Author: thisishowardlearning

Questions happen all day everyday. Many of the items we use in our daily lives are the results of someone’s question. Which leads to my first question of this post, did you ask a good question today? In my opinion as a teacher I have heard over and over again there is no such thing as a bad question. In Berger’s A More Beautiful Question this point could not be made more clear. In early developmental years a child will ask around 40,000 questions (Berger, 2016, p. 85). That number drops drastically as a child enters preschool. Some factors that attribute to this rapid decline are self awareness, teachers limited time to foster questions, and the parents involvement in asking questions. One point that stuck out to me more was, giving students questions my time. So often with testing and demanding curriculum time for innovative questions is not always allotted. 

Time for questions to be asked in class is something I can control, as well as giving students the tools to ask “beautiful” questions. In engaging in my CEP 812 class last week, I began asking my students a morning question. The first question I asked was, “Is there such thing as a bad question?” Out of my 23 students only 1 student said no, the rest of my students believed, that there were such thing as a bad question. Which had me thinking about the volume of questions they may not have ask in the past, because they thought it was a bad question. Deborah Meier poses an interesting question which Berger cites, “what would it look and sound like in the average classroom if we wanted to make “being wrong” less threatening (Berger, 2016, p. 106)?”

Van Phillips experimenting ended in failure more than once, as his prototypes for his prosthetics failed he dissected that failure with questioning, asking what can I do differently? To get my students thinking like that I think there are two changes that I need to implement into my classroom. One change  I need to make, is adjusting my questions so that students are thinking about how to get the answer. Another change I need to make is, I need to teach my students how to formulate questions.

The first change of adjusting my questions comes after watching Dan Meyers Ted Talk where he demonstrates formulating questions that bring inquiry (this is a short video and I highly recommend watching it so I posted it below). My math story problems for example are black and white printed and really do not engage students into solving the question that is posed. However If I take the same problem adjust it to make it hands on and engaging, I am now putting students in the position to ask questions and find a deeper understanding of the answer. This adjustment in how I ask questions will also be a good example of what types of questions my students should be asking.

Teaching question formulation is something I am very excited about. So often when I ask do you have any questions, a student raises their hand and then proceeds to tell a story. I know that because of the connection the student must have an understanding of the topic, but does not understand how to formulate a question. The Right Question Institute will be such a helpful resource for me as I teach my students how to formulate questions. One item that has stuck out to me already when reading from RQI’s rules for producing questions, was the rule that a question is wrote exactly how it is stated. This may be very hard for me to do, but it goes along with Meier’s views about allowing failure to foster success. They need to know what a question isn’t, in order to understand what a question is. By giving my students time to formulate questions, rather than answer my questions, they will engage in learning in a way that creates discovery and discussion.

By making these few adjustments in the way we look at questions in our class, I hope that each student can leave school having asked a beautiful question that day.

References

Berger, W. (2016). A more beautiful question: The power of inquiry to spark breakthrough ideas. Bloomsbury.

Educator Resource Area. (2018). Retrieved from http://rightquestion.org/educators/resources/

Meyer, D. (2013, August 01). Math class needs a makeover – Dan Meyer. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qocAoN4jNwc

 

This week in CEP 812 we were tasked with identifying a student we work with that struggles with a disability, and find a technology tool that will help them overcome their disability in class. In teaching first grade it is rare to find a student who does not talk. Usually my problem is quite the opposite, it is hard to find quiet time in first grade. This year though I encountered a student who struggles with selective mutism, this is an anxiety based disorder that causes a child to not engage in some social situations. In my students case it has caused her to not engage in school based communication. This was anything from oral testing, to peer to peer interaction, she was not going to talk. I found this even more discouraging when her mom informed me that she talked non-stop at home.

I knew that this student was very capable of completing learning tasks and had so many great ideas, but I needed to find some way to give her a voice. After reading the article Sound Advice, from the selective mutism foundation I really began to think outside of the box. The article said,  “Remember, be creative. Use telephones, microphones, screens, puppets to allow the child a means of communication through projective approaches.” In looking at text to speech apps, I thought text to speech would be the best way to give my first grade friend a voice while at the same time helping her with writing skills. With a tremendous need for text to talk apps the options of which app to use was overwhelming. My criteria was I need something user friendly for first graders, and  that has different voice options. It needed to be both useful and engaging.

