After taking the iPad to work and using it for just a bit, here are my thoughts.
1. It is early on in the development of the iPad. There will be a lot more applications soon that will make the iPad even more useful.
2. I love the iPad. It is very useful for what I wanted. Just for information, I wanted a “newspaper” replacement and something for the kids to post to Facebook. It does these things well.
3. Taking notes is surprising better than expected. Even without an external keyboard, notes are good.
4. For students to create, it’s not quite there yet. We are not a “cloud” based school at all yet. There doesn’t seem to be a way to let students save documents to their “I” drive. We also use Moodle. Moodle uses a non standard text editor. That renders some things unusable. This should be fixed with Moodle 2.0 in July.
5. The iPad is incredibly fast.
6. Management is another issue. I’m not clear yet how easy these would be to manage for the classroom. Generally, the iPad is associated with one iTunes account. I don’t know how this works with a classroom set.

All in all, I’m hopeful. I won’t be buying a bunch for my school yet, but the future looks bright.

MAMSE 2010 Notes. Now available. The MAMSE 2010 Conference was held at Mill Creek, Dexter, MI on March 4th-5th. Debbie Silver was the Keynote speaker. The Conference was wonderful.

Thanks to a loyal listener, we have discovered that there was a problem with our feed. If you haven’t had the opportunity to listen to Podcast 101, it is now available. (There is a reason that I’m an administrator and not a professional xml writer.)

Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays!

Troy & Shawn

Jokes:

Always wanted to be a procrastinator, but never got around to it.

~~~~~

My friend has kleptomania, but when it gets bad, he takes something for it.

~~~~~

Did you hear about the big fight that Madonna, Cher, Jewel, and Fabio had?

They’re no longer on a first-name basis.

~~~~~

It is hard to understand how a cemetery raised its burial cost and blamed it on the cost of living.

~~~~~

Everyone has a photographic memory. Some don’t have film.

~~~~~

I couldn’t repair your brakes, so I made your horn louder.

~~~~~

How do you tell when you run out of invisible ink?

Funny Picture of Christmas lights display:

http://www.nbcchicago.com/news/local-beat/Neighbors-Ditto-Display-Looks-Like-a-Bright-Idea-78523157.html?yhp=1

From the Twitterverse:

• lthumann – Wow! I’m looking at Free Technology for Teachers: 30+ Alternatives to YouTube –> Great list! #edchat
• Glengarden – RT @nharm : http://www.animatedexplanations.com/ Full of animated movies, interactive tutorials & instructional videos, all free
• KammieK – RT @LarisaBelliveau: In The Age Of Realtime, Twitter Is Walter Cronkite
• RT @web20classroom 10 Technologies to Use in A Laptop/Tablet Classroom | Digital Learning Environments
• tombarret – 10 Digital Writing Opportunities You Probably Know and 10 You Probably Don’t
• Orrin_Woodward – Every uncomfortable experience in life gives you the choice of growing bitter or better.
• web20classroom Collaborative drawing with Flockdraw http://j.mp/6tJpiI
• web20classroom RT @AldridgeDuff : Amen to that, Russ. RT @RussGoerend : I think students and teachers could live without grades. Parents on the other hand…
• jimknight99 #1 reason kids don’t engage is they don’t see the relevance of the learning–Bonnie Davis #NSDC
• AngelaMaiers 10 Unique Gifts You Can Make with Help from the Web http://ow.ly/Ic3P
• brasst @plivings I plan PD w/middle school teachers like I do for students – lots of mini-activities; movement time, etc. No one wants boring PD!

Webspotlight:

A Closer Look at “A Christmas Carol”

Primary Source: take a look at the editing that Dicken’s did when writing “A Christmas Carol”. (Warning- it’s written in cursive, which may be a strange language to some middle schoolers).

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2009/11/30/nyregion/dickens-christmas-carol-pages.html

SimplyBox

A neat way to save and share web sites, and parts of web sites, graphically. This can also share bookmarks with Delicious- thus, when you dropped something in a box, it would also put a bookmark in Delicious for you.

