Teaching Paperless

Teachers use lots of paper. I am as guilty of it as anyone. I have a reading packet for my kids, helping track comprehension over the course of the week and recording new vocabulary words. I also have kids print out their current event summary, and their article each week. I've given them the option of emailing each, or writing down the URL to their article, but the majority opt to print.

This week I am doing my best to go paperless. How am I doing it, and what are the kids doing? Good questions. The kids are working on the question: Who was the best explorer (during the Age of Exploration)? The question requires kids to gather information, compare explorers, determine which information is most important, then evaluate that information to respond to the question. They'll take all of that information, and all of that work, and create a project that they will submit electronically. Beyond the writing, reading, social studies standards (not to mention critical thinking) I'm also focused on getting kids familiar with using our netbooks.

How am I going paperless? I decided that I would have 3 documents kids would be using (one of which they had from a week ago). The two that I would normally print are posted on our class wiki. Yesterday I had them save both documents in a particular way, user name then file name. As they do work they will type directly into the two planning sheets. When they complete the sheets, and their project, they will submit them through a dropbox. I have one set up on our network where kids can move files into the folder, and I can then evaluate them (with different color comments, then emailed back to them). I think it is a step in the right direction. More to come!

Netbooks

My district is in the midst of moving to a 1-1 netbook-student ratio. That ratio holds true through the secondary grades, but is more like 1 set per grade level (or 2-1 student/netbook) at the elementary level. I'm a bit of tech geek/nerd, so this is fantastic. The effect is similar to teaching in a tech lab, which I almost already have (2-1 ratio currently).

We've been piloting it in my grade level since last week. The initial teaching of how to treat them, how to manipulate the touchpad, and how to get familiar was a bit time intensive. Logging in, since it is wireless (and there are 20+ other machines logging in simultaneously), took longer than usual. But each subsequent usage has been far more efficient. We use the downtime to read, largely because it means kids need to have their hands away from the touchpad or keyboard (plus we have novel study as an ongoing project). So far so good.

This past week was part of the acclimation period. This coming week we will be going ahead with the netbooks full bore. I was inspired by a project-based learning video from Common Craft. Instead of project based learning, we're going to be more question-based. The question: Which of the 8 explorers we've studied was the best explorer during the Age of Exploration?

We've already done some of the background work. We have read about these 8 explorers, and asked questions to fill in missing information using some internet research on the netbooks. To respond to this question, kids will need to do an initial evaluation to narrow down their comparison to two or three of the eight. After that they will need to compare/contrast these explorers, and think critically about the information in order to make a final evaluation. Once they've done that they will need to synthesize it into one "thing"- poster, PowerPoint, Photostory, or essay. The thing will show why their explorer is the best, and will need to include accomplishments of the explorer as well as comparison statements between their explorer and another (i.e. "Unlike other explorers, like Hernan Cortes, Jacques Cartier did not attempt to conquer native people"). Assuming I provide enough scaffolding, I think this will turn out really well. It should also put the netbooks to great use, as kids will be responsible for creating multiple documents on the netbook and doing additional research. Can't wait!

Worth Watching

As my wife and I start the process of getting set for the school year, slowly but surely, I am trying to go through my google reader for inspiration. One post which I saved was from Brian Crosby of Learning is Messy. When I had started the teacher certification program, and just getting started with web 2.0 tools, I started following a few different blogs. This was one which I followed fairly regularly, but was intimidated by because of how impactful the teaching was. It was as close to problem based learning as it gets, and the experience was moving to me.

Fast forward to last year and I tried to implement some of those same tools. We used our class wiki on a regular basis. It was an effective tool that students could use to write about events in US history, as well as revise some of the work of their peers. Beyond that they were able to search for other usable sites that would add depth to the information they already learned by embedding links and pictures. But I shied away from blogging in year one, if for no other reason than uncertainty around how it would work with 60 kids (and no true plan for how to ensure it would be connected to the standards).

Below you'll find a link to the TEDxDenverEd presentation by Brian Crosby. It further reinvigorates me as I prep for the upcoming school year.

It Takes a Village

I am struggling with ideas for the "Village." Village is a giant project that the school undertakes where each classroom becomes a store. My master teacher has sold plants in the past, and we will be doing that again this year. But I am trying to conjure up other ideas that we can have at our store... Ideally I would have some ideas going forward, and I plan to also bring this to our kiddos... what do they think our class should sell to go with our plant/garden theme? Any ideas would be appreciated...

Authentic Problems

As TeacherWife and I were talking to a Kindergarten teacher friend of our's, an aside comment came out:

...That is what I don't like very much about our math curriculum, it is difficult to integrate problem-based learning into it... and to connect the curriculum with authentic problems.

Ahhh, a problem I have been thinking about myself. The materials we use spiral quickly, which can be a good or bad thing (depends on your point of view). One view is that the quick spiral doesn't allow students to become proficient, let alone master, skills that they are faced with. Without proficiency, students will find trouble as they advance in their mathematical lives. But isn't the concept of mastery or proficiency a way of gatekeeping? The quick spiral gives students a chance to see that concept a myriad of times, and not simply in one concentrated effort.

The spiral was my issue, but I feel far better about it now. Where I struggle now is in connecting the materials (more specifically, the lessons as laid out) to an authentic problem. Part of the job, as a teacher, is to make kids care about what we are teaching. Why should I care about coins today, and polygons tomorrow?

All of this thinking comes as I am reading dy/dan's post about a ball hitting a can!