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Engaging High School Students in Place And Community

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Engaging High School Students in Place And Community

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Take cross-curricular teaching outdoors-- #getoutside ---on "walkability", community, sense of place #imaginED

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"People have long harboured a touch of disdain toward walking."

(Rubinstein, 2015, p. 96)

The Walking Curriculum offers learning activities designed to simultaneously develop students' sense of place and to enrich their understanding of cross-curricular topics and core competencies. It reflects principles and practices of Imaginative Ecological Education bringing engagement of the body, imagination and the local natural and cultural context together in outdoor learning activities.

While all of the walks in the Walking Curriculum can be adapted for all ages of students, this post shares activities specifically designed for students in secondary school. Themes cultivated in this set of walks include story, cultural values, community-building, "walkability", and metaphor.

( is the first set of walks designed specifically for secondary school students.)

If you are new to the Walking Curriculum then I encourage you to take time to read the next section. It overview the main aims of the Walking Curriculum and provides important links with information for effectively using the activities. One of the most important links discusses how to imaginatively introduce the Walking Curriculum to students-be sure to set that scene!

If you are familiar with the Walking Curriculum, then scroll down to read about the new activities designed for secondary students.

Walking Curriculum activities are designed to:

engage the body, emotions, and imagination in ways that can increase familiarity with the local and natural contexts of school and learning;

increase attention to detail, particularity and their attunement with place;

connect place-based learning activities with cross-curricular goals;

serve as examples for your own, place-inspired teaching ideas.

Successful use of the Walking Curriculum requires proper preparation and follow-up. Here are IMPORTANT links with resources to support your work:

Before You Start: Preparing To Use The Walking Curriculum

Before You Start: Introducing The Curriculum To Students

Post-Walking: Debriefing & Extending Learning Across The Curriculum

Motivations, Musings, & Sources of Inspiration

#1 The "What Rules?" Walk

In many places, cars rule. Pedestrians beware! Urban and suburban landscapes are designed to allow for easy use of cars and other forms of transportation. When it comes to getting around, people love to drive. With the advent of the automobile, cities were designed for cars (fuelled by cheap gas and preferential taxation) and it was desirable to drive out of the cities to larger, more private suburban homes. This was a time when laws emerged to control pedestrians-e.g. laws against "jaywalking". But even before this invention became widespread, there was some "disdain" towards walking. Rubinstein (2015) notes that the word "pedestrian" comes from the Latin pedester meaning on foot. Even before automobiles were invented, it was preferable to be equester or on horse. Indeed, pedestrian is used to refer to what is "prosaic, plain, commonplace, uninspired" (Rubinstein, 2015, p. 96).

What story does this landscape design and local land use reveal? Ask students to walk around the local community looking for evidence that cars have a priority. Encourage them to look at land and space usage; infrastructure etc.-does it privilege pedestrians or drivers? Following their walks, the students can to do maps of the community on which they should indicate where and how "cars" rule. : Now challenge your students to redesign the same space so that pedestrians rule. What would change? What kinds of amenities, shelters, environmental additions-and subtractions-would make sense? How would residential land use and house design change? (This walk transitions into the next one on "walkability" and what makes a neighbourhood agreeable and desirable for walking. I encourage you to do both activities!)

#2 Walkability Walk

How "walkable" is your neighbourhood? How comfortable, useful, safe, or appealing a footpath is for pedestrians determines its "walkability". Walkability is increasingly being discussed as a solution to environmental sustainability concerns, public welfare etc. Jeff Speck explores these themes in a book entitled "Walkable city: How downtown can save America, one step at a time" (cited in Rubinstein, 2015, p. 101. Here is a link to Jeff Speck's TedTalk). Speck outlines a "General Theory Of Walkability". He suggests that four criteria influence the "walkability" of a route.

Routes:

1. need to be useful-do they take us where we want to go (Are clear paths available? Are the paths continuous? etc.)

2. need to be safe-are they free from cars and other threats (What dangers exist on the routes? Are there tripping hazards? etc.)

3. should be comfortable-think design here...are they stark/closed or warm/open?-(Does the route make the walker feel at ease? How wide is the route? How is the lighting in the evening?)

4. should be interesting-How appealing is the route? Is it aesthetically pleasing? interesting? inviting? (Speck cited in Rubinstein, 2015, p. 102)

One possible walking activity for older students is to rate different routes around their local area according to Speck's criteria. Older students might have more fun, however, using the Walkability App to conduct a walkability audit (Younger students could do an "audit" of the schoolyard according to Speck's criteria or could also play with the app).

As a way to get local involvement in improving local communities, formal "walking audits" or "walking assessments" are being organized all over the world. "A walkability audit often involves organising an event where local people, politicians, police and design experts 'walkabout' several streets, identifying problems and suggesting solutions." Enlist your students in conducting a walkability audit.

The Walkability App. The Walkability App was designed to enlist citizens, using their personal electronic devices to help build understanding of the walkability of places all over the world. The results are mapped using the GPS from the device. Using the walkability App your students can contribute to this initiative.

(Walk Score & Walkonomics-Increasingly, people want to know how pedestrian-friendly neighbourhoods are before they decide to live there. Walk Score (https://www.walkscore.com) is a site that provides some of that information. You simply put in your address into Walk Score and you can discover how your community rates in terms of walking distances to locations/amenities etc. (Note: not all communities are listed-add yours!). Walkonomics http://walkonomics.com) offers a much more detailed assessment of walkability. On the Walkonomics site "you get ratings based on street widths, traffic levels, 311 cleanliness reports, gradients, crime statistics, pedestrian accidents and even how many trees are on each street. This automatically generated data is complimented by crowdsourced reviews from local residents and visitors, with the idea that any incorrect ratings are cancelled out by the ratings of local people who know the area. Each street rating is mapped on a Google Map using colour-coded markers to show the overall walkability rating for every street" Specifically, Walkonomics uses the following 8 factors to assess walkability: road safety; ease of crossing the street; quality of sidewalks; hilliness; ease of navigation; fear of crime; the aesthetic quality of a route; and whether the street is "fun and relaxing." out your street or neighbourhood here. (Note: Not all areas are available-but you and your students can upload the data!)

Rather than using technology you can have your students do manual assessments of community walking spaces using the 8 criteria listed above-begin by clarifying a ranking or rating scale. If you want to use the tech, then try the walkability app. The Walkonomics mobile app (free) "enables users to add their own ratings and reviews as they walk down each street. App users can even take photos with their smartphone, geo-reference them and add them into each review". ()

For whatever you choose to do it is important to follow up. What recommendations do students have for improving the walkability of the spaces they live in? How can they connect with members in the community to make a difference?

#3 Walk 'n Talk: Walking Is...

Human beings use metaphors all the time. We use them so often, in fact, that we are blind to how they infuse our daily language (catch that one? Blind to... infuse...). On this walk 'n talk ask students to think about aspects of their world that they can imagine in terms of walking-what activities/experiences does one "walk into" or "meander through"?-How is school like walking? How is learning a new subject or skills compared to walking? The following is a list of walking metaphors compiled by Dr. Veronica Hotton as part of her research on Walking as Pedagogy (pp. 160-161). Assign one metaphor to a pair of students. As they walk 'n talk ask them to explore the metaphor and to elaborate upon it (e.g. how is walking a church? In what ways? How is walking a reflection?). Ask them to also come up with their own metaphor-Walking is... In a final class discussion students can elaborate upon/explain these metaphors.

Walking is singing with others, being attentive, and noticing signs.

Walking is an essay; hiking is an academic paper.

Walking is a process; hiking is a destination.

Walking is discovery.

Walking takes you places you cannot go otherwise.

Walking is an endangered species.

Walking as an endangered way of noticing the world.

Walking is a church.

Walking is the womb of writing.

Walking is a practice.

Walking is a studio.

Walking is reflection.

Walking with purpose is living with purpose; walking without purpose might be living without purpose.

Walking is meditation.

Walking is a quest.

#4 Service Walk

Robert Putnam's (2000) book called Bowling alone: The collapse and revival of American community look at the idea of "social capital". This concept informs these walk themes. Putnam describes how social networks are valuable for both individuals and groups. Formation of "groups" and membership in groups helps the group and individuals as they can be sources for sharing and belonging. Putnam suggests that there are two kinds of social capital: bonding and bridging. "Bonding is something that is internally generated within a particular group or community...Bridging, on the other hand, is more outward-looking, and is hallmarked by relationships between people in different social groups" (Putnam, 200, p. 69). With an interest in bridging-cultivating diverse social groups-these activities encourage students to consider service activities that could bridge people.

Ask students: Where can you be of service in this place/community? Encourage your students to look closely as they walk around the local community. What kind of volunteer work could improve the space? (e.g. weeding, cleaning, protecting, creating). Ask them to identify something that they, personally, would consider an improvement for the community. What is their vision? Students should now outline a plan of action for achieving their vision. They say "more hands make light work"- how could they enlist members of the wider community to help them achieve their goal? Who else would care about the project? Sometimes we can work together on something that benefits ourselves but also benefits other people. How could their plan support the bridging of different social groups and, ideally, lead to an outcome that benefits the wider community? I am reminded of an initiative in my own neighbourhood-someone created a "Little Library" in a local park. It is a small birdhouse-like structure that is a source for sharing books. Leave a book, take a book. It is another feature of the local park that brings people together.

Stay tuned-the next set in the Walking Curriculum for secondary students is coming soon!

Don't miss a thing. to get a weekly email with the latest posts from imaginED (lessons, resources, discussion topics, preK-Higher Ed).

References

Hotton, V. (2015). Walking practices in higher education: An inquiry into the teaching, writing, and walking practices of five contemporary academics. Unpublished dissertation. Simon Fraser University.

Putnam, R. (2000). Bowling alone: The collapse and revival of American community. London: Simon & Schuster.

