Category: ISTE

ISTE, MSM, PodcastBy Troy Patterson

MSM 667: Ouiji(PT)

Summary:

Shawn and Troy talk about ISTE plans, summer, mistakes, and more. Dave documents the logistics. 

Jokes:  

When God created ducks he thought, “I’ll waterproof that chicken and give it a kazoo.”

Guy just went by with a cart of horseshoes and rabbits’ feet. 

  • I think he’s pushing his luck.

There wasn’t one artist gun fight that didn’t end in a draw.

Not sure if I’ll lolly gag or dilly dally today

It’s challenging for bank managers at parties. 

  • They’re loaners.

Onya Marx must be SO sick of being asked if she’s ready.

I remember that time I woke up in a panic that I was late for work. 

  • Fortunately I was already at my job.

I finished the 14 Day Diet in two hours and 11 minutes.

Those who are organized are just too lazy to look for things.

No need to drive me crazy. I can walk from here.

Free Geese? 

  • Not sure what I’d do with one but I might go take a gander.

We all understand good, better and best. 

  • Why then do we contact the Better Business Bureau?
"Sorry, I couldn't resist" is written above the image of a physical resistor (oval, green in color, with four dark red stripes). The resistor is split apart and shows signs of burning.

Middle School Science Minute  

by Dave Bydlowski (k12science or davidbydlowski@mac.com)

K12Science Podcast:  Logistics Engineer

I was recently reading the May – June 2025 issue of “The Science Teacher”, a publication of the National Science Teaching Association.

In this issue, I read the section, “Career of the Month” written by Luba Vangelova  She wrote an article entitled, “‘Logistics Engineer Ron Charest.”

Logistics engineers typically work on supply chains, which encompass all of the steps required to get finished products to users, from procuring raw materials for factories, to warehousing and transporting goods.  Ron Charest is a logistics engineer for the Coast Guard in Washington, DC.

 http://k12science.net/logistics-engineer/

Reports from the Front Lines

  • Ahh…Summer time
  • ISTE
    • Devices (MacBook, iPad, iPad, iPhone, Insta360)
    • Sessions

The Social Web

‪Keep Indiana Learning‬ ‪@keepinlearning.bsky.social‬

Summer plans + license renewal? Get your PGPs done with ease! Our Digital Content Library lets you learn wherever you are this summer. Flexible & convenient & ready for you! keepindianalearning.org/digital-cont… #EduSky

Brian Klaas ‪@brianklaas.bsky.social‬

After the latest round of grading papers, I wrote about AI, ChatGPT, the death of the student essay, and what it means for the future of human cognition.  https://www.forkingpaths.co/p/the-death-of-the-student-essayand 

MiddleWeb‬ ‪@middleweb.bsky.social‬

OUR 2025 SUMMER BOOK REVIEW FESTIVAL Doing some personal PD this summer? We’ve pulled together 23 of our reviews from the past year, highlighting books for teachers, school leaders & other educators working with grades 4-8. Check out these summaries! #edusky middleweb.substack.com/p/mw-substac…

‪Ron King‬ ‪@mthman.bsky.social‬

Wrapping up year 27 today! #edchat #mtbos #mschat #EduSky

‪Bernie Goldbach “topgold”‬ ‪@topgold.bsky.social‬

Reuters survey asked about AI platforms and chatbots. Publisher worry that these could further reduce traffic flows to websites and apps. But _all_ generations still prize trusted brands with a track record for accuracy. reutersinstitute.politics.ox.ac.uk/digital-news… h/t @marklittle.bsky.social

PUNS  @ThePunnyWorld

For the science nerds.

Image of a modern cursor and the image of a antique arrowhead.

Susie Dent @susie_dent

Thanks to everyone who voted for ‘went’ – an example of language swerving the expected. Instead of ‘go, goes, goed’ we have ‘go, goes, went’, because speakers decided to opt for the past tense of ‘wend’. This process is called ‘suppletion’.

Eric Curts  @ericcurts

Super excited for #ISTELive in a few weeks! Get details on all 16 of my presentations, booth sessions, and events here: https://controlaltachieve.com/2024/12/my-iste-2025-sessions.html

Strategies:  

Don’t Erase That Mistake

https://www.ascd.org/blogs/dont-erase-that-mistake

Resources:  

Cartoon Academy

Pittsburgh cartoonist Joe Wos takes students through the creative steps of drawing cartoon characters while sharing educational facts on the cartoon subjects. Viewers will also learn artistic terms during each lesson. The videos will be produced in chapter clusters of three, by topic, with episode one in the chapter being the most elementary, and the second and third being slightly more advanced. For ages 6-12.

https://mainepublic.pbslearningmedia.org/collection/cartoon-academy

Than Average

ThanAverage is a small unscientific investigation into how we value and compare ourselves to each other.

https://thanaverage.xyz

Connect Safely

ConnectSafely is a nonprofit based in Silicon Valley that educates people of all ages about online safety, privacy, security and digital wellness. Our resources include research-based safety tips, parents’ guidebooks, advice, news and commentary on all aspects of tech use and policy. We offer in-depth guides and “quick-guides” for parents, educators, youth and policymakers along with resources for seniors and other adults. We also produce the twice-weekly ConnectSafely Report for CBS News Radio along with webcasts, podcasts and special events.

Whether it’s social media, virtual reality or the emerging metaverse, connected technologies bring us enormous advantages, along with some challenges. ConnectSafely’s job is to help users get the most from their technology while managing the risks and help decision-makers craft sensible policies that encourage both innovation and responsible use. ConnectSafely has been a leading voice for rational, research-informed policies — not “moral panics” — when it comes to dealing with challenges brought about by emerging technologies.

We are the U.S. host of Safer Internet Day, a global celebration that takes place on the second Tuesday of each February, and founders of the One Good Thing campaign to surface and celebrate the many ways people of all ages and cultures use connected technology to make the world a better place.

ConnectSafely was founded in 2005 by technology journalist Larry Magid, also founder of SafeKids.com, and Anne Collier of NetFamilyNews.

https://connectsafely.org

AXIS The Culture Translator

“Fridge Sigs”

What it is: “Fridge cigs” are now some teens’ favorite way to take the edge off.

Why it’s not as scary as it sounds: A “fridge cig” doesn’t have any nicotine in it. In fact, it isn’t a cigarette at all—it’s a Diet Coke, chilled to perfection and sipped straight out of the can. Coca-Cola products, in general, have become extremely popular with young people, and now some TikTokers have been coming up with a bevy of tobacco-product inspired nicknames based on the type of cola being consumed. According to some, regular Coke in a glass bottle is a “cigar,” and a Coke Zero is akin to American Spirit cigarettes. As Eve Upton-Clark put it in Fast Company, “In a world full of prebiotic soda and protein water, sometimes all you really want is a crispy “fridge cigarette” to take the edge off.” As far as vices go, Diet Coke barely ranks—and it’s way better than mindlessly trawling on YouTube to de-stress.

Artificial Wisdom

What it is: Some ChatGPT users now believe they’re speaking with spirits.  

Why it’s unsettling: A New York Times article shared the stories of people who became emotionally entangled with AI—convinced it was offering companionship, secret knowledge, and even spiritual insight. Part of the problem is how convincing talking to ChatGPT can feel. It doesn’t “know” anything but it can echo our thoughts, wounds, and desires with uncanny precision. A recent reflection on St. Augustine’s De Doctrina Christiana compares the experiences of these AI users to how demons deceive: not through producing misleading signs directly but through encouraging observers’ mistaken interpretation of what they see. AI works similarly: it mimics meaning, and we supply the rest. AI may be a tool we can use—but it is not a voice we can trust.  

Web Spotlight: 

The Death of the Student Essay—and the Future of Cognition

That’s why convincing students that intelligence is a skill they must cultivate through hard work—no shortcuts—has become one of the core functions of education.

https://www.forkingpaths.co/p/the-death-of-the-student-essayand

Random Thoughts . . .  

Click the Play button below to listen to the show!

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advisory, ISTE, PodcastBy Troy Patterson

MSM 395: ISTE, Irresistible, Jokes, and CSR (not CSI)

Jokes You Can Use:  

I was struggling to hear properly so I went to see the doctors.
He said “Can you describe the symptoms?”
– I said “Homers a fat fella and Marge has blue hair”

 

A vegan said to me: “People who sell meat are disgusting”
– I replied: “People who sell fruit and veg are grocer.“

 

Last night a hypnotist convinced me I was a soft, malleable metal with an atomic number of 82.
– I’m easily lead.

 

My laptop is broken. It just keeps playing “Chasing Pavements” over and over again.
– Probably because it’s a Dell.

 

I noticed that the local convent has no security around the building, so I helped myself.  
– No ‘fence.
– Nun taken.

 

I went round MC Hammer’s house the other day. It was very frustrating, he wouldn’t let me touch anything.

 

I really need to confront my phobia of German sausages, but I fear the wurst.

 

I used to play the triangle in a reggae band but left because it was just one ting after another.

Advisory:

Dollar Street

In the news people in other cultures seem stranger than they are.

We visited 264 families in 50 countries and collected 30,000 photos.

We sorted the homes by income, from left to right.

  • See how people really live

 

https://www.gapminder.org/dollar-street/matrix

 

11 Secrets Of Irresistible People

  1. They Treat Everyone With Respect
  2. They Follow The Platinum Rule
  3. They Ditch The Small Talk
  4. They Focus On People More Than Anything Else
  5. They Don’t Try Too Hard
  6. They Recognize The Difference Between Fact And Opinion
  7. They Are Authentic
  8. They Have Integrity
  9. They Smile
  10. They Make An Effort To Look Their Best (Just Not Too Much Of An Effort)
  11. They Find Reasons To Love Life

https://www.forbes.com/sites/travisbradberry/2015/08/31/11-secrets-of-irresistible-people/#3701b2313a0a

 

Middle School Science Minute  

by Dave Bydlowski (k12science or davidbydlowski@mac.com)

Outstanding Engineering Trade Books for 2018

I was recently reading the February, 2018 issue of “Science Scope,” a magazine written for middle school science teachers, published by the National Science Teachers Association.  

 

In this issue, I read the article on the “Outstanding Science Trade Books for Students K-12: 2018.  In this podcast, I feature Engineering Trade Books:

  1.  “Chasing Space, Young Readers’ Edition” by Leland Melvin
  2.  “Elon Musk and the Quest for a Fantastic Future Young Readers’ Edition” bu Ashlee Vance
  3.  “Finding Wonders: Three Girls Who Changed Science” by Jeannine Atkins
  4.  “Mosquitoes Don’t Bite Me” by Pendred E. Noyce
  5.  “Super Women: Six Scientists Who Changed the World” by Laurie Lawlor

http://k12science.net/Podcast/Podcast/Entries/2018/6/7_Middle_School_Science_Minute__Outstanding_Engineering_Trade_Books_2018.html

From the Twitterverse:  

Rick Wormeli‏ @rickwormeli2

Mike captures a growing concern well, let’s get the conversations going on this: Google, ISTE, and the Death of EdTech https://crowleym.com/2018/06/30/google-iste-and-the-death-of-edtech/ … via @crowley_mike

 

Alice Keeler‏ @alicekeeler

Is using a Google search cheating or is it evidence that our quizzes are outdated??? #iste18

MoodleNews‏ @moodlenews

Plugins with the @MoodleAssoc members seal of approval alive are PoodLL, BigBlueButton, Questionnaire and Level Up! Fellow members unite! http://j.mp/2tJaB7v  @MoodleNews #MoodleWorldCup

 

Sarah Berryman‏ @srberryman

Love this simple info graphic of meaningful student work options! @cultofpedagogy

Eric Curts‏ @ericcurts

Create Video Mash-Ups with Google Slides http://www.controlaltachieve.com/2017/06/slides-video-mashups.html … #edtech

Jamie Mullenaux‏ @JamieMullenaux

Are you your biggest obstacle? If you knew you wouldn’t be judged what would you do? #iste18 @TheTechRabbi #hcpspln

Julie Woodard‏ @woodard_julie

Oh, Snap !!! Somebody asked me for this … I so very much apologize … I can’t remember who needed it …. eeesh

#mschat every Thursday at 8:00 pm Eastern Standard Time.  And as Troy says, “The Twitter never stops!”

