Twitter with 4th Graders

This week, I took on a large task. I have opened up my personal time to my students and Twitter. With long discussion and rule creating, I opened up their world to using Twitter. We are using Twitter as an educational supplement for students to ask questions, receive help and study new skills while they are home. We are still in the infant stages of Twitter use. I have 5 students involved at the moment. We only follow each other... kind of a closed circuit Twitter use.
I am finding these students love the fact that they have the ability to ask questions the night before the quiz. They love the interaction with me as their teacher while they sit at home at their computer. They are taking a social networking site and using it for educational purposes.
This is foreign to many 4th graders. I have spent the first half of this school year laying the groundwork for digital responsibility. This is not an easy task. Sadly, some 9 and 10 year olds think of social networking sites as a place for gossip and rumor creating. I have spent much of this time showing the learning aspect of these sites.
As of now, our Twitter community gets it. We have had great conversations about topics discussed in class. I helped a nervous student find links to help him study the night before his math quiz. The next day, he thanked me over and over again. In the infant stages, this is working better than I would have ever imagined.

School Year Goals

I like posting my yearly teaching goals in this forum. It gives me a chance to share some of my ideas and serves as a checklist to myself for reflection at the end of the school year.
1. Listen to Every Student Voice...
Sometimes the best instructional ideas come from the students themselves. I love to live by my own modo... many voices are better than one. Too often, teachers become stuck in a muddy ditch that I like to call stagnate instruction. When this occurs, learning also becomes stagnate.
2. Use the Power of Global Learning and Sharing...
Students love to share what they are learning with other students their age. Why not make it a global audience? Along with this idea, we need to also learn globally. Learning from other cultures puts ours in perspective.
3. Help Students Own Their Work...
Students tend to perform at a higher level if they have ownership of the product they create. It's hard to own a worksheet. They didn't create it, and they have seen far too many in their life time. I want to create authentic learning from authentic creations. I hope the last sentence made sense.
4. Create an Atmosphere of Trust and Respect...
I would love to have a learning environment where everyone, teachers and students, trusted and respected each other for their ideas. I will do my part by not talking at students, but create conversations in which they have a voice along with mine. I feel it's important to talk to students as if they are young adults and not baby's.

There it is, my goals. I bet these goals look a bit different from an administrators goals. We will see how successful I am with sticking to these goals. To all teachers, I invite you to list your goals. I would like to read some of your ideas. Until next blog...

New Position

I was just hired at a new school for a 4th grade position. I am stoked. I am finally back in the classroom with ONE class. The possibilities are endless. Many ideas are floating through my mind. I haven't had the opportunity to work with one class with all of my many ideas yet. This should be great.
I plan to make this an opportunity for collaboration among the students, teachers and parents. My ideas are still quite foreign to most educators in my school system, however it's changing slowly.

Oh yeah, I don't know what all the iPhone hype is about. I know I may ruffle some feathers with that statement, but I just purchased a Blackberry Curve for $150 that does everything. This phone takes pictures, video, voice recording, works as an mp3 player, has e-mail alerts, VZ Navigator which is better than GPS, voice dialing, an awesome browser, and also works as an air card for my laptop. I can't figure out how to get it to make coffee.
Why spend the money for an iPhone? I don't know.

Busy Summer

I never thought that I would be so busy over the summer that I wouldn't have time to write. I have had a little time to read. Working a job over the summer has allowed me to visit friends that live in other states, go to some concerts that I enjoy and not worry about money as much. Now, I have a month off until the school year begins.
I received a phone call about a week ago informing me that I am being involuntarily transferred. It's a seniority issue at the school. Needless to say, I have no clue where I will be teaching again. I somewhat enjoy the mystery... I think. It keeps me on my toes. I have a few interviews lined up this week and will bring my ever-growing resume. I have no clue what position I will be interviewing for, but at this point it doesn't matter. I have taught 4th grade, I have been a technology teacher, and have taught Science to 2nd -5th grade. I think they can find a spot for me.
I should have more time to write in the coming months. I have partnered up with a friend to get the website project launched... what a job. Much more difficult than once thought.

T#@%?&r... Not a 4-Letter Word

I spent much of my time yesterday discussing a students grade with a parent. The student never turned in an assignment due a month ago. The student claimed to turn in the assignment, but I know he didn't. The parent wanted to know why the child had a "C" for his Science grade. I thought I explained it very well. I guess I didn't. I simply explained that his grade was not going to change and that was the end of it.