Rubinstein, D. (2015). Born to walk: The transformative power of a pedestrian act. Toronto: ECW Press.

Walkonomics:

WalkScore: https://www.walkscore.com

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Engaging High School Students In Place & Community: Walking Curriculum (Part 2)

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"People have long harboured a touch of disdain toward walking." (Rubinstein, 2015, p. 96) The Walking Curriculum offers learning activities designed to simultaneously develop students' sense of place and to enrich their understanding of cross-curricular topics and core competencies.

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Trust
Engagement
Assessment
Curiosity
Hope
http://gillianjudson.edublogs.org/2016/10/14/my-teaching-top-5/

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Earlier this year I connected with other educators who like to blog. We came together over #sunchat, a Twitter-based Sunday morning chat. We called ourselves the #Sunchatbloggers! We provide each other with feedback and encouragement. Someone in the group suggested we all post on the same topic: our "Top 5". Some people will post about strategies, others activities, others technologies-I've decided to focus on "needs".

What are my 5 "essentials" for effective teaching?

After much reflection, I've identified my 5 teaching must-haves:

We know that the world works-quite literally-because of relationships. We also know that a primary-if not the primary-determinant of students' academic success has to do with the relationships they cultivate in the learning environment. When I teach I strive to nurture strong, positive interpersonal relationships. When I teach I also strive to nurture pedagogical relationships; these are emotional connections between my students and the knowledge they are learning. The flourishing of both of these kinds of relationships depends on trust. I can only get to know my students if they trust me. If my students trust in my intention to support their learning process, I can challenge them. I can encourage them to take risks in their learning. I aim to push my students outside of their "comfort zone"-a pedagogy of discomfort! My students need to know I have their best interests at heart if they are going to learn and enjoy new ideas, new ways of being, unfamiliar terrain etc. They need to see me modeling my support through flexibility and diversity in my teaching plans, assessment and evaluation practices.

Effective teaching and learning require the emotional engagement of my students and me. Emotion is the mind's rudder. Tie knowledge up with some human emotion and it becomes meaningful and memorable. So, in order to teach, I need -learning tools that engage my students' emotions and imaginations. I employ , tools of written language, and tools of philosophic and ironic understandings to connect my students' emotions and imaginations with the content of the curriculum. These tools forge pedagogical relationships based on wonder; they are long-lasting. My students are constantly engaging their imaginations in learning the content of the curriculum. (Learn more about Dr. Kieran Egan's Imaginative Education pedagogy here.)

I committed some educational blasphemy just now... did you notice? An important piece of the engagement piece is that it starts with me. I know, this isn't the currency in teacher talk- we must always start with the student, right? Well, I challenge that idea. Students know when their teachers are not engaged. If I want to create a learning context that maximizes my students' engagement-and learning-I must also be engaged in the subject matter. I need to find a source of emotional significance within the topic so I can create an imagination-focused context for my students. Whatever the topic-Quadrilateral equations in Math? Haiku poetry? Educational Change in Theory and Practice?* (*what I am currently teaching)-it is essential that I approach curriculum topics with affective alertness. I seek an emotional connection- what stirs my sense of wonder? In order to emotionally engage I need to have depth of knowledge in my subject matter-and a commitment to gaining this if need be.

I cannot disconnect effective teaching from effective (caring, constructive, formative) assessment. Ongoing assessment of my students is part of my daily teaching practice. I need to know what where my students "are": what they need, what they want, and what they can handle in order to make my pedagogical decisions. More "formal" assessment (though no less important for teaching) comes in the form of my feedback on their work. I believe my students will learn most if my feedback is ongoing, constructively critical, positive, rich, and timely. But I don't just assess my students-I ask that they provide me with feedback as well. My teaching "plans" need to be flexible to suit the needs and interests of my students. So I plan with flexibility and maximum space for diversity in mind and then I ask for feedback. I need to be able to adapt my plans mid-stream and, always, take summative student feedback and revise entire courses as needed. I need their feedback to be an effective teacher.

I believe love of learning stems from curiosity. It's the disposition we need as teachers. It's the disposition we want to see in our students. I believe the world is wonder-full. Our curricula is wonder-full. Topics that may seem on the surface to be "ordinary" are in fact richer-and more interesting-than we will ever fully understand. And here's the contradiction: educators want to support a love of learning in their students, and yet, many don't demonstrate a love-of-learning themselves. They look at knowledge as mundane, topics as boring, and they often teach things to students "because it's important to know this". Every topic can be seen in a light that shows it as unique. Every topic glimmers with wonder. (Yes, even "paragraph writing" or "punctuation".) Curiosity brings joy to my teaching.

Education matters. It's the vehicle through which human beings not only learn to adapt but learn to thrive. Education changes people, "norms", institutions-it is a means for social justice and a more ethical world. Effective teaching doesn't involve passive "hoping" for a better world; teaching is hope in action.

See what imagination-pedagogy looks like for K-postsecondary. Get weekly updates from imaginED!

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Earlier this year I connected with other educators who like to blog. We came together over #sunchat, a Twitter-based Sunday morning chat. We called ourselves the #Sunchatbloggers! We provide each other with feedback and encouragement. Someone in the group suggested we all post on the same topic: our "Top 5".

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Engaging High School Students in Place And Community #imaginED

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Engaging High School Students in Place And Community #imaginED

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By Gillian Judson http://gillianjudson.edublogs.org/2017/06/12/engaging-high-school-students-in-place-community-walking-curriculum-part-2/

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This post explains the process I follow while building digital breakouts using GSuite.

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Last Tuesday I taught a district PD class on Building Interactive Digital Games. I realized I was sharing so many different things, so quickly, to make sure we fit everything in within the hour time frame, that it may have been a whirlwind for many of the participants, so I decided to write it out, make it easier to follow, so that anyone can make it themselves!
Where do you start?
With so many tiny steps, it seems like it could be anywhere, but for me, it starts with a simple question where any good lesson plan begins: What do you want your kids to get out of this?

Obviously you want them to communicate, collaborate, problem solve, and demonstrate resilience through multiple challenges. What content do you want to center this game around? That content will be your guide. Pick 3 or 4 key details you want to build the rest of your game.

I then move to a simple table like this to help me build.

I can change the locks to fit whatever I need. This is just a standard BreakOut Edu planning page. For example: for a game I built on changing states of matter, I have an "atomic lock", a "solids", "liquids", and "gasses" lock as well.
Step 2: Decide Your Answers
Once you have decided what the topic is and what the most important things your students ought to remember are going to be, it is time to pick your lock answers. Now I am narrowing the topics (atoms, solids, liquids, gasses) into some very specific ideas. I wanted kids to know about melting points and changes of that matter, so I pick specific terms and numbers that will focus on changes in states of matter. I pick my 3-5 answers. I don't need the clues yet, just know your answers.
Step 3: Determine Your Resources
Where are your kids getting their information? Using YouTube, Google Arts and Culture, Slides presentations, articles, letters, primary resources, or whatever else, you can create a scenario where your students review a significant amount of information while focusing their critical reading/viewing skills on the information what will eventually become your clues.

If a YouTube video is long, use a editing tool like EdPuzzle. You can also use EdPuzzle to focus people's attention on details or add a hint/clue.

Once you know what your resources are going to be for students to find the content, you are FINALLY ready to start creating your story.
Step 4: Tell a Story
This step will be broke up into some smaller parts to help make it simpler.

Part 1:

It is time to create the story. Your story includes the premise for the game. Mine usually involve some outrageously odd super villain that likes to steal candy. Whatever you decide is the premise, remember, it doesn't have to be amazing. Most of the stories I have made are absurd or absurdly bad. The point is your story can help you frame your clues. Your clues should be a part of the story with information missing that leads them to a specific part of the resources you've shared. Again, it isn't about making it an amazing story, just guiding kids toward the information and making them read and think critically about the information they are consuming.

Part 2:

Decide your platform:

Do you want to create a simple Google Form (this is the simplest way.) Here is how:

1. Add your clue

2. Click on the three small dots (the snowman) next to where it says "required" and select "Data Validation"

3. Numbers must be set to Equal to, Text should be set to "contains" and you must input a custom Error text. This would be a good place to add an extra hint.

4. Make sure you select "Required"

5. Click the two lines on the far right (looks like an equal sign) to add a new section. If you do it this way, players must complete each lock in sequence.

Embed Everything into a Site:

1. Start by creating a new Site in Google Sites. If this sounds crazy or too hard, just go to sites.google.com and click "create new" and blank template.

2. Give your site a name.

3. Click on the pencil to edit your new site.

4. Click on the "insert" tab and add a Google Form. The form you add should have been made the same way as above, only you don't NEED to create sections. This will allow players to shift from one question to another if they get stuck.

5. When you insert pictures into your site, click on them and you will see a link. (This is the link to the web address for the picture.) You can then click "change" and add your own link, or select the tab that lets you choose your own sites and link it to different pages on your site.

6. Add pages with resource content. To add videos you may need to insert a "gadget". If you click on insert and select "more gadgets" you need the iFrame gadget, then when you click on "share" from YouTube or EdPuzzle, choose "embed code" and add it to your site.

7. Take off the NAVIGATION BAR! This is simple. Save all your work in Sites and then click on the settings gear. Select "Edit Site Layout" and then click on the navigation bar and find the X to get rid of it. It will look like the image below.

You can get as fancy or as simplistic with your site as you would like. What is most important is that your game players have the opportunity access all the materials.
Game Ending:
In the most recent games I have made I have been getting a bit more creative with the endings. Many digital games do not require any physical box to open. I have found kids really like opening the box, even if the game is all online. What does this mean? It means I leave clues in different languages, hide the lock combination in blacklight marker, hide a bitly link or QR Code for them to find, or any other type of misdirection. It isn't necessary, but it does add a little fun to the game for both you and them.
Play Your Game!
I cannot stress this enough. Play the game as a player. Even have someone else try it. I have learned from experience that if you don't actually try the game out, it can very quickly show your mistakes while kids are working in the room. There is nothing more frustrating for kids than getting the answers to the riddle correct but the lock doesn't "open". Once you have done all the work (It looks like a lot more than it is) than you just test it out (it's easy, you know the answers already.) You are not ready to share this game with kids. A link to the Form or Site you created will be more than enough.

