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"We've talked about how and when to use inquiry-based learning-and apps for inquiry-based learning, too. What we haven't done-explicitly anyway-is looked at the reasons for doing so. While the benefits might seem obvious (student-centeredness, critical thinking, self-directed learning, etc.), the graphic above by famed sketch-noter Sylvia Duckworth based on a session by Trevor Mackenzie captures a lot of these ideas in a single visual."

"Who are the people spearheading maker education? And what motivates them? These are just a few of the questions behind a new study (PDF) from SRI International on the Maker Education Initiative. According to the report, many maker educators believe "making can help students develop real-world skills" such as creativity, problem-solving acumen, critical thinking and perseverance, along with "dispositions associated with positive work and life outcomes." They also find that making can be both a social and self-directed activity that "builds empowerment and participants' sense of agency.""

"Dr. Seuss is gold-whimsical and visually interesting traipses through surreal worlds, and always full of life advice. And life advice is learning advice, and learning advice-well, that's why we're all here, yes? There are themes below that apply directly to the responsibilities of a teacher. Let's face it-teaching is an emotional roller coaster, and a microcosm for life itself, full of tedium and wonder, disappointment and triumph, down days and days to celebrate. Take #11 for example-you have brains in your head and feet on your choose, you can steer yourself any direction you choose-can be both encouragement to elementary students, or high school students taking themselves-and life-too seriously."

"Explicit Teaching in Problem-based Mathematics offers a re-imagining of what it means to engage in "direct" instruction. Rather than a separate pedagogical approach, explicit instruction is an integral part of problem-based learning and instruction. Animation and video are used to feature educator moves that support students to "notice things they would not otherwise see." Think uncovering. Think making visible. "

"There have been complaints leveraged against out of the box robots like Dash and Dot, Ozobot, Hummingbird, Sphero. The complaints usually revolve around the canned and prescriptive nature of their uses and programs, that they lack creative engagement by the younger users. I personally love the excitement my learners have using these robots. As with all tools and technologies and with creative framing, though, they can be used in creative and imaginative ways. Mention robots to many English teachers and they'll immediately point down the hall to the science classroom or to the makerspace, if they have one. At many schools, if there's a robot at all, it's located in a science or math classroom or is being built by an after-school robotics club. It's not usually a fixture in English classrooms. But as teachers continue to work at finding new entry points to old material for their students, robots are proving to be a great interdisciplinary tool that builds collaboration and literacy skills. (How Robots in English Class Can Spark Empathy and Improve Writing) This past term, I had my 2nd through 4th grade students work on their robot-enhanced creative writing and stories. In small groups, students were asked to create a fictional storyline and use StoryboardThat.com to create both the physical scenes and the accompanying narrative. As part of their directions, they were told that they were going to create a 3D setting out of cardboard boxes, foam board, LED lights, and other craft materials; and that they would use Wonder's Dot with the Blocky App and Ozobot as the characters in their stories. Preparation time was divided between storyboarding, creating the scene, and learning how to use/code the robots. Because of all of the preparation and practice, the recording actually went quite quick and smoothly. Here is a break down of the learning events that learners were asked to complete:"

"Please, No More Professional Development! By Peter DeWitt on April 17, 2015 8:10 AM Today's guest blog is written by Kristine Fox (Ed.D), Senior Field Specialist/Research Associate at Quaglia Institute for Student Aspirations (QISA). She is a former teacher and administrator who has passion for teacher learning and student voice. Kris works directly with teachers and leaders across the country to help all learners reach their fullest potential. Peter DeWitt recently outlined why "faculty meetings are a waste of time." Furthering on his idea, most professional development opportunities don't offer optimal learning experiences and the rare teacher is sitting in her classroom thinking "I can't wait until my district's next PD day." When I inform a fellow educator that I am a PD provider, I can read her thoughts - boring, painful, waste of time, useless, irrelevant - one would think my job is equal to going to the dentist (sorry to my dentist friends). According to the Quaglia Institute and Teacher Voice and Aspirations International Center's National Teacher Voice Report only 54% percent of teachers agree "Meaningful staff development exists in my school." I can't imagine any other profession being satisfied with that number when it comes to employee learning and growth. What sense does it make for the science teacher to spend a day learning about upcoming English assessments? Or, for the veteran teacher to learn for the hundredth time how to use conceptual conflict as a hook. Why does education insist everyone attend the same type of training regardless of specialization, experience, or need? As a nod to the upcoming political campaigns and the inevitable introduction of plans with lots of points, here is my 5 Point Plan for revamping professional development. 5 Point Plan Point I - Change the Term: Semantics Matter We cannot reclaim the term Professional Development for teachers. It has a long, baggage-laden history of conformity that does not

"While on Twitter today this graphic caught my eye. It was posted by @MindShiftKQED linking to an article on their blog. The sketch itself was created by Sylvia Duckworth and it definitely caught my attention. I began to think about the kinds of professional learning we offer at Powerful Learning Practice and asked myself if we were honoring what teachers want. We are a small, intimate group here at PLP, but we have huge hearts and an extensive amount of combined experience both in and out of the classroom when it comes to pedagogy and future ready learning. No one works harder and thinks deeper than the folks at PLP who selflessly plan and offer the coaching, professional learning, e-courses, and products available on our site. I am grateful for each instructor's drive and ability to be self directed, conscientious and caring toward our clients. But I was curious if what we do we aligns with this list of teacher wants? And more importantly, should we? Was anything important missing from this list?"

