Correction

As per yesterday's thought on the weather:

Scratch that; things totally suck now. A solid 3-4 inches on the ground, preceded by sleet overnight and this morning. Glad we're a few days into spring; it looks like mid-January out my window.

Looking up - the first few days of "Spring Break" will be in the low- to mid-30's, so we'll have that going for us...which is nice.

Thoughts...

So much going on these days. Plenty of thoughts on my mind:

-As I continue to look at learning in the 21st century, how will that continue to look & evolve in my classroom? school? curriculum? delivery?
-The role mobile devices will have in learning, specifically where I teach: Reading and Language Arts. E-readers, iPads, smartphones are all capable of so much. Opening windows for utilizing these technologies in a responsible manner will be crucial in my teaching over the next few years. Even the effective use of sites like polleverywhere.com will give kids a chance to have their voices hear by using their smartphones. My guess is that will engage many students.
-Spring Break probably needs to get here fast...the kiddos are barely hanging on right now!
-Weather: dreary...although I'm thankful there's not a foot of snow falling right now.
-Winter sports around these parts - Minneapolis - this year. In a word: brutal.
-My wife is a fantastic 1st grade teacher who maintains a blog of our family. This month she has been stepping up to the challenge of writing every day. To borrow a line from Ferris Beuller, if you have the means, I highly recommend it. She's a wonderful wife, great mom, and a talented teacher & writer.

That's all for today...

Dipping the toes in; Why My job doesn't suck

This has been a year of new endeavors in my classroom. For the first time, my students are now using Google Docs as their primary tool for writing in Language Arts. They are able to share their works with me on-line, and I am able to give feedback to them at any time. At first, the thought of doing this with 45 LA students seemed daunting, but I was blessed with a lot of support, and the results have been very positive. I never worried about how the kids would handle it - this stuff is such a part of their lives - it was getting over my own fears that mattered the most.

Another frontier I have entered lately has been expanding students' use of cell phones - specifically the smart phones so many of them have - in both my Reading and LA classes. There are some good resources out there, and for each class I am finding more and more reasons to create an environment in my classroom where students can effectively use their phones, while being responsible & thoughtful users. In Reading, some of my students now use their smart phones as e-readers, and download free books for independent reading time; they share great new books they've discovered with classmates. In Language Arts, I have had students who need to get some quick research done for a multi-media project...I only have 1 student computer in my classroom, and some days the computer lab is booked. Solution: use your smart phone, spend 2-3 minutes searching what you're looking for (our building is wireless), write down the facts & cite the source, good to go! I look forward to discovering more ways to take advantage of this technology, and further develop my classroom expectations & policies (along with the kids) to govern student use.

A big part of this has been the support of my principal, and that can't be overstated...it's a huge deal to work in an environment where you're supported & encouraged to do what's best for kids and learning, even if it is "new" and "untested" to a certain degree. That, along with many other things, is why on this particular Friday, my job doesn't suck. In fact, between that and the exciting new opportunities for learning and collaborating with and between my students, it can be downright rewarding at times.

Back From Break, Still Lying Fallow...

Don't misunderstand - I'm very much active in my classroom, interacting with students, giving instruction and facilitating learning, and providing feedback. What I mean is that while break is over (a very nice and restful break, I might add) and the action has resumed, I am very much in a state of rest and nourishment intellectually.

Huh?

A little while back, as part of an assignment for our Teaching & Technology cohort, a colleague of mine used farming as a metaphor for technology & education. Going with that thought, I find myself very much like a seed lying fallow, soaking in the nutrients to help me grow. As I've written before in this space, I really enjoy the learning process, of feeling challenged, and looking at ways to improve and grow. While I am between classes for the cohort, I am sitting back, soaking in lots of great information, and taking the time to reflect on everything going on within and outside of my classroom walls. Currently on my mind:

-Grading, standards, and the marriage of the two...
-Tech in my class and beyond - communities of learning...
-Motivation, and its latest paradigms - great stuff Daniel Pink...
-Creativity, and looking at education/schools/learning in a whole new way - Sir Ken...
-My role in all of this, where I am next year/5 years/10 years down the road...

There's a lot to be said for lying fallow. We don't often get to do it, especially in this profession. I will try to marinate in everything I've been taking in lately, hopefully to turn that into great new action down the road.

Course 1 Wrapping Up

So far it's been a whirlwind! Our first class in Edina's Teaching & Technology Cohort has flown by, with quite the learning curve and fantastic new experiences. The last eight weeks or so have given me a chance to increase my web presence, establish a personal learning network (PLN), learn a great deal from colleagues, collaborate on projects, and reflect on my own teaching - with technology's place in it - in the form of a metaphor essay.

While it hasn't always been pretty, and some of the timing got a little crazy with end-of-quarter responsibilities & conferences, it's been a completely rewarding experience. I look forward to the rest of the courses, hopeful that I will learn as much as I have so far.

Tech Cohort Mash-Up

Make your own digital collage

Writing, Thinking, Learning in 2010...

As I type this post, I'm listening to a podcast, entering grade updates (online), checking my twitter feed, and pondering writing, learning, and 21st century education technology.

One of my main professional goals this year is to push my students more into using digital platforms to write, express themselves, collaborate, and increase their global understanding. The process is still in the early stages, but I'm planting seeds to get my students thinking about how technology currently plays a role in the way they write, and how digital literacy can increase their written language skills.

Later this week, we will take a look at this article and prompt from the NY Times learning page. Hopefully, writing a 'love letter' to their favorite piece of technology will start to open the door for further discussion...