Using a quick app store search yielded several good options for text to talk. With much consideration I went with Speak4Me it is very user friendly and has lots of options. With having iPads in my class it will be easy for the student to sit in class and respond to questions, and talk to neighbors easy without standing out to much. The hope is that she will want to raise her hand and take pride in her answers, and this build in confidence, will help her to want to begin using her voice in class. This app is pretty universal with what areas of learning it can be used in. Speak4Me can help her answer what peers are asking so it will increase her peer to peer interaction. It can help her with retelling stories when I am testing her in reading which will help her be successful in the area of testing. I also can see this being used during writer’s workshop for when we share our writing pieces at the end of a unit. After the student has written the story she can type it and have that be shared for the class.

One concern that I had was by the time she got done typing we would be moving on to the next thing, but with the word predictors that show up on the keyboard this makes typing even quicker. This also helps her to add an extra skill builder of reading. I hope to use this app in almost any classroom setting. She will now be able to write and present, interact with peers, and express questions and emotions.

When listening to Sir Ken Robinson’s ted talk this week, I feel like it is easy to make student’s like my friend with selective mutism feel intimidated to answer questions. In wanting to help project her creative voice, I feel that Speak4Me will give her that opportunity to move past her anxieties, and participate in class learning. It will also give her a chance to voice her concerns to me so that I can be of better help to her as a teacher. In the screencast below  please enjoy a brief description of what this would look like being used, and the different ways it can help anxious students share their ideas.

 

References

Hua, A., & Major, N. (2016, 02). Selective mutism. Current Opinion in Pediatrics, 28(1), 114-120. doi:10.1097/mop.0000000000000300

Salcedo, L. D. (2017, December 08). Speak4Me – Text to Speech on the App Store. Retrieved from https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/speak4me-text-to-speech/id894460403?mt=8

Sound Advice – Selective Mutism Foundation. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.selectivemutismfoundation.org/info-on-selective-mutism/sound-advice

Tedtalk, (2007, January 06). Do schools kill creativity? | Sir Ken Robinson. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iG9CE55wbtY

I have always considered myself a quick learner. There hasn’t been too much in life that I was not able to catch on to. Then CEP 811 happened. This course pushed my thinking to new limits. Relating it to our week 7 learning with James Paul Gee the expectations were always high from the start, and at first the thought of those expectations intimidated me, but as the course unfolded I found that those expectations are what kept me strong even when the task seemed impossible.

There are many take aways I have from CEP 811. One of my biggest proud teachers moments was when we were tasked with recreating our learning space. I thought that this was going to be such an easy week because it was something I had already had the privilege of doing. Until I started using Sketch Up. This program was such a challenge for me. I had never used anything like it before though, so I had no background knowledge on a program like that. I kept working hard even when I was yelling at my computer and playing around with it, and exploring, and then like that, I was able to put a replica of my old classroom together in minutes.

I felt like with this course I was really faced with going through the learning process again. A process that my students go through on almost a daily basis. Experiencing this first hand helps me to appreciate my students as learners and problem solvers. Tasks shouldn’t be easy, they should challenge us. I also enjoyed being able to include my students in my learning as I explored my maker kit and completed my weekly exploration activities. From our remix video to our last week of exploring assessment, I have always had something to share with my students, and that has been incredible.

Going forward as I introduce new ideas with my students, I want to try to have them explore more. I want to give them more opportunities to find the answers on their own. I want to give them a chance to create their own learning experiences, and I want to give them chances to be a maker. This course has taught me that all students are capable as long as they are given the tools and opportunities to show what they are made of.

References:

E. (2010, July 20). James Paul Gee on Grading with Games. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=693&v=JU3pwCD-ey0

Dougherty, D. (n.d.). We are makers. Retrieved from https://www.ted.com/talks/dale_dougherty_we_are_makers

 

 

 

Can you assess creativity? This is was the big question this last week in CEP 811. As a first grade teacher I can say assessment comes up almost on a daily basis, and I am assessing students constantly. Which lead me to my own question this week, are my assessments purposeful?

When reading Grant Wiggin’s blog post on assessing creativity I immediately connected with his story about the group of ELA teachers and their writing rubrics. Writing rubrics is something that my first grade team talks about all the time. We have our common core continuum we are suppose to use but two things come to mind every time I get that rubric out to use; is it achievable, and does it help me drive instruction. Thinking about the first point, is this achievable is where I really connected with the article. Writing is such a creative activity, and  adding a thousand grading points on a first grader just entering the writing world does not teach them to be an engaging writer. In fact in most instances it may intimidate them to never write again. If I broke the rubric down to 3 points which were understandable though, I think that our rubric would be achievable and could easily drive instruction. Those 3 points being; is it readable, is it engaging, and is it complete.

If you think of it in order to be readable it has to have all the grammar and phonics components, if it is engaging it has words that catches the readers/ listeners, and if it is complete it has all the components it needs. It is not nit picking a six year olds work, and it leaves room to show growth. I think that this approach should be taken when assessing any creativity or problem solving assignment.

