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Friday, August 19, 2016
Wednesday, August 17, 2016
Thing 35 - Hot Topics in EdTech ~ Blended Learning & Computer Science for All
Blended Learning:
I chose to research Blended Learning because I really didn't know anything about it. I had a guess going into it that it had to be a combination of 'traditional learning' and learning through technology. And, I was right overall in my thinking. Below is a definition of what 'Blended Learning' is according to the website mindflash.com
And, according to the Blended Learning Tool Kit (blended.online.ucf.edu) blended learning is:
According to what I researched, no single definition of blended learning is out there. There are many terms to describe it such as hybrid, mixed, or integrative learning. One thing that web sites agree on is that blended learning is a growing trend. According to mindflash.com,In 2000 an estimated 45,000 K-12 students took an online course, but almost a decade later more than 3 million took courses that way, many of them using computers in the schools themselves.
It seems from what I have been able to find that blended learning is more used in high schools and some middle schools than it is on the elementary level. One of the key components of blended learning is to identify what is already working well in your classroom, and what might be better suited as digital content. Teachers need to know that by adding digital content, it doesn't mean throwing out all the direct (face to face) instruction in the classroom. It is important to find what is working well face-to-face, and add what could more effective in a digital format.
One school which has put blended learning to the test is P.K. Yonge Developmental Research School in Gainsville, Florida. Attached is information about their school and how they've made blended learning work: What This School is Achieving.
Our district is special in that it is a progressive district, and we truly value hands-on, experiential learning. Knowing that technology is going to continue to grow, and that we are going to see it integrated more and more in our schools I believe we have colleagues who will find the best ways to 'blend' technology into our classrooms. From all that we have learned and explored through this course I personally believe that we will be able to 'blend' new technology with the face-to-face learning that we all value!
'Computer Science for All':
Well, I don't know much about 'Computer Science for All' before digging in a little deeper. What I first found was that it became a nationwide initiative launched by President Obama as of January of this year. According to the White House website (www.whitehouse.gov) this is the President's plan:
Computer Science for All is the President’s bold new initiative to empower all American students from kindergarten through high school to learn computer science and be equipped with the computational thinking skills they need to be creators in the digital economy, not just consumers, and to be active citizens in our technology-driven world. Our economy is rapidly shifting, and both educators and business leaders are increasingly recognizing that computer science (CS) is a “new basic” skill necessary for economic opportunity and social mobility.
Computer Science for All (White House Site)
Below is more of the plan that President Obama has carved out for the initiative:
I think that this is exactly how we see our own students that we work with every day - they are persistent, problem-solvers with critical thinking skills, who work creatively and collaboratively with each other. We are preparing them to be successful 21st century learners!
From the information that is out there on the President's initiative, all of America is realizing the need for all of our students to be taught computer science in our schools because of all the STEM jobs that are out there. I believe that our district is so fortunate to have so much technology at our hands, and a staff (from the tech. department on down) that is both knowledgeable and willing to learn so that we can give provide our students with the best technology in their hands, as well as learning the most effective ways to use it.
I chose to research Blended Learning because I really didn't know anything about it. I had a guess going into it that it had to be a combination of 'traditional learning' and learning through technology. And, I was right overall in my thinking. Below is a definition of what 'Blended Learning' is according to the website mindflash.com
And, according to the Blended Learning Tool Kit (blended.online.ucf.edu) blended learning is:
According to what I researched, no single definition of blended learning is out there. There are many terms to describe it such as hybrid, mixed, or integrative learning. One thing that web sites agree on is that blended learning is a growing trend. According to mindflash.com,In 2000 an estimated 45,000 K-12 students took an online course, but almost a decade later more than 3 million took courses that way, many of them using computers in the schools themselves.
It seems from what I have been able to find that blended learning is more used in high schools and some middle schools than it is on the elementary level. One of the key components of blended learning is to identify what is already working well in your classroom, and what might be better suited as digital content. Teachers need to know that by adding digital content, it doesn't mean throwing out all the direct (face to face) instruction in the classroom. It is important to find what is working well face-to-face, and add what could more effective in a digital format.
One school which has put blended learning to the test is P.K. Yonge Developmental Research School in Gainsville, Florida. Attached is information about their school and how they've made blended learning work: What This School is Achieving.
Our district is special in that it is a progressive district, and we truly value hands-on, experiential learning. Knowing that technology is going to continue to grow, and that we are going to see it integrated more and more in our schools I believe we have colleagues who will find the best ways to 'blend' technology into our classrooms. From all that we have learned and explored through this course I personally believe that we will be able to 'blend' new technology with the face-to-face learning that we all value!
