Linda's blog

I took Jerrie’s Cool Tools class on wikis last week at the ETC, so I have had a head start on thinking about the use of wikis in my work. In the class, we looked at some of the listed wikis , but others were new to me. I especially enjoyed reading the blog about using wikis for the first time with students. It’s interesting that Vicki Davis got results that even she was not expecting. For some reason, we teachers think we know more about telling the students what they need to know than they can possibly understand. Ms. Davis’s use of wikis really proved to her that students can take charge of their own learning, and with the right kind of guidance, can do quite a good job of it!

I was so intrigued by the blog used by students as they studied the Holocaust. Wow! If you are concerned about higher order thinking skills, you need to look at this one extra closely. I’m working on a study of Devil’s Arithmetic, and plan to use some of the ideas from this blog. Can you imagine how real this assignment made the horror of the Holocaust?

I am impressed at the wonderful job done by students on the novel Turn Homeward, Hannalee. Again, the obvious use of higher level thinking skills  is so present, and the students’ connection to the setting and the characters is wonderful. The excellent performance of the students demonstrates the depth of thought put in to setting up this project!

I hope in the next week or two to set up wikis for K-5 teachers at Pickens who are using Writers’ Workshop for the first time this year. Teachers have struggled with finding the right picture book to use for the various focus lessons. I hope to encourage them to collaborate by sharing what has worked well and what has not worked so well so they can support each other in this effort to help our students excel at writing. I’m anxious to see how the teachers react, and whether their experience will encourage them to use wikis with their own students. Maybe this will be just like Ms. Davis’s experience and the enthusiasm will be even more than I can imagine!

My, my, what a treasure I have discovered–or at least uncovered. I have so many useful sites to share with teachers using my Google Reader. I keep adding to  my list of what I need to send to the teachers. I hope they can use the sites as much as I think they can! One of the most useful blogs I am reading is from Successful Teaching, a blogger who logs in as loonyhiker. It seems that this blogger routinely lists “Useful Information In and Out of the Classroom”, gives web locations, and a short synopsis of useful sites. The two entries I found most intriguing were JenuineTech Projects (a list of Internet projects in the Oct. 24 blog), and Math Playground (lots of math interactives, including a great list of math videos in the Oct. 10 blog).

Another blog entry that piqued my interest was one entitled “Can a computer lecture better than a human?” I read this one afternoon after I had visited a third grade classroom to observe a teacher use e-learning clickers with her class. I arrived a bit early, and was there during that in-between time that we teachers with self-contained classrooms of young students have to learn to manage. As I entered the room, I saw three children gathered around one computer obviously during research for some sort of project, four students were at other computers doing individual tasks–Successmaker and Accelerated Reader quizzes. Another group of four were obviously finishing a math task, and others were reading library books. At a table on the edge of the classroom was the teacher working with one student who evidently was having difficulty with multiplication facts. The teacher was giving her some tips on figuring out and remembering the products of certain number combinations. As I read the blog about whether computers can lecture as well as humans, I thought about my observation. All the kids were on task, all developing academic skills because the teacher had taught procedures and set up the room, including the computers, so the students could use what they needed. However, when a human touch was needed, the teacher was there giving it. Everybody was winning in that class set-up.

That’s our role, isn’t it? To set things up so learning can take place with the tools the kids can use, and, mopst importantly, to be available when the human touch is needed.

As teachers become more and more accountable for the learning of all students, we become more and more aware of the needs of those students who are not typical learners. As I have read several of these blogs, I am more and more impressed with the possibilities of using the web to help those who need special help. Freedom to Read gives suggestions for allowing all students to use web reading as part of their literacy instruction. The discussion actually reminded me of the days when some thought it was wrong to let children read comic books and magazines! The point, though, is that if a student needs some supports, and those supports are available on the web, let it happen. Helping a student have success in one area makes for successes in other areas.

