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amacrae

The Third Teacher - 1 views

shared by amacrae on 19 Nov 16 - No Cached
  • 2Getting Started with the Physical EnvironmentOVERALL ...It is both an art and a science to design (as opposed to decorate) a learning environment that responds to our ultimate goal as educators – to develop independent and rigorous thought. Therefore, if we want to foster discovery and reflection, dialogue and the sharing of ideas, the overall physical environment should include:•A large gathering space for whole-group work and discussions, located near whiteboards, easels and/or projector screens.•A gathering space for small-group and whole-group discussions – where students can see clearly the representations of learning that are posted on boards or screens and hear classmates as they share ideas.•Flexible and reconfigurable space for small-group collaborative work and inquiry – space must allow for groupings of various sizes, such as pairs, triads and groups of four or more.•Desks and tables configured to facilitate discussion by allowing eye contact with peers and teacher, the unencumbered flow of traffic and enough space for students to write collaboratively.•Active areas for inquiry, investigation and wonder and quiet areas for thinking and exploring technology – all areas need to be accessible to students for communicating and documenting their own learning (e.g., computers, computer software, tablets, digital cameras and video recorders, document cameras, interactive white boards).•Instructional materials organized in such a way as to provide easy selection and access for all students – materials may include computer software, educational web sites and applications, found materials, graphic organizers, newspapers and other media, resource texts, etc.FOR MATHEMATICS ...Mathematically literate students demonstrate the capacity to “formulate, employ and interpret mathematics” (OECD, 2012, p. 4); they view themselves as mathematicians, knowing that mathematics can be used to understand important issues and to solve meaningful problems, not just in school but in life. By extension, the physical environment for mathematics learning should include: •Spaces where students can use manipulatives to solve problems and record their solutions.•Board and/or wall space to display student solutions for Math Congress and Bansho – student solutions should be easily visible from the group gathering space.•Space to post co-created reference charts such as glossary terms and past and current summaries of learning that specifically support the development of the big ideas currently under study.•Instructional materials organized in such a way as to provide easy selection and access for all students; may include mathematics manipulatives, calculators and other mathematical tools, mathematical texts, hand-held technology.FOR LITERACY ... Today’s literate learners experience “a constant stream of ideas and information” – they need strategies for interpretation and making sense and lots of practice in identifying meaning, bias and perspective (Ontario Ministry of Education, 2009, 2006). By extension, the physical environment for literacy learning should include: •Spaces where students can talk, listen, read and write.A place for wonder, mystery and discovery ...“We need to think about creating classroom environments that give children the opportunity for wonder, mystery and discovery; an environment that speaks to young children’s inherent curiosity and innate yearning for exploration is a classroom where children are passionate about learning and love school.” (Heard & McDonough, 2009)
  • maintain that the key to learning in today’s world is not just the physical space we provide for students but the social space as well (
  • A large gathering space
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  • mall-
Marcie Lewis

Designing Spaces for Creativity « Creativity & Innovation - 0 views

  • paces that are flexible, adaptable, and reconfigurable by the users: students and faculty Shared spaces that foster connections and conversations, both planned and unplanned. This means rethinking hallways, lobbies, and stairways, so that they aren’t just places to pass through, but places where collaboration and learning happens Spaces that inspire Spaces that make it easy to create things–with materials, sketches, whiteboards–wherever you are, without having to go to some other space to be creative
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    Interesting post about a group of artists, furniture designers, architects, teachers that are looking at how to design spaces/classrooms for Creativity. 
Justin Medved

http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/eng/literacynumeracy/inspire/research/CBS_ThirdTeacher.pdf - 1 views

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    Designing the Learning Environment for Mathematics and Literacy, K to 8 Imagine the ideal learning environment for today's learner. What would it look like? Think about how much the world has changed in the last three decades and how rapidly it will continue to change in the years to come. How do we ensure that the instruction we provide is responsive to the shifting demands of the 21 st century? Researchers and practitioners in a wide range of disciplines - early childhood and developmental education, psychology and cognitive science, school architecture and design - maintain that the key to learning in today's world is not just the physical space we provide for students but the social space as well(Fraser, 2012; Helm et al., 2007; OWP/P Architects et al., 2010). The learning environment, they suggest, is "the third teacher" that can either enhance the kind of learning that optimizes our students' potential to respond creatively and meaningfully to future challenges or detract from it. Susan Fraser, for example, writes: "A classroom that is functioning successfully as a third teacher will be responsive to the children's interests, provide opportunities for children to make their thinking visible and then fosterfurtherlearning and engagement." (2012, p. 67)
Justin Medved