'Computer Science for All':
Well, I don't know much about 'Computer Science for All' before digging in a little deeper. What I first found was that it became a nationwide initiative launched by President Obama as of January of this year. According to the White House website (www.whitehouse.gov) this is the President's plan:
Computer Science for All is the President’s bold new initiative to empower all American students from kindergarten through high school to learn computer science and be equipped with the computational thinking skills they need to be creators in the digital economy, not just consumers, and to be active citizens in our technology-driven world. Our economy is rapidly shifting, and both educators and business leaders are increasingly recognizing that computer science (CS) is a “new basic” skill necessary for economic opportunity and social mobility.
Computer Science for All (White House Site)
Below is more of the plan that President Obama has carved out for the initiative:
Fortunately, there is a growing movement being led by parents, teachers, states, districts, and the private sector to expand CS education. The President’s Computer Science for All Initiative builds on these efforts by:
- Providing $4 billion in funding for states, and $100 million directly for districts in his forthcoming Budget to increase access to K-12 CS by training teachers, expanding access to high-quality instructional materials, and building effective regional partnerships. The funding will allow more states and districts to offer hands-on CS courses across all of their public high schools, get students involved early by creating high-quality CS learning opportunities in elementary and middle schools, expand overall access to rigorous science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) coursework, and ensure all students have the chance to participate, including girls and underrepresented minorities.
- Starting the effort this year, with more than $135 million in investments by the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) to support and train CS teachers, who are the most critical ingredient to offering CS education in schools. The agencies will make these investments over five years using existing funds.
- Calling on even more Governors, Mayors, education leaders, CEOs, philanthropists, creative media and technology professionals, and others to get involved. Today, Delaware, Hawaii and more than 30 school districts are committing to expand CS opportunities; Cartoon Network, Google and Salesforce.org are announcing more than $60 million in new philanthropic investments, and Microsoft is announcing a fifty-state campaign to expand CS; and Code.org is announcing plans to offer CS training to an additional 25,000 teachers this year.
After digging up some more information I was able to find CS4 All (Computer Science for All) has been an initiative in the Chicago Public Schools since 2013. The information in regards to what the CPS has been doing can be found at Choose Your Future. Currently there are 164 schools in Chicago that will be part of the initiative upcoming school year.
Here is more information about why the 'Computer Science for All' push is important in so many peoples' eyes:
I love what the Office of Innovation and Improvement had to say in regards to the growing importance of computer science in our schools:
When students have the opportunity to study computer science, they can develop skills and aptitudes such as persistence, problem-solving, critical thinking, creativity, and collaboration — skills that they will need to succeed in school, life, and any profession they choose.
From the information that is out there on the President's initiative, all of America is realizing the need for all of our students to be taught computer science in our schools because of all the STEM jobs that are out there. I believe that our district is so fortunate to have so much technology at our hands, and a staff (from the tech. department on down) that is both knowledgeable and willing to learn so that we can give provide our students with the best technology in their hands, as well as learning the most effective ways to use it.
Thing 34 - Breakout EDU
I absolutely love the idea of Breakout EDU, and think that it would be awesome to incorporate in my classroom (and with grade level colleagues). I have never heard of this site, and think that it is awesome. The whole idea behind the team-building, problem solving activities is fantastic! It would be great to see different groups of kids working together, and learning what skills they can offer to their Kids would love doing activities like these, and I know that they would want to do these all the time!! I would love to be able to do them somewhat regularly in my class, but will shoot to do at least one or two with my class this upcoming year. I don't know if we will be able to get it done this year, but I think a Breakout EDU game would be awesome to do with our 4th grade students when we take them on the overnight trip in the fall.
One breakout game that I would like to try with my class is called Shapeshifter. It is a geometry game that could be used as a culminating activity to our geometry unit. It would a great team activity to recap all that the students have learned!
A game that I thought of designing would be 'My Suitcases to Ellis Island' (I might change the name at some point). It could be a game that could coincide with our Immigration unit involving the kids working as families to make their way to Ellis Island - unlocking suitcases to help them earn money and other items to help start their future in America. I would hope to do it with the other two 4th grade classes (Juli Ross & Drew Peterson). To be honest, it is exciting to think about the possibilities of designing an activity!
Here is my game idea (definitely a 'rough draft'):
Suitcases to Ellis Island
One breakout game that I would like to try with my class is called Shapeshifter. It is a geometry game that could be used as a culminating activity to our geometry unit. It would a great team activity to recap all that the students have learned!
