The other day I was bustling about a second grade classroom assisting them in finishing up their Keynote presentations on a famous American they had chosen to research about. In this classroom there happens to be one particular student, let's call him H, that is very tech savvy for his age. H was sitting on one side of the room zapping along swimmingly on his slideshow. I was on the other side of the room working with another student.
Below is the conversation that transpired between H and I across the room.
H: Mrs. B!
Me: Yes H? What's up?
H: I deleted it!!!! Help!!
Me: What did you delete?
H: The picture. You know? The box that we put the picture in? (In second grade words this means the picture placeholder)
Me: It's ok! Just click on the picture you want from your picture folder and drag it anywhere on the white space. Then you can move it around and change the size if you want.
H: ......... (silence, picture an adorable, little boy staring at you with a very blank look)
Me: H? Do you understand what I am saying?
H: I...have...no idea...what...you are...talking about! (imagine big dramatic pauses in between the words)
Me (trying not to laugh at the dramatics): It's ok! I am on my way over to you H!
Lesson to all: You might think they are tech savvy. You might think they will know what you mean. Be prepared for that blank look and the cry of "Help"!
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Team Work Makes the Dream Work (Slice of Life Story Day 2)
"Team Work Makes the Dream Work!" my husband jokingly said the other night while we were watching TV. On the show we were watching there was a sign hanging in the background that promoted teamwork. I laughed out loud at the saying as I honestly have never heard it before.
But isn't it true? Doesn't teamwork make the dream work?
I believe so! Every day there is a team of people that work together to make learning happen in our schools. From teachers to administrators, bus drivers to custodians and parents to students it takes a community working together for learning to occur.
I, for one, would be lost without my team supporting me!
But isn't it true? Doesn't teamwork make the dream work?
I believe so! Every day there is a team of people that work together to make learning happen in our schools. From teachers to administrators, bus drivers to custodians and parents to students it takes a community working together for learning to occur.
I, for one, would be lost without my team supporting me!
Monday, March 1, 2010
Undercover Education Administrator
Over the past few weeks I have been watching Undercover Boss on CBS with great interest. The concept of the show is that top CEOs of major corporations go "undercover" in their companies to gain a better understanding of the day-to-day operations and how they can improve their companies overall. I was skeptical at first at the thought of this concept. Would the CEOs really notice anything, own up to problems in their companies or make significant changes?
Not only did these CEOs complete their "undercover" tasks, but they all stepped up to the plate to address what they witnessed and experienced. All of them have made adjustments to the operations of the companies and most of them have added programs/ opportunities for employees to benefit from.
So this got me thinking......what about the idea of Undercover Education Administrator? I know, the title doesn't sound as smooth. But, the concept is an interesting idea. I wonder what administrators would see, or become aware of, that they wouldn't normally in their role.
Just a thought.....
Not only did these CEOs complete their "undercover" tasks, but they all stepped up to the plate to address what they witnessed and experienced. All of them have made adjustments to the operations of the companies and most of them have added programs/ opportunities for employees to benefit from.
So this got me thinking......what about the idea of Undercover Education Administrator? I know, the title doesn't sound as smooth. But, the concept is an interesting idea. I wonder what administrators would see, or become aware of, that they wouldn't normally in their role.
Just a thought.....
Day 1 of Slice Of Life Challenge
Some of you may have heard about the fabulous Slice of Life month long writing challenge that has been put forth by two amazing teachers over at Two Writing Teachers. I encourage you to jump on board and give it a try like I am!
Day 1 of Slice of Life Challenge
I woke up this morning feeling a little sad that I was back from a trip to visit my Grandma. It was great to see her, spend time with her and help my family out also. But, it was difficult in the same breath. My Grandma suffers from Alzheimer's Disease and talking with her gets harder and harder for me and more frustrating for her. The wonderful thing though is that so far (knock on wood) she's retaining memories from long ago. So when we visit we usually fall back on those beloved, treasured moments she does remember.
One of my fondest memories of visiting my Grandma when I was little was when we got to go to Eat N Park for dinner. At the end of the meal I would be allowed to get the FAMOUS Smiley Cookie. I'm talking amazing stuff here people! Of course, I would always ask for the purple icing because purple is my favorite color.
