A Christmas Gift?!

You just never know when you will get a piece of data in a 4th grade classroom. :)  Yesterday a student came up to me in class and said, "Mrs. Roberts, my mom says for Christmas we get one thing we want and one thing we need and do you know what I want?"  I said, " No, what?"  She replied, " I want a bean bag chair just like the ones we have in class!"

A comment. :)

A teaching assistant said to me, 

" Mary, when I walked in your room I had such a good feeling."  

I had a GREAT feeling when she said that to me. :) Happy that the environment that I was trying to create, was felt by an adult that doesn't even assist me in the room but had that feeling when she came into my room after school to share something with me about a student of mine at our after school homework club. :)

It's been a long time...................

I haven't posted in quite awhile.  The students seem to be doing well in the classroom with choice of seating.  I am going to switch it up a bit now.  They have been sitting in a certain table or desk area each day but they have been able to choose where to sit within that area.  Now I will be putting name tags at a seating spot for each student.  Students need to sit at that specific spot for approx. 4 weeks and then I will switch their area again but give them a different specific spot to sit.  Now we will see what happens. :)

Keep that Energy Bus Moving!

We decided to move our Energy Bus from the classroom and into the teachers' lounge. Janet inspired us to finish the year with a new poster added each week and some treats to keep the gas tank filled!

Some of the posters we put up include:

1. Too Blessed to be Stressed.

2. Positive Passengers Wanted.

3. No Energy Vampires Allowed.

4. 10 Rules for the Ride of Your Life.

5. The Goal in Life is to Live Young, Have Fun and Arrive at Your Final Destination as Late as Possible with a Smile on Your Face.

We were Inspired. :)

Abby " read the book review "Shop Class as Soulcraft: An Inquiry into the Value of Work" by Matthew B. Crawford, which was reviewed by Joseph A. Henderson in the March 2011 edition of Educational Leadership."

We agree that we need to reintroduce opportunities for students to work with their hands. There is too much emphasis on paper and pencil or computerized multiple-choice tests in schools. Hands-on projects could not only get kids "hooked" on coming to school, but also allow their intelligence to shine through.

We read about different anti-name calling and anti-bullying techniques, and we thought Janet had a great idea. At Osceola Intermediate School the art classes made huge posters for the cafeteria with hands, chains, symbols and words of kindness, respect, tolerance, etc.

 This is one idea we decided to implement at our school in the cafeteria. Students have already enjoyed making posters for other events, and the reinforcement for anti-bullying behaviors at the end of the year could make a difference.

Technology

  There have been a number of good articles and discussions relating to trying new technology such as Dan Gordon's "Return to Sender". In summarizing that article, Janet wrote, "It said that the US is not turning out students ready for the workforce. Primarily, we should be producing students who can use technology to demonstrate 21st century skills, and secondary, our students need to know core subject content. Besides the 3 R’s, students need the 4 C’s (critical thinking, communication, collaboration and creativity) plus problem solving an innovation."

Many of us have been trying new technology such as flip cameras that we used to film our classrooms earlier in the year. Another type of innovation that that promotes these goals is book blogs. Tamara uses teacherweb.com for her book blog and WWII page and I found a book blogging site kidblog.com. These sites have helped kids talk about and think about books using technology.

Like the Energy Bus driver...

Parking at our school is frustrating.  Two little, tiny parking lots on opposite ends of the building.  In between our building and our admin. building, another small lot, but for some reason we are not suppose to park there. Now....new city rule....  parking is prohibited on all other streets, except the Central Business District. when a snow emergency is declared. 
Soooooo....if you are like me and you don't get to school early(I am more of a stay late person than come early).....that doesn't leave very many places to park.
My parking spot, one block over on a side street and I walk down that street and over to the crosswalk where the crossing guard(Marie) is waiting for me.  She says, " Good Morning Mary! How are you today?"  Now every morning when we greet each other and have a short conversation I think of the woman who drives The Energy Bus because Marie is just like her.    

The Flexible Teacher

I read the article The Flexible Teacher by Leila Christenbury from the Educational Leadership December 2010 / January 2011 edition.

In this article I read about effective teaching and what it encompasses.  Christenbury says in the intro that she has explored ineffective teaching through herself and has written this article because of her consistent aspiration to become a better teacher.  Then she goes on to point out and explain the effective teaching characteristics.  A few of the characteristics pointed out were:  Effective teaching is variable.  Effective teaching is contextual. Effective teaching is premised on students’ intellectual curiosity.  Effective teaching must be somewhat autonomous.  A final comment in the article was,

“ Once we improve teaching with school content and student need, we can look more confidently to a future where all students can experience success.”     

What I have gained from this article is frustration.  We are in the midst of MAPS testing.  Why is there such a focus on all this testing! At our last 3^rd, 4^th combined grade level discussion a teacher commented on administration’s motives with MAPS.  She said it has moved from the students and has begun to center on teachers because she feels if a class tests low on a MAPS math test and another class tests high she said they (administration) feels they need to move that teacher to teach the class that scored low.  Now…are they looking at ALL factors making this decision????  Has this way of thinking come about because “teaching” has not always been a central part of the public discussion on education reform?? 

