Archive of ‘Conferences’ category

Genius Hour Begins!

A few years ago, after reading a bit about genius hour, I decided to give it a try. Well, it didn’t go as expected – it was noisy and chaotic and I really struggled with, “Are the students really learning anything??” What that taught me was I needed to make sure expectations were clear to the students while still allowing freedom of choice.

Fast forward a few years . . . last July I attended Alan November’s Building Learning Communities conference and was able to take a workshop presented by Joy Kirr, the guru with Genius Hour. Joy has collected a vast number of resources over the years (visit her Genius Hour Livebinder). Between this fantastic information and her encouragement, I began to believe that Genius Hour was something that I needed to try again. Am I glad I did!

What is Genius Hour? We started with this excellent video by John Spencer. 

Genius Hour is a time where students are allowed to learn about something in which they are passionately interested.

The students were amazed that they were being given time to learn something of their choice! But, trying to zero in on a topic proved to be a bit more difficult than expected. Some had so many choices that they weren’t sure what to choose, while others couldn’t seem to think of anything.

First, I had the children define genius.

Next, we brainstormed things we wonder about. These thoughts were written on post-it notes and added to a chart.

The hardest step was to narrow down exactly what their interests were. Students were asked to jot down three topics that they were most interested in researching. To the best of their knowledge, they had to let me know about materials and costs. We had a serious talk about NOT going home and telling parents that they needed all kinds of supplies!

The guidelines were simple:

  • You must research something.
  • You must create something.
  • You must present something.
  • You must reflect on your learning.

Oh, my! I have NEVER seen so much excitement! In several cases, students stopped by in the mornings, arms filled with supplies as they chattered away describing their plans.

One afternoon, I glanced across the room to see a boy who usually had a difficult time staying on task, sewing away. He’d found the plastic needles and yarn and was stitching a word into a scrap of acoustic foam! I’d never considered that to be a tool for sewing and I certainly was proud of his ingenuity!

The joy experienced when what you’re working on actually does what you want it to do!


Student Reflections:

I’m having a difficult time getting the reflection time in because the students only have 40 minutes with me. Add in short group meetings and clean-up time, we’re lucky to get 30 minutes of work time. My plan of reflecting every day has had to be adjusted. I’m thinking a quick blog reflection at the beginning of the week and then another at the end of the week might be better. It’s a critical part of the process, though, so it’s very important to include this step!

Here’s one post that I absolutely LOVE! This girl had an idea in her mind but when she attempted to build it, nothing went right. She realized that failure was absolutely OK!

Here’s another post about building a gumball machine. She’s not sure if it will work but she’s eager to try out her ideas.

So far, not many students have reached the presentation stage. Most are still hard at work. Does everything always run smoothly? No! Are there students who are often off-task? Are there students and/or topics that need a lot of guidance and direction? Yes! But, that’s okay – we are ALL learning!

What are they learning? It’s not necessarily the content or even the topic. Instead, it’s the research skills, the ability to compile information and find the best way to present, the figuring out what to do if something doesn’t work the way you expect, the confidence that comes from speaking with assurance in front of others or on camera – these are what will help students succeed in life!

Resources to Help Implement Genius Hour:

The iPad Classroom Day 2 and 3

Creation Day! On Tuesday we started in Book Creator – this has been my favorite app for the past few months. There is SO much that can be done with it. I’ve used it to have students create short stories that were emailed to me and combined into a class book. We made end-of-the-year class books in second grade with students reflecting on their favorite activities throughout the year; third graders wrote and illustrated a favorite piece of writing. The possibilities are endless!

But on this day, we had to each create our own book. Why do I always have ideas in my head till someone says, “Let’s try to finish a book and be ready to share in about 40 minutes.” So, like some students, I just sat there for quite awhile trying to figure out what to do! Eventually I decided to write a book about using the Kidblog App on the iPad for the teachers at our school. I took screenshots and used Skitch to annotate. Here’s the “almost” finished product (I need to add more to discuss approving posts and comments).

