A Little Empathy

A few years ago I was at a restaurant with my family. I have two boys and a girl and the boys at the time were 6 and 8. Keeping them down was a chore, especially when we went to a restaurant. I just got back from getting my salad and my wife was heading to get hers so it was the changing of the guard. My boys hopped off the seat and started after her, so i had them come back. They were noisy, and that is why I took them to pizza places and not 4 star restaurants, yet. One of my boys hopped off the seat when he saw mom coming back and was yelling to her when a lady turned to him and told him that he was being too noisy and to just be quiet. She went on to tell him that she was here to eat and not listen to kids yell and play. She turned and looked at me and we locked eyes for a moment. She was a teacher I had done a practicum under a few years back. She sort of smiled and turned back around, never to turn around again. 

I have to say I was a bit disappointed. Yes it is nice to have a nice mellow time at a pizza place, but there should be a little understanding. My kids were not running around the place dodging in and out of tables or chairs, they were not yelling throughout the meal or throwing things. Even if they had, isn’t that the reason we take kids to restaurants, so they can learn how to act? I wonder if that the way some teachers feel about students? We expect them to be end-of-year kids we had last year and not beginning-of-the-year kids not knowing our rules, procedures, or the curriculum we need to teach. I was told once that as a teacher I was probably one of the highest in my classes at school, obeyed most or all of the rules, and most things just make sense to me. So how am I supposed to teach students that are not the top of the class, do not always understand how to act anywhere, and do not obey rules, and probably do not have rules at their house. And to top it off, nothing makes sense to these students right away. How can I expect that all or any of my lessons will go as I plan. I can’t.

But what I can do is build empathy for them. I can love them and give the chances. Even when all their chances are up, I give them another chance. I care about what they are going through. I can help them as they go through things at home or with friends, or with assignments they do not understand. I care about them.  Most teachers get this. Most understand this. Most live by this. So when we get ready to punish a student for not bringing their homework back when they have no one at home to help or they have to babysit all night because their parents work, or even if they do not bring their work back at all, help them so they can succeed. I know it is hard, but we need them to feel success. We don’t need to give them more of what they don’t need. We need to give them what they do need. Love and guidance.  Do you have a story that is similar to mine?

PLC Perspective

What can I say about PLC’s that has not already been said? Well the name says it all We are professionals and should treated and act as such. We should always be learning and growing as teachers to benefit ourselves and especially our students. We are a community of teachers trying to do our best to teach our students. So we move into our Team meetings to build our Professional Learning Community.  

 I have to say that PLC used to be pretty foggy to me. I couldn’t see through the PLC fog. What did it all mean? How does it work? Can we truly be collaborative when one or two teachers seems to do the work and the others don’t add anything to the discussion or help with the work? What does a PLC look like? Then as the team started working together, we all started to put our efforts into the students. We did our own Professional Development. We learned together, we researched new ideas, and talked. We talked about students. The fog started to lift. When we started shifting our team meetings away from teaching students to student learning our meetings changed. Our perspective changed. Our teaching changed. The PLC model is powerful. It has helped me be a better teacher. As I move into administration, I find myself wanting the same perspective for the teachers I work with. I  want to help them move forward. How I can do that will remain to be seen.

Right Now

Right now, it's your tomorrow.
Right now, c'mon, it's everything.
Right now, catch a magic moment, do it right here and now.
It means everything
-Sammy Hagar

School is starting again. New students. New ideas. Blank slate. When do we implement all these new ideas? Do we wait until the students are ready? Do we wait until everyone is on board with the plan? There is not better time to get going on new ideas than at the present moment. Do we want these students to miss anything new that will help them learn and progress? When we find something that might be revolutionary and will help students, we need to get going on it as soon as we can. Get your head around the concept and dig in.

Have students help put together. Use them as the learners they are and find out what they think. Will it help them learn better? Are they willing to try it out? I have found that one reason we don't try it out is because we, the teacher, are unsure how it will work out.

As we learn new ideas from out Personal Learning Network on Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, at school, or wherever you hear and see new ideas, get your head around it and get it going.

I remember the first year I used flipped learning. I had been toying with the idea for about a year trying to figure out how I would put it into practice. It took me a year to get it into place and then it was magnificent. Students loved it. I wasted 2 years putting it together and 3 years of students that could have used this idea to learn. The reason was that I wasn't ready. It wasn't the students. We don't give students enough credit when it comes to new activities and procedures. If it is he middle of the year, we start over and teach the new procedures as we did at the beginning of the year.