A game that I thought of designing would be 'My Suitcases to Ellis Island' (I might change the name at some point). It could be a game that could coincide with our Immigration unit involving the kids working as families to make their way to Ellis Island - unlocking suitcases to help them earn money and other items to help start their future in America. I would hope to do it with the other two 4th grade classes (Juli Ross & Drew Peterson). To be honest, it is exciting to think about the possibilities of designing an activity!
Here is my game idea (definitely a 'rough draft'):
Suitcases to Ellis Island
Thing 32 - Atomic Learning...
This was my first time exploring Atomic Learning, and my first impressions is that is 'ok'. I know that the site is loaded with helpful resources and tutorials, but I found it to be a little overwhelming with how much is there. I like that you can narrow down your search results to help find what you are looking for (that is helpful). I also found it beneficial that there are little write-ups with each video/tutorial. That made it easier for me to find what I was looking for.
I think that there are videos/tutorials on here that I could definitely share with my students, and could see myself doing it as I get more comfortable with the site. I want to give myself more time this school year to explore it, and really find effective ways to utilize it.
One tutorial that I really liked was I liked was called How Do I Keep Advanced Readers Challenged
https://www.atomiclearning.com/k12/hoonuit/221/challenge-advanced-readers-training/#/overview
I found that it was laid out well, and was filled with great information, including how to incorporate other sites like Newsela.
As I said above, I can see myself using Atomic Learning this school year, but I will need more time to explore/navigate the site to best utilize it for my teaching.
I think that there are videos/tutorials on here that I could definitely share with my students, and could see myself doing it as I get more comfortable with the site. I want to give myself more time this school year to explore it, and really find effective ways to utilize it.
One tutorial that I really liked was I liked was called How Do I Keep Advanced Readers Challenged
https://www.atomiclearning.com/k12/hoonuit/221/challenge-advanced-readers-training/#/overview
I found that it was laid out well, and was filled with great information, including how to incorporate other sites like Newsela.
As I said above, I can see myself using Atomic Learning this school year, but I will need more time to explore/navigate the site to best utilize it for my teaching.
Thing 31 - Explore Learning Gizmos
I thought that Learning Gizmos was a great site/resource. Like Discover Ed, I'm thrilled that our district has access to this site. I found this site to be well organized and easy to navigate. Like Discovery Ed, I really love how easy it is to add In teaching 4th grade I'm always looking for new and different ways to add a Gizmo to your own 'class'. It is nice to know that I don't have to go back searching for something I saw earlier. I think that the Gizmos that I explored for both math and science can be used in multiple ways - introducing and reviewing concepts with a whole class, and as extensions/assessing for small groups or individuals (it is nice that many of the Gizmos have small quizzes).
I really liked that there were simulations for science. For science in 4th grade it is all about letting the students experience their learning through hands-on experiments (learn by doing). But when they are done experimenting most of their follow-up/review work in science is done in paper & pencil journals, and though it is nice to get the students' observations and thoughts down on paper - sometimes it is not enough to see if they really grasp a concepts. I think that Gizmos can be a great way to follow up a lesson. I found a really cool Gizmo that I can use with our Rocks & Minerals unit on Mineral Identification that I will use this school year.
My class used ST Math last year, and they really enjoyed it. I will continue to use it this year, and I can now see myself adding Learning Gizmos to my classroom (as I take more time to explore it). I would love to see ELG expand to reading/writing or even social studies if possible.
Here is my classroom code:
I really liked that there were simulations for science. For science in 4th grade it is all about letting the students experience their learning through hands-on experiments (learn by doing). But when they are done experimenting most of their follow-up/review work in science is done in paper & pencil journals, and though it is nice to get the students' observations and thoughts down on paper - sometimes it is not enough to see if they really grasp a concepts. I think that Gizmos can be a great way to follow up a lesson. I found a really cool Gizmo that I can use with our Rocks & Minerals unit on Mineral Identification that I will use this school year.
My class used ST Math last year, and they really enjoyed it. I will continue to use it this year, and I can now see myself adding Learning Gizmos to my classroom (as I take more time to explore it). I would love to see ELG expand to reading/writing or even social studies if possible.
Here is my classroom code:
BRXHLCBBJF
Monday, August 8, 2016
Thing 30 - Discovery Ed.
