Creativity, Sir Ken Robinson and Edmodo

I was lucky enough to be at a conference where Sir Ken Robinson was the speaker. Last March at CUE, Sir Ken was the featured speaker and he is even more engaging and compelling in person than he is on video.  Sir Ken talks in the attached video about Teaching Creativity v Delivery,  taken from a larger TED talk: How to escape education's death valley.

Some of the highlights that I take away from his talk include:

• Children are natural learners... if you can light the spark of curiosity in a child, they will learn!
• Teaching is not a delivery system. Great teachers pass on info but also mentor, stimulate, provoke, and engage.
• If there is no learning, there is no education. The whole point of education is to get people to learn. We are only teaching if our students actually learn! The role of the teacher is to facilitate learning, that's it!  
• Successful "alternative" programs have similar attributes: They're very personalized. They have strong support for the teachers, close links with the community and a broad and diverse curriculum, and often programs which involve students outside school as well as inside school. Why is that alternative? 

In the end, education and learning are personal and that is where Edmodo is an incredible application to help teachers provide personalized, engaging opportunities for our students to learn and express their learning in creative ways.  

As Sir Ken Robinson said, "great teachers teach, but also mentor, stimulate,  provoke,  engage." Edmodo helps teachers do this in a number of ways.  First, Edmodo provides incredible access to educators worldwide. If I want to find a new way to teach my students about the solar system, I can find someone with a great idea. If I want to learn more about something, I can join a community. Edmodo helps to fuel the engine we teachers use to drive learning in our classrooms.

Edmodo can be used to individualize and personalize teaching. Through small groups, I can create assignments and provide resources directly to the students who need them.  Edmodo provides creative ways for students to learn and to demonstrate their learning with apps like StoryLines, GoAnimate and Pixton.  I can attach or assign content videos and websites for students to view in the safety of Edmodo, enabling them to learn subject matter in engaging ways. I can connect with other teachers to get suggestions, lessons and feedback on my ideas.

Edmodo creates a strong link between home and school.  Students can connect, collaborate and communicate with each other outside the walls of the classroom. Teachers and parents can also connect, with parents having immediate feedback related to student progress and classroom information.  Parents report a feeling of connection to what is happening in their child's day.

Finally, Edmodo provides a safe and engaging way for classrooms to connect across the globe!  This year we partnered with classrooms across the country to discuss a book we were all reading as part of the Global Read Aloud.  Our students learned to communicate in more authentic ways, learned about geography and became more understanding of others' perspectives all through their interactions on Edmodo.

Edmodo provides schools with a way to create a climate of possibility - where teachers and students will rise to their possibilities and achieve things that we may not have even expected!

Global Read Aloud - day 1

In the book we are reading, Out of My Mind, by Sharon Draper, we just read how 11 year old Melody can't speak and is in a wheelchair. Some people, we are told, never bother to ask her name. We asked them to blog about this. Here was one of the posts and a comment that followed.

"I think Melody might feel sad or upset when people don’t ask her name or ignore her because she might think that she is sort of invisible. Just because she is disabled, it doesn’t mean that she can’t be respected like other people."

1 Comment
I agree that melody should be respected. When I came to Bagby, I kinda felt respected. But, not a lot of teachers talked to me. I earned respect when I was in 4th grade when teachers wanted me in class. I learned more words so teachers fought over having me in class.

Another post from a boy who is mostly non-verbal, "Melody is sad, or shy.  Maybe she as a broken leg? She is sad when people ignore her.  I am, too."

Global Read Aloud 13 is going to be an incredible and intense experience reading this book with our classes!

+Sheila Monger  +Jonah Salsich +Tim Swick +Joni Stevenson +Pernille Ripp

The business of education?

Ever since I left ‘big business” and started working in education, I have thought about how to apply efficiencies of a business environment top help make ‘the business of education’ more effective. When I started teaching, I was advised to ‘put my patience hat on’ and not make waves. It was so frustrating to see that decisions made based on what has always been done or not done. Rather than find all the reasons why we can’t do something (RtI, CCSS, implement new technologies, etc.) I prefer to figure out how we can do it.

A lot of that attitude comes from a business background. I believe my background and experience make me a better teacher than I would have been without it. Notice I did NOT say I am a better teacher than anyone without the experiences, just that I am a better teacher because of it. The work and travel that I did have given me a perspective of skills needed beyond education. Yes, you can get through a day without knowing how to diagram a sentence! I can communicate with parents in a language they understand and I am open to improving my practice by learning new ways to do things, and using latest technologies. I have actually heard teachers say, “why do I have to do to this training, I am already a good teacher?”

In what other world can a worker say, I know enough, I don’t need any more training on new products or ideas? I am always learning.


Of particular interest to me when looking at how to apply business acumen to the field of education is how to fairly evaluate and compensate teachers. As a new teacher, I regularly have been re-assigned or even laid off in favor of teachers with more years of teaching experience. Merit didn’t matter, time did. There has to be a better way. I have read what I can on the subject, looked at proposals from the ‘experts’ and still nothing rings true. If we were creating widgets, sure, you could say I get paid on the quality and quantity of widgets I produce. But we are teaching children. They come to us with their lifetime of experiences, abilities and knowledge, and hopefully they leave us, 9 months later, with more. But if Johnny didn’t learn ¾ or a year of knowledge from me, can we say for sure it was because I was not a good teacher? Of course not.

