Background
There has been some talk in teacher groups (middle school) before the school year began about interactive notebooks. So, I decided to delve into the topic to see what the masses thought.
As a result, a survey was posed to middle school science teachers. The survey asked that they offer one pro and one con for interactive notebooks (INB for short).
Basics of Interactive Notebooks
If you are unfamiliar with interactive notebooks, you can gain an understanding with these resources:
- podcast (elementary-oriented but adaptable to MS)
- We Are Teachers
- Creative Classroom Core
(There are a host of resources, but these should give you a general idea of the concepts surrounding their use.)
Personal Experience with Interactive Notebooks
I have used interactive notebooks in my career as an MS science teacher. But, I chose not to use them for most student notes. I intended to expose students to a variety of note-taking methods. These have included: traditional notes, Cornell notes, mind maps, interactive notebooks, and gradesheets. I did this as a preparation for high school (and to broaden their horizons). In the end, I settled on the use of gradesheets. This gradesheet for an Atoms Unit will give you an idea of what I am talking about.
The VOTE is in!
From those who chose to respond, and, by the way, thank you, here are the results:
Pros:
- engaging
- hands-on learning
- organized
- self-quizzing (built-in)
- differentiation
- enjoyed by students
- increase in retention
- beneficial for ELL’s
- contains EVERYTHING
- portfolio of sorts (shows how a student is doing)
- aligned to curriculum
Cons:
- expensive (supplies- tape, glue…)
- can be lost (does contain EVERYTHING…as noted above)
- does not aid students in developing organizational skills
- doesn’t fit all areas of curriculum work
- some treat it as a chore
- messy (cutting, gluing…)
- time spent teaching the “how-to” of interactive notebooks
- takes a lot of class time
- a lot of work for teachers (grading, setting up…)
[Note: This is not meant to be a definitive survey.]
Final Note
As stated above, this is not meant to be the do-all or end-all of the interactive notebooks. I did find the results interesting and enlightening. Many respondents applauded the virtues of the interactive notebook. Others chose not to continue using them due to time constraints with teaching and curriculum.
As with anything, given the freedom, teachers have to find what works best for their classes and situations.
