World Water Day and Skype

Our Skype passport is filling up quickly!  As of today, we have traveled over 30,000 miles throughout the year.  We've traveled to far away countries, connected with animal experts, and learned about global problems.  Throughout these connections, one common thread was weaved throughout- the idea that we are ALL connected and that we can work together to solve global problems.  Most recently, we celebrated World Water Day by connecting with Ken Surritte, the founder of Water is Life.

I contacted Water is Life on Twitter and asked if they would have someone who would be willing to connect with my students.  I received a quick reply that Ken would be happy to talk with us.  Little did I know that Ken was the founder!

Ken spoke with our students about the valuable work that his company does in an effort to bring clean water to people throughout the world.  Ken spent time explaining not only the water crisis, but also telling students how they are working to solve it.  He featured their newest product, a straw, that can filter water for an individual for up to a year!   

Ken was a dynamic and passionate speaker.  He truly wanted to connect with my class and was open to answering their many questions.  Skype made all of this possible and I can't imagine my classroom without the ability to connect with others throughout the world!

Minecraft Construction: Cultural Influences

Our third lesson focuses on the idea of culture and specifically aims to answer two questions:

1. How are civilizations remembered?  
2. How does culture impact and define a civilization?

This lesson accompanies a writing unit called Folk Literature.  During the writing unit, students examine folk literature pieces from all over the world and identify key elements within the stories.  For their performance task, students are asked to create a folk literature story about their civilization.  Students published this on Scholastic's Write With Writers website.
 
This assignment was very interactive and group-dependent because all group members must discuss the various stories that they are creating so that they all mesh together to create a picture of their civilization and their culture.

After completing the writing, students, within their groups, choose one student-written folk literature story to focus the remainder of their construction in Minecraft for this lesson.

During this lesson, students add cultural elements to their previously created city centers.  Many of these cultural elements correlate with the folk literature pieces.  Students are asked to create a cultural center that will host events for their civilization.  In preparation for building, students research ancient architectural design elements and incorporate at least one element into their structure.

Students create a sketch of their cultural center using OneNote and their Surface 3, and share it with their group members.

Their second task is to clear the area for their cultural center.  At this point, groups should identify the purpose of the cultural center (i.e. what events will be held) and should have a central focus for the space.  They are reminded to expand their wall to accommodate their new structure.

Third, students are asked to create a unique cultural feature for their city center.  This could be a statue, a piece of art, or a fountain that represents an element of their culture.

Many students erected statues in honor of their folk literature hero and had their cultural center depict an event that they described in their narratives.

Students had to present their unique feature, cultural center, and depicted a holiday that is celebrated by their people.  The holiday presentation included decor, practices, and descriptions.  We had students dance, carry "torches", and sing songs in honor of their folk literature heroes.

Minecraft Construction: City Center

During their second lesson in Minecraft, students are asked to construct a city center based off of the city centers that we study when we explore Gilgamesh the Hero and ancient Mesopotamia.  Students work together to identify key elements that are needed for a city-center.  Groups used the following questions to guide their discussion and design:

Turning Your Farming Community into a City-State

After clearing land in your biome, you were able to develop the beginnings of your city-state. These farming settlements provide the food needed for your community grow. Improvements in farming techniques and methods allow for a division of labor. These new jobs and laborers are the fabric builders of your great city state. Analyzing this step in history requires you to document the efforts of these times. The question below will direct you in this endeavor.

Farming Community

            Describe the set-up of your farming community.

• What is the name of the river that it was built on?
• How did you change the physical features of your biome to suit your needs?
• What are the roles of people in your community? 
• Provide a general description of the location and dwellings.

Transition to a City Center

1. How will your farming communities be incorporated into your city center?

2. How will your city center design support the safety and development of your civilization?

Following the discussion, the Digital Maker constructs their city-center using their discussion to guide his/her building.  They are asked to focus on security and growth as they build. 

City Center Elements:

1. barrier
2. living quarters
3. water source
4. docks
5. palace
6. unique feature

Throughout the process, students documented their progress by taking pictures of their creations.  They also provided a written rationale to support their decisions and construction.

Minecraft Construction: Settlement and City Center

After lesson one, students were so excited to dive deeper into our module and work with Minecraft again.  During week 2 of our module, our students focused on the transition from hunters/gatherers to settlement and developing farming settlements.  As a group, students worked through an article, discussed a background story for their group, and made decisions within Minecraft that would allow them to choose a settlement point.  During individual time, the writer, manager, presenter, and liaison all worked on varying tasks associated with settlement.

