Arnold Schwarzenegger Video

"Don't be afraid to fail." This quote from the video makes me think about myself and my colleagues and how we must be willing to embrace the ever growing and changing technology and new apps and programs that we can use in our classrooms with students. We have to accept that some of what we try may not be successful, but many things we might try will be. We have to understand and accept that and be willing to move forward. I also feel that in many ways teachers in the Lindbergh School District do understand this. This is why we are number one. Arnold also says that if we do not try, then someone else out there is "working harder, getting smarter, and winning." Right now we're the district that I feel is working hard and getting smarter. However, if we slow down and do not continue with the growth and things we have accomplished, then other teachers and other districts might surpass. I like the quote he ended with..."You can't climb the ladder to success with your hands in your pocket."

Free Space - Pinterest

I LOVE Pinterest. And, I love it even more now that I have organized my boards! Until recently, I had a small number of boards titled with academic subjects like "Math," "Science," "Literacy," etc. These boards each had hundreds of pins. I was unable to use Pinterest as efficiently as I could because I could not locate resources hiding in these boards. I made it my job to "undo" this mess by creating boards with more specific titles and fewer numbers of pins. I feared the job would take me weeks, but because of my Pinterest obsession, I managed it in just hours. My board titles now include:

Reading - Building the Reading Community, Guided Reading, Connections, Sequencing/Summarizing, Visualizing, Inferences, Cause and Effect, Story Elements, Schema and Synthesizing, Nonfiction, Poetry, Reading Notebook

Writing - Letter Writing, How-To Writing, Writing Notebook, Persuasive Writing, Writing Skills, Spelling, Vocabulary

Math - Addition, Subtraction, Place Value, Multiplication, Division, Time, Money, Measurement, Graphing, Fractions, Geometry

Technology - Technology in the Classroom, Digital Library

I also have boards for family communication, holidays, assessment and self-assessment, beginning and end of the year, classroom management, and more.

You can view my boards here: http://pinterest.com/pmc5h3/

My love of Pinterest has grown since this "cleaning." I am now using its resources even more, as I am able to save and find items. My hope is that this application will continue to improve. Because I now have so many boards, I would love to be able to "collapse" them into categories like one does on an iphone with apps. For example, the categories I have listed above. I hope this resource continues as I can see myself using it in future as so many resources have been saved.

Consuming Audio

During my first year teaching I did not use too much audio in the classroom, but so far this year, I have slowly incorporated it more and more. I started using Pandora, because it is a resource I am familiar with and have an account for. Sometimes during writing time I would play a soft classical station. I feel that it creates a peaceful writing environment. It also served as a management tool for keeping voices quiet - ability to hear the music. And...my kids really enjoy it! As the holiday season approached, I begain playing a station called "Instrumental Holiday." This was fun for students who were getting VERY excited about the holiday break.
I'm beginning to think about how I can use audio more specifically with our curricular content. For example, in the fall we learned about ecosystems and the rainforest. On a few days during work time, I played a youtube audio clip of rainforest sounds. Students also really enjoyed this and it brought some of our learning "to life." I hope to continue to think about new ways and methods in which to consume audio in the classroom. While students are interested, I feel that I enjoy it, too.
After our last session, I created a Spotify account, but I have not explored it further. I will continue to explore audio and its use with my students as I begin the new year!

Free Space - Twitter

I have had a Twitter account for quite some time, though it is something I never used or fully understood the purpose of. That was probably due to the mass numbers of tweets from friends that would fill up my home page. At that time, I did not see how Twitter could be such a wonderful professional learning network. After "cleaning" my Twitter account, I have successfully started following professionals and educators. I actually utilized google as a tool for searching for the best professionals to follow as an educator ("educators to follow on twitter"). I found numerous lists of information like "Top 50 Educators to Follow" and "Free Technology for Teachers: 10 Teachers to Follow on Twitter." I also found articles like "Every Educator Should be on Twitter!" While I am only beginning my "new" Twitter journey, I am excited about the possibilities of this professional learning network. I am already finding myself opening the app more frequently and using it. I hope to learn new things by using Twitter in a more professional manner.

Diigo List

I have created a diigo list called "Family Communication." Several resources are bookmarked which include handouts I have already sent/given to parents this year regarding reading and/or other learning at home. I also discovered these great reading newsletters which explain to parents the different comprehension strategies we are working on and how they can support their child by practicing and discussing with them. I have linked this diigo list to my school wires website as a sort of archive for parents to access these handouts that they may have tossed out or can no longer find in my first email attachment. The handouts can be accessed anytime, and as we move to new skills, old ones can be referenced and continued.

Why Kids Need Schools to Change

This article was indeed thought provoking. At times I even found myself laughing or thinking "yeah right!" For example:
"In an ideal world, the school day would reflect kids’ changing needs and rhythms. There would be time for free play; school would start later to allow time for students’ much-needed rest; the transition time between classes would be longer, allowing time for kids to walk down the hall and say hi to their friends and plan their next moves; kids would have the opportunity to step away from school “work” in order to regroup and process what they’ve absorbed. “The actual encoding of information doesn’t take place when you’re hunched over a desk,” she said."

I guess that's why the article states, "But until the directive comes from those in power — national and state policymakers, superintendents, principals..." There's nothing I can do as a teacher about making those changes. I have to think about WHAT I CAN DO. I can try and incorporate the latest technology and make learning engaging and rewarding. I can explore the suggested "Five Criteria that Challenge Success."

1. Project-Based Learning
My education program at Mizzou was this and I loved it! I understand because I'm not the best test taker myself. I was able to perform and showcase my knowledge. I was extremely successful.

2. Alternative Assessment
My daily frustration!!! I have a couple students who tank my eValuate average every month! No, they are not performing at a third grade level, but they are learning and progressing.

3. Scheduling
A high-school memory of frustration...tests all on one day!

4. Climate of Care
Something I think we do well. :-)

5. Parent Education
Many parents do not VALUE their child's education and it shows! There is way too much screen time! A balance of play, exercise, and schoolwork is needed. At 24 I feel I'd be a more competent parent than so many who are. Parent education is important!

That's my soap box on needed school change.

Using Facebook in the Classroom

After reading the blog post "8 Real Ways Facebook Enriched Ms. Schoening's First Grade Class" I thought about the ideas suggested that I am already using with my classroom Facebook page as well as new ideas I might try. For example, as the teacher, I am the only one that currently posts on our page on behalf of our class. I never thought about letting my students post to the page, showing it to them, and making them more a part of it...our class page instead of my class page. I have some questions though that were not clear in reading the post. Do the students post via her log in (i.e. "Miss Chapman's Class"), or do they have a seperate log in like "student" or do they each have their own log in to post on the class page? How does that work as they cannot have Facebook being under 13. I'd like to know more about the methods used for having students contribute and post to the page.

I have been using the photo albums to post pictures of students working and learning as well as student work. However, I need to begin to do it more frequently now that we have iPads. I think utilizing the "notes" section for students to publish a piece of writing is an interesting idea for sharing and something I may think about in the future.