DESIGNING LEARNING SPACES - Part 1 | gregmiller68 - 2 views

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    Is your school thinking about its learning spaces? A great resource.
Lisa Bettencourt

The Science of Effective Learning Spaces | Edutopia - 5 views

    • Jason wood
       
      This is important.
    • Lisa Bettencourt
       
      Yes! It's a great resource.
  • Daytime Light Exposure Can Boost Learning
  • 21,000 U.S. elementary students showed that, over one school year, kids who were exposed to more sunlight during their school day displayed 26 percent higher reading outcomes and 20 percent higher math outcomes than kids in less sunny classrooms.
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    Wow - that is interesting research!
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    Was thinking of the best way to redesign my classroom and our school classrooms yesterday, thanks for the article a great starting point.
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    Fascinating! Thanks for sharing!
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    Very interesting article. I plan to share this with the iSTEAM team at my school!
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    Very interesting to me as we plan new learning spaces and look at effects of lengthening recess breaks for more outdoor time.
d_rutherford_8

5 Strategies to Deepen Student Collaboration | Edutopia - 2 views

    • d_rutherford_8
       
      In order to make collaborative tasks authentic, we have to make them complex enough that working together makes sense.
  • One way to do this is through rigorous projects that require students to identify a problem (for example, balancing population growth in their city with protection of existing green spaces) and agree—through research, discussion, debate, and time to develop their ideas—on a solution which they must then propose together.
  • We have to help students understand the what, why, and how of collaboration. We can do this in several ways:
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    • d_rutherford_8
       
      It's not enough to just force student groups; we have to get them to see the benefits of collaboration and what successful collaboration looks like. It's important for us to teach them these skills.
  • Design meaningful team roles that relate to the content and to the task.
  • assessing students both individually and as a group.
  • individual accountability
  • small groups
  • evaluate their own participation and effort
  • Many group projects are based on efficiency, dividing labor to create a product in the most effective way possible. This focus on the product means that we often ignore the process of collaboration.
    • d_rutherford_8
       
      Focus on the process in addition to the product to see how students have benefitted from the collaborative process.
  • Collaboration should not just strengthen students’ existing skills but ensure that their interactions stretch existing knowledge and expand one another’s expertise.
  • we want to ensure that students don’t just occupy the same physical space but that they share an intellectual space—that they learn more, do more, and experience more together than they would alone.
Justin Medved

Assistive Technology - Chrome Toolbox - 0 views

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    "This collaborative space was created to celebrate the many Apps and Extensions made by developers which serve the accessibility needs of individuals with disabilities. Although Google already highlights accessibility features built into the Chrome browser or through add-ons, we have collected numerous other free tools that we feel further contribute to that mission. To this end, we have developed this searchable resource to locate tools that serve the particular challenges anyone might face while working in Chrome. On the right, you will find more information about this site, including definitions of terms and more information about the Chrome browser and assistive technology. "
Justin Medved

7 Great Chromebook and Google Drive Apps for Editing Photos ~ Educational Technology an... - 1 views

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    For any school that is playing in the Chromebook space these are some handy alternatives.
garth nichols

Launching a Makerspace: Lessons Learned From a Transformed School Library | MindShift |... - 7 views

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    A great story of How-To create Maker spaces...
Derek Doucet