I was supposed to be straightening my classroom to get it ready for a long summer break. Needless to say, I didn't have much time to do this.

Too often I see parents that seem to side with their child rather than the teacher. I guess this is a natural bias. I question where this stems from. Does the parent really believe their child? Is the parent questioning the teachers motives? Has the parent had negative interactions with other teachers?

All of these questions are valid. I tend to think they all play a role. I don't necessarily blame the parent in this situation. This parent may have a negative view of teachers. Teachers are a big part of students lives... negative or positive. As teachers, we need to be as professional as possible, hold all bias thoughts and give every child a chance to learn in the best environment possible. This does include following through with our words. Students need to be held responsible for their actions and their work. If a student does not turn in an assignment, they need to be held responsible.

Responsibility seems to be a lost trait. The parent has the upper hand. They know they can walk into a school to get their child's grade changed. If we want to teach responsibility, we need to stick to our words, be fair, not give in and be professional.

Until next blog...

What do you mean, Your Pen is out of Ink?

Many years ago, when the first ink-filled pen was invented, people found something wrong with the new technology. The pen would eventually run dry of ink... where would that leave you? The old technology was just simplified a bit to include a writing tool and the media in which became visible on paper. This was all included in one neat package for consumers to purchase. Everyone needed to have a supply of pens available just in case theirs ran out of ink.

Along came the calculator. Now this made people really upset. You mean to tell me that all you have to do is hit a button and find the answers to difficult math problems? Once again people found something wrong with this technology. If people relied on calculators to figure these problems out, what would happen if they needed an answer and there was no calculator?

Now comes the old saying... History repeats itself. This couldn't be more true. Along comes the computer. The computer is not only used for finding information, but also for publishing in the 21st Century. Now this enraged people. You mean that you can hit a few buttons and find every important historical event that happened on August 12? You mean that you can also publish writing for the world to see in a few minutes? You mean with the same tool, you can pay your bills, find a hotel, shop for Christmas, complete a research project, publish your knowledge, find directions to anywhere, visit any location in the world, and talk to anyone via streaming video? What would happen if we didn't have access to a computer?

I began thinking of this a few days ago. I had a few conversations with different people about a broad range of subjects.



Example A:
A friends cousin just returned from West Virginia University, where he switched majors from Engineering to Business. I asked him why he switched majors and he replied "Engineering was just too hard". This sparked a conversation about the content he was learning to become an engineer. It was a long conversation, but the short version is... the 4 years is spent learning the hard way to do calculations to ridiculous math problems. His question was, "Why would I want to spend 4 years learning how to do calculations that would take me a few minutes to do once I become an engineer. They spend the 4 years deriving equations and completing formulas without the use of the computer or even calculators.

Example B:
A conversation the other night with a few teachers led to a discusion about Wikipedia. One teacher said, "All of my students call themselves DOING RESEARCH, when they get all of their information from Wikipedia and other websites". I said "What do you call it"? She continued with explaining to me how the kids are lazy and doing research today is just too easy.

It seems that there has always been a deep routed issue with society embracing a new technology. The same people that were upset with the invention of an ink pen are now upset with the invention of the computer. These new technologies make doing certain tasks easier. So what happens if you don't have these technolgies? I don't think that is a valid question. We have these technologies, and they are here to stay. Whether I am at work or at home, I have a computer with an internet connection. That means I have a calculator and a pen that doesn't even use ink. Changes in technology will always occur. We need to embrace these technologies and not be afraid to rely on the power that they have.

It's been a while

Since I have written here. The school year is closing down and I have been working 40 hours a week with another job, trying to pay off some debt and get my MED in Instructional Technology. Been very busy. I have been reading occasionally, but mainly working, eating, and sleeping. Been so busy, I didn't even attend the MICCA Conference in Baltimore. I usually go each year for the 2 day conference. Oh well, I'll catch it next year.

I've already approached Administration with my plans for next year. My hopes to spend part of my day with a school wide Wiki Project seems to be coming true. Right now, I am using the Wiki for informational purposes, but plan to get students involved next year. I am preparing our returning students for what they will be involved with next year. Most are very excited.

I will hopefully be writing more in the weeks to come. Until next blog...

Prove Yourself Boy!