Digital Maker:

Our study of ancient river valley civilizations led each group to decide to settle near a body of water.  After students found a suitable location, they began the tasks for the week.  The Digital Makers were charged with the task of documenting the raw biome.  By adding a camera and portfolio, students were able to take photos of the raw settlement land before making any changes.  The photographs and documentation will hopefully help them visualize the progression of their civilizations as we move through time. They were instructed to take aerial photos, pictures of important land formations/features, pictures of possible settlement locations, and photos of waterways.   

Minecraft Tip:

Add a Camera

1. Press 't'
2. Type: /give @yourname camera

 Add a Portfolio

1. Press 't'
2. Type: /give @yourname portfolio

 Taking Pictures

1. Put camera in right hand from the hot bar.
2. Aim the +
3. Right click to take a picture
4. Pictures are automatically deposited into your portfolio.

 

Accessing Pictures in the Portfolio

1. Put portfolio in right hand from the hot bar
2. Right click to access the portfolio
3. Add captions

 Exporting Pictures

1. Press the 'export portfolio' option
2. Choose a location to save your pictures and give your folder a name
3. Select 'save'

Next, students began creating farming communities.  With Creative Mode 'on' and other group members able to assist, Digital Makers chose locations and began building their settlements.  Settlement requirements:

1. Canals
2. Crops
3. Small living quarters
4. More than one settlement (along a river)

Stay tuned for lesson 3!

Minecraft Education Edition: Up and Running!

Starting the year, my co-teacher and I had limited knowledge of how to play Minecraft, but we knew what we wanted our students to crate in the program based on the work of a few Minecraft masters that I've followed on Twitter for a number of months.  We figured what we didn't know, we would learn and if our lessons failed, they would fail spectacularly!  From day one in our class, we've been piloting and battling technology with many wins and a few losses and lessons along the way. I felt confident in our ability to troubleshoot to the best of our abilities and our acceptance that we will NOT know everything and that it is okay.  Modeling persistence through struggles has become one of the keystones of our class as we are always trying new things, shaking things up, and sometimes failing spectacularly despite our best efforts.

Despite not feeling entirely confident with our knowledge of HOW to create in Minecraft, we moved forward the sixth week of school with our Module 1 group project where we introduced the inclusion of Minecraft in our class.  To say our students were excited doesn't come remotely close to describing their reactions.  Of the students in our class (35 total students), roughly 10 had played before and 5 considered themselves to be "experts".  There were many students in our class who had heard of the game, but had never actually played.  All students were excited to not only pilot another program for our district, but to also dig into the game that they've heard and read about.

The Project:

Our first module focuses on two questions:

How do civilizations evolve from hunter/gatherers to settlement?

How can we create and establish a civilization?

Our lessons and Module revolve our 7th grade Social Studies standards (Eastern Hemisphere), so we use historical examples as our model for students to examine as we move through development.

Minecraft Lesson 1:

We selected 7 different biomes that were presented on the Minecraft Education Edition website and had our students draw a biome out of a fishbowl for each of their groups.  We had everything from a desert to a jungle as options for this portion.  After they drew their biome, the Minecraft work began.  Students needed to accomplish a few things as a group during this work time:

1. Determine a name for their world
2. Tour the biome and discuss any physical features that they saw
3. Note any changes to physical features/land formations that were needed to sustain a civilization
4. Take notes on the discussion

Students selected their "Digital Maker" (a group member who would host the Minecraft world and would be the primary builder) and quickly got to work.  Long discussions of safety and water sources were had among group members.  While nothing was built at this point, the close examination of physical features and benefits/disadvantages facing their people due to climate and region created an opportunity for students to apply the knowledge that they learned during their study of ancient Mesopotamia, China, and Egypt.

Check back for lesson 2!

Mining though Minecraft Education Edition

I’ve always been interested in using play and games to engage my students in content.  I remember back in my early years as a student playing Oregon Trail and similar games to not only learn computer skills, but to also explore topics and themes presented in the games.

This summer, I was introduced to Minecraft Education Edition at the Microsoft Innovative Educator Expert U.S. Forum in Denver, Colorado.  Along with many other exciting, inspiring, and engaging activities, I was able to attend a session on using Minecraft in the classroom.  Previous to this session, my knowledge of Minecraft was extremely limited.  I knew what it was, and that my students absolutely loved the game, but didn’t have a clear picture of how it could be relevant in my class.  Todd Beard, the MIEE in charge of running the session, along with some of the Minecraft Mentors, illustrated some exciting ways to integrate the program into a typical classroom.  I learned the basics during my session, and came away excited to integrate it into my class.