ISTE 2018

  • SketchNoting
  • Google Tour Creator
  • Leslie Fisher
  • Oculus GO
    • Gear VR compatible
  • Merge Cube
  • Cisco CSR

Strategies:

 

Grit

  • Duckworth defines as “perseverance and passion for long-term goals,” that captures the public imagination.
  • In a recent peer-reviewed article in the Journal of Educational Controversy, I examined the history of the discourse surrounding this special trait. It far predates Duckworth’s research, of course. My investigation led me to two conclusions. The first is that the widespread assumption that grit is a salient concept for low-income students is a stark misconception. The second is that while grit theory offers little of value to those disadvantaged students, it can certainly harm them, by romanticizing hardship.
  • … More
  • grit was understood as an antidote to the ease and comfort of wealth, which produced spoiled children who lacked the vigor of their ancestors.
  • celebrated Horatio Alger books were written and sold as instructive tools to teach middle and upper class children about the virtues that came from struggling against hardship.
  • In the economic boom following World War Two, sales of Horatio Alger books jumped once again, setting the stage for the 1968 novel and John Wayne film True Grit,
  • Today, however, this history is forgotten
  • To temper the tedium of synthesized academic studies, Tough sprinkles his narrative with interviews with impoverished young people. Most are exemplars of Horatio Alger-style grit, having overcoming absentee parents, racism, and violence before succeeding academically.
  • … More
  • Here, though, is the fundamental problem with the notion that the importance of grit has to do with bettering the chances of disadvantaged students. Children raised in poverty display ample amounts of grit every day, and they don’t need more of it in school.
  • … More
  • grit is not a fixed quality but one that can be developed. And what better arena for developing grit than facing the hardships of poverty and surviving? Poor children, therefore, are not the ones who need to be taught grit.
  • … More
  • Duckworth’s foundational research was conducted in largely privileged populations: Ivy League undergraduates, West Point cadets, and high-achieving contestants in the National Spelling Bee.
  • … More
  • historically, the grit discourse is driven primarily not by concerns about disadvantaged students but by the anxiety of middle and upper-class parents about the character of their own children.
  • overemphasis on character education means that fewer resources will be spent on teaching disadvantaged students the skills and knowledge they need to actually succeed academically and professionally.
  • … More
  • Sisyphus had plenty of grit, but it didn’t get him very far.
  • “[C]an you imagine the outcry if, let’s say, an old toxic dump was discovered near Scarsdale or Beverly Hills and the National Institutes of Health undertook a program to teach kids strategies to lessen the effects of the toxins but didn’t do anything to address the toxic dump itself?” Rose’s point is not that social and emotional learning programs are a waste of time; rather, the problem is that describing these as panaceas can be a dangerous distraction from more pressing issues.
  • … More

 

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/answer-sheet/wp/2016/05/10/the-problem-with-teaching-grit-to-poor-kids-they-already-have-it-heres-what-they-really-need/?noredirect=on&utm_term=.e082b1ab4ab8#annotations:AToOZnGpEeiyhidqm7MlZA

 

Resources:

The Global Problem Solvers (GPS the Series)

“Students focus on real-world social, economic, and environmental problems around the world. Through the program, they learn that coming up with ideas is just the first step in problem solving. While interacting with each other, they discover the stages of making ideas real – design, manufacturing, deployment, maintenance, and funding.”  – Cisco CSR Group

https://www.gpstheseries.com/en-us/teachers/  

Sero Assessment

https://www.serolearn.com/

Flipgrid

Microsoft has acquired education technology startup Flipgrid, Inc., and immediately announced that the subscription social learning platform will be free to all educators.

https://flipgrid.com/

https://blog.flipgrid.com/news/bettertogether

https://educationblog.microsoft.com/2018/06/flipgrid-microsoft-education/  

 

Wheel Decide

Think Wheel of Fortune, but you pick the topics (or names, choices, etc).

“Wheel Decide is a free online spinner tool that allows you to create your own digital wheels for decision making, prize giveaways, raffles, games, and more. Browse through our wheels and spin to randomize your life and make the decisions that have no wrong answers.”

http://wheeldecide.com

 

Web Spotlight:

 

Improving Teaching Effectiveness: Final Report

 

https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RR2242.html#annotations:pRe8anVOEeikuRucRPTy3A

Random Thoughts . . .  

 

Personal Web Site

 

Click the Play button below to listen to the show!

 

advisory, ISTE, PodcastBy Troy Patterson

MSM 363: Where Was I Going With This?

Jokes You Can Use:  

 

For a period, Houdini used a trap door in every single show he did…I guess you could say it was a stage he was going through.

 

What do you get when you cross a joke with a rhetorical question?

 

Q: What did the duck say when he bought lipstick?

A: “Put it on my bill.”

 

Q: What starts with E, ends with E, and has only 1 letter in it?

A: Envelope.

 

There are six eggs in a basket. Six people each take one of the eggs. How can it be that one egg is left in the basket?

  • The last person took the basket.

Advisory:

 

Riddles:

You are driving down the road in your car on a wild, stormy night. You see three people waiting by a bus stop.

  1. An old lady who looks as if she is about to die.
  2. An old friend who once saved your life.
  3. The perfect partner that you’ve been dreaming about.

 

Your car is a two seater. Thus, there can only be one passenger in the car. Who would you choose?  

 

*A: You pull up and give your friend the keys.  He drives the old lady out of harm’s way, he is a hero after all.  You stay with the perfect partner of your dreams and everybody lives happily ever after.  

Wise Words

 

https://9gag.com/gag/a3B4Vg8?ref=pn

Middle School Science Minute  

by Dave Bydlowski (k12science or davidbydlowski@mac.com)

 

WILDCAM GOROGOSA

 

I was recently reading the April/May, 2017 issue of “Science Scope,” a magazine written for middle school science teachers, published by the National Science Teachers Association.  

 

In this issue, I read the the Citizen Science section article, “It All Adds Up.” It was written by Jill Nugent.  The article describes how middle school students and teachers can get involved in the Citizen Science Project – “WildCam Gorongosa” to identify wildlife from trail cam images found in the park.  To participate, please visit:

http://www.wildcamgorongosa.org

 

http://k12science.net/Podcast/Podcast/Entries/2017/7/6_Middle_School_Science_Minute__WildCam_Gorogosa.html

 

From the Twitterverse:  

Jason Gribble‏ @ForestPrincipal

Book number 3 for this summer’s reading. Started it last night. I cannot put it down. Everyone needs this one. #empowerbook – at Lake Erie

http://www.spencerauthor.com/empower/

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B073HJR8HR/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1

 

Common-Core Materials Continue to Vary in Quality, According to Textbook Review http://crwd.fr/2lOzL06

 

Chad A. Stevens‏ @k12cto

Teachers: 6 social assignments for online learning | eSchool News http://ow.ly/vPuw30dnmcI  #edtech

 

Richard Byrne‏ @rmbyrne

Six Types of Classroom Video Projects  https://t.co/FPSMPw8ZsW  

 

Book Creator Team‏Verified account @BookCreatorApp

Top 5 Things I’ve Learned About Creativity – from @TheTechRabbi http://bit.ly/2tYEGlP  via @EdTechTeacher21 #edtech #creativity

Sari Rautiainen‏ @SariRautiainen

In Finland, PhDs are awarded sword as a symbol to defend what’s right and true. My sword stays at home today, but I #marchforscience

#mschat every Thursday at 8:00 pm Eastern Standard Time.  And as Troy says, “The Twitter never stops!”  

 

Strategies:

50 Activities for the First Day of School by Walton Burns  

“Never stress about the first day of school again!  With this book you can walk into any classroom and start the class off.  With no prep, start learning student names, building rapport, assessing knowledge, introducing language, and establishing rules.”  More free resources at:  www.alphabetpublishing.xyz/book/first-day-of-school/  

 

Explainer GIF’s

 

https://www.commoncraft.com/explainergifs

 

Resources:

 

Padlet  

https://padlet.com/  

Apps for (most) any device

From Padlet’s website:  

Don’t miss any of the action, even when you’re away from a computer.

  • Available on iOS (iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch), Android, and Kindle devices
  • Posts appear instantly across devices
  • Take photos and scan QR codes from within each app
  • Stellar app ratings (see what we did there?)

Easy and intuitive.  Even if you’ve never used any kind of software before, Padlet is familiar and fun.

  • Add posts with one click, copy-paste, or drag and drop
  • Works the way your mind works – with sight, sound, and touch
  • Changes are autosaved
  • Simple link sharing allows for quick collaboration

 

Web Spotlight:

Academic Standards:  Breaking Whole Things Into Broken Bits  

http://www.teachthought.com/pedagogy/academic-standards-breaking-whole-things-into-broken-bits/  

“A drive to break the Standards down into ‘microstandards’ risks making the checklist mentality even worse than it is today. Microstandards would also make it easier for microtasks and microlessons to drive out extended tasks and deep learning. Finally, microstandards could allow for micromanagement: Picture teachers and students being held accountable for ever more discrete performances. If it is bad today when principals force teachers to write the standard of the day on the board, think of how it would be if every single standard turns into three, six, or a dozen or more microstandards. If the Standards are like a tree, then microstandards are like twigs. You can’t build a tree out of twigs, but you can use twigs as kindling to burn down a tree.”

 

Current Events Webinar

Looking to cover current events next school-year, or need some ideas on how to tackle controversial issues? We have you covered at Share My Lesson this summer with our live and on-demand Summer of Learning professional development webinars covering a wide range of current topics from fake news, to immigration, to how to encourage civil discourse.

All webinars are available for one-hour of professional development credit.

https://sharemylesson.com/collections/current-events-across-curriculum-webinars

Apple Teacher Certification Program

  • Becoming an Apple Teacher:  Fuel Your Passion for Learning
    • Apple Teacher Learning Center
    • Free iBooks today.  
  • Every Learner is a creator.
    • Expect a lot from classroom technology.  
    • User Experience, Accessibility, Apps to Create.  
    • Everyone should learn how to code.  
      • Playgrounds app on the iPad
    • Apple Teacher Program
    • Deployment and Management  
      • Classroom Manager and App
  • How do you fuel your passion for learning when you’re not at ISTE?
  • Apple Teacher
    • Just-In-Time Resources  
    • Teachers choose the skills they want to work on.
    • Free self-paced program.  
  • Keynote
    • Use Keynote as a vocabulary activity.  
    • Scavenger hunts
  • Additional Learning Opportunities
    • Teacher Tuesday at the Apple Store
    • EdTechTeam – Apple Teacher Conferences  
  • Next Steps
    • Sign up using your Apple ID and password:  appleteacher.apple.com
    • Explore:  Apple Teacher Learning Center and take a Quiz.
  • What’s your Apple Teacher story?
    • #AppleTeacher or @AppleEDU
  • Website:  apple.co/education-iste  
  • apple.com/education for apple resources.  
  • West lobby has a social media mosaic.  
  • @ForTheLoveOfLearning  

 

Random Thoughts . . .  

 

Personal Web Site

 

Click the Play button below to listen to the show!

 

Conferences, ISTE, MSM, PodcastBy Troy Patterson

MSM 362:   #ISTE? Jennie, we got your number.

Jokes You Can Use:  

 

NASA put a bunch of cows into orbit. They call it the herd shot round the world.

 

Have you ever tried eating a clock? It’s very time consuming.

 

Broken puppets for sale….

No strings attached.

 

What did the Tin Man say when he got run over by a steamroller?

“CURSES, FOIL AGAIN!”

 

What kind of exercise do lazy people do?

Diddly-squats.

 

I went to my Doctor and he suggested I do some exercises. Here is my new regiment…

 

  1. Jump to conclusions
  2. Climb the walls
  3. Drag my heels
  4. Push my luck
  5. Make mountains out of molehills
  6. Bend over backwards
  7. Run in circles
  8. Put my foot in my mouth

 

The village blacksmith hired an enthusiastic new apprentice willing to work long, hard hours.

He instructed the boy, “When I take the shoe out of the fire, I’ll lay it on the anvil. When I nod my head, you hit it with the hammer.”

The apprentice did exactly as he was told, and now he’s the new village blacksmith.

 

 

Advisory:

 

Fish Problem

Use the link below for support materials:

http://ed.ted.com/lessons/can-you-solve-the-fish-riddle-steve-wyborney

 

Middle School Science Minute  

by Dave Bydlowski (k12science or davidbydlowski@mac.com)

 

 

EMPATHY IN STEM EDUCATION

 

I was recently reading the April/May, 2017 issue of “Science Scope,” a magazine written for middle school science teachers, published by the National Science Teachers Association.  

