At the Crossroads with MECA

This week I attended the Mississippi Educational Computing Association's Annual Conference. Although this was my second year attending, it was my first to present. I was thrilled to lead a hands-on session on Using Skype in the Classroom. My goal was to share different classroom applications of Skype along with providing guidance on how to create an account with Skype and the Skype in the Classroom community. I especially enjoyed the hands-on part of my session because I was able to have participants test several features of the program on their own and search for teachers and projects on the Skype in the Classroom site. My hope is that participants feel comfortable to start connecting and collaborating with others.

Another aspect I love about MECA is learning about new tech tools, approaches, and even tricks of the trade. I attended sessions that ranged from iPad Apps for the classroom to ways to utilize digital photography in the classroom. During my hands-on sessions, I was able to create a short movie about my school using Windows MovieMaker and assist my husband Will (@peoplegogy) at his Twitter session. As expected, I picked up a few tricks along the way that will only make my teaching even more relevant and engaging for my hugest and most important audience- my fast-paced digital learners.

I thank my district's tech team and colleagues for attending my session and providing me some much needed support in setting up. I also want to thank our district tech director for granting me this opportunity to attend.

Showcasing My School

This year I have been given the privilege of managing my school's website. As the Editor-in-Chief of our school's newsletter, this job seemed very fitting. I had many questions at first, mainly about organization and content. What should I include on each page? What kind of content should I post? How often should I post? After doing some research and carefully examining other school sites, I jumped right in.

Click here to view what I have complied so far. This is not by any means a final product. I have learned through this process that this project is a work in progress. My hope is for it to change, transform, and evolve.

Although I look forward to the evolution of this site, here are some elements that I think are essential for any school site:

Faculty and Staff Page-The faculty and staff are at the heart of any school. I like to include pictures of the different teaching teams and staff (i.e. grade level, Auxillary, Special Education, cafeteria and office staff) at our school so that families and the community can see who we are. I took this concept a step further and created a "We Are Thames" video that included several members of our school family. For this video, I had everyone pick a word that represented their classroom or philosophy. I feel that this painted a picture of who were are.

Administrator Page-The leadership has its own page with accompanying mission statements and a brief background. This gives readers a sense of our school culture and approaches taken by our school leaders.

Calendar-This page includes a list of important school-wide events, holidays, Professional Development Days, and Early Release Days for each month. This page also includes a Google Calendar that automatically updates each month.

Announcements Page-This is perhaps my favorite page and the one that gets the most traffic. Here reminders for important school-wide events such as fundraisers, parent and community programs, and school performances are posted. This page also features articles on different projects, field trips, or activities. I like to include videos and pictures whenever possible to give readers a glimpse into our classrooms and the learning that takes place.

PTA Page-I am so thrilled about this page! Our PTA has done a wonderful job of posting activities and special events here. They also publish a monthly newsletter that is available for download.

Future Additions

Here are a few items that I would like to add in the near future:

Grade Level/Class Specific Pages-I would love for teachers to maintain their own class or grade level pages or class blogs. This would be a wonderful way to further showcase what is happening in their classrooms.

Special Feature Videos-My teaching partner and I put together a technology video that illustrates how we use iPod Touches in the classroom. She is interested in creating more videos that highlight different strategies and approaches that are being implemented in our school. I think this is a fabulous idea and am eager to share these!

So here are my two cents on managing my school's website. What else do you think should be included? Feel free to leave a comment and share your school's website!

Writing with Edmodo

This has been my first year to use Edmodo with my classes. My students have taken to it like fish to water. But even more so, it has opened up opportunities to write for different purposes. I think this is important because students need to see writing as another form of communication.

Here are several ways we have incorporated Edmodo in our gifted classes:

Weekly Journal Entries- I normally prompt students to make connections with the topic they are exploring and their own experiences. Instead of just limiting journal writing to a notebook, now students are able to post and share their thoughts, opinions, concerns, and doubts with others. The instant feedback my students receive provides further affirmation for their writing.

Collaborative Projects- In the fall we used Edmodo to collaborate with classes during The Global Read Aloud. We created a group where students could post their reactions and predictions to the novel, Tuck Everlasting. This semester, I am incorporating that same structure to create Book Clubs for several novels we are studying. I am taking it a step further to post some products such as illustrations from a section of the book that other partner classes can guess (Literature Circle Job), Haikus about nature (for The Whipping Boy), and video trailers for the novels. I am interested in seeing the feedback and dialogues that take place through these Book Club Groups.

Keeping in Touch with Former Students-This year we were sad to see two of our students move. To keep in touch, I created a group where the class can leave notes and keep their fellow classmates updated in the happenings of our classroom. I even awarded them a “We Miss You” badge.

Checking in After-Hours or during an Extended Break- My students love Edmodo so much that they asked if they could log in at home. They love to see what their classmates are doing on the weekends, during holidays or breaks. I think that this communication among peers is essential in maintaining the sense of community that we have. However, as informal as the communication may be in these instances, I always stress the usage of correct grammar, punctuation, and complete thoughts.

