The Technology Journey Has Just Begun!

 It's July and school is about to begin.  I can just smell the new crayons, scented markers, and freshly sharpened pencils.  There's nothing like brand new school supplies!  As Hannah begins a new year at Texas A&M   I wonder about all the education classes she will be taking.  One question I always ask her is if she will take classes about using technology in the classroom. She assures me using technology is a top priority in her education classes.  I have to laugh about my technolgy class when I was at A&M.  We learned how to use the filmstrip projector, thread the film projector, use the ditto machine, and overhead projector.  Boy have things changed!  We now have the ITSE standards tht help guide coaches, administrators, and teachers along their technology journey.  I have to stop and reflect where I am in my digital age journey.  When I first started my digital age journey I had no vison.  Now I participate and help implement a shared vision with teachers.  My vision is still not "20/20", but with each training it becomes more in focus.  As far as assisting teachers in learning more technology I am still a little uncomfortable especially when the teacher is more knowledgeable than I am.  However, I do feel that I can have a conversation with a teacher about using technology for higher order thinking skills.  I feel like I can help the teacher with their learning environments and classroom management when using technology. I can give them ideas and things to think about when they start their technology lessons.   I am not to the point where I can give technology in-services, but I am starting to become more comfortable using various technology when giving professional development.  It's very simple technology demonstrations, but I am using them.  I am working on using technology to communicate.  I am expanding my horizons with Twitter, Blogging, and having a web page.  I still need to work on learning new technology.  It sometimes becomes overwhelming to me and I don't use it enough to become proficent in it. I look forward to continuing on my digital leadership journey.  I have a long way to go, but with each digital age leadership academy and professional development I travel just a little farther on my digital age journey."

"Any growth requires a temporaty loss of security"  Madeline Hunter

"Teaching in the Internet age means we must teach tomorrow's skills today." Jennifer Fleming

Tanzania, Background Knowledge, and Comprehension!

"What students already know about content is one of the strongest indicators of how well they will learn new information relative to content."  Robert Marzano

Spring break has come and gone and Hannah with it.  She was home for a few days coming in like a ray of sunshine, home for a few days, and then back to A&M leaving my day a  very cloudy one. While she was home she announced that she wanted to study abroad this summer.  Being the "cool" parents we  told her she could if she could raise the money. The plan was that she probably wouldn't raise the money and we wouldn't have to worry about her going to Tanzania!  Well, I should have known better with such a goal oriented and determined daughter.  It seems she has set up a gofundme account and has a plan to work next semester to pay for the trip.  I have resigned myself to the fact that I will be receiving postcards from Mt. Kilimanjaro and pictures of giraffes on the plains.  It is an opportunity of a lifetime and an experience she will never forget. 

I have to confess my ignorance and lack of background knowledge about Tanzania or her trip.  Ebola?, grass huts?, warlords kidnapping young girls?  All these things were running through my mind.  I had no comprehension of what Tanzania was like.  So, I needed to gain some information and increase my background knowledge.  After some research, I learned what a beautiful country Tanzania is.  I found out more about the trip itinerary and the places Hannah will visit.  I was ready to go myself!  This started me thinking how important background, or prior knowledge, is to our students.  It helps them to comprehend the story or information better.  When I go into classrooms, I  notice that building prior knowledge is often overlooked.  Often, the activities to do this are simple ones and can make all the difference with learning and comprehending new information. I've suggested several things a teacher an do to build prior or background knowledge below.

I have a friend who was embarking on a unit about Africa.  In order to build background knowledge she found pictures and artifacts about Africa.  She placed them around the room and had the students travel from one spot to another examining the artifacts.  They were to record what they learned about Africa on their paper and then be prepared to discuss it with the class.  During the discussion their findings were recorded on an anchor chart.  As the unit progressed, the students could add to the chart and also verify their original finding. This activity could be adapted for any story or subject. 

Another activity to build background knowledge is an anticipation guide.  Students are given  T/F or Y/N questions to answer prior to reading the story.  After reading the story, the students verify and prove their answers.  They may also adjust their answers.

Sometimes just showing a simple YouTube video can build background knowledge and help students to comprehend the story better.  For example, if you were going to read Strega Nona  you may want to show a short video on pasta. 