In this issue, I read the the article, “The Importance of Cultivating Empathy in STEM Education.” It was written by Kathy Liu Sun.  The article describes how there are three ways to embed empathy in STEM classes:

  1.  Connect STEM content to real people.
  2.  Bring in a guest to share his or her perspective.
  3.  Add a “human-user” to an existing project.

 

http://k12science.net/Podcast/Podcast/Entries/2017/6/30_Middle_School_Science_Minute__Empathy_in_STEM_Education.html

 

 

From the Twitterverse:  

MiddleWeb‏ @middleweb

Scaffolding Grit – great piece from @tweenteacher Heather Wolpert Gawron. (It starts with passion-based learning.) https://www.edutopia.org/blog/scaffolding-grit-heather-wolpert-gawron …

 

Shannon Miller‏ @shannonmmiller

Where are my @flipgrid lovers? Here are 15+ ways to use Flipgrid in your class! http://ow.ly/lV3a30cTvRt  #EdTech #FutureReady #EdChat

 

Liz Kolb‏ @lkolb

Classroom Games and Tech: Essential Summer Reading – The Triple E Framework http://classroomgamesandtech.blogspot.com/2017/06/essential-summer-reading-triple-e.html?spref=tw

 

Jennie Magiera‏Verified account @MsMagiera

Reflecting on #ISTE17. TY to all for so much love & support, to those who shared & @BrianRSmithSr for this video: https://www.pscp.tv/1to1Brian/1MnxnalkDbXJO?t=2s …

Jonathan Wylie‏ @jonathanwylie

30 Free Google Drawings Graphic Organizers via @ericcurts http://bit.ly/2ty8ohE

 

Kevin Michael‏ @teacherMrMic

Small changes can make a big difference. #ShiftThis @JoyKirr

Class Ideas‏ @class_ideas

More teachers leaving profession, new DfE research shows http://crwd.fr/2qvPXnM

#mschat every Thursday at 8:00 pm Eastern Standard Time.  And as Troy says, “The Twitter never stops!”  

 

Strategies:

 

Meet the Teacher Flyer

 

Create a flyer to pass out with expectations, web links, contact info, and things that you want parents to know.

 

 

 

New Study Shows the Impact of PBL on Student Achievement

Does project-based learning (PBL) raise student achievement? If you’ve been involved in PBL for long, you’ve undoubtedly encountered this question. Over the last few years as education researchers at University of Michigan and Michigan State University, we have worked to address this question through a large study of the effects of PBL on social studies and some aspects of literacy achievement in second-grade classrooms. We call this initiative Project PLACE: A Project Approach to Literacy and Civic Engagement.

https://www.edutopia.org/article/new-study-shows-impact-pbl-student-achievement-nell-duke-anne-lise-halvorsen

Resources:

 

#ISTE17:  ISTE 2017 Annual Conference Keynote #2 – Jennie Magiera  

Chicago Public Schools Chief Technology Officer

http://www.teachinglikeits2999.com/  

It starts with a story in Seoul, South Korea.  Teachers can help you be your whole self.  “Stereotypes aren’t wrong, they’re just incomplete.”  They lack from a complete telling of the story.  As educators, whose story are we telling?  How are others getting an incomplete story and how can we advocate for our students, ourselves and our profession to tell our story?  Theme:  “I am looking for someone to share in an adventure that I am arranging . . . and it is very difficult to find anyone.”  – Gandalf the Grey  Teachers are wizards.  The untold story of Wizards:  The Single Story of Resistant Colleagues (“I love ISTE!  It feels like a wizard convention!), The Untold Story of Innovation, The Untold Story of Our Inner-selves, and how Technology Helps Us Shatter the Single Story.  Find the untold stories and set them free!  

Courageous Edventures, Jennie Magiera  

Chart a course to innovation using educational technology. Let’s go on an edventure! Want to leverage digital tools to innovate and take risks in your teaching? Looking for ways to troubleshoot common classroom challenges? Jennie Magiera charts a course for you to discover your own version of innovation, using the limitless possibilities of educational technology. Packed with lesson plans, examples and practical solutions, Courageous Edventures will show you:

  • How to make school innovation approachable for all educators
  • How to create your own Teacher-IEP (Innovation Exploration Plan) how to use it to guide you through Problem Based Innovation
  • Strategies and solutions for tackling common educational technology problems
  • Methods for putting learning into the hands of students
  • How to find innovation in everyday places

Broken into four sections to scaffold your journey. The chapters are organized to steer each step of your innovation odyssey but also allow you to simply pick up the book, find what you need and dig in.

  • Part 1 “Charting Your Course” helps you prepare for a digital transformation
  • Part 2 “Navigating Your Problems” leads you through Problem Based Innovation to help you first identify and overcome problems through new digital strategies
  • Part 3 “Sailing into the Great Beyond” pushes you further to take bigger risks to transform your practice
  • Part 4 “Reflecting on Your Edventure” helps you reflect and share your journey

Important Features:

  • Acknowledges the hurdles in the pathway of attempting digital transformation and innovation and provides numerous practical strategies to overcome them
  • Breaks down actual classroom problems of practice in the areas of Assessment, Differentiation, Planning and Parent Communication to focus digital transformation in strong classroom instruction and pedagogy.
  • Focuses on strategies over tools, but still provides a companion website for step-by-step tutorials, examples of student work and ready-to-use templates

https://www.pscp.tv/1to1Brian/1MnxnalkDbXJO?t=2s

Padlet  

https://padlet.com/  

Apps for (most) any device

From Padlet’s website:  

Don’t miss any of the action, even when you’re away from a computer.

  • Available on iOS (iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch), Android, and Kindle devices
  • Posts appear instantly across devices
  • Take photos and scan QR codes from within each app
  • Stellar app ratings (see what we did there?)

Easy and intuitive.  Even if you’ve never used any kind of software before, Padlet is familiar and fun.

  • Add posts with one click, copy-paste, or drag and drop
  • Works the way your mind works – with sight, sound, and touch
  • Changes are autosaved
  • Simple link sharing allows for quick collaboration

 

Web Spotlight:

 

 

Why mythbusting fails: A guide to influencing education with science

“If it disagrees with experiment, it’s wrong,” physicist Richard Feynman said. “In that simple statement is the key to science.”

By this measure, the learning-styles hypothesis has failed too many times to count.

 

https://deansforimpact.org/why-mythbusting-fails-a-guide-to-influencing-education-with-science/

 

The Best Sites Where Students Can Transcribe Historical Texts

 

 

http://larryferlazzo.edublogs.org/2017/06/29/the-best-sites-where-students-can-transcribe-historical-texts/

 

10 Risks Every Teacher Should Take With Their Class

As I work with students and teachers there is one common thread that the “stand-out” classrooms share: They take risks. Not only do these students and teachers take learning risks, but they also take them together.

http://ajjuliani.com/10-risks-every-teacher-take-class-2/

 

 

How Did I Do? Reflecting on My Stretch Goals

 

https://www.middleweb.com/35082/how-did-i-do-reflecting-on-my-stretch-goals/

 

Random Thoughts . . .  

ISTE Unplugged session:  HackEd 2017.  One of these people can be heard on Middle School Matters!  Can you find them?  

 

Click the Play button below to listen to the show!

 

 

 

advisory, ISTE, MSM, Podcast, Tech, Web SpotlightBy Troy Patterson

MSM 249: In Spite of It All, Here’s a Show….

Presented in collaboration with the Association for Middle Level Education.

Jokes You Can Use:

Which farmer sits on his tractor shouting, “The end is nigh.”?

Farmer Geddon

What do you call a ghost at a hotel?

An inn spectre

 

What was the worst thing about Robin Hood’s house?

It had a little john.

 

What is Forrest Gump’s Facebook password?

1Forrest1.

 

Why did the paranoid guy quit Twitter?

He thought he was being followed.

 

What’s the scariest thing in geometry?

A vicious circle.

 

Why are dwarfs good at maths?

Because it’s the little things that count.

 

What’s ET short for?

Because he’s got little legs.

 

Do you know the difference between illegal and unlawful?

Unlawful means “against the law” and illegal is a sick bird.

 

Why was the calendar depressed?

 

Why are there no zebras in Czech zoos?

Stripes and Czechs don’t mix.

Eileen Award:

  • iTunes:

  • Twitter: Michael Smith, Todd VanHorn, Sue Waters, AJ Juliani, Shelley Burgess, Patrick Larkin, Lisa Linn, Alec Couros, Darin Jolly and Vicky Smart,

  • Diigo: Ron King.

  • Facebook: Kathy Rose

 

Advisory:

7 Word Autobiographies

 

http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2013/07/11/nypl-live-holdengraber-7-word-bios/

 

Middle School Science Minute

by Dave Bydlowski (k12science or davidbydlowski@mac.com)

 

Design Based Troubleshooting

 

I was recently reading the March, 2013 issue of Science Scope, a magazine for middle school science teachers, published by the National Science Teachers Association.  An article that caught my attention was:

“Troubleshooting: A bridge that connects engineering design and scientific inquiry.”  It was written by David Crismond.

 

This article compares classic troubleshooting versus design-based troubleshooting.  The emphasis of troubleshooting is on observing, diagnosing, explaining, and fixing.  Troubleshooting stands ready as a bridge that can link the practices of engineering design with those of scientific inquiry.

From the Twitterverse:

* Sophia.org ‏@sophia

Hey Teachers, Summer is the perfect time to get Flipped Class Certified. Try this free program & say flip flip hooray
* Nein. ‏@NeinQuarterly

Theory and praxis walk into a bar. Praxis, pointing to theory: “I’ll have what he’s thinking of having.”
* Tom Grissom ‏@tomgrissom

Surface RT for Teachers http://eiuitc.blogspot.com/2013/07/surface-rt-for-teachers-glass-half.html?view=magazine … a new journey begins
* Steven W. Anderson ‏@web20classroom 1h

From @KleinErin-Foundations Of Flipping:)
* Kyle Pace ‏@kylepace

30 Ways to use Chromebooks in the Classroom #chromebookedu #edtech https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1GLmWQ7EJyqF-5ViHaQINkAId2mw9Qoc8KXNN0rVJglM/mobilepresent?pli=1#slide=id.gd3883805_2_18 …
* teachertime123.com ‏@teachertime123 3h

50 Impressive iPad Apps to Fuel Lifelong Learners http://www.teachertime123.com/2012/08/50-impressive-ipad-apps-to-fuel-lifelong-learners/ … via @teachertime123
* Will Richardson ‏@willrich45

RT @JosieHolford: How to learn with technology. Embrace – Unplug – Reboot. Repeat. http://flip.it/6se2F
* Kevin Cummins ‏@edgalaxy_com

The biggest collection of Titanic Education resources for teachers and students. http://www.ultimatetitanic.com/education/
* Susie Highley ‏@shighley

These Twitterville Talk posts are amazing: about as complete a wrap up of the week in chidren’s books you can find!
* Patrick Larkin ‏@patrickmlarkin

MT @baldy7: Soc. Media Has Ruined Grammar (And Other Elementary School Skills You No Longer Need) http://zite.to/1bAfvGj  via @zite #bpschat
* Michele Corbat ‏@MicheleCorbat 6h

Nine Days I Am Looking Forward To Celebrating With My Students http://wp.me/p21t9O-15t  via @colbysharp
* Joy Kirr ‏@JoyKirr 36m

#1st5days MT @LeydenTechy: First day of school ideas: 11 Ways To Get To Know Your Students with Technology http://wp.me/p1RCVK-bW  #ahsd25
* Kyle Pace ‏@kylepace 54m

60 Chrome Apps & Extensions – from @sbehmer #googlect
* Eric Sheninger ‏@NMHS_Principal 18 Jul

Love how @l_hilt has incorporated Fed-Ex Days into PD #lead30
* Monte Tatom ‏@drmmtatom 19 Jul

Analyzing the Teaching of Professional Practice ~ #fhuedu622A #fhuedu501 #highered http://www.tcrecord.org/Content.asp?ContentId=16497 …

#mschat every Thursday at 8:00 pm Eastern Standard Time.

 

Resources:

ISTE Videos

Lots of sessions available for your review.

http://www.youtube.com/playlist?hl=en&gl=US&client=mv-google&list=PL6aVN_9hcQEFDH57WbT4sY8xQ6Mpp5kbO&nomobile=1

Goals

When you set your goals for the fall, don’t forget your soft goals.

