I have read SO many blog posts about interactive notebooks. When I first started teaching, I tried to copy the recommendations from others, but I wasn't fully committed and wasn't able to implement it the way I envisioned within my classroom.
Five years later, and interactive notebooks are an essential part of our everyday routine. I have used them with Ecology, Biology, and Chemistry for 9th and 10th graders. I have used them with SPED students, ESOL students, and regular ed. students. In ALL of these classes, it worked for me and our classroom routine.
The Key: Make it a routine, and do what works for you and your students.
I want to outline a few tips and tricks that have made my journey with interactive notebooks easier, as well as answer a few burning questions I know you all have been wondering.
Why interactive notebooks? Why not binders, or packets, or...?
I used to use binders and packets and folders, and I have never had as much organizational success as I have with interactive notebooks. Their ability to keep a notebook organized was the biggest draw for me!
With the exception of homework and lab conclusions (paragraph writing), every assignment and quiz is glued into their notebook. I give them time in class to cut and glue - always with a timer, to keep both myself and my students on track. I may give them 3 minutes at the beginning of class to cut the papers and 2 minutes at the end to glue - which gives me time to take attendance and do any other housekeeping I need to before class starts.
Do you provide all the materials?
Yes - essentially. The list of required supplies for my class is two composition notebooks (one per semester) and pens/pencils. The first week of school, we set up our first semester notebook and I keep their second semester notebook in my cabinet until January.
I have enough glue bottles and scissors for each student. I keep them in scrap bins to allow for easy trash pickup and there is one per table (I have 18 tables of 2). I also have a colored pencil bin for each table. Thankfully, my school has purchased many of the supplies for me, but I also buy supplies during back to school sales, garage sales, and the dollar tree. I buy one set of glue bottles for the year and refill them using gallons of glue (so much cheaper!). I also use tap-and-glue caps on the glue bottles which will save your students from having over-glued notebooks and will save you money! They're pricey, but I've been using the same caps for 3 years with zero problems!
If students don't like the off-brand colored pencils, the tiny scissors I supply, or my glue caps, I remind them they are always welcome to bring their own!
How do you grade your interactive notebooks?
As teachers, its our responsibility to provide frequent and meaningful feedback to our students. In my classroom, this comes in several forms.
- Weekly homework (1 page, not included in the notebook, given Monday and due Friday)
- Sticker Checks
- Quizzes
- Notebook Checks
Sticker checks occur when we are doing in-class activities. I am a huge advocate of setting timers to keep students mindful of staying on task. I might chunk a large activity into smaller portions, set a timer, and have them raise their hand when they finish portion one. I walk to each student as they finish, quickly check their answers, and give them a sticker if they are correct (allowing them to move to the next section) or I give them some guidance for how to revise their answers and have them call me back after correcting.
I typically give quizzes after each big concept. They are always 10 questions and all multiple choice, with mostly DOK 1s and a few 2s and 3s. Students turn in a bubble sheet to me for me to grade, but keep a copy of their quiz for their notebook. After students finish, we go over each question and students have the questions as reference when they are studying for the quiz. An important thing to note is that these are not the same questions as their unit tests, but usually lower level questions to check for understanding.
Notebook Checks are almost always on the day of the test. Students turn in their notebook at the beginning of the class period and I grade specific assignments in them. I usually give students a list of what assignments need to be completed and could possibly be graded, although I typically grade fewer than what is on the list. Each assignment is graded for accuracy and entered as an individual assignment in the grade book. I do not grade them on neatness, having page numbers, etc. These are skills enforced throughout class, but not something I assess. Every single grade in my gradebook reflects what students know about the content and not their ability to follow directions or stay organized.
Is this a lot of work for the teacher? Yes - but the bulk of it comes on test day, with only homework or writing assignments to grade in between. I am not inundated with a mountain of grading every single weekend.
Can students bring their notebook home?
ABSOLUTELY! I want them to use their notebook as a one-stop-shop for studying. However, I realize that organization is not a priority for many 9th graders. My expectation is that they have it in class every day. If they can be responsible for carrying it back and forth, they can, but I also keep crates in the back where they are welcome to keep their notebook if they feel like they cannot keep track of it.
How does it help establish a routine and promote organization?
This is the biggest impact for me! I teach mostly 9th graders who need a great deal of support in terms of organization and study skills. Here is a general list of expectations that are set up in my classroom from day 1 to help ensure our class runs smoothly, regardless of the activity.
- Students check the board for a list of supplies needed and collect supplies from the bookshelf if needed
- Bell rings and I start the timer for their first task. Directions and timer are posted simultaneously thanks to Google Slides (Check out my post on how to do this!)
- Notebook pages are numbered and dated
- Pages and Dates are posted on my class website so students can easily determine if they are missing something
- Notebooks are turned in before taking the test on test days.
- I give them time to cut/glue - with a timer - so there is no excuse to not have it done unless time is not being used wisely.
Once this routine is established, beginning and end of class time as well as transitions goes so much smoother. Even if you are not doing Notebooks - these are great habits to enforce from day one and will help so much with classroom management.
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