- Especially for younger children, I think group work is important because they are just beginning to learn how to socialize and work with others. Having the room set up so that students are in small groups is a good idea. Children usually strive to follow directions. If they get left behind in the lesson or miss a step, they can easily ask a neighbor for help which will encourage socialization and working well with other students. If a lesson calls for scissors, markers, etc., and a teacher puts some in the middle of each table for everyone to use, this can promote sharing with others, which is also an important skill to teach younger children. However, as kids get older, they may find their way around distributing the effort equally amongst all group members and decide to slack off. Personally, from working in groups in the past, I dislike being put in groups now because I would rather get the work done my way on my time. Especially because sometimes students don't contribute as much as the rest of the group. With kids, however, it is important for them to work in groups and to teach themselves these basic skills.
Thursday, October 9, 2014
Group Work
How much group work is too much/not enough?
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Group work is so important in my opinion. It is always a great idea to have students sitting in group rather than by themselves. Socializing is very important when we are younger, and it does allow us to make new friends and get engaged with one another! Great post! :)
ReplyDeleteLooking back at group work when I was in elementary school, even throughout middle school, I loved group work because it was a time not only to just work on school work and projects, but it was a time to get to know other people and be able to socialize about the specific topic. However, today, I completely agree with you. I dislike group work in the upper levels of schooling because people tend to think that because so and so is the leader of the group, he/she will do all the work and I will get an A for doing nothing.
ReplyDeleteGreat post Savanna! :)
I completely agree with group work. Even if I hated being put in groups, it was a great experience. It was helpful learning to work with people because it prepares students for the future. I also agree with how difficult it is to work in groups now. Usually, only one person ends up doing all of the work and unfortunately it is most likely me.
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