The latest attempt to regulate online content has reared its ugly head in the form of a false pretense. Of course, it's all about freeing up bandwidth, so that everyones computer will operate a little faster. Can someone tell me how accessing a blog will slow things up.

Yes, I have been waiting for the day, my own blog has been blocked by our school system. I knew this day was coming. While I was at a training one Friday at a Highschool in another County in Maryland, all blogs were blocked. Waiting to start the training, I tried to access my aggregator to read my blogs. What? Pageflakes is blocked? I laughed, thinking that my own district would never do this.

The difference seems to lie in whether your blogging site is deemed a "social networking site" or a "learning networking site". My district has blocked all "social networking" sites. I guess Blogger is considered social. Oh well. We all know how schools think of being social. 90% of the day, students aren't allowed to talk.

I contacted our tech. guy and told him that I sometime use my professional blog in my class to show students the methods in which I learn on a daily basis. I know he is just the messenger, so I am not upset with him. I also know that this was not a personal attack on me. The tech decision makers didn't get together and say "We have to get rid of this guys blog, he's spending too much work time on it". However this may have went down, I am somewhat disappointed in our school system. When they want to block sites from use for the employees and students of the district, they need to think of what they are actually blocking. When they block whole categories, they need to think of the message they are sending to the teachers and the students. Blocking is saying "WE DON'T TRUST YOU". Not only do they have trust issues, but blocking some of these sites are doing our students a disservice in the classroom. Especially in a classroom like mine. I tend to use many sites to engage students on a daily basis. My options are beginning to be limited. I hope they don't block our WIKI. This would make many students revolt. I don't think the district wants 200 3-5 graders knocking on their door with questions :)

Any way, enough with a rant. Now it is down to me proving that my Blog is educational. What exactly does that mean? How do I prove this? Do I need to invite some Board Members into my classroom on a day that I share an aspect of my Personal Learning Network? Should I invite each of you to a Board Meeting to show them how many people I learn from on a daily basis by being "social"? I don't know the answer. But I need to find one quick.

Help! From the Network

My mother has been an Art teacher for 37 years. She is still teaching Sculpture and Ceramics in a High School setting. She approached me today with a few questions...

1. How can I get my students to listen when I give direction?

2. What type of 21st Century activities can I incorporate in my curriculum?

I relayed to her the importance of being involved in a Network on the internet. She is very interested in using tools such as blogs to refresh her teaching and engage the students. I came up with many ideas. I mentioned the importance of letting the students have a voice in her class. I mentioned that she should have a student ran classroom instead of her always teaching them how to do everything. She liked the idea, but seemed hesitant.

Now, I am asking my network...

Does anyone know of any good blogs or resources my mom could use to answer some of her questions?

THE HOLE: Where's My Rope To Climb Out

I have made many changes with my teaching methods this year. I have approached teaching and learning more as a journey rather than an end product. I have almost completely ended my use of worksheets. I have graded students on participation throughout projects. I'm focusing my efforts on having students become part of the learning process without a focus on the end product. In doing this, I have gone against the socially accepted methods of teaching. I have come to a few conclusions.

1. Parents do not want this change to occur.
- Parents are used to graded worksheets coming home so they can monitor grades on a daily basis. It is easier to have this type of communication. There is no conversation with the teacher. They see a paper with a number recorded at the top. They label their child according to that number. If it gets too low, they might contact the teacher.

2. Children have a hard time with this change.
- Throughout their years of being in school, they have become accustomed to the socially accepted methods of teaching. They are used to this. Entering my class, they have been taken out of their comfort zone. They have to exercise their brain. They have to actually think. It's much easier to fill in the blanks on a worksheet.

3. Administrators do not want this change to occur.
- They see this change going against their ultimate goal... great test scores on the State Tests. Rewarding students with a grade for an end product is the protocol that is the norm. They don't want to answer questions from parents. They want everything to go nice and smooth.

So I am left with a decision to make. Do I continue to try to climb out of this hole that the education system has dug for the past 100 years? Or do I give in to the Parents, Students, and the Administrators?

I am convinced that authentic learning is taking place in my classroom. I see students understanding concepts, questioning ideas and enjoying coming to Science. I am right now trying to find a happy medium in which will make everyone happy. This is the hard part. This is where I am asking for help from the network. If anyone has any powerful ideas, please feel free to comment.

Until next blog...

