Planning for Success: Goal Setting

19 April 2015 / 2 comments

Howdy! I am Kim from Mom2punkerdoo and I am so glad you have found our new collaborative adventure.  If you've been following us from day one you know that you will find a new post by a different blogger each day of the month.  How cool is that?  If today is your first visit, welcome and be sure to go back through this month's previous posts for all sorts of great ideas to use in your classroom.
Mom2punkerdoo
So are you a list maker too?  I LOVE lists!  My phone has more notes on it than I can count, and my desk...well,it's covered with endless pieces of paper with lists, plans and ideas strewn everywhere. I think my love of lists comes from my real passion for planning!  I am hard core planner.  I like to have plans for everything. When my son was still in his crib (a gazillion years ago) he would greet me in the morning with the words, "What's the plan today mommy?" No joke.  Type A?  Who me?

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The number of tools available to help you organize your list making is in my opinion overwhelming. I've tried a few different apps for my phone and have liked some better than others.  Most often I just find myself opening up my iPhone Notes and jotting everything there. However, if you are searching for that perfect tool I suggest taking a look at this list of mobile and web-based tools designed specifically for list making.

After my initial list making, it comes time to really plan.  Let's talk planning in the classroom. Planning comes with the job, but I want to talk about including your students in the planning process. List making, goal setting and planning go hand in hand.  There is tremendous value in helping your students to plan and set goals for themselves.

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It is important to not only talk to your students about goal setting, but to help them learn the process of not only choosing a goal, but actually making an action plan to then work toward achieving their goals. Having a goal and a plan are the first steps on the journey to success.

One of my favorite books about success is written by UCLA Coach John Wooden.  I'll be honest and say that I am not much of a sports gal and I had no clue who JohnWooden was the first time I was introduced to his books.  Come to find out he is kind of a big deal! This short video gives a nice overview of Coach Wooden and is good one to share with students.



Coach Wooden has several books for use in the classroom. The first of which is this picture book featuring Inch and Miles and their teacher wise Mr. Wooden.

Goal Setting

This book takes Inch and Miles on a journey where they meet many characters who guide them in understanding the values and building blocks needed to create a "pyramid of success." This book is a great jumping off point for getting your students talking about their goals and what they need to plan to do to meet those goals.

There a many different ways to work on the idea of planning and goal setting with students.
  • Set reading goals and keep a weekly or monthly log
  • Set goals for practicing math facts regularly (websites like Quizlet are perfect for this)
  • Some students or classes may need to set behavior goals.
  • Set unit goals for things they would like to learn.
  • Set goals for specific learning skills 
  • Set goals for developing positive character traits
A big part of the journey to success requires students to go beyond setting the goal.  There needs to be some thought put into the plan, some ideas written down for how they think they might achieve the goal. Then even more importantly, reminders, encouragement, follow up tracking and reflection on their progress.

One of the many tools I have used is my Student Unit Planner.  I have two versions of this planner, one of which is specifically designed for use in a PYP International Baccalaureate Program and the other that can be used in any elementary classroom setting.

This planner includes:

  • Unit Summary Page 
  • Graphic Organizers for KW and Vocabulary
  • Goal Setting 
  • PageReflection Pages

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Thanks for stopping by Classroom Tested Resources today. I hope you are finding this new adventure to be a place where you can find valuable information to help you in your classroom. And if you can squeeze out 17 minutes somewhere in your day I highly recommend taking the time to listen to this TED Talk with Coach Wooden. I hope you find him as enjoyable as I do!


Mom2punkerdoo

2 comments:

  1. What an important skill to teach our children! Excellent suggestions. I'm off to Amazon to add Coach Wooden's book to my library. Thanks Kim!

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  2. We are really going to be hitting formative assessments, goal-setting, and timely feedback hard next year. This is a fantastic post about goal setting!! I can't wait to share your info with them!!
    Thanks,
    Melanie
    Momma with a teaching mission

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