One idea from business might work - a 360 review. In business, I received evaluations from my boss, my peers, my employees and my customers. All of those inputs were considered in determining my compensation. We did not all work the same and we were not all compensated the same.

Anthony Cody writes in Education Week’s blog, “The Nine Most Terrifying Words in the English Language: "I'm From Big Business, and I'm Here to Help"

There are two overriding problems with the help our business buddies want to offer us. The first is their primary motivation tends to be whatever will benefit their bottom line, not what will help our students. So they are willing to market solutions that are not truly helpful. They want an ever larger share of the education dollar, so they have, in effect, put the various moneymaking ventures in competition with classroom teachers for scarce resources.

The second is that the policies they advocate place education in a highly competitive framework, as is demanded by their market-based paradigm. This drives us towards the overuse of test scores as a means of measuring performance, so that we can determine winners and losers...Students who do not test well should not be liabilities to their schools or teachers...The market system demands winners and losers, and the biggest losers of all are the students who find themselves left behind in schools that are unprofitable, or because they are more difficult to educate, and thus are liabilities to whatever schools they enroll in.

There is no simple, pat answer to how big business can help education. Educators can stop waiting for someone to save them and we can continue to do what we have always done (and this one I agree with)…do what is best for our students!

How funny - this was just posted to CTA's facebook page today

Reading Centers in Upper Elementary

A colleague, +Shannon Aviña, recently asked me how I use literacy centers to differentiate learning with upper grades.  Though I have doubts about how easy it is to differentiate with 35 kids, I do try to incorporate small group time to meet them where they are as much as possible.    What I have done is based loosely on the book, The Daily 5, by sisters +Gail Boushey and Joan Moser.  You can read about it at The Daily Cafe.  You can also follow Gail and Joan on twitter.

I am no expert, however over the past 7 years, I have found this approach, with reflection and modifications, to be engaging and effective, based on assessments.

At our school, we use a form of RtI (response to intervention) where readers are leveled and taught in groups across the grade level, Monday through Thursday for one hour a day.  This presents its own opportunities and challenges which may be the subject of a future post.

Once a week I meet for 15-20 minutes with one group (Monday group 1, Tuesday group 2, etc). While the group is meeting with me, the rest of the class does word work on Monday, nonfiction reading/comprehension or vocabulary on Tuesday, comprehension work on the novel we were reading on Wednesday and on Thursday they would work on whatever the rest of the class did the day they were with me.

Clearly, classroom management routines must be in place before you can start this.  Students must know how to work independently.  In my classroom each student has a self-decorated index card on their desk which reads 3B4ME.  This reminds them to do three things before they ask me a question.  Number 1- ask myself, do I already know this? Can I just think about it and know what do do?  Number 2- consult a reference, look up a word, look it up in the table of contents or index of a book, check any written instructions, look it up in the web.  Finally, as long as its not during a strict test, number 3 says they can quietly ask a helpful neighbor.  Once they have completed all these things, they can ask me. However, during center time, there is a 4th step - is there is anything else (including free read) I can be working on while I wait for Mrs. McConnell? If yes, do it, if not, then you I ask. And since they always have free read as a back up option during centers, they never need to interrupt my group work. These rules are posted in the room.

I have used this 'center'  process with lit circles using a choice of books around a chosen theme, but that's a lot to change at once. This year I did not use lit circles but did use novels. I try to use novels that are aligned with the curriculum, for example Island of the Blue Dolphins, Sign of the Beaver, Blood on the River: Jamestown 1607, and Boston Jane.

The kids not with working me may work together quietly. Depending on the maturity of the students, I may  let them choose one of the three things to work on, as long as they finish it all by the end of the week. If they complete all their work, they can free read (at their reading level) or they sometimes grade their papers, to save me time and get instant feedback.

The other 40 minutes of the hour are spent reading the current novel, during which time I can meet one-on-one with students, as needed, for conferences.  How we read depends on their reading ability  - if high readers, they read 1-2 assigned chapters independently then we discuss what they've read, to ensure comprehension. They are allowed to read ahead, but may not share what they have read, so as not to spoil it for slower readers...no spoilers allowed! Sometimes we'd read aloud, though at higher ages that is less effective.

Sometimes I let them buddy read. I think that is my favorite, if they stay on task. In the beginning of the year we discuss and model strategies for buddy reading, as well as independent reading. Usually we'll use the alternate reading format of buddy reading, but with a lower reader, sometimes I have them listen then reread.

At the end of a novel students are assigned a response to literature essay to evaluate comprehension.

I hope this makes sense. Please contact me with comments, questions or suggestions!

Choose Happiness by guest blogger Monger

Choose Happiness.  Is this a true life strategy or a cliche? I worry.  Choosing Happiness should be s simple act.  However, it is not.  It is hard work and complicated .  I try. I am flawed. I fail.  The guilt sets in.  What a spiral.

I look around and see that it is so much easier, so much more satisfying to blame, complain, let others influence me.  I hear the excuses and watch as those around me continually look outside for relief.  How you doin’ today?  “I’m so tired”, “Can’t wait for the the weekend...(vacation, summer break... etc.)  Why is it we rarely hear, “Doing great!”, “Glad to be here”?