Here’s how they say that teachers can use SimplyBox:

I am a teacher, how do I create accounts for my students?

a) You, as the teacher, can create a second account with SimplyBox in the name of the entire class. Then you would need to give the kids the user name and password you created for the account. By the way, the account then is only accessible by people that have the user name and password for the account. The students then will be able to see the content of the boxes in the account and add comments – from any computer. Now, if they need to add content to the account, they would need the SimplyBox toolbar (the one with the “Box It” button) downloaded on whatever computer they are using.

b) You can simply use Public Boxes (you create them under the Sharing menu option). Each Public Box has a URL. So, students can access the URL and see the content of the box and their comments to the different items. And the creator of the Public Box can delete the box at any time. Since this is a Public Box, students will not be able to add content to the Public Box, only comments.

c) Creating accounts for students that do not have an e-mail. Please go to this link.

NMSA09:

Roadblock to Success: I AM STUPID!

Session Description: A major roadblock to student learning and development is their feelings and beliefs that they are “stupid”. Based on research from students, participants attending this session will (1) become aware of the five causes of stupid, (2) become aware of how students respond when they feel stupid and (3) consider effective ways of minimizing the negative impact stupid has on learning and development.

• Think
• Learn
• Communicate

Differently when we are being very effectively.

We’re all Top 20’s & We’re all bottom 80’s.

What do we need to get rid of?

• In our schools

• in ourselves

Kids will pretend when they feel stupid.

Why do kids feel stupid when they can’t do something? Stupid doesn’t exist. What does exist is real situations and real experiences.

We must talk about (and teach) the problem solving process and how kids feel about failure. Stupid means not Good Enough or Inadequate

Do with kids: Use Notecards: On the front, situations of when they feel stupid, ON the back what they do.

What do they do:

1. Stop Trying – Withdraw

2. Get aggressive

3. Judge themselves

4. Drink

5. Pretend

Presenter answers:

1. Withdraw: quit + quiet

2. Pretend:

3. Emotional: embarrassed, Angry, sad

4. Judgments: I’m not good enough,

5. Attack: argue, swear, bully, challenge

6. Defensive: This is stupid, you’re stupid

7. Motivate: work harder but maintain inside feeling of “I’m not good enough”.

8. Numb: Numb is better than dumb

5 Causes of Stupid:

1. Called- When I say something and other say it’s stupid or when some says something and I don’t

know what they mean – can include non-verbals as well.

2. Comparison – when I’m taking the test and am one of the last people taking the test…I rush through it and don’t read the questions or answers.

3. Confusion – When guys are talking about stats and football and I have no idea.

4. Can’t – when I strike out in a baseball game, I feel like I’m no good at baseball and will

probably strike out again.

Ooze #1- spreads to the next time

Ooze #2 – spreads to other situations

5. Certain Situations – In any class when I read….I get mad.

Stupid needs to become part of the curriculum.

Need to make Confusion OK – Celebrated – Expected. Don’t ever go into a room where you are not confused.

Every human invention has been made on the back of failure.

Analogy of what happens when Joe Mauer strikes out. The kids would say that he’s probably thinking that he’s stupid. Explain that Joe is thinking that the pitcher threw a curve ball on the outside of the plate in this situation. The difference is that he’s learning.

Schools determine which kids are smart.

School should determine how kids are smart.

Keeping Stupid in the box:

1. Share your personal experience of stupid with kids

2. Share the 5 causes of stupid

3. Have a large = sign in your room and refer to it when the kids might feel stupid

4. Share the importance of confusion

5. Every couple of weeks, ask them if they’ve felt stupid.

6. Practice the script. Give kids a script:

• I am smart, I just don’t understand _______________ yet.
• I am smart, I’m just confused about ______________.
• I am smart, I just can’t ___________.

Awareness; www.top20training.com & info@top20training.com

CEU Code: AS6

Classroom Management

Todd Johnson

Assertive discipline tried and found not to work.

We’re going to take a walk through his classroom.

CEU Code XK4

Philosophical Guidelines

Treat students as you would like to be treated.

Do only 50% of the work.

You can only influence behavior, not change it.

You can’t make a student behave. You can’t.

Make it uncomfortable for kids to not follow the rules.

Agenda

Discipline Polarities

Tight vs. Flexible

Tight

Advantages:

Consistent

Set Limits

Structured

Non-emotional

Follow through

Concise

Disadvantages

Power struggles

Confrontation

Win/Lose

My way or the highway

Rebellion

Rules more important than people.

Physical confrontations

Loose

Advantages

Individual needs

Responsive

Negotiate

Creative

Adaptable

Caring

Disadvantages

Taken advantage

Used

Inconsistency

Pandemonium

Chaos

Wasted time

Too emotional

No limits

Law of Least of Interventions

“Don’t use a shotgun when a flyswatter will work.”

Most problems arise during transitions.