Finally, Have FUN! During the game, walk around and listen, observe, give Hints as teams request them (I typically allow each team 1 per game) and enjoy the engagement and excitement of the activity.

Additional Note: The more you play games, the better you get at them and the more great ideas you will start having to create fantastic, engaging learning experiences for anyone.

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Last Tuesday I taught a district PD class on Building Interactive Digital Games. I realized I was sharing so many different things, so quickly, to make sure we fit everything in within the hour time frame, that it may have been a whirlwind for many of the participants, so I decided to write it out,...

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Since you're at a Google Summit, here's something Googley for you. After attending a Level 1 Bootcamp, my class and I started doing Blackbelt Challenges.

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Mrs. McAlister and her Sunsational Sixth Graders

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I was recently fortunate enough to attended a Google Bootcamp put on by the @EdTechTeam. We got Googley for two days straight. I already had a passion for Google, but left on fire!!! I hope you don't mind if I geek out for a bit on this post. Let's get Googley!!!

#BlackbeltChallenges
What is a blackbelt challenge? At the bootcamp, my trainer, @Seani Williams, introduced us to blackbelt challenges. He learned about them from Kevin @Brookhouser. Both are Google Certified Trainers and Innovators. The way the challenges work is that after an assignment is given to the whole class, students that finish the first task move on to the blackbelt challenge. (Think differentiated instruction and early finishers.) The blackbelt challenge is related to the original task, but takes the concept deeper. Students are encouraged to collaborate, pool their collective knowledge, and delve into the new task. As a participant, I wanted to finish the first task quickly, in order to have time for the challenge. If you know me, you'll not be surprised that I sat right up front!!! But . . . the person to my left and the person to my right, were of the same mindset. We were little nerds and we loved it!!!

#OurFirstBlackbetChallenge . . . AsSixthGraders
Man, was I on fire. I was ready to go back and give my students a challenge. But what?!?! Oooh, here comes the power of the Twitter PLN. I had previously saved an area math task created by @Meagan-E-Kelley. The task was a find the area and perimeter of "real world" objects in and around the classroom, take pictures, solve using formulas, and add the computations and photos to a slide deck. Since we were currently working on area and are a GAFE school, this task was perfect. Click here for Meagan's original lesson. The mathematical objectives and Google skills were perfect for my sixth graders.

On Friday mornings, we, my class and I, generally finish up tasks that need to be completed for the week. I almost always have students that are finished with all their work. This particular Friday, I posed the area task for them. In pairs or triads, students were to find a "real world" example of area in or around our classroom. I gave the students, about 15, a quick overview of the project, then set them off (outside) with measuring tape, chromebooks, the Google slide deck, paper, and pencil. My students are used to differentiated instruction, so doing something different was not unusual. What was different this time, was the amount of freedom I was giving them. As a teacher of GATE students, I took the opportunity to use the blackbelt challenge as a means of meeting their individual needs.

There were a few skills that we hadn't used before. One was using the camera on the chromebook. They came back to me for help, but I told them to "Google It". They did and now we had a photo guru. When they started typing in the measurements, they discovered that they had never needed to find a function to record the "square" units measurement. Another area for the growth mindset and another guru. One group decided to use a whole wall as their "real world" object. We enlisted our technology assistant to help out measuring. (He loved it!) Unfortunately, at the time of writing this post, that group is still working on their project, but I know that they will finish. Take a look at the kids in action.

It took the students several sessions to complete their slide for the collaborative slide deck. I was really proud of the students and their work. They showed a passion for learning and a truly collaborative spirit. They enjoyed the freedom that the project gave them and the ability to be creative. They took their Google skills deeper and were able to teach their peers. Our first blackbelt challenge was a success. Take a look at their final products here.

#AnotherChallenge . . . GoogleFormsSurvey
I wanted all of our class to experience a blackbelt challenge. We've been doing quite a bit of test prep (Oooooh, did I say that out loud?), so I took a couple of afternoons to do something different. I created a Google Forms Blackbelt Challenge of my own.

Take a look at the challenge. Click here for the slide deck.

It took three class sessions to complete the challenge. One short session to get into groups, choose a theme, and ask questions. A second session to create the Google forms. And a final session to analyze the data and create the Google slides. Students took each other's surveys at home. Now that was a great homework assignment!!!

Since this was the first time students created Google forms, we structured the session as an "I do, you do". I chose the theme of pets. It took us about 45 minutes to create our forms which included a title, four questions, personalize the banner, and insert the link onto a Google doc for classmates to access at home.

I had fun "watching" students log onto our Google Classroom account for homework. I love that I can "see" my students within Google apps. Several of the students and I chatted, through comments, during the night.

The next day, I showed students how to find the results of their survey. We took time to analyze the data charts and read through the narrative responses in Google sheets. Then, students created a one page Google slide of their results. I had students add the "Awesome Screenshot" extension to their chromebooks.

It might be an understatement to say that I was proud of my sixth graders. Their Google skills have developed so much this year!!! I have to say that it's a testament to Google that most of the applications are intuitive. I loved the creativity of the students topics, their comfort level creating forms for the first time, their excellent collaboration skills, and their pride as they shared their presentation.

Take a look at the students in action.

If you're just starting out on your Google journey, or have been on it for a while, take a try at a blackbelt challenge of your own. Consider where your students are, then set up a task that will use their current skill level and take it just a bit deeper. Our students are filled with curiosity, passion, and resilience. Give them tasks that honor their intelligence and allow them to take pride in their accomplishments.

And . . . be sure to let me know how it goes.

Mrs. McAlister
​@RunnerGirl13_1

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I was recently fortunate enough to attended a Google Bootcamp put on by the @EdTechTeam. We got Googley for two days straight. I already had a passion for Google, but left on fire!!! I hope you don't mind if I geek out for a bit on this post. Let's get Googley!!!

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My class and developed digital portfolios this year using the new Googles Sites. This post shows how we set them up. I should write a follow up. The platform was great throughout the year.

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Mrs. McAlister and her Sunsational Sixth Graders

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The buzz of the new Google Sites has been going on for months. As an avid Google fan and user, I've been eager to try them out. Last week, my sixth graders and I took the plunge and set up our sites as digital portfolios. Before my first session with students, I met with my technology coach, @EdTechSusan. The two of us brainstormed the purpose and structure of the student sites. The purpose of the sites are to showcase student work, be a hub for research, provide a space for mini-blogs, and for students to engage in graphic design and personalization. I wanted all my student's sites to have the same structure, so we decided on that as well. This process was powerful as I had to reflect on my classroom, types of activities we engage in, and make the sites relevant to students.

#GettingStarted

​ #CreatingSites
The first session with students was creating the sites. As excited as I was, I was also nervous. I asked my district technology coordinator, @ARomayorJr, to be present for support. Thank you, Tony!!! I guided the lesson and Tony monitored student progress. Using the direct instruction model and a digital projector, I created a site myself as students created theirs. Within 30 minutes, we created our sites. Because we wanted to have consistency with URLs, we decided on mydigitalportfolio-(insert first name). The home page was automatically created. So, we needed to add "pages" to our sites. Thinking about our class activities, we decided on pages that each student would include in their site. They are:

The second day, we came back and wrote our bios and inserted images. In September, we created avatars and Bitmojis. Students were given the option to insert either of the images. Because of internet safety, I didn't want students uploading their own pictures. Before students started writing, we read through blogs from two classes. Shoutout and BIG thanks to @Ms_A_Yeh and @MsVentruino for sharing their student blogs with us. Having my sixth graders read other online writing by students was invaluable. It helped add value to the process. My student's sites will only be available to students and educators within our district domain. I'm working with our coordinator to find a way to open up the sites to parents and other classrooms that we'd like to collaborate with. I really want my students to have the experience of writing and producing work for a wider audience. I'm crossing my fingers that we find a solution. Take a look at some of their bios. So much personality.

During our third session, students uploaded their work. Ok . . . you don't even know how easy this was!!! Because we do all of our work in G-Suite, inserting slides, docs, and drawings was a cinch. I modeled how to upload from Google Drive and insert the piece of work. Then, students took it from there. We originally started out inserting slides and docs. One student asked about inserting hyperdocs we've worked on. I wasn't sure if it would work, but I told her to play around with it and see. Lo and behold, she was able to insert hyperdocs. Soooo . . . another page was added. The tagline for the new Google Site is, "An effortless way to create beautiful sites." At that moment, I became a believer. Here's a sample.

On our fourth day, we spent time personalizing our sites. I really wanted a hub for all of our sites but I was stuck. I went to one of our tech guys, @Banales83, for help. He gave me a couple of options and we decided to link all of the student sites onto my site. From my site, students were able to peruse each other's site. Even though we had the same pages and format, each site had a unique flair. One of the students discovered that each new entry ends up being like a banner, for lack of a better term. She was able to insert images that went with the theme of her writing. Many of the students took her lead and began the process of personalizing their sites. A discussion of web design ensued as students were working. Man, the power of students discovering real world relevance!!! Here's another sample from one of my budding web designers.

​I can't tell you how proud I am of the fabulous sites our class created. Over the span of a week, they designed functional and beautiful websites. Thank you Google, for updating your sites and making them intuitive to users. Educators, if you've been holding off on the new Google Sites, I'd say the verdict is in. They're a win-win for students and teachers.

Oh . . . if you're wondering. I started my blog on Weebly a couple of years ago. I really like my blogging experience with Weebly.

Now go build yourself a Google Site.