Driving in today I sat and listened to the voices in my head trying to rile me up, try to excuse my poor choices.  I felt the guilt of letting down those I hold dear in my heart and trying to justify my attitude with some outside force.  BUT, and I mean but, I know that the feelings in my heart must override the voice.  I will negate the instinct to blame with accepting my own responsibility in this world.

I believe that Choosing Happiness is a responsibility.  It is conscience act of love and I want my love for you to prevail.  Ask me how I am doing and I will tell you true that I am blessed to have you in my life.  I am sorry for my failures, and will continue to strive for Happiness.  Ask me how I am doing and I promise to answer you with True Happiness.  “I am doing great”.

~ by guest blogger +sheila monger

We Make it Look Easy

For the past two years I have been blessed to work with some amazing and talented colleagues. When I went to my new hire training last year, I sat next to a woman named +Sheila Monger, not knowing we'd become teaching partners, collaborators and friends. We ended up in adjacent classrooms and because my previous SpEd team had trained me so well ( thank you +Julie Paolini), and because my parents raised me right, I fully embrace an inclusive model of education.
From Day 1, Monger ( as she is known) and I collaborated and integrated our classrooms. We joined the iPad Academy, and worked with students across the school to film and edit content for CreaTV. Our students have been exposed to new ideas, new technologies and new ways of thinking.




This school year, I was asked to teach a combo - a combination of 4th and 5th graders. Due to space and budget constraints, our school, has a combo at every grade level split this year, my 5/4, a 4/3, 3/2, 2/1 and a 1/K. It is a lot to ask from teachers and students. We try to place independent learners (read: not behavior problems) into combos, which tends to place a disproportionate disciplinary, and sometimes an academic, burden on the non-combo classes. Nonetheless, combos are still a lot of extra work. We have twice the curriculum to teach, twice the grade level meetings to attend, and yes, we do have behavior issues in the classroom as well.
Since Monger teaches a 2/4/5 combo this year, we decided to team up and make it work the best we can. Sometimes we have all of our 4th and 5th graders in the same room. Sometimes, she takes one grade level and I take the other. Our kids fluidly move from one room to the other, from one teacher to the other. If you walked into our rooms, you would see all of our students working together, learning together, teaching each other. They make it look easy.
It looks easy because of the hours of planning Monger and I put in, like a calm duck on the surface, we are paddling like hell underneath. It looks easy because we have instilled in our students a sense of responsibility, compassion and accountability. It looks easy because we communicate regularly with our parents and administration, and have built a community of trust. It looks easy because we choose to be positive and happy and optimistic.

A Unique Year

Usually at this time of year I am fighting to keep my emotions in check while still presenting a compassionate, engaged teacher face to my students. Because every year that I have been a teacher, I have been laid off. For seven years. This year was different. March 15, the Ides of March, the day lay off notices to go out, came and went without much ado. I didn't even realize I HADN'T been laid off until three days later when I received notice from our Director of HR that I was being 'promoted' from temporary status to probationary status, the first step to tenure. Now, I have an odd bias against tenure, but it is the game that education plays, so I'm in it. I was thrilled to hear about my new status.

Does it make me a better teacher? Or more complacent? No, I still do my best everyday. The good news is, this year, my best does not have to include worry filled sleepless night, fighting back tears, misdirecting responses to the "will you be my teacher next year?" questions and packing my room back into storage for the summer. The comments of tenured teachers worrying about next year's class size or make up won't seem so insensitive. I hope to even know what my position is next year before too long. Who knows, I may actually get to teach the same thing two years in a row!

But I'm not quite ready to give up my storage unit.

Random notes from #Cue13

So much of what I learned at CUE was ad hoc, a hallway chat, a Cue Tip, the second half of a presentation after leaving an unproductive first half elsewhere and visits with vendors on the exhibit hall floor. 

Here are my highlights:

 Writing for the Digital Age by Rebecca Lowi,Amy Woods and Amy McMillan from Santa Barbara. I liked the essential questions, how might digital writing change how and what we write? and what are the best ways to use digital writing tools in our classroom? On things they included which I thought was important was having students write reflections on growth and learning.  I appreciated the links to teacher resources and student work.

I sat in on a Cue tip on Edmodo- Great info for Edmodo beginners - new tidbit-  Use polls as quick check. +David Ross  and +Todd Teetzel  which inspired me to go see my friend at Edmodo - +Jill Florant who suggested I check out the Edmodo apps instagrok which is a super cool research tool.  She also showed me Study Sync which looked  very interesting for upper grades but I wanted to know what they were doing for 3-5^th grade so I popped next door to their booth. Although she said they were looking at piloting for lower grades, she was not very enthusiastic so we walked away disappointed.  

Intrigued by magican’s wands and top hats, we worked our way to the very back of the hall where we found entertaining and informative reps from Collobos - They provide mobile printing from iPad to almost any printer. $20 a shot. – Yes, it’s like magic!

Near the Collobos booth was the Subtext booth. I had heard of it but didn’t quite get it. After 20 minutes talking to a real teacher who uses Subtext in her classroom I couldn't wait to get started. I'll report back once I start using it with students.

