Georgia Educational Technology Conference

I'm excited to announce that Michele Liggins and I have been chosen to present at GAETC next week.  We are both so excited we have totally geeked out and gone out of our way to make sure our presentation is engaging and informative.

We are presenting a session called "iPads and iPods in the Primary Classroom" on Friday, November 8th at 11am.  This is right up our alley since we both use these devices on a daily basis with our students.  Michele has been doing some amazing things with her first graders and the iPods.  She's such an inspiration to me!  She was able to get 3 iPod carts for our school through grant writing and has led the Technology Committee for the past few years.   There's nobody I would rather share this experience with than Michele.  I know we are going to rock our presentation and have a great time!

When you come to our session you will walk away with the following capabilities: 

• An understanding of how you can use iPads to meet the digital requirements of Common Core State Standards.
• A tool to help you evaluate apps before you download them and use them in the classroom.
• Suggestions on how to manage use in the classroom.
• How to create, use, and implement QR codes in the classroom.
• A list of our favorite apps for reading, math, creativity, and management.
• Knowledge of grants that you can apply for to fund implementation in your classroom

All of our resources will also be available on the GAETC website if you can't make the session but are interested in reading more about our session.  

Back to School Goal

 

It's that time! We officially head back to school next week and among asking myself where the summer went I am also starting to think about my goals for the year.   I have been blessed to have consistently high test scores at the end of the school year, showing a great deal of growth, but I know I can do better.  Students are so much more than data points on a graph.  They are so much more than a CCRPI point or a highlighted name on a chart.  I m making it my mission this year to engage and reach each learner where they are.  

This means a lot of things to me.  I want to do a better job of getting to know my students' parents and where they come from.  I want to challenge their parents to take back their child's education and see how valuable it is for their future.  

I have always been  strong supporter of small group instruction.  I don't understand how some teachers (especially in the primary grades) don't see that differentiated time as a necessary part of their day.  This year I want to make our time together in small groups more meaningful.  I plan to do that by tossing out old small group plans that I have used for years and recreating what a small group looks like in my classroom.  I anticipate more on this to come in a follow up post, but for now I am committing to a massive overhaul of my small group instructional time. 

Close Reading & Technology Integration

I was looking for a quick and easy way to assess "close" reading and integrate technology when I discovered Google Drive Forms on Jennifer Jones' blog 'Hello Literacy' 

I almost jumped out of my chair when I realized that after the answers are collected on the form, Google automatically creates a spreadsheet of the answers. This feature is going to make scoring extended responses so much easier!

If you're interested in using Google Drive here are a couple useful links:
The Paperless Classroom
80 Ways to use Google Forms In Your Classroom

Must Have Monday- Organization

I don't know how I survived my first 7 years of teaching without this All-Purpose Organizer from Lakeshore.  The bins are the perfect size to hold all the resources I need for my day and I love the bright colors.  These past few years have been my most organized and I have to think it's partly because of this little contraption.  Thanks Lakeshore!

Cooperative Learning Groups

This past year I had a group of students that were not the most cooperative children in the world.  They had a lot of trouble getting along with each other so I decided to spend a great deal of time teaching them how to work in groups together.  

At first, I conducted a lot of research on how to build group dynamics and through the use of Morning Meetings (that will be another post) I discovered that my students were very dependent on an adult to solve their problems.  They hadn't  really developed social problem solving skills.  I realized I needed to take myself out of the group equation.

I was then awarded a grant from Crayola with a professional development about cooperative learning.  Learn more here. This inspired me and motivated me to continue working with my students on their group skills.  

In my class I assigned the following roles for our first Math cooperative learning experience and it worked rather well.

My students were assigned to one of 7 groups (4 students in each group).  The team captain was assigned but they had to decide amongst themselves who would do the other tasks.  The tasks were as follows:

Captain: Final decision maker when the group can not decide together (this kept them from running to me to solve disputes).

Recorder: This person wrote the answers that the group members decided on together.

Materials Manager: The only student in the group that was allowed to get out of their seat to retrieve materials.

Fact Checker: make sure the team is turning in quality work.  Double-check to make sure the recorder is recording the right information in the right place.  

I was amazed at how well the experience went! There was no arguing because their roles within the group were clearly defined.  We repeated cooperative learning groups many times throughout the year with the same results. When students were allowed to choose their roles within the group they seemed to have a sense of ownership with the assignment and the results. 

Educational Leadership

I really think this picture says it all. I have taught at 3 different schools in my career and have found that good leadership makes all the difference. The administration at a school can determine everything from teacher moral to student achievement.

In my opinion, an effective administrator is in touch with the climate of their school.   They are able to measure the morale and support of the staff by communicating and asking questions in a nonthreatening way.  They allow their staff to take risks and encourage innovative teaching styles. A good administrator is visible and professional.  When the staff, students, and parents know you care, they are more willing to go the extra mile for you.

Showing Some Appreciation

Our library assistant is leaving this week. She has been an amazing motivator for my students this year. We wanted to show our appreciation so I gave each student a colored index card and had them fold it so the lines were on the inside. This created mini-cards that we posted on a piece of poster board I had in my classroom.

Here are some of the notes from their cards:

"Thank you for helping me to become a better reader. It is because of you that I am going to 3rd grade."

"You are so nice. I like you. Thank you for helping me find books."

"I will be so sad not seeing you anymore. Thank you for helping me in the library"