Cause my classroom is beautiful, in every single way... or at least this differentiated grouping with the flipped classroom institute's guidance is!
I am on cloud 9 right now.
For the past week I've been basically doing the Flipped Classroom thing 100% (except the whole watching the lectures outside of class - until we figure out how to easily and repeatedly make them available to the class for free) including the pre-tests and differentiation afterwards.
Let me tell you - my days are almost boring right now. Almost being the key word. Why are they boring and why I am excited about it? Putting my students into differentiated groups and giving them the rule that they can't ask me a question until they've asked everyone in their groups means almost no one talks to me all class.
This has been awesome for individual remediation - walking around looking at their work and just letting them know this one step is incorrect or so, asking about their outside interests between problems, and mostly watching the confidence levels rise of the students who feel they are always the "dumb" ones being able to step it up within their group and be the smart one of that level.
Now as far as these groups go - the students are well aware that how they did on the pre-test determined their grouping. The groups are numbered according to the Marzano scale, so the students can judge where they started and where they are headed in terms of their knowledge of a learning goal.
I want to make a giant poster of "there is no shame in not knowing something you haven't been taught - there is shame in not learning more than what you came with" or something like that for my room since that is the motto I keep repeating - and it seems to be sinking in!
Wednesday, January 30, 2013
Tuesday, January 22, 2013
In a differentiated classroom do you really need a gifted endorsement?
So one of my goals this year was to begin my gifted endorsement. It was the first time they were offering a gifted endorsement class online and I wanted in.
Or so I thought.
I realized that a good gifted classroom is really just a differentiated classroom. Or at least that is what I am getting so far.
It makes me wonder... if we are constantly being trained and reminded about differentiated our classroom, and differentiation is good teaching practice, then why do we continue to need endorsements for specific smaller groups of students, such as the gifted population?
Or so I thought.
I realized that a good gifted classroom is really just a differentiated classroom. Or at least that is what I am getting so far.
It makes me wonder... if we are constantly being trained and reminded about differentiated our classroom, and differentiation is good teaching practice, then why do we continue to need endorsements for specific smaller groups of students, such as the gifted population?
Wednesday, January 16, 2013
Lights, Camera, Action
It is going to be a very busy next two months here!
Monday was the first day of the first class of my gifted endorsement AND it was also the first day of my Flipped Classroom Institute - YES, I GOT IN!!!
With my acceptance email there was a link to a website with all of the class information I have officially purchased my boards, watched a bagillion videos on how to create a video lecture, and, as of today, filmed my first, FIZZ style video lecture.
I warn you - I am TOTALLY awkward in front of the camera but it was my first one.
I have to make four more this week alone! I can't wait to share! I already have my boards set up for the next video on reading Distance versus Time Graphs.
Monday was the first day of the first class of my gifted endorsement AND it was also the first day of my Flipped Classroom Institute - YES, I GOT IN!!!
With my acceptance email there was a link to a website with all of the class information I have officially purchased my boards, watched a bagillion videos on how to create a video lecture, and, as of today, filmed my first, FIZZ style video lecture.
I warn you - I am TOTALLY awkward in front of the camera but it was my first one.
I have to make four more this week alone! I can't wait to share! I already have my boards set up for the next video on reading Distance versus Time Graphs.
Friday, January 11, 2013
Give 'Em A Hand!!
I really love my students.
But lets rewind to explain the full story.
Before break my advanced students got an assignment to help solidify our knowledge about heat. The premise is this:
A business named Hot Stuff Cookware who makes the BEST pots and pans around (The Biebs, Lil Wayne, Obama, One Direction, Kate Middleton, and all of their moms, use those pots and pans) wanted to expand and make oven mitts. So they hired my class to do their research. They had styrofoam, cotton from socks, cotton from a sweatshirt, and aluminum foil. My students had to design an experiment to see which one of the materials they were given worked best (or combination of the materials - they were designing the experiment so it was up to them) and then report back in a business letter. The letters are SO amazing!
Here are a few of my favorites...
Aren't they great? These students deserve a hand - of the applause kind!
Grading these was so much fun. Plus, the students really enjoy the opportunity to do work like real scientists would.
But lets rewind to explain the full story.
Before break my advanced students got an assignment to help solidify our knowledge about heat. The premise is this:
A business named Hot Stuff Cookware who makes the BEST pots and pans around (The Biebs, Lil Wayne, Obama, One Direction, Kate Middleton, and all of their moms, use those pots and pans) wanted to expand and make oven mitts. So they hired my class to do their research. They had styrofoam, cotton from socks, cotton from a sweatshirt, and aluminum foil. My students had to design an experiment to see which one of the materials they were given worked best (or combination of the materials - they were designing the experiment so it was up to them) and then report back in a business letter. The letters are SO amazing!
Here are a few of my favorites...
Aren't they great? These students deserve a hand - of the applause kind!
Grading these was so much fun. Plus, the students really enjoy the opportunity to do work like real scientists would.
Thursday, January 10, 2013
Breaking Down... 2012 and 2013
So winter break is over. That is both a Yay and a Boo.