Finally I found my friend +Martin Cisneros  who I first met at CUE about 5 years ago.  We chatted about using configurator at a district, not classroom level and he has had much success with that approach.  Maybe we shouldn't have given up so soon but it is super frustrating to use for classroom iPad management. Martin's blog has been a great resource for me. 

I have used blogging in my classroom for a few years but feel like I could do more. I got some great ideas from Linda Yollis.  Her wiki provides some great ideas and examples.  Her classroom blog is so engaging and inspiring! We can do this!

http://educational-blogging.wikispaces.com/

http://yollisclassblog.blogspot.com/

Twitter Twitter Twitter Twitter!

This was a great session and Leslie Fisher is incredibly engaging and entertaining.  In elementary school I don’t think I would use twitter with my kids, but I certainly do see its uses in my own professional development. 

• She recommends setting up separate teacher account vs personal account. Don't even use name and face for personal side so you can get crazy (well, in theory, one could)
• Search.twitter.com. Choose advanced then you can filter etc.
• Helpful hint: If I start a tweet with @ then only the person I sent it to will see it unless they are searching for it

Although this is from last year, it is an interesting article supporting the idea of Twitter as a PD tool. http://edudemic.com/2012/09/25-ways-to-use-twitter-to-improve-your-professional-development/

Visual Storytelling, Digital Storytelling, Cinematic Narrative: Literacy Across the Curriculum. By Ken Shelton - Cue13

+sheila monger and I attended this inspiring session at CUE last week  I was actually in another session and she text-ed me to 'get over to Primrose A now!' I was so glad I did! Our world is surrounded by still and moving imagery. In many cases these are used to provide directions, information, or even tell stories. The most vital element to all of these is Literacy. This session examined ways in which we can incorporate visual learning to support literacy across the curriculum.  +Ken Shelton is a wonderful, creative storyteller with amazing ideas and examples. I am still waiting for him to post his presentation which was just stunning. (Once I see it, I am sure I will have more to say about the session!)

This picture of +Diane Main   was annotated in thinglink , a tool for annotating/adding story to digital photos. You can click on places on the picture and get more information, more of the story.

Here are some other resources he shared: 
A presentation by +Michael Hernandez, Cinematic Storytelling which gratefully included some practical information and lesson plan ideas (something I found generally lacking at CUE this year)

Shelton also had a great idea to get kids to do a more thorough job with Storyboarding. Tell kids their grade depends on how well someone else does our movie based on your story board! 

Remember to include reflection part!!
 
Pixar’s rules for Storytelling  - I want to make a poster out of this for my kids!

 Shelton recommended the book : Too Big to Know: Rethinking Knowledge Now That the Facts Aren't the Facts, Experts Are Everywhere, and the Smartest Person in the Room Is the Room by  +David Weinberger.

If you every get a chance to hear Ken Shelton speak, you'll be glad you did!

A Last Lecture, by George Manthey

Notes from George's Last Lecture

George Manthey is my cousin and Assistant Executive Director at Association of California School Administrators. He is retiring this year and gave his 'Last Lecture' at the Classified Educational Leader's Conference in Emeryville, CA on Feb. 28 of this year. His speech really touched my heart and I wanted to share some of his "GEMS" for those of you that don't want to sit through the full hour speech. That said, the ending makes it all worthwhile!  Where I couldn't resist adding my comments, they are (in parentheses).

George's GEMS

1. People meet up. People we connect with are there for a reason.
   
2. Steal the best stuff, share it, and give credit!
3. Leaders need to simplify, not complicate - Doobie Brothers -I may be just a boy but I am not a fool, Our leaders need to simplify instead of complicate. There is an inverse relationship between size of SIP and the improvement.
4. Don't underestimate your influence - make the most of every single opportunity! It is through creating change that we have a lasting influence.  Here he tells a wonderful story about a struggling 2nd grader who came back to him some 30 years later, an extremely successful lawyer and father, and said, roughly, 'all of my accomplishments are your accomplishments, too.' (What teacher doesn't wish for that impact?!)
5. Leading is a dance. Dance joyfully. When you dance, sometimes you teach, other times you learn. At times you are fronts and center, other times you are in the background. You have to take risks. Dancing is more powerful when you include everyone. (Sometimes you lead, sometimes you follow.)
6. Often you need a commitment to just go halfway.
7. It isn't good enough to have a goal, if your goal doesn't have truth, beauty and goodness. Seek what is beautiful, right and good.
8. Sometimes you won't know, there are other times you will (think Vincent Van Gogh)
9. Include and transcend. Live in the world of What's Not. Lao Tzu said 'Hollowed out, clay makes a pot. Where a pot is not, is where it is useful.'  Our imaginations are not big enough when they are not expanded by others.
10. one word - NOTICE. Pay attention. Live whole heartedly. Brene' Brown reported in her TED talk, 'people who notice have things in common: Courage. Compassion. Connection. Vulnerability.'
11. End Abruptly when the time is right.
12. There are no accidents. In everything there is a purpose.
13. Love the ones you're with.

George Manthey's Last Lecture from ACSA on Vimeo.

2013 goal 4: DeClutter

No - I haven't forgotten nor abandoned my 5 goals for 2013. I am just a little slow to write about them...I'd like to say because I am to busy doing them, but that would be a lie.