Photo Credit: Flickr Elliot Stahl's photostream :
Dave Stahl climbing out of Bugger Hole

Proactive Not Reactive

What I see occurring is reaction instead of pro action. We are continually losing engineering/science/math related jobs to the citizens of other countries. We were not proactive in our answers 15 years ago when this started. Are we now reacting to something that is far out of reach?



My district has created a partnership with The Navy Surface Warfare Center in Indian Head, Maryland. They joined forces with each other in an effort to motivate students to get interested in these fields. We have piloted a few co-teaching lessons with the engineers from NSWC. I did the lesson with a 3rd grade class. After 2 weeks discussing safety features and building egg catchers, we had the partnership lesson Friday. I think the lesson went well. Along with me and the engineer, 2 people from NSWC, a Board member, Administrators, a camera man and the Technology Teacher were all present at this lesson. It was quite a packed Science room on Friday. The hard part of the lesson was trying to relate what we did in class to what the engineer discussed. Relating egg catchers to cockpit ejection seats was not that easy. But it worked.

The engineer relied on me to bring the conversation back to the 3rd graders. I think it is hard for a Naval Engineer to come into a 3rd Grade classroom and relate directly with the kids, unless they have had some experience with this. The students seemed interested and had many questions for the Engineer.

Now that some praise is out of the way...
I do have some concerns.

The partnership, like I said before, is a result of the District and the NSWC wanting more students interested in these fields. I just don't understand how they are going to accomplish this. Students are tired of looking at PowerPoints. The PowerPoint Presentation is the most overused application in the school system. Students are tired of being talked at. They want to have a voice. Bringing in an Engineer to talk to the students is not going to get them interested in becoming an engineer. Most of these students cannot see this in their future. It is not real to them.

I believe we need to change the methods of our teaching first. We need to give the students a way to express how they feel. We need to listen to them. We need to talk with them, and not at them. We need to present ourselves as learners also. We need to let them know that their voice is just as powerful as ours. We need a collection of voices to make learning more powerful to everyone. We need to invite schools to be more proactive instead of reactive. Until this changes, I don't see the students changing. Until next blog...

Emphasizing the Process

Opening up my reader, I came across a great post by Carolyn Foote about what we celebrate.

" We celebrate the visible things, like winning teams or competitions, academic test scores, etc. But are we celebrating equally our daily academic successes? Are we celebrating lessons that work, transformative uses of technology tools to deepen understanding, a classroom that has struggled and is now finding its way intellectually?"

She definitely asks some great questions in this post. I added a somewhat wordy comment to her post which is below...


"Great Post. Celebrating the process almost never happens. We always reward and celebrate the final product. This happens as a theme in our society. What I have found to be successful…I explain to students “why” we are doing certain activities. I teach Science to 2-5 graders. Even with their young age, I feel that it is important not only to tell them “why” they are learning what they are learning, but “why” I am teaching the way I am teaching. Getting the students involved in my thought process begins to get them involved in the teaching process. Students begin to feel as if they are teachers also. They have an honest inside perspective as to the questioning aspect of teaching and learning. The process has been emphasized rather than the end product. The students have become more interested in how they learn as well as what they learn. Just as I question ideas, students are open to question ideas. Last week, a 5th grader decided to question “why” we were coming up with ideas to fix the beach erosion problem in Ocean City, MD, if Ocean City had already began fixing the problem. This began a 10 minute discussion with the class. Instead of sounding like a group of 5th graders talking about a topic, they sounded as if they were a group of environmental/geologic engineers discussing land conservation and ethics. It was a powerful 10 minutes. To sum things up…Until teachers make the process important, we will continue to celebrate the end product."

The entire education system is built around rewarding the final product. I believe we need to start getting honest with our students. Getting honest involves explaining "why" we are teaching the way we teach. Bring the students into the teaching process so they can own how they learn. The students can then question the process as well as the outcome. If something doesn't work, bring the students knowledge into the equation. Have the students come up with teaching ideas that they think will better enhance their learning. This sounds time consuming, but I think once the students understand their role in the learning and teaching process, real learning will bloom. Students in my science class have become more engaged in each lesson. I invite questions about the process. They dig that they have a voice. Until next blog...

Credits: Carolyn Foote's blog "Not So Distant Future" post What do We Celebrate?

Online Predators?