How do you use Edmodo in your classroom? What have been your favorite features? I would love to hear your ideas!

Skype in the Gifted Classroom Presentation

I was given the amazing opportunity to present Skype in the Gifted Classroom at this year’s National Association for Gifted Children’s Convention in New Orleans, Louisiana. I was thrilled to attend my first national conference and meet up with fellow tweechers. I also soaked up as much as I could at the sessions and panel discussions. It was no surprise that that majority of sessions I chose to attend focused on technology, literacy, and project-based learning.

Using Skype has been something I am truly passionate about. Skype is a tool that has transformed my classroom. It’s our window to the world, connections, and a real audience. Instead of looking something up about a country or culture, we can now directly ask our friends about it in person. To apply math skills, we play a game with our Math Skype Buddies. To learn what other gifted programs are doing around the globe, we listen to our partner class present projects they have completed. We learn. We connect. We share. That is what Skype has done for us.

I would like to take this opportunity to share my presentation and accompanying handout. I hope that you will find use in them and that they provide you direction in starting your own journey with Skype. Feel free to leave me a comment if you have questions or would like to further discuss ways to incorporate Skype into your gifted program or class.

Click here to view the Resource Handout.

Talking with Olivia Holt from Kickin' It

Last week my 2nd-4th grade students participated in a very special call with actress Olivia Holt from Disney XD's Kickin' It. Throughout her call, Olivia encouraged students to plan for the future and follow their dreams. She also told students to work hard and reach for their goals, even when they face challenges. This call was a very enriching experience for my students because they got to hear about the struggles and effort it takes to accomplish goals from someone who has a successful career at a young age. This call could not come at a better time, especially since my students are exploring future career paths this semester. I was proud to see my students ask some insightful questions about acting to find more about the entertainment industry. We were thrilled to have the opportunity to talk with Olivia and learn about her experiences!

Have a look at our call below.

We even tweeted about our call and were very excited that Olivia tweet us back!

Acknowledgements

This call was made possible by Jeff Rivera (@gatekeeperspost), Partner and Editor in Chief of The GateKeepers Post. Through his OpenEdu Talk Program, he arranges Skype calls with celebrities in entertainment and sports to talk to schools around the globe about issues that are relevant in today's society. This fall's program included an impressive line-up of celebrities and focused on achieving goals. To learn more about this program and how to participate, click here.

I think what Jeff is doing is absolutely wonderful! The topics discussed in The OpenEdu Talk Program are ones that today's youth can relate to. I also think it is important for students to discuss issues such as personal struggles, challenges, and future goals with individuals who have been down that same path.

Virtual Career Skype Tour: Our Talk with Dr. Lora Wilson

As part of our Virtual Career Skype Tour, my fourth graders had the opportunity to connect with Dr. Lora Wilson. Lora is a scientist and post doctoral fellow who works and leads a lab in The University of Colorado's Health Sciences Center. She conducts research related to treating and curing pulmonary cancer.

After briefly introducing herself, Lora showed us around the lab where she spends most of her days. She described a typical day at her job and showed us other parts of the lab. We even had the chance to meet other scientists who answered some questions we had.

Have a look at a clip from her tour.

After the tour, my fourth graders interviewed Lora to learn more about her work and how she came into the field of science. Here are some clips of the interview.

We thank Lora for taking the time to talk to us about her career. She is a great role model for girls who are interested in science and we respect her dedication and work in finding a cure for cancer. I know that this call has influenced my girls and has made them think differently about science.

Connecting with the Global Read Aloud

This was our first year participating in the Global Read Aloud. I decided to have my 5th grade students take part in this project because I felt that it would complement our novel studies unit and saw it as an excellent opportunity to connect with other classes around the globe who were also reading the same novel. When I first introduced the concept of the Global Read Aloud, I don’t think my students quite grasped what it involved. It was not until I showed them the Participant Map on the Global Read Aloud Wiki that they realized how large this project was! At this point, they were excited to connect with other classes and this is how we did it:

Edmodo- Throughout the Global Read Aloud we used this secure networking site to post the journal prompt in our Tuck Everlasting Group.Our journals revolved around themes for each section in the book and had students relate and make personal connections with the novel. Our partner classes in Delaware and South Korea were also part of this group and posed questions and polls that our students responded to. It was nice to see students and teachers responding to each other. Edmodo has allowed us to share and reflect in ways we have never imagined.

Skype- This project has also granted us the privilege of meeting our Delaware friends through Skype! Thanks to Lisa Mims in Delaware, we were able to arrange a call and participate in Literature Circles virtually. Students from both classes were responsible for sharing their assigned jobs and discussing the novel. Lisa and I were impressed by the how much thought and effort our students put into their Literature Circle jobs and discussion.

Here is a clip of our call. Watch as our Delaware friends guess an illustration for a scene in the book.



Overall, I am very pleased with the whole experience and for what it has done for my students. Reading alongside other classes made learning much more authentic for my students. The technology tools also engaged my students throughout the unit. I plan to continue using these tools and hope to connect my other classes for Skype Book Clubs later on in the year. To read more about these, click here. I welcome you to join us!