Almost One Year...

...since I last posted. Pathetic.

What happened? I lost interest, lost my job, lost the use of my 2 typing fingertips?

No, simply put, I became a P.E. Teacher.

Don't get me wrong, I love physical education, fitness and health, encouraging kids to get off their spoiled, lazy, X Box/Playstation-swollen fat butts and Get Up and Move! I love sports and coaching sports, and I love helping the uncoordinated kids learn how to throw and catch (mostly. sometimes.).

But in teaching P.E. 2.5 out of past 3 school years I've become stale, stagnant, spinning my professional development and teaching talent wheels slower and slower and slower...

Thud.

What Do I Want To Do Better Next Year?

Everything!

 Seriously? Maybe not every little thing, but looking back I can see daily examples of things I can do better next time:

• As the students write their final papers I realize I was not enough of an Editor. They are still writing such simple, poor, incoherent sentences! Maybe I let the focus be on too much self- and peer-editing, so the blind led the blind? I think I could have been tougher, more insistent on writing a quality sentence.
•  (Part of this was due to them taaaaaaaaaking soooooooooo looooooooong to write! Our first research paper my first month took a week for the outline and two weeks for the rough draft, some kids never did finish, and overall final results were disappointing.  Maybe I expected them to write too much?  Maybe/obviously they were not accustomed to writing more than a paragraph?)
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• Talk less. Less words, and slower.  In my zeal to get the lesson out I talk to quick sometimes, especially when giving examples. Got to let 'em soak it in. My class was behind the other 5th grade classes from my 1st week, and it took me a bit to realize it's not a race or competition, especially with veteran teachers who know the material inside and out.  
• Find more time to let students talk to me. Especially the ones struggling with behavior and/or lessons. Hear their ideas how to solve situation, and may hear underlying issues. Or sometimes they just want to talk.
•  

I Still Want To Do More!

Plenty of time left in the school year, including more testing, but what do I want to try and get to before the summer job search break begins?

• The American Revolution. Still working through Colonial America -- houses to build! newspapers to write! maps to illustrate? Colonial Games Olympics! -- but definitely want to give 1776 some attention.
• Recycled Rollercoasters: they've started collecting "shape-able" recycled items (no cans or glass) and I'll have teams design/plans/build a track for a marble to roll down, extra credit for loops and jumps.
• "I'm an Expert" presentations. What do they know? One of my phrases is "29 Teachers in this room" and now they get to teach us something.With visual aids, demonstrations, and hands on activities?
• Book Reports. I've been showing class examples of, and encouraging them to think about/attempt, other ways to demonstrate their knowledge. We've watched videos on School Tube, explored right/left brain concept, did a little blogging, brainstormed alternates to daily (probably very boring by now) Reading Logs. Now let's see what they can put into action! I've heard there's already one rap in the works...
• Create Your Own Scientific Inquiry.  We've listed "I wonder..." questions and topics all year, I wonder how much of their curiosity they can turn into an experiment? No explosives, please.
• How to read/understand/appreciate/create graphic novels -- looking for good websites for my students to make their own comic on?

Good Things I Done This Year

Why, just as I sit down to finally write something, does my wife decide to put in one of the greatest movies of all time? Butch and Sundance, here I come...

Ok, back to work.  

What do I think I did well this year* in the classroom, and outside of it to get ready for the classroom? Hmmm...

• Read out loud. I took a regular turn reading Science, Math, Social Studies, Reading texts and read several picture books to introduce and supplement lessons. I'm reading them Nicholas St. North whenever I get the chance, a chapter here, a chapter there. I also put vocabulary (synonyms/in context) from each chapter up on the big screen as I read.
• Got 'em moving. We got up out of our seats to act out the solar eclipse, classifying data, the circulatory system, water cycle and evaporation, bar graphs, vocabulary words, as well as going back in time to review a lesson. (How? With tin foil hats, hula hoops, and a black hole video from NASA.gov, of course. How else would one go back in time, with a Lamborghini? Preposterous. Would never work.)
• The blood stream activity worked well.  The students paired up to act out and tell class the jobs of heart, lungs, cells, etc. and other students traveled through the stations telling us where they were going (from the heart to lung, capillary to cell) and what they were doing (delivering oxygen, exhaling CO2).  We switched up roles several times and I think it really "flowed"...

