Group items tagged

"I developed this quiz with members of my personal learning network (found at end of post) to get students thinking about their digital footprint. The quiz was created at the request of high school students I spoke with who thought the creation of a such a quiz could lead to a smart conversation about ways students can update their digital footprint so that it is one that leads to college and career success. Check it out with your students and let me know how it goes in the comments below. "

"I've adopted a few different tech integration models over the years, discussed the ideas with administrators for use as a starting point for tech integration, and kept the ideas front of mind as I invent and discover new ways for using technology as a tool for learning. Discussing the stages of tech integration has led to some thought provoking and inspiring conversations, but the ideas have not gained a lot of momentum in my face-to-face teaching environment until now. As many districts jump on board with 1:1 implementation, Apple's use of the SAMR model as a framework for tech integration presents a consistent, clear and powerful message that is spreading!"

""I want to integrate making in my classroom. Where do I start?" I see this question pop up all the time in the feeds, listservs, and blogs that I read, and I am continually surprised by the great resources that appear in response. Check out the #makered hashtag on Twitter, join the K-12 Fab Labs and Makerspaces Google Group, read about what Maker Ed and Agency By Design are up to - and then speak up! These groups are filled with generous, welcoming educators who want to share with and help each other. Ask for support fine-tuning a project prompt, invite other schools to participate in competitions and local events, or ask for advice on safe and effective ways to use a new tool. Model the collaborative, open-ended, growth-oriented approach to learning that you'd like to see in your students, and enter the conversation. "

"Makerspaces are a really hot commodity in schools and the focus of a lot of the conversation that surrounds improving learning spaces.  That's exciting, and an opportunity to provide new spaces that add capability for students and teachers is always a good thing. So, given this interest, what are some design questions to consider when thinking of adding a space that has maker capabilities?  Here are my top five which focus on the design of such a space:"

"Luckily, I realized (sooner rather than later) that I was part of their reading problem, not the change in their reading lives I hoped to be. This aha! moment led me to dig deep, talk to my boys about their reading experiences and help them unpack what was really going on underneath the surface. My ultimate goal was to figure out what was blocking boys from reading for pleasure and most importantly, how to open them up and let it into their lives. After lots of conversations with 9- to 14-year-old boys, here's what I discovered."

"Summer reading has been a topic of discussion by educators for decades. "Summer slide," where students lose the gains they made during the previous school year, is a topic of conversation this time of year. This learning loss has a cumulative effect and impacts students as they continue to move through school. There does not seem to be one solution for this problem, but educators can agree that we have to keep trying (McLaughlin, Smink, 2010)."

"One of the most important roles of a classroom teacher is that of classroom manager. Learning cannot take place in a poorly managed classroom. Conversely, the best classrooms provide environments where teaching and learning can flourish. Follow these tips and you'll improve your classroom management skills immediately."

"There are lots of ways to stretch student thinking and get them talking to each other about ideas. One fun way is through riddles that require inductive reasoning, critical thinking and hopefully some good collaboration around student ideas. The three brain teasers below created by TED-Ed have fun visuals and include an explanation at the end. All the videos also include lesson plan ideas to deepen the conversation and start discussion."

"Ahead of the official launch of our Resource Library's Professional Development category in fall 2016, we are excited to offer a preview of three professional development modules around maker education. Each module is centered around a video and contains prompts to consider and comment on in the Professional Development section of our online Google+ community and on Twitter with #makered and @MakerEdOrg. Dive in and join the conversation!"

" "I've tried to get into coding but my cleavage is just so distracting," quipped one young woman in this provocative YouTube video. "When I'm not menstruating, I'm ovulating, so there's no time to code at all," lamented another. If this all sounds entirely ludicrous, it's supposed to. Girls Who Code, a nonprofit dedicated to bridging the gender gap in tech, created this satirical clip to feature in a three-part series that explores the ridiculous gender stereotypes that exist in the world of computer science. "We wanted to try something different and use humor and satire to question the stereotypes that tell our girls that coding is not for them," said Reshma Saujani, the organization's founder and CEO, in a statement. "Our hope is these videos will spark a much-needed conversation about the messages we send our young women and what we can do to create a more inclusive, well-rounded image of a programmer.""