Even more so, we, as teachers, need to be intentional about what we want to help our students be. Thankful. Passionate. Curious. Ethical. Perseverant. Creative… and the list goes on.

Intentionally think about your soft goals because these give you a canvas upon which you will paint your class activities. They should influence the posters you select, the projects you design, and the lessons you plan. You can teach math in a way that harnesses the power of passion. You can weave lessons in that will allow students to show thankfulness to others. You can have projects that foster curiosity.

 

http://coolcatteacher.blogspot.com/2013/07/why-you-should-set-soft-goals-for-your.html?m=1

 

How to Nap

 

http://holykaw.alltop.com/how-to-nap-effectively-infographic?tu2=1

ColAR

 

Color in the book pages and then see them come to life as they pop out of the page as 3D models on your mobile

http://colarapp.com/

https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/colar-mix/id650645305?mt=8&ign-mpt=uo%3D4

 

RSA Videos:

 

Sir Kenneth Robinson – How to find your element

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KDhhIghXxfo

 

Carol Dweck – How to Help Every Child Fulfil Their Potential

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yyVZ0KKJuTg

 

Web Spotlight:

ISTE Follow Up

  • Everyone loves Instagram.

  • Pinterest is gaining popularity as a way to collect and share resources.

  • Google Glass has the biggest “wow” factor amongst the ed tech crowd since the first iPhone.

  • The shift from tools to best practices has made major strides (or maybe I just picked better sessions this year.)

  • ISTE is less about technology and more about education reform, transformation, and 21st century learning.

  • The commercialization of education is far too prominent at ISTE.

  • My best learning still takes place in unstructured situations.

  • We as teachers need to learn how to be learners again.

  • Students need to hear less talking and have more time for exploration, self-directed learning, and failure.

  • We need to take back play and bring the fun and games back to learning.

  • Teachers don’t share their work because they don’t think they have anything remarkable to share.

  • You and I are the change makers.

 

http://thecornerstoneforteachers.com/2013/06/big-ideas-from-iste-2013.html

The world’s most famous teacher blasts school reform

The most famous teacher in the world is not a fan of high-stakes standardized tests,  Teach For America or the Common Core State Standards.

 

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/wp/2013/07/16/the-worlds-most-famous-teacher-blasts-school-reform/?wprss=rss_education&clsrd

 

Music that you listen to as you work:

 

Wait, what about teachers?…..

 

http://columnfivemedia.com/work-items/sonos-infographic-working-jams-what-music-to-listen-to-on-the-job/

Half-Baked Ideas . . .

BossJock

*Pitkin County Turnaround Cart*  Hey folks, this is Shawn from Middle School Matters and I know you’re wondering, “Where in the world is Middle School Matters podcast 249?!?!”, well we had a little rain and a little thunder and as a result Troy is enjoying candle light dinners with his wife.  DTE’ll have the power on soon and when they do we’ll have another podcast for you with the usual jokes, Advisory ideas and the wonderful Mr. Dave Bydlowski.  So, see you in a few, I can hear the DTE trucks now . . . *Scheduled Podcast Cart*

Visual Notes.

 

advisory, Conferences, ISTE, MSM, Podcast, Web SpotlightBy Troy Patterson

MSM 247: ISTE 2013, Be a better person and Thumb Wrestling.

Presented in collaboration with the Association for Middle Level Education.

Jokes You Can Use:

There are two cows out in a field in Britain. One cow turns to the other and asks, “Are you worried about this Mad Cow disease?” The other cow responds, “Nope.” The first cow exclaims, “How can you say that? Cows all over England are getting it. I’m scared stiff!” The other cow just looks at him and says, “Mad Cow disease, why should I be worried? I’m a helicopter.”

 

Q: What do you call a blind deer?

A: A no-eyed deer (say it out loud)

Q: What do you call a blind deer with no legs?

A: A still no-eyed deer.

Two eggs, a sausage, and a pancake walk into a bar. The bartender says, “Sorry, we don’t serve breakfast.”

Eileen Award:

  • Twitter: Chelsy Hooper, Dianne Krause, Emily Runyan, Kelly Dumont, Matt Graves, Bob Krause, Mark Levine, Gayle Andrews

  • Facebook: Raymond Porten

 

Advisory:

 

9 Ways To Be A Better Person

1. Be Willing To Change

2. Stop Making Excuses

3. Stop Being Angry

4. Be A Role Model

5. Forgive Someone

6. Listen To People

7. Be Honest

8. Do Something You Don’t Want To

9. Surprise Someone Special

 

http://www.lifehack.org/articles/communication/9-ways-better-person.html

 

Middle School Science Minute

by Dave Bydlowski (k12science or davidbydlowski@mac.com)

Safety Contracts

I was recently reading “The NSTA Ready-Reference Guide to Safer Science, Volume 2,” written by Ken Roy.  This book is available in the National Science Teachers Association’s online store at:

http://nsta.org/store

In this podcast, I share Ken’s response to the following question:

“What can I do if a parent refuses to sign the science laboratory safety acknowledgement form?”

 

From the Twitterverse:

* Patrick Larkin ‏@patrickmlarkin

#ISTE13: My connected conference experience via @tomwhitby http://feedly.com/k/19Eq8b0  #edchat
* EDSITEment ‏@EDSITEment

150th anniversary of Battle of Gettysburg lesson & interactive http://edsitement.neh.gov/lesson-plan/battles-civil-war … #sschat #historyteacher #engchat #commmoncore
* Erin Klein ‏@KleinErin 10

Watch “ISTE 2013 Closing Keynote, @AdamBellow: You’re Invited to Change the World” on YouTube http://zite.to/13ePqsC
* TapToLearn ‏@taptolearn

Game-Based Learning Ideas from ISTE http://edut.to/10ULLA9  via @edutopia
* jdprickett ‏@jdprickett

The New Look Teacher Interview | Principal Greg Miller
* Aerin Guy ‏@aeringuy 26 Jun

How to Apply Design Thinking in Class, Step By Step   #education #bced
* Chris Turnbull ‏@TurnbullChris 26 Jun

My animation workshop & iPad presentation are finished! Thanks to @teamdoceri #Doceri & @Tech4Learning #Frames #ISTE13 #edtech #edtechchat
* Robert Schuetz ‏@robert_schuetz 24 Jun

The one question I’m asking at ISTE 2013 http://dangerouslyirrelevant.org/2013/06/the-one-question-im-asking-at-iste-2013.html … via @mcleod #iste13
* Tom Grissom ‏@tomgrissom 23 Jun

getting a Surface RT at #iste13 and new to Windows 8? there is a free Windows 8 Handbook in the Windows Store with useful tips & tricks
* David Warlick ‏@dwarlick 23 Jun

My ISTE Un-Presentation #iste13 – http://ow.ly/mj5VP
* Kevin Cummins ‏@edgalaxy_com 23 Jun

The Ultimate Lesson Plan search engine: Over 100 reputable & non-commercial teaching sites in one search engine http://brev.is/c8j2
* MediaCore ‏@getmediacore 24 Jun

@MSMatters Great to meet you at #ISTE13 and show you our new #Moodle video plugin! Thanks for the tweet – enjoy the rest of the conference.
* Monte Tatom ‏@drmmtatom 26 Jun

3 Student Tech Trends Teachers Should Know About | Edudemic #fhuedu642 #tn_teta #sigadm ~ for @MSMatters http://www.edudemic.com/2013/06/3-student-tech-trends-teachers-should-know-about/?utm_source=feedly …

#mschat every Thursday at 8:00 pm Eastern Standard Time.

 

Resources:

PhotoFilmStrip

PhotoFilmStrip creates movie serial output possibilities for VCD, SVCD, DVD up to FULL-HD. Creates animated slideshows.

http://sourceforge.net/projects/photostoryx/

THE GIFT OF DOUBT

Albert O. Hirschman and the power of failure.
BY MALCOLM GLADWELL

 

In the mid-nineteenth century, work began on a crucial section of the railway line connecting Boston to the Hudson River.

James Hayward, one of New England’s leading railroad engineers, estimated that penetrating the Hoosac would cost, at most, a very manageable two million dollars.

Everyone was wrong. Digging through the Hoosac turned out to be a nightmare. The project cost more than ten times the budgeted estimate.

http://www.newyorker.com/arts/critics/books/2013/06/24/130624crbo_books_gladwell

Web Spotlight:

Nine Things Educators Need to Know About the Brain

The human brain wasn’t designed for industrial education.

1. The brain is a social organ.

Our brains require stimulation and connection to survive and thrive.

From a neurobiological perspective, the position of the teacher is very similar to that of the parent in building the child’s brain.

2. We have two brains.

Most tasks, though, involve contributions from both hemispheres. So, it is important to understand how to engage both in the classroom context.

3. Early learning is powerful.

4. Conscious awareness and unconscious processing occur at different speeds, often simultaneously.

Because of this, it is especially important to teach students to question their assumptions and the possible influences of past experiences and unconscious biases on their feelings and beliefs.

5. The mind, brain, and body are interwoven.

6. The brain has a short attention span and needs repetition and multiple-channel processing for deeper learning to occur.

7. Fear and stress impair learning.

Evolution has shaped our brains to err on the side of caution and to trigger fear whenever it might be remotely useful.

Success in school depends upon a student’s ability to somehow decrease their stress.

8. We analyze others but not ourselves: the primacy of projection.

Simple exercises that guide students to examine what and how what they think and feel about others may be true for themselves can open a window of self-awareness, empathy, and insight.

9. Learning is enhanced by emphasizing the big picture—and then allowing students to discover the details for themselves.

When problems are represented at higher levels of abstraction, learning can be integrated into larger schemas that enhance memory, learning, and cognitive flexibility.

http://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/nine_things_educators_need_to_know_about_the_brain

 

HOW DO YOU KEEP PEOPLE ENGAGED?

Ownership. Give them ownership.

http://www.chrisbrogan.com/engagement/

 

Half-Baked Ideas . . .

Why did I want a Microsoft Surface RT? Do I still want it?

ISTE 2013 Stuff:

ISTE Keynote 2013

New branding visuals.

Launch video.

LOL the tablet icon for the presentation was a Surface tablet!

T-shirt launch.

 

Introduction of Jane McGonigal

Gamification

“Reality is Broken:  Why games make us better and how they change the world.” title of book.

Game designers are essentially fun engineers.

 

In 20 minutes we’re going to play her favorite game.  🙂

Good News:  1 Billion Gamers worldwide

Spend an hour a day on a device playing a game.

This is good news.  Really.

These 1 billion gamers make up a unique network.

Can invent.

    “I don’t think education is about centralized instruction anymore.  Rather, it is the process of establishing oneself as a node in a broad network of distributed creativity.”  Joi Ito, Director of MIT Media Lab

Perception that games are a waste of time:

300 million minutes a day playing Angry Birds (400,000 years of effort)

170 hours a year per player or 1 month of full time work every year.  Call of Duty

1 in 4 players called in sick to stay home and play Call of Duty on launch day.

71 % of U.S. workers are not engaged. in the workplace.  Gallup 2012

Unengaged workers cost U.S. companies $300 billion dollars.

The longer you stay in school, the less engaged you become.

76% in Elementary

61% in middle school

44% in High School find pleasure and purpose in school.

Most college students spend more hours playing video games than in a classroom.

7 billion hours  a week . . . of Maximum Engagement.

Games being played.

100 million hours of collective effort to make Wikipedia

3 weeks of Angry Birds game play

7 days of Call of Duty game play.

Imagine making a new Wikipedia every three days.

In the U.l 99% of boys under 18 and 94% of girls play regularly 13 to 18 year olds

92% of two-year olds play games.

“It’s inevitable.  Soon, we’ll all be gamers.”

Why are these 7 billion hours going to gaming?

Single most important thing gamers want:

10 positive emotions

10.  Joy

 9.  Relief

 8. Love

 7.  Surprise

 6.  Pride

 5.  Curiosity

 4.  Excitement

 3.  Awe and Wonder

 2.  Contentment

 1.  Creativity

Gamers are Super-Empowered Hopeful Individuals.

Magic 3:1 ratio.  Positive to negative emotions.

Limit of 12:1 positive emotions to negative emotions.  If you go above this, people around you will hate you.  LOL

Portrait series of photos of people playing games.

1.  Relish

2.  Fierce determination.

3.  Grit/Perseverance

4.  Flow Face

Happiest when we’re doing something challenging, but we have the skills for it.