There are so many activities and lessons and strategies that we can use. Don't wait. Do it right now.

What Did You Learn Today?

My son and I were having a great time watching OK GO videos on YouTube. They are amazing. As we were talking about the different ways they use their videos, he made a comment that struck me funny. He said he has had manny of his teacher show the video "The Writing's on the Wall" in class. I totally agree that it has some great lessons in that video. So I asked him what he learned from the video or what the teachers taught him as they showed it? He said, nothing. He learned nothing. It was a great video. I asked what he was learning at the time and he said he did not remember.

I don't think the teachers did not teach him anything when showing him that video. We just need to make sure the students are engaged enough in out lessons to know why we are doing what we are doing. There are many times when I have sent students home and they have said they have learned nothing. So what do we do?

We have students tell us what they learned. Taking a little time at the end of each lesson and having a couple students tell us what they learned will give them time to think about what they did and what they learned. It will also remind those around them of the lesson. Sometimes our lessons are so packed in that we are finishing the lesson as they rush out the door, but we cannot do that. Teachers need to take the time to ask one simple question at the end of the lesson and at the end of the day, "What did you learn today?"

Starting Out With An LMS

It has been a great year using Schoology in my classroom. When I first started using Schoology it was a place for students to do worksheets or a laundry list of assignments to complete. I have come to the conclusion that there will be lists. There will be procedure I need the students to do. There will be specific activities and assessments I need them to do within the curriculum. I will be given district assigned activities and assessments I will need them to complete. Within that framework I can work on differentiating assignments. I can also provide them opportunities to complete the assignments as they need to and not on a specific day or at a specific time. This is what I am excited about.

I started with Spelling. I differentiated the lists for students. As I grade tests I set up individual sets of words for each student. The first set of lists I set up I have 18 different lists for 26 students. management was fun the first few times, but as students found their spelling videos, they watched and completed the assignments. Each student had their individual set of word patterns to learn. It is fantastic.

I have moved to building choices into units for students to complete on their own. The first unit was in science. I created 5 activities that would each student would complete at different times. My class still talks about it. We are starting our next big activity doing something similar to the last one. There will be activities for students to complete, but they will complete them at different times depending on where they are on a map. I love simulations. As I move through the year I see more and more opportunity for students to learn using the LMS.

Student Behavior

It's time to change my mindset, again. This time it has changed because Angie (co-teacher) and I decided at the beginning of the year to not have a discipline plan. We had just started putting our classroom together and started discussing procedures. We talked about different plans for discipline; colored cards, discipline slips, Class Dojo, rewards, parties, and other ideas. We decided to not have anything. We just decided to talk with students and share with them our expectations and explain the reasoning behind the rules and procedures.

It has turned out to be quite a year for us. We have not needed to send anyone to the office for any problems. We do have talking and students not wanting to complete assignments. We just don't discipline the students by pulling cards. What I have found is that with or without the reward, students will do what is asked of them because they want to. So I do what I can to give them motivation to complete their work. Not all students buy in in the beginning, but building a relationship with each student helps them see that what we are doing is helping them succeed. Most of the time it works.

The biggest lesson I have learned is that students will do what is needed without a discipline plan. These are a few things we have  done to help motivate our class;

• Build a relationship with each student
• Show respect for students ideas, thoughts, and actions
• Teach acceptable behaviors
• Set high expectations and review them often
• Give reasons for assignments and activities
• Explain with real-world examples
• Share all data with students and set goals from that data
• Less lecture, more student engagement
  • student to student
  • teacher to student
  • Use Big-8 strategies

This has been a change in mindset for me. I hope it can be a change for many others.

Thank You PLN

I was perusing my Twitter feed a few days ago and found a great idea to use in my class. It is a writing activity about building a nonfiction book for a younger grade class to read. I emailed the link to myself. Today I pulled it up and started reading it. I am in the midst of a great lesson plan because of a wonderful teacher (@pernilleripp) posted a great idea for me to use. This is all because of a great PLN I have been a part of for quite a few years. Most of the time I sit back and steal discover ideas for my class. I have done more contributing

At this time of year when we are being thankful and giving I wanted to thank all of my Professional Learning Community/Network for all all the lessons and ideas you have given me. My students have benefited from all the great learning I have done over the years from twitter, blogs, and pinterest ideas. I have benefited as a teacher and learner. Thank you. Have a great holiday season.