After returning from Denver, I consulted with my co-teacher and school administrator about potentially trying to implement Minecraft into my co-taught Humanities class.  Last year, our year-long project in Humanities (module work) explored the idea of the settlement, organization, and growth in various civilizations.  I knew that Minecraft could be the tool that we needed to step up our “game” in the classroom (like what I did there?) and provide an opportunity for students to apply their learning in a new way.

After garnering positive feedback and support from both my co-teacher and school administrator, the idea, which seemed so great at the time, became daunting.  I didn’t know how to play other than how to walk around and break things.  While I understand that this is really all that you NEED to know, I felt insecure about being able to help my stu

dents with the program.  This feeling of insecurity and fear of the unknown really came to a head as my co-teacher, Steve, and I began planning our modules.  He had absolutely no knowledge of Minecraft and my knowledge was extremely limited.

We looked closely at the model lessons posted on the Minecraft in Education website and started to get excited about the possibilities.  I spent a large amount of time looking at the ‘Support’ page and really trying to conceptualize how this would work in my classroom of 35 students.  In the next few posts, I will continue to explain our journey and will give you a glimpse of the program in action.

Staying Flexible

Always, at the beginning of a school year, there is time for reflection, rejuvenation, and excitement. I found myself taking on a new challenge this school year: piloting a device program for the district. With the addition of the device to my Humanities classroom, I, along with my co-teacher, had to again re-think how we manage the classroom, designed our learning activities, and push ourselves to work differently.

While we aren’t a true 1:1 because our students do not take the devices home, we are making drastic changes in our class in order to utilize technology efficiently, effectively, and with purpose.

The specs of our new learning space:

Class: 7th grade Humanities (blend of Social Studies and Language Arts)
Our device of choice: Surface 3
Quantity of devices in the classroom: 35
Number of students: 35
Projection: Large television mounted over the dry erase board
Teacher Devices: 1 Surface Pro 4 and 1 Surface 3

Flexible Seating

Starting from scratch with a new classroom allowed us to make some physical changes in the space. We added a white board to encourage student interaction with their learning. We also chose to introduce flexible seating to our students right away. In revamping our new classroom (which was once a lab of desktop computers), we found that we had all of these tall spaces that would work nicely for standing work spaces. The addition of three tall folding tables allows up to 15 students to use these standing spaces when students are given work time.

Our mantra for our students is to choose the space that helps them work the best. For some, they stay at their seats. Others move to lay or sit on the floor. Many choose to stand at the standing spaces. If an issue arises (an off-task student), we quietly approach the student and remind them that they need to position themselves in a space where they can do their best work. The Surfaces make this flexibility easy and allows our students to feel comfortable getting comfortable in the space. We are loving the combination of the flexible learning spaces and the flexibility of the Surface! We would love to incorporate more floor “furniture” in the future and rolling desks, but at this point, we are working with what we have.

Why I love flexible seating and the Surface 3:

1. Students are more productive.

Students really work more efficiently and effectively when they are physically comfortable. Allowing them to chose their physical comfy place allows them to put all of their focus and energy on the task at hand.

2. Easy collaboration.

Groups have a variety of spaces to use as their "home" during group work sessions. They can spread out and conquer an entire area, eliminating distractions from other students and groups.

3. Individual interaction.

When students are spread out in the room into different learning spaces, it is easier to chat with each student individually. Granted, this now requires that I sit on the floor, crawl under a table, or stand at a tall counter, but the interactions seem more personal. When I get on their level and talk about the assignment and the task they are accomplishing, students are extremely receptive.

Stay tuned for more updates from room 402 including how we are using OneNote, Skype, and Minecraft in our classroom!

Building Capacity: Instructional Coaching and Office Mix

When I signed on to become our school's only instructional coach (part-time), I knew that training staff members on new strategies and tech tools was going to be a large part of my new job.  Quickly I realized that within the 4 hours I had to "coach", I couldn't possibly address all of my teachers' needs for help with curriculum, teaching strategies, technology help, therapy sessions, etc.  Forty-two teachers were relying on me to deliver information to them quickly and efficiently, but they were all at different points in their use of technology, their experience in the classroom, and their desire to try something (ANYTHING) new.  After being overwhelmed for a short time, I quickly realized that adult learners are just learners.  They need hand-holding, drive by face-to-face interactions, and lots and lots of encouragement partnered with enough scaffolding that they could each be reached at the level of expertise they were currently at.  Differentiation, friends.  It is not just a skill for the K-12 classroom.