What am I doing resulting from reading this article? I am keeping the characteristics of effective teaching in a spot where I will take time to read them over when I get frustrated with lack of time, etc.   I am remembering a part of the article that said, “ Good teaching comes not from following a recipe, but from consistently putting student needs first.”  Also, when I get concerned about MAPS testing, getting through the curriculum, etc., a comment from the article comes to mind, “ Students always should learn more, less, or differently than “what they should”.” And the article mentioned, “Good teaching is integral to student success, it can not supersede the many other factors that contribute to educational success or failure. “  Why can’t all who are concerned about educating children think “outside the box” about achieving success and not so one-dimensional?       

Christenbury, L. (2010-2011). The Flexible Teacher. Educational Leadership, 68, 46-50. doi:http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational-leadership/dec10/vol68/num04/The-Flexible-Teacher.aspx

Giving Students Room to Run

I read the article Giving Students Room to Run by Lorna Greene from the Teaching Tolerance Spring 2011 edition.

I chose this article because the title caught my eye.  I am always telling my fourth graders to read the back of the book and the first page or two to make sure it is a good fit and I did not even listen to my own advice!  I also though the grabber really worked, that is what I tell the 4^th graders grabs your attention as a first sentence.  The 1^st sentence of the article was, “In the third grade, near the end of World War II, I learned why I wanted to be a teacher.” 

The article explained what a great impact a teacher had in this author’s life.  The author gave a detailed account of how this teacher related to a student who now may have been diagnosed ADHD or autistic.  The article told how the teacher taught respect for others to all students as they observed the respect she showed this student with his “different” needs.

This article brought to the front of my mind how we treat each and every student is still one of the most important lesson for other students.  It continues to be what students remember even in this “testing” era.  

I think this is a good reminder to all educators that if we do connect with all students, differentiate the way we approach them and talk to them we will get further with educating them.

Greene, Lorna. "Giving Students Room To Run." Teaching Tolerance 39 (2011): 1-3. Web. 22 Jan. 2011. <http://www.tolerance.org/magazine/number-39-spring-2011/giving-students-room-run>.

Technology To Watch: 5 Questions with Kathy Schrock.

I read an article called:  Kathy is a supporter of educational technology to support instruction in the classroom. I was drawn to the article Technology To Watch: 5 Questions with Kathy Schrock.  I have enjoyed following her since I stumbled upon Kathy Schrock’s guide for Educator’s through Discovery School a number of years ago.  This article definitely shows that her opinion regarding technology is highly valued. 

What I gained from this article is a clearer picture of where technology was, is and where it could go.  Kathy mentioned some of the things she predicted that would happen are not as well developed as she would have liked. She mentioned the Web. 2.0 revolution was not even on her last prediction list and it has become quite popular because of collaboration aspect of this tool.  Also Kathy mentioned how she was anxiously waiting for the digital textbook which will have traditional content but interactivity. 

After I read this article, I wanted to get more informed about the latest and greatest in Educational Technology.  It also brought to the front of my mind to research the “newest” Web. 2.0 tools.  These are things I love to use in my classroom and the students really enjoy also. 

This article may be of help to others if they want to keep informed about technology from a woman who has experience and expertise in this area. 

Schaffhauser, D. (2011, January 5). Technology To Watch: 5 Questions with Kathy Schrock. Technology Horizons In Education, Retrieved from http://thejournal.com/home.aspx

SMART Goals Revised. :)

Goal #1: Beginning in Feb. of 2011, I want students to develop guidelines to have all students, regardless of learning ability feel as though our classroom is a place they can grow in their learning with each other.

Timeline:  Beginning February 1, 2011 – May 27, 2011

Community~ I keep in communication with other teachers to see if a positive

climate is transferring to their classrooms. 

Research~ I will research student lead, positive classroom climates.

Best Practice ~ I will research best practices for a positive learning

              environment. 

Curriculum & Assessment ~ I will assess with exit slips & student

                                        observation w/ journaling. I will also use the FLIP

   camera to document and assess our classroom

                                        climate. 

Democracy, Diversity & Social Justice ~ Students will learn respect for

  others. 

Technology~ With the FLIP camera I will document our classroom

 climate.

Teacher Leadership~ I will lead, model and encourage students to take pride

    in their classroom and education.

Goal #2: By the fall of 2011 I am going to read the Research Ready Classroom and implement at least 5 room changes to increase student achievement based on the set up of the learning environment. 

Timeline:  Beginning March 1, 2011 – March 1, 2012

Community~ I will discover how “physical space” can affect the community of the

  classroom. 

Research~ I will research how classroom design influences student learning. 

Best Practice ~ I will research best practices on classroom design and

     increased student achievement. 

Curriculum & Assessment ~ I will assess with exit slips & student

            observation w/ journaling. I will also use the FLIP camera

   to document and assess our classroom climate. Finally I will look for

   individual point increases per student between their beginning of the

   year & January MAP assessments.

Democracy, Diversity & Social Justice ~  Students will learn respect for

   themselves, others and their

   classroom. 

Technology~ With the FLIP camera I will document our classroom

  Climate and use other technology (SMARTBoard, iPad, iPod to

  increase student engagement with learning along with student

  achievement.   

Teacher Leadership~ I will share with my colleagues about “”learning

    happenings” they may wish to incorporate in their

    classrooms.