Learning About Learning Walks

Learning walks are great way for teachers to see what is happening on other classrooms. When I went on learning walks in the past, or had teachers come to my room to observe, I usually felt that an evaluation was happening. I felt I needed to look at what was happening in the film and make a judgement call about what I liked and wanted to use or what was not so good and what I didn't or would never use.
But today I learned something different. I learned that it was not about evaluating at all. It was not even about the teacher. It was about how the students were engaged and what the teacher dos in their classroom to get them engaged. I heard what the teacher said, I saw what the teacher did, and I watched the students. I saw them work. I saw some off task. I saw them think and discuss. I saw what each teacher did to get them involved. I learned some things that will help me be a better teacher. I heard some questions that the teachers would say and thought about how I could use similar questions.
I have also been learning about how to script questions and what teachers and students are saying in the class. Scripting gives the teacher an idea of how their lesson is going as well as how deep the questions are requiring the students to go in the information.
When we met back as a group we used a set of guidelines to guide our discussion. Nothing was to be said about the teacher that was disparaging or bad about what happened. We discussed what went well in the class. We found amazing things our teachers are doing and saw engagement of students through different activities. Many of which I will use in my classroom.
After our discussion I had the opportunity to meet with a couple teachers that were being observed and discuss how they felt about the lesson. It was a learning experience having them give me their insight into their lesson and thoughts while they were teaching. It can be unnerving having 5-6 teachers in your room while teaching a lesson. Hearing them reflect on the lesson and how they could do better and what they needed to work on helped me understand that even the best teachers feel they can improve.
Learning walks have been an interesting parting my teaching, but I am only now seeing how it benefits me as well as the teacher I am watching. Thank you to all those that let me observe and learn.

The Last Days

We have three weeks left. Now is the time for students to start relaxing and getting a little "mouthy" with their comments. A few start talking back and making inappropriate comments at the wrong times. Some students can handle the change that comes with summer break and some cannot. Some students do not know what is on the horizon. No structure, no rules, no opportunities. They need to know the teacher understands and will always like them.
I have a few suggestions to make it through these last few weeks.
• Relax.
• Take a breath.
• Don't take it personally.
• Let the students know they still know what is right and they can hold on to the end. Encourage.
• Don't give up on the rules. Give a few more breaks and reminders, though.
Keep the schedule going. If things change too much and there is too much free time, there will be trouble. We always add in a movie making activity for students to crest movies of what they have learned through the year. Each group, one subject or topic.
• Love the students. Don't let their words and actions during the last couple weeks change how you feel about the child themselves. They are still children, learning as they go, testing their boundaries, trying to make it through life. As we are.
Change is in the air and students feel it. They will be heading home without the same schedule and, sometimes, without friends they are used to being with everyday. The weather is changing and they want to be outside playing in the sun. They need to know they are still loved during these times of change. These might be hard weeks, but we can give students the best send off so they will remember the good times, not he bad couple weeks at the end.

Learning Never Ends

It is the end of the year. We have three weeks left and our end of year testing is complete. I want the students to understand that learning never stops. We have more math, language, science, social studies, and other subjects to teach. After the big test, there is still more to learn. I find that if I stop teaching after we have taken the test, it sets a bad example for the students. It teaches them that there is a point where the learning does stop. It doesn't. I shouldn't. That is the lesson I hope to instill in my students. Keep learning.