Voluntary simplicity means going fewer places in one day rather than more, seeing less so I can see more, doing less so I can do more, acquiring less so I can have more.

- John Kabat-Zinn, Wherever You Go There You Are

The best things in life aren't things.- Art Buchwald 

Less is more.- Mies van der Rohe

Goal number four is to lose the clutter, both the physical clutter....the stuff, but also the emotional clutter, those things and scripts that keep me awake at night.

Clutter-free gurus suggest if you haven't worn it for a year, or a season, get rid of it. Since I lived on the east coast for one nasty winter, I have coats that aren't usually necessary here, but I always go to, "what if?" Or I look at that sparkly top. Although I didn't wear it this year, the right party may come up next year...and so it goes. I guess the one season thing doesn't really work for me. I can justify keeping almost anything!

So, I have been thinking a lot about my attachment to things. I don't mean to sound morbid or depressing though this may all come out that way. First, I realize I won't be around forever, and having had to sort through my aunt's and uncles' things over the last few years has made me think about what my son and nieces and nephews will have to sort through when we are gone. Second, after watching a friend of ours downsize from a mansion, to a live aboard yacht -- and his fast forward to a homeless shelter -- has helped me see how simply one can live. Finally, recent losses have put into perspective the importance of people and experiences with those people, over things. Things, stuff, just get in the way.

DH and I started the year like gangbusters. We cleared out two closets and filled four large backs for the shelter. We planned to keep going until every closet, dresser, kitchen cupboard and cranny was purged. But then we hit a wall when I went back to work.  So now my plan is less ambitious. Get rid of the 4 bags. Then tackle one thing every weekend. It could be one drawer, one closet, one shelf in the storage unit. Just one thing.

That takes care of the house. What about my classroom? My first student teaching assignment is with a dear woman 9 months from retirement. She'd apparently taught most of her 30+ years in the same classroom. The hope was that I'd be placed in her classroom. This didn't happen. But I always think about her stuff when I keep something in my class for that project I might do someday. My colleague Tanya Hobson-Begraft writes in her blog:

I’m still working on making my classroom a learning space free from unsightly teacher storage.  I really believe that students need a beautiful learning space where they don’t have to sit on top of curriculum kits, or see distracting boxes, piles of textbooks, bundles of computer wires, and baggies filled with things around the room.  I’m nowhere near this goal, and will be working to clear space from my cupboards so that everything I need is inside of them, and not in the student’s learning environment.

I want my shelves cleared of storage and instead used to house things that children can take and use. I love the Montessori model of shelves filled with trays and displays that have been thoughtfully laid out, connected to the curriculum, and ready for children to explore. So that’s my goal: move out the dust collecting storage, and move in something more accessible for students. My rule is going to be: If it isn't something I want the child to touch and use on a daily basis, then it's not going to be within their reach or in our sight.

Since I've had to move 5 out of my 7 years teaching, the only thing I've acquired too much of is books, and really, can you ever have too many books? No, my clutter at school is more around my work space. I have noticed that my students notice that and tend to follow suit. Just as I want to be a good example in my reading and writing, I'd like to be a good example with my organizational skills. I do have them, I just haven't really been employing them in the classroom as much as I'd like. My main classroom de-clutter effort will be around my teaching space.

Which addresses the physical stuff.

Decluttering the mental stuff is a little harder. I do find that my writing helps me get stuff out of my head, so I plan to write more this year. I'm also trying to worry less and be more present. When I used to run, I had a zen mediation to help my cadence, one which I'd be wise to practice again: If there is nothing I can do, why be unhappy? Why be unhappy if there is something I can do. .

Location:Santa Clara,United States

Sharing is good and kind and right!

As long as I've been teaching I've been trying to find ways for teachers to share what they are doing. Yes, I knew it made sense for us to use technology to help each other avoid recreating the wheel. I knew my colleagues had wonderful, creative ideas and if we could carve out time, they might share a folder crammed full of student samples. As a new teacher, my motivation was not purely for the greater good. I needed help! I needed ideas!

My first career in technology had shown me that there were many efficient and effective ways to share information. Using wikispaces, I created wikis for each grade level I taught. No one but me contributed content. I co-created a Ning to share PD discoveries across our small district. We got up to 39 members, of which about 1/3 were contributors.

Then I moved to a new district. I was pleased to see there were servers for sharing data which were regularly used by all staff! However, the files are not really owned or maintained which makes it somewhat challenging to find what you are looking for.

Last year I joined a group of six women in a 1:1 iPad pilot and we started out using Edmodo extensively to share experiences and information. We put some information in folders but the folders didn't meet our needs. We still rely on Edmodo for communication. We also created a wiki for our iPad ideas.

Still, though, it seemed that our collaboration was limited to a small group of early adopters and innovators. Earlier this week I was sitting in a meeting and we were talking about some of the creative implementations of GLAD (Guided Language Acquisition Design) strategies in our district. We talked about the irony that a program so rich in visuals did not have any visuals on their website. We brainstormed ways to share our ideas and of course, I suggested a wiki. My fellow 5th grade teacher, Nina, suggested Pinterest. She hadn't used it but it 'seemed reasonable'...Reasonable? Brilliant!