On this most recent trip I wanted to honor this memory and have something that could bring this memory to the forefront of my mind. I bought a Smiley Face Cookie travel mug. So after waking up a little sad I poured the happy nectar of coffee into my travel mug and a smile stretched across my face of those happy memories of times with Grandma.
Day 1 of Slice of Life Challenge
I woke up this morning feeling a little sad that I was back from a trip to visit my Grandma. It was great to see her, spend time with her and help my family out also. But, it was difficult in the same breath. My Grandma suffers from Alzheimer's Disease and talking with her gets harder and harder for me and more frustrating for her. The wonderful thing though is that so far (knock on wood) she's retaining memories from long ago. So when we visit we usually fall back on those beloved, treasured moments she does remember.
One of my fondest memories of visiting my Grandma when I was little was when we got to go to Eat N Park for dinner. At the end of the meal I would be allowed to get the FAMOUS Smiley Cookie. I'm talking amazing stuff here people! Of course, I would always ask for the purple icing because purple is my favorite color.
On this most recent trip I wanted to honor this memory and have something that could bring this memory to the forefront of my mind. I bought a Smiley Face Cookie travel mug. So after waking up a little sad I poured the happy nectar of coffee into my travel mug and a smile stretched across my face of those happy memories of times with Grandma.
Thursday, February 18, 2010
The Innocence
I had a moment today that is just too cute to not share with everyone! Hope you don't mind!
A group of kindergarten students came into our computer lab for the first time this year. Our system is set up that each student has an account to use to log into our computers. So, the teacher had made an index card for each student with their first name, last name and password. She explained to them that they needed this to log into the computer so they could use them.
They all came tromping into the computer lab this afternoon with glowing faces clutching proudly in their little hands their index cards. And then I see out of the corner of my eye........
one of the kids inserting his index card into the CD/DVD slot!
I asked him what he was trying to do by putting the card in and his response was "We need to put it in to use the computer". He looked at me like I was crazy! We then had a nice chat about how he would need to type the information on the card on the computer Needless to say, he was a little deflated about how much more work that was going to be rather than just sticking his card in! If only it could be that easy!
Ahhhh, the innocence of young children!!
A group of kindergarten students came into our computer lab for the first time this year. Our system is set up that each student has an account to use to log into our computers. So, the teacher had made an index card for each student with their first name, last name and password. She explained to them that they needed this to log into the computer so they could use them.
They all came tromping into the computer lab this afternoon with glowing faces clutching proudly in their little hands their index cards. And then I see out of the corner of my eye........
one of the kids inserting his index card into the CD/DVD slot!
I asked him what he was trying to do by putting the card in and his response was "We need to put it in to use the computer". He looked at me like I was crazy! We then had a nice chat about how he would need to type the information on the card on the computer Needless to say, he was a little deflated about how much more work that was going to be rather than just sticking his card in! If only it could be that easy!
Ahhhh, the innocence of young children!!
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
Digital Storytelling with Kindergarten friends
Earlier in the year I created a post about Kindergarten students learning how to use Pixie through allowing them time to explore and play. Taking that time paid off BIG time recently when I had the chance to work with them again using Pixie to create stories.
As we all know little Kindergarten friends don't quite have the handwriting capabilities yet to write out stories. But...boy, do they have some stories to share! I heard stories about everything from pizza to Indiana Jones to playing tag with friends.
These little friends are just starting to learn about the craft of storytelling. The first session we worked together students were creating a drawing and then their story was something like “This is a picture of a cave.” The teacher and I chatted later that day and we discussed the importance of starting to talk to them about basic elements of a story: characters, setting, beginning, middle and ending. The second session we focused on having a quick class discussion to remind everyone of the elements and then made sure to have each student practice telling their story before recording it. At times it was helpful to guide students storytelling with some simple leading questions like:
Who was there?
Where were you?
What happened next?
Now, these stories are still on the basic level, but we could tell they got the idea of the difference between telling about the picture and telling a small story.
Here are a few examples to listen to and enjoy!
Snowman by Sarah from Mary Brothers on Vimeo.
New Clothes from Mary Brothers on Vimeo.