Choosing a Path

My family takes a trip to Death Valley NP every year for a family reunion. While we were there this year we went on a new trail we had never been on. As we drove I this gravelly, bumpy road, we started looking over the next hill for the end. We were hoping for this amazing end to a slow, bumpy trip. It never came on this road. Many times the roads we take end up somewhere, but this one didn't.
I always wonder why is it about a new road that keeps us going on it? Is it that someone told us it would be amazing? Do we have hope it will get better? Or do we just do it because it is the road we have always been on and do not know how to get off it? What if we didn't even get on this road? Would we know what we were missing?
So what does this have to do with education or technology? When a new technology comes out we need to decide what road we are going to take? Is the technology going to be better or will it be a dead end? Will it be something great as we use it, or will be need to get rid of it and move to something else.
There are so many options out there and they keep adding more all the time. Here are a few tips I try to use.
• Make sure the tech you want to use works for you.
• A piece of technology should not add to your work, or the kids work, but become part of your program easily.
• If an app can take the place of something else, or a few something else's, use it.
• Try out each new piece of tech before giving it to a student. Have your kids use it. Make a "New App" team of students to test them out. You will find out what works and how interesting it really is.
Whatever road we are on, or tech we use, we need to know what know what our plan is. If it keeps on going on forever and doesn't improve the student learning, we might want to take a new road. We might want to even try a new road. Technology is here and we need to use it wisely. Get on the road, but choose how far you will go when it gets bumpy. It might be worth the wait? Or not.
Note: Seth Godin wrote a book that is similar to this subject. It's called "The Dip". I would suggest it.

Making Tech Commonplace in the Classroom

I read somewhere that tech needs to become as common as pencils and paper in the classroom. When it does we have gone past the "honeymoon stage" and into the "lets see what this can really do" stage. I think my class is getting to that stage.
We started using iPads in our fifth grade classrooms 1:1 two years ago. It was hard deciding what to have students use them for at first. Then we decided on the second year that we would use them for everything we could. They kept them at their desks and used them as often as possible. We never gave up writing with pencils, using paper, or books. We did use them for writing to publish their text, make presentations, write daily journals, and email their teachers about what they were learning.
We had them use their iPads as a learning management system. They get on to see what they need to do for assignments, even though we still remind them where to find them. They submit discussions, comments, pictures of paperwork, and answer surveys on the LMS. They also have access to all assignments for the unit we are on. The LMS makes them complete assignments in order so they complete everything before moving on to the next section.
We use Google Drive to type in assignments for writing, language, social studies, and science.
What I found was that the more we use the iPads, the more the kids treat them as a tool and not a toy. We have a couple education games on the iPads, but we use them as we have most games, for specific times, not as rewards. This has curtailed them asking to play the games. As I watch what students are doing with the iPads, they are treating them like I would hope they would, as tools of learning.
I have students looking for new ways to show me how to use the iPads for their work. They ask to take pictures for their portfolios. A couple have asked about making movies to show what happened in a certain project. Some want to use the technology to add to their learning. It is becoming a part of their learning and becoming commonplace in the classroom.
The more we use technology, the more it becomes a part of the way the classroom and education is. If we don't use technology, it is a novelty to be played with. We need to use what we have to the fullest potential. Not adding to the work, but changing it. Making it commonplace.

Sharing the Data

I looked through my year end test scores from last year and almost cried. But I didn't. Everyone in our state did poorly. Not a surprise from a new, tougher, different kind of test. I realized it was the first time the test was given and that was a benchmark for the student and for me to start from and build upon. Time to get to work.
Test had been, and always will be, the thorn in teachers sides... if we let it. It can become the knowledge that helps us progress as teachers. It can also be the knowledge that helps students take ownership of their own learning.
So, I handed the scores to my fifth graders and we dug into what they mean and how it affects them as a person. We talked about progress. We talked about explaining the scores to their parents. We talked about setting goals so their parents would understand the full plan of what we are doing. We talked about how to show exactly what they know and not less. We discussed all this information as to make them more accountable for their work.
I feel sharing all the data we have with students will give them a better picture of who they are and how to go about using the education we are providing for them. So I share. Everything.
We are getting ready for parent conferences in a couple weeks. We have talked about the students taking on he role as conference leader to show and explain what we are doing and how they are doing as a student. Not just in my class, but as a student overall. I hope to give students more power over their education. Controlling the conference will students the chance to talk with their parents about how they are doing. More communication. More ownership. Using data to build strengths and work on weaknesses. The more they know, the more they can control their own outcome.

What Would Your Keynote Be?

