iPad Cart Check-Out and Creating a Database for iPad Lesson Plans at Your School

Here's my idea as submitted to my principal and colleagues:

In our effort to insure that the iPads stay in the building, are used to maximize the educational experience, and its uses are thoughtful and well-planned, we are asking the following:

www.macworld.com.au

1. Those teachers that would like to use this tool with their classes must attend a minimum of two professional development workshops on how the iPads are monitored and used effectively in the classroom setting. 

2. Teachers must submit an iPad lesson plan including desired 21st century student outcomes and specific apps that will be used. The purpose of this is to create a database of subject specific iPad lessons that can be referred to for years to come.

3. When returning the iPad cart, teachers must submit a brief reflection of their lesson. 

For example: 

   a. Describe your experience using iPads in your class for the first time? 

   b. Were there events/questions/successes/obstacles that you didn't anticipate?  

   c. Were there any classroom management issues? If so, how were they addressed? Can they be prevented for future lessons? 
   d. Did your students achieve the desired outcomes? If yes, how do you know? If not, what aspects of your lesson or delivery need to be tweaked to achieve the desired results next time? 

NOTE: Reflections will be attached to the lesson plan previously submitted to help in future iPad lesson development. If a reflection is not submitted after a lesson is completed, you will not be able to check out the iPad cart again until it is completed. 

What do you think?

iPad Cart Check-Out ©2012. Erika Totten. All rights reserved.

WE ARE FAMILY!! Prefix Family Vocabulary Mini Lesson

Happy New Year!!


I'm embarrassed about how long it's been since I've written a post, so let's leave all those excuses in the past, shall we? Thanks :)


I've got a "NEW" lesson to start the new year! 


After my students took the PSAT Test, and their first F.A.S.T Test last year, many expressed the desire to learn more about prefixes, suffixes, and word origins to help build their vocabulary (shout out to Raul!!).  So I've decided to start the year off with a cool activity called "Prefix Family Vocabulary."


My Goals:

• To introduce the most common prefixes used in the English language.
• To increase the use of high-level vocabulary in class discussion and casual conversations.
• To meet an expressed need of my students.

Resource:
One will be posted at each group prior to students entering class. These are the prefixes we'll be addressing this week.
Prefix Family Vocab PDF




My Plan:


Part 1:

1. Students will be separated into groups of 6. These groups will be called "families."
2. Each family will represent a specific prefix, i.e "The Mal- Family"
3. Each family will have a sign (above) that conveys what their family name means, i.e "Mal - = bad"
4. Now that the family name is established, the "Matriarch" or "Patriarch" (formerly known as the "group leader" - moving to high-level vocab!!) must be selected.
5. Each family member must find a name for themselves (using lexicons/dictionary apps, etc.) that starts with the "family name" and embodies the meaning, i.e "Malevolent".
6. Once each family member finds a name, they must be sure to understand the meaning and be able to explain it to the class. However, they won't just explain the definition. Through acting, students will "introduce" themselves and try to embody what their "name" means. 

For example:

     STUDENT :  [with a scowl on his face] "Wassup! They call me Malevolent."

 [starts pacing around the room] "They call me Malevolent 'cause I hate EVERYTHING!! 

[spots a flower across the room, runs up to the flower and stares it down] 

                                                                   "I hate this FLOWER!"

 [spots a chair, runs up to the chair]   "...I...I...I hate this CHAIR!!"

 [looks down at the floor, starts stomping on the floor]     "I hate this FLOOR!!" 

                       "Yeah...they call me Malevolent...'cause I hate EVERYTHING!" 

WHOLE CLASS: [stands and cheers] "YAAAYYY!! I KNOW WHAT 'MALEVOLENT' MEANS!!"

*Yes, I have high expectations! (lol) Every introduction doesn't have to be this dramatic, and I'm sure most won't be. That's just what I had going on in my head. Had to get it out :)*

          

      7. Each family must introduce themselves.

Part 2:

Each family will collaborate with other families by separating into different groups. The matriarch's/patriarch's will stay at their group and act as the expert of their family, and all other members will be mixed and act as experts of their family. The easiest way to mix groups is to count off by 5. All the 1's go to the "Mal- Family", all the 2's  go to the "Ante- Family", etc.

Plan:

1. Students will be given a chart with a list of words, all with prefixes of the various families.

2. Students must discuss what they think the words mean and write their definition on the chart.

3. Students must then check their definitions against those found in lexicons/dictionary apps, etc. to see if they were correct.


I'll have students give instant feedback of the lesson through polleverywhere. We LOVE it!!

Are You Paying Attention?

