More on Podcasting

Today's class was a little of a repeat. I've been taking two series of classes simultaneously. But it did reinforce what I'd learned for podcasting.

This class focused on iTunes and got me into the site. I finally got into iTunes University. It was fun just seeing what was available. There're entire college educations available. It may take me some time, though, to figure out how to negotiate the site.

We also worked to story board our project. I'm part way through a digital story I was working on for the Jordan River Parkway Bike route, so I worked with that. We also worked more with garage band, which seems very popular among elementary teachers! So, choose the podcast option, create a file, and you're ready to go! You know, it's probably good I''m going through this again...I'd forgotten a lot!

A few extra tips for Garage Band:

1. Command Z is the undo button.
2. To select more than one item, hold the shift key down as you select the items.
3. The I in the corner of o the I, you can get into other effects that will apply to your voice tracks (mouse voice, helium, etc.)
4. Audacity is a program for PC that's free and very much like Garage Band.

Sorry readers, I'm really tired tonight. I think I have to sign off with just this short entry.

Google Docs - more than just Documents

Thursday we looked at the many applications you can access through google docs. I've been aware of google docs because we use them at school to manage teacher lists (enrichment, testing schedules, concept mastery, etc.). This features allows you access use spreadsheets, word documents, calendars and presentations which are then shared by several people. You can also identify who you'd like to share the docs with, perfect for our faculty.

However, when you get a chance, click on the option "other" and even "more stuff" further in. You'll find a huge list of possible applications that are free to anyone who has a gmail account. I tried google voice, which allows me to view my voice mail from my mail account. And I tried the blog search program, which is very promising since I'm perfecting my blogging skills.

That's What a Planner is For

First posted on 11/26/10 in "Homeworkwarriors.com"

The first critical step in any military maneuver is knowing your enemy. You can't hope to have the advantage until you know exactly what you're dealing with.

THAT'S WHAT A PLANNER IS FOR!

But often you get one and have no instruction as to how to use it. So you carry it around for a while until it falls apart and then you chuck it.

Explicit steps:

1. List all assignments and tests, along with any other information that may affect your schedule.
2. Check off each assignment as you complete it (yes, even if you finish it that day in class).
3. Cross of each assignment as you hand it in (ditto above). Acknolwedge that sense of power that surges through you as you cross an item off. That's one of the great reasons for using a planner. That's why you list even the small assignments and go through the process.

LET IT EMPOWER YOU!!!

Creativity in Education

First Published 7/8/11

What do teachers do all summer? Most of us sleep in, take classes, research, and heal our wounds. The classes and research often help the healing process by inspiring us with new ideas. The first book I read this summer helped ignite my badly diminished flame. "Out of Our Minds," by Ken Robinson, challenges the tranditional "assembly line" educational model. He maintains that the future demands creativity, which is mostly decimated in today's classroom.

Any well intended teacher will argue that creativity in the classroom is severely compromised by increasingly pervasive core standards, district directed curriculum, severe time constraints, and high stakes testing. We've all been taught that creativity in the classroom is more engaging and results in greater understanding and retention. yet most of us struggle to apply it.

Ken (I'll call him Ken because his writer's tone is that inviting) offers several recommendations I can't help but support: flexible schedules, greater student choice, differentiated curriculum, emphasis on social interaction and problem solving, and an explicit focus on brainstorming, research, evaluation, application, analysis, and re-evaluation strategies. Okay, these are my words (teacher speak), but the concepts he presents are familiar. And okay, I have no control over scheduling and student choice. But I'm trying to incorporate the rest into my classroom, and find his endorsement of those efforts reassuring.

No, he didn't forget to mention relevance of subject matter, recommending service projects to develop community awareness. Nor did he neglect the importance of risk taking and learning from trial and error. "Creativity is not about generating ideas; it involves making judgements about them. The process includes elaborating on the initial ideas, testing and refining them and even rejecting them, in favor of others that emerge during the process." (pg 153)

So how do we explicitly teach this process? How do we do it in a way that enhances student confidence by rewarding risk taking? And how do we do it within the constraints of our current, over loaded, under resourced system? Fortunately, Ken also pointed out that creativity doesn't grow out of unrestricted chaos. It's best developed when supported by a firm framework of requirements and limitations,. "The internal challenge is to evolve structures and processes that are supple and responsive." (pg 237)

Bottom line - this is a great book which I highly recommend. I'm planing to pursue implementation and would love to hear from anyone out there who might have experience and/or ideas. Comments please?

THE GIFT OF DYSLEXIA by Ronald D Davis

First published 7/12/11

I'm fortunate in that the second book I chose to read this summer was "The gift of Dyslexia," by Ronald Davis. Having served a number of dyslexic students, I have a great respect for the complexity of this disability. My students who suffer from dyslexia are bright, creative, and I know their inability to conquer reading is not through any lack of effort or intelligence. Yet all the phonetically based programs I've used, which have been successful with about three quarters of my students, have failed these amazing individuals. In some cases, I wonder if it's made the problem worse.