It brings evil images into ones head. When I hear the phrase, I automatically think of a middle-aged man sitting in his basement, waiting to spark up a conversation online with a child. Television shows like "To Catch a Predator", reveal that these are people that we may interact with every day.

This is a new report from American Psychologist, a journal of the American Psychological Association.

The report, Online ‘Predators’ and Their Victims: Myths, Realities and Implications for Prevention, sure does put a new twist into the definition of an online predator.

Many eye opening statistics are revealed in this report... You can read it for yourself.

This brings up the importance of education when it comes to children using the internet. How can we expect a child to make decisions about what information not to share online? This would be compared to sitting a child in the seat of a tractor, and telling them to plow a field without any knowledge of how the tractor operates. They would obviously make many mistakes before they figured it out. This is what we are doing with the children.

Online predators are not going anywhere. I'm sorry to say, but they are here to stay. As children continue to use tools online at an earlier age, these types of instances will continue to occur. If parents are not willing to educate their children about online relationships, someone has to. Is this the job of schools? I would argue that it may be.

I tend to integrate knowledge of online child participation into my science classes on a daily basis. We have conversations as to how to properly use the internet, what information is safe to give, and what information you should never give out. I lead by example, explaining to the students how I publish information online. I show them my blog, use wiki's, and speak of what is acceptable to publish. I explain the digital information trail that one leaves behind on the internet.

These are conversations that need to happen in schools. Until next blog...

Do Something About it

Are the majority of teachers happy with the public school system?

I ask myself this question periodically. As I talk to educators, I get the feeling that they don't enjoy their job. I make it a point to always ask teachers... "How's your day going". I usually get the response... "As good as it can go, I guess". I get the feeling that many teachers have no interest in what they do at school. They from time to time act as if they care... (like when they are at a meeting, talking to an administrator, or talking to a parent). It seems like a front that is put on for the people they need to answer to. I think it is interesting when teachers act different when someone "important" is in the room. What about the importance of the "students".

I hear teachers complain about testing, students, and the amount of work they do, but never see them doing anything about it. What are they doing to make their job easier and make more sense. Are teachers questioning the infamous "tests"? Are teachers finding new ways to create more time? Are teachers really understanding the issues of their students?
I don't have the answer, but would imagine that some teachers are doing these things. I get frustrated when I hear teachers that I like to call "the complainers". They always complain, but do nothing about it. They talk about how many years they have before they retire. They blame everything on the students and parents. They talk about students openly with other teachers in the lounge. They label students based on the test scores.

What happened today...
I came close to walking out of our staff meeting. We were sitting in groups. We were given 2 pieces of paper each... The test scores, grades, and interventions of 2 students (one 2nd grader and one 5th grader... names weren't included). The students both had decent grades, but horribly low test scores. We were told to basically figure out what was going on with these students. I was disgusted. I raised my hand and said... "the only information this paper tells me is that these students don't like taking tests". I went on to say... "There is no way to know what types of intervention will be needed unless you know the student". We continue to label. Students have become a set of numbers with no name. Of course, many teachers agreed. Why was I the only teacher that spoke up?

The real reason for the meeting...
Showing the teachers that some of us may not be teaching toward the test. Hey guys... "Don't teach to the test, but you have to teach to the test". I love the way administration tries to sugar coat everything. I do know one thing... you can cover a rotten egg with powdered sugar, but no matter how you swing it, it's still a rotten egg. This is how I feel about whats going on. We love to make everything look like it's alright, even though it's not. I thinks it time that we start calling a spade a spade. Do something about it. Until next blog...

Adding Darfur to the Curriculum

On a daily basis, I enjoy reading about what other teachers are doing in the classroom. A fellow Tweeter has, with another teacher, raised the bar in the classroom. Mr. Mayo has initiated a project to help spread awareness of the genocide taking place in Darfur. He is inviting students from around the world to participate. Many Voices for Darfur is designed to make it easy for students around the world to participate in the 48 hour blog project. Comments will open at midnight eastern Standard time on March 6, 2008. As of right now, there are 3 teachers on board... Mr. Mayo , Mrs. Drexler , and Mr. Moses.
Mr. Mayo and Mrs. Drexler initiated the project with their third and eighth grade students.
A wiki has been created to help spread the word and organize thoughts. The wiki is quite informative, including resources and del.icio.us links to browse.

Relevance...

Being that our own Government has overlooked this crisis in the Sudan Region of Darfur, it is refreshing to see that there are teachers attacking the subject.