"Classic literature can be exciting. You can teach classic literature like a pro with today's insight from Starr Sackstein. What do Rodney Dangerfield, Alfred Hitchcock, and Harry Potter have to do with teaching students about classical literature? You'll have to listen to find out. (I can't believe all of them came up in one episode!) This wide-ranging conversation hits at the heart of teaching literature. Just because a piece was written hundreds of years ago doesn't mean that it be irrelevant to the students who read the text."

"In prepping for my on-campus course this semester I felt the need to freshen up my face-to-face discussion strategies. Digging around, I discovered some fabulous pedagogical portals well worth visiting for educators, both newbie and veteran.  Take a look if you and your partner teachers seek a little inspiration for engaging learners in meaningful conversations and a few new activities."

"One of the conversations was going back to the idea of Twitter and does it actually promote literacy.  Thinking about, jumping onto Twitter years ago has led to many amazing opportunities for me, but I also think that it has led to tremendous growth in my own learning over time.  Since I first started connecting with others through the medium, I have written over 88,000 tweets, written over 1,100 blog posts, and one book.  I am a firm believer that if you want to become better at writing, the best way to do it is to write more. Without connecting on Twitter, I truly believe that I would not have written in the other mediums.  I have started blogs before, but never made it past a few posts.  As for a book?  I doubt that was something I would have ever done without Twitter.  I am not the only one; so many educators that have connected through the medium have written and published their own books.  I have seen people criticize that so many educators are writing books now, and I think, "Wow! So many educators are writing books now!"  Educators sharing their wisdom with different audiences all over the world is a pretty powerful thing."

"ducators and students are carrying in much more than backpacks, car keys, conversations, partially-completed homework, and outward laughter. Buried deep in the brain's limbic system is an emotional switching station called the amygdala, and it is here that our human survival and emotional messages are subconsciously prioritized and learned. We continually scan environments for feelings of connectedness and safety. I am learning that the students who look oppositional, defiant, or aloof may be exhibiting negative behavior because they are in pain and presenting their stress response. Over 29 percent of young people in the U.S., ages 9-17, are affected by anxiety and depression disorders (PDF). The thinking lobes in the prefrontal cortex shut down when a brain is in pain."

"Educator Mia MacMeekin made this infographic about ways to inspire students to think more deeply about how innovation applies to them. It's a helpful way to begin a conversation about what it means to innovate, a word that sometimes seems to belong in the adult domain of business and is estranged from how students think about living their lives."

"Technology moves far too fast to know every detail. That's what's changed.  In a society that moves quickly, we have to find ways to slow down, be in the moment, and process what's happening on the screen, in the device, or in the conversation around us.  People love to say that our kids are different - for their world is different than ours was.  The truth is, we have to adjust AND be ready to help guide them.  It's a challenge for sure, but it's going to be all about our ability to slow down, process, and deeply understand.  To get out of their way. But it's the reason I believe in the deepest part of my soul, that making is the future of education. Entrepreneurial-ship. Ideas that change our world.  Connecting with each other. Being a community.  Thinking deep about improving something, then doing it.  Helping our kids be WHATEVER they dream of and DREAMING big.  Because when we use technology that's one thing. But when we create with technology, and add in tangible, hands on materials?  It's us slowing down, and somehow in the midst we become the kind of learning environment that kids need, simultaneously becoming the kind of learning environment our kids need.  Because we are all learners."

There is a growing momentum in education driven by a desire to share our practice and learn from our colleagues. Increasingly teachers are finding ways to break free of their classrooms and share their ideas. Collaborations in the interests of unlocking the collective potential of the profession are spreading within and importantly between schools. For many these collaborative endeavours and desires are satisfied by online communities but for many the possibility for a face to face conversation is more alluring.