Glogster

PUNT, PASS, KICK IN KNOXVILLE

Today five members of the TN LC gathered at Gresham Middle School with a wonderful group of teachers to teach them more about integrating DE Streaming into their classrooms. The first quarter was lead by Sally. She helped guide the teachers through the basics of DE Streaming with the help of Carole. Tina began the second quarter with the teachers adding The Builders to their playbooks. The second half began with Tim sharing some exciting plays built around the advanced search function, Web 2.0 tools such as Voicethread and Animoto, and HTML embed codes. The fourth quarter ended our day with information on the DEN, becoming a STAR, and door prizes.

Thank you to Gresham Middle for hosting us for the day. The school has a lot of charm and history while still providing the students with the tools to be successful. I was impressed, not only with the facility, but what the teachers did to help bring a sense of community to the school. Below is an Animoto of the chairs that the art teacher worked on with her students--they are now placed throughout the library for students and parents to enjoy for a long time to come. Thanks again!

DAY OF DISCOVERY IN BRADLEY COUNTY

On October 24th approximately sixty educators gathered at Lake Forest Middle School for A Day of Discovery in conjunction with the Fall Virtual Conference (you can check out the archives here). What a fantastic day!

It began with a keynote from Discovery's own Justin Karkow. The attendees then had the option of attending one of three breakout sessions. One strand was designed for administrators, instructional coaches, and library media specialists. In the second strand educators had the opportunity to learn the basics of DE Streaming, how to use Promethean Boards effectively in their classrooms, and all about the DEN. The final breakout room ran the Virtual Conference sessions. And just in case the attendees felt like they needed to practice what they had learned or just needed some time to decompress, a computer playground was opened for them.

The day was fantastic! To top it all off Discovery sent a film crew in to document the day. The video is fantastic and captured the day beautifully. Hope to see you at our next event!

NSBA's and T+L's "20 to Watch" 2009

I just returned from the National School Boards Association Technology + Learning Conference in Denver, CO where I was very honored to be named one of NSBA’s “20 to Watch“. I had the pleasure of meeting some of the other winners including Dyane Smokorowski of Kansas and Robert Miller of Port Orange, Florida.

Brian Nichols, principal, of Newport News Public Schools and I had a great discussion on co-teaching practices. Knox County has just embarked on an endeavor to expose children who receive special education services to more of the general education curriculum, and co-teaching is the model we are using. Brian's school has been using the model for some time, and I am excited at the prospects of what we can do together.

Michael Baker, On-Line Learning Coordinator, South Side Area School District, Pennsylvania, is certainly passionate about what his district is doing, and we discovered that we have many personal PLN connections.

Eighteen of the twenty were at T+L, but with all we were doing, we still didn't have the opportunity to connect as much as I would have liked. I hope to continue the discussions we started in Denver and begin new ones.

DEN TECH OR TREAT--FALL VIRTUAL CONFERENCE 2009

The Discovery Educator Network's Fall Virtual Conference is right around the corner. What's a virtual conference you ask? The conference is one where you can attend from home in the comfort of your favorite loungeware of pajamas via webinar, or you can choose to attend one of the live events hosted by one of the Discovery Educator Network's Leadership Councils.

The experts from Discovery Education will be bringing more tech knowledge than your brain may be able to handle in one day. Check out the virtual sessions here or register for a live event near you. One more thing, prizes! Dress as your favorite Discovery Channel personality and have a chance to win a Flip Camera. "See" you there!

WE ARE TEACHERS MICROGRANT

The next wave of We Are Teachers Microgrant opportunities is here for classroom teachers. The microgrant provides $200 and a Flip Video Camera to the recipients. Applications are being accepted until October 31st. You have until Halloween eve at 5PM CST to get your grant in. What is the topic this round you ask? Special Education. Project ideas will be posted for community voting which ends on November 17, 2009. Winners will be announced on November 19th. Good luck and happy grant writing!

TRANSMATH

Our county is looking at adopting TransMath from Cambium Learning and Sopris West as an alternative to those students who have struggled in mathematics during their elementary years. The program is being piloted in four of our middle schools this year, and over the past two days we have been through training on the program.