Google Earth image of Destroyed Villages in the Darfur Region

It's great to know that there are teachers spreading the word in a meaningful way. Our Government doesn't seem to care about the crisis, but it seems as though some teachers and students will let the world know.

Building Walls

The Wall, Andy Goldsworthy, originally uploaded by wdelauder2002.

Being a teacher really gets me worked up. The teaching part I love. I was in a great mood all day today. We started new long-term projects in 3rd, 4th and 5th grades. The students were excited to get started and I was looking forward to the ideas they would present. However...

Tuesday is faculty meeting day. The agenda stated that we would be over viewing the new "Gifted Education Program". I had questions before the meeting even started, but I waited until they did their dry Power Point Presentation (When will this get old?) while I yawned.

My beef...
1. The whole presentation was a justification for why we can't label students. Am I going crazy here. Through the whole presentation, they did nothing but label students. This is what we do. We put students into categories based on learning levels, economic status, color, gender, MSA scores etc. Students are a number.
2. I asked the question... What will happen to students that may be a discipline problem, but are extremely gifted in certain areas? The answer was political. I received answers that bounced around the actual point and seemed to mean... they don't have a chance.
3. I asked another question... What will happen to the students that are labeled average, but are extremely gifted in one or two areas? The same political answer followed by... "We don't know yet".
4. The first criteria used to "nominate a student" is their MSA (Maryland State Assessment) scores. The top 10% in the County will be considered for nomination. What about the students who don't care about their scores on this dry test, but are extremely gifted?
5. There will be a maximum amount of students selected from each school for this program. What happens if the school has more students that are gifted than the number allotment?
6. There was no mention of how technology/ Web 2.0 literacy's will play a role in these students altered curriculum. They mentioned "Junior Great Books". Man, I read these when I was in the "gifted program" in elementary school 20 years ago. They have nothing better than this today?

After all was said, the presenter stated that this plan is not final, and it may change. Thanks. You mean to tell me that I wasted valuable time to learn about a plan that may not even be initiated? I could have spent this hour doing my actual job... Preparing to teach my students. With all of this spatter, I still do love my job... the teaching part anyway :)

Are we Actors?

Today, just like many days, I spent about 2 hours completing tasks that had little to do with student learning. These are days that I do not enjoy. I am due to be observed by one of our administrators. The lesson needs to have a focus on Math. I am a Science Teacher, so this shouldn't be a difficult task to pull off. However, at the present time, I am teaching the Earth Science Unit to all 4 grade levels... landforms, weather, erosion, global warming etc.

The timing is not good. Rather then staying on pace (suggested order of lessons), I was asked to stray away from the focus with one class so that I could be observed. I was told... "See what you can do about adding Math skills into this lesson". Needless to say, I had to write up a completely different lesson that has little to do with the curriculum just to get observed.

In the words of Will Richardson... Aaaarrrggghhh!!!!! (I hope he doesn't have the copyrights to that expletive)
This gets my blood boiling. I would rather be observed unannounced. Isn't this the point. Observe the teacher and the students in a natural, uncontrived(not a word) environment. Why would an administrator want to see a Dog and Pony show? Why do I feel the need to put on an act for the administrator? This is what they want, right? Are we actors that need to put on a show for the administration? Many questions, but no answers.

This scenario changes from school to school... I know. Some administrators do come in unannounced. I would like to hear from other teachers that have been put in a similar situation. Or maybe hear from some administrators that would have given me some better options. I feel as though we do not have the best interest of the students in our sights when these types of situations occur. This is a confusing message being sent out to teachers and students.

Lost with Freedom

I have written many posts on this subject. Offering freedom to students in the classroom tends to lose most students. By losing students, I mean many students completely shut down and refuse to do the critical thinking involved in completing the assignment.

One of the greatest teachers I have had the privilege to work with gave me many ideas to open the minds of students. J. Jones was the Reading Resource Teacher at the school in which I began my teaching career. After listening and borrowing many of her ideas, students began to be more engaged. The students also began walking down the path to being life-long independent learners.

Great Independent Learner Activity: J. Jones (Thank You)
The Free-write or Focused Free-write

I still use this at least once a week with my students in different forms. Being a science teacher, the lessons can be engaging, but soon you find yourself in what I like to call the "Fill in the Blank Rut". I don't like going to that place. This activity has a broad range. I had the 4th graders write a focused free-write as if they were a meteorologist. There are not many rules to this activity. This can be challenging. Students are used to rules.

