Learning through groups

Learning to teach through cooperative learning lessons was an interesting thing. I was confused at first about how this would work, but after participating in it, I feel like this is a great way to teach. I thought the concept of having a group but working with another group to teach the first group was confusing, but after going through the process it was a lot of fun. I really liked that I was able to learn with others about the prosita kingdom. I thought it was great to work with a few other people to create a power point to teach my first group all about the kingdom. I thought that the small group teaching was great and it kept everyone on track and focused. I feel like sometimes students get zoned out when it is presentation after presentation. The pressure is "off" for those who don't like to talk in front of the class, because they get to teach in small groups. I think that its a different way to teach, but its an effective way. I thought that it was a lot of fun to learn about the other kingdoms and I forgot a lot of the information that I learned in middle school. I really can't wait to use this type of lesson in the classroom. I could see using this in my unit plan on rocks. Having groups of 3 with the topic of sedimentary, metamorphic and igneous rocks. The groups would meet with their peers who have the same topic and research their rock. Then the groups would meet and teach each other about the other rocks. I think that this would work in a school that has the proper technology to support it. The students having the internet at their fingertips would make this project better, because they get to use resources outside of their book and thus coming up with more interesting facts or discoveries about rocks. 

I really like this type of lesson because every group member has a job and a task that they have to complete. I like that it is hands on and engaging to students. It is something different and I like the idea of having the students work on their social skills. Working together is a skill that students will have to learn how to do to get a job, so I support getting them used to it at a young age. I think that this is a great way to get students to work collaborative and to get them to engage with each other. This would be great for students who have trouble engaging with other students. It would be great for beginning of the year ice breakers as well, because the students will get to know each other quicker. Having a classroom where students are able to work collaboratively would be idea for me.