Even reading a short picture book will supply background knowledge for a story and enhance their comprehension. 

I'm sure you have more background knowledge activities and ideas.  Be sure to comment, so others can use them. 

Until next time, I'll be preparing for Tanzania by learning even more!

A Good Poem and Good Cup of Coffee-Teaching Poetry

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hannah has hit the ground running! She has her first round of tests this week and has been studying very hard.  She has discovered coffee or should I say coffee with all kinds of goodness and sugar added to it. I for one do not understand this infatuation with coffee. (I think for her it is more a social thing than the actual enjoyment of drinking coffee). I love the smell of it brewing, but think it tastes bitter.  Give me a good old fashioned chocolate shake anytime.  The calories in the chocolate shake are probably similar to a triple chocolate vanilla caramel swirl latte infused with whipped cream!  I do wish I would have thought of starting coffee franchises all over the world.  I would be blogging from my Aspen home overlooking snow peaked mountains or my Caribbean home overlooking white sand beaches and turquoise water. But alas, I am blogging from my office which real estate agents might describe as "cozy"!

 

Speaking of cozy, when was the last time you "cozied-up" to a good poem?  We are hurling towards the day of the State Test and poetry is one of the standards being tested. Poetry and the message the poet wants to convey is haunting many teachers as they try to teach their students the ins and outs of poetry.  I ran across a lesson the other day that may help with that.  It is described below and I hope it helps give your students some insight into poetry and the deeper meaning of many poems.

 

• Select a poem with a deeper message than just the surface one.  It should have lots of imagery and figurative language that appeals to the senses. An example might be "Fog" by Carl Sandburg.
• Discuss what it means to use visualization and auditory skills
• Choose a word from the title and have students write their definition of the word and the meanings of the word. The word fog would be chosen if using the poem "Fog". Do Not give students a copy of the poem yet.
• Write connotations of the chosen word. What do you associate with ______or what do you feel when you think about __________?
• Have students draw what they are feeling, hearing, and/or visualizing as you read the poem. Read the poem as many times as needed.  Then give the students 3 minutes to draw/color their interpretation of the poem.  For example, after hearing "Fog" they might draw fog covering the harbor or city.  They many even draw a "foggy" cat.
• The students now get a copy of the poem to read through again.
• Discuss the obvious meaning and then the deeper meaning of the poem.  Have them write about their interpretation of the poem. 
• Share and discuss these with the class.

Hope you find this lesson helps your students understand poetry a little more.

 

Until next time, cozy up with a good book of poetry and a good cup of coffee (or milk shake)!

Happy Reading!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



 

 

 



Music is Poetry!

 

 

 

 

Winter break is over for the universities and colleges which means Hannah has come and gone.  She enjoyed being home, but was ready to go back, see her friends, and get started on the new semester.  Her classes for this semester include three education classes.  I asked her what was her first impression of the classes.  She responded that she loved them.  That may change when she gets lots of homework!

 

While she was home many music genres could be heard emerging from her room.  I would go turn on my car to find the radio turned up to rock concert volume and on a station I didn't know existed!  This started me thinking about how important music is in our lives and how it speaks to all of us.  We listen to it when we are sad and when we are happy.  It reflects our moods.  It makes us think.  So why not use music in the classroom to teach us to think on a higher level? After all music is poetry.

 

Many students have problems understanding the deeper meaning of poetry. However, they can tell you what a song is "saying" to them or how it makes them feel.

 

"Let it Go" from Frozen (I know, you just got it from constantly looping through your head and now I'm suggesting it for a lesson!) comes to mind as a great teaching tool .  Figurative language, sensory images, and more threads its way throughout the lyrics.