As we all know little Kindergarten friends don't quite have the handwriting capabilities yet to write out stories. But...boy, do they have some stories to share! I heard stories about everything from pizza to Indiana Jones to playing tag with friends.
These little friends are just starting to learn about the craft of storytelling. The first session we worked together students were creating a drawing and then their story was something like “This is a picture of a cave.” The teacher and I chatted later that day and we discussed the importance of starting to talk to them about basic elements of a story: characters, setting, beginning, middle and ending. The second session we focused on having a quick class discussion to remind everyone of the elements and then made sure to have each student practice telling their story before recording it. At times it was helpful to guide students storytelling with some simple leading questions like:
Who was there?
Where were you?
What happened next?
Now, these stories are still on the basic level, but we could tell they got the idea of the difference between telling about the picture and telling a small story.
Here are a few examples to listen to and enjoy!
Snowman by Sarah from Mary Brothers on Vimeo.
New Clothes from Mary Brothers on Vimeo.
Thursday, February 11, 2010
Cheering for Creativity!
Have you ever gotten tired of seeing the same thing over and over and over again? Have you ever thought to yourself, "I can't listen to or watch another presentation today because they are all identical?" I have been there with you!
In years past our second graders have made Keynote presentations on what they have learned about a famous american they have studied. Our state standards require students to learn about certain historical figures, scientists and inventors. Second grade approached this by tying it into non-fiction reading and writing through research on these individuals. Students were then asked to create Keynote presentations on their findings.
Sounds great, right?
Sure, it was at the beginning when it was all fresh and new. We had created a slideshow template for the students to follow. So, all the text was in the same spot. All the pictures were in the same spot. It was the same presentation over and over and over again but just about different people. There was zero creativity in putting together their presentations.
This year I have read and thought about 21st Century Learning Skills and how to bring them to the forefront of what we are doing as teachers. One of these skills is creativity. So, I approached the second grade team with an idea. Why don't we let students have some choice in where the pictures and text go on their slides? Why don't we let them explore different layouts, font styles and font sizes?
At first they were hesitant because there wasn't a comfort in having the template laid out where the students just plugged in their information. Students would have to learn how to select an appropriate slide layout or create their own. I asked them to go on this journey with their students and it would be a learning adventure together.
We just started working on these before "the big snow" hit us so we haven't gotten very far. But...I have been super impressed with how quickly the students picked up on how to select a slide layout, change sizing of text and pictures and changing the size of text. Students that picked up on these skills quickly jumped up and helped others naturally. It was awesome to watch it all get started!
Now I can't wait to get back to work with these students and watch them create their presentations to showcase their knowledge of their famous americans.
Stay tuned for final results!
In years past our second graders have made Keynote presentations on what they have learned about a famous american they have studied. Our state standards require students to learn about certain historical figures, scientists and inventors. Second grade approached this by tying it into non-fiction reading and writing through research on these individuals. Students were then asked to create Keynote presentations on their findings.
Sounds great, right?
Sure, it was at the beginning when it was all fresh and new. We had created a slideshow template for the students to follow. So, all the text was in the same spot. All the pictures were in the same spot. It was the same presentation over and over and over again but just about different people. There was zero creativity in putting together their presentations.
This year I have read and thought about 21st Century Learning Skills and how to bring them to the forefront of what we are doing as teachers. One of these skills is creativity. So, I approached the second grade team with an idea. Why don't we let students have some choice in where the pictures and text go on their slides? Why don't we let them explore different layouts, font styles and font sizes?
At first they were hesitant because there wasn't a comfort in having the template laid out where the students just plugged in their information. Students would have to learn how to select an appropriate slide layout or create their own. I asked them to go on this journey with their students and it would be a learning adventure together.
We just started working on these before "the big snow" hit us so we haven't gotten very far. But...I have been super impressed with how quickly the students picked up on how to select a slide layout, change sizing of text and pictures and changing the size of text. Students that picked up on these skills quickly jumped up and helped others naturally. It was awesome to watch it all get started!
Now I can't wait to get back to work with these students and watch them create their presentations to showcase their knowledge of their famous americans.
Stay tuned for final results!
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