The program looks as if it provides alternatives to the traditional models of mathematics instruction, but also appears to be a highly scripted program. Does anyone have any experience with this program? Thoughts, comments, and suggestions are highly appreciated.

A NEW BEGINNING

Life is all about changes and new beginnings, at least that is what I have always been taught. This year it has been no different. I am about to embark on a something new. I am excited and yet the change is somewhat sad and scary. As I emptied my classroom out I began to question myself. Am I doing the right thing? Will this be the challenge and change that I am looking for? Only time will tell.

My new position is as a co-teaching coach. The title in and of itself is confusing to many people, so I have simply started calling myself and instructional coach. My job is to work with two educators in one classroom, one being special-education certified and the other general education. Teachers have always used or had inclusive classrooms, but Knox County is trying to move beyond that and utilize co-teaching strategies. This is where both teachers assume the same roles and responsibilities for ALL children in the classroom. It is a new approach for most of the teachers in our district, so eleven coaches have been hired to assist in easing the transition.

I have two years to decide if this is right for me. The position is funded through the stimulus funds provided by the Obama administration. After two years the county may or may not decide to fund the positions again. If they do and I like it I am all set. If I decide to go back to the classroom I can do that as well. Now, only time will tell!

DEN LC SYMPOSIUM 2009

I know, I know--I need to post to my blog on a much more frequent basis.  It has been quite awhile since I last posted and much has happened since then as well.  To break back into the habit I created an Animoto of "Rubber Ducky."  Remember him?  If you were at the DEN LC Symposium I'm sure you do.  He had many great adventures and caught up with a lot of my friends while there.  Check out what he did--what do you remember fondly about our adventure?  I look forward to seeing many of my DEN friends throughout the year.  I hope I don't have to wait until DEN LC 2010 to catch up again.  See you soon!

WORLD MATHS DAY 2009

For the past two years my students have participated in World Maths Day and they have enjoyed each and every moment.  For two weeks prior to the event my students "practiced" what they would see on March 4th.  They competed against students from around the world via sixty- second math fact quizzes.  The more answers they got right the better, but they had to be careful and not "strike out!"  I was impressed with how excited my students were with the competition date drawing nearer and nearer.  

Then, the day arrived!  We booked the computer lab for two hours and off they went.  My plan was to map each country as they came in, but there was NO way I could do it!  The new countries were coming in faster than I could locate them on GoogleMaps and record them.  I resorted to the old fashioned white board and Expo marker!  I later transferred the information and this map is what we ended up with.

Our plan is now to complete the map throughout the rest of the year.  We are going to research each of the countries that were represented.  Are you from one of them?  Do you know someone who is?  We would love to interview you via skype!  Please fill out this form if you are interested in helping.  I can't wait to share the final product.

BECOME A DEN STAR

What does being a DEN STAR mean to you? My PLN started with Discovery and has grown tremendously over the past two years. I would have never thought I would communicating with educators from across the "pond" or even across the country. The walls of the classroom have definitely grown for me thanks in huge part to the relationships that I have developed as a STAR Discovery Educator.

Conversations in Twitter and Plurk have led me to this post. Just how do you become a STAR and why would I want to do it? Well, it really is fairly simple. You need to have an account with DE Streaming first and foremost. After that it really is easy. Just follow the directions on the website "Be a STAR Discovery Educator." Watch the movie, take a quiz, and host two events. It is that simple!

So, what do you get out of it? Why would any educator want to be a STAR? Why wouldn't you? Here are just a few reason to become one: exclusive promotions and contests, special events exclusively for STARS, personal blogs, access to field managers, training toolboxes, and a fabulous PLN! I hope to see you soon as a STAR.

7 THINGS MEME

Well, I am finally getting around to posting 7 things you might not know about me.  I have been tagged twice that I know of, originally by Patti Harju and then by Mark Dunk.  The idea of the meme is to post 7 things that people may not know about you.  Here are the rules:

• Link your original tagger (s) and list these rules on your blog.
• Share seven facts about yourself in the post.
• Tag seven people at the end of your post by leaving their names and links to their blogs.
• Let them know they've been tagged by leaving a comment on Twitter or Plurk.