5.  Epic gamer

6.  Amazement face

Gamers fail 80% of the time.

“The opposite of play isn’t work – it’s depression.”

Brain imaging shows the lighting up of neurons as people play games.

Caudate area lights up.  Same areas as drugs.  Just not for the same reasons.

Thalamus lights up.

Hippocampus lights up.

If this area lights up, the more likely the brain is to remember new information.

The more areas lit up, the more likely to accomplish a goal.

Massive Multi-player Thumb Wrestling

3-4 thumbs in a node and then play Thumb Wars.

Set a new high score for people playing thumb wars.  LOL

Two things close to her heart:

1.  Student Aspirations:

43% I plan to start my own business

42%  I will invent something that changes the world.

These two are the least positive aspirations that students tell teachers schools teach

Game:  Evoke:  If you have a problem, and you can’t solve it alone, evoke it.”  African proverb.

Designed to engage people in South Africa.

Video:  Evoke:  Solving the world’s greatest problems.

Launched in March of 2010.

10 missions in 10 weeks.

“A crash course in changing the world.”

www.urgentevoke.com  www.urgentevoke.com

Free job training in changing the future.

Create your Origin Story:  Students had to answer a qustion about themselves.

Mission every week.  (10 missions, 10 weeks)

Evoke Powers:  Gained by posting up to the web the various media evidence of your real world activities.

If you complete the 10 missions in 10 weeks, you get a World Bank certification to put on a resume.

In 10 weeks, 19,893 students in >130 countries.

50 new businesses launched from this game.

LAA Libraries build an infrastructure of Empowerment.

Franchising libraries. Sustainability assistance is provided through brainstorming.

Game:  New York Public Library

Student aspirations:  82% of Americans want to someday write a book.

Video Game Trailer:  May 20, 2011 launch date.

Find the Future:  www.nypl.org/game

10,000 applicants for 500 spots.  Lockin until they write a book.

There’s an app that would help them find these artifacts and catalog them.

Scan a barcode that they had found the item that was one of the 100.

This could be used for a trip to Greenfield village.

How did the object change the world?

e.g. Declaration of Independence:  How did this change the world?  Make your own and post it online.

1184 stories of their vision for the future.

500 authors

Lined up at 6 a.m. to hand sign the finished book.

“100 Ways to Make History Volume 1”

If you remember one thing from today:  10 Positive Emotions and look for ways to provoke them in the classroom.

 

advisory, AMLE, ISTE, Podcast, Web SpotlightBy Troy Patterson

MSM 220: Picture This, Space, Books and more.

Jokes You Can Use:

The teacher said; “Take a pencil and paper, and write an essay with the title ‘If I Were a Millionaire.’” Everyone but Joe, who leaned back with arms folded, began to write feverishly.
“What’s the matter,” the teacher asked. “Why don’t you begin?”
“I’m waiting for my secretary,” Joe replied.

Why were all the ink spots crying?
Their father was in the pen.

A fellow bought a new Mercedes and was out on the interstate for a nice evening drive. The top was down, the breeze was blowing through what was left of his hair and he decided to open her up. As the needle jumped up to 80 mph, he suddenly saw flashing red and blue lights behind him. “There’s no way they can catch a Mercedes,” he thought to himself and opened her up further. The needle hit 90, 100…. Then the reality of the situation hit him. “What am I doing?” he thought and pulled over. The cop came up to him, took his license without a word and examined it and the car. “It’s been a long day, this is the end of my shift and it’s Friday the 13th. I don’t feel like more paperwork, so if you can give me an excuse for your driving that I haven’t heard before, you can go.”
The guy thinks for a second and says, “Last week my wife ran off with a cop. I was afraid you were trying to give her back!”
“Have a nice weekend,” said the officer.

Eileen Award:


  • Scoopit:
  • Twitter:   Rovy Branon , Allison Petersen
  • Facebook:  Ella Sherman
  • Google+:
  • iTunes:
  • eMail:

Advisory:

Picture books

Have your students make picture books for elementary students. (This can be done the “old fashioned” way or electronically.
http://www.culturestreet.org.uk/activities/picturebookmaker/

Middle School Science Minute

by Dave Bydlowski (k12science or davidbydlowski@mac.com)

“A Special Assignment from NASA”

This podcast is based on an article from the September, 2012 issue of Science Scope.  A magazine for middle school science teachers, published by the National Science Teachers Association.  The article was entitled “A Special Assignment from NASA” – Understanding Earth’s Atmosphere Through the Integration of Science and Mathematics.  The article was written by Justine E. Fox and Nicole J. Glen.

The purpose of the special assignment was to help students understand the role of NASA scientists, while asking real world questions about the atmosphere.  The unit begins with the reading of “Here’s the Crusher” from the book “Even More Everyday Science Mysteries.”  The mystery is about a boy, Eric, who washes a water bottle under hot water and then observes what happens to the bottle.  This leads students in the classroom to re-enact the mystery and then apply the knowledge to a better understanding of why certain technological items like satellites, airplanes, etc. are found in certain atmospheric levels and not others.  They study the height and the temperatures of the atmospheric levels.

From the Twitterverse:

* Lance Mosier ‏@lmosierhistgkk
RT @B_Berns: Middle School teachers: Consider joining IA, MI, and NE’s Mystery Skype project. #mschat https://docs.google.com/document/d/19bNaKCOgsFnwrpXo_O311uSlju-n5g9DgRayswxrxXM/edit … #nebedu
* Terie Engelbrecht ‏@mrsebiology
Vocabulary Strategies http://goo.gl/nfzgC  #edchat #midleved #elemchat

Inquiry Chart for developing questions and doing research http://goo.gl/86iMd  #edchat #midleved #elemchat  
* Scott McLeod ‏@mcleod
Why Kids Need Schools to Change via @mindshiftkqed #edreform #iaedfuture  

How to Plan a Memorable Parent Night: Classroom Videos | Expat Educator
* Richard Byrne ‏@rmbyrne
7 Good Sources of Creative Writing Prompts http://ow.ly/dTGV4
* russeltarr ‏@russeltarr
Video: If institutional education refuses to adapt to the information age, it WILL die and SHOULD die: http://tinyurl.com/6zd67ov
* Angela Maiers ‏@AngelaMaiers
Twenty Tips for Success for New Teachers http://goo.gl/ak66l  via @teachingwthsoul
* Beth Lisowski ‏@MrsLTech
RT @twhitford: Do Middle Schools Make Sense? | Harvard Graduate School of Education http://shar.es/uOYu2  #cpchat #mschat
* AMLE ‏@AMLEnews
AMLE Best Sellers Now on Kindle and iPadOnly $9.99 (save up to 40% over print editions) #edchat #midleved

When it comes to the common core, librarians can be a school’s secret weapon http://ow.ly/dPSDE  via @educationweek #mschat #edchat  

How will students perform? Depends on teachers’ expectations http://ow.ly/dNuiA  via MindShift KQED #edchat #ntchat #mschat
* Todd Bloch ‏@blocht574
Here is a link for 36 ways to know your class. https://docs.google.com/present/view?id=dhn2vcv5_650dvtj3dgk … #mschat
* Kara Walk ‏@karawalk
Grading blog motivate vs. engagement #cpchat #edchat #mschat http://blogs.edweek.org/teachers/coach_gs_teaching_tips/2012/09/grades.html?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter …
Don’t forget #mschat on Thursdays at 8:00 pm EST on Twitter!

Resources:

Run for President:
http://adomatic.us/

DIY

“We designed it for ages 7 and up, but parents are encouraged to sign their kids up earlier and help them along until they’re ready to use it themselves. Some reading is required.
DIY is designed for kids as young as 6 years of age, and to comply with the United States Federal Trade Commission’s Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), which was put in effect as of April 21, 2000:
Your kid can create an account and use DIY for free. Many parts of the service will always be free to play. However, DIY will eventually offer paid memberships. Membership will give DIY kids access to extra features.”
https://diy.org/

ISTE:

Interactive, Customizable, Free:
Using Open Source FlexBooks

CK-12 is non-profit organization.

Have free and low cost options. See the about page.

All content is in the STEM. Middle School and High School. Most of it is Math and Science.

Standards correlations is on the About page. Done by Common Core and State.

All material is written by content experts.

Books can be customized. The system is being upgraded.
beta.ck12.org

Create an account. This allows you to save changes.

When editing, you can combine from different books. Click on scrubber icons to add to the Flexbook.

FlexBooks go to My Library when saved.

When editing, you can add images, videos, links to other sites, etc. This can be localized. Videos are streamed. If YouTube is blocked, it won’t show.

When editing, if you are pasting from Word, use Edit | Paste From Word.

License:
Creative Commons – by Attribution, Non-Profit, Share a like.

Anything embedded must match the license.

In order to have multiple people edit a book, you would need to share an account.

How to Share:
Print your book using the Print icon. This will generate
PDF – Video will have a link. You can use a local printer or Amazon or USB sticks.
HTML 5 – Can provide students with a link. Students do NOT need to have an account.
Online
(Beta will add Mobi and ePub)

Beta:
Different paths for Students and Teachers. Will allow to associate students with specific teachers.

Concepts are meant to be 10-15 minute.

Weekly webinars are available. They are on Tuesday or Wednesday. Can be scheduled.

David Wylie (Wiley) put together a cost study.

News:

“Using VAM to evaluate teachers is akin to using Lysol as a mouth wash because it does a good job killing germs on your kitchen counter.  – Principal Carol Burris, in The Answer Sheet “
http://scholasticadministrator.typepad.com/thisweekineducation/2012/09/quotes-no-such-thing-as-good-use-of-vam-data-for-evaluation.html

No Soft Retirement

Last season, he made $3 million as the Cowboys’ backup quarterback. Now, he makes roughly one percent of that to teach at Lincoln High School and coach the Abes.
http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/49057206/ns/sports-nfl/#__utma=14933801.30557598.1342395962.1348024023.1348079521.86&__utmb=14933801.1.10.1348079521&__utmc=14933801&__utmx=-&__utmz=14933801.1347886274.81.3.utmcsr=photoblog.nbcnews.com

Quote

Lawrence Baines’s Education Week Commentary, “What If We Brought Education Reform to the Military?,” suggested satirically that, “An infantryman in Afghanistan, outnumbered by well-armed terrorists, who fails to accomplish the mission should receive a deduction in pay. An accountant stationed in Honolulu, who balances the payroll, thereby accomplishing his mission, should get a raise. … There are no excuses.”

Web Spotlight:

The day I quit teaching

Posted by Brad Flickinger on Sep 20, 2012

As it turned out, technology wasn’t the problem, I was.
http://www.schooltechnology.org/2012/09/20/the-day-i-quit-teaching/

iCivics (www.icivics.org)

WebQuests and other online tools to teach the U.S. Constitution and other democratic principles to middle schoolers.

“iCivics prepares young Americans to become knowledgeable, engaged 21st century citizens by creating free and innovative educational materials.
In 2009, Justice Sandra Day O’Connor founded iCivics to reverse Americans’ declining civic knowledge and participation. Securing our democracy, she realized, requires teaching the next generation to understand and respect our system of governance. Today iCivics comprises not just our board and staff, but also a national leadership team of state supreme court justices, secretaries of state, and educational leaders and a network of committed volunteers. Together, we are committed to passing along our legacy of democracy to the next generation.”

Events & Happenings:

Calendar of Events:

Ohio Middle Level Association:




AMLE Affiliate Conferences:




Classroom 2.0’s Live Calendar.


Classroom 2.0’s Ning Blog: Archived content is available.  

advisory, AMLE, ISTE, News, Podcast, TechBy Troy Patterson

MSM 217: Dr. Kristina Doubet & Formative Assessment.

AMLE Feature:

Interview with Dr. Kristina Doubet

“Dr. Kristina Doubet is an Associate Professor of Middle and Secondary Education at James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Virginia. With over ten years of experience teaching middle and secondary English, she now prepares future middle and high school teachers for careers in the classroom. Dr Doubet completed her M.Ed. and Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction at The University of Virginia where she studied the impact of differentiated instruction on student performance in elementary, middle, and high school classrooms. Her publications also focus on assessment and differentiated instruction and include AMLE’s, Smart in the Middle: Classrooms that Work for Bright Middle Schoolers (co-authored with Carol Tomlinson). Dr. Doubet works regularly with practicing teachers from all grade levels and content areas as a staff developer for schools/districts implementing initiatives in the areas of Common Core Standards, formative assessment and differentiated instruction.”