I went home, created a GLAD board on Pinterest, added pictures from my classroom and shared it with a few teachers. All of a sudden I had teachers from every school in my district contributing to the board. We are sharing ideas and connecting using tools that were already being used socially.
It seems so obvious now.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Seattle Teachers Announce Boycott Of Standardized Test

This is taken directly from NEA Opening Bell

The Christian Science Monitor (1/12, Paton) reports, "Forty-five minutes after school let out Thursday afternoon, 19 teachers here at Seattle's Garfield High School worked their way to the front of an already-crowded classroom, then turned, leaned their backs against the wall of whiteboards, and fired the first salvo of open defiance against high-stakes standardized testing in America's public schools." The Monitor reports that the teachers announced at a press event that they are refusing to administer the state's Measures of Academic Progress test, arguing that it "wastes time, money, and dwindling school resources." Noting that the test is used for teacher evaluations, adding, "Garfield's civil yet disobedient faculty appears to be the first group of teachers nationally to defy district edicts concerning a standardized test, but the backlash against high-stakes testing has been percolating in other parts of the country."
Valerie Strauss writes at the Washington Post (1/11) "Answer Sheet" blog that the teachers "have decided to refuse to give mandated standardized district tests called the Measures of Academy Progress because, they say, the exams don't evaluate learning and are a waste of time. Now teachers at a second Seattle school, Ballard High, said they were joining the boycott, according to the Seattle Education website." According to the teachers' statement, "they oppose the MAP because it is a flawed test that students don't take seriously and that is being used by administrators to evaluate teachers, a purpose for which it was not designed."

Awesome!

We know that common core is the direction we are headed, critical thinking is valued and how students think about and arrive at an answer is as important as the answer (if not more so). And we still take multiple guess tests that oh, by the way, stress our kids, cost money and take time away from learning because...why?

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

2013 goal 3: Use and inspire positive language and outlook

This year I set five goals. The third of which is to use and inspire positive language and outlook in my classroom and my life. When my first niece, Cynde, was born 34 years ago, I realized the huge responsibility of being an aunt. I could remember words that my own aunts had used when I was a child. I knew that someday my darling niece would remember something, anything, that I said to her. I knew I couldn't predict what she would or wouldn't remember, so I better be sure it was all good. Not that it was, I'm sure I made mistakes and faux pas along the way, but just thinking about my words was a good start. Fast forward 20+ years to when I decided to become a teacher. That responsibility I felt as an aunt was now multiplied by the 30 minds I'd be reaching every year in my classroom. I continue to be awed by the trust these children put in me. As I entered my seventh year teaching this fall, I found myself getting a little more cynical and a little more sarcastic. I don't want to be "that teacher" and so, my goal to be more positive.

Anyone who has known me a while will tell you I am generally a positive, optimistic person. It drives DH nuts when we are driving and someone cuts him off and I say, "oh honey, maybe he is on the way to the hospital because his wife is having a baby!" I give blood frequently with my dear sister-friend. We both have the same, rare-ish blood time and we remind the blood suckers at Red Cross, B+: it's not just a blood type, it's an attitude. So it is in my nature to be positive, but I still need a little help now and then.

Over winter break, I started reading Opening Minds: Using Language to Change Lives by Peter H. Johnston. Reading this book has helped me really focus in on my choice of words and to think about the impact on my students of my words, tone, and non-verbal forms of communication. I want my legacy to be one of creating a joy of learning and a respect for life in all of my students. If that is the legacy I hope to create, I need to work on it every day.

January finds our school community focusing on the life skill of kindness. My students have decided to create in our classroom a Kindness Project. We have brainstormed ways that we hear and see kindness. We are creating kindness icons and we are practicing words and actions to create a habit of kindness. I am so excited that my students are joining me on this journey!




Artwork by ERM, 3rd grade, created using tagxedo and skitch. Thank you!

Teachers who Need Teachers...

...are the luckiest teachers... I was honored to read what über blogger +Vicki Davis  wrote about my year-end reflections and me in her blog. I saw Vicki present to a large room at CUE a few years back and have followed her work ever since. She is an inspiring lady and frankly it's quite humbling to think I could inspire her.

I love what she says about teachers supporting and encouraging each other, too often I have seen quite the opposite - passive aggression towards teachers who do things differently. We encourage our children to embrace diversity, let's do the same. Indeed, draw strength from each other! Teaching can be a lonely profession, without a lot of genuine adult contact. Rather than spend our time in the staff room griping, as my friend +Michael Bobrowicz  put it, let's spend our valuable moments together building each other up, sharing successes, learning from each other. We need each other, to learn from, to lean on and to grow with!

And in an act of shameless self promotion, I am sharing Vicki's comments here:

Mrs. McConnell's Blog: Top 12 Reflections on 2012 - conclusion

IN her final set of reflections, Sandy uses a new feature, that of Google plus tagging in a blogger blog, which is how I found what she wrote! IF you use blogger, use the plus and tag people and we'll find you more easily than the traffic type things. Finally an advantage for being on blogger besides just tight integration with Google.

I love how her work with edtech and ipads is part of what she's done. With all she's been through: layoffs, cancer, adding onto her house - I think I've found a new hero and definitely someone I"ve added to my PLN. I've known of her work, but now I"m a fan.