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The buzz of the new Google Sites has been going on for months. As an avid Google fan and user, I've been eager to try them out. Last week, my sixth graders and I took the plunge and set up our...

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Many of my posts recap lesson cycles my class and I completed. I write so that my student's parents can get a peek inside our classroom.

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Mrs. McAlister and her Sunsational Sixth Graders

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We recently undertook a challenge where engineering, design, innovation, and the 4 Cs collided. The result . . . The Goldiblox Challenge. Two weeks of complete engagement and excitement. But...

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This was written as a year end reflection.

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Mrs. McAlister and her Sunsational Sixth Graders

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Wow, I can't believe our school year is almost over. I must say, out of the 23, ummm, maybe 24 years of teaching, this has been one of the best. My students and I have grown tremendously! After reading a blog on Twitter, by @Kara_Welty, I was inspired to ask my students to list the ten most important things they learned in sixth grade. We started out with individual lists. Then, I compiled the top choices from the class on a Google Form. Students then chose five from the master list. With Google's amazing graphing capabilities, the top ten choices became evident. Once we had the list, I created another doc for students to share their thoughts and elaborate on the top ten list. Let's take a look at what my Sunsational Sixth Graders thought was important this year.

"I think that this was an essential part of our school year because using the 4Cs is very important since the skills we learned will help us in the future. We use all the 4Cs when solving a Breakout Edu. If we are ever tasked with a project in the future, we can implement the knowledge we have with solving Breakout Edus. This can make us achieve very much and is very beneficial." - Chanu

I think the four C's were very helpful in Breakout Edu because communication and collaboration tied in because lots of people were working together and solved some locks together. Creativity and critical thinking tied in because the locks took a lot of twist and turns when solving." - Brennan

Oh, Class, I'm so proud of all of you! You have all worked so hard this year. From day one, I knew you were special. When Edgar announced he wanted to be a train engineer, and meant it, I knew we were in for a fabulous ride. I've watched you growth both academically and socially. Your mathematical thinking has improved exponentially, your tech skills have definitely leveled up, and your ability to be mindful of your choices has impressed me. When we started the year I told you that my job was to prepare you for junior high. Well, guess what? You're ready. (You know I'm crying now, but give me a minute.) You have all the skills you need to navigate through the next phase of your lives. As you know, adversities will come, but with positivity, determination, and the support of your family and friends, you'll make it. It is with confidence that I send you off. XOXOX . . .

Thank you so much for sharing your precious children with me. They're respectful, resilient, compassionate, funny, and hard working. This is a transition time for you as well. My husband and I have to constantly remind ourselves that our role as parents is to raise our children to go out into the world, to prepare them to be independent, to be proud of their accomplishments, to guide and instruct them when needed. They're ready, Mom and Dad. Be proud of what you've raised. And I can't wait to see them years from now and hug them and squeeze them as if they were still mine. Take care them!!! XOXOX . . .

With lots and lots of love,
Mrs.McAlister​

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Wow, I can't believe our school year is almost over. I must say, out of the 23, ummm, maybe 24 years of teaching, this has been one of the best. My students and I have grown tremendously!

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This post was written recently by MO. I am very proud of it because she talks about our EdTech journey and how we are revisiting places and providing support to others just beginning!

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Ro & I have had a few "back where we started" moments in our 2.5-year-long EdTech adventures. Our first was being presenters at the EdTechTeam Summit in Las Vegas January of 2016. A year before, we'd driven the 5 hours to Sin City, not knowing how incredibly excited we would be by the end of the weekend and how it would change our lives - for the better. Having the opportunity - and confidence in our skills - to present to other educators just one year later seems surreal to me. However, as fast as EdTech changes, that's how fast the learning curve is, and if I keep up, there is always so much new goodness to share! And, as I always emphasize with my colleagues, we don't have to know EVERYTHING about EVERYTHING ... just enough to vet a new platform or app for the appropriateness for our students, and then put it in THEIR hands to figure it out! They are NOT intimidated by a new tool, and many have told me how exciting it is to be able to teach ME how to use it!

Our second exciting re-visit was when our district hosted a second EdTechTeam Summit. One of our goals when we left our first Summit, in Las Vegas, was to bring this fabulous PD to our friends and colleagues in the Temecula/Murrieta Valley. We saw that happen in November of 2015, and with our Summit in November of 2016, we felt a great deal of satisfaction knowing that more and more teachers and administrators would have the opportunity for professional development that matched their needs AT THAT TIME. I'm really sad that due to budget constraints, our third Summit this coming autumn was canceled. We'll keep seeking out other trainings and hope that others will, too.

And the circle-yet-to-come.... Last July we were accepted to attend the Google Geo Tools Institute (GTI) in Mountain View - at the Google Mothership! We had a great time, learned a lot, and made some enduring friendships. This year, after also being selected to serve on the Google Geo in Education Trainer Network for North America, we have been asked to serve as for this year's GTI event, also in Mountain View. It's been so exciting seeing the names of friends added to the participant list and we are (well, at least *I* am!) PUMPED to be able to decorate a table for our "team". I'm having so much fun creating gifties for our comrades. I know we'll be able to give this year's group THREE (*WE* only got 2!) days of amazing opportunities to see the benefits of using geography, specifically Google's geo tools, to enhance instruction in our classrooms - at ALL levels!

And, Mother Google, how I have missed you!

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Ro & I have had a few "back where we started" moments in our 2.5-year-long EdTech adventures. Our first was being presenters at the EdTechTeam Summit in Las Vegas January of 2016. A year before, we'd driven the 5 hours to Sin City, not knowing how incredibly excited we would be by the end of the weekend and how it would change our lives - for the better.

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Mirrors: self reflection and communication

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Mirrors: self reflection and communication

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On why I became a connected educator.

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As of today this blog has existed more than six weeks, with no posts, and no title. This morning I found both snuggled up together. Please read to the end to find out where I found them.

Two months ago I had an experience that opened my eyes and changed my teaching forever. What was this experience? I attended my first (but not my last!) Google Apps For Education Summit (GAFE). It was hosted by EdTechTeam at Windsor High School on April 9-10, 2016. I am super excited about attending the next Sonoma Summit in October.

Why did the GAFE summit have such an effect on me?

There were two reasons. The first was all of the incredibly awesome information, resources, and connections that I made at the summit. It revitalized my teaching mid year and reenergized me enough that Monday, though I was tired, several people mentioned that I seemed much more upbeat. That high energy boost lasted all the way through the end of the school year.

The second and probably more far reaching reason can be summed up in one word. Twitter.

I have been on Twitter since the beginning of 2008. I followed the same people that many Twitter users follow. My personal friends, actors, celebrities, athletes, a couple of politicians, the President of the United States (@POTUS), etc. My feed was closed and it even updated my Facebook profile so I didn't have to go to FB if I didn't want to.

How did Twitter change me at the summit? I noticed that every single presenter had their name and their Twitter handle on their presentation. Not their email address. The GAFE Summit organizers encouraged us to tweet about what we saw and what we learned at the summit using the #GAFEsummit hashtag and to share it with the @edtechteam Twitter account. This is when I discovered Twitter as a Professional Development (PD) model.

Twitter for Professional Development

What is Twitter for educators? First off, Aside from existing Twitter didn't do anything special to make it an excellent source of PD for educators. Educators made it special. They saw the opportunity to make connections and collaborate with colleagues in education who they never met face to face who live across the country and around the world. They shared what they were doing in their classrooms that worked, and what failed. They held discussions about topics in education, they shared resources, ideas, tips, tricks, and they did it in 140 characters or fewer. Every day there aremany directed, moderated conversations happening around topics in education. ( Schedule of EdChats) Educators are connecting with educators and it is glorious.

One of the biggest difficulties that I have encountered in my teaching (and I am a new teacher) is the tendency for educators to get isolated in their rooms. I definitely have been. During the school day it is difficult to find the time to go talk to your grade level team next door, let alone another grade. A grade alike at the neighboring school? Forget it. This isolation has been an issue in each of my teaching assignments. This year was better because I had an AWESOME BTSA support teacher who was located at my site and we would talk daily about our teaching and from that I improved so much more than I though I would be able to. Had I not had her, I don't know if I would have made as much of a difference with my students and I definitely wouldn't have improved as much as I have.

Twitter gives educators an opportunity to make connections asynchronously, on your own schedule, with other very experienced, supportive educators. Being on Twitter as an educator over the past month and a half has opened my eyes to new ideas in teaching, new philosophies, new techniques, and most importantly to new colleagues. Taking little, tiny sips from the torrenting waterfall that is Twitter in an educational setting has given me more to think about and use to improve my teaching than pretty much anything else I have encountered. And I get to do it in five minutes here, ten minutes there, snuck in around the time filled by teaching and family.

Want to get started on Twitter? Here are some resources:

Back to the new title of my blog and this post and how it finally came together.

First off, this is the most I have written in a very, very long time that wasn't tied either to an assignment for a class or BTSA or to be used with my students. I tend to have huge writers block. I reflect daily on my teaching. I talk with others regularly about my teaching. I NEVER write about my teaching. This causes me problems in two ways. The first is that it is hard to see the effects of your reflections and changes in teaching if you don't record them. The second is that I have a hard time remembering all of my reflections due to the wonderful distraction that comes with having three young children.

I have intended to start a blog to save my reflections for a long time with this blog started, active and empty for more than six weeks while I went through 8-10 attempts at a first blog post and 5-6 titles, none of which really stuck with me. Except for the one that was the same as a fairly major publication on a similar topic (education tech) and had the same name with a single letter's difference, so that was a non starter.