I was asked to be a Keynote Speaker at a local Flipped Conference in a couple weeks. I have to say I am pretty excited. I don't mind being in front of people. I really like talking with teachers to get their ideas and learning from them.
I started thinking about what I wanted my keynote to be about. I had a few ideas. Then I went to the Schoology NEXT Conference and Jennie Magiera was one of the keynote speakers. Her question at the end was, "What would your keynote be?" That got me thinking more about what I wanted to say. What was the one thing that I want other teachers to think about before school starts?
In the flipped classroom there are great questions about face to face learning and being a student in my classroom. Those that use the flipped idea have thought about those ideas. I think about Brian Bennett and Ramsey Musallam and their ideas about moving further in the classroom. These have taken me to losing control in the classroom. Giving the students the ownership of the learning. Giving up control is hard fora teacher. At least it is for me. I have been changing the balance of control toward the students for a few years now and it has helped with discipline in my class and more student engagement.
So my question for you, the reader, is what would your keynote be? What would you teach other teachers if you had the opportunity to present? And why do we not take the time to prepare something to teach to teachers so we can become an expert on the one thing we think is important in our classroom? So, what would your keynote be?

Learning Management System Questions

I have been looking into different Learning Management Systems (LMS) for a while now.  I started with Edmodo and loved the ease of use with it, but have started using Schoology because of the many options it gives me. It has some amazing tools for discussions, assignments, assessments, and collaboration. One of the new bonuses it will have soon is the ability to video conference with a student.  I can see that being used during class with an absent student, or with another teacher to teach a lesson.  My district has bought into the Enterprise version and that gave me even more options. Because we are using Schoology, a few teachers in our school attended the Schoology #NEXT14 conference in Denver in June.  They put on quite the shindig for their first conference.  The keynote speakers were amazing, the break out sessions were great and very helpful for a guy that has use it a little for a few PD classes.  The conference gave me some great ideas on how to use it, but then came the questions I had to ask.

• How is this going to make me a better teacher?
• How is this going to give my students the opportunity to learn more?
• Is this going to make my job easier or harder?
• Will it become a place to just upload packets or will it have something more to it?
• How can I use this tool to truly differentiate the learning in my class without making it a “To Do List” of assignments?

I have to ask myself these questions because I am a bit tired of the “magic bullet” app or program every other week. I do not mind working a little harder to provide new and better opportunities for my students to learn. I do not want a paperless program that I scan pages of work into and upload them for students to complete and hand back to me. I want less paper, but not because students can copy it into their annotation app and send it back. I want something more. I have district mandated programs that give me plenty of worksheets if I choose to use them, but what can I put in my LMS that will help the students go deeper in their learning? How can I set up my lessons for students to think about how it all fits together and then solve the problem without being able to Google it or use Wolfram Alpha to show the process?

So here I sit with my computer and the District mandated programs to work out my lessons and fit them into Schoology. In the end it all comes down to the teacher and the lessons. The LMS will be a great tool to distribute the opportunities and activities for students to work from, but the difference between myself and the computer teaching is the opportunities I provide for my students to learn. Schoology will be the program  I will use for my class because of the many options it has. Even with a Learning Management System, I will still need to provide the learning.

Reflecting on the Year

It is time to close out another year. As I look back I see some great things we did with our iPads this year. I see that we need to work on building our thoughts about how we are going to use them in the classroom. I saw some great things in writing, reading, and language.

Using Google Docs to produce writing and build language skills was great. Reading on our McGraw-Hill app was good. I wish it was a little easier to download books. I also wish it was faster downloading the books. We used iBooks to read texts that we created. There are many texts I want to build in iBooks Author to publish for students to use.

I like to fact that we can upload pictures, files, movies, and other items, into Google Drive. Having that 30GB for each student has been fabulous to keep whatever students need access to. They can access the files anywhere.

We underused the Explain Everything App this year. I want to use it more as a white board to show work in math and for putting together assessments of what students learned. In language I want students to use it more for fluency. This year we had the students take pictures of a book page and read it while they recorded themselves. EE kept the time so they could go back through to mark what words they missed. It also gives them the ability to listen to themselves again and hear themselves as they read.

McGraw-Hill has an app for our Math program that works ok. It is not as friendly as I wish, but I hope they will make it easier for students to use. It is a bit finicky to use at times.

Next year we will be adding Schoology to our list if apps for students. Incorporating a student management program will be interesting. We have tried to make assignments as student independent as possible. It had not worked as well as we thought this year, but we learned what we shouldn't do. More management as a teacher is needed. I have always hated grading papers, but have enjoyed reading student stories, discussing ideas, and interacting with them during math. I hope Schoology will help students be able to pick assignments and projects easier. Management should be easier next year. We are heading to the @schoology conference in Denver this summer. I am expecting to learn how to set up the individual lessons for each student and how to manage them. I want it to be easy, but I also know that it will take work on my part. I want it to be easy for students to access and use.