Dr. Doubet is cited here:  Differentiation
You can get more of Dr. Doubet from Amazon.com.
Contact info:  doubetkj@jmu.edu
Some Resources:
https://daretodifferentiate.wikispaces.com/file/view/doubet.pdf

Jokes You Can Use:

“The speed of time is one second per second.” – Monsieur Loach

Kulula Airlines.  Real airplane.  Real paint job.  Real funny.  🙂

Eileen Award:

Eric Huff

  • Scoopit:
  • Twitter:  Todd Bloch, Jennifer McFarlane, #mschat, Deanna @ldgermany312, Brian Tonniges @BTonniges, Stephen Davis.
  • Facebook:
  • Google+:  Ciera Robinson, Jennifer Fox,
  • iTunes:
  • eMail:  Patti Kinney (NASSP), Dr. Monte Tatom,

Advisory:

Dollar Artist Sculptures

Challenge your students.
http://dollarartist.com/sculptures.html

SPARK YOUR FUTURE

Discover a career and find the right education.
http://www.insidejobs.com/

Who’s Reading What?

http://mashable.com/2012/08/26/reading-stats-infographic/

Middle School Science Minute

by Dave Bydlowski (k12science or davidbydlowski@mac.com)

MIDDLE SCHOOL SCIENCE MINUTE-MATH, SCIENCE AND THE NGSS
This podcast is based on the editorial column of Science Scope Magazine, September, 2012, published by the National Science Teachers Association.  The editor of Science Scope is Inez Liftig.  Her column is entitled, “Editor’s Roundtable.”

Her editorial focused on finding the common ground between math and science.  She cited the commonalities between the eight Practices of Science and Engineering, from the Next Generation Science Standards and the eight Practices of Mathematics outlined in the Common Core State Standards for Mathematics.

From the Twitterverse:

* Mary Alise Herrera ‏@maliseherrera
RT @AMLEnews Who Are These Middle School Kids & What Makes Them Tick? via @mmuir #midleved #msadmin, #mschat
* Erin Klein ‏@KleinErin
Student Introduction to ClassDojo (classroom management tool): http://goo.gl/Wemh1  via @youtube cc@ClassDojo
* Angela Maiers ‏@AngelaMaiers
Should My Middle School Student Take Algebra? http://goo.gl/BNjmB  via @SiaKnight
* Scott B. Goldscher ‏@ScottBGoldscher
Ideas For The First Day’s of School – A Resource http://wp.me/p272J7-jr  I kno u started or r startng school.Take a look at these 1st day plns.
* Angela Maiers ‏@AngelaMaiers
Starting a New Gig? Follow the “30-60-90 Plan” http://goo.gl/kHXkg  via @YouTernMark
* Erin Klein ‏@KleinErin
Why Tweet? I was asked by a blog friend why I love Twitter: http://goo.gl/Wg5XD  As an educator, please share your ideas and comments, too.
* Miguel Guhlin ‏@mguhlin
3 Free iPad Timeline Apps for History Students http://dlvr.it/24zBrn
* Maggie Cary ‏@maggiecary
EZ Morning Routines for Heading Back to School:
* Angela Maiers ‏@AngelaMaiers
Teach This! Teaching with lesson plans and ideas that rock 08/27/2012 http://goo.gl/biMHA  via @flatclassroom
* Vicki Davis ‏@coolcatteacher
The Teacher’s Survival Kit for Lesson Planning! Tips & 1000s of Free Lesson Plans via @shellterrell http://vsb.li/MjCAx8
* ABC News ‏@ABC
Harvard Has ‘Culture of Cheating,’ Grad Says http://abcn.ws/TGatKV
* Library of Congress ‏@librarycongress
A new set of historical photos from our collections just added to Flickr: child labor images from the early 1900s. http://blogs.loc.gov/picturethis/2012/08/child-labor-photos-what-do-children-see/ …
* Middle Grades Forum ‏@MGForumSTW
Trimming the Cost of Common-Core Implementation http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2012/08/29/02murphy.h32.html?tkn=OYMFOzcBh3q6310AxE22BLHM4VBlYrBqBibv&cmp=ENL-EU-VIEWS1 … #mschat #commoncore
* AMLE ‏@AMLEnews
This article offers a great description of the uses of both formative & summative assessment #mschat
* Teachers.Net ‏@TeachersNet
Motivating The Middle Schooler http://teachers.net/gazette/wordpress/jan-fisher/motivating-middle-schooler-by-jan-fisher/ … #mschat #midleveled #edchat #educoach #edadmin #wcpd
Join #mschat on Thursdays at 8:00 pm EST on Twitter!   Todd Bloch ‏@blocht574
Archive of 8-30-12 #mschat Formative Assessment http://wp.me/p1Jl35-1g Great chat check it out if you need to know more about FA

Resources:


TimeMaps

The TimeMap of World History is an all inclusive look at world history. It combines maps, timelines and chronological narratives that work together to enhance historical understanding.
http://www.timemaps.com/

myHistro

MyHistro is the social memory-bank, created on the same foundation of combining maps and timelines as of the one-of-a-kind history site Histrodamus. myHistro is the place where new folk memories are born and personal stories are told. It is for everyone who wants to be known and remembered.
At myHistro you can take control of your personal history and choose what will be fixed in the memories of your family, friends and everyone. Here you can show important moments of your life in a new, attractive format – perfect for telling stories!
But myHistro is much more than just personal memories. Some myHistro users create stories about their family and ancestors, other people do the same about their idols – singers, actors, sportsmen or even politicians. And many are using myHistro to plan their future – from their next vacation to full-scale life or career planning – and with myHistro, they can share these plans with closest friends.
For sports clubs it is novel fan-channel, for writers it is a great test ground to frame their next novel, for teachers, myHistro is interactive workbook and for journalists, it’s a’-brand new way to map and illustrate their stories.
myHistro is not just another social site, it is a whole new way of telling stories and worth every second of your time!
http://www.myhistro.com/

The Parent Rap

A little fun for teachers who are parents.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=N_NspDWssIY#!

For Those Who Want to Lead, Read

by John Coleman  |  10:00 AM August 15, 2012
Even as global literacy rates are high (84%), people are reading less and less deeply.
But deep, broad reading habits are often a defining characteristic of our greatest leaders and can catalyze insight, innovation, empathy, and personal effectiveness.
Note how many business titans are or have been avid readers.
Reading can also make you more effective in leading others. Reading increases verbal intelligence (PDF), making a leader a more adept and articulate communicator. Reading novels can improve empathy and understanding of social cues, allowing a leader to better work with and understand others — traits that author Anne Kreamer persuasively linked to increased organizational effectiveness, and to pay raises and promotions for the leaders who possessed these qualities. And any business person understands that heightened emotional intelligence will improve his or her leadership and management ability.
http://blogs.hbr.org/cs/2012/08/for_those_who_want_to_lead_rea.html

ISTE:

Combining Social Studies and Language Arts

Sandra Wozniak

Share Resources: livebinders.com and search: ISTE 2012
tregoED
Ok, this lady is awesome. She is SOOOOOO middle school! Love her energy and her teaching style.

Who are you?

She is Sandra Wozniak.

She teaches in New Jersey. Who am I?

Not related to Steve (better dancer) 33 years in the classroom

Students help develop the SCAN tool. I’ve been around so long . . . . .

She works with a company that makes decision and analytic tools to large corporations.

The corporation wants to market it to schools. Her colleagues think she’s Yoda. (blabberize.com) Her students think she’s Betty White.

Her children think she’s ridiculous.


Did you hear a click?

Webcam 101 for Seniors. It’s all in your perspective.

Teaching deeper thinking. It’s not about the tools.

It’s about the learning: addressing, integrating and embedding literacy, 21st century skills, and media, info, network, and intercultural literacy in your content area.
Who owns history?

“2.0 tools without content are like coco puffs-kid’s go cuckoo for it , but it doesn’t have much nutritional value.”

Use online dicsussion platforms and tools to build in the nutrition. Y? Why use social media?

1. Kids like them
2. Practice citizenship
3. Promotes Equity.
4. Increase participation
5. Get kids to see other perspectives.

www.tregoED.org

How to construct a SCAN lesson template:  http://www.tregoed.org/dashboard/new-scan-lesson.html

Sample from TregoED:

ISTE-SIGMS Innovative Technology Award Winner:

“Who Owns History”

Integrating Language Arts, Social Studies and Technology by:
Cynthia Cassidy and Michelle Cook, Mt. Olive Middle School, Budd Lake, NJ

Who owns history? This essential question was posed to 6th grade language arts students by media specialist Cynthia Cassidy, and classroom teacher Michelle Cook. Ms. Cook and Ms. Cassidy used technology to build upon a recent social studies unit on ancient civilizations to develop “voice” and “point of view” in writing, while also practicing active reading strategies with non-fiction.

With these objectives in mind, the pair designed a web-based interactive unit requiring students to confront the question: “Who owns history?” To help students tackle this, they spotlighted the debate on whether ancient antiquities should be returned to Egypt. Serendipitously timed with the Egyptian revolution, Egyptian “voices” came alive as students took on the role of four different stakeholders involved in the issue.

The teachers used a variety of online tools to build a weeklong project based around the SCAN tool, which is available at TregoED.org ($45 teacher subscription rate). SCAN incorporates critical thinking strategies in a Facebook-like interface. Each lesson allows students to role-play, discuss, clarify and develop a perspective-based action plan. Ms. Cassidy and Ms. Cook created a SCAN lesson, entitled Egyptian Artifacts: Finders, Keepers? The lesson, complete with links to various international articles and videos, was utilized with five different classes (136 students).

The unit began with a class discussion of the essential question. After the discussion, the teachers motivated students by using an online link organizer at Livebinder.com to show news and video clips that introduced the various issues involved. The teachers also used the clips to review the writing trait of “voice” and “point of view”. Students then visited five “reading centers” where they practiced their active reading strategies with non-fiction texts while completing graphic organizers on the SMART board.

Once students had the necessary background knowledge, the teachers reviewed the rubric on “voice” and directed students to the media center where they worked with the SCAN tool. Once students created a screen name and picked an avatar, they had to select one point of view: U.S. archeologist, Director of Egyptian Antiquities, Egyptian citizen, or U.S. museum director.

Students used reading strategies to review supplemental resources. Once empathetic to their perspective, students joined the interface where they communicated in the voice of their character. Students practiced civil discourse and true collaboration to develop a plan to address the issues.

Following the SCAN sessions, students performed a self-assessment and reflection. To conclude, students used graphic organizers to synthesize the information gathered during the sessions and compose a persuasive essay written from their personal point of view.

STE-SIGMS Innovative Technology Award Winner: 2 “Who Owns History”
Integrating Language Arts, Social Studies and Technology by:
Cynthia Cassidy and Michelle Cook, Mt. Olive Middle School, Budd Lake, NJ

The project meets the following standards:

ISTE.NETS for Students: 1-6

American Association of School Librarians Standards for the 21st Century Learner: 1.1.1, 1.1.7- 1.1.9, 1.3.2, 1.3.4, 1.3.5, 1.4.2, 2.1.1, 2.1.3, 2.1.5-6, 3.1.6, 4.3.1, 4.3.4.

Common Core English/Language Arts Standards:
Writing 6-12: Gr.6.1, 6.2, 6.4, 6.6, 6.9
Reading 6-12:Gr. 6.2, 6.6, 6.7
Reading and Writing for Informational Text 6-12: Gr.6.6 Speaking and Listening Skills: Gr.6.1, 6.2, 6.3, 6.6

21st Century Skills New Jersey Core Curriculum Content Standards: 9.1.8.A.1-4, 9.1.8.B1-2, 9.1.8.D.1, 9.1.8.D.3-4.

STE-SIGMS Innovative Technology Award Winner: 3 “Who Owns History”
Integrating Language Arts, Social Studies and Technology by:
Cynthia Cassidy and Michelle Cook, Mt. Olive Middle School, Budd Lake, NJ

Part 2

Trained in the Understanding by Design framework, teachers at Mount Olive Middle School are encouraged to use instructional strategies and plan learning experiences that bring about enduring understandings. As a result of the common planning time allotted by the district’s administration, meaningful, interdisciplinary units are frequently planned. These units often employ the expertise of the full-time media specialist who is an active participant in team and department meetings. The media specialist’s invaluable expertise and talents are decisive to the integration of various forms of technology and research into unit plans.

