Instructional Coaching
GCDS
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newsela
Looking for engaging non fiction reading for your students? or current events articles to share with your class? Then check out NEWSELA.
Newsela is a data base of current events/non fiction articles and stories for a variety of age levels and reading abilities. The stories/articles also have a quiz/assessment option and writing prompts that you can share with your class. Also, it syncs with Google Classroom! GCDS has a pro "trial" account. I encourage you to check it out. You're sure to find something of interest for you and your students.
GCDS has FLIPGRID fEVER!
Flipgrid is a video discussion platform- and it's AWESOME. Students can capture short videos to share ideas, respond to questions and have discussions with teachers and classmates. 6th, 7th and 8th graders have loved responding to teachers and each other! HERE is a link on how to sign up.Click HERE for ideas on how to use FlipGrid with your students.
I LOVE Sticky Notes. Check out these activities!
New School year... New you?
We're a week into the 2017-2018 New School Year! Woo Hoo! Things are new and fresh. You're developing relationships with your students, you're creating exciting lessons, and you're thinking about trying something new this year...!
I read a blog post the other day titled "The Seven Keys to Creative Collaboration" (HERE is a link to it) and in it, the author suggests that many "don't enjoy collaboration" and that "creativity is a solitary endeavor." I think most would agree with these sentiments, but when I think about where my best work with students comes from, I realize that they come from the moments I spend collaborating and creating with colleagues. Sarah Cauldwell's 4th grade mantra, "Together We're Smarter," resonates with me and defines a big part of my teaching practice.
I'm passionate about making things meaningful and attainable for students, connecting with the mission skills, and keeping things new and fresh year after year. In order to be the best I can be in the classroom, creating and collaborating with colleagues is crucial.
...and that's brought me to Instructional Coaching!
What's instructional coaching all about? In short, it's in house professional development! It's free! It's non evaluative! And most of all, it's fun! Click HERE to read more about it.
So... if you're interested in partnering to design/redefine a lesson/project/assessment email me! We'll set up a time to meet. If you're interested in working with a group, join the Teaching and Learning Group on Differentiated Fridays! If you're not sure you're willing to commit to anything just yet, check out the various pages on this site (definitely watch the video below) and then email me to dive deeper!
Happy Teaching!
Dear Teacher...
I encourage you to take a look at this video as you begin thinking about this new school year. It's incredible. These students are giving heartfelt advice to their teachers- a great reminder for all of us.
10 Team-Building Games for back to school fun
Looking for some inspirational back to school fun?! HERE is a list of Team-Building games that promote critical thinking!
Do Your Students trust? Hope?
Feel a sense of worth?
what is a hyperdoc?
"A HyperDoc is a digital document—such as a Google Doc—where all components of a learning cycle have been pulled together into one central hub. Within a single document, students are provided with hyperlinks to all of the resources they need to complete that learning cycle. " I've become a fan of the HyperDoc- I've used them with students and teachers alike and have found much success. Take a look at THIS article by Jennifer Gonzales which explains how and why they're effective. Let's connect if you're interested, I have many templates for you to choose from.
How to bring "more beautiful questions" back to school
"Right around the age of 5 or 6, questioning drops off a cliff." In THIS article, Katrina Schwartz identifies 5 ways to help students become better questioners.
VR is @ GCDS!
My social studies class and I went to Egypt today! We stood on the top of the Great Pyramid, visited the Sphinx, checked out temples and tombs...and it was AWESOME! We used Google Expeditions to explore the treasures.
GCDS now has a class set of VR headsets for you to borrow! Let me know if you're interested and we can set it up for you and your students.
10 Games to play with words or numbers
HERE is a list of games to play with any age group. Included are some fun ideas and templates to use! The focus is on vocabulary, but any of these games can be used with math concepts as well. Ganes include: Jeopardy, Bingo, Memory & Headbandz.
To Encourage Creativity, ask: "what if?"
"Where does creativity come from? Are there tricks we can use to be more creative, or, for that matter, that parents and educators can instill? "
THIS article encourages us to ask children "What if..?" to encourage creativity. It's like a "secret tunnel into a world of new ideas."
Find and create engaging videos for students
I've become a huge fan of EDpuzzle. In it, you can find a variety of videos and edit them to make them engaging and track student learning. It links to Google Classroom, so you can post your edited videos directly to your classroom.
Click HERE to check it out.
10 Creative project ideas that promote deeper understanding
From a digital Flat Stanley to making your own silly putty, THIS article has a solid collection of creative projects to use with your students.
engaged or compliant?