On the technology end of things, I had teachers everywhere from proficient and innovative with their use of technology to teachers who still used the ancient (and I thought extinct) overhead projectors.  Teachers who had never even heard of creating file folders to organize their documents or who just stuck with the default title of the document when they hit 'save as'.  And I needed to teach them all and prepare them for the 1:1 digital initiative that will befall our school in a little over a year.  After deep consideration, I discovered my tool of choice: Office Mix.  I've listed the reasons below in true listicle style because, let's face it, things just seem easier in a numbered list.

1.Familiarity and Buy-In 

Office Mix is run through PowerPoint and who doesn't love a good ol' PowerPoint at the end of the day?  I've been using PowerPoint since my 10th grade business class and consider it a trusted friend.  Offering my professional development in a package that isn't too shiny, looks familiar to teachers, and is easy-to-use was key to getting buy-in and support from my teachers.

2.  Self-Paced PD

Office Mix allows me to record myself going through something (screen recording) so that my teachers can play it over and over again until they understand.  When I am introducing a new way to do something or a new tool, teachers are able to go at their own pace through the tutorial and often pause and resume when they feel that they are ready.  This self-paced PD has allowed me to reach more teachers, especially those who feel insecure about using technology.  If we were in a room with them, they would likely just sit and pretend to follow along for fear of looking too lost.  Now, they can work through a tutorial or a technique at their own pace and on their own time.

3. Inking and Practicing What I Preach

By using the inking features of Office Mix, I can help teachers really dive into a strategy or tool while demonstrating good teaching practices.  Teachers like to see handwriting (especially those in the older generation).  Why not show them that it is not dead?

4. PD for Now and Later

I can publish my mixes and share the links for future viewing.  This has been imperative for my work this year.  I often refer back to tutorials that I've used so that teachers are in the practice of consulting them before they email for help.  Teachers are learning to help themselves, which is completely empowering, even in an area (like technology) where many feel that they are unable to help themselves.

5. Analytics, analytics, analytics! 

I love being able to utilize analytics in my presentations.  Adding interactive elements is a quick way to make sure that my audience is engaged in the content, so I love adding them to my mixes.  It gives me valuable data that helps me plan future training sessions.

6. A Personalized Voice

I, like most human beings, hate hearing my own voice on tape.  However, my teachers say that they love hearing ME explain things to them.  There is something reassuring about having the voice of someone you know and trust walk you through a complex task or idea.  I could find YouTube videos on all of my PD topics, but I've found that my teachers love hearing from ME.  It seems more personal and teachers feel a little more compelled and invested in what is being said/demonstrated when that person is familiar.

Every Day Use of Tech in the 7th Grade Classroom

For me, technology in the classroom has always been about extending learning and providing opportunities that wouldn’t (or couldn’t) happen in the traditional classroom.  If the tech tool isn’t doing something more efficiently and effectively than I can by using a traditional teaching strategy, I keep looking.  There are a few tools that have fundamentally changed my 7^th grade Language Arts classroom.  A lesson I taught recently over the myth of Icarus incorporates some of my favorite tech tools.

“The Flight of Icarus” is a story in our 7^th grade Language Arts textbook.  The topic is always appealing to students (they tend to love Greek mythology), and the responses that I garner from the reading and activities are truly exceptional.  This lesson occurs toward the end of a unit on myths, legends, and folktales and precedes the writing of a piece of folk literature that represents/mirrors a civilization that is studied in Social Studies (the Easter Hemisphere). 

The tools:

OneNote- I have been experimenting with OneNote for over a year and absolutely love the flexibility that it gives me in the classroom.  Paired with Office 365, my students have access to their class work through any mobile device.  OneNote Class Notebook allows me to “deliver” documents to students, create comprehensive lessons, and allow students to collaborate in a dedicated space.  I, as the teacher, can see all of my students work, but they can only see work shared in the collaboration space. 

Office Mix- Office Mix is a PowerPoint add-in that I installed a year ago.  It allows you to take your traditional PowerPoint presentation to an entirely new level by adding opportunities for response questions (and analytics), audio recording, inking, and incorporating screencasting.  This is truly a valuable tool that allows you to “flip” parts of your lesson so that students can work at their own pace and replay any information within the lesson.  The added bonus of being a simple add in to PowerPoint makes this my go-to tool for creating tutorials and quick lessons.

Verso App- Verso is an AMAZING online tool that allows students to have online discussions with one another in a safe and engaging environment.  The key aspect that makes Verso stand out among many other tools like it is that student names are hidden in the program.  The teacher has access to all names, but students don’t know exactly who they are having an online discussion with in the program.  This creates an environment that encourages authentic discussions (not just discussions among close friends).  Students can give comments a “thumbs up” and can reply to other students.  They don’t ever know who they are responding to because all students are called “respondent” in the program.

