-determined conclusion? That's not what scientists in the real world do. Obviously you'll need to judge for yourself what your students need. But when in doubt, spend more time discussing, demonstrating, and exploring the objectives and learning goals. Let the students figure out, and create, the path to get there.

Avoiding the Dreaded "and then..." Story

If you've ever sat down to a stack of "And then..." stories, this post is for you. Like many other Language Arts teachers, I taught my story unit, focused on teaching kids to identify key story elements and techniques. Despite their strengths in understanding and analyzing the structure and elements of an engaging story, their own writing was tedious, filled with sentence after sentence of "and then this happened...".

Once I addressed this one issue, their writing improved significantly. Below is the handout I gave my grade 7's. One class of practice, and their creative writing improved significantly.

Avoiding "Suddenly" & "and then..." Stories

Common mistakes I see from writers when they’re developing their craft is the reliance on “Suddenly”, or, “and then…”

These are cliche, boring, and quickly become repetitive. Instead, add a little more description to put your reader in the moment. They’ll know it’s “suddenly” if you describe the scene with intensity.

Examples:

Suddenly, Mr. Connors burst through door to tell them to hide under their desks

Try something like this instead:

With a tremendous thud, Mr. Connors burst through the door, barely catching his breath as he shouted “Everyone under your desks, now!”

Same thing applies to “and then…” It’s boring, and shows a lack of imagination. Put your reader in the moment by describing what’s happening.

Examples:

The recess bell rang so we closed our computers, and then we put on our coats to head outside. The hill was icy, we fell down, and then Kevin started a pushing fight, and then Daniel threw a snowball that missed Kevin and hit Kailey in the face.

Try something like this instead:

The recess bell rang so we closed our computers and shuffled to the busy hallway as we bumped into each other, scrambling to put our coats and boots on. The air was cold, and there was a light snow covering the already icy hill. We quickly learned it was extremely slippery as the screams of students losing their footing and sliding down the hill began to echo off the school walls. As I picked myself up, brushing off the snow, I saw Kevin pushing people down the hill. Daniel responded by hurling a snowball straight at Kevin, but at the last second Kevin ducked and the ice ball hit Kailey right in the face.

Writing Prompts for Practice

Try giving your students funny or interesting pictures you find online as a writing prompt to get started. Emphasize the point is to NOT write an "and then" story. A good idea could be to do it as a snowball writing activity, where students write for a given period of time (5 minutes), then switch their stories for the next student to continue. Teach them to focus on providing detail and moving the story along without quickly jumping from one thing to the next.

Differentiate It

A way you could save time for yourself and students is to do a writing prompt like the one suggested above, but do it through a google forum. You could then quickly assess who has the skills to write a story without resorting to "suddenly", or "and then". You could then do a small workshop with only the students that need the additional practice.