Using KidBlog with iPads

To download and read on an iOS device in iBooks, tap on the above link > Download > Open in iBooks.

To read on a computer, you must use the Google Chrome browser and the Readium app. Refer to the post, Book Creator and the Readium Chrome Web App for more information.

iPad conf day 2

Working hard!

The next project was iMovie. For some reason, the trailers have always been a source of frustration to me so I was determined to create one. Although we had plenty of time, I returned to the hotel and finally finished at 10:30. It may not be terrific to others but I’m proud of it!

iPad Adventures from Trinity Valley School on Vimeo.

My favorite part was sharing time. I love seeing other people’s creativity and the projects shared were fantastic. It’s such a wonderful way to get ideas. Some of the Book Creator projects included:

  • Introducing members of a department
  • Clemson – South Carolina rivalry which included YouTube videos
  • Why I Love Athens, GA (What a fun way to share information about a city with another class across the country!)

Our third day was spent working with GarageBand and discussing workflow. Great ideas using Google Drive (wish I could use this with at least 4th graders but not sure if our tech staff would approve that!).

Shawn challenged us with several statements and questions:

  • Does your class reward innovation?
  • Make learning meaningful for everyone!
  • Where do you want to be in the next 5 days? (Revisit the basic skills; continue to practice what we did during the conference)
  • Where do you want to be in 5 weeks? (Think about a unit, a presentation, etc for this time period. Find something to wow the students or teachers; to get them on board.)
  • Where do you want to be in 5 months? (Where are you going? What do you want your students to be able to do at this point? Think big!)

My goals for the summer:

  • Get familiar with Evernote in order to organize materials.
  • Create “training” ePub books for teachers in the Book Creator app.
  • Practice making iMovie trailers so I can get faster at putting one together.

The conference was excellent. Wish we’d had more time for some of the other apps that we were asked to install (Penultimate, TouchApp Creator). I should add those to my goals as well! I’m hoping for a long summer . . .

The iPad Classroom Summer Workshop

Shawn McCusker and Greg Kulowiec are leading EdTechTeacher’s “The iPad Classroom” workshop in Atlanta this week. We are off to a fast and furious start. But, oh, how much we have learned in just a few short hours!

Shawn McCusker

Shawn McCusker

My colleague, Diane (4th grade teacher), and I were in Shawn’s room. We started with an assessment quiz to determine our tech levels using the Socrative app. We ended with Infuse Learning which isn’t an app but a good way for students to illustrate learning. Both response systems are excellent.

We also explored some apps to look at consumption and creation: (I’ve played with all of these but hadn’t gone beyond that stage so this was helpful and helped me see how to use each in better ways.)

Shawn has put together a fabulous The iPad Classroom LiveBinder of resources. What I appreciated were all the examples of student work. That helps me tremendously to see what’s possible!

But, it’s more than the apps! Shawn said there’s a myth that using iPads will make you a better teacher – the focus has to be on pedagogy, NOT the device! Tom Daccord states, “A goal without a plan is just a wish. Often we get technology without a goal.”

Shawn talked about thinking of the iPad as a vehicle – it’s a way to get somewhere. But it’s not the only way and it can’t get there on its own. I loved his statement that the devices themselves won’t create passion in students but if we let those devices lead them to explore their passions, students will love us (and they’ll be better learners)! Remember, it’s not what the iPad can do, it’s what students can do (create, collaborate, and more).

Day 1 was exciting, overwhelming, frustrating at times, and fun. I was stretched and loved it! My head is exploding with ideas – can’t wait till tomorrow!

Building the Successful iPad Classroom – Tom Daccord

Tom Daccord

Thursday’s keynote address from Tom Daccord offered a practical look at how to create the classroom that nurtures innovators.