Sometimes, when you open up, share and reflect, you connect on a deeper, more personal level than if you pretend like life is perfect. TEachers, lets stick together and encourage each other.

Mrs. McConnell's Blog: My Top 12 Reflections on 2012, pt. 2

Even more inspirational, here Sandy shares how she worked hard to find a place where students are treated with compassion and inclusion and how she found someone to work with her. She also built onto her house and had surgery on a thyroid tumor. I think that some people think that innovators have it easy and they'll just work when it is easier. Sandy didn't have it easy at all and look at what she's done. I find her reflections so heartwarming and hope some of you will share your stories. We should draw strength from one another.

Mrs. McConnell's Blog: My Top 12 Reflections on 2012 pt. 1

Sandy McConnell has created a nice set of reflections for 2012, something I think all admins should want their teachers to do, where she shared her views, what she has done, and how she's improved. Such retrospection on a year is a powerful way to mark learning and remember. She's done so many things, but particularly I like how she didn't let the fact that she was temporarily laid off stop her from learning and moving forward. IF you're having a tough time, you might want to read what Sandy is and has done. She inspires me. Wow. I"ll link to all of her sets, because I"d like you to read them all.

#EdTech Reflections from 2012

It's the beginning of a new year, a time for looking back and a time for crystal ball gazing. On twitter +Vicki Davis,  suggested: Write a 2012 year in review about what you've done, where you've been, and the joys of the year. Take time to remember. In honor of 2012, I reflected on on my top 12 highlights from the year. As I am continually trying for life/work balance, some of the highlights are related to my teaching practice, and some are purely personal. All 12 can be found on my life+teaching blog, but since five of them are related in some way to our iPad Academy adventures, I am sharing them here, too.


1. iPads in the classroom: In March, I applied to and was accepted into the iPad Action Research Academy  in our school district. We received our class set of iPads in April and my students have been engaged ever since. I started a blog to keep track of our experiences and have had the opportunity to work with an amazing team of innovators as we have pioneered use of this technology in our district. As a group we have used a wiki and primarily Edmodo to communicate, problem solve and collaborate. It really has been a game changer for me, my students and my colleagues.

5. Since I have started teaching, I have been lucky to work with some amazing educators whose focus is special needs kids: Bill Theimann, Linda Bruton, Julie Paolini and a supportive staff and administration.  I had just assumed that their approach of compassion, inclusion and treating all students as learners was the norm.  When I left SUSD I found that was not the case. However, I was brilliantly lucky to be placed in a room next door to the new SDC teacher, Sheila Monger. Monger, an inclusion specialist, shares my views and passion for creating a seamless education environment where all students learning needs are met.  This school year, I am teaching a 4+5 combo and Monger is teaching 2+3+4+5. Having more of an overlap has opened the doors for more integration and inclusion.  Together, we are gradually breaking down barriers and opening doors for opportunity for teachers, administration and students look at learning a new way.http://mrsmcconnellsblog.blogspot.com/2012/05/technology-and-inclusive-education.html 

8.  Education + Technology = #EdTech: When I decided to become a teacher, my vision was to use what I had learned "in the real world" to help me be a better teacher.  I have worked hard, and spent a lot of my own time and money, to find meaningful ways to bring technology into the classroom to provide my students with authentic learning experiences.  When I had to leave SUSD, I was afraid I'd have to start from zero to re-establish myself as a technology leader with my new district. At my age, (really at any age) starting from zero seems like a grand waste of time.  One of my favorite expressions is that I'd rather ask for forgiveness than ask for permission.  As a manager, I respected the initiative that showed. As a teacher I appreciate the perceived independence, even though I know it can sometimes frustrate my principals.  So, I just did what I do and kept my principal informed.  Through programs like CreaTV and the iPad Academy, I have been able to flex my tech muscles while providing our students with unique learning opportunities. I have also been in a position to help develop other teachers as they learn how to use technology to become more efficient and effective educators. In January, +sheila monger  and I were honored with a Good Apple Award by our school board and recognized for our contribution in the area of educational technology.  I am very proud of the work we have done to help teachers and students use technology in meaningful ways.

10.  In October of this year I applied to and was accepted into another academy at our district. Cambrian and others use the academy model as a choice method for professional development (see page 32).  This time it is the Digital Media Academy.  I saw this as a great opportunity to merge my work with CreaTV and classroom learning using digital media.  Our students have started out by producing short PSAs  addressing personal concerns such as playground safety, littering, and bullying.  We have been able to use student created content on our monthly television show on CreaTV, Comcast channel 28,  Around Bagby.  Our students are becoming better planners, writers, problem solvers, communicators and collaborators.

12. Assessment. As I started this year end review with iPads, I'm ending with them.  While initially I used the iPads for student engagement and learning, I also used student work on the iPads for informal assessment.  However, I wanted to learn more (and still do) about ways I can use the devices to effectively assess student learning.  In August, with the help of +Jill Florant  at Edmodo, I started using Edmodo not only to communicate with my parents and students but also to assess their learning. I started using assessments and quizzes. Parents are able to see their child's progress and it really has improved the home-school connection.  In addition to Edmodo, I also started using Class Dojo for behavior management.  The kids love their avatars and work hard for positive behavior reports.  This fall I used adopt-a-classroom to generate crowd-funding for SpellingCity and our collaborative weather project.  SpellingCity helps administer spelling practice activities and tests, grades the tests and provides useful reports to me and the parents.  In 2013 I plan to further investigate and utilize methods for assessing student learning and engagement on iPads.