The insights revealed by Ronald Davis are profound and all encompassing. Dyslexia, he proposes, results from the tendency of the brain to think in 3D pictures, meaning they visualize what an object looks like from all angles. He defines dyslexia as the unconscious use of disorientation to bring about multidimensional perception. In layman's terms, that means a baby draws from all sensory perception, then adds his/her ability to see things three dimensionally to identify new objects. This process is called disorientation. Because the brain is unable to distinguish the difference between what is real and what is perceived (imagined), it registers both sources of information, imagined and experienced directly through the senses, as real experience.

Dyslexic brains work faster, Mr. Davis contends, because pictures convey so much more information than verbal, sequential expression. Therefore, when you think in pictures, you're very likely to find intuitive solutions without being able to verbalize the process. Because our phonetic reading system depends on symbols that represent sounds, which are then combined sequentially into words and eventually into meaning, the visual brains hesitates or stalls. There are no concrete pictures for phonemes. Therefore, the dyslexic brain cannot retain or process the information. Because the first defense such a brain is to use disorientation (think of it as moving information around in space) letters actually begin to move. Concentration only heightens the process, and robs the brain of precious processing room to construct meaning.

The result is that the student cannot successfully piece together the symbolic bits that make words. Some dyslexics can't even keep the letters seated on the page. After trying unsuccessfully  year after year he/she becomes frustrated and/or angry. He/she may fidget, exhibit avoidance behaviors, lose confidence, or find ways to have others read for them. I've had students shut down entirely and refuse to do anything for me that might involve reading.

The symptoms that result from this situation also describe students who are ADD, ADHD, some autisms, and many learning disabilities. Teaching students to identify when they are using disorientation, and then helping them control this potentially valuable skill (gift) often solves the problem.

How can this not be exciting! I did a little research and found this by Abigail Marshal (2003) at http://www.dyslexia.com/science/different_pathways.htm. "Teaching methods based on intensive or systemic drill in phonemic awareness or phonic decoding strategies may actually be harmful to dyslexic children. Such teaching might simply emphasize reliance on mental strategies that are as likely to diminish reading ability for dyslexic children as they are to improve it, increasing both the frustration and impairment level of dyslexic students." ("Brain Scans show Dyslexics Read Better with Alternative Strategies," 2003) The article went on to specifically note learning strategies using clay were effective. I later learned that Ms. Marshall has become associated with the Davis Dyslexia Association.

There is some controversy involved with using this technique in that it has to been fully tested. The Davis Dyslexia Association, which offers training to parents and teachers, is asking for results to be submitted from those they've authorized to use the program. "The Gift of Dyslexia" describes how to test for and implement core aspects of the program. The negatives I found associated with this approach were examples of unresearched skepticism, and answered well by the DD. I, for one, am planning to study it out further and try it on my few students for whom nothing else seems to work.

VISUAL SPATIAL LEARNERS by Alexandra Shires Golon

Published 7/28/11

I am particularly excited by the information in this book because it greatly simplifies my approach to teaching. Yes, all teachers know about Gardner's multiple intelligences. Yes, we're trained for three learning styles (audio, visual, kinesthetic). Yes, we all agree that the material we present needs to be leveled for our students. Yes, we're on the lookout for further accommodations that help students achieve. Teachers are desperately trying to reach all students. BUT IT'S COMPLICATED AND CLASSROOM TIME IS SO SHORT!

Ms. Golon focuses on two types of learners: Auditory-Sequential and Visual-Spatial. Unfortunately, auditory-sequential strategies are entrenched in the classroom. According to her research, "more than one third of the study group (750 students) strongly preferred an visual-spatial learning style, whereas one four of the group strongly preferred an auditory-sequential style." Even more exciting, her research indicates that "more than 90% of the special education students...were visual-spatial learners."

Characteristics of the visual-spatial include difficulty in reading, intuitive responses (when the student doesn't know how they got the answer), figiting, inability to focus, disorganization, creativity, and a tendency to take things apart. They ask a lot of questions, often take extra time to respond, and have a well developed sense of humor.

As I read this, I see these "symptoms" describe my ADD, ADHD, Dyslexic, many of my Autistic, and my Learning Disabled students.

M. Golon presented several specific strategies that would help these students. Designed to charge the right hemisphere, they include color coding for comprehension and organization, strict classroom procedures, picture note taking, doodling, oral responses, focus on prediction, free movement, several class games, role playing, rubrics, and even recommended room colors and temperatures.

In addition to supporting my previous reading, Ms. Golon's practical approach to supporting these students inspires me to review my teaching practices and to further implement relevant strategies. The chapters focusing on reading and spelling will be particularly useful for my frustrated readers. This is the kind of material I look forward to reading in the summer. Armed with new tools, I can look forward to another year on the battle field.

Learning Opportunity

(first published 8/2/11)

School's starting in two weeks. Next week is full of classes and previewing school files. So this is really my last week of summer vacation. I'd hoped to review the various books I've read, and post them on this blog for future reference. But I fell behind in the blogging for trying to finish up the reading. Today was different. Today I conducted an experiment in learning.

