by Krissy.Venosdale | Mar 27, 2011 | Reflect
Photograph by Justin W. Moore (http://www.outdorphoto.com/)
A few weeks ago, I eagerly signed up to be a part of @NASATweetup. I honestly thought it was a long shot. Then, something happened: I got on the waiting list. Still. A Chance. But, a long shot. Friday afternoon as I sat in my classroom sipping water from my astronaut water bottle, wearing my space shuttle lanyard, I quickly checked my email and saw it: I was going to be a part of the NASA Tweetup for STS-134 on April 18-19, 2011. I am going to Florida to experience the launch, live, from Kennedy Space Center. Even as I type the words, I can’t believe it. I will be blogging about this experience here and how I am going to bring this back to my students. My hope is that I can share things in a way that will allow many teachers to bring the experience to their students. If one kid, in one classroom, somewhere, sees the launch and says, “I would love to be an engineer and design something like that when I grow up,” then this trip is totally worth it. It is in these types of experiences that dreams are born.
I have ALWAYS thought that if you are going to REALLY teach something to kids, you had better be willing to go ALL OUT. If you want kids to really understand something then you need to live it, breathe it, and share it with them…but most of all, let them OWN it. Why space? Some people think teaching “space” is knowing the names of the planets. But it is so much more than that. Space is about exploration. Engineering. Risk-Taking. Courage. Creativity. Innovation. Problem Solving. The Past. The Future. Learning. Pushing Forward. Dreaming. Setting Goals. Reaching Goals. Achieving. Handling Failure and Learning From It. Collaboration. Perseverance. Success.
So next time somebody hands you a unit on “Space” and it contains coloring sheets of the planets with short paragraphs about each one, tell them thank you and then when you get back to your classroom, use that paper to roll up and build rockets with. Once your students build and test their own rocket, you’ll see what I mean. You’ll see the risk-taking, problem solving, and creativity. You’ll see their eyes light up when their rocket flies. The light in their eyes? Those are dreams being born. Those dreams are what teaching is all about.
*Thank you Shannon for sharing your amazing photo of a child reaching for the stars. Taken by @bikegeek 🙂
by Krissy.Venosdale | Mar 17, 2011 | Reflect
Today I set up an account with Twiducate and within minutes added all of my students. It’s just like Twitter: the unblocked, school-safe version for classrooms. The reaction from the kids? THIS is SO COOL! I wrote the address on the board and started the discussion. The kids already knew the terms “Social Networking” and “Social Media.” They already knew that you should NEVER give out personal information online. These kids are growing up in a digital world. It’s not just something they see, it’s a part of their lives. I just wanted to try it out with the class and see what happened. But, here I am, not even 24 hours later and I’m thinking of ways to use it for supporting learning.
Ten Ways Twiducate Might Be Useful As a Learning Tool
1.) Current Events Discussions: Post links to current event topics and ask students to respond to thought-provoking questions.
2.) ‘Who Am I’ Game: Pretend to be a famous person and post as him/her. See if students can figure out who you are by asking great questions. Then, students can run the game. Imagine tweeting as “”Tonight I will attend a play at Ford’s Theater.” Think the kids would guess Abraham Lincoln?
3.) Classroom Backchannel: If your students have laptops or desktops nearby throughout the day,allow them to post reflections, questions, and thoughts from their learning.
4.) Community Building: Giving students time to chat and discuss with each other might help those “quiet” students feel comfortable “speaking up”
5.) Model Responsible Use: Every day in using social networking can become a lesson in what to do and what not to do on the web.
6.) Sharing Resources in a Research Project: My students are becoming better at using search engines than I am! They are getting good at finding “the right” resources. I love that they will be able to post links and share great sites with each other. Collaboration can now take place both in and out of the classroom!
7.) Video Notes: We often watch learning videos from UnitedStreaming.com and students want to discuss throughout. Now, they could tweet their thoughts during the video and it would be a great way to see what points they were getting from viewing it. Afterward, a class discussion could be held on the tweets.
8.) Hold a caption contest: Post a photo and ask students to create a caption for it. This is a great chance for them to get creative depending on the photo you choose!
9.) Schedule Chats: Just like Twitter’s #edchat and #gtchat, why not host a Science Chat or a Social Studies Chat? Maybe even ask a student to moderate on their favorite topic. Chats could take place during an “indoor recess” when the weather is bad, during free work time, or even as morning work when students are arriving.
10.) Book Responses: If you have several or an entire class reading the same book, encourage them to tweet about it! They can discuss characters, tweet about what they predict will happen next, or even tweet about words they learned when reading.
