Cooperative learning groups and other strategies for 4th and 5th graders

I have to admit that teaching 4th and 5th grade is a chore for me. Although some years I get a motivated and fun group, who can develop higher levels of communication in Spanish, I find that mostly students are not so eager to learn as students in 1st-3rd grade. It might be that the number of students is higher in 4th and 5th, or just the stage of development of 10-12 year-old kids. Or it might just be me! (I love the hugs and enthusiasm). Over the years, I have tried different strategies: focusing a bit more on literacy (Spanish journal, reading comprehensions) helps to motivate many of them, fun games motivate others (I have a document with the games I have collected over the years on sale on my store), and interpersonal communication activities help make them more accountable (and what's more, they love speaking to each other). Another strategy that has worked for me as well is making cooperative learning groups. I arrange students in groups of 4, and change them once a year. I usually try to put in the same group students with high ability level along with new or low ability level students, so that they can help each other (I told them that it would be like having about 6 Spanish teachers, instead of just one). This year I tried having the students give input on who they could work well with, after going over the rules of working in groups and brainstorming about who would be a good group mate. These are the rules I use:

Speak in Spanish
Everybody participates
Nobody is finished until everybody in the group is finished
Be positive

I had the students write the name of 3-4 people they could work well with. From that, I made the groups and asked for the class input. I had to make a few adjustments in the next couple of weeks as we tried the groups, but otherwise it was a good experience.

For a couple of weeks we try the groups. I ask each group to perform a simple task (for example, doing the calendar) on the board. The rest of the class watches them and after they finish, they tell me how they think the group did. We do our rules check list: did they speak only Spanish?, Did everybody participate? etc., and then we give the group a grade. The first time we use English, but after that we do it in Spanish. After 2 weeks, I start a sticker reward system: I make a poster with the names of the groups, and whenever they are working in groups, I walk around checking which groups are following the rules stressing out loud whatever positive behavior I observe, and give them stickers that they can put on the poster. At the end of the quarter, the group with the highest number of stickers wins a prize. 


All this requires a bit of work and time, but it is worth it.