I feed birds. I love watching them. In June I noticed one small chickadee with a bad leg. I didn't even know he was a chickadee when I first saw him. I just knew he was really cute and began hoping he'd survive the summer. I think he sensed my goodwill and appeared regularly from then on. I'd wake and listen for his unique chirp each morning. I'd stop anything I was doing to watch him freed throughout the day.

One evening  my cat caught him. Pounced right on him as he was flopping around on the concrete patio, eating the seed other birds had scattered from the feeder. Fortunately, I immediately pounced on the cat and managed to pry the little guy from the cat's mouth.

I cuddled the stunned bird in my hands until he came to, and held him gently until he finally flew away. But his flying was erratic. Bad leg was now second to the bad wing he'd just receive. I worried. I schemed. A plot hatched in my head.

This morning I bought the cheapest bird cage I could find. I wanted to get the bird into a protected area where I could be sure he was fed and safe. But how could I stress the little guy by catching him and locking him up? He is a wild thing, after all, despite his disabilities. So I set the cage up beside the scattered seed on my patio. I kept the door open and the feeders in the cage filled. And then I watched, hoping he would come to accept the cage, maybe even volunteer to enter it himself.

It took a while, but soon I had all kinds of birds hoping in and out of the cage. As I watched, I was surprised at how many had a hard time finding their way back out. There was a lot of fruitless batting of wings against the bars. Then there was trial and error as some searched for the opening. Surprisingly, once the first two birds figured it out, the rest followed.

Curiosity - and the reward of seed. That's what brought them into the cage. That's my key. Even something designed to imprison birds, something they should be afraid of, was attractive enough to entice them to enter. They figured out how to get in and out without me. This is good stuff for a teacher to observe.

Maybe tomorrow my little chickadee will enter. Maybe eventually I can keep him in the cage to try to help him survive through the winter.

Maybe this year I can find a way to entice my students. Trap their curiosiities and tap into their creativity. Figure out how to get them to learn.

Worth hoping for.

* (11/14/11 Side note)  The cat caught my chickadee the day after this post. I rescued him again and put him in the cage. He was dead within twelve hours. I wrapped him in tissue and buried him in a spot in my garden. I mourned that little wild bird for two weeks. A rock marks his resting place and I still think of him.

How quickly and securely my SPED students work their way into my heart. Most of the time I feel successful in helping them. Occasionally they don't receive what I want so desperately to give. But somehow I put aside the pain I feel when they reject me and try again. And when the lost bird comes back into my room years later to let me know he somehow learned how to fly - those are days of sweet, tearful joy indeed.

School Begins!

(Originally posted 9/11/11)

It's another year and school started out with a bang. Most students may not realize that their teachers go back to school a full week or two before the students arrive. I had classes for one week and then meetings the next. I put my room together in the few free moments around our other commitments. We had parents the night before the students arrived this year. That was interesting.

The next two weeks are a blur. The students arrive. We teach rules and procedures, learn  new names, more meetings, share cope and sequences, try to decipher the new "Common Core," and after all of that, we teach. Most of us mourn the loss of focus on teaching. So much time is spent planning, reviewing, assessing, and corroborating that working with the students is pushed out of the otp spot on our priority lists.

I love my job. I love the students. And this year I have new toys to use. We were given Promethean boards, projectors, DVD/VCR projectors, and "clickers" which promise to make testing students fun for them and for us. I still have to learn to use the clickers, but the rest on of it has been wonderful. I can now project anything I can put on my computer screen. The students are eager to use the Promethean board and many know better than I how to use it.

2011/12 - Here we go!

A Student's Greatest Empowerment Comes Through Organization

Our district has two days off during the fall. Both teachers and students look forward to the break. It tends to come at the end of the quarter so, prompted me to reflect on the year so far, my thoughts turned toward the biggest issues I see working against my own homeworkwarriors' success.

I've confirmed this year that students who struggle the most are those who are unorganized. The reason is many fold. First, it takes a lot longer to do homework when you're having to plow through piles of unrelated assignments to find the one you want to work on. If this happens every time you sit down to complete something, that five to ten minutes of wasted time adds up and homework seem never ending.  Second is the increased probability that the same disorganized pile with eat your homework so you won't be able to find it to turn it in on time.

This week I looked through several backpacks to find two and three copies of the same half done assignment that will now be turned in for fewer points. That's a lot of wasted time and effort! I don't understand why these same students don't take that five minutes up front and organize (check out my website "www.homeworkwarriors.com" under the BOOT CAMP section for the 'Planner" and "Ultimate Organizer" system).

The third and most important problem disorganization creates is decreasing confidence. If you're constantly putting in the effort and getting no payback, you tend to doubt yourself. Who wants to try and then not succeed time after time? It's deflating. It's frustrating. It's infuriating! No wonder students begin avoiding the whole thing, which makes it even worse. Parents get mad. Teachers stop caring. Who can bglame the students that end up hating school.

But you're in control! You can organize yourself.

Try it for three weeks. I promise you'll find yourself energized. And getting work in on time will boost your confident, improve your student image and help your grades soar! Realize that students who can't complete assignments before the applicable tests are always at a disadvantage. They are constnatly runing behinid the crowd. This single, simple step will help you surge to the front!

Why go into battle without the proper equipment!