What changed? This morning I was thinking about reflecting on my teaching. I am taking the EdTechTeam Online Teacher Leader Certificate course and one assignment is to reflect on our Personal Learning Network (PLN). I got stuck on the word reflect. In order for teachers to grow in our profession we have to reflect constantly on our teaching so that we can improve and reach our students better. I realized that while we mostly think of mirrors as a way to look at ourselves and what is behind us, mirrors can also be used for communication. As a Boy Scout one of the things that I learned was how to use a signal mirror. Signal mirrors have been used for centuries to send short messages over very long distances, not unlike Twitter. That quick realization crystallized all of the bits and pieces that I have been thinking about. They formed into this post and a new title.

A Mirror Into My Teaching will be a place where I can reflect on my teaching, and the tools, skills, ideas, and pedagogy that influence it. It will also be a place where I share out information to other, like-minded educators so that I am doing my own small part to help improve our profession.

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First Post - Mirrors: Self-reflection and communication.

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As of today this blog has existed more than six weeks, with no posts, and no title. This morning I found both snuggled up together. Please read to the end to find out where I found them. Two months ago I had an experience that opened my eyes and changed my teaching forever.

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A post where I wrote the second half several months after the first.

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Note: I wrote most of this a few weeks after the EdCamp. It is now more than two months later. I definitely need to subscribe to the habit of writing a post in one sitting and posting it right away.

I have been distracted from writing this for a couple of weeks now and I just need to pound it out and get it done or I won't ever get to it. Because as Kevin Brookhouser said in his book The 20 Time Project:

Why EdCamp?

When I went to EdCamp East Bay earlier this month it was my first EdCamp. I went only vaguely knowing what I was letting myself in for. Earlier this year I went to a Google for Education Summit put on by EdTechTeam (@edtechteam) and it rocked my socks off. Because of the Summit I became active on Twitter as an educator (@mcarlingoldberg) and I noticed that many of the educators who I follow who are excited about learning new things and improving their practice were talking about going to EdCampEB. I looked into it and found that while a GAFE Summit is most definitely a conference, EdCamps were an un-conference and this intrigued me.

EdCamp is a free conference where educators decide on the day of the conference what the discussion sessions would be. Anyone could suggest a topic and everyone would vote on which they would like to have a discussion. It is often touted as an "un-conferecence". I definitely loved having a say in what we talked about. For that matter every topic I suggested was picked as a session (others also suggested the same topics too). It was actually a conundrum when I had to pick between two of the sessions I suggested as they were scheduled in the same time slot.

Note: everything written before this was the first sitting. Everything after is from the second sitting. One sitting and post has to be my new habit. A post shouldn't sit in drafts for two months.

Making Connections

I had a great time making connections at EdCamp. I think the opportunity to chat with complete strangers feeling safe in the fact that everyone there was an educator who was coding to give up their Saturday and were likely of a similar mindset. During breaks and over lunch I had great conversations about Bullet Journaling, and making connections at events. Most of those connections have continued over Twitter through conversations and sharing of resources.

I also got the great opportunity to meet up with several Twitter acquaintences face to face. I had the chance to chat with Mark Loundy (@MarkLoundy ), Craig Yien (), and some of the #Hyperdocs crew Lisa Highfill (), Sarah Landis (@SARAHLANDIS ), Kelly Hilton (@kellyihilton ), and Karly Moura (@KarlyMoura ). It was really a pleasure to meet them face to face after having interacted over Twitter. The genuine enthusiasm everyone showed when we managed to stick a face to the Twitter handle was just awesome!

Personalized PD - PD To Fit My Needs

What I really liked about EdCamp besides its energy was that it is all about educators having the time and space to talk about what matters to us in a relaxed atmosphere. I got to have really great conversations about topics that were important to me and self direct my learning.

One of the best parts of EdCamp is that after the day is over all of the shared notes from the different sessions are shared so that you can refer back to them and also take a look at the information from the sessions that you didn't attend. Take a look at EdCamp East Bay's Schedule.

Two sessions that I attended really stood out. The first was the Hyperdocs session ( Notes) which was packed and included all three authors of The Hyperdocs Handbook. Talking with everyone about what a Hyperdoc is (a pedagogically strong way of thinking and designing lessons) and isn't (a set of strict instructions or formats that you have to follow). The second was Engaging Staff In Change ( Notes) a session on a topic that I suggested because I wanted to connect with others around the challenges in being a Tech TOSA and engaging teachers in accepting technology into their teaching in a strong, pedagogically sound way. There were only six of us in the session but we all came away with the support of a group of like minded educators who were having similar struggles. We also came away with a bunch of ideas, tools, and strategies to use in engaging our staff in positive change.

To Close

I would definitely recommend an EdCamp to any educator who is looking for a little support or a little inspiration for their teaching. It was a mellow, laid back experience with lots of great givaways and prizes. It was worth the hour drive from Petaluma to Concord to participate, and that says a lot.

And remember, DONE is better than PERFECT. Always, every time. Because done allows you to learn and grow and build on what you have completed. Perfect can't be reached and if it is your goal it may very well prevent done from happening.

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EdCamp East Bay - Done Is Better Than Perfect.

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Note: I wrote most of this a few weeks after the EdCamp. It is now more than two months later. I definitely need to subscribe to the habit of writing a post in one sitting and posting it right away...

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You gave students a choice... and it bombed...

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You gave students a choice... and it bombed...

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This post talks about failure in the classroom and the next steps needed to proceed.

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...now what? It's time for a reflection.

My co-worker and I just finished our cross-curricular project, and boy has it been a unit! We were quite euphoric with how it turned out, and were glad that the project was more of a success than we anticipated. One thing is nagging at the back of my brain - how did giving students choice work? Was THAT successful?

To answer that question, I am going to jump into "story time" and travel back to last summer. Right before the school year began, I attended a GAFE ( Google Apps for Education) conference here in Colorado Springs. I was pushed by many of the attendees and presenters (in a good way) to update and elevate my curriculum this current school year. The big "buzz word" was choice: giving students a choice in your classroom. And I believe it, and I believe in it, so I tried to provide my students with choice (to give them a voice). It was a complete and utter failure.

Sometimes I wonder why teachers and teacher bloggers don't talk more about their failures, and, when giving advice, don't always talk about what might go wrong. I feel like I had a preconceived and naive belief about how choice and flexibility would transform my classroom. I would liken this to all the feels that teachers get when watching Robin Williams' speech in A Dead Poet's Society.

That was going to be my classroom this year... I was wrong. What I failed to take into account, and what I was never pushed to question, was who the students were that I had coming into my classroom. My students had eight years of traditional schooling. Often times, in my own opinion, I did not see rigor and high expectations in their previous classes. Students, in the past, did not have the option to make their own choices and did not have the capacity and maturity to make wise decisions on their own. This led to a very rough beginning to the school year (no Robin Williams moments here!) and a lot of reflection about what best meets my students' needs.

So... I gave my students choice... and it bombed. What are the next steps?

Number one: don't give up! So it didn't work this time. Why didn't it work? Figure that out, then don't do that again. It is okay to fail, but do not punish your students if the failure is one you.

Number two: figure out what your students need. Many options or open flexibility can be overwhelming if it has never been an option before. I know that when I start my next school year, I need to survey the students about their previous schooling. This will then drive HOW I teach in my classroom. I can decide how much choice I offer from the start.

Number three: start small to large. Start by giving your students two or three possibilities (not unlimited), then expand from there. I run a more project-based class so I can start with open selection when it comes to a type of project (Slides, Explain Everything, iMovie), then over time, students can have a choice when it comes to topics and content. Ideally, by the end of the year, the students have complete discretion in the classroom to display their voice.

Number four: take your time. If you realize that students still don't have the maturity to have choice, then do not give them that option. Make sure they are ready to move to the next step. Do not set up your students to fail.

As I said at the beginning, now that I've done this big project at the end of the year, was giving choice beneficial?

It was due to my failures at the beginning of the year and reflecting upon WHY there was failure. It was also dependent on me slowly adding in more choice as the year went on. I also feel like we gave students good options when it came to historical figures and project presentation options for this unit.

Was it perfectly successful? No, not quite. Both my colleague and I learned a lot doing this project for the first time and have discussed changes that we will make. We still saw students choose the easy options, and I still need to figure out why they didn't want to push themselves.

But I can see how choice works in my classroom and am excited to see it work even better next year. Keep the faith! Thanks for reading. I'll see you next week :)

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You gave students choice... and it bombed...

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now what? It's time for a reflection. My co-worker and I just finished our cross-curricular project, and boy has it been a unit! We were quite euphoric with how it turned out, and were glad that the project was more of a success than we anticipated.

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This duo of posts talks about empathy, about how true empathy is philosophically impossible, and how we limit our kids ability to relate and work together if we only talk about Empathy.
PS: People will defend Empathy to the death no matter what. It was a very interesting discussion.

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Empathy has been held up as the gold standard for social emotional learning for as long as I can remember. We try, from the youngest ages to build empathy for our students, for our own children, and for ourselves. This is valuable and it is an excellent starting point for social emotional learning.

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Teaching students to focus in a distracted world.

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In the last few years, complaints about the amount of homework assigned in our secondary school have been escalating. Our school does not give a great deal of homework (most work is done in class) and I know that teachers have been assigning about the same amount of homework for the past 15 years. In high school, the homework that used to take students about one to two hours a day (including a half hour of reading) is now taking many of them five hours per day, including the weekends. The fact that homework is taking this long, when it shouldn't, is an important problem that needs to be addressed. Parents often tell me that the problem seems to be a lack of ability to concentrate.

This has been worrying me for a while, so when I heard about the book Deep Work by Cal Newport, I was intrigued. The book is not specifically written for educators or with kids in mind. It's written for the working adult who wants to be more productive and successful. Yet, as I read, I made constant connections to my students.

In today's world, attention spans seem to be getting much shorter and all kinds of adjustments are being made for this. But the issue of shorter attention spans is especially worrisome for our students. Bombarded daily with hundreds of messages, videos, and bits of information, they frantically multi-task in order to keep up. Not only is multi-tasking notorious for producing shoddy work, but when we multi-task, the work actually takes us longer to complete. The internet is full of distractions that many adults have trouble ignoring. If adults can' t manage them, how are these distractions affecting our kids? And what can we do to help them?