Wow! Discovery Ed is a fantastic resource. I love that our district has a subscription to it. I had been introduced to Discovery Ed last year by a couple people from our school, but did not take advantage of exploring it like I did with this course. Discovery Ed is loaded with so many great videos & ideas to use in the classroom. I was excited to find so many videos, images, and more on units that we do in 4th grade like Immigration and Rocks & Minerals.
I thought that the Spotlight on Strategies videos that I checked out were pretty cool. One that I liked was a strategy/activity called 'Act It Out'. It is 'a teaching strategy that combines learning and movement to increase retention. Students create movement, routines, or dances to illustrate new learning and comprehension, reinforcing their own learning and communicating it creatively to others.' In my class I try to give my students as many 'creative' outlets as they can to express/display their learning, so I can definitely see myself giving this strategy a try this year.
I thought that the Spotlight on Strategies videos that I checked out were pretty cool. One that I liked was a strategy/activity called 'Act It Out'. It is 'a teaching strategy that combines learning and movement to increase retention. Students create movement, routines, or dances to illustrate new learning and comprehension, reinforcing their own learning and communicating it creatively to others.' In my class I try to give my students as many 'creative' outlets as they can to express/display their learning, so I can definitely see myself giving this strategy a try this year.
Ok, now to the Build a Board feature...it is fantastic and pretty easy to use. I like how you can start a board from scratch or use one of the pre-made templates. I also liked how the boards start you with a layout and then give you the ability to add more information (boxes, text, etc.) if you need. I think that the board is an engaging way to share information with students, by not only being able to show them images, but then being able to click over and watch a video with out having to 'switch' from one thing to another. I built a board for Immigration that I will use (and probably tweak) before teaching the unit this fall. Here it is!
Sunday, August 7, 2016
Thing 29 - Professional Development in Your PJs
Let me begin by saying that I really enjoyed spending time on the K12 Online Conference site. It was fun to browse the site, and see the variety of presentations from teachers and other professionals in education that are out there. I think that this is a great site, that I will go back to this year when I'm looking for some fresh ideas to bring to my classroom! I will definitely re-watch the presentations that I watched.
The first sessions that I watched was by a middle school visual arts teacher. The presentation is called 'Beyond Teaching & Learning: Leaving a Legacy'. The teacher inspired me to think about how to get my students thinking from the first couple days of school of the impact that they can leave on Greeley School. In teaching 4th grade, the last year of elementary school in our district, I put a lot of responsibility on my students to be leaders in our building. I want them to take pride in themselves, and let them know what they do on a daily basis matters. This video shared great project ideas of how students can make an impact or legacy through a couple of neat and 'simple' project ideas. One of the ideas was a project called 'Empty Bowls', which is having your students make a clay bowl on the first day of school, and then give it to someone as part of a community food drive so their bowl can 'be filled' by someone else. Another idea which I loved was to read the book The Dot, by Peter H. Reynolds. After reading the book you have your students start with a blank canvas and make their 'mark', and then have their classmates add to it by rotating around the room. The finished work can then be displayed somewhere in the school. The finished paintings become 'Legacy Paintings'. I think I'm going to try this idea to start my school year!!
The first sessions that I watched was by a middle school visual arts teacher. The presentation is called 'Beyond Teaching & Learning: Leaving a Legacy'. The teacher inspired me to think about how to get my students thinking from the first couple days of school of the impact that they can leave on Greeley School. In teaching 4th grade, the last year of elementary school in our district, I put a lot of responsibility on my students to be leaders in our building. I want them to take pride in themselves, and let them know what they do on a daily basis matters. This video shared great project ideas of how students can make an impact or legacy through a couple of neat and 'simple' project ideas. One of the ideas was a project called 'Empty Bowls', which is having your students make a clay bowl on the first day of school, and then give it to someone as part of a community food drive so their bowl can 'be filled' by someone else. Another idea which I loved was to read the book The Dot, by Peter H. Reynolds. After reading the book you have your students start with a blank canvas and make their 'mark', and then have their classmates add to it by rotating around the room. The finished work can then be displayed somewhere in the school. The finished paintings become 'Legacy Paintings'. I think I'm going to try this idea to start my school year!!
The second video presentation that I watched was 'Merry Makers' by Steve Sherman from Cape Town, South Africa. The focus of the presentation was pushing the STEAM/STEM movement in formal school environments. Steve, who is the head of the Imagination Chapter in Cape Town, has been working with students in this capacity for over 20 years. The presentation was fantastic!! It is awesome to see that people are doing things around the world in the same ways that we want to integrate them in our own wonderful district. After watching Steve's presentation it made me think that we NEED to find time to give our students the TIME and OPPORTUNITIES to create with each other by using their creativity and imaginations. I love that the projects stress teamwork!! There are lots of great project ideas on this video. One of the ideas was using Little Bits, which my students had the opportunity to use toward the end of this past school year (they loved it). I hope that you take the time to check it out. I know that I want to have my colleagues check out this video so we can try some of these ideas out at Greeley!