The Lesson

“The Flight of Icarus” lesson began with students visiting their OneNote Notebook.  They saw directions that asked them to plug in their headphones and click a link to the class Office Mix.  After viewing a video clip of the myth “Theseus and the Minotaur,” students entered responses to constructed response questions about theme and created predictions.

The lesson continued in Office Mix and instructed students to read the selection out of the textbook, looking for key points and concepts.  About half way through the reading (and after a few guiding questions), students were asked to complete a section of the reading by using dyad reading partners.  At the end of the selection, the Office Mix directed them to log in to Verso and complete a discussion question.  Students were asked to respond to the question and reply to two classmates.

Finally, students were asked to combine the two myths (“Theseus and the Minotaur” and “The Flight of Icarus”) into a comic that would illustrate the central ideas and themes present in the paired set of myths.

Things I love about this lesson:

1.       Students get to work at their own pace.

2.       Not all work is independent.

3.       Students discuss their thoughts with some ambiguity so they are free to truly express their ideas.

4.       The product/assessment is a fusion of their understanding of the central concepts from two texts.

Game Changer: The Surface

When I first entered the field of education, my mentor told me that everything in education went in cycles.  Administration, the state, and department heads would lead the charge, fully convicted that whatever initiative, strategy, etc. was popular at the moment was the game changer that education needed.  I've seen this myself in the form of writing programs, a loss of the much adored teaming concept in middle school, and now with the implementation of new technologies.

One such game changer came in the form of an interactive white board (IWB).  Years before I received an official interactive white board, I was using a projector and laptop on a cart and my regular white board.  It was cumbersome and glitchy, but it worked.  Then came the much anticipated IWB.  I no longer had the obstacle of a cart and laptop because I could run things from my teacher computer on my desk.  I could write digitally directly on the board and could save my notes/annotations so that I could print them for students who missed the lesson.  I thought this was it.  This was the thing I needed to make my class more interactive an engaging.  It truly was for about two years.  Then, another game changer entered my life.

The day I opened my Surface Pro 3, I didn't realize what a jewel I had under my fingertips.   My intention was to replace my Surface RT which was used primarily as a personal device and something I carried into classrooms when I did my instructional coaching cycles.  The device, however, inherently changed my classroom in ways I didn't even imagine, and here's how:

1. Wireless Projection

My projector was old, so when I opened the Microsoft Wireless Display Adapter and saw that it only had an HDMI port, I was bummed.  I dismissed the idea of being able to tap into my Surface in my classroom until one of our amazing tech department members sat down with me and discussed options.  Through trial and error, we found a converter that worked.  After simply plugging in the adapter and converter, I was up and running in minutes.  Projecting was seamless and efficient.  I could have my screen projected in just as little time as my wired teacher computer, but I was now mobile in my classroom.

My co-teacher currently uses a Surface 3 during our shared class period.  The transition from one Surface to another is quick and easy.  Our dueling Surfaces in room 703 are the envy of many of our colleagues because it is so seamless.

2. Mobility and Engagement

The most frustrating part of using an IWB is that you are basically chained to the board.  You can walk a bit and go back to the board, but you are truly anchored to the front of the room.  Not with the SP3 and Wireless Display Adapter.  I quickly learned the benefits of freedom.  When students were working on notes or a task displayed on the board, I could circulate the room and talk with my students.  If a student had a particularly good response or an astute insight, I could hand them my Surface and they could add their notes for all to see.  If students struggled to find something in our OneNote Class Notebook, I pulled up the notebook and walked them easily through the steps of finding the document/adding a video/inserting a printout while I was physically helping those who were struggling.  An added bonus has been that students LOVE to write on the Surface.  They consider it "fun" to correct grammar with the pen and argue about whose turn it is.  CRAZY grammar fun happening in room 703 all thanks to the SP3 and Pen.


4. Grading

I would be remiss if I didn't add how much I love the SP3 for grading papers.  In my last post, I discussed some of this, but again, it is so freeing as an English teacher to go home without any papers and still be able to get grading done over the weekend.  Digital inking is AMAZING on the SP3!  It is one of the biggest reasons that many of my colleagues have used their hard-earned money to purchase a Surface because it is SO WORTH IT!

There you go folks, my love affair with my Surface explained. 

4 Things I Love About OneNote Class Notebook

1. Instant Delivery
I LOVE that I can instantly deliver class content (handouts/notes/images/links) by placing them in the Content Library.  The Content Library makes my documents read-only until they are placed in a student notebook tab which means I don't have to worry about my master copy getting any unintentional (or, let's face it, intentional) adjustments by students.  Students can copy those documents/links/pages very easily and paste them into their notebooks within seconds of seeing them in the Content Library.  Easy, quick, and reliable!