We need to explicitly teach our students how to concentrate and then support them as they practice. Newport explains that concentration is not a habit that can be turned on and off; it's a skill that must be developed with effort. Although some people may learn to focus on their own, most students will need the support of their teachers and parents as they learn the skill of concentration and form the habits necessary to reinforce it.

Newport also talks about the need for down time and relaxation in order to rejuvenate the brain. However, when students are working, chatting, and watching videos at the same time, not only are they they unable to do great work, but their work takes much longer so they can't relax and enjoy their free time. Because they never truly cut off from work, their stress levels remain high and many of them feel overwhelmed and/or depressed.

What can we do about this?

In school, concentration skills need to be actively taught. Here are some things teachers can do to help their students focus:

1. Show students how multi-tasking affects the quality of their work and the time it takes to do it. Here's a short lesson that may help them understand: http://davecrenshaw.com/multitasking-example/

2. Reinforce the importance of turning off all distractions from social media, TV, YouTube, and chat groups while they work. Let them know that once they finish their work, they'll have plenty of time to connect online.

3. Teach students to focus on work by giving them increased time in class to work steadily and silently. Begin with short amounts of time for silently reading a novel, writing an essay, or solving math problems, and then slowly extend that time.

4. Explain the need for down time - time to completely cut off from work in order to refresh their brains. If they turn off all distractions and finish their homework quickly, they'll have time to relax and enjoy their free time without the stress of pending assignments hanging over their heads.

However, no matter what we do at school, most students won't apply these skills if they're not reinforced at home. Parents who worry that their children seem overwhelmed with homework and don't have enough time to just be kids can try the following ideas. But remember, they need to be reinforced consistently in order to become habits.

1. Help your child set up a work schedule. Work together: children need to be part of this process. Reinforce the need to begin homework quickly - it's crucial to work first and relax later.

2. Teach children to create a checklist of tasks to be completed and how to prioritize the work. What's due tomorrow? How will you attack long-term projects?

3. Have them come up with a time frame for finishing work, such as: "I think I can finish this in 20 minutes." Setting an alarm can help keep them focused. This will help them learn to estimate their work time and productively plan their time.

4. Unplug: No cell phone. No TV or videos. No internet (except for research, which should be supervised while the habit is being formed ).

5. DO give support. Sit next to them while they work. But DON'T rescue them. Instead, when they have a problem, say, "How could you solve that?" or teach them to jot down questions to ask the teacher the next day. Remember: t he goal is independence.

6. Down time: w hen the work is done, it's time to relax. Let kids unwind doing things they enjoy.

The idea is to help students see that, with focus, they can finish work quickly, do a better job, and enjoy their free time so much more. Concentration is an essential skill that will help our kids succeed in whatever they choose to do, but most students won't develop it on their own: they're living in a world full of distractions and need adult support in order to focus for any length of time. Successfully teaching students to concentrate will take teamwork from both their school and their home. If parents work late, they need to find someone who can help their children learn good habits in order to support the concentration they'll need to do well in life.

Distraction has become an epidemic in our world. Actively teaching concentration skills is the only cure.

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Concentration 101: Teaching Students to Focus - The Teaching Experiment

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In the last few years, complaints about the amount of homework assigned in our secondary school have been escalating. Our school does not give a great deal of homework (most work is done in class) and I know that teachers have been assigning about the same amount of homework for the past 15 years.

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This duo of posts talks about empathy, about how true empathy is philosophically impossible, and how we limit our kids ability to relate and work together if we only talk about Empathy.

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Prepare yourself, things are going to get very philosophical in 3...2...1... Today I saw a graphic, it was a small part of a much longer and generally well written blog post about mindfulness and empathy. The graphic claimed empathy was seeing through someone's eyes, hearing through someone's ears, and feeling with the heart of another....

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This post talks about how we teach young boys to become young men, our shortcomings, and what we can do better.

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I would like to start by saying that while this is a post that is very important to me and on my mind often, I was inspired to write tonight for the first time in a while after reading the excellen...

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We all want to be able to do everything. There are so many cool and exciting things in the world. I always hear:" I don't know how you have time to do that?" This post talks about how:

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Over my entire career, but even more so in the past several years I have continued to push myself to learn and grow. I realized a while ago I would not be able to do everything, nor could I learn everything. Instead, I made it a point to focus on the things I needed or that I was most passionate about learning. Doing so has lead me to some incredible experiences. In the past few months, I have heard more than ever before, "I don't know how you do all that you are doing!" I am by no means the busiest person I know, nor the most accomplished.

It made me think more about the "how" in what I have been doing rather than the "what" or the "why". I have talked on social media, at conferences, and in general discussions, about the need for kids to learn time management. As someone who struggled with many executive functioning skills as a child (organization, time management, and more) I have repeatedly called for the scaffolding and building of these skills. The "how" in creating that is the subject of other posts, and possibly many other ways of sharing.

Instead, I am focussing on the "how" of getting things done as an adult, a full time educator, and a full time parent. Getting things done comes down to two things, time management and wanting to get them done. You cannot learn the desire, but you can learn the time management.

Being an effective manager of my time starts with a few simple things. First I start with some questions:

What is the most important thing/things I need to do today?
This typically involves my family or my job, or both.

What times do these things need to happen?
We ask this for 2 reasons

1. If it is the most important thing it is going to get done regardless of whatever else I put on my schedule.

2. I don't want to assume I will get anything else done during those times.

What other projects am I currently working on that I need to fit into my schedule?
I typically have 6-10 different projects I am working on at a time. Some of them have long term deadlines, others have no deadlines. Occasionally they have a short turn around.

What part of that project can I achieve?

It is good to look at how I can break a project into smaller parts. I cannot accomplish an entire project in the short periods of time that I typically get to work on these "non-essential" projects. They need to broken down into smaller tasks.

Accomplishing a small task gives a sense of accomplishment and moving forward in a project rather than one of procrastinating. I am not putting a project off, I am making small but steady progress toward my goals.

Do I have all the things I need to complete this part of my project?
If yes, I have no reason to put it off. In the one or more hours I can devote to ancillary projects during a given day, I make sure that I work on that task for some amount of time.

This is just a simple process that takes place in my head at all times. Today, my goals included getting a new blog post up, reading some of a draft manuscript for a friend, and completing some paperwork. The most important things on my schedule were to spend quality time with my family (which took place from the time my daughter woke up, until the time she went to bed) and to get a few items from the store to be ready for the week. Once both of those were accomplished I was able to write a blog post, read a few chapters of the manuscript, and even enjoyed time for some relaxation (watching a movie.) I found I was unable to complete the paperwork because the site required it be completed before I was able to start. That changed what I could accomplish and thus I now adjust where that goes during my week.

All of this seems simple, but really working to manage time is difficult. I still sometimes fail to successfully juggle all the things. Setbacks don't mean I stop picking up the balls and tossing them. I do not claim to be an expert on time management, and I marvel at people doing far more than myself. Having multiple people comment on how I do "so much" simply made me reflect and take a closer look at a process that I have internalized. Perhaps it will cause others to reflect on what they do to make sure they can "do all the things?"

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Over my entire career, but even more so in the past several years I have continued to push myself to learn and grow. I realized a while ago I would not be able to do everything, nor could I learn ...

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This post was written for CUE Blog to promote connect classes and The Global Audience Project.

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For some reason I never gave a second thought to the novelty of interacting with people on the screen from across the world. It always seemed to be normal. Two years ago I had three kids in my room while I was testing a Google Hangout with Kory Graham ( @Korytellers ). They were mesmerized, in part because she was talking about reading Winnie the Pooh and three 6 year-olds had a really hard time hearing an adult say "pooh" with a straight face, but mainly because she was a real person talking to them from almost a thousand miles away.

Just a year later my class had become experts in video chatting with classes from all over the world. They were familiar with the operations for appear.in and Google Hangouts. They were curating information about the places they'd been, and they were directing where they would like to "visit". Talking with other kids, sharing their projects, and learning about the projects other kids were doing, quickly became something my kids LOVED. When they had the opportunity to talk to other kids from around the world, they always learned something valuable. Every class project took on more meaning for them with the question, "Are we going to share this with another class? Those kids in Minnesota? Or maybe that class in Delaware?" That was when I realized how special connecting my class with the world had become. They were not only engaged, but they had understood that there was a world far beyond the tiny town most of them had never really left. Most importantly, they were developing a solid understanding that while people everywhere are different, there is so much common ground from which they can build.

These legs are the base upon which developing global connections can be built. Not only do you create a higher level of engagement, but you help kids understand their world in a way they previously did not. You are giving them more than just a lesson, you are giving them a connection to a world many did not know existed. Many of students will never see far off places and experience what the world has to offer in person. You aren't just sharing a lesson, you are sharing the world.

I had the opportunity to share the global project my students created at ISTE16 in Denver. During the 90 minute poster session I shared everything from the experiences and reflections of my kids to the tools we worked with to create the project and the troubles we had. I spoke to dozens of teachers during that time and almost all of them had the same question: "How did you find the classes you talked with?" "Twitter mostly," I'd reply. They would give me a look of defeat before deflating a sighed "oh". It was then I realized that the response I got from teachers at ISTE was from some of the more tech "willing" teachers. If they were deflated by the idea of finding connections on Twitter, what would the "regular" teachers do to connect their classes?

The answer I could think of was simple, they were not going to do it. That answer wasn't good enough. After seeing how powerful it was for my students to have the opportunity to share their learning with the world, it was something I felt all students should have the opportunity to do. It left me with the question: How might I make it easy and efficient enough to connect with another class that almost any teacher would be willing to do it. If only it were as easy as a Google search!