I have two grandsons on the autism spectrum and I am always looking for things to support their learning. The oldest has Asperger Syndrome and has trouble understanding figurative language. The subject of one of the NPR Grammar Grater podcasts is idioms. Although the language of the presentation seems advanced for a third grader, children with Asperger often respond well to “professor” explanations, and this podcast will be very appropriate for my grandson. He also enjoys grammar “rules” as this makes his writing and speaking very predictable and orderly, so I plan to encourage him to listen to some of the other podcasts in this series. He is a great example of a student with atypical needs that can be met through a web resource.

As we continue to look for ways to help those “not so typical” kids succeed, we need to search for tools available to all on the web!

This blogging thing can be addictive! I had no idea there was so much to be discovered. I found myself hopping from one recommended blog from one on our list to another recommended from that blog and so on and so on! I’m anxious to really learn how to focus on the ones that will give me the information that I need.

I just finished a PowerPoint presentation for our system to use with the visiting SACS team and really appreciate the blog on PowerPoint reform. After doing a couple of trainings with teachers this week, I could really relate to ”The Ripe Environment“. It really made me think about the differences in knowing how to use a tool, and in actually using it so that students gain the most benefits. I also really enjoyed the students’ blogs, particularly the second grade blog about a duck.

What I really have to work on now is doing what was highlighted in “The Ripe Environment” and find the best place for blogging. I’m anxious to learn about some of the other Web 2.0 tools so I can begin to categorize when a blog is best, when a wiki is beat, etc. I know so little about these tools, but I need to learn more before I jump completely into just one them.

The first time I read the article on the Web 2.0 classroom, my head was spinning and my brain was thinking how hard this kind of classroom would be on a student who thrives on order and predictability. However, on my third reading, looking at each component separately, I can see the possibilities of providing real meaningful learning to students who need order and predictability as well as those students who work best when many things are going on at one time.

I certainly see the possibilities for teachers and administrators. What a way to for administrators to give teachers autonomy, but know exactly what is going on in each classroom. I love the idea of blogging each Monday about what is planned for the week.

I’ve often questioned the wisdom of putting video cameras in classrooms that parents can access throughout the school day, but using technology to keep parents informed about what is going on in the classroom so they can continue conversations with their children is wonderful. What a powerful tool in keeping lines of communication open!

I no longer have my own classroom, but I am in classrooms all the time, and I certainly want to try to add some of these tools to my toolbox, and help other teachers do the same. And, I certainly plan to use all the tools for my own learning.

My head is once again spinning, but this time in a positive way–thinking of all the ways these techniques can be used for all kids!

I’ve often wondered about the term “lifelong learning”. I’ve lived a while, and I don’t know how you can live without learning something every day!

I perceive that the easiest habit of lifelong learners for me to use will be Habit #3: View problems as challenges. Every challenge presents a new opportunity to focus on possible solutions. As most people, I do my best learning when what I can learn will potentially help people I care about. I look at the work load of teachers today and know that we have to do something to make their workload more manageable. I certainly hope I can learn things through this course that will help me show them a way to do that.

The most challenging habit of lifelong learners for me will be Habit #4: Have confidence in yourself as a competent, effective learner. After being in an elementary school for years, I have accepted a job as an instructional technology specialist for the county, serving a high school, two middle schools, and the four elementary schools. I am very comfortable in the elementary schools, but feel that I don’t know enough about curriculum or students at the upper levels to really be able to help the teachers. There’s just so much to learn, but I will do all I can to help those teachers also. They certainly have their own challenges!

The most important of the seven habits for me is Habit #6: Teach/mentor others. Just as I believe that you can not survive without being a lifelong learner, I believe you must teach and mentor. I think you must earn respect from others just as others must earn respect from you. When mutual respect exists, teaching and mentoring happen naturally. Teachers have such a difficult task facing them every day. Collaboration must take place in order for them to do their jobs efficiently and effectively. It is this sharing that makes the task more pleasant. I feel that I can model this collaboration with teachers. They have knowledge and understanding that I do not have, and I have knowledge and understanding that they do not have. It is when we share that our lives become more manageable.

I am certainly looking forward to learning so much from those of you in the group who certainly have more knowledge and understanding than I do in Web 2.0 matters. I just hope that I, in turn, will have something to offer you in return.