2. Collaboration Space
The Collaboration Space has been instrumental this school year as my students work in groups to answer their driving questions.  Students love that they can see what their group members are working on.  It helps group leaders keep other group members accountable and makes this type of collaboration accessible for everyone in the group.  I love to be able to monitor what they are doing and enjoy having one location for all group work.


3. Audio/Video Recording
Having students do quick audio/video responses to prompting questions or lessons in class has become a frequent practice in my classroom.  Not only does it allow me to gauge student understanding, but it also provides a venue for students to practice their speaking skills (a long-lost set of standards and skills that middle schoolers desperately need).  They enjoy listening to themselves and are more thoughtful in their responses when they are being filmed/recorded.

4. Inking
Grading essays became so much easier when I implemented inking in OneNote.  Students submit their papers on a 'turn in' page for their assignment which not only allows me to see the timestamp (monitoring edits), but also allows me to easily find their work.  Then, I pick up my Surface Pen and ink directly on their essays.  I also provide audio feedback directly on the page in their notebook so that they can listen to my comments as well as read any editing that I've indicated on their essays.  I love not having a stack of papers and students love that they can see the feedback I add to their essays as quickly as I complete it!

Swaying Away in Humanities

This is the second month that my Humanities students have been using Sway.  Primarily, it has been used to facilitate group consensus statements. 

First, I should probably define a consensus statement.  In Humanities, we do a great deal of group discussion before we "answer" open-ended or critical thinking questions.  The groups then developed a consensus statement, which is a well-written glimpse at the discussion.  It is almost as if this statement is a window into the discussion.  All group members should agree on the statement and everyone's ideas should be represented. 

I've had students create consensus statements and submit them in a variety of formats: a single paragraph answer that is read to the class, a class Verso discussion, and a Sway.  My favorite, when doing a novel study, is using the Sway.  Students are always amazed at how easy it is to make a well-designed response.  They add to their group's Sway so that by the end of the selection/novel, they have some culminating answers that will help them prepare for the assessment and will capture the most important aspects of the piece.

Pros of using Sway for this activity:

• Simplistic
• Easy to share
• Many authors can manipulate the content, but it appears cohesive due to the layouts

Cons of using Sway:

• Difficult to change groups
• Limited in the types of responses at this time (voice recording would be AMAZING)

Using Sway

As an English/Language Arts teacher, I find that I typically have my students writing in one, at times boring, format- the typical word processed paper.  Writing encompasses over half of my state standards and a large portion of the standardized test, so having students practice this as often as possible is a necessary evil.  Students quickly type responses to prompts or questions and then I read through them, grade/respond, and hand them back (either virtually or on actual paper- archaic, I know).  Thanks to Sway, I'm finding that this process is much more enjoyable for both my students and myself!

Recently, I have been having my Humanities students write their "responses" in Word within Office 365.  After they have completed a series, these students then add these "responses" to a Sway and create a digital newspaper, complete with images.

Not only does this break up the monotony of grading multiple assignments written on the same topic, it also adds a higher level of understanding on the part of the students because they have to consider visual appeal, add images, and make design choices that they may not have done previously.  Additionally, the ability to share when using Sway has been invaluable.  Students can very easily see each other's work by sharing the link in their OneNote Class Notebooks, emailing it to their parents, and even sharing information online with the world! 

I created a very basic Office Mix to introduce Sway to my students.  They watched the tutorial and were able to complete their first Sway (by copying and pasting from Word in Office 365) within minutes.  Students had very few questions and really enjoyed the 'remix' and design features.  I am definitely using this tool throughout the remainder of the school year!

Instructional Coaching- Life made easy with Office Mix

If there is one tech tool that has helped me make the transition from full-time Language Arts teacher to a half-time teacher and half-time instructional coach, it is Office Mix on my Surface Pro 3.  I'm often asked to create tutorials for strategies and techniques demonstrated during our weekly PD sessions for teachers who want a refresher course or were absent.  Where do I turn?  Office Mix!  This effective PowerPoint add-in easily allows large PD-leading PowerPoint presentations to become intimate and usable tutorials. 

It is a tech-coach's dream because I only have to perform the tutorial ONCE and it is forever recorded and is easily shared with any colleagues who may want more practice or to try things with the video.  Countless teachers have commented that they love these videos.  Little did they know, it is our familiar go-to (PowerPoint) with a little more razzle-dazzle!

I've linked a few samples of recent tutorials that I created for my teachers below.

Office Mix can easily be added to your PowerPoint through a quick download.  Our tech department recently sent it out for all teacher computers.  I'm excited to see my colleagues begin to play with this efficient, effective, and exciting new tool!  https://mix.office.com

Ready, Set, Launch!

