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affirming - getting overwhelmed with all the new things out there, and staying up to date with all the new tools.  The author reminded to just get started and momentum will follow.

argue - time.  I want to show them how to use things, but I struggle with what to take away from my teaching, my small group time, my reading group time.  There's only one of me.

aspire to - digital bulletin boards

challenge - reminding myself, I was against byot in the first grade setting but when we actually did it, it was great!

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1. Using the workshop model to teach technology. It is not something separate, it's something to compliment the learning taking place.

2. When do teachers find the time to watch or listen to all the blogs or postings from students.

3. I aspire to use this padlet as in the first 9-weeks with google classroom.

4. A challenge will be to plan with purposeful technology use and not to gorge on the technology.

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1. What was affirming to you from the reading?
Workshop model for instruction; my students favorite way to incorporate technology is read alouds with QR codes on the iPads. Figure 1.3 Applying the Workshop Model to Learning a New Tool is exactly how technology and math tools are successful in my classroom. We know the difference between playing with tools and using tools.
2. What would you argue from the reading?
Time to read feedback from students from online bulletin boards, etc.
3. What do you aspire to?
My favorite quote from the chapter was from page seven, when visitors to a classroom often ask, "What subject is this?" and the teacher's favorite answer is, "Thinking." I aspire for my students to be life long learners and thinkers; I want them to think for themselves. Often they expect us to give them the answers to everything if they are wrong.
4. What is something that challenges you?
Despite the suggestions for incorporating tools our existing environments, we still do not have enough desktops for our classrooms in the lower grades.

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1. What was affirming to you from the reading?
Technology should not replace the teacher, you should start with something that you can use right away (no logins).

2. What would you argue from the reading?
Children get very distracted when others are on iPads and will stop and watch what others are doing instead of doing their work. Need to know how to manage that better in the classroom. I had a child with special needs who would break down whenever she saw others on iPads and it was not her turn. There are less things you can do on an iPad than a desktop....wish we still had desktops.

3. What do you aspire to?
Have better classroom management with the iPads in class and more educational apps that are good yet free for the children to use.

4. What is something that challenges you?
Classroom management of iPads and what apps to use on them that aren't limited bc they are free. It would be nice to have some funds to buy apps so that they are more useful in class.

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I was affirmed when they were talking about transdisciplinary teaching and how it engages students more completely creating true problem solvers that are ready for the future.  I think the biggest challenge is the time to let students "play" with a new tool before using it in a guided context.  We are held to particular minutes for content areas, but how do you show that when you're being transdisciplinary and trying to implement and teach new digital tools.  I also have a tendency to "start at the finish line", so to remember to start small and just DO SOMETHING.  I aspire to being able to confer 1-on-1 with students about their technology needs and strengths.  I also want to 'install' a video-recording booth in my classroom and have students reflect on their reading.

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Chapter 1- Brittany
Affirm: Empower your students to teach others.  Pg. 3, Zack and Justin made a video tutorial for the rest of the class on how to make a book vlog.  This is a great way to create technology leadership in the classroom.

Argue: Time is always the issue.  We need to find a way to integrate the limited technology we have and focus on the overall goal of teaching kids how to thinking with the layer of using purposeful tools (pg. 4).  I agree that we need to understand the tools and how they work, and reflect on why we are using them.

Aspire:  I love the idea of creating a classroom recording booth.  Especially in the beginning of the year, our students are much better at talking than writing.  "Kids like to talk."

Challenge: Using technology in an authentic way is my challenge.  I think a great starting point is to utilize a recording booth for students to show or discuss their learning in different subjects, and then at the end of the year have students reflect on their books during reading workshop.  This can be modeled in a workshop model.

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Affirm: "We focus on the overall goal of teaching kids how to think and then layer in purposeful tools along the way" p4

Argue: We need to put tech tools in our kids hands throughout the day for various purposes so they can catch up with and connect to the rest of the world.

Aspire: The intro talked about the SAMR model to introduce technology (Substitution, Augmentation, Modification, Redefinition). I'm going to start by finding ways to substitute paper/pencil tasks with online tools.

Challenge: Find a buddy class at another school to teach students how to collaborate with others (netiquette) before going out into the world to chat/collaborate with others.

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Affirm: "Our mindset about teaching and learning is to incorporate technology where it makes sense." (Muhtaris and Ziemke pg.3)  It should also add value.

Challenge: "A tool you can use tomorrow requires no student logins or accounts, requires minimal equipment, and connects to the days learning goals."  (Muhtaris and Ziemke pg. 14)

Aspiration: You do not know what subject teacher is teaching, students are engaged and applying their knowledge cross curricular.  They are learning to think.

Argue: The feasibility of reaching the technology TEK goals with the resources available in our classroom.

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Affirm: "Technological tools provide additional information when we are attempting to discern what students know and are able to do" (Muhtaris and Ziemke, p. 4).
Argue: TIME!!
Aspire: Discover, introduce, and incorporate, one new technology tool each 9 weeks!
Challenge: Taking my time with ONE tool, eagerness tends to overcome me when I get excited about new tools, especially technology!