Boo...
Who doesn't want more time off?
Yay...
What a great opportunity to start fresh with your same students!
They really do go through a RESET over break. They come back and remember you as fun and nice and with a totally open mind about your class.
At least mine did (no complaints here) :) I came back to this amazing note from a student!
Plus I took a random personal day yesterday to hang out with my friend Grant who came to town from Colorado- HELLO BEACH TIME!
So, as a blog writer, I feel obliged to dissect my 2012 and go into my 2013 plans.
So here goes:
2012: Awesome year teaching. Finished out my second year with what I thought was the best group of students ever. I tried to really push myself - I became a DEN Star Educator and logged my first training session about how I use DE in my classroom, I became the Science Specialist for South Breeze Day Camp expanding my student experience to include students from three years old to rising freshman, I was asked to give a district wide optional training on how to use one of our resources, Holt's ThinkCentral Science Fusion - that was the first district training I did and I was SO nervous and excited. It went pretty well. Then started our school year - I was offered a class set of iPads for my classroom - a pilot program and I am lucky enough to have 25 iPads in the room! My science coach and I applied for and received funding to go to the NSTA Regional Conference in Atlanta in November - an AMAZING learning experience. At the beginning of December I went to the Day of Discovery training put on by DE where I heard from Lodge McCammon about Flipping the Classroom. Wow!
2013 Goals:
-keep enjoying these great students! They are why I love my job and I have a wonderful group this year.
-keep working with programs like Edmodo to make my classroom more tech friendly to really utilize the awesome tools that the iPads are giving us
-Keep my DEN Start Status (already done! I started off the year giving two trainings during our back to school professional development day!)
-Get into and complete the FIZZ Flipped Classroom Institute online (half done! I got in, it starts on Sunday!)
-Flip my classroom (2013-2014 school year completely, partially for this year)
-Apply for the NSTA New Teacher Academy
-Really look over the Next Generation Science State Standards and get to know them
-Actually keep up this blog (unlike my other blog adventures) and my overall internet presence -like use my twitter for education stuff more (not just reading about the news, but adding my thoughts to it)
-I would like to have my students make a video with the iPads... this is proving rather difficult as the process to purchase apps hasn't been solidified yet and iMovie isn't already on the iPads
-Possibly attempt a gifted endorsement...
- Get an intern! (more on that later!)
-Look into ways to further my career
That's probably all for now (can there be more?) along with the usual stuff I've already done and want to keep doing (coaching, camp job, having a personal life...).
Bring it on 2013!!
Boo...
Who doesn't want more time off?
Yay...
What a great opportunity to start fresh with your same students!
They really do go through a RESET over break. They come back and remember you as fun and nice and with a totally open mind about your class.
At least mine did (no complaints here) :) I came back to this amazing note from a student!
Plus I took a random personal day yesterday to hang out with my friend Grant who came to town from Colorado- HELLO BEACH TIME!
So, as a blog writer, I feel obliged to dissect my 2012 and go into my 2013 plans.
So here goes:
2012: Awesome year teaching. Finished out my second year with what I thought was the best group of students ever. I tried to really push myself - I became a DEN Star Educator and logged my first training session about how I use DE in my classroom, I became the Science Specialist for South Breeze Day Camp expanding my student experience to include students from three years old to rising freshman, I was asked to give a district wide optional training on how to use one of our resources, Holt's ThinkCentral Science Fusion - that was the first district training I did and I was SO nervous and excited. It went pretty well. Then started our school year - I was offered a class set of iPads for my classroom - a pilot program and I am lucky enough to have 25 iPads in the room! My science coach and I applied for and received funding to go to the NSTA Regional Conference in Atlanta in November - an AMAZING learning experience. At the beginning of December I went to the Day of Discovery training put on by DE where I heard from Lodge McCammon about Flipping the Classroom. Wow!
2013 Goals:
-keep enjoying these great students! They are why I love my job and I have a wonderful group this year.
-keep working with programs like Edmodo to make my classroom more tech friendly to really utilize the awesome tools that the iPads are giving us
-Keep my DEN Start Status (already done! I started off the year giving two trainings during our back to school professional development day!)
-Get into and complete the FIZZ Flipped Classroom Institute online (half done! I got in, it starts on Sunday!)
-Flip my classroom (2013-2014 school year completely, partially for this year)
-Apply for the NSTA New Teacher Academy
-Really look over the Next Generation Science State Standards and get to know them
-Actually keep up this blog (unlike my other blog adventures) and my overall internet presence -like use my twitter for education stuff more (not just reading about the news, but adding my thoughts to it)
-I would like to have my students make a video with the iPads... this is proving rather difficult as the process to purchase apps hasn't been solidified yet and iMovie isn't already on the iPads
-Possibly attempt a gifted endorsement...
- Get an intern! (more on that later!)
-Look into ways to further my career
That's probably all for now (can there be more?) along with the usual stuff I've already done and want to keep doing (coaching, camp job, having a personal life...).
Bring it on 2013!!
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