After a summer full of professional development, my brain is absolutely packed with new and exciting tools and strategies to try in my Humanities classroom.  One tool that I am going to implement day one is the OneNote Class Notebook.  I use my Surface Pro 3 and Surface 3 to run this amazing program.  I've played with it quite a bit in the past, but have never used it as a primary tool in my classroom.  This year, I've fully committed to being as paperless as possible, and the OneNote Class Notebook is the tool that I'm going to use to help me achieve this goal!

To introduce the OneNote Class Notebook to my students, I first showed them THIS VIDEO from the OneNote for Teachers website.  I then had students login to their Office 365 accounts, and open OneDrive.  I had previously created their OneNote Class Notebooks and shared those with them, so they were able to click on their 'Shared with Me' link and see the notebook.  They then launched OneNote Online by clicking on the link.  After the program opened, they clicked on the 'Open in OneNote' button at the top.

At this point, I began to play the tutorial video for OneNote Class Notebooks.  Students watched the video and walked through the steps on their own Class Notebook pages.  It gave them a great overview of the program and allowed them to "try" things while still being directed.  Since the tutorial was doing the "teaching", I was able to walk through the classroom and help my 30 students navigate and troubleshoot any issues.

We had a few glitches and a few computers struggled to load the full version of OneNote, but after the initial class period (48 minutes), students had a working knowledge of the program and were ready to begin the next lesson using the program.

Vocabulary Activity: Fortunes

I always struggle making vocabulary engaging (beyond the gestures and worksheets).  One activity that always has my students excited to interact with words is called Fortunes.  I true Chinese fortune fashion, we create fortunes for each other using vocabulary words in context.  This activity allows for creative writing while being brief.  With the time constraints on teachers in our high-stakes testing situation, Fortunes is an activity that can be completed in under 10 minutes.



Procedure:

1. Pass out a small slip of paper to each student.
2.  Ask students to write a "fortune" on the slip of paper in a complete sentence.  I use the slide (image below) to guide their fortune writing.  I place emphasis on the no death/dismemberment section because, let's be honest, middle schoolers love that kind of gore and, though it catches their attention, it has no place in the ELA classroom.
3. Have students fold up their fortunes and place them in a hat/container.
4. Redistribute the fortunes by having each student choose one out of the hat/container.  
5. Read the fortunes aloud and see what their futures hold!  Note: they LOVE doing this part!

7th Grade Humanities

This year, a colleague and I are embarking on a new challenge: a collaborative co-taught Humanities class.  The class is going to encompass both 7th grade Language Arts AND 7th grade Social Studies. In an effort to best prepare our students for the state test along with our need to have a different type of class for some of our students, we have developed an inquiry based curriculum that is driven by a large project.  Before I get to the nuts and bolts of the class (see future post), I thought I'd share some of the steps that we have taken in order to get this class up and running.

1. Get approval and support from the building level administrator.
We are super lucky because our building administrator is very supportive and is willing to take a risk with us.  I can't tell you how important it is to have you administrator behind you, especially when you're taking a risk.  Props to Mr. R!  He helped us create a course description and helped us go through some of the steps below.  We couldn't have done it without his guidance and support.

2. Get approval from district administrators
This involved quite a few emails.  We emailed our course description, a list of supplies that we would need for the class, and a description of how students would be selected for the class.  Again, we were very lucky.  Our superintendent saw a value in what we are trying to do and was very supportive.

3. Get approval from the school board
We pitched our class to the Board at a meeting.  We presented our course description, rationale, resources requested, and fielded questions from the Board members.  They all seemed very excited about this class, but were concerned about the application/selection process.  Thankfully, our building administrator was in attendance and helped us answer some of the more difficult questions.

4. Determine the schedule and capacity
After getting approval, we then had to see when and where this class would take place.  We wanted to be sure that students in this class were getting the same amount of class time dedicated to Social Studies and Language Arts as all of the other students in their grade level.  For that reason, the scheduling was somewhat difficult.  We had to find 2.5 class periods for these students to be together.  We also had to consider a class capacity.  This was difficult because we were essentially taking two classes (roughly 50 students) and determining how many we could fit into a single classroom.  For the first year, we decided that we would accept 30 applicants.  In the future, this class will most likely be available to 50-60 students.  Thankfully the class coming up to 7th grade is relatively small, so it didn't impact other classes that much.

5. Pitch the class to students
This was the interesting part.  We held a meeting in the morning for any interested 6th graders.  We had a packed house!  Even after talking about the requirements, we still had many students apply.  I'm sure that it partially is due to the fact that this is a "special" class.  A video promotion and talk given by both of us (the teachers for the class) was enough to encourage many students to complete the application.