 

 Let's look at what I mean. For example, examine the first verse. "The snow glows on the mountain tonight, not a footprint to be seen.  Ask the students what does this mean? What were the songwriters (Robert Lopez and Kristen Anderson-Lopez) trying to say?  I imagine the students can tell you exactly what it means.  Continue on and it says " A kingdom of isolation, and it looks like I am the Queen.  What is a kingdom? What is isolation?  How could you be Queen of a kingdom of isolation?  What message is the musician trying to convey?  Have you ever felt this way?  There's even more just in this first stanza.  "The wind is howling like this swirling storm inside.  Couldn't keep it in; Heaven knows I tried." What is the simile used in this line? What two things are being compared?   What does this mean?  In the fourth verse it says "Let the storm rage on. The cold never bothered me anyway." What is the surface level meaning and what is the deeper meaning? Have the students keep ideas, questions, and responses in a journal.  Give them a copy of the song and have them respond to it in the margins.  The questions and teaching possibilities are endless.  Look how much higher level thinking was used in just the first and fourth verses.  Just think how much more learning is in the rest of the song!

 

Taylor Swift also has a song, "Shake it Off", which can be used to teach similar themes between two poems.  The students can create Venn Diagrams to compare and contrast the two songs. ( Beware of questionable language for school when she talks about "the fella over there with the ... hair".  Anything used in the classroom ,especially songs, should be previewed for questionable language.  If you show a music video of the song, it goes without saying to view it before the kids see it!) What does it mean in the sixth verse "I'm dancing on my own. I make the moves up as I go."  Compare those two lines to the line in "Let it Go" that says "A kingdom of isolation, and it looks like I am the Queen."

 

You can also ask the students to find a third poem, story, or song that has the same theme. This will lead to more discussion.  Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli comes to mind as a book with a similar theme.  Can you think of more? 

 

As you can see, music can be a great way to teach poetry and all it has to offer.  What other songs can you think of that could be used to teach figurative language, etc.   Can you think of poems with similar themes?  Be sure to comment on your ideas. 

 

Until next time just keep on singing!

Starting from Now: Classroom Management

As the new year begins, I think of the resolutions I made and did not make.  Most of them are the same ones I make every year such as getting in better shape. Every year I promise myself I will change my habits and get healthy.  This one is broken by the time Valentine's candy hits the shelf.  It seems to hit the shelves earlier and earlier every year! 

As teachers we also make resolutions such as having better classroom management. Every January we try to change, but we tend to give up and fall right back into the same ways of managing misbehaviors. Maybe it's time to self reflect on what habits you may have developed that are causing havoc on your classroom management.

I recently read an article, "10 Ways to Sabotage Your Classroom Management" by Jennifer Gonzales, that talks about ten habits you could be doing that are destroying your classroom management.  The article also gives alternative strategies to try. The following will link you to this article. 

http://www.middleweb.com/19037/10-ways-sabotage-classroom-management/

I hope you take time to read through this article and do some self - reflecting.  It's not too late to start.

Happy New Year!



 

 

 



 

Mentor Texts

 

 

Can you believe it's Christmas!  Hannah is experiencing her first finals as she winds up her first semester at Texas A&M.  She really enjoyed her education class and learned a lot.  She loves college and that makes me happy.  It's easier to miss her when she's so happy.  I am looking forward to her being home during Christmas break. I probably won't see much of her as she and her friends are already planning their time together, but just knowing she is at home for awhile is enough!   I love hearing the floor above me creak as she gets out of bed in the morning or the sound of her running up the stairs. I love the way she comes in at night and shares her evening activities with me.  I can't wait to see her!

 

As I was looking ahead at ELA skills, I was reminded of the importance of mentor texts.  Mentor texts provide authentic literature to model reading and writing skills.  Not only are they good for ELA skills, but can be used in math, science, and social studies.  A few of my favorite mentor texts are discussed below.  I hope you can find some you can use!

 

Compare and Contrast

 

          The Rough Face Girl by Rafe Martin can be used when teaching compare and contrast skills.  When paired with Cinderella or any other version of Cinderella, students can compare and contrast the two stories.  Another Native American Cinderella story is Sootface by Robert D. San Souci.  A double bubble map (below) is a good way for students to organize their thoughts about how the stories are alike and different.  The names of the two versions would go in the large middle circles.  Where the circles connect down the middle, the students would put how they are alike.  The outer circles would show how they do not connect and are different.  Many activities for compare and contrast can be found on Pinterest such as the anchor chart pictured demonstrating how to use a bubble map.  From Google Images find a picture of Rough Face Girl and another Cinderella version.  These pictures would go in the middle of the circle.  The students would tell how the stories are alike and different.  They must also site text evidence to prove how they are alike and different.  This would make a great group work activity. 

