Summer Learning... Rekindling my enthusiasm for learning and teaching...

At the end of June, everyone was so tired.  At our school, the staff were exhausted and ready for the summer break.  June was not a time to be thinking about best practices and tech integration.

Just a couple weeks later, I am back on track... I am, once again, enthused about teaching and learning.  I have taken a few days to investigate tools/strategies that I had previously placed on my back burner.

Here are a few things I am exploring/discovering...

Planboardapp.com

...an invaluable lesson planning tool
...plan day by day for each course
...attach current curriculum expectations with ease for every lesson as necessary
...create templates to be used in each course
...can publish and share as well as search for others' lessons
...can print pdfs - would be great for those covering your classes during absences

...

Desire2Learn Binder app

With the growing emphasis on tech integration, blended learning and the availability of Desire2Learn LMS, I was so excited to find the D2L Binder app. Students will be able to save files from d2l course into their "Binder".  Once in the app, students will have options to annotate the documents for own use/learning.

CK12.org

I have had the privilege of being chosen to be part of a team that is creating a CK-12 "flexbook" to be used in our district for our grade nine math students. This site has a multitude of ready-resources.  And even better than that, each resource that can be added to your "flexbook" can be customized to your preferences.

This digital text capability has so much promise because interactive and video components can be embedded.

I envision combining these tools to create a (somewhat) paperless math class in the fall.  Students will access course materials in D2L including the course text designed at ck12.org.  They can add these materials to their "Binder" and then review and practice in the Binder app environment.

Summer is a great time to follow up on ideas/strategies.  I am so excited about teaching all over again.

Gr 8 Transitions Visits to SJAM

I am very fortunate to be involved in the planning and delivery of our transitions visits for grade 8 students intending to come to SJAM in September...
In addition to tours of our facilities and observations of key elective classes, we offered the students the opportunity to voice their thoughts/concerns.

We gave them a google survey to let us know what " A good teacher will" do.
See the survey...
We used their voice to create this wordle.



On a projector, the students used their own devices and accessed Todaysmeet.com (live for a bit longer at http://todaysmeet.com/SJAM) to inform us about what "A good student will" do.


On laptops, students could post a sticky at padlet.com to give us information about how we could help them adjust to SJAM.

Created with Padlet

Our last station was a large paper for a marker graffiti activity... we asked "what clubs and Activities would you like to do when you come to SJAM?" I will post some images soon... 

One more school... tomorrow.  I will update all of our info after that!  :)

This has been a great experience! 

All of this info will go a long way to inform our activities in the new school year.

'Whatever it takes'

A student is "in risk". He is failing more than one class. Life at his home is far less than adequate. He has asked for help. To some it may not appear that he is looking to improve his academic situation and ultimately his life circumstance. He has no positive adult role models in his home life. At school, naturally, he looks to his peers.  He perhaps sees a glimmer of an alternate future in a couple of adults that he chooses to trust. But how?  how does a young teen make the decision to turn on all that he knows so that he can follow a path that leads away from his family, away from his friends, away from poverty, drugs and gangs?  He asks for help.. but clearly knows not what to expect or what lengths he needs to work through.   Some adults in the building have long since given up on him.

I admire his courage. I know he will have setbacks. He needs to know that he has support. I can only imagine that it cannot be easy for him particularly when other adults put up barriers for this teen.  They don't know it, but any "small" barrier, could change his motivation to make a difference in his own life.

I have learned that for success with teens we need to embrace the "whatever it takes" attitude.

Preparing a proposal for ecoo13

Been developing a proposal to submit to ecoo13 in October. I want to share the successes we have been experiencing in our Reach Ahead blended learning program.

Blended Learning is Amazing!!!

I have the privilege of teaching a true blended learning grade nine math class in inner city Hamilton, Ontario.  The students are grade  8 students that travel to our high school 3 mornings (75 min each) each week.  The other two days, the students are expected to login into the Desire2Learn platform available throughout Ontario.

So many reasons to be excited...
- online learning included web based games, activities, quizzes, investigations, polling
- tech integration including use of iPads and computers - or even the students' own devices
- addressing multiple learning styles through use of interactive whiteboard, videos, collaboration, etc

I could go on...

All the while, not only are my students enjoying new and different learning experiences, I continue my quest to continually expand my teaching repertoire with the hope to engage more learners.

"Embrace Life Long Learning"

My other learning in this endeavour... D2L - new for me
I have been using Edmodo for a couple years now and have always been very happy with the results.  D2L is a  new experience for me - and I am also enjoying it.  More to come.

Twitter inspires!

so.. I don't make it to my twitter account nearly enough.

I checked in today and ... thanks to George Couros I came across this video...

We do not compliment each other enough.
Each person is an intricate treasure that we need to value and appreciate.
I wonder if my school can make a strong character initiative like this happen...

Westhighbros is an inspiration!