I should say that I have been thinking hard about the seven things I want to post about myself and let you all know about me, but alas I would by lying.  I am finding it difficult to decide, so hear it goes!

• I was married at the young age of 20, okay, I was almost 21.  That was the second time.  My husband and I ran away to Vegas when I was only 19, and we didn't tell anyone.  My mom who recently got into researching her family tree (thank you internet) found our marriage license on the internet--whoops!  Our secret is out.
• I originally went to school to become a civil engineer.  Plans were to go work with my dad and join the family construction and design business.  Over 200 college credits later I got my BS in History with an elementary education minor.
• There were two schools that I attended in my K-12 education.  I guess I can find myself lucky on that one!  I went to Justice Street Elementary K-6 and Chaminade College Preparatory 7-12.
• Suspense movies are my favorite!  I usually can't stand "chick flicks."  Any occasional one will tear me up, but not many.  All time favorite movie--Silence of the Lambs!
• I am a MMA fan.  I'm not sure that is much of a secret, but I LOVE it!  My husband says he is one lucky man--he has a woman who loves football and MMA.
• Changing gears with this one--none of my grandparents ever met my children.  My maternal grandmother died when my 13 year-old was only 3 months from birth.  I still have the blanket that she started knitting, and I don't think I will ever be able to bring myself to have my mom finish it.  It is special just how it is.
• Last but not least--a quirky tidit--the closest I get to Hollywood is Paige from Extreme Home Makeover.  She was a high school friend, but we haven't talked since our sophomore year in college.  I wish her all the best, but it looks like she is doing just fine!

Okay, so now for the really hard part.  I am so late to this post that I am afraid that I will be unable to tag anyone--but have they posted yet?  So here it goes!  I tag, in no particular order:

1. Lee Kolbert
2. Ken Shelton
3. Tom Turner
4. Hall Davidson
5. Bridget Belardi
6. Chad Lehman
7. Tim Childers

BARBARA'S FUND

Barbara Berreda lost her home and nearly all of her possessions in the fires in California this weekend.  Please consider helping by donating to a Paypal fund set that was set up by Jen Wagner and Clarence Fisher.  Visit the site here to donate and find out more.  

ALAN NOVEMBER IN KNOXVILLE!

I am sitting in our professional development and technology center in Knoxville, TN, and Alan November is here!  I am impressed to see how many educators have given up their Friday evening to hear him speak and see what he has to say.  Not only that, but they (we) will be giving up their Saturday, too!

Right now he is discussing the power of Skype and iTunes.  I am amazed that very few of the teachers in this room, almost 300, have heard of or used Skype.  There is promise though!  They are excited about it and are willing to learn.  That is the most important thing about being a teacher...promise to be a lifelong learner.  More to come later!

DEN SOUTH REGIONAL EVENT

The members of the TN LC are here in Huntsville, AL along with Brad, Justin, and Hall.  Brad started the day by introducing the DEN gang to the 20 or so educators that are here.  Then it was time for Tim and me to take the stage.  

The teachers that are here are a much more tech savvy group then I expected, so our plan was slightly changed.  We were going to do an introduction to DE Streaming, which we did, but we got to expand on it quite a bit!  Tim did a great job explaining the advanced search function and how to set up your own personal settings on the DE Streaming homepage.  Then we moved to the Builders, which is nearly always overlooked!  The teachers were amazed with what could be done there. As always the favorite function of the Builders was the non-grading that teachers need to do.  Create a quiz and let the kiddos take it on the computer.  As long as the quiz is created with multiple choice and or true false, the quiz is graded for you! WOOT!  

After our morning session we were treated to an off-site event.  Off to the Huntsville Space Center!  We enjoyed lunch from Panera and fun!  We enjoyed some great rides--will post some great video of that later--and some wonderful learning at the center.