 

 

 

                      

 

 

Cause and Effect

 

Some of my favorite books to teach cause and effect are pictured below.  Not only is The Day Jimmy's Boa Ate the Wash fun to use with cause and effect, but it can also be used as a mentor text to teach sequence.  The fun thing about using it to teach sequence is everything must be sequenced in reverse order. 

 

              

 

 

Where the Wild Things Are and Jumanji are also great books to teach cause and effect.  Some questions to ask students are:

 

What was the effect of ___________________?  What in the text helps you understand this?

What was the cause of ___________________?  What in the text helps you understand this ?

 You can tell that __________ causes ______________ because _______________.

 

Where the Wild Things Are can do double duty.  It could also be used to teach characterization.  Asking questions such as the following ones will get students thinking about characters. 

 

At the beginning of the story how does __________ feel about ____________? What evidence from the story tells that?

How does ___________ 's feelings change by the end of the story? Cite text evidence to prove your answer. 

What caused __________ to change his/her mind about ____________? What in the story helps prove this?

 

The True Story of the Three Little Pigs is another favorite for teaching cause and effect.  It can also be used to teach point of view and voice in writing. 

 

 

 

 

Voice

 

For teaching voice in writing, I use I Am the Dog, I Am the Cat by Donald Hall.  Two other books I love to use for voice are My Big Dog and The Great Fuzz Frenzy by Janet Stevens and Susan Stevens Crummel.  Actually, any book by the Stevens sisters is always a fun read and has lots of voice. 

 

 

          

 

 

Those are just a few of the ELA skills that mentor texts can be used with.  Just Google "mentor text to teach (skill)".  You will find numerous suggestions.  As you use these books your creative juices will flow and you will see how they can be used to teach a variety of skills. 

 

Happy Reading and Happy Holidays!

 

 

 

 





Getting Students to Talk About Reading

In a good book, the best is between the lines.  Swedish Proverb


We had a great professional development yesterday.  The topic was Getting Students to respond to text. Kids need to talk more about what they read.  Allington calls this "purposeful talk".  Purposeful talk is where students have conversations and discussions that further thinking.  I know when I finish a good book I want to find someone else who has read it so we can talk about it. 

Reading discussions must be taught.  The teacher needs to model several ways to have a discussion. The lesson needs to teach the kids how to listen and talk to each other.  Expectations need to be made clear. 

There are several strategies that encourage purposeful talk. A few are described below.

Jigsaw
One such strategy is called Jigsaw.  Jigsaw is where students work in small groups.  Each group member is assigned a small portion of a  larger text.  The student is responsible for reading and discussing their part.  Then the individual reports about their section to their group.
When each group member has finished, everyone in the group will understand what the whole text is about.

Paired Reading
Students pair up and respond to the literature.  The students may be paired by interests, questions, or topic of their book.  Partners are frequently switched. The teacher needs to model that the listener has the most important job which is to pay attention, think about, and respond to the text being read. 

Book Clubs and Literature Circles
Students meet in groups to discuss and respond to the text they have read. The group will have read the same book.  The goal of these groups is to have students express their thoughts, ask questions, and connect the text to their own lives. 

Turn and Talk
Turn and Talk is used during whole class instruction.  Every so often the group stops and turns to their partner to discuss what is being taught.  This helps students process information, helps understanding, and encourages student engagement.

Compass Share
The students are in groups of four in each.  The students then sit in a circle facing N,S,E, and W.  The teacher announces that it is north's turn.  North then shares and responds to the text.  After a few minutes the teacher announces that it's another direction's turn.   This continues until everyone has had a turn.

When having students discuss their text it is important to create a safe environment where everyone is comfortable sharing. As mentioned above it is extremely important the students are taught how to interact with each other, listen to each other, and show respect for each other.

As you plan for your classroom, I hope you will include purposeful talk in your lesson.  It is amazing the insight your students will have on a topic. 

Until next time,
Happy Reading!