By fostering a school culture that embraces innovation, the administration supports teachers as they pilot new, inventive learning experiences. This support makes it possible for teachers to research, assemble resources, and collaborate, ensuring the smooth implementation of authentic learning experiences. As a result, students are excited about learning and prove it through their achievement.

STE-SIGMS Innovative Technology Award Winner: 4 “Who Owns History”
Integrating Language Arts, Social Studies and Technology by:
Cynthia Cassidy and Michelle Cook, Mt. Olive Middle School, Budd Lake, NJ

Part 3

The SCAN tool encourages students to become active and reflective decision makers on various developmental levels. Because of differing cognitive levels, activity modifications were necessary. During the activity, we discovered that students struggled to accurately type the lengthy URL address. Thus, we created a direct link to the activity by using tiny.url.com. This shortened link was particularly helpful for our special needs learners.

To further maximize student learning, teachers could make additional modifications. One modification could address the reading levels of all supplemental articles. Applicable articles of varying reading levels would ensure that students reading below grade level would not toil with comprehension. Conversely, gifted students could be accommodated with articles composed of more advanced arguments. With these varying levels, the supplied graphic organizers could be differentiated to help organize new information.

To help other staff members, we suggest adding an additional day to review the arguments more thoroughly. Students would be more knowledgeable about every point of view, and could make more informed decisions about their stance. To more formally assess students, teachers could incorporate an online poll (www.polleverywhere.com ) before and after the project to see how students’ opinions were influenced by the discussion.

Further, if teaching the writing trait of “voice,” teachers could provide a mini-lesson on using concise language for each point of view. For example, students could create a list of powerful verbs that Dr. Hawass might use when constructing his argument. This list could act as a reference during in the SCAN session.

Moreover, educators could utilize the “Think, Pair, Share” technique during the activity. With this technique, students could brainstorm with other students while still being individually accountable for their own work. Additionally, if a child is absent, he or she could still complete the entire activity.

Members of the global community could also get involved with this project. Since the lesson is web-based, sharing the URL with interested parties at other schools, local senior centers, or related organizations could create a unique experience. By using the SCAN tool, students can truly enter a classroom without walls.

STE-SIGMS Innovative Technology Award Winner: 5 “Who Owns History”
Integrating Language Arts, Social Studies and Technology by:
Cynthia Cassidy and Michelle Cook, Mt. Olive Middle School, Budd Lake, NJ

Part 4:

The impact of this project was astounding. Typically, on traditional projects, Ms. Cook will have approximately 85% of students complete all of the assigned work, sometimes reluctantly. For this unit, however, Ms. Cook had a 99% total completion rate. Unlike an oral class discussion that may be monopolized by a minority of students, the online tool using screen names and avatars elicited full participation. In fact, many students went above and beyond the requirements. Some students wrote fifteen comments instead of the required three, while others came up with four action plans, rather than two.

Additionally, because the SCAN tool provides a “teacher’s view” that gave us a full transcript of student discussion, we were able to use the provided rubric on “voice” to quickly assess and provide feedback to the students. This transcript gave us concrete evidence of the scope and quality of participation of all students during the discussion. The built-in teacher’s view also allowed us to monitor the ongoing discussion in real time for netiquette and content, ensuring that all students were on-task at all times.

Additionally, the students’ self-assessments and reflections (see attached examples) show how students achieved the language arts learning objectives while practicing 21st century skills. The graphic organizers for the final essays constructed by the students prove that the students understood the various points of view, analyzed all of the issues involved in the problem, and were able to construct a valid argument that was substantiated by textual support.

Overall, we found that even our most reluctant students and students with significant disabilities, such as Autism and disgraphia, were active contributors during the SCAN sessions. The SCAN tool gave these students the ability to work at their own pace without the pressure of the attention of their peers.

During the week, students were overheard commenting that they “love SCAN!” and “can’t wait to come back tomorrow to do this again.” Students were fully engaged and had to be prodded to logoff the computers at the end of the class period. As they were gently nudged out the door, many still debated their perspective. Some students even asked if they could access the activity from home because they were afraid they would miss something if they didn’t read all the comments. How often do students ask the teachers for homework? But the most telling comment of all was made by a small group of students who wondered why “Mrs. Cook isn’t making us do any language arts!” They were so engrossed in the activity that they didn’t even realize they were practicing and applying their reading and writing skills!

News:


Limits to Time on Task


http://www.joebower.org/2012/08/limits-of-time-on-task.html

Web Spotlight:

Teacher’s Ultimate Digital Kit

Online PD for teachers who are learning to teach with technology.  There’s a great one on using QR codes in the classroom . . .

Events & Happenings:

Calendar of Events:

Ohio Middle Level Association:




AMLE Affiliate Conferences:




Classroom 2.0’s Live Calendar.


Classroom 2.0’s Ning Blog: Archived content is available.  

advisory, AMLE, Conferences, ISTE, MSM, PodcastBy Troy Patterson

MSM 216: 150, Fundies for Student Success & Starting School.

Presented in collaboration with the Association for Middle Level Education.

AMLE Feature:

Fundamentals for Student Success in the Middle Grades

This presentation tool is a free resource appropriate for advocacy work with school boards, parent/family groups, school staff, and community members. The presentation is a 17-minute overview of the characteristics of young adolescents, the national recommendations for their education, and current research on middle level education. Fundamentals for Student Success in the Middle Grades can be viewed in its entirety, or in segments.

http://amle.org/Advocacy/AdvocacyToolstoUse/FundamentalsPresentation/tabid/793/Default.aspx#

 

 

Jokes You Can Use:

While getting a checkup, a man tells his doctor that he thinks his wife is losing her hearing. The doctor says, “You should do a simple test. Stand about 15 feet behind your wife and say ‘honey?’ Move 3 feet closer and do it again. Keep moving 3 feet closer until she finally responds.” Remember how close you were when she gives you an answer. That will help me know how bad her hearing loss is.

 

About a month later the same guy is at the doctor again and the doctor asks, “Well, did you do that experiment with your wife’s hearing?” The man says “yes”. “How close did you get before she answered?” “Well, by the time I got about 3 feet away she just turned around and said “For the FIFTH TIME… WHAT???”

 

*************

One day, a grandpa and his grandson go golfing. The young one is really good and the old one is just giving him tips. They are on hole 8 and there is a tree in the way and the grandpa says, “When I was your age, I would hit the ball right over that tree.” So, the grandson hits the ball and it bumps against the tree and lands not to far from where it started. “Of course,” added the grandpa, “when I was your age, the tree was only 3 feet tall.”

 

*************

Bad Dog:  http://dog-shaming.com/

On Our Mind:

Starting of the school year…

Eileen Award:

  • Eric Huff
  • Twitter:  Todd Bloch, Debbra Uttero, Khadigah A.

Advisory:

Classrooms Around the World

http://www.juliangermain.com/projects/classrooms.php

Middle School Science Minute

by Dave Bydlowski (k12science or davidbydlowski@mac.com)

 

MIDDLE SCHOOL SCIENCE MINUTE-STEM ACROSS MIDDLE GRADES

This podcast is based on the article “STEM Across Middle Grades Curriculum,” written by Chad Pavlekovich, Jenny Benardi, and Jayne Malach.  It was published in the August 2012 edition of “Middle Ground,” a magazine published by the Association for Middle Level Education (AMLE). Salisbury MIddle School in Salisbury, Maryland has had a STEM program for three years.  The program serves 90 students, 30 in each grade level.  The STEM program includes three core subjects (science, ELA, history), technology education, and computer science.

 

For more information, please visit:

http://www.amle.org/Publications/MiddleGround/Articles/August2012/Article3/tabid/2674/Default.aspx

 

From the Twitterverse:

Jerry Blumengarten ‏@cybraryman1

A2 My Back to School/Icebreakers page: http://tinyurl.com/6xrv38m #ntchat

Richard Byrne ‏@rmbyrne

Earn Your Digital Passport by Learning Digital Safety
http://www.freetech4teachers.com/2012/08/earn-your-digital-passport-by-learning.
html

Terie Engelbrecht ‏@mrsebiology

Mapping Media to the Curriculum http://goo.gl/alAIz Nice ideas for tech integration
#edchat #edtech #midleved

Elizabeth Calhoon ‏@ecalhoon

We would never say “how can we design this lesson around this pencil…yet we do
this with technology” @web20classroom #npsessions

Sandra Wozniak ‏@sanwoz

Just added a new blog post on Technology Integration in Education
http://ning.it/NNdVq0

Diane Ravitch ‏@DianeRavitch

Is Common Core “Developmentally Appropriate”? http://wp.me/p2odLa-1wM via
@wordpressdotcom
“Everything You’ve Heard about Failing Schools Is Wrong”
http://wp.me/p2odLa-1tX via @wordpressdotcom

Jason ‏@jybuell

Ten Middle Grade Books that Reflect the US Immigration Experience
http://wp.me/p21t9O-Du @CBethM (Added Francisco Jimenez books in comments)

Teachers.Net ‏@TeachersNet

Suggestions for Motivation
http://teachers.net/gazette/wordpress/editor/suggestions-for-motivation/ #mschat
#midleveled #6thchat

Carol Tonhauser ‏@cmt1

LiveBinders Apps Collection http://bit.ly/MY9AfI #edapps #ipaded #LiveBinders
#edtech
Join #mschat on Thursdays at 8:00 pm EST on Twitter!

Resources:

150 Book Report Alternatives:

http://cheekylit.com/75-book-report-alternatives/

 

How to Turn Your Classroom into an Idea Factory

Here are eight tips to borrow from classrooms where teachers are reinventing yesterday’s schools as tomorrow’s idea factories.

1.   WELCOME AUTHENTIC QUESTIONS.

2.   ENCOURAGE EFFECTIVE TEAMWORK.

3.   BE READY TO GO BIG.

4.   BUILD EMPATHY.

5.   UNCOVER PASSION.

6.   AMPLIFY WORTHY IDEAS.

7.   KNOW WHEN TO SAY NO.

8.   ENCOURAGE BREAKTHROUGHS.

http://blogs.kqed.org/mindshift/2012/08/how-to-turn-your-classroom-into-an-idea-factory/

 

 

First Day of School Activity

http://cherraolthof.wordpress.com/2011/09/02/day-1/

ISTE:

New Times, New Solutions:

Strategies to Sustain Professional Development 

by Melinda Kolk, Creative Educator magazine

 

John Lien Jeanne Imbriale Janene Gorham Diana Freeman

 

Not talking about PLN’s or social media.

There is a portion to what you know based upon how far you travel.

 

Successful Strategies: Visioning

What do you want classrooms to look like as a result of professional development? Is your vision relevant?

Can you get others to believe in this vision?

How do you get buy in?

Be Clear on your goals

Include administration and curriculum

Involve Stakeholders

Work for consensus

 

Begin with end in mind.

They map it physically on the wall.

 

How will you get there?

Be sure that you:

Have the resources (not necessarily the money) or a way to access them. Think outside the box.

Always have a Plan B.

Consider adult learning principles.

Consider individualized plans as well.

Freeway model is discussed.

 

Surveys

Observations

Student Growth (Evidence & artifacts)

 

Personal choice

Needs vs wants

Can we pair with teachers to develop the vision of what PD should be? Too frequently, we have PD that is top down and changeable every year.

 

ACOT or Loti – Technology development. http://education.apple.com/acot2/ http://education.apple.com/acot2/

 

Successful Strategies: Personalization One size doesn’t fit all

Cafeteria options

Supporting individual school initiatives Building Collaborative networks

 

New tools given a context

Become the change that you want to see.

 

Successful Strategies: Vendor Partnerships

No “drive by” purchases

Hardware, Software and resource vendors agree to teach 20-50 district educators to be experts on tool use, integration and support.

Participants agree to return to schools to mentor and support classroom teachers.

 

Successful Strategies: Coaching/ Mentoring Modeling, mentoring and peer coaching Support and collaboration

Modeling goo teaching

 

Sharing experiences

Giving feedback

Providing encouragement

Being Colleagues

 

School-based, job embedded, non-evaluative

 

Coaching is to achieve something very specific. Mentoring is to support.

 

Successful Strategies: Video Capture Mentoring (human capital) is expensive New teachers can capture “lessons” for: Individual reflection

 

Mentor discussions

Master teachers can capture teaching for: Individual reflection

Mentor discussions

 

Bank of best practices

 

Successful Strategies: Evaluation How do you measure success?