Happy New Year!

Top 12 Reflections on 2012 - conclusion

And in conclusion... my final 5 of 12 reflections on 2012, some personal, some professional, all combining to make me, well, me!

Write a 2012 year in review about what you've done, where you've been, and the joys of the year. Take time to remember. +Vicki Davis 

8.  Education + Technology = #EdTech: When I decided to become a teacher, my vision was to use what I had learned "in the real world" to help me be a better teacher.  I have worked hard, and spent a lot of my own time and money, to find meaningful ways to bring technology into the classroom to provide my students with authentic learning experiences.  When I had to leave SUSD, I was afraid I'd have to start from zero to re-establish myself as a technology leader with my new district. At my age, (really at any age) starting from zero seems like a grand waste of time.  One of my favorite expressions is that I'd rather ask for forgiveness than ask for permission.  As a manager, I respected the initiative that showed. As a teacher I appreciate the perceived independence, even though I know it can sometimes frustrate my principals.  So, I just did what I do and kept my principal informed.  Through programs like CreaTV and the iPad Academy, I have been able to flex my tech muscles while providing our students with unique learning opportunities. I have also been in a position to help develop other teachers as they learn how to use technology to become more efficient and effective educators. In January, +sheila monger  and I were honored with a Good Apple Award by our school board and recognized for our contribution in the area of educational technology.  I am very proud of the work we have done to help teachers and students use technology in meaningful ways.

9. Walking Compassion: 2012 marked the 11th year of my involvement in endurance fundraising walks to help raise awareness and money to fight breast cancer.  My cousin Sue did the first 3-Day from SJ to SF in 2000. My mother-in-law was battling breast cancer, so in 2001 I decided to do the 3 day.  In May of that year, Alice McConnell lost her battle, but I've kept fighting for her. Since I started walking, my friends, teammates and I have raised well over $50,000 to help fund mammograms, education and research.  Of course, you'll know where to find me September 28-28!  Walk on!

10.  In October of this year I applied to and was accepted into another academy at our district. Cambrian and others use the academy model as a choice method for professional development (see page 32).  This time it is the Digital Media Academy.  I saw this as a great opportunity to merge my work with CreaTV and classroom learning using digital media.  Our students have started out by producing short PSAs  addressing personal concerns such as playground safety, littering, and bullying.  We have been able to use student created content on our monthly television show on CreaTV, Comcast channel 28,  Around Bagby.  Our students are becoming better planners, writers, problem solvers, communicators and collaborators.

11. Friends: I can't name every moment that a friend was there when I needed them this year or I'd use up the internet :^)  My family of choice, those I am related to by blood and those I choose to have in my life, truly do complete me. This year I was fortunate enough to have many opportunities to be with people I love. I walked and golfed and even had a golf-a-pallooza clinic in April. I was overwhelmed by the support I received during my surgery and recuperation, especially from two of my best friends, Linda and my husband, Jim. We shared happy times, including the birth of my newest nephew and cheering on the Giants and we cried together in sad times, saying goodbye to loved ones who died suddenly.  My friendships mean so much to me and none more than the strong bond with my girls.  Kathy, Mary, Linda and I have been friends together since Junior High.  We have seen each other though children and deaths and marriages and divorces and everything in between.  No year would be complete without Girls' Christmas, celebrated in Monterey this year. I am so grateful and blessed!

12. Assessment. As I started this year end review with iPads, I'm ending with them.  While initially I used the iPads for student engagement and learning, I also used student work on the iPads for informal assessment.  However, I wanted to learn more (and still do) about ways I can use the devices to effectively assess student learning.  In August, with the help of +Jill Florant  at Edmodo, I started using Edmodo not only to communicate with my parents and students but also to assess their learning. I started using assessments and quizzes. Parents are able to see their child's progress and it really has improved the home-school connection.  In addition to Edmodo, I also started using Class Dojo for behavior management.  The kids love their avatars and work hard for positive behavior reports.  This fall I used adopt-a-classroom to generate crowd-funding for SpellingCity and our collaborative weather project.  SpellingCity helps administer spelling practice activities and tests, grades the tests and provides useful reports to me and the parents.  In 2013 I plan to further investigate and utilize methods for assessing student learning and engagement on iPads.

So, with number 12, I will put 2012 behind me.  The advice to sit and reflect was good. Now I realize why I am so tired!  It was a great year, but one with lots of pain and sadness, too.  

I don't make resolutions, once you break them - it's like a pass to be bad the rest of the year. Instead, I set goals which I work on throughout the year.  This year's goals? Enjoy life deeper, sweeter, healthier, happier, with gratitude. Specifically:

1. Live a Healthier life with balance - Spend more quality time with family


2. Research and implement ways to measure effectiveness of edtech in my classroom


3. Use and inspire positive language, outlook - in my classroom and my life


4. Declutter - mentally and physically


5. Utilize Effective & efficient assessment and demonstration of learning on iPads

Happy New Year!