The rules:
1. They must discuss the terms and ideas that we discussed about weather
2. They can write no more than 1 page.
3. Time limit of 15 minutes

I like giving the students a Maximum amount to write rather than a minimum... another J. Jones idea. This tends to allow their writing to be a little more meaningful and directed.
There are no other rules to mention. They can write any genre as long as they use the point-of-view of a meteorologist.

Reasoning:
I like to give the students a chance to show me how much they are learning on their own terms.
Examples (Titles) of their work...
1. The Rapping Meteorologist
2. The Mystery of the Missing Anemometer
3. The Angry Low Pressure System
4. The Confused Weather Vane

This is a great activity that most students love to do... especially when it's time to share. Some students shut down and say that the activity is too hard. They do eventually come around and grind away at writing with a little coaxing from their friends.

Is Cloning Legal?

As I walk through school every day, I wonder how we get away with what we do. A fourth grade teacher reciting words in sentences for a spelling test... A third grade class in a straight line waiting for a bathroom break... A fifth grade teacher having their students work on a word find while checking their e-mail... a Kindergarten teacher spending hours after school cutting out shapes (I guess students can't do this anymore)... Instructional Leadership Teams having meetings about the best way to teach to the test (shhhh... were not supposed to say that)... Administrators more worried about you having your Emergency Substitute Plans turned in than how you may be involving your students in the learning process.

These are just a few of the mindless/arbitrary/innate activities that occur in an elementary school on a daily basis. This leads me to ask the question... What are we teaching our students?

While our world is going through the most fundamental changes that have ever occurred in regards to how we receive and relay information, our education system is stagnate.

We are creating student clones with minimal creativity, old technology use and 200 year old methods. Students are left to wonder (why?) they attend school. I often think of a similar question... why did I have to go to college to teach?

The majority of educators want to do what is best for the students. I know I do. Teaching is my job. This is how I make my living. I try to separate my personal life from my profession. Somehow, it always leads me back to this blog and the many other blogs that I read. I have actually found a road that is paved with the knowledge of learning, sharing and creation. The knowledge growth and reflection that has taken place in my life since I have been exposed to web 2.0 tools, surpasses any college education that I have received. We need to expose students to this world. It's a world they are already exploring without any guidance at home in their personal lives. They need guidance to make sense of the new literacy's that are available to them on the Internet.

Some questions to ponder...

1. How do we as teachers change the lives of our students?

2. What changes can we make to provide optimum growth in creativity?

3. As teachers/students, HOW do we learn?

4. As teachers/students, HOW do we teach?

5. How can we make a difference in our education system?

Learning how to think

Using the ultimate tool available to us is becoming a lost art in our schools. As I go about teaching every day, I am confronted with this epidemic. The majority of the students that I have contact with have lost the ability to think for themselves. Creativity, uniqueness and independence have some how disappeared as fast as the car phone. I don't know if these characteristics and abilities were ever present.

I witness many trends that may cause this in our education system.

1. Teachers spend entirely too much time preparing for lessons with the wrong approach. Instead of spending time thinking of ways in which they can help the students discover ideas on their own, time is spent cutting shapes, copying worksheets and preparing most of the work for the students. The students just need to fill in the blanks.

2. Our school system is still teacher directed, with every move (even what to say) mapped out for every lesson. Some teachers do not fall prey to this monotony, but the majority do out of fear of reprisal from the administration.

3. In the average school day, too much time is spent on wasteful activities... bathroom breaks, discussing rules, needless assemblies, and parties for behavior that should be expected.

4. The use of outdated textbooks and what "they" call LEVELED READERS has become the norm. These books couldn't be more boring. They are all the same size. They all look the same. They have the same ridiculous questions at the end of the story. The students are not interested in any of the topics. How can we expect the students to enjoy reading?

5. The majority of educators still do not use web 2.0 tools in their teaching. The power of Wikipedia alone is overlooked and thought of as not accurate enough to use with our students.

Our students do not have the chance to think. I use the analogy of playing a sport. To be a successful athlete, a person must practice the sport in which they are interested. The practice time put into the sport should, over time, improve the persons ability to play this sport. This is analogous with the sport of thinking. If students do not practice the process of critical thought, how can we expect them to improve their thinking ability?