Reflection is a major part of teaching. We should reflect as often as possible. I love taking a few minutes every summer and reading my blog to see what mistakes I have made over the years and what I learned. Revisiting them keeps all the ideas I forgot to remember, fresh in my mind.

Teacher Appreciation

It is teacher appreciation week and I want to take a moment to send some love to a couple teachers I appreciate. There are many, but a couple come to mind that have helped me through my teaching career.

When I was in school I had a wonderful example of what a teacher should be. Dan Frieberg was my choir teacher in high school. He showed us love through the help he gave us in class. He took time to help me as my friends and I would put together bands and quartets. He would give us suggestions and provide us with songs we could sing. He would then take time after school to listen as we played songs and told him our ideas. I remember Norman and I going to his house after we had graduated to play him a couple songs we wrote. He was always the listener and offered needed constructive criticism with love. He was amazing. Thank you Dan for listening to some punk kids with dreams.

During my first year of teaching I met a teacher that had only been teaching for a few years and had some amazing ideas for teaching social studies. He would dress his students up in Civil War uniforms and have them march around the school as they went to library or to lunch. As they learned about the Civil War through a little reenacting and role play, they learned parts and performed a short play about the Civil War. As we became better friends we started putting ideas together and bouncing ideas off each other. We moved to a new school together and began doing plays together. He would work on his Civil War play and I would work on a Shakespeare play. We wrote together, designed together and had a lot fun teaching together. Mark Powell taught me that nothing is impossible. I would come up with crazy ideas and he would always be game to try anything. We put together many activities that made school fun for the students and for us. Mark taught me that teaching was supposed to be fun and that no matter what we had to teach, there was always a way to make it enjoyable. Thank you Mark for guiding me through so many years of fun.

Another example to me is a teacher that left our school for a year and has decided to come back to us. Tina Shenfeld is a Special Education teacher. She showed me how a passionate teacher should work. Where there is a need for a student, the teacher needs to fill the need. Sometimes that means starting school and hour and a half early or staying two hours late. Tina had some great ideas about how to teach students and would do anything she could to get the most and the best out of the students. All students. Not just her kids, but all students. She taught me that All students can learn. I believes that before Tina, but she really taught me that every student that will be a productive member of society can learn. If they have a bad attitude, they can learn. If they have no desire to learn, they can learn. Every student can learn. She also taught me that all students deserve to have my best every day. That is a hard concept to actually out into practice. She always gave her best and expected it of everyone else. That sometimes ended I a conflict with another teacher, but it was about what is best for a student. Thank you Tina for teaching me that students deserve my best.

The greatest example I had as a teacher was my father. My dad was a band teacher. He worked hard to help and build all those musicians he taught. As I think about him and teaching I think about his passion as a teacher and musician. He has played in many bands over the years. He still plays in a jazz band each week. His passion for music and teaching has had reaching effects for me as I have taught. I try to keep the passion in my teaching as he did. Thank you dad for being an inspiration to me.

There are so many others that have inspired me and made me a better teacher. I am a product of those around me. Thank you for those I teach with now. Thank you for all those I have taught with. Thank you for being teachers. The world is better because of you.

Orchestras and Teachers

For a discussion in my College Class this week we watched a video from Ted by Itay Talgam. It is called "Lead like the great conductors". As I watched it, it struck a chord (no pun intended) about school. If you have not watched or listened to Ted talks, go there and watch one. Watch many.
So, one thought I loved in the video was the idea of enabling those around us to do what they need to. Giving teachers the autonomy to play their instruments, or teach their lessons, and as they do so in harmony, through a school vision, they can make beautiful music together. Working together as a faculty to accomplish one goal and not compete against each other will help our school succeed and improve.
Another thought I had was that musicians weren't even looking at the conductor and yet they were playing in rhythm together. They were working together and following the music and each other to play their part. They could feel the song. As teachers we practice our lessons, we learn new strategies, and we collaborate together. We depend on each other. We work together. The conductor was the person that started and set the beat for the orchestra. The administrator provides the support and get the teachers on their way and provides the resources throughout the year to keep the music going.
Itay Talgam also mentions that the musicians should be used as partners and not instruments. They need to be able to develop. In a school setting the teachers and stakeholders need to be partners in the school. Teachers and parents do not need to be told what to do. There are times when there are requirements that need to be met or a curriculum that needs to be taught, but in the workings of the school, everyone needs to be involved in the education of students. Doing what is best for the students. Doing what is best for the music. Itay Talgam also talks about the leaders in the orchestra leading the group so they can get the feeling of the music.
I love that he talks about how the conductor enjoys the process of the music and the orchestra. We need to enjoy school and teachers. I am not sure I can explain what I mean here. We need to enjoy the work that happens in our schools, enjoy the collaboration, enjoy the harmony that can be created in a school. Enjoy the movement.
In the talk Itay says, "Don't look at the trombones, it will only encourage them." I would say, "Don't look at the negative people, it will only encourage them!" Giving the negative comments in a school room to breathe by passing them on only encourages negative people and those that can be swayed. Positive words and encouragement is harder to spread, but needs to be done. We need to be more like an orchestra and feel the music as it is playing. We can't stop the song in the middle, but we can do our part to make the song work.