6. Hold an informational meeting for parents
We held a meeting after school for any interested students and their parents.  We aim to have full transparency with our curriculum and wanted parents to know that there would be a different teaching and learning style in this course.  Many parents came and asked great questions.  They were able to look at the class resources, see the course description, ask questions about grading, and get to know the teachers a little before the applications were due.

7. Select students
Students had to 1- attend the student meeting, 2- have a parent attend the parent meeting, and 3-submit an application. If they did all of those things, they were put in the running.  After we had a list of perspective students, we asked their 6th grade teachers to let us know if any of the applicants struggled with group work or independent thinking.  After that, student names were literally placed in a bucket and drawn out.  We emailed parents and let students know if they were accepted.

We are currently working on our curriculum, which I will share in detail at a later time.  Hopefully this listicle will help you if you are interested in starting a new class at your school! 

Vocabulary Activity: Gesture Like You Mean It!

I don't know about you, but vocabulary is one of the most difficult lessons to make "fun".  Sure, my students have done Marzanno's drawings and the perfunctory exercises, but I always struggle finding ways to make vocabulary lessons enjoyable for both my students and myself.  One of the best strategies that I've used in my classroom with my 7th grade students is to do hand motions with the words. 

Credit for this activity goes to my high school Spanish teacher, Mrs. Smoker, who always required gestures when learning new words.  Kudos to you, Sra. Smoker.  The Spanish may not have stuck, but I DID get something out of those classes.

After introducing, pronouncing, and defining vocabulary words, we create gestures that go with each word's meaning.  I must be honest, some students who are "too cool for school" roll their eyes, but eventually, peer pressure takes over and they are emphatically waving their arms like the rest of the class.

Throughout the week, whenever there is a moment of free time, I will announce a word, and expect that my students will immediately do the motions (and, for the most part, they do).  Not only does this break up the worksheets, it REALLY HELPS them learn their words.  I even witness a student or two each week performing their gestures discretely under their desks as they take their weekly quiz.

Note:
We use Word Up Flocabulary in a very abbreviated form.  My colleagues and I call this "Frankensteining" (which we know isn't a real word).  The entire workbook is too daunting to complete for every unit, so a smaller portion with different exercises is used instead.  We really like their word lists (words that they can actually use in their writing) and the students enjoy the raps.  If you subscribe to their online version, they have videos as well.  Fun!

Writing Quality Constructed Response Questions

During the last post, I discussed my main strategy for teaching my students HOW to answer constructed response answers.  Rigor is often a topic that is discussed at professional development meetings that I attend/facilitate.  How can we create an accessible but rigorous curriculum?  how can other content areas support what we are doing in Language Arts?  How can content areas be assured that they are hitting the literacy standards for their area?

Creating quality constructed response questions can help emphasize analysis and using textual evidence in ANY content area and can help increase RIGOR.  We're really talking about asking students reach at least level three in the Depth of Knowledge Levels.

First, I share with teachers three ways to create a quality constructed response question.

Then, I share the rubric that is used by our state.  I always encourage teachers to use the rubric that is on the state assessment so that students are familiar with exactly what is expected.  This also allows teachers to gauge where students are during their class work.

Constructed Response Ninjas

When I introduce constructed response questions to my students, I am met with the typical middle school response to anything that makes them think: a groan, slouching in their chairs, and eyes to the ceiling.  The concept has, it seems, been drilled into their brains for many years, but they still can't seem to master the skill of answering such a question.  A few years ago, my district brought in Smeckens to help us with Language Arts mini lessons and preparations for the state assessments.  The strategies that they taught, along with the collective ideas from other amazing department members in my school, have helped me make my students Constructed Response Ninjas.  Now when my students encounter the dreaded constructed response questions, they meet it with the confidence and stealth of a trained ninja.

Introductory Lesson:

This lesson is taught the first week of school (as constructed response is a part of EVERY unit throughout the year).  We begin with a brief introduction of the question type and answer format called Yes Ma'am (acronym courtesy of Smeckens).

Yes Ma'am Challenge Lesson:

After the initial lesson, and A LOT of practice with the basic format, we take it a step further by completing a Yes Ma'am Challenge.


A few things to note:
1. Smeckens is amazing.  Highly recommended and extremely valuable.
2. We use the acronym Yes Ma'am, but move away from calling those questions "Yes Ma'am Questions" and instead use the term Constructed Response.  We value the acronym, but feel that it is important for our students to know the official term for this type of response.
3. My colleagues, who helped create these lessons, rock!