What Project-Based Learning Is - and What It Isn't | MindShift - 3 views

  • For Terronez, the goal is to always connect classroom learning to its applications in the outside world.
  • If you inspire them to care about it and draw parallels with their world then they care and remember,”
  • takes a lot of diligent planning by the teacher to design projects that give students space to explore themes and real-world resonance to make it meaningful for them. And it takes trust in the students, as well.
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  • hen students arrived on the first day of school they found an empty classroom. The first project Terronez asked his students to undertake was designing their own learning space, one that would support experience-based, collaborative learning.
  • Terronez asked his students to design an iPod app that would solve a real-world problem. They came up with an idea, designed the display icon, figured out how users would navigate the app, prototyped sample tabs, then pitched their mock-up to an audience.
  • In a project exploring air pressure, Terronez’s students built their own hovercrafts using a leaf blower as the engine. When the hovercrafts worked, the students designed 3D representations of themes from “Freedom Fighters,” a Discovery School education video about racial struggles featuring the stories of Nelson Mandela and Martin Luther King. Their creations were featured in a hovercraft parade on Election Day.
  • Take a look at High Tech High art teacher Jeff Robin’s video explaining the difference between project-oriented learning and project-based learning.
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    A good explanation of the importance of rooting learning in authenticity. It would be interesting to explore this all with the different lenses of TPACK, TIM, SAMR
vcivan

Making Innovation Routine | Garth Nichols - 1 views

  • The idea is to understand the challenges facing teachers and students today, and to design solutions and share them
  • making innovation routine by providing engaging questions both in class and out, and providing a space, resources and inspiration to pursue and explore answers to these questions.
    • vcivan
       
      What strategies and/or tools have you used to develop innovative routines to your everyday classroom?
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    Innovative ideas around routines
Carolyn Bilton

20th vs. 21st Century Teaching | My Island View - 1 views

  • Collaborative learning, which has always been with us, has been turbo-boosted by technology
  • Collaboration now has no boundaries of time and space. Collaborative learning can take place anytime and anywhere
  • Technology now provides the means for student-centric lessons.
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  • We cannot hold them responsible for learning, if we don’t teach them the skills of learning
  • get our students familiar with having a voice in personalizing their learning
  • This student-centric learning strongly supports lifelong learning. It creates independent learners and thinkers. It is a learning-by-doing philosophy.
  • Technology is a driving force for much of the student-centric learning. We need our educators to be at the very least literate in this relatively new digital literacy
  • We need to prepare this generation not only to learn, but also to think critically as well. Learning and thinking are a far cry from listening, memorizing and regurgitating facts
garth nichols

What Students Will Learn In The Future - 0 views

  • ust as advances in technology enabled the growth of science, the extremely rapid growth of technology we’re experiencing today is impacting our perspectives, tools, and priorities now. But beyond some mild clamor for a focus on “STEM,” there have been only minor changes in how we think of content–this is spite of extraordinary changes in how students connect, access data, and function on a daily basis.
  • What kind of changes might we expect in a perfect-but-still-classroom-and-content-based world? What might students learn in the future? Of course any response at all is pure speculation, but if we draw an arc from classical approaches to the Dewey approach to what might be next–factoring in technology change, social values, and criticisms of the current model–we may get a pretty decent answer. This assumes, of course a few things (all of which may be untrue): 1. We’ll still teach content 2. That content will be a mix of skills and knowledge 3. Said skills and knowledge will be thematically arranged into “content areas”
  • The Content Of The Future: 8 Content Areas For Tomorrow’s Students 1. Literacy Big Idea: Reading and writing in physical & digital spaces Examples of traditional ideas and academic content areas included: Grammar, Word Parts, Greek & Latin Roots, The Writing Process, Fluency; all traditional content areas 2. Patterns Big Idea: How and why patterns emerge everywhere under careful study Examples of traditional ideas and academic content areas include: Grammar, Literature, Math, Geometry, Music, Art, Social Studies, Astronomy 3. Systems Big Idea: The universe—and every single thing in it–is made of systems, and systems are made of parts. Examples of traditional ideas and academic content areas include: Grammar, Law, Medicine, Science, Math, Music, Art, Social Studies, History, Anthropology, Engineering, Biology; all traditional content areas by definition (they’re systems, yes?) 4. Design Big Idea: Marrying creative and analytical thought Examples of traditional ideas and academic content areas include: Literature, Creativity, Art, Music, Engineering, Geometry 5. Citizenship Big Idea: Responding to interdependence Examples of traditional ideas and academic content areas include: Literature, Social Studies, History; Civics, Government, Theology 6. Data Big Idea: Recognizing & using information in traditional & non-traditional forms Examples of traditional ideas and academic content areas include: Math, Geometry, Science, Engineering, Biology; 7. Research Big Idea: Identifying, evaluating, and synthesizing diverse ideas Examples of traditional ideas and academic content areas include: English, Math, Science; Humanities 8. Philosophy Big Idea: The nuance of thought Examples of traditional ideas and academic content areas include: Ethics, Literature/Poetry, Art, Music; Humanities
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    Great article to frame long term planning. What aspects of learning in the future do you already do? Set one as your goal for implementation next year...
garth nichols