Start with the least amount of power necessary.

Use the Law of Least Intervention

eye contact

The “look”

gesture

snap fingers

proximity

call student’s name

shake your head

Clear your throat

flick the lights

count

count backwards (elementary)

Use humor

Touch

Ignore

Audience suggested

deep breath

wave

foreign language

stop/quiet

raise one eyebrow

voice level

state behavior

“Keith, you’re talking.” vs. “Keith, quit talking.”

Zen bell

foreign language

whisper

Events & Happenings:

Calendar of Events:

NMSA News:

• NMSA Annual Conference: Baltimore 2010.

Other News:

• ISTE Eduverse Talks are the recorded sessions held on ISTE Island every week. Join ISTE in their Second Life conference location for their weekly talks on education.
• The Ohio Middle Level Association will hold their annual conference February 18 & 19, 2010. Jack Berckemeyer will be keynoting.

• OMLA Registration Form
• OMLA Presentation Form

Michigan Association of Middle School Educators

• The Michigan Association of Middle School Educators Annual Conference is coming up March 4-5, 2010 in Dexter, MI. MAMSE will be celebrating its 40th Anniversary!
• MAMSE Exhibitor Form
• MAMSE Registration Form
• MAMSE Presentation Form

Eastern Michigan University

• Theater Education Opportunity: Eastern Michigan University’s Quirk-Sponberg Theater has announced their Fall 2009 Season.

“The Prince, the Wolf and the Firebird”

By Jackson Lacey

Directed by Pam Cardell

December 4, 5, 10, 11 at 7PM

December 5, 6, 12 at 3PM

School Matinees: December 9 and 10 at 10:00 am. Tickets $4.00 for students and every 15 students gets a chaparone in for free.

Classroom 2.0

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

Second Life:

• No Events specified. Regular Tuesday meetings are scheduled. See the board on the ISTE Island for up to the minute details.
• Video: Educational Uses of Second Life

Jokes:

I’m a 7th grade life science teacher, so we often use microscopes.  My room is a retro-fitted science classroom, so I don’t have big lab benches for microscopes – instead I bring in my power cords from Christmas lights. The first time any class uses microscopes, we spend a good ten minutes of class going over the procedure for plugging in and turning on the microscopes.  One particular fifth period I had just instructed the students to plug in the microscope and turn them on – and after sufficient wait time announced “At this point, everybody should be turned on.”  This is when I got some very strange looks from a group of boys in the corner, and all I could do was laugh.

Earlier this year, I was reviewing Celsius/Fahrenheit conversions.  I was explaining to the kids that there was a messy mathematical formula we could use to do these conversions, but for our purposes I helped them out and gave them a side-by-side picture of the two thermometers that they could draw lines across to make the conversions. “This way you all can avoid the getting your hands dirt with all the math for now.”  To which one of my smartalic boys blurted out “But what if we want to do it the dirty way?”  As the rest of the class burst into laughter, I chuckled inwardly and then explained that we’ll have plenty of chances to get our hands dirty in science this year, but this won’t be one of those times.

Kate K.

From the Twitterverse:

• Ransomtech “If a podcast can capture everything you do in class, you deserve to have nobody coming.”
• SimpleK12: Don’t miss this: Exclusive4 Admins/Tech Coords The importance of ur teachers using Virtual Field Trips in the classroom
• blairteach: RT@colonelb Do we need a new high school model? Will our K-12 culture even allow us?
• zoe1971: RT @web20classroom: An Interesting Graphic from #edchat on Information Overload….http://is.gd/4YQzQ
• kate_k: Best example I’ve seen of using Facebook for course-management! The teacher even uses ‘events’ for due dates
• TWilliamson15: Just Posted: We’re Talking…But Who’s Listening? A rambling piece generated from numerous conversations today…
• web20classroom RT @kelleygarbero: RT @MATH_IS_IT: Great Algebra activities to reinforce learning,
• kjarrett: Love this too – @mcleod’s Don’t teach your kids this stuff. Please? – Dangerously Irrelevant http://ow.ly/CrGQ
• russeltarr Mathematics in Movies: Nice list for Maths teachers building up a DVD collection!: http://tinyurl.com/mahrna
• web20classroom RT @stevejmoore: #ncte everyone follow my colleague @kristinlhoward ! She just joined Twitter and needs your connections!
• drmmtatom Education Week: Bill Would Replace Key Federal Literacy Programs: via @addthis
• AngelaMaiers What Does Learning Mean 2 U? New 30 sec. vid/post Would love to hear/see your response #WDLM2U
• web20classroom Yep…Santa Claus is following me…I hope I get coal this year…with the price of fuel going up and up and everything….