"While the original layout for the app was quite straight-forward, Snapchat has now evolved into a jack of all trades. The app offers direct communication like texting, calling, video messaging, and more with friends and family in a one-on-one messenger style, lets people record and post their videos and photos to their Snapchat Story that last 24-hours while giving people the option to save their Snapchat Stories to their camera roll, and delivers current news and information from credible sources and entertainment sites like IGN, The Economist, Refinery29, Mashable, Harper's Bazaar, VICE, National Geographic, CNN, The New York Times, and so, so much more."

"Democratization of technological and data-driven enterprise are themes that are on everyone's lips. We've seen how top-down transformation, directed by business leaders working together with data scientists on strategically-aligned initiatives has the potential to create efficiencies, better understand business processes and predict problems before they occur. At least, if you are one of the still small number of businesses which is managing to do so successfully, you have. But imagine how much greater the potential for change could be if it could spontaneously emerge anywhere in an organization. When everyone has access to the tools, skills and knowhow to harness tech to do their job better, or drive efficiencies, then a workforce looks better equipped to deal with the challenges of the future."

"Formative assessment can take place before, during and after a lesson to give you valuable information for instructional decisions. A quick baseline quiz can help you identify what students already know about a topic before you start teaching a lesson. A backchannel can be used during a lesson to collect student questions and help you identify misconceptions. An exit slip after a lesson provides information you can use to decide the direction for tomorrow's lesson."

"SciShow Kids recently released a new video titled Let's Make Butter. The video provides directions for making butter in your kitchen then goes on to explain the science of what happens in the process of making butter."

"Our students are reading all day long-text messages on their phones, emailed directions about homework, apps from advertisers. They read what interests them and what helps make their world a more real, relevant, and relatable place to live. And we can tap into their interests to embed speaking, listening, reading, and writing in classes to help achieve content objectives."

"As an administrator, whenever I walk into a teacher's classroom, one of the first things I almost always subconsciously look for is whether or not the students are engaged in inquiry. However, telling a teacher, "Your students need to engage in more inquiry," is comparable to letting a comedian know she needs to be funnier or asking a pizzaiolo to make a better dough. And, vague directives in the absence of explicit instruction typically generate anxiety. To avoid these anxieties, and for progress to actually take place, we need to drill down to the nitty gritty and be as explicit as possible. In other words, we need to be explicit about being explicit and leverage specific strategies to comfortably move forward for the benefit of our students. With these thoughts in mind, I've been obsessing over inquiry's common denominators - the strategies or drivers we should always consider when implementing an inquiry-based lesson. That being said, here are the six drivers of inquiry-based learning. And, while I don't think every lesson or activity must have all six, I do believe that once we (and our students) become comfortable with an inquiry approach, all drivers will naturally find a way into learning experiences on a regular, if not daily, basis."

"Earlier in the school year my students created whole-class videos using our large green screen studio. While I assigned students a variety of tasks (director, camera operator, acting coach), my students spent the majority of their time on the carpet as an audience member. At the end of these units I wondered how we could increase student ownership of the production. Could I have my students create a green screen movie without having to play the audience member for large portions of the time? Could they be empowered to create a movie independently of the teacher? Could this be done by kindergartners and first graders? For most of the school year I struggled with these questions. That was until I met Brenda Windsor and Mary O'Neil of Trumbull, CT at the Fairfield University "Education Technology Collaboration Day" in March.  Brenda and Mary presented on how they have incorporated green screens in the classroom, and shared the idea of using a pizza box to make a miniature portable studio. Here is a link to the video they created.  From that moment, I was on a mission to have my K-2 students write, direct, film & star in their own collaborative group mini green screen movies. "

"Making animated videos is a great way for students to bring their written stories to life on screen. Those could be fiction or nonfiction stories. Some nonfiction animated video topics include making a video to illustrate a historical event, making biographies, and explaining complex concepts in simple animations like Common Craft does. In the fiction realm you might have students make an adaptation of a favorite story or an animation of their own creative writing. Whichever direction you choose, the following five tools offer good ways for students of all ages to make their own animated videos."

Lack of direction, not lack of time, is the problem. We all have 24 hour days.

"We are living in an age of Gen Z-ers who, as digital natives, are in tune with technological advances in communication such as social media, gaming, and conducting research almost exclusively using the internet. Their avenues for engagement are changing and teachers who are increasing STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) instruction in their classrooms are exploring ways to incorporate more hands-on, immersive learning experiences that combine innovative technology with real-world connections. The motivation for doing so? To see their students' active participation in experiments and projects, as well as strengthening the four Cs to 21st-century skills: Critical Thinking, Collaboration, Communication, and Creativity.  Teachers have a variety of ways to help them expand what they already do with STEM. More teachers are including the study of robotics in their STEM curriculum because it introduces students to coding and programming. As students work through these key tech skills for building their robots and directing their movements, they're also growing their "4 Cs" skills. Let's look at how. "

"And whether you're dead set on quitting Twitter and never coming back, or you're waiting to see how the near-future shakes out, here's how to grab an archive of your tweets, photos, direct messages, and other activity-and then delete your account once you're ready. That way you can remember the way things were, no matter what lies ahead."