When I was applying for the Google Innovator Academy in Toronto, this became my platform. I was dedicated to making this simple enough for anyone to do it. Over the course of the weeks leading up to the Academy and the three days in Toronto, The Global Audience Project was born. Now, all that is left is to continue making it a thing. It exists, but it is now my job to spread it to enough people that it becomes self sustaining. It will start with the early adopters. It starts with the people who are already sharing projects. Ultimately, if I can build enough support for it to become a significant sustainable resource, then the Global Audience Project can start to make the real impact on helping classrooms connect.

Find out how you can share your projects, be an audience, volunteer to coach, find a coach, share your story, and soon find a database of project ideas by visiting www.globalaudienceproject.com .
Ed. Note- There are many global collaboration projects happening out in the education world right now. Along with the Global Audience Project there's also Rock our World led by Carol Anne McGuire, Global School Play Day led by Scott and Tim Bedley, and many, many Mystery Calls going on... (ITM episode here:http://www.infinitethinking.org/itm-42-mystery-calls.html) Brian Costello is in his 7th year of teaching in Southern New Jersey. Brian started his career as an instructional aide before going on to teach Kindergarten, 1st, and 2nd Grades. He is an avid writer, blogger, and Twitter user. He recently published his first children's book, Will McGill and the Magic Hat. Brian speaks at Educational conferences on topics including educational technology, leadership, communication, and professional development.

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For some reason I never gave a second thought to the novelty of interacting with people on the screen from across the world. It always seemed to be normal. Two years ago I had three kids in my room while I was testing a Google Hangout with Kory Graham (@Korytellers).

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On censorship & sensitive topics in middle-grade lit

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On censorship & sensitive topics in middle-grade lit

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I wrote this one last summer when something in the world bugged me. At the time, it felt urgent to add these thoughts in the world.

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I followed with interest the recent challenges stirred by author Kate Messner's new novel, The Seventh Wish, and I appreciated the dialogue she fostered via her blog. Wanting to form my own judgments, I read her book for myself. I followed it -- spontaneously -- with two other recent middle-grade titles: Pax by Sara Pennypacker and When Friendship Followed Me Home by Paul Griffin. Now, I've got a lot on my mind, which I'll attempt to offload here by re-visiting each text. (No spoilers, but perhaps some reveals; read on at your own peril...)

The Seventh Wish, among a host of ingredients not the least of which is a magical fish, broaches the topic of heroin abuse. The passage below drops that bombshell on the 12-year-old narrator, Charlie Brennan. Midway through the story on pages 102-3, Charlie learns that her 18-year-old sister Abby has been using, a daunting iceberg's tip:

Arguments about the book (and Messner's presence as a visiting author sharing her book in schools) revolve around questions like: At what age should readers confront addiction as portrayed here fictionally? Should librarians invite the conversation by adding the book to their collections, or should they insulate readers from this ugliness until some point in the future? These questions cannot be answered definitively, though I see value in negotiating the terrain in more nuanced ways than age- or grade-level suggestions mustered by publishers and booksellers. Bloomsbury, which published The Seventh Wish, pegs it as middle grade; Amazon recommends it for grades 4-6; Barnes & Noble's site suggests ages 8-12. What feels more definitive is that heroin use is on the rise, especially among age groups that would encompass older siblings and other family of the presumed audience for The Seventh Wish. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) can tell you more about that.

Of course, heroin is not the only threatening iceberg out there. My next summer-reading book, Pax, brought me closer to the personal tolls of war. This exploration is simultaneously a subplot and integral to the tale of the bond between a young boy (Peter) and the pet fox (Pax) he must abandon when the story opens. Having later run away to reunite with Pax, Peter ends up in the care of Vola, a discharged soldier trying to cope with inescapable physical and emotional damage, as she starts to reveal to Peter here on pages 128-9:

Like addiction is a fact of life for many, so too is military service. I don't mean to equate them; I'm looking at them as complicated issues that have far-reaching ramifications for society ranging from personal to communal to national to global. When should young readers explore them? When shouldn't they? While the overall veterans' population has shrunk in the last 30 years, according to the Department of Veterans Affairs, the number of soldiers who live with service-connected disabilities has skyrocketed. That toll merits attention and response, in both fact and fiction.

My third recent read was When Friendship Followed Me Home. Like Pax, one focus here is on the connection between animal and boy. Seventh-grader Ben Coffin adopts a dog he eventually names Flip. Ben is a foster child who ends up switching homes for a reason that I won't share here. One of Ben's new guardians is a man named Leo, and the author drops clues that Leo is an alcoholic, as in this passage on page 120:

As with the two prior titles, this issue is not the emphasis here. It's a complication, feeding the rising action, adding depth and intensity to the characters' conflicts. It flares unpredictably, shockingly, even violently. It also reflects life at a time when alcohol use remains prevalent as statistics from the National Institute of Health show.

Messner, Pennypacker, and Griffin do not hide from controversial topics. Nor do they flaunt them or dwell on them in ways that feel detrimental to young readers. Should families have the ultimate say in what their children do or don't read? Absolutely. At the same time, should schools and libraries rely on the professional judgment of their staff to provide the widest possible range of reading opportunities from which students and families can select? I believe so.

With books like these that can plausibly be picked up by students from mid-elementary through at least the end of middle school, how might we proceed as a community of readers? I'd argue: Keep talking with each other, for starters. Parents with children; parents with teachers or librarians; teachers or librarians with students; readers with authors. Personalize the conversations to make them matter because there are no blanket reading levels or labels of age-appropriateness or other gatekeepers that will absolve us from these messier interactions.

"To read or not to read?" will always be the question. As for the answer... Leo from When Friendship Followed Me Home tells his significant other, Jeanie, "It's all too much. Too many moving parts. I like it simple." Her reply: "Everybody does, Leo. It just isn't, okay?" (138)

Griffin, Paul. When Friendship Followed Me Home. New York: Dial Books for Young Readers, 2016.

Messner, Kate. The Seventh Wish. New York: Bloomsbury, 2016.

Pennypacker, Sara. Pax. New York: Balzer + Bray, 2016.

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On censorship & sensitive topics in middle-grade lit

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I followed with interest the recent challenges stirred by author Kate Messner's new novel, The Seventh Wish, and I appreciated the dialogue she fostered via her blog. Wanting to form my own judgments, I read her book for myself.

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How students' work changes when they don't have to worry about grades.

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Last year, Jean Erickson, our Language Arts teacher extraordinaire, gave her 12 th grade students the freedom to decide what to study for the last two weeks before Christmas break. They chose "spoken word poetry" and the fun began. Students listened to spoken word poetry, analyzed it, figured out what made it powerful, and decided why they liked some poems and not others.

At the end of the unit, Jean asked her students to break into groups and come up with a spoken word poem of their own. She told them that they would have complete freedom to do whatever they wanted, and that the poems would not be graded.

This class is a strong one - a group of talented, bright students - but they often feel overwhelmed and complain about their workload. On any given assignment, about a third of the class will hand their work in late... sometimes very late. We were curious to see what kind of work they would do, knowing that the assignment "didn't count," especially at this time of year: they were busy with their end-of-the-year schoolwork and university applications. In widely held teaching mythology, the general belief is that if kids don't get grades, they won't bother doing the work.

On the day of the presentations, I was invited to come in and watch. The first group got up to present, and their poignantly moving poem portrayed the sadness they felt when breaking up with partners and not only losing a love, but losing their best friend, as well. When they finished speaking, there was a long, thoughtful silence that spoke stronger than any words could.

We listened to poems that dealt with the capturing of pictures to share on social media instead of fully living the moment, the Cold War, and the scariness of deciding on their future as they graduate high school.

I've rarely seen anything so powerful.

The best part about it was that it happened with absolutely no external incentive. I was amazed, and I had to ask the students what they thought of the project and why they had put so much effort into doing this astonishing work despite the lack of grades. This is what they had to say:

We had the freedom to write about whatever we wanted. I asked how that was different from a normal writing workshop assignment, in which they have the freedom to choose their topic, and they said: Because there wasn't going to be a grade attached, we felt free to write about anything we wanted. For instance, one group wrote about breaking up with a boy, which a teacher might think is a superficial topic. If we thought a teacher was grading us, we'd try to write about something the teacher would think was more meaningful, so that she'd give us a better grade.

There wasn't a rubric, so we didn't feel limited. This one surprised me - a rubric is supposed to provide guidelines, not limit students. When there's a rubric, you have to focus on meeting the requirements - using figurative language, including imagery, and all of that. Without the rubric we were free to do whatever we wanted and we could go deeper in our thinking.

We were free to take risks. When you're afraid of the grade, you try to do exactly what you think the teacher wants you to do and you don't take risks. Grades make us nervous and then we can't be creative.

We took on a challenge because we weren't scared of the grade we'd get. Normally when we're getting a grade, we do whatever is easiest for us so that we can be guaranteed a good mark.

When asked why they all did the work on time, they explained: When you feel pressured by a grade, sometimes you get so nervous you can't do the work. But for the spoken word poetry project, there was no pressure, so we just got into it and had fun.

Jean and I listened in awe to their comments. The students basically reiterated what all of the . Within five minutes, students had mentioned all the key points: grades kill intrinsic motivation, they stop students from thinking deeply, and instead of enjoying the learning, students focus only on the marks they'll get.

The grade-free experiment was an over-the-top success. Now comes the hard part: how do we take this information and use it to make real changes to the way we assess everyday?

For more information on the negative effects of grading, take a look at the following:
http://www.education.com/magazine/article/Grades_Any_Good/ http://www.huffingtonpost.com/chris-crouch/grades-do-more-harm-than-_b_4190907.html http://hs-survival.blogspot.com/2010/11/grades-poison-that-slowly-kills-love-of.html

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The "No Grades" Experiment - The Teaching Experiment

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Last year, Jean Erickson, our Language Arts teacher extraordinaire, gave her 12 th grade students the freedom to decide what to study for the last two weeks before Christmas break. They chose "spoken word poetry" and the fun began.