In answer to the question can creativity be assessed, that answer is yes. There is a critique out there for anything. If you do not prepare your students for criticism they will not see the need to improve and excel and will always think that they are doing great. In James Paul Gee’s video he says to hold our students to high standards. I can tell you with teaching young children this was a hurdle I had to overcome, but students will perform to the standards you hold them to. If you hold them to low standards they will show little academic and personal growth, and they will get use to sliding by. If you hold them to high standards they will problem solve to achieve those standards, on the way they will probably teach you something, and they will be ready to change the world.  

In getting back to assessing these creative thinkers as long as there’s an objective to learning that is visible, any way the student achieves that objective is able to be assessed. I think it is easy for teachers to stick to a rubric because it gives a common way to assess students on an even playing field. It is clear though in any classroom, anywhere no student is the same, and with that, should not be assessed the same. There are many ways to solve a problems, there are many ways to achieve an objective, and there are many ways to assess success.

References

On assessing for creativity: Yes you can, and yes you should. (2012, February 04). Retrieved from https://grantwiggins.wordpress.com/2012/02/03/on-assessing-for-creativity-yes-you-can-and-yes-you-should/

(2010, July 20). James Paul Gee on Grading with Games. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=693&v=JU3pwCD-ey0

 

Maker Education is something that I was introduced to a few years ago when attending the MACUL conference. Since then recreating my classroom into a maker space has been something I have aspired to do. CEP 811 has given me such great information to contribute to this vision I have for a student centered room, filled with learning experiences.

As CEP 811 winds down we were asked to reflect on our progress in the making process, and explore ways to promote #MakerEd to others using all this new research. I was truly inspired by the 3 different maker spaces that were researched in one of the articles we read titled, Learning in the Making: A Comparative Case Study of Three Makerspaces. This study showed that there is no right or wrong way to create a space for makers to grow. Just as long as the essentials are included. Acorss the board all three spaces had collaboration, limited boundaries, and a diverse social group with common goals. Thinking about that in a classroom setting this can seem overwhelming, so I included an infographic to show the positive effect #MakerEd can have on students.

Using maker education we can open doors for students to explore ideas we never even imagined was possible. Maker education makes equitable learning possible, and teaches students to create a community that fuels learning. In a world where anything is possible choose #MakerEd.

References:

Figure 2f from: Irimia R, Gottschling M (2016) Taxonomic revision of Rochefortia Sw. (Ehretiaceae, Boraginales). Biodiversity Data Journal 4: E7720. https://doi.org/10.3897/BDJ.4.e7720. (n.d.). doi:10.3897/bdj.4.e7720.figure2f

Sheridan, K. Halverson, E.R., Litts, B.K., Brahms, L, Jacobs-Priebe, L., & Owens, T. (2014) Learning in the making: A comparative case-study of three maker spaces. Harvard Educational Review, 84(4), 505-565

Halverson, E.R. & Sheridan, K. (2014). The maker movement in education. Harvard Educational Review, 84(4), 495-465.

This week in CEP 811 we looked at something that most teachers do everyday…repurposing. Repurposing happens all the time in education. Take a geoboard for instance, in math it can be used for shapes, area, perimeter, graphing, and probably a few other ways I have not discovered yet. There are many benefits to repurposing, mostly though, it is because teaching is evolving all the time and having the right tools to engage students is so important to be able to have students grasp a concept.

In learning about repurposing this week, and what it has to do with educational technology, the question of “what is an educational technology?” was brought up. The answer that MAET uses, is that there is none and that answered just had me so intrigued.  I had never thought that many technologies were not specifically made for education but have been repurposed for education. I better understood this after reading Punya Mishra’s Rethinking Technology & Creativity in the 21st Century: Crayons are the Future. All technology is great but if it does not integrate into the curriculum that you are teaching it is not a purposeful use of instructional time. This is where repurposing technology needs a little creative thinking.

Prior to this week’s assignment I had used Scratch Junior with my students. I use our speaking and listening standards to teach the blocks, and then connect that to writing stories. This week however, I used scratch to toy around with my new Makey Makey Kit. To get use to the Makey Makey I started with their Bongos App and played on those. When I saw scratch listed as one of their Makey Makey Apps I got instantly excited. To get started I watched this tutorial video to add sound.