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1. What was affirming to you from the reading?  "Connecting various content areas is a powerful way to learn."  "It's not the tool that counts; it's what we do with it."
2. What would you argue from the reading?  Technology safety (e.g. unsafe websites), time
3. What do you aspire to?  I would like to try one new thing each quarter as the book stated to try.  This seems attainable.  Collaborate with other schools, countries, etc.  Allowing students to help with teaching.   Using the layout program mentioned on page 10 to create our own articles-also allowing some students to create their own.
4. What is something that challenges you?  We need a lot of learning ourselves to answer some of the questions the students have or some of the devices.   We also do not have enough devices in the classroom and students don't have personal devices, either.  Log-ins for younger grades take a long time from instruction time.

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1. This affirms that the cross-curricular approach can work to deepen understanding. I love that the teacher in the book was excited that you couldn't tell what subject they were in and answered that question with "Thinking". It connects to what we are trying at Camacho, like it says in the book "we advocate for a curriculum that teaches kids how to think and problem solve effectively." (p. 7)

2. I would argue that technology has a key role in how students show their learning today; especially in the lower primary grades. Many of my students come in with no letter/sound knowledge and unable to express themselves in writing. They can, however, use technology such as ipads fluently and technology gives them a way to express how much they know in a way that is comfortable and familiar to them.

3.I aspire to create a recording booth like it talked about for the students to record themselves. I could easily find a quiet area in the neighborhood and have them use it. I was thinking, combine that with the compare and contrast statements from Science in Writing since that much writing would be very hard for my students at beginning of the year but having them start using that language from the start would help get them familiar with the process while letting them demonstrate what they know.

4. One of the challenges is not having lots of devices, with only 5 ipads that still is a 4:1 ratio for the device, and I'd rather start them out in pairs or individual when needing to use it for assessing. Another barrier is taking the time to teach the students how to use the technology well enough to do so independently or with help from other students. Also, when using the desktop computer, the log-in is extremely difficult for my students to master.

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1. Affirm. One of my favorite quotes "...we let our core beliefs and mindset guide how we use tools in the classroom. We focus on the overall goal of teaching kids how to think and then layer in purposeful tools along the way." (p.1)

2. Argue. It is difficult in the upper grade levels to connect content areas.  As a teacher I would love to follow a self-contained model to facilitate "cross-curricular content", but the expectations and demands of a growing number of TEKS and testing makes it a challenge.  To be successful it takes a partner teacher who is willing to go outside of the box and to work together to weave the curricular threads. (p.7)

3. Aspire. I "aspire" to keep students at the heart of learning; to remember that it's not the tool, but what we do with the the tool. (p.13)

4. Challenge. Time challenges me.  "So much to do, and so little time to do it."

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Read Chapter 1 and respond on the Padlet to the following:
1. What was affirming to you from the reading?
"Students can take charge and create their own digital supports. These personalized digital study guides encourage them to take charge of their own learning."  - p.9
2. What would you argue from the reading?
"Connecting various content areas areas upper grades that are not self contained, can make engaging kids in cross-curricular content more difficult." - p.7
3. What do you aspire to?
Try new ideas that incorporate more technology.
4. What is something that challenges you?
I feel that we are instructed to keep trying all these 'new ideas" but at the same time, the old ideas are not scratched. It's the old saying, "The bucket keeps getting filled, but there is no spigot."

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QUESTIONS:
1.  Aspire to do more. Small steps to begin with and you don't have to use in every lesson. There has to be a purpose, ex. increase rigor. Cross curriculum lessons.
2.  Time for additional reading comment on p.15, we believe to integrate it not isolate it.
3. To use technology more purposefully - not just for "fun". Also, don't assume the younger kids cannot handle technology.
4.  Time is always the challenge and not enough devices to implement
Summary:
*p. 1-6: I agree that with the statement on page 4 that "we -- and our students--need to understand how the tools work and why we're using them." Sometimes I think as teachers we find a tool and use it without clear understanding as to why we are using it.
An aha moment - Using the workshop model is a predictable instructional model that provides students time in which to interact.
*p. 6-10: I love the examples of how to coach and continue coaching. I also like the quote "What subject is this? Thinking." I really think some kids have become so reliant on teachers giving answers that they are unable to think. Collaborative learning is the future - lil engineers.
*p. 11-15 - Our instruction is and should be driven by assessment.  We are constantly assessing our students to help our students be successful in their learning.  It is important for technology integration that we just start.  It's not about doing everything but doing something even if it is small.  Focus on the questions: 1.  What do we have? (tools) 2. Who are our students and what do they need? 3. How do we get started?

***We get started with small manageable steps!*** Couch to 5K!

*16-20 - One of the biggest challenges is finding the time to set up these systems. We can set up a recording booth and hang a shower curtain over the summer but a lot of time will need to be devoted to modeling, supporting and training students on how to use the technology properly. In some instances there may not be enough technology for every student.
I love the idea of the recording booth for all subjects. There will be benefits across all subjects throughout the year if we take the time at the beginning to set it up. This will help  with student ownership of their learning. What a fantastic event it would be to connect via Skype with an author!
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Here's our spring semester technology goal - I found it was helpful to have a list of ideas of the creating tools