Updates:
The last few weeks I've asked you to think about something innovative you want to try in your class. Maybe it is an idea from Jan. 19th, or a blog, or something a teacher from another school in the district has done. Whatever you inspiration, I encourage you to sign up for a little 1:1 time with me. It's always great to bounce ideas around and solidify a plan. Sometimes we get great ideas at a conference, but don't know how to start, or what steps to take to initiate it. I'm happy to help! Anyone who signs up on my Google calendar for a 1:1 session (doesn't have to be long) will receive a special prize! Forgot how to sign up? See this video.
0 Comments
Congratulations to Jeana Crump for winning the Keuring Office Pro! She submitted a reflection video about something she will implement, posted it to youtube and tweeted the link! Way to go! Follow her on Twitter! @jkc_tweets. Updates
Instructional Tidbits I can't write anything today that would top yesterday's professional learning. (BTW, the PL in #HP4PL stands for professional learning). Instead, I ask that you take something you learned and take a step forward. You may be ready to launch into something full force, you may want to partner up with a teammate, or you might want to sign up for time to discuss some ideas with me. Whatever you choose, I hope you keep the students' voices from yesterday in your head. Remember, we're here for them. Things that might feel uncomfortable or challenging as adults, might be just what the students need. Please feel free to sign up on my Google Calendar for help designing, planning, or co-teaching. Updates: We are looking forward to a great day of learning on Jan. 19th. New teachers will continue their learning from August at the New Teacher Academy at the Middle School where it will be a fairly structured day. You will have your own Eventzee Scavenger Hunt to participate in, so download the app and scan the QR code! Employees assigned to the HS will have an exciting day of traditional and non-traditional learning. This is not a normal district day, so if you don't know where to go, please view this video! If you don't know what to do, please view the video. If you are unsure of the Learning Cafe and Swap Shop, please view the video. You will have a separate Eventzee Scavenger Hunt, so download the app and scan the correct QR code to enter! We have some really awesome door prizes that will be given out throughout the day for various reasons, including the Eventzee Scavenger Hunt. A little hint- you may want to join Twitter and have the hashtag #HP4PL ready to tweet! You never know when that can win you a door prize! QR Code for New Employees (Middle School): QR Code for Everyone Else (High School): Instructional Tidbits: We just finished a relaxing Winter break, and Spring break feels like decades away. Teachers often have the mindset that this is the time for kids to "buckle down" and "get to work". I wonder, though, if we are doing the right work. We can fall in the trap of getting carried away with the large amount of content we have to cover, and the looming testing we know our kids will face. Many of these things are out of our hands. We'll never gain more time in a day, we probably won't change standards to move from "a mile wide and an inch deep", and testing is probably going to stay with us for a while. We can, however, change our mindset. Last summer I had the opportunity to hear George Couros speak as a keynote for the North Texas Visioning Consortium Conference. Later, I came across one of his articles based on Carol Dweck's Mindset. Many of you know the "power of yet", and establish this with your students, but Couros pushes you, as a teacher, to change your own mindset. Taking a very Oprah-ish stance, he says to be innovative, you have to look at yourself as an innovator first. Read the article here, and decide what your Innovator's Mindset will be for this long and busy semester. What can you do NOW, rather than put on the list for "next year"? How can you foster innovation in yourself and your students? Maybe, with a little innovation, this long semester will be a breeze, and you just might change your mindset! So, for the Spring semester I challenge you and your students to be innovators. Then share with the school innovative things you are doing using @armstronghp and/or @brooksteacher. Retrieved 1-12-16 from http://georgecouros.ca/blog/archives/5135_
Happy New Year! Updates: 1. Teachers, please complete the Star Chart by Jan. 22nd. You should have received a separate email with directions. If you didn't receive the email, you do not have to worry about it! 2. There are a few changes in our Edlio websites. Now you can make a page published or unpublished. Either way, be sure to SAVE! The page editor layout looks a little different, but is basically the same. I wouldn't mess with the navigation or "links to this page", as it might mess things up. You can also change the order of attachments now. You can add more pictures on the page and select to have them stacked or rotating. The posts (blog sections) are the same. 3. I'ts never too late to attend a HP4PL course! We have designed the technology professional development to be district-wide, providing more opportunities to learn! Each 9 weeks we have a Google Classroom course, a Hangout on Air, Twitterchats, and face to face opportunities. Don't miss out! HP4PL Website Instructional Tidbits:
We've only been back a short while, but I'm hearing reminders of hallway behavior, cafeteria behavior, and other routines and structures throughout the school. Along with all of the normal rules, it is always a good idea to explicitly remind students of their role in Digital Citizenship. A little time this week will save a lot of time later! You can view and discuss videos with your class here: http://goo.gl/Qj8Ko3 There are files in the Technology Resources folder in Google Drive as well. Questions you can discuss or role play: 1. Which one of the LARK rules is hardest for you to follow and why? 2. What would you do if you see an inappropriate picture or word online? 3. What if someone you don't know tries to talk/text while you're playing a video game? 4. What would you do if you know a friend or sibling was breaking a LARK rule? 5. Do you have to follow LARK rules when you have a substitute? 6. What are some consequences if you don't follow LARK rules? 7. Are you ever supposed to give out personal information online? 8. Is it okay to type something inappropriate if you delete it? 9. Is using technology a right or a privilege? 10. Are you allowed to login as someone else? |
AuthorI am an elementary Campus Instructional Technologist in Highland Park ISD Archives
May 2017
Categories
All
|