As I explain in my video I have been working on goal setting with my students. Using language from Peter Johnston’s Choice Words, and Growth Mindset Phrases, I have been trying to keep my students motivated and feeling successful. To try this out with Makey Makey kit I thought I would program some growth mindset phrases that I use with my students to help me feel successful with my weight loss goal I am trying to achieve      

 

 

 

 

 

Using some tinfoil I connected my scale to EARTH, and using carrots i was able to program phrases into scratch that que up when touched. Depending on what the scale says I am able to stay motivated with the growth mindset phrases. Now if I can get this programmed in my classroom to give my students that instant feedback, we will be in business. Stay tuned for more ways to repurpose my Makey Makey Kit.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S-hCrtnqHrw

How To Use Makey-Makey to Motivate Your Scale

1. Get your Makey Makey Kit @ http://www.makeymake.com
2. Using labz.makeymakey.com scroll down to scratch.
3. Scratch will take you to their creation lab where you can create a new project. Sign up for a scratch account is free.
4. To use the Makey Makey controls you are going to want to use the events tab which is brown.
5. That is where you program when the different sounds to play.
6. Once you have your sounds programmed you can connect them to any insulators. I used carrots.
7. Plug your EARTH board into you device and connect your insulators to the back side to coincide with the controls on scratch.
8. Last step is to make a connection between EARTH and your Scale using and alligator clip and tinfoil.
9. Tap on the carrots or any other insulator and stay motivated.

 

References

Mishra, P., & The Deep-Play Research Group (2012). Rethinking Technology & Creativity in the 21st Century: Crayons are the Future. TechTrends, 56(5), 13-16.

How to Record Your Voice on Scratch Makey Makey. (2016, March 27). Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kobQ83ivLII  

Johnston, P. H. (2004). Choice words: How our language affects children’s learning. Stenhouse.

Makey Makey | Buy Direct (Official Site). (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.makeymakey.com/ 

Thrifting. (2017, November 05). Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S-hCrtnqHrw

“We are born makers, we have this ability to make things, and to grasp thing with our hands. We don’t just live but we make and create.” (Doherty 2011) It is hard to believe that in this big world we are all makers. When I think about a maker I think about Henry Ford, Alexander Graham Bell, Steve Jobs, etc… Before this week in CEP 811,  I wouldn’t have thought of myself as a “maker”. After this week though I know that I am a maker. I know my students are makers. We observe, create, repurpose, and remix our surroundings constantly playing the role of the maker.

This week in CEP 811 we were tasked with remixing a video to sum up our learning about the maker culture, and how it shapes communities. Using WeVideo I summed up my learning in a remixed video. While researching clips, and pictures for my video I stumbled upon a lot of information about maker fairs. The creativity at these fairs was beyond my wildest dreams. Even more impressive was the community of innovators you would see all smiling for each others creations. It reminds me of my students when we share projects and writing with the class. They are so excited for each other, and eager to help each other when improvement is needed. Failure will happen, and as the saying goes two heads are better then one. Having a maker community to help trouble shoot and brainstorm will help you be a better maker. 

What I learned this week is whether you are cooking in the kitchen or engineering the first self-driving car, we are all makers. As a teacher I am a big part of creating a classroom community that engages the student in learning in a comfortable setting. A classroom that focuses on living, learning and building on old ideas with new ones. Remixing everyone and their ideas to create a community of makers, because, at the end of the day we are all makers.

 

References

Are you a maker? (2017, October 31). Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QlWybYhKluw

Boston Mini Maker Faire. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.bostonchildrensmuseum.org/boston-mini-maker-faire

Brains on Wheels…Brains on Leave…Brains on Strike… (2011, September 14). Retrieved from https://misterdanso.wordpress.com/2011/09/01/brains-on-leave/

Donahue, M. Z. (2015, June 12). What Is a Maker Faire, Exactly? Retrieved from https://www.smithsonianmag.com/innovation/what-maker-faire-exactly-180955574/

Dougherty, D. (n.d.). We are makers. Retrieved from https://www.ted.com/talks/dale_dougherty_we_are_makers#t-549465

Hand drawn idea concept. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.freepik.com/free-vector/hand-drawn-idea-concept_829848.htm

John Dewey: My pedagogical creed. (2013, June 21). Retrieved from http://infed.org/mobi/john-dewey-my-pedagogical-creed

Maker Faire. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.pinterest.com/mononaterrace/maker-faire/

S. (2014, March 27). Top 50 City Lights Seen From Space. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4PV7RJMYd64

J. (2007, February 25). Early Flight (b&w, silent, 16mm) Vintage Films. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iMhdksPFhCM

M. (2016, December 08). Funny Ironic Signs and Photos compilation. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qdbGc-j6zVY

T. (2010, December 07). I think I can, I think I can- the Little Engine that Could. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yx9xO98kcBU