Advisory:

MOYA:  Artwork due March 12, 2010

On Our Mind:

MAMSE:  Contact your local MAMSE board member and volunteer to be a Regional Coordinator!

iTunes Comments

iTunes App:  Coverup

Webspotlight:

Students live in a Digital World. Are schools ready to join them?

Seale and educators across the country are employing an array of digital tools—blogs, wikis, videos, and social media—to tap into their passion for collaborating, creating, and sharing.
“It’s about initiating higher levels of engagement,” says Seale, “and making the learning more self-directed and self-motivated.” “Let’s face it,” she adds, “being literate today means more than reading words on a printed page and writing an essay.”
“I don’t think we yet have a handle on what it really means to be literate in the 21st century,” Fisch acknowledges.
So don’t throw away your copies of To Kill a Mockingbird; even the most fervent Web evangelists believe there is still space for the Great Books. But the bottom line remains: We can’t stop there. Our students are living in a different world.
http://www.nea.org/home/35939.htm

NMSA09:

Taking the Challenge Out of Challenging Students – Unlocking the Mystery of Hard-to-Manage Kids

Diana Day
Session Description: You will be prepared to work with disruptive, aggressive, disrespectful, attention-demanding, and unmotivated youngsters. Rather than hearing descriptors of misbehavior, you will leave knowing what to do about it! Learn where to seat them, motivate and set limits for each of these types of students who challenge your authority daily. Knowledge is power. Empower yourself, going home happy and fulfilled. There are ways to deal with difficult students.

adversity reveals character.

Comprehending Massive Psychological Drives

• Needs massive attention
• Grow up to be on your faculty
• No attention – they will act out.
• Touches, annoys
• No malice
• They like their teachers.
• Need complete attention though.

Typical Adult Reaction:

• Annoyance
• Stops but only temporarily.
• You are their fix for attention.

Response:

• Always place these students near the area where you teach
• Praise them in front of the group.
  • Praise a specific, desired behavior.
  • Give praise immediately after the desired response.
• Never reprimand in front of the group.
  • Explain in advance what you will do when he acts out and then swiftly carry it out.
  • Is helpful if a signal can be given. Give no extra attention during the correction so it doesn’t become reinforcement
• Time with you is important and should be planned.
  • Earn a privilege for the group
  • As to tell a story about himself or a joke to the entire group.
  • Give awards, commendations, certificates in front of a group.
• Don’t put multiple of them right next to each other.
• Less Large Group or Lecture Format Lessons
  • Large group creates opportunities for spotlight.
• Rotate Leadership
  • Attention Demanders may take over the small group. Change leadership frequently. Assign each person an assigned number 1-4. Change leadership by choosing different numbers to lead the group.
• You are _______, I want_______ Use this as a redirect.
• Have a refocus area. Not a time out.

Prime Time activity (Bellwork).
The less you talk when doing discipline, the better. The more you can signal, the better.

Limit Seeking Behavior

• Have anger or resentment towards authority with malice because of:

1. Abuse-
2. Being over-managed at home
3. Living in home where there are no limits.

Urgent – they want what they want when they want it Talks back – dismisses correction as silly or not about them. Lies- becomes verbally abusive – will talk a lot about simple questions. Fights- power struggles, threatens, cusses, throws things.
Limit Seeking Behavior:
you’ve got to fight all of the battles, you just choose when you fight them.
They want to make you mad. They win by engagement.
Send the kid to the “Buddy Room” – have a card with another room number written on it. Send the kid to another room. Tell the kid that it’s not working with us. Talk later.
This is a specific program.
Kid 3 Motivation lacking student.
Good teacher with lots of information. Not sure how much is actually useable by all of us.

