Journey Through the First Year

My mentor Dawn recently introduced me to a grammar unit she created prior to me coming to SFHS.  In this unit the students self-instruct using the website Grammar Bytes.  The students are presented with a variety of questions asking them to fix the grammar and punctuation mistakes in a sentence.  If they get the answer correct they win a variety of prizes: money tree, Ferrari, trips to cool cities (although no one really seemed impressed with the Chicago win).  If they get the answer wrong they get a variety of not-so-cool prizes: a cow, a donkey or a rabbit.

The students seem to dig the quizzes.  They keep comparing prizes and thus far, getting the not-so-cool prizes seem to be just that, not-so-cool.  I have also heard a couple of students comment on the sentences as quite entertaining.  But are the students actually absorbing the information presented to them in the quizzes?  Based on my observations, the students are getting more questions right than wrong.  Good sign.  However, I think the true test will come in the form of the test they will take at the end of the unit.

The only problem I have encountered today with the unit, is keeping on top of the students’ responsible web use.  I have caught a couple of students trying to cruise the net, but that can happen on any given day.  I have also caught a couple of students just clicking random answers to see what prize they received.  After threatening to take away their computer use for the day, which means taking away their participation, they seem to be back on task.