The Secret Skill Behind Being An Innovator | LinkedIn - 0 views

  • Let’s look more closely at what is happening, conceptually, when we make an analogy. “The essential requirement for analogical thinking,” Holyoak and Thagard write, “is the ability to look at specific situations and [] pull out abstract patterns that may also be found in superficially different situations.” That’s important, so I’ll say it again in a slightly different way: A useful analogy reveals the deep commonalities beneath superficial differences.
  • What does this allow us to do? The scientists Kevin Dunbar studied used analogies, first, to formulate hypotheses that they could then test. Their thought process went something like this: If we know that X does Y when Z, is it possible that A does Y when Z, too? Let’s find out. That’s often how innovations get their start, in the lab and elsewhere: by taking a familiar starting point and using it as a launch pad to explore new territory.
  • The appearance in the transcript of words indicating uncertainty, such as “maybe,” “I don’t know,” and “I don’t understand,” was often followed by an attempt to draw an analogy—to compare the ambiguous situation to a situation with which the scientists were familiar.
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  • At such moments, the scientists were employing analogies as different sort of bridge—a conceptual catwalk that provides just enough space to move forward and keep searching for solutions. As Schunn writes: “Scientists and engineers do not always seek to completely eliminate uncertainty (and indeed, sometimes it is not possible to do so) but often drive problem solving with the aim of converting it into approximate ranges sufficient to continue problem solving.”
  • To aid in finding just the right analogy, it helps to have a deep pool of potential targets. The Boston Strategy Group, a consulting firm, has created an online gallery of sources of analogical inspiration for its consultants and their clients to use. We can do this, too—bookmarking or pinning websites that inspire connections, keeping a folder of ripped-out articles or pictures from newspapers and magazines. A class or a workplace team can create a shared repository of analogical targets.
  • The best use of an analogy, as we’ve seen, is as as a bridge—and once we’ve crossed over the bridge, we can leave it behind.
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    Great article for why analogies are important
agregson

String (Java Platform SE 7 ) - 1 views

  • str =
    • agregson
       
      This is a reference to an object of type String
  • "abc"
    • agregson
       
      This is a String literal; Java allows us to initialize strings this way rather than use the constructor: String str = new String("abc");
  • String()
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  • charAt(int index)
    • agregson
       
      This method allows you to access a String as if it were a char array; note that there is no "set" method, since strings are immutable.
  • int indexOf(int ch, int fromIndex) Returns the index within this string of the first occurrence of the specified character, starting the search at the specified index. int indexOf(String str) Returns the index within this string of the first occurrence of the specified substring. int indexOf(String str, int fromIndex) Returns the index within this string of the first occurrence of the specified substring, starting at the specified index.
    • agregson
       
      Very useful for string processing.
  • split(String regex)
    • agregson
       
      This method is very useful!  If you don't know what a regular expression is, try splitting around " " (a single space) or ",' (a comma).  It will save you much time when reading in data. 
  • String substring(int beginIndex) Returns a new string that is a substring of this string. String substring(int beginIndex, int endIndex) Returns a new string that is a substring of this string.
    • agregson
       
      Commonly used for string processing, in concert with indexOf()
  • trim()
    • agregson
       
      Useful when trying to determine if strings are equal.
garth nichols

If School Leaders Don't Get It, It's Not Going to Happen | Eric Sheninger - 2 views