 

Change in teacher practice and student learning.

 

Money for video cameras. We spend a lot of money on PD. How do we know that it makes it back to the classroom? Video taping helps to build in support and accountability.

 

Limit the number of new initiatives. Differentiate the PD as well.

Use Podcasts to provide PD in short bursts.

 

Steps to Success:

Have a clear vision

Needs assessment

Develop a plan

Form partnerships Implementation

Evaluate, evaluate, evaluate Revise

 

Evaluate again

Vision again.

 

News:

WizIQ for Free

Create and deliver courses

Create synchronous and asynchronous courses with tools designed specifically for teachers. Add compelling courseware with videos, PowerPoint presentations, Word documents, and PDFs. Deliver courses in the WizIQ Virtual Classroom and connect in real-time with students from anywhere in the world.

Enjoy all the premium features of WizIQ

Use the WizIQ Virtual Classroom to conduct live online classes, flip your classroom, hold office hours, or meet students online for regular discussions and homework help. Take full advantage of every WizIQ feature, including screen-sharing, polling, video-conferencing, shared whiteboards, and more.

Record and archive all your online classes

Your free account includes 15 GB of storage for class recordings, which means approximately 1500 recorded classes that your students can review at their own pace. We host recordings in the cloud, for free.

FAQ’s:

1. Can I use my free account for commercial purposes?

Yes, you can use your free account for commercial purposes. Offer your classes for free or a fee, it’s your choice!

2. For how long is my free account valid?

This free membership is valid for a period of one year.

3. I am a retired teacher. Do I qualify for this offer?

If you still have an email account affiliated with a School or College then you qualify for a free membership. For any query, write to us at support@wiziq.com.

4. I have applied for free membership but it’s still not active?

It is likely that the email address you have used to sign up on WiziQ does not fall into the eligible educational institutions list. We take about 2 business days to review such request. We will contact you as soon as the review is complete.

http://www.wiziq.com/academic/

 

 

Web Spotlight:

 

If Sal Khan Says He’s Teaching, Are Students Learning? [Achievement vs. Learning]

By TeacherSolutions 2030 Team

“For instance, at the Celebration for Teaching and Learning 2012, I got a chance to hear him speak. I came in trying to have a measure of objectivity, just taking in the show I knew I would witness. Sure enough, he had a few jokes, a few highlights, and some success stories. That’s good, fantastic. Upon reflection, I realized that any instructional coach who came with their administrator or superior would immediately get asked the question, “So how do we bring that to our school?”

 

 

Teachers, Cheating, and Incentives

 

In recent years there seems to have been a surge in academic dishonesty in high schools.

To think about the effects of these measurements, let’s first think about corporate America, where measurement of performance has a much longer history.

So how does this story of mis-measurements in corporate America relate to teaching? I suspect that any teachers reading this see the parallels. The mission of teaching, and its evaluation, is incredibly intricate and complex.

Interestingly, the outrage over teachers cheating seems to be much greater than the outrage over the damage of mis-measurement in the educational system and over the No Child Left Behind Act more generally.

Maybe it is time to think more carefully about how we want to educate in the first place, and stop worrying so much about tests.

http://danariely.com/2012/07/07/teachers-cheating-and-incentives-2/

 

A running theme that the only thing that matters is test scores

BY SCOTT MCLEOD

Notice the running theme throughout all these — that just about the only indicator of childrens wellbeing that matters anymore is how well they score on standardized tests? Hard to remember now that once upon a time, when Americans talked about children, healthy “hearts and lungs” were thought to be a pretty important condition for their own sake. Yet now that test scores have become the holy grail of education, other really important indicators of children’s well being — their health, their opportunities to learn about the arts, their intrinsic love of learning — seem passé.

http://dangerouslyirrelevant.org/2012/08/a-running-theme-that-the-only-thing-that-matters-is-test-scores.html

Events & Happenings:

Calendar of Events:

Ohio Middle Level Association:  

 

 

 

AMLE Affiliate Conferences:  

 

 

 

Classroom 2.0’s Live Calendar.

 

Classroom 2.0’s Ning Blog: Archived content is available.

advisory, AMLE, Conferences, ISTE, MSMBy Troy Patterson

MSM 215 This We Believe: Characteristics and Going for a Walk with Dave.

Presented in collaboration with the Association for Middle Level Education.

AMLE Feature:

Characteristics

To comprehend their breadth and focus, the characteristics are grouped in three general categories:
Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment Characteristics
●Educators value young adolescents and are prepared to teach them.
●Students and teachers are engaged in active, purposeful learning.
●Curriculum is challenging, exploratory, integrative, and relevant.
●Educators use multiple learning and teaching approaches.
●Varied and ongoing assessments advance learning as well as measure it.
 Leadership and Organization Characteristics
●A shared vision developed by all stakeholders guides every decision.
●Leaders are committed to and knowledgeable about this age group, educational research, and
best practices.
●Leaders demonstrate courage and collaboration.
●Ongoing professional development reflects best educational practices.
●Organizational structures foster purposeful learning and meaningful relationships.
 Culture and Community Characteristics
●The school environment is inviting, safe, inclusive, and supportive of all.
●Every student’s academic and personal development is guided by an adult advocate.
●Comprehensive guidance and support services meet the needs of young adolescents.
●Health and wellness are supported in curricula, school-wide programs, and related policies.
●The school actively involves families in the education of their children.
●The school includes community and business partners.
You can find the This We Believe

Jokes You Can Use:

 A famous lawyer, who had been a public defender for years, dies. He finds himself standing at the back
of an enormous queue outside the gates of Heaven. The queue before him is enormous. The number of
people who die in a single day appalls him. He can barely see St. Peter sitting up on a podium outside the
gates with a large book. Every now and then St. Peter glances down the queue to see how he is going.
Suddenly he catches the eye of the lawyer. He looks very surprised. He jumps down from the podium
and comes running along the line until slightly out of breath he arrives beside the lawyer. He embraces
him. He pulls him out of the queue and motions for him to come to the front of the queue. Another person
questions what is happening and another angel speaks to the person. Word is passed along the queue
and the lawyer is surprised, as people start nodding and clapping. He becomes embarrassed by all the
attention and asks St. Peter why he is getting the special attention.
St. Peter stops suddenly and looks concerned.
“You are a lawyer aren’t you?’
“Yes” the lawyer replies. “Does this happen to all lawyers in heaven?”
“Oh, no, “Said St. Peter. “It’s just you are the first one to ever get here.”

Eileen Award:

●Charles G. Timm
●Jennifer Johnson
●Marianne Mangels
●Jenifer Fox
●Mark Wills

Advisory:

Ten Rules for Class

Middle School Science Minute
by Dave Bydlowski (k12science or davidbydlowski@mac.com)
Josh Fullan wrote an article entitled, “Pedestrian City,” for the magazine Green Teacher, summer edition
2012.  The purpose of the article was to present a way that middle school students could investigate the
walkability of their urban neighborhoods.  He presented three activities:
Learning Activity 1:  Introduction to walking as a mode of transportation.
Learning Activity 2:  Experiential lesson on walking in which the teacher leads the students on a
neighborhood walk.
Learning Activity 3:  Culminates the unit with a creative hands-on activity on walking in which students
create a hand-drawn map of a walk they do regularly.
For more information, please visit:
From the Twitterverse:

Russel Tarr ‏@historynews

[History: 1066-1500]: ‘Medieval village’ remains found http://bbc.in/NMuaju
#historyteacher

Scott McLeod ‏@mcleod

RT @ransomtech: School leaders, pls read. MT @mcleod: 26 Internet safety
talking points!  #edtech #cpchat #edchat

Rich Kiker ‏@rkiker

Your Deleted Facebook Photos Will Now Be Gone Forever 

Terie Engelbrecht ‏@mrsebiology

Schoolnotes http://goo.gl/IVaUu Place where teachers can make pages for parent
& student viewing #edchat #edtech

Sandy Kendell ‏@EdTechSandyK

iPad Classroom Next Term? – 10 Things to Consider | #mlearning #edtech

Sue Waters ‏@suewaters

50 things to do during Connected Educators Month

russeltarr ‏@russeltarr

Geographers! New on iBooks – great new book by @richardallaway and @GeoBlogs http://j.mp/NtRcel #geographyteacher

russeltarr ‏@russeltarr

How to Address Multiple Intelligences in the Classroom: http://tinyurl.com/3jdczxt

Britt Michaelian ‏@MamaBritt

🙂 “@awakeningaimee: Opportunity may knock only once, but temptation leans on the
doorbell”

russeltarr ‏@russeltarr

Why study History? How to do it? How to write for History? http://tinyurl.com/3tmysml

Kyle Calderwood ‏@kcalderw

5 Edmodo Activities for the First Day of School http://zite.to/RXDnIv #mlearning
#edtech #njed
Join #mschat on Fridays at 8:00 pm EST on Twitter!
Resources:
5 Video Projects to Try With Your Students
Richard Byrne
Here are five ideas and tools for video projects that you can try with your students this year.

ISTE:

Digital Historians

Making History Local, Digital, and Relevant:  The GeoHistorian Project
Kent State University  affliated project.
Mark van’t Hooft and Thomas McNeal
The GeoHistorian Project
    QR Codes and a Mobile Phone
    Funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities
Origins
    We started investigating the use of cell phones for video conferencing in 2005 as an alternative to
something . . .
The Geo Historian Project
    Give students the opportunity to become local historians and create digital resources for their
communities;
    Demonstrate how resource sites near and far (in this case a local historical society and historical sites)
can be valuable learning resources;
    Investigate cell phones as an educational tool outside of the classroom;
    Demonstrate how digital content can be used to amplify learning on location.
Partnerships
    Kent Historical Society
    Research Center for Educational Technology
    Kent City Schools
    Kent State Honors College
    National Endowment for the Humanities
    Kent Parks and Recreation
Creating Digital Stories about Local History
    4 week project, one week for each item listed below:
    1.  The Importance of Stories
    2.  Historical Research
    3.  Story Writing
 Storyboard their research.
    4.  Audio/Video Editing
 Photostory used for story production
 Videos uploaded to YouTube
    5.  Take their digital stories and then create the QR codes for each site.
 The QR codes are machined in aluminum markers.
    Setup as a blog.
    Curriculum Page
 Online and free, but do let them know if you use it.  They’d like to know.
QR or 2D Code is a matrix barcode with embedded information such as text, an email address or phone
number, or a URL (multimedia!!).  The codes can be read by camera phones with a camera
Bar codes come in many shapes and sizes:
    Aztec, QR Code, Sema Code (data matrix), EZ code
    They can come in pictures.
 Mickey mouse, Zebra shape,
QR code generator
    Digital content and a place to upload it to somewhere.
Digital Content Considerations
    Link to existing content or make your own.
    Smart phones from different carries all have different operating systems and require different videos
and audio formats
    Formats for video and audio clips
 Windows mobile
 iPhone/Quicktime
 Android MPeg4
QR Code Generators
    delivr
    3GVision
    snap.vu  www.snap.vu  Requires a registration, but you can track how many views.
Try it Out!
    Any of the QR codes you see here can be scanned.
    Download a QR Code Reader to your phone if you haven’t done so yet:
 Go to www.i-nigma.mobi on your mobile phone.
 i-nigma will automatically identify your handset type.
    Use your phone or iPod Touch to scan the codes to see the embedded content.
The Historical Society made a coloring book of each place and put the QR Code in the book with the
picture for the kids to color.
There are times that audio is better than video for upload/download.  They can make the QR code for text
only/audio only so that it doesn’t require internet access.

Events & Happenings:

Calendar of Events:

Ohio Middle Level Association:
●The Ohio Middle Level Association will hold their annual conference.
○OMLA Registration Form
○OMLA Presentation Proposal Form
AMLE Affiliate Conferences:
●The Michigan Association of Middle School Educators Annual Conference is coming up March
2012 in Warren Woods, MI.
○MAMSE Exhibitor Form
○MAMSE Registration Form
○MAMSE Presentation Form
○MAMSE Conference Program Book (2011)
●The North Carolina Middle School Association’s Annual Conference March 13-15, 2012
○Conference Brochure
○Presenter’s Application
○Who They Are . . .
○This year’s sessions . . .
Classroom 2.0’s Live Calendar.
○Classroom 2.0’s Ning Blog: Archived content is available.