Tom started his talk by showing pictures of learning spaces – the traditional rows of desks vs those that allow for collaboration (i.e. small study areas, places to connect laptops for projection). We have to redefine learning spaces if we want to encourage students to work and plan together. How often do you still see classrooms with rows of desks? Do we, as teachers, keep them that way because it’s the way we were taught? Do we prefer the more structured way of teaching because we’re afraid of the increased noise level that occurs when collaboration happens? Yet, I believe redefined learning spaces is a critical change that needs to be considered so that our students are able to work together.

Tom has recently spent time in Singapore. He shared with us a couple of the Desired Outcomes of Education from the Singapore Ministry of Education. In part, the document describes the learner as:

  • an active contributor who is able to work effectively in teams, exercises initiative, takes calculated risks, is innovative and strives for excellence
  • a self-directed learner who takes responsibility for his own learning, who questions, reflects and perseveres in the pursuit of learning

Isn’t this what we all want for our students? Isn’t this what companies look for in new hires?

Tom asks the question, When someone visits an iPad classroom, would they be able to define the objectives of learning? He says in order to move from pockets of excellence to systemic educational change, we need a well-defined plan.

  • What is the mission of iPads in the school?
  • Does everyone know what that is?
  • How does that align with the school’s overall mission?

Tom shared this quote from Professor Ben Shneiderman: Learning seems useless unless it prepares us to be creative. The question is then:

How can I put my students in creative learning environments?

Tom shared practical examples of what that looks like. He tells teachers to use what you know in an authentic, effective way. How true is his comment that “when technology is introduced in a classroom, it is typically an extension of the classroom.” For example, interactive white boards involve teacher control; they aren’t student centered learning. Tom says to think of a situation where the teacher is front and center. Is there a way to use iPads so students become in charge of the learning?

Writer’s Workshop Poetry Lessons with iPads
This is a wonderful lesson with first graders from Chicago’s Burley Elementary School. Students illustrated mental images of a poem read by the teacher. The students shared their drawings and then published them in a variety of ways. Seeing this example prompted a flurry of whispers from our second grade teacher – “I want to do this. When can I get the iPads?” After frantically sending off emails to our tech director, we are set up with a class set of iPads for her students. I told her I want to be there when she does the lesson!

Kathy Cassidy’s Class
Kathy is a teacher of 6 and 7 year olds in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan. She does amazing things with these young children! Her blog’s byline states “6 and 7 Year Olds Inviting the World into Their Classroom.” Each child has his/her own blog where work is posted. There are illustrations, photos, videos, audio – all showing learning and understanding. Kathy puts her young students in the position of instructing others.

Creating with GarageBand
Students and members of a band get together to create an original song using iPads plus a few instruments.


A serious issue is that iPads are being used ineffectively. We focus too much on content-specific apps rather than the open-ended apps that allow for creativity. We must move away from just using technology as a substitution or extension. It’s imperative that what we ask students to do truly redefines their learning!

Snowy Boston and the iPad Summit

Who would have thought a nor’easter would come through Boston in early November when we attended the iPad Summit Conference? When you come from sunny, warm Texas, that’s quite a change! We arrived on a beautiful but very chilly day but having lived in New Jersey years ago, we were prepared. Heaviest coats (not used often in Texas), gloves, and earmuffs all helped until the winds from the nor’easter picked up. Boston was only supposed to get high winds and rain. What a surprise when we left the conference Thursday afternoon and discovered it was snowing! It didn’t last long but we don’t see snow often so it was pretty to view.

 

Boston skyline

Surprise Snowfall

 The conference was one of the best I’ve attended and I am excited to return to share with our teachers. I’m ready to use our iPads as a creative tool. More about the conference in upcoming posts.

BLC 12

I am thankful that my school sent me to the Building Learning Conference in Boston again. This is my 4th year and it is truly the best conference I’ve ever attended! There is always lots to learn and bring back to use at school. I was glad to have one of our 3rd grade teachers and our principal attend. They hear me go on and on every summer about how worthwhile the conference is so they decided to check it out!