  • For those educators and schools that are either resistant to or unsure about using social media, I challenge you to move from a fixed to a growth mindset to create schools that work better for kids and establish relevance as a leader in your district, school, or classroom.
  • Begin to strategically utilize an array of free social media tools such as Twitter and Facebook to communicate important information (student honors, staff accomplishments, meetings, emergency information) to stakeholders in real-time. Consistency aligned with intent is key.
  • Take control of you public relations by becoming the storyteller-in-chief to produce a constant stream of positive news. If you don't share your story someone else will and you then run the chance that it will not be positive. Stop reacting to public relations situations you have limited control of and begin to be more proactive. When supplying a constant stream of positive news you will help to mitigate any negative stories that might arise.
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  • Establishing a brand presence should no longer be restricted to the business world when schools and districts now have the tools at their fingertips to do this in a cost-effective manner. Simply communicating and telling your story with social media tools can accomplish this. When you do, the brand presence develops solely based on the admirable work that is taking place in your district, school, or classroom.
  • Connect with experts, peers, and practitioners across the globe to grow professionally through knowledge acquisition, resource sharing, engaged discussion, and to receive feedback. This will not only save you time and money, but will open up your eyes to infinite possibilities to truly become a digital leader. Who would not want to tap into countless opportunities that arise through conversations and transparency in online spaces? Don't wait another second to start building a Personal Learning Network (PLN).
  • If you are an administrator, stop supporting or enforcing a gatekeeper approach and allow educators to use free social media tools to engage learners, unleash their creativity, and enhance learning. Hiding behind CIPA is just an excuse for not wanting to give up control. If you want students that are real world or future ready, they must be allowed to use the tools that are prevalent now in this world.
  • Schools are missing a golden opportunity and failing students by not teaching digital responsibility/citizenship through the effective use of social media. We need to begin to empower students to take more ownership of their learning by promoting Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) and the use of mobile learning devices if schools do not have the means to go 1:1. By BYOD I don't mean just allowing kids to bring in and use their own devices in the hallways and during lunch. That is not BYOD. Real BYOD initiatives allow students to enhance/support their learning experience, increase productivity, conduct better research, and become more digitally literate.
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    Administrators in Education...please read!
Derek Doucet

7 Homework Assignments That Guarantee Learning and the Secret Sauce That Makes Them Wor... - 0 views

  • 1 – Read from a self-selected novel
  • With reading as our most important out-of-class activity, my average student read more than 25 books each year.
  • 2 – Read an article, blog post, or other content on a social network
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  • What if teachers leveraged social media and other Internet content? Encourage students to read a bevy of items from their favorite online spaces. Steer them to content related to your class. Challenge them to locate something thought-provoking. Imagine the discussions that might ensue.
  • 3 – Talk about X on Twitter, Facebook, or Pinterest
  • 5 – Write a song, paint a picture, or design a building
  • 6 – Play a game
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    Making learning a normal part of their day...
garth nichols

http://archive.constantcontact.com/fs184/1102752268498/archive/1122580804441.html - 1 views

  • In my mind, a solid 4 rating means that your adult professional embraces feedback, both formal and informal and has strong systems and processes in place that encourage feedback - things like annual faculty,  parent, and board surveys, intentionally designed evaluation processes for students, faculty, staff and leadership that happen at minimum annually, but even better quarterly, regular audits of programs, curriculum, pedagogy, time and space.  Other good signs that your culture supports feedback might be meetings that end with questions like, "How are we working together as a team/department?" and "What can we do to get better at this work?"  and school leaders who ask their reports with genuine curiosity,  "What can I do to better support your work?"  "What do you think about this idea?" or "How did this meeting go for you?"
  • What if you spent a week "playing anthropologist" with the following question in mind: "What evidence do I see that our adult community has a strong culture of feedback?" 
    • garth nichols
       
      Love these questions of educators!
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  • pend some time with colleagues. Ask them questions about their classes.  See how many times you hear someone ask questions like: "What do you think about this?"  "Will you come by my class and let me know what you think about this lesson I am teaching?"  "How can I/we do this better?"  Attend meetings with this question in mind.  How receptive are team members to feedback they get in meetings?
  • talk Feedback Without Frustration.  This 15 minute video offers some key habits and practices that designers (and educational leaders in their roles as experience designers) can adopt in order to make feedback more meaningful, especially when presenting a new idea or product and much of which can be applied to feedback - both formal and informal.  A few tips include:taking responsibility for the feedback you are gettinggoing after the kind of feedback you wanthaving a designated facilitator for more significant processeshaving goals for the project that you can use to make the feedback more helpfulnot confusing what you like/don't like with what is good/bad(most importantly) just getting better at talking to each other.
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    For those of us who lead teachers; for those of us who seek feedback from others; and for those of us who want to buid a culture of sharing and feedback, this is a great read!
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