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What is most important?

I was recently reminded of something one of our principals used to say. When teachers were stressed out about all the many things they are required to do, he would always bring it back to the students by asking what is the most important thing your students need from you today? As we look at the world that our students will graduate into, what are the most important things for us to focus on to help them be successful? Is it reading, writing, and arithmetic? Well no one can argue that reading, written communication, and math are still important. But in what context? Do we use math in the same way we used to? How is the math we use impacted by programming, AI, ... How is reading impacted by the Internet, media, bias, lateral reading? How is writing changed by online collaborative tools, multimedia, blogging, etc...? There are so many ways that our basic skills have changed over the past 30 years.Helping our students access, curate, analyze, summarize, communicate, problem solve, r
Recent posts

Sprinting in the Classroom?

In the world of software development, there is a movement towards using a "Sprint" as a way to improve productivity. The basic idea is that a development team meets and agrees on a work outcome. They are given a short period of time to build their product. They then meet to show the group their outcome. They get feedback and set up another sprint to adapt their work based on the feedback. I have been chatting with groups of teachers about the power of sprints in the classroom. Here is an example of what we have discussed: Instead of giving students a long period of time to work on a project, try giving them a very short period of time (5-10 minutes) to sketch out their product. Then share it with a partner and get feedback. Now give them time to reflect on the feedback and adapt their sketch to the feedback. Continue this cycle of work/feedback/reflect multiple times.  Here are a few reasons why this process works better than just giving them the longer period of wo

Create!

As part of the New Year, I have been setting some goals for what I want to accomplish this year. One of my goals is to spend more time creating. So I thought, I should dust off the ol' blog and get started again! We often fear creating because we open ourselves up to judgment. But creating is how we put ideas into the world. It is how we turn them on their axis and look at them from different perspectives. And yes, it is how we present them to others to get their thoughts and feedback. My hopes are that writing will spark some creative thinking for myself, while also sharing my thinking and learning with others. I hope you will join me and set a goal of creating something, anything, this year. What are your hidden talents? Woodwork? Paint? Play Doh? Whatever it is, it's time to flex your creative muscles. Work them and develop them! Everyone is creative, but only through practice do we become better at it!

Supporting the Positive Potential of Social Media

Each year, I have the honor to work with parents at many of the schools I support. One of the most important and engaging conversations is usually centered around Digital Citizenship. Parents are concerned, at least, about the impact that technology and social media, specifically, are having on their kids. I have been working on how to turn the discussion from what might go wrong to what can we do to make sure things go right with social media. I have seen the power of social media to provide an amazing audience to the work that students are doing. Here is the presentation I have put together. As always, I welcome your feedback!

Recommended Reading #3

How Technology Trends Have Influenced the Classroom The iPad as a hammer: Moving from goals to tools What have iPads done to my room?!...Come Take A Look Teachers’ Most Powerful Role? Adding Context And Then?

Recommended Reading #2

A Guidebook for Social Media in the Classroom 12 Ways Teachers are Using Social Media in the Classroom Right Now http://www.edutopia.org/blog/guidebook-social-media-in-classroom-vicki-davis 'Genius hour': What kids can learn from failure http://www.cnn.com/2014/03/09/living/genius-hour-education-schools/index.html Why "20% Time" is Good for Schools Great explanation of why 20% is so important! http://www.edutopia.org/blog/20-percent-time-a-j-juliani?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=post&utm_campaign=blog-secret-of-genius-shared-image 19 Tips, Tricks and Apps for Classroom Management Some great ideas about how iPads and other tech tools can be used to help manage a classroom. http://classtechtips.com/2014/02/20/19-tips-tricks-and-apps-for-classroom-management/ 12 Ways to Leverage the Power of Google Drive in Your Classroom Instruction A great overview of the many ways that Google Drive can be used in the classroom. http://www.educatorstechnolog

Recommended Reading #1

Here are some things I have been reading recently that have really made an impact on me: Great post about some ways to use Explain Everything. I loved the idea of using it for mind mapping! http://kulowiectech.blogspot.com/2013/06/explain-everything-x-4-ways.html Great things to think about as you start thinking about using creation tools! http://www.edudemic.com/learn-while-creating/ I love the way Justin uses the idea of Someday/Monday. I like to tell teachers think big/start small, but I might have to change it up! http://blogs.kqed.org/mindshift/2013/07/potential-and-reality-the-ipad-as-a-tool-for-creation/