Why You Should Use Guided Notes
In a perfect world, kids would easily grasp all of the concepts we throw at them. It would be easy for them and even easier for us! But unfortunately, that’s not reality. Kids come to us at many different levels, and we are expected to get them all to the same place by the end of the year. It’s not practical, but it is our reality everyday. One of my favorite ways to help combat this and guide students to master the skills they must learn is to use guided notes in the classroom. Guided notes serve as students’ very own personal math book that they’ve created, which allows students to take ownership of their learning and helps to create a deeper understanding.
Cookie Cutter Curriculum
When you first walk into your brand new classroom, you may find that you have 30 outdated math textbooks sitting on a bookshelf. The content of these books is probably not even aligned with the standards that you are expected to teach! I found myself supplementing so much that it didn’t seem worth the time to bother digging around and trying to piece together the content for my students.
Not to mention that kids do not love textbooks. Hundreds of pages with thousands of questions can be daunting and overwhelming to kids – and rightfully so! And let’s not forget that using a textbook as your daily instruction can get dull. It’s easy to go from lesson 1 to lesson 2 to lesson 3, and so on, but is that really what is in your students’ best interest?
Students Owning Their Learning
Imagine this: your students are engaged in your daily math lesson, happily taking notes and asking questions. When they need help solving problems during class, they simply refer back to their “math book.” They have access to an easy and practical study guide for assessments, which also serves as a great resource for parents and caregivers to provide additional support at home. Wouldn’t that be amazing?
Guided Notes
No one can do two things at once – especially not children. The best learning takes place when kids are invested in the process. Sometimes that can be hard to do, but getting them engaged is half the battle! Most kids will need to actively listen to most of the lesson, which may prevent them from taking extensive notes while you teach.
So, kids need to be able to listen, but they also need some time to take notes, too. That’s the beauty of guided notes! It is a scaffolded approach to introducing topics that allows students plenty of time to participate in the “I do,” “We do,” and “You do” concept. Using guided notes in your classroom will allow all of these to become a reality in your classroom.
The notes I use have a fill-in-the-blank top portion, which allows students to fill in critical points to the lesson. This gives kids a chance to complete their notes as the teacher fills in their own while covering content, stopping to take any questions the kids may have.
Scaffolded Learning
Next is the guided practice section. This section includes four to five questions the teacher will answer with the students. This allows time for students to ask more questions while they are still being supported. Often, my students will ask me to let them complete the last one or two questions independently. When I let them do this, it gives me time to check how well students comprehend the lesson.
Guided Notes Encourages Student Independence
The final section is the independent practice. It is only one page of questions so as to not overwhelm students, but it is still enough practice to build their confidence. You can use this section in several ways: you could add them to the notebook for future reference, use them with small group instruction, or send them home as homework.
Guided Your Students to Success
I’ve loved making the switch to guided notes for my fifth graders. It has become an essential tool for my students, as opposed to using just a textbook. Their notebooks are a source of pride! If you’d like to give your students the gift of independence, pride in learning, and deeper understanding, click below to purchase my guided notes.