Dr. Debbie Silver:  Helping Teachers Find the “Beat of Their Different Marchers”

The Greatest Teacher Activitiy
Objectives:  To help participants focus on the importance of having the “courage of one’s convictions.”
Time:  13-20 mins.
Materials:  Pre-assigned note cards (for participants to select and list 5 great teachers)
Of those five identify their characteristics and share in a group.
“Who’s got that vision?”  Monte Selby
A young boy carves on the walls of the cave, (check lyrics online)
Pictures shown during the “show”
Ghandi
Mother Theresa.
Mr. Rogers
One of the things we’ve lost is telling our stories about our teaching, growth and experience.  Retell the stories, retell the fundamentals.
Personal Teaching Vision
Objective:  To challenge teachers to fullfill their personal . . .
Sheet:
My Vision for Myself
Name:
Date
Why I became a Teacher . . .
My most noble vision of myself as a teacher ….
What am I going to do over the next few months to reconcile my vision of myself at my greatest with my present circumstances?
Not a group activity.
Have them write this letter to themselves and seal it in an envelope.  Pass it back in three months or so.
Hearing a Different Drummer/Marcher
Directions
1.  On signal close your eyes and keep them closed until instructed to open them.
2.  Follow the directions carefully, but ask no questions and make no comments.
3.  If you find it hard to complete a task, just do the best you can.
Hand on paper
Fold in half and make a crease.
Fold it in half again.
Fold it in half again.
Tear off the right corner.  (unfold if you need to to find the right corner and then refold to tear it folded.)
Flip paper over and tear the right hand corner.
Unfold the paper completely.
Hold it up and look around.
None of the papers should be uniform to the teacher’s “paper”.
What do we need to know about our students in order to give them a REASONABLE chance for success?
Notecard activity.
Handout:  I can do something! (Debbie Silver, 2006).
Student Profiles
What do we need to know?
Reading level
English language proficiency.
Level of adult supervision and involvement at home.
Personal interests
Preferred learning styles
Least favorite things
Fears
Strength areas (Multiple Intelligences)
“Great teachers never lose their Marvels!”
Recognizing differences
Objectives:  to introduce the concept of differentiation
Materials:  Many lemons, one per participant.
Procedures:
Give each teacher a lemon as they come into the meeting and then have them hold it for a while.  Tell them to bond with the lemon and examine the lemon.  Collect part way through the meeting and then at the end dump them out on a table and have them find their lemon.
Even though they are similar, they will find differences and find their lemon.
What does the following run-on sentence say?
i a m n o w h e r e
I am now here
I am no where
Practicing Safe Stress
Two Wolves Inside story
an elder Cherokee Natie American was teaching his grandchildren about life . . .
IALAC  Activity
100 ways to enhance self concept in the classroom.
Killer Statements
I Am Loved And Capable
Tell a story of people having a bad day . . .
Tear away the paper with IALAC on it as you tell all the terrible events of the story or day.
Don’t take stuff away that you don’t give back emotionally to the teacher.
CEU Code LZ9
Website:  www.debbiesilver.com  password:  iamateacher  NMSA 2009 zip file.

Events & Happenings:

Calendar of Events:
NMSA News:

1. NMSA Annual Conference:  Baltimore 2010.
2. Month of the Young Adolescent (MOYA) Artwork due March 12, 2010.

Other News:

1. ISTE Eduverse Talks are the recorded sessions held on ISTE Island every week.  Join ISTE in their Second Life conference location for their weekly talks on education.
2. The Ohio Middle Level Association will hold their annual conference February 18 & 19, 2010.  Jack Berckemeyer will be keynoting.
   • OMLA Registration Form
   • OMLA Presentation Form
3. The Michigan Association of Middle School Educators Annual Conference is coming up March 4-5, 2010 in Dexter, MI.  MAMSE will be celebrating its 40th Anniversary!
   • MAMSE Exhibitor Form
   • MAMSE Registration Form
   • MAMSE Presentation Form
4. Theater Education Opportunity:  Eastern Michigan University’s Quirk-Sponberg Theater has announced their Fall 2009 Season.

   “The Prince, the Wolf and the Firebird”
   By Jackson Lacey
   Directed by Pam Cardell
   December 4, 5, 10, 11 at 7PM
   December 5, 6, 12 at 3PM
   School Matinees: December 9 and 10 at 10:00 am.  Tickets $4.00 for students and every 15 students gets a chaparone in for free.

5. Classroom 2.0’s Live Calendar.
   
6. Classroom 2.0’s Ning Blog:  Archived content is available. 
   
7. Second Life:
   • No Events specified.  Regular Tuesday meetings are scheduled.  See the board on the ISTE Island for up to the minute details.
   • Video:  Educational Uses of Second Life

From the Twitterverse:

Troy, Shawn and March sat down in Indy to discuss how the conference was going so far.

Here is a link to the presentation that we will be giving. We’ll be in a small room. A really small room. We’ve made some adjustments but things should go well.

Looking forward to a great discussion.