Slice of Life

 

The Slice of Life Challenge was created by the people over at the blog Two Writing Teachers. The challenge is to write about some part of your day and share it each Tuesday then give feedback to at least three other bloggers.

Over the past few days, many of the activities in my library have involved technology. These activities have not been without challenges. Students were navigating websites that they had never experienced before or had only tried once or twice the year before. Between assisting students who needed to log on to a Chromebook (I don't have enough desktops for all) in addition to getting around in the websites, I was a busy lady hustling to and fro. What I saw happening brought a huge smile to my face though. As I buzzed here and there, students were also doing their part to help those near them.

Of course if someone raised their hand, I helped, but students often took care of each other and worked together to solve problems. Sometimes I need to remember to hang back and let them step up.  I buzzed a little slower and watched them grow. 

It reminded me of something Colby Sharp commented on Saturday. He mentioned that Franki Sibberson had suggested having a "classroom expert list" posted in the room that. It would list the students and their strengths so they can use each other as resources.  I echo his thought, "I love when they get support from each other instead of me."

EdCampMadWi

My first official EdCamp came and went. I can't believe it has taken me a week to find the time to process the new learning and get everything gathered into one place though.

The organizers did a fantastic job and everything went so smoothly. There were so many great sessions lined up that it was difficult to choose. I had a hard time right off the bat because I wanted to go to the Book Titles/Talks session, but there were others that were calling my name too.

Book Titles/Talks
It turned out to be a great session with fantastic titles and resources mentioned, but also in that it made me think about some things I can do to help create change in our school and district. One issue brought up was that some teachers are telling students that reading a certain type of book, such as a heavily illustrated non-fiction book or graphic novel, is "not reading." There are times when I have heard teachers say that the students are "too old" for picture books or that they need to check out harder materials. This is a bit of a hot button for me. Choice is a huge factor in creating a love for reading. I think we do need to encourage exploration of many types of reading, but insulting their favorites is not going to help our cause. Sometimes it seems that teachers would like me to be a police officer making sure that students come back from the library with books they can use to practice reading. I feel like they have reading group books and other materials to do that with, but that their library time is a time to find materials that inspire them, that interest them and that encourage a love of reading, not make them feel like they are checking out their homework.

Another issue that came up was that someone recommended a book that I have not yet read, but have heard is a problematic representation of a First Nation. There were glowing praises about Touching Spirit Bear from many in the room. I have yet to read the book though I have read a review of it on Debbie Reese's blog.

Goals after Book Titles/Talks Session:
With these two issues in mind, I would like to read Touching Spirit Bear so I can speak with some knowledge of the book, but also continue to be an advocate for quality literature from First Nation authors. During the last #titletalk I was able to offer many historical fiction titles that were from diverse authors. The "canon" will continue to be predominantly white unless we make a concerted effort to seek out, buy and talk about diverse works. I would also like to do something with our district literacy leader and/or our staff to have the conversation about promoting a reading culture in our school and district.

Student Blogging
The next session was with Pernille Ripp (@pernilleripp). She shared a lot of good recommendations and resources. She is also very eager to help people get started. Her students are using blogs to discuss literature, improve their writing fluency, and share their thoughts and ideas with a real audience. As a side note, I have visited her blog about fashion and so was not surprised that she looked stylish and of course classy all day long. She also tweeted about Innovation Day. I think we could use some of those ideas for our family night this year or next.

Goals after Student Blogging Session:
I will plan to present a shared leadership session this spring for teachers interested in blogging with their students. I may also test out blogging by having a blogging club or choose a grade or class to blog with next year if none of the teachers are interested. I will keep thinking about possibilities with that one.

Chrome
I am always happy to go to a session with Chad Kafka (@chadkafka) and Tammy Lind (@taml17). In their session Chrome Rocks we got to see the many extensions and apps that are available when you use the Chrome browser. I still need to go through and add a few of these to my account and give them a try.

Goals after Chrome Session:
Experiment with some of the extensions and apps and pass on some good ideas to students and staff.

Common Core
This session was a difficult for the end of the day. There seemed to be more questions than answers for everyone. Districts are still muddling there way through what the Common Core State Standards are going to mean for us all. Teachers seem to be frustrated, stressed, and not sure where to turn. The session did result in a document with some resources, but people appeared more stressed rather than less stressed as a result of our discussion.

Goals after Common Core Session:
I will continue to collect resources for Common Core implementation and will present a session about it at WEMTA in April. Is it bad to say I am not sure what I will present there? I said it anyway. Being on the Common Core Steering Team, I thought I would be more knowledgeable about it by this time and I signed up to do it ages ago. I am not feeling like an expert, but I do think I'm becoming more comfortable with the CCSS as we move through this challenge.

Whew! That is a lot to think about and I am glad that edcamp stretches the participants. I also appreciated the opportunity to meet new people like Renee (@ReaderRenee) and reconnect with others like Sarah (@pageintraning). Hopefully, we will be able to have one here in the La Crosse area sometime in the not-too-distant future. If so, Pernille has given people a great post about what they learned by hosting. I am so glad that they organized EdCampMadWi!

Digital Learning Day

Created by Peter Reynolds for Digital Learning Day

Today is Digital Learning Day in Wisconsin and we are active all over school using technology to enhance and transform instruction.  Announcements were unchained from the standard location when our principal and two students used a laptop and UStream rather than our bulky camera that is pretty much chained to one room.  Students have been using technology throughout the day posting on blogs, researching, and creating.  It is exciting to see all the things that the teachers are trying today.  The challenge for our staff was to integrate one new technology tool.  In some ways, today doesn't look a whole lot different than a typical day since our building uses digital learning every day.  The only thing is that today we are pushing ourselves to go beyond our comfort zone.  Hopefully, I will have more to post as the day progresses.  Happy Digital Learning Day!

Update:
It ended up being a busy day for me helping to make sure things went smoothly around the school, but it was really awesome to see people using some of the things they saw at the Technology Petting Zoo last week.  Playaways were checked out and the iPad cart was buzzing all over the school with kids videotaping themselves and each other, using new apps, and experimenting and creating.  Some classes were posting or commenting on blogs for the first time and both teachers and students had a high level of excitement about many of these experiences.  I loved having a part in it and hope to see continued growth with both staff and students.  I have ideas about what to do next time too.  I would like to do something like Sarah's Digital Learning Fair with students teaching and demonstrating.  Something to look forward to next year.