Blogging about Marzano and Bloom

As I have been delving deeper into the world of Bloom and Marzano I find myself seeking ways to include variety of HOTS and LOTS into my “debriefing” portion of a lesson as well as looking for opportunities to embed the nine strategies. I was introduced to the Quick Flip Questions for Critical Thinking (I found mine at Barnes and Noble-$4.95) at a PD day provided by our district. This small pocket flip chart will come in handy as I instruct both small and large group because I can simply “flip” to the thinking skill and I am provided with a list of appropriate questions and keywords to use in my instruction. Even if I am not using the book per se, simply seeing it will be a reminder to be using a variety of higher and lower order thinking skills. As a result of researching these two fields of thought, I find myself asking “What is the purpose of this lesson, book, discussion etc.” I want to approach next year with a more “purposeful” mindset. 

Overall, I am implementing the concepts of Marzano and Bloom into my lessons, but rely heavily on some strategies/concepts over others. With my fresh knowledge of both these concepts I will hopefully be using them in a more consistent/balanced way. Through this research I was introduced to Digital Bloom’s which helps me put language to various technology tasks such as mind-mapping, polling, blogging/posting etc-which is always good for the curious parent who wants to know why their fifth grader needs an edmodo username;) I would also like to use more non-linguistic representations in my instructions because so many students think in “pictures/images.” 

With the research behind the charts and lessons I have created, it would be as simple as sharing a Google Doc with my colleagues on the information. Our principal has a lot of professional reading on Marzano’s that anyone is welcomed to and supplemented with the websites, anyone could receive a functional understanding of the concepts if they so choose. As stated before, I would want to share with my colleagues how Bloom’s and Marzano’s really gives structure, focus, and purpose to any lesson. These are all features that make any lesson worthwhile.