Check out THIS article which highlights 8 different qualities that indicate student engagement.
Bell Work: Great Ideas for Class Starters
Looking for new/interesting ideas to begin class? or have a few extra minutes to fill? Check out THIS article from Edutopia which lists ten ideas to engage students and spark their imagination and creativity.
Summarizing Strategies
I’m always on the lookout for alternate ways to get students to summarize work they’ve read. HERE’S an article that highlights three quick, easy ways to have students tell about a book or passage they’ve read.
Sarah Abercrombie shared this back in March, but I thought I’d share again because IT’S AWESOME.
Discovery Education has made it super easy to search for and share videos with students. The content is incredible- especially for science and history classes (no advertisements like some You Tube videos). When you find a video you can easily share it to Google Classroom, download it or share via email.
You can also make classes within the site.
HERE’s a link to it. Simply sign in with Google.
As always, let me know if I can support!
Sponge Activities
Have extra time in a class and need something to do with your students? Check out THIS list of Sponge activities from Edutopia. It’s always a idea good to have a list of interesting/engaging activities in your back pocket!
Everyone Loves an Icebreaker!
IceBreakers are a great way to engage students! Active listening, collaborating, cooperating and discussing are just a few of the skills that ice breakers can tap into. I’ve found much success with these activities, not only for “breaking the ice”, but by using them in my academic classes. All of the activities in THIS document can easily be transformed to meet academic curriculum objectives.
Home Sick? Students Can Still Be a Part of Class!
My social studies students are often working on a collaborative project. Last year, a student was home sick and her partner noticed that she was on their shared Google doc during class. They began chatting in the doc, but needed to have a face to face conversation. He asked me if it’d be possible for them to connect via Facetime- they did. They spent the remainder of class working collaboratively in the shared doc and chatting over Facetime! A win!
Using Picture Books
Using picture books can often serve as a foundation for deep, meaningful conversations. From Nursery to 9th grade, I believe picture books not only provide great text ideas, but they can also be used as mentor texts. Pernille Rip is a teacher and blogger who has shared numerous picture book ideas to achieve a variety of strategies. THIS post shares “Great Picture Books to Serve as Words of the Wiser”. If you are a fan of picture books as I am, check out her posts. She has a variety of them with terrific picture book ideas.
Using SWIVL to Record Yourself
Watching yourself teach is a terrific way to improve your practice. Using video allows for self reflection and professional growth. The benefits are not only to you, but also influence the students in your class.
“The reflection that I did myself, when I videoed, offered me more opportunity for growth than anything an outsider could do for me. Watching my kids, what went on in my room, how I handled it, and things I said—that was more important than any sit-down that I could have with anybody [else]. ” -Best Foot Forward teacher, North Carolina (2013)
The SWIVL is an easy, unobtrusive way to make this happen. Check out THIS guide from SWIVL that offers classroom strategies to foster student and teacher development. GCDS has SWIVLS in the lower and middle schools- let me know if you’re interested in using it. I’m happy to get you set up!
Teaching, Learning & Coaching Conference October, 2015
Anne, Johnna and I attended the Teaching, Learning & Coaching conference in Denver this past week (October 26-28). We spent three days talking about teaching and learning. From student engagement, to the importance of active listening and collaboration; we enjoyed every minute meeting with and learning from educators from across the country. Jim Knight, Anne Hoffman, Elena Aguilar and Jennifer Abrams were a few of the educational specialists we were able to work with and learn from. Check out my reflections here on the right.
Padlet: A Digital “Chalk Talk”
Padlet.com is an easy way to create and collaborate with your students. I asked the students to reflect on a chapter they read for homework. Instead of having a verbal conversation, we held a digital/silent conversation. Padlet allows multiple users to post comments, images, and/or videos simultaneously. It gives every student a voice. If you’re familiar with the Chalk Talk you might consider using this digital tool. Click HERE to see what we created in a matter of minutes.
Random Name Generator
I just came across this easy and quick “name/group generator” last night. It uses a Google Spreadsheet to create random partnerships for you- you can create a group of 2, 3 , 4- whatever you like. It’s fun to use on the SmartBoard so kids can see who their partners are- great way to add an element of surprise to your pairings.
To create a random name picker from a Google Sheet simply use the template provided by Flippity and modify the spreadsheet to include the names of your students instead of the placeholder names in the template sheet. Click HERE to access Flippity Name Generator. Flippity.net actually publishes a number of useful Google Sheets templates you can use with your students. Click HERE to find other templates- quiz shows, progress charts, certificates, etc.