Things 25 - 28 - Formative Assessment with Technology
I had fun checking out these different resources, and love the idea of using technology for formative assessments. I think that it will be a new and fun way for my students to be assessed. I have always traditional methods (paper & pencil, discussions) to asses my students throughout our units. After working with these different tools, I'm excited to incorporate some of them in my classroom this year.
Google Forms & Flubaroo:
I liked exploring Google Forms & Flubaroo. I had never used either of them before exploring them for this course. I found Forms easy to use in creating my quiz, and love how you can enable Flubaroo to help grade the quizzes. I like the variety of quiz questions that Forms allows you to use (multiple choice, true & false, short answer). I could definitely see myself and my grade level colleagues creating quizzes for some of our social studies and science units throughout the year. I think the students will like being able to use a Chromebook or Ipad to take an 'assessment'.
Socrative:
Like Google Forms/Flubaroo I found Socrative easy to use. I found these two to be pretty similar, but Socrative might be a little more 'attractive' to the students in that each question is on its own page, instead of all the questions being on one like Google Forms. I do like the variety of questions that Socrative allows you to create, and really liked that you could type in an explanation. I could see myself using Forms more than Socrative because of it saving in the drive. As I'm trying to be more 'Googly', it would be nice to know that I have everything in one place.
Here is my socrative: SOC-23228968
Kahoot:
Kahoot is awesome! When I was exploring it my 2nd grader to be couldn't get enough of it. I had heard about it from some other teachers in the district, but this was my first time really getting to check it out. I love that there are MILLIONS of created Kahoots out there, yet it will be fun to create my own this year. I can see myself doing weekly/biweekly Kahoots with my class (Kahoot Fridays)...I know that they will love it. I see myself having to do some practice Kahoots so the kids will take the time to read the questions/answers without just making it a total speed game.
Overall I think that it is great!
Padlet:
My first exposure to Padlet was at one our of district institute days, and I thought it was pretty cool. I liked that you could pose a question or thought, and get so many people involved. After exploring the site on my own I could see how (with practice) I could use this with my students to share out their thoughts and ideas on different topics. I would love to see if our resource director could help me introduce this with my class. I think that this could be an effective tool especially for some of those kids that are hesitant to share their answers out loud in a group setting.
Google Forms & Flubaroo:
I liked exploring Google Forms & Flubaroo. I had never used either of them before exploring them for this course. I found Forms easy to use in creating my quiz, and love how you can enable Flubaroo to help grade the quizzes. I like the variety of quiz questions that Forms allows you to use (multiple choice, true & false, short answer). I could definitely see myself and my grade level colleagues creating quizzes for some of our social studies and science units throughout the year. I think the students will like being able to use a Chromebook or Ipad to take an 'assessment'.
Socrative:
Like Google Forms/Flubaroo I found Socrative easy to use. I found these two to be pretty similar, but Socrative might be a little more 'attractive' to the students in that each question is on its own page, instead of all the questions being on one like Google Forms. I do like the variety of questions that Socrative allows you to create, and really liked that you could type in an explanation. I could see myself using Forms more than Socrative because of it saving in the drive. As I'm trying to be more 'Googly', it would be nice to know that I have everything in one place.
Here is my socrative: SOC-23228968
Kahoot:
Kahoot is awesome! When I was exploring it my 2nd grader to be couldn't get enough of it. I had heard about it from some other teachers in the district, but this was my first time really getting to check it out. I love that there are MILLIONS of created Kahoots out there, yet it will be fun to create my own this year. I can see myself doing weekly/biweekly Kahoots with my class (Kahoot Fridays)...I know that they will love it. I see myself having to do some practice Kahoots so the kids will take the time to read the questions/answers without just making it a total speed game.
Overall I think that it is great!
Padlet:
My first exposure to Padlet was at one our of district institute days, and I thought it was pretty cool. I liked that you could pose a question or thought, and get so many people involved. After exploring the site on my own I could see how (with practice) I could use this with my students to share out their thoughts and ideas on different topics. I would love to see if our resource director could help me introduce this with my class. I think that this could be an effective tool especially for some of those kids that are hesitant to share their answers out loud in a group setting.
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