Now were back at the conference center.  Brad just finished his preso on PowerPoint and Justin is moving on to Digital Storytelling.  More to come later!

Cell Phones in the Classroom

Ever since Hall Davidson's keynote at NECC I have been thinking about the use of cell phones in the classroom more and more.  Yes, I had thought about how they might be used, but he really got me thinking.  Then just like every start of the school year the paperwork began to flow into my home for me to sign.  I was astounded at the policy of my son's school district!

Here is the policy of  Blount County Schools.  I am sure it is not much different than most school districts around the US, but when are they going to a little more forward thinking?  Those of us who use technology and integrate Web 2.0 practices are in the minority, but I hope that we are gaining new people to our community each and every day.  How long is it going to be before schools start to embrace this technology instead of trying to fight the "losing battle" (although that is not what I consider it).  

What I am most astounded by is the policy that Blount County Schools have regarding the confiscation of personal communication devices as defined by the Board of Education.  They are as follows:

First Offense-parent must pick up device after school-parent and student must sign policy acknowledgment.

Second Offense-device is confiscated for two weeks and parent must pick up-student and parent must sign policy acknowledgment.

Third Offense-device is confiscated and student will receive a three day suspension.  The student will be required to make up academic work missed during the three day period.  In the event the student fails to make up the work the battery will be removed.  The parent may pick up the battery and device at the end of the semester. 

Why does the school have the power to do this?  Are they that scared of what the students will do with their "evil" devices? 

When I put out the question with my PLN I was astounded at the responses that I received.  Apparently this is on a lot of our mind now.  Check out what we had to say here.

What are your thoughts on this issue?    

REFLECTIONS

It has been nearly two weeks since the end of the DEN LC Institute, and now I can finally reflect upon the great experience that I had. It was a wonderful to meet up with old friends and finally connect face to face with some new ones. The networking was incredible to say the least, and we learned a thing or two while we were there. Oh ya, I nearly forgot, we had some fun, too!

Day one began with a quick introduction and welcome by Lance and the gang from the DEN, then we were off and running. We met folks from around our region and began collaborating on a video, the infamous Boom-De-Yah-Da. There were only six of us to begin the project, but we meshed quickly and came up with what we think is a humorous rendition. You can see it on the TN LC Blog.

The Institute was nearly a reunion of sorts, too. There were many of us from last years Florida Excursion including Jen Dorman, Jennifer Gingerich, Bridget Belardi, Howard Martin and many many others. Jen, aka Cliotech, did a session on the value of PLNs, Jennifer Gingerich gave a great presentation on Digital Storytelling, Bridget introduced several of us to geocaching, and Howard taught us about wikis. You can check out everything we learned on the DEN wiki.

Oh, the fun; I nearly forgot! We enjoyed a carnival complete with prizes and special Discovery guests. The carnival had an animal trainer, fortune teller, and the infamous bearded lady. We played Wii, DENGO, and other traditional carnival prizes. One night we were treated to a dinner overlooking the Potomac, wow! The view was gorgeous and the food was wonderful.

I want to thank the DEN and Discovery for all they do for educators. We wouldn't know what to do without you!

AN ARTISTIC ENDEAVOR

As the school year begins I will be beginning a new chapter in my career; I have transfered to an arts integration school.  This simply means that the teachers at our school are responsible for integrating the arts across the curriculum whether it be drawing, painting, drama, clay, music, or a myriad of other artistic endeavors.  You name it, and we do it.  

Now, this is not going to be an easy undertaking for me as I am not the most artistically inclined person.  My idea of integrating the arts revolves around digital storytelling.  Storyboarding, script writing, working on camera angles, theses are the things I know and love.  I may not be the best at it, but at least I feel comfortable teaching my students the "ropes."  I guess I will be expanding my horizons.  

To help those of us who don't have that magic arts touch the TN Arts Commission sponsors a week long professional development workshop.  Schools from across the state met at The Renaissance Center in Dickson, TN. There we learned the fine arts of making recycled jewelry, paper making, acting, script writing, dancing, and so much more.  You can learn more about the program here.  

Check out some of the fun we had!