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The Power of Twitter

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I found my tribe! I've been looking for a long time. Over the years I have had the pleasure of working with some amazing tribelets, small hunting bands who really shaped me as an educator and...

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Embracing Change

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I had the privilege to attend a local East Bay CUE conference last weekend at which the keynote speaker, Jon Corippo said, "You don't have to see Utah in order to drive there." He said a lot...

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Ten Ways to Ditch that Reading Log.

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When you read for pleasure do you record the date and pages read on a worksheet? How does this activity make reading more enjoyable?

On this relaxing afternoon, sharing a hammock and a love of reading with my youngest daughter, neither of us paused to think, "I better write this down on my reading log." That just isn't something real readers do; it's unnatural.

When I read a book that I really enjoy, I want to share it with others. I do not show them my reading log and say, "Hey you should read this, it's really good." I want them to read it too, so that we can talk about it.

So I had to ask myself, "Why exactly do I assign students to record pages, titles, summaries, and minutes of reading on a worksheet?" I want them to read, but how is this table with parent signatures making them want to read? It may be enforcing some sort of accountability, but it doesn't foster a love of reading. But if you can make them read, won't they eventually see how great reading is and learn to love it? Are you a parent? If so, when was the last time you "forced" your child to do something and they decided you were right and they loved it?

​Why not ditch the reading log for a method of accountability that encourages sharing your love of a book with others?

This one gets top billing because it is my favorite non-reading log form of reading response. Not only does it keep students accountable for their reading, but you can also create QR codes of their videos and place them inside the book! This is a great way to help students choose books to read from the classroom library. I have designated an old iPhone for this purpose. It has a QR code scanner app and students can scan QR codes in the books, watch book talks and decide if they are interested in reading that book.

I wrote a blog post about how I teach my class to write sketch quotes earlier this year. "
SketchQuotes"

6 Word Memoirs are a great way to summarize a character's journey through the plot of a story. Six words take up so little space, but can convey such big ideas. I have had students write 6 Word Memoirs in their planners and then transfer a final draft to a wall chart (above left) as well as giving out exit tickets. For me, a method that doesn't involve photo copying more pages is preferred. When students went up to the chart to write a 6 Word Memoir (above left) I noticed that they took more time and were reading other student responses, whereas in the Exit slip method they were just in a hurry to stick it up there and go.

You don't have to manage individual student blogs to utilize blogging as a tool to share thoughts about reading. I have found that with younger students that are just learning to use technology, a class blog is best. If you don't have access to technology in your classroom, try paper blogging.

I have begun to infuse classroom blogging assignments into more of our novel units this year. If you click on the image of Ivan (above right) you will see a novel unit designed entirely around blogging. I called it blogging our way through books, and it was part of a summer bridge class that I taught for 4th and 5th grade students. We used a kid blog account and the students really enjoyed their first experience with blogging. I was really pleased with how excited they were to be talking about books-in the summer. I wrote a post about them called "If You Plant A Seed. Your Students Will Read"

I have used several models of a classroom Twitter feed in class. While online versions would give students a bigger audience, my students are under 13 and not using Twitter yet, so I have modified it as shown below.

I share pictures that show that I value reading, as well as book reviews and recommendations.

I share my thinking about reading in class and on our class Instagram page.

I think the key in all of this is to make reading public celebration, and to vary the ways in which you think, talk about, share and respond to text. When the method that you use to keep students accountable for their reading is fun and engaging they are less likely to view reading as a chore and more likely to enjoy it. Is the goal to collect a stack of papers in which students log their minutes of reading or is it to inspire a love of reading that leads students to inspire others to pick up a book?

Have a great idea for getting kids to talk about books? I'm always looking for new ways to keep things fresh. Connect with me and tell me about it.

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When you read for pleasure do you record the date and pages read on a worksheet? How does this activity make reading more enjoyable? On this relaxing afternoon, sharing a hammock and a love of reading with my youngest daughter, neither of us paused to think, "I better write this down on my reading log."

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This post is all about what cognitive tools (the story form/imagery/collections/mystery etc.) can do for your teaching and how to use them! Unleash the latent potential of your curriculum!
#imaginED
www.educationthatinspires.ca

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Looking at making small changes that make a big impact in my classroom this school year.

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ALL Means ALL - Accessibility in the Instrumental Music Classroom

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ALL Means ALL - Accessibility in the Instrumental Music Classroom

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How are we making instrumental music available to all students?

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Music is for everyone. The more I teach, the more I become convinced of that fact. But I've also noticed that at conferences, in professional journals, and most other places, when we are talking about inclusion in the music classroom, we are focused on elementary general music. What happens after that?

In my district, students are given the opportunity to learn an instrument starting in 5th grade, and continuing through high school. We work very hard to create this opportunity for 100% of our students, regardless of their abilities or financial circumstances. Over the past few years, it has become a passion of mine to help all students find a way to participate and be successful in learning an instrument!

How can we do this? Here are some of the ways:
Helping students choose an instrument that is right for them - their body, their learning style, and their preferences
If a student struggles with fine motor skills, a woodwind instrument might be a challenge! If they only have use of one hand, perhaps a trumpet might work well. If they are very sensitive to squeaky sounds, then a cello might work well. Learning about a student and being able to encourage them in the right direction will give them a better chance at being successful!
Modifying the way the instrument is physically played if necessary
People come in all shapes and sizes, and sometimes modifications are necessary! In my orchestra classroom, I have had a handful of students learn to play an instrument "backwards" (right hand doing the fingering, left hand bowing), due to the structure of their hands and/or some hearing loss they have experienced. I have also worked with the OT at my school to create some adaptive devices to make things like holding the bow easier for students with limited range of movement.

Engage peer buddies
One of my favorite things from last year was watching the relationship grow between a 5th grade student and her 8th grade peer mentor. They loved working together! This is a great way to provide options for simplifying the playing - if coordinating two hands is too much, or they only have use of one hand, then have a peer finger the notes while they concentrate on the bow or vice versa. They are still an integral part of making and experiencing the music!

Think about seating & materials
As a violinist, I know exactly what it's like to sit in the back of the 2nd violin section with the piccolo pointed straight in my left ear - not pleasant (sorry, piccolo players)! I can only imagine how our students with a sensitivity to sound feel in the middle of a chaotic music room! Think about seating - where is the best place for this student? Is it a little bit removed from everyone, to dampen the affects of the sound? Is it right up front, where they are in close proximity with the teacher? If a student has vision issues, where can they see the best from?
Let's be honest, playing an instrument requires you to keep track of a lot of materials - there are all of the parts to your instrument, any accessories or cleaning supplies that go along with it, your music, and a stand. This can be a lot for kids with executive functioning challenges, or those who don't have a good awareness of themselves and the space around them (proprioception). Providing separate folders for home and school, directly teaching about how to ensure students have enough space, and giving a structure for where to store all materials (both when playing and when packing up) can help these kids!

Make reading easier
This one is a big deal to me - whether it is copying music on different colored paper, englarging the music, or color-coding fingerings (check out Part 2 of this post, explaining the method I use to help with fingerings)! I wholeheartedly agree in the value of learning to read music, and every student in my class works on that goal. In the end, though, I just ask myself what's more important to me - that a student can read or that they can play with us? If the reading is so frustrating that they can't access the music and play with us, then it's a barrier in the way! Usually, with these students, I separate the two pieces - I have them work on reading music and correlating notes with fingerings, but for the repertoire we are playing in class, I modify it in some way to make it easier for them to just play. I understand that this might be controversial in the music ed world - but it's something I've come to believe in very firmly! I could tell story after story of kids (with autism, learning disabilities, processing delays, motor delays, etc) who have been successful in orchestra and stuck with their instrument because they felt like they could play with us. That is worth it to me!

Make expectations clear
Some students need a little more help with knowing what is expected. A visual checklist, self-monitoring system, and established routine can help lower anxiety for some and keep others on-track. Sometimes this is challenging for me, because rehearsal can be a very free-flowing time, and I will hear different things that I want to respond to than what I had originally planned in my lesson. In these instances, I try to be very explicit about what will be changing and why, so kids don't feel caught off-guard.

Create a community
This just wraps everything together - as one of my students wrote this week, "Teamwork is everything in orchestra." Very few classes require the same amount of collaboration and teamwork as a music classroom, and what a beautiful thing that is for those who can often get left on the outskirts! Don'e we all long for a sense of belonging to a group? Especially in middle school, and especially for students who have some added things they are dealing with, having a positive group to identify with can do wonders. My students proudly proclaim themselves #orchedorks. Intentionally building community, valuing the contributions of every student in the room, and finding way to let them know they are ALL adding to the music brings out the social/emotional learning in a music class!

Does including take extra work? Absolutely! Every time we get a new piece of music, I spend at least an hour making sure everything is set for my kids who need a little extra support. Setting up connections with peers or making assistive devices for playing takes time. But is it worth it? YES!
When we say that we are educating all students, that includes educating them in specials/electives as well. Music is important for ALL of us - so let's make ALL mean ALL in an instrumental music classroom! So much of this has come for me through experimentation and just trying to see what works with individual students. Take the jump and try something to make music more accessible!

How do you purposefully include all students in your class?

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ALL Means ALL - Accessibility in the Instrumental Music Classroom

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Music is for everyone. The more I teach, the more I become convinced of that fact. But I've also noticed that at conferences, in professional journals, and most other places, when we are talking about inclusion in the music classroom, we are focused on elementary general music. What happens after that?

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Using Google Forms for Walkthrough Observations

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Using Google Forms for Walkthrough Observations

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Read how to use Google Forms to make it easy to do informal observations of teachers/peers and provide instant feedback.