sutton007

Live Session using Pear Deck       Student 'voice' is a concern for many teachers.   Classes are filled with those students who always participate and have their hand raised.  But these are the same classes filled with students who sit back and let others do the talking for them.  How can we ensure these students are 'active' participants? One way to make sure that "all" students have a voice is to use an "interactive" digital tool such as Pear Deck , Nearpod , Formative & more.  These tools allow students to share their answers at the same time.   Being actively engaged!       As teachers can see student answers in 'realtime' there are many advantages to using such tools. Talk about formative assessment! Immediate feedback from the teacher can clarify misconceptions on the spot. Conversations can also be extended beyond the topic depending on student activity.   There are drawing and dragging options too. ...

Ed kicking off EdCampWalpole - Family Feud Style! It's TRUE! Teachers learn best from other teachers.  Perhaps that is why EdCamps are so popular! They are so popular that  our district has dedicated a whole professional development day modeled after the Edcamp style. (Not familiar with Edcamp - read about it HERE .)  Paula B. sharing Osmos to Kindergarten Teachers This is the 3rd year our district has participated in a "modified" Edcamp.   Each year the call goes out to all educators in the system to submit a topic to either "lead", "facilitate" or "explore".  This year more and more teachers shared their craft and experiences with colleagues.  We even had some out of district teachers present. (And a keynote presentation by Alan November!) It's TRUE! Teachers learn best from other teachers!   Why? Because teachers are passionate !  When teachers are passionate about what pedagogy, it's hard not to get excited right alongside them....

On the crest of the New Year many of us think about about making resolutions. It makes me wonder... What percent of people achieve the goals they set for themselves at New Year's?    This post suggests it is only 8%.    So it's not too surprising to realize I've often been a part of the 92% who don't seem to succeed when it comes to New Year's Resolutions.  (More interesting statistics HERE .) The Forbes article suggests that people have trouble following through because the goals people set are often many and vague.   Therefore, setting smaller goals which are tangible lead to seeing one's goals to fruition. In my new role as the Digital Learning Coach, I need to be thinking about the types of goals I am setting for myself and my colleagues.  Positively impacting student learning needs to be at the forefront of all my objectives. The article above also suggest that stating goals publicly also increases the likelihood of succeeding.   ...

Fourth Grade Friends Fourth grade is one of those pivotal years when it comes to friendships! Some students have been friends for many years, meeting each other in preschool or kindergarten.  Others are making new friends each year in their new classroom.   Whatever the case may be, there's always a lot happening with friendships on the playground, in the lunchroom and during class time. While the students are at recess,   I'll take a moment to go outside or watch through the window to get a better sense of which students are playing together.  When students come to me about something that has happened outside, knowing a little bit about their friendships helps them maneuver this part of the school day. As a class we have been focusing on "kindness" this year. Mostly, we have been focusing on the topic through reading books. Some have included Have You Filled A Bucket Today: A Guide to Daily Happiness for Kids by Carol McCloud; Ordinary Mary's Extraordinary Deed...

MedfieldDLD Promo A few weeks back I attended a conference in a neighboring district, #MedfieldDLD (Medfield Digital Learning Day!) It was a day filled with lots of great conversations & lots of learning.  Sessions I attended included: Hyperdocs; NEW Google Sites for Digital Portfolios; Homework: Shifting the Perspective and BreakoutEDU .  While I plan to incorporate ideas from all of these in my classroom somehow I was able to start immediately with the help of this  BreakoutEDU  slidedeck that Kerry Cowell presented. Kerry's Box BreakOuts are a game where "players use teamwork and critical thinking to solve a series of challenging puzzles in order to open a locked box." Literally, the box is locked with several different types of locks! (Number locks, key locks, word lock & direction locks)  Kerry's Breakout was related to the "Back to the Future" theme of the day and very challenging. As we worked through the clues, my team and I felt what it wo...

            Why is it that some problems are more engaging than others? You know the kind I'm talking about...the kind where kids WANT to work through Recess..the kind where the kids CONTINUE to solve it while you're trying to 'move on'...the kind that has kids ASKING for more...the kind that has kids TALKING about it with their classmates.             The other day I stumbled upon one of these types of problems.   I subscribe to Marilyn Burns Math Blog  as she is a math guru and seems to have wonderful ideas and practical resources regarding math. The actual post was titled "When Should or Shouldn't We Give Answers ?" In the post she shares the "1 to 10 Card Investigation" (Read her original post about it here .) I was actually intrigued by the problem.             So during math class, I mentioned the post to my students.  I happened to say that I DID NOT know the answer...