This is just a start! I’d LOVE to hear how you are using Twiducate (or Twitter) with your students! Day 1 and I am already loving the possibilities. Most of all, I am loving the excitement it has brought to the classroom
by Krissy.Venosdale | Mar 13, 2011 | Reflect
It’s amazing sometimes the lessons you learn when you are not even looking to learn them. Two weeks ago, I was at Space Camp, enjoying a trip with my class as we spent the weekend participating in the Pathfinder program. I was more worried about parent contact numbers, meal times, and sleeping arrangements to think that I was learning. But I learned A LOT.
- Embrace Failure: It’s true, just as man finally walked on the moon, he wasn’t riding in the very first rocket that was launched. There’s a lesson here. Classrooms should be filled with moments where kids experience failure and move on. There is this idea that an “F” means the end of the road. Stop thinking about grades. Think about effort and most importantly, think about what you can learn from every single experience. Great teaching is about letting kids struggle. Stand back. Let them figure out why their rocket didn’t launch or why it curved to the left. Don’t end the situation with an “F”, end it with a question that leaves the kid thinking, “What am I going to do to improve this and what did I just learn here?”
- Move Aside: I sat in a 9:00 p.m. session on the Space Shuttle after a long day that had started at about 3:00 am. Did my students have their heads on their tables? Nope. They were engaged. They were watching. Listening. Participating. Sharing. I was amazed by the things they knew. They knew about solid rocket boosters, hypergolic fuel, and the steps to a shuttle launch. How? Because I told them? Nope. They knew because I asked them questions and then I got out of their way. I gave them the tools to learn. But, the learning, it was all theirs.
- Knowing Your Kids is More than Knowing Their Names: We know their addresses, their home phone numbers, and even their pets’ names. But do we really KNOW kids? Knowing your students is being able to predict how they are going to react in a challenge. You have to predict it, so you can support it. Will they give up in the face of adversity? Will they want more? These are all things you can never really know until you see them in a challenging situation. Sure, climbing a rock wall is a challenge you might not be able to do in the classroom, but what about setting up and providing challenging learning situations where even you don’t have all of the answers. Do they get to experience this every single day?
- This Isn’t Just My Job: “What are you?” “I’m a teacher.” I’ve probably said that a billion times in my life at this point. But, teaching is so much more than that. Sure, I have a classroom with my name on it, eat an occasional school lunch, and have kids that call me “Mrs. V.” But, I also know that I see these kids and their futures every single day. I don’t just plan lessons to fill plan books, I plan experiences to fill in the blanks of their lives. I plan moments that are going to inspire them. The excitement I saw in learning at Space Camp is something I want to see in my classroom every single day.
- Kids Should Have Warning Labels That Say “Engage Me.” Yes, a warning. Because, if you truly engage a kid, you really don’t know what might happen. It’s like an explosion of creativity, problem solving, critical thinking, and energy that equals the power of a stick of dynamite. Only, you won’t be ducking behind a table as you watch, you’ll feel it and engage them. Just be prepared. Your hair might look a little crazy at the end of the day.
Okay, so maybe I didn’t learn this all at Space Camp in one weekend. But, I think it was a complete reminder of what it means to “Be a Teacher.” and that it’s so much more than bells, schedules, and desks.
by Krissy.Venosdale | Mar 6, 2011 | Reflect
Watch the news. Read an article. Hear about a new bill like Missouri’s HB 628. Holy schmoly, it’s enough to make any teacher stop in their tracks and think, “What am I even DOING here anymore?” But then something happens. You realize you have some amazing coworkers, some thoughtful administrators, and most of all…. some students who make it all worthwhile. The glass IS half full. What was my glass full of this week?
1.) I watched my 5th graders create a pie chart of expenses after spending over 1 millon dollars stocking a space colony and then listened as they analyzed how they spent as much on “survival needs” as “entertainment.”
2.) I roamed between tables while my sixth graders analyzed JFK’s famous “We choose to go to the moon” speech and when I asked them to sum it up in 20 words or less, they GOT it. “It’s about doing the impossible.” Yeah, that’s right.
3.) I asked my fourth graders what they thought about the class system on the Titanic and listened to them back up their opinions on how unfair it was.
4.) My third graders created a timeline about Balto and discussed what makes a hero ‘a hero.”
Education cannot be about Bills, mandates, or the things we don’t have. I am blessed with kids who come to my classroom excited to learn. Technology for them to explore with. A school that is safe and clean. A glass that is definitely half-full…and sometimes overflowing.
What do YOU love about teaching?