Building Your Learning Network

I have been using Twitter for a few years now. It has been a great way to learn and build my idea bank for school. The greatest thing about twitter is being able to talk with people that I am inspired by. It used to be that I could read the ideas in magazines like Edutopia. Now I use Flipboard to read my favorite blogs and sites. I can also read through tweets and meet during a hashtag chat to get ideas and share my thoughts. Education has become a worldwide collaboration thoughts, ideas, and practices.
It is time to build our personal learning networks and learn. We can also share our I ideas with others. We all have something to say. We just have to practice writing it down for others to read instead of just talking about it in the all before school. Share it. Tweet it. Blog it. Get it out there for others to comment on. We can make our ideas better by having others take it and move it to the next level. Collaboration is amazing. It help us all improve. Be a part of the worldwide collaboration happening right now. Here are a few ideas that might help you get started.
Twitter
1. Sign up for a twitter account.
2. Follow a couple people you know on twitter.
3. Read tweets a couple times a week.
4. As you read, follow those people you enjoy most.
5. Retweet great posts.
6. Comment on great posts.
Blog
1. Sign up for a blog(Edublogs, Wordpress, Blogger, etc.)
2. Attach it to your twitter account
3. Write a post about something. Anything.
4. Write every month, if possible.
5. Read other blogs.
6. As you get more comfortable, write more.
This is how I got started. I am in no way a great blogger or tweeter. But I am a great learner and I am learning a lot from others. Building my PLN has made me a better teacher. It will you also.

Blogging I Will Go

I attended UCET this last weekend. I learned more than I had at other conferences over the years. i enjoyed the keynote speakers Dean Shareski(@shareski) and George Corous (@gcouros). Dean talked about how we need to have joy in our teaching. That message needs to get out with the new state testing starting this year. I don;t think it will be that bad. It is just new. New always causes ripples in the comfort level of anyone. Dean also talked about creativity and how we need to expand it in our classrooms. Loved his ideas and thoughts. Thank you Dean.
My biggest ah-ha moment came in the breakout session with George. Blogging with teachers and students. I found this to be mind-opening. I have blogged for a few years about what I have been doing in my class to help me remember what I have done and to reflect on those ideas. Then George had to come and break it wide open. Blogging to help organize what I am doing in my classroom that pertains to the teaching standards I am being held to. Really? Keeping track of all the standards I am evaluated on but the administrator does not see because they only come to my room a couple times a year for an evaluation? Wow. Why would I want to do that? Well I would like to do that because I want to make sure I am doing what I can to give the best teaching to my students. I need to make sure I am keeping in line with the high standards set for me like I expect the students to keep in line with those I set for them.
I find this intriguing. So intriguing that I am starting this blog on edublogs to get my "write" on and stop with just the remembering and reflecting. I want to start keeping track of my thoughts and actions on this blog to show to the world what I am doing. This is not a place for me to brag. Well it kinda is. This is my portfolio. My scrapbook. My resume. My teaching life. This should be a place where I can put down the things I love doing in my class. The things I love thinking about. This will be an opportunity for me to provide my principal with enough information to see what i really do in my class between the times she evaluates me (Even thought she ends up coming around quite often to see what we are doing and enjoy the students).
Thank you George. This will be a great ride. It will also be a great opportunity for me to see what I actually do and make adjustments and changes in my classroom to provide the best education I can for my students. They deserve it.