If we have to meet our students where they are, we must first be willing to go there...

Take The Poll! Which 21st Century Tool Would You Like To Learn More About?

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Before You Call Me Crazy...Read On...

from http://groovylibrarian.edublogs.org/ via wordle

I'M A 21st CENTURY TEACHER!!

 My New Year's Resolution last school year was to introduce one new Web2.0 tool to my students each week. Crazy, I know...needless to say, that didn't happen. However, the tools that I did introduce rekindled my students' passion for learning, kept them engaged, and even got them to "own their learning" outside the classroom.

While surfing through one of the most extensive databases for teacher professional development I've ever seen (a.k.a Twitter), I stumbled upon a publication by Michael Zimmerman called "Tools for the 21st Century Teacher."

Zimmerman debunks several myths about the relationship between teachers and emerging technology (or lack thereof), and offers several web based technology tools that teachers can implement in their lessons today.

Myth #1: New teachers have experience with instructional technology.
Myth #2: Current teachers have no desire to learn technology or are scared to learn technology.
Myth #3: Teachers need to pay for technology in order to integrate it in their classrooms.

In my quest for reigniting the passion for learning in my students, I've realized that the key is not getting them to settle down or "unplug" when they enter the classroom. We must incorporate the various technology and social media tools they use daily into our lessons just to make our lessons relevant.

So here are a few practical ways in which I've attempted to debunk Myth #3.

The following are the most popular tools among my students and explanations of how I use them in our environment daily. Many of the tools have made my job as an educator easier, increased parental communication/involvement, increased student engagement/achievement, and renewed my fervor for teaching.


The most popular tools are:

• Google Voice - This Google Education App allowed me to create a free phone number (that rang to my personal cell phone) that I then gave to my students. Before you call me crazy, deranged, ambitious, read on. Students were able to text or call me (mostly text for this generation) if they had questions on an assignment. However, further into the year, students began texting me about books/articles/documentaries they were watching that connected to something they were learning in class!  I also used this as an assessment tool. For example, I'd post a question on the screen and have them text their answer to (202) 643 -TOTT (ha! My name is Mrs. Totten...get it?), or have them leave me a voicemail message explaining the difference between tone and mood. This is also a great tool for parent communication. Students got a little frazzled when I announced that I was sending their parent a text about their behavior (good & bad), skipping class...or a picture of them sleeping in my class. Oh yes! I was this close to hitting send. The key features I loved were: the "Do Not Disturb" feature ("No calls after 5pm!"), the "Announcement" feature where the caller must record their name so you know who's calling before you answer, and you can also send texts and make calls from your computer. To learn more click here.

• Blogging! - I started a class blog last year called "The Intellectual House of Pancakes (and prose). You can check it out at www.theihopp.blogspot.com. Here, I posted the cool things we were doing in class and even some ideas to make our class even more fun. I taught my students about posting meaningful comments and gave extra credit to those that commented on my posts. For class community building, I also posted a few pics of my family, things that interest me (hence, the pancakes - love 'em!) or experiences that I had that my students could relate to. To get my students involved in the sharing and reflection process, I had each create their own personal blog where they wrote poetry, journal entries, etc. Want to learn how to set up your own blog, check out this post.

• Edmodo - Social Networking for Education! Edmodo looks just like Facebook so it automatically peaked my students' interest. Where do I begin to explain how COOL this is? My students can collaborate with students from around the WORLD from our classroom. If we're reading a story about a teen's experience in Germany, we can collaborate or Skype with students and teachers in Germany to ask about their culture to build background knowledge! I can post homework assignments, polls, due dates, videos/articles they need to read for the next day's discussion, etc. and my students will get an email and/or an alert sent to their phones. If they get the new mobile app, they can do some assignments straight from their phones. What I like best about this is....EVERYTHING!! To learn more, watch the video below and follow @betsywhalen on twitter 

• Voki - Create your own avatar! My students had a ball with this. I can show you better than I can explain it to you in writing.  Make sure your speakers are on, and click the "play" button.
  
   You can use your own voice, or choose one from the list provided (with the accent of your choice). This would be great for foreign language teachers! Have the student create a voki avatar, then record their voice speaking in the respective language, and post it to their blog. Great way to check for fluency! Here's how you do it.  Try It Now!

Are you a 21st Century Teacher?  Principals, how many 21st Century Teachers do you have?
Check out this list "21 Signs You're a 21st Century Teacher" from the ladies over at SimpleK12.com

It's amazing how you can transform your class with even ONE of these tools. Imagine how much growth you'd see among your colleagues and staff if everyone committed to taking the global "Teacher Challenge" . Try it today!