This year I was actually able to chat briefly with Alan November and, although he needed to get to the final session, he acted like he had all the time in the world! I should have blogged while I was at the conference but there was so much going on that I just couldn’t find the time!

A not-so-good picture of Alan November

One area I’m very interested in is creating ePub books for the iPad. There were a couple of sessions related to that topic and both were excellent. Creating Digital Course Content: ePubs and iPads was presented by Tom Daccord who is Director of EdTechTeacher. He shared how to take a webpage and convert it to a PDF so it can be annotated using apps such as Notability. Then he talked about using the iPad as a digital creator. Apps mentioned were:

The next class was Introduction to Creating and Publishing with iBooks Author, presented by Eric Marcos and Tiana Kadkhoda (one of Eric’s students). They showed how easy it is to create a book for the iPad using iBooks Author. Unfortunately for me, you must have a Mac to do this and I’ve been a PC person for years! Guess what my next purchase will be?!?

I really want to have access to a Mac so that I can create books for teachers that would supplement their curriculum. Imagine young students being able to manipulate content as they explore a subject!

These were only 2 of the excellent sessions I attended. More later . . .

Library of Congress Map Room

I’m a week late in posting this but wanted to share the incredible experience we had at the Library of Congress Geography and Map Room while attending the Google Geo Teachers Institute. We spent two hours behind the scenes at the Madison Building learning about and viewing incredible maps, many created hundreds of years ago.

We saw the 1507 Waldseemüller map which is the first map known to use “America” as a label for the new lands. This was based on Amerigo Vespucci’s voyages of 1501-1502 to the New World. The map was produced in 12 sheets and it represents a thin North and South America separated from Asia by the Pacific Ocean. Of the 1,000 printed, this one is the only known copy to survive.

 I wish I’d taken notes on all the maps we looked at because my memory has failed me but I was so interested in the historical significance that I didn’t catch the names of everything we saw. We were shown several maps drawn by George Washington, including one of Mount Vernon that he drew in 1766.

Another map depicted a civil war drawing of landowners near Washington, DC. It was labeled to show Union and Confederate sympathizers so that Union troops would know who to see to seek food and fresh horses. Another map showed Appomattox on the day the South surrendered to Union troops.

One of the 3-dimensional maps was created to help World War II soldiers know what to expect during the D-Day Landings.

This was a fabulous, behind-the-scenes tour! I’m so glad we had this opportunity.

Resources from Google Teachers Institute

National Geographic has a new beta site containing a wealth of resources for educators. National Geographic Education has superb videos, graphic organizers, interactive maps, and a section where maps can be created and printed. Here’s a direct link to the mapping section which allows you to make and print giant maps. There are lesson plans available as well.

 National Archives for Educators site has thousands of primary sources available. There is also an Archives YouTube channel. This link will take you to some of the presidential library youtube channels as well.

The Library of Congress also has an educators’ site. Many primary sources are available along with lesson plans.

A huge thank you to Rebekka for creating a Geo Teachers Institute Livebinder! It contains excellent links for tutorials, lesson plans, and more.

Google Geo Teachers Institute

What a great experience being at the Google Geo Teachers Institute in Washington, DC! It was held at the National Geographic Society and we had 2 action-packed days of learning about Google Earth, Maps, and Sketchup.

Sketchup was new to me. It’s a program that allows the designer to create 3-dimensional structures. I originally thought it would be something for older students but our presenter said she has used it with children as young as 2nd grade. Our first project was to create a dog house. I quickly found myself lost as I wasn’t able to pull the roof to a point. Eventually I figured that out. Here’s my first attempt with Sketchup.

After the doghouse we moved on to using the 3-d building function in Google Earth to recreate a real building. The one we worked on was an old fire station in Washington, DC. I was pretty proud of what I did!

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