*not that the year is over -- we go to July 20th!

No, we are not going to McDonald's...

But I do want to find some cool yet educational things for my classes to do over those last days of school.

I think that one of my "I could do better" motivations in becoming a teacher was the number of movies, parties, and "Free Play!" days my sons talked about.  Now I realize they may have been exaggerating the length and depth of these activities, and I may be setting myself for a full blown revolt, especially after studying the Revolutionary War, and will find myself scotch taped to the desk with an eraser in my mouth while my students abandon class to hang out in a room with popcorn and a Disney DVD, but I'd like them to do something they probably will NOT do for the majority of their summer break. You can't tell me kids these days will not eat a single bite of fast food or watch a single movie all summer...

So what should we do? Debates? Art? Recyclable material race tracks? Daily surprise quizzes?

As always, I am open to ideas.

25, 26, 27 hours in your day?!?

Time manipulation? Unholy alliance?
Alien technology? A trip to Mr. Johnson's crossroads?

How else do you do it?

C'mon, you educators that post pictures of clean, bright, fantasy-schoolhouse classrooms to go with  your time-saving and tree-saving yet engaging, all level differentiated, in line with every state's Standards lessons that you post on your professional quality and heavily "Best of" honor-bedecked website which connects to your Pintrest, Twitter, Facebook, and blog via smart phone, iPad, and probably ESP -- AND you have time for quality personal reflection while you share 702 up-to-the-second latest technology ideas for the flipped i21 space station classroom during a tweet-fest with all 13,756 of your closest friends and followers???

How in the holy name of Angela Watson* do you find the time to do it all?

Help a brother out!

Don't know what I'm doing wrong. I get in early, make sure I have all supplies and notes ready for each lesson, sharpen a few pencils and away we go... 6.5 hours later I kick 'em all out. Homework Club on Tuesday but none of my students ever come so it's right to planning the next day(s): Gotta... man, I can't even write down what I gotta do cause I getta more tired and need to go to bed.

Actually, I feel better already. Just the thought of bed led me to the thought of that first cup of coffee in the morning, then the anticipation-filled drive to work, then the heartbeat of joy that always thumps when I pull out the keys to my classroom door. AND I get paid for this!

*sigh*

 I guess I'll be okay...







*Arne Duncan? Michelle Rhee? Do teachers have a patron saint?

Making It Up As I Go Along

I love History, enjoy the Founding Fathers/Birth of Our Nation period, and was looking forward to Social Studies with my new 5th graders. Except I was told S.S. is not on the State test, 5th grade has a Science benchmark, and besides, the students don't like it anyway...

My little red. white, and blue heart was crushed, from the jump.

So we did a lot of Science, took the test, and will keep doing Science cuz it's on the State test too, but I must get in some George Washington or I will feel like a failure as an American and a teacher.  Especially since we're studying archetypes in LangArts and there would be great connections to heroes, rebels, etc.

Then I looked at the textbook. Oy, several chapters still to go before 1776, and they don't look like the kind of chapters that keep 11 year old eyelids open. I suppose I could skip stuff, but they do need some background, right?  Then I started getting ideas, whether from the ghost of Ben Franklin or what I learned Education was really supposed to be like in my Credential classes I'm not sure, but I'm gonna go with it....

I'd love ideas, suggestions, warnings, project-based, um, projects, places to check out and things to do online, whatever ya got to help make this work. Call me naive and foolhardy, but I really do want my students to learn something AND not hate Social Studies!

So here's my Lesson "Plan":

Notes from a work in progress. The only part we've done in class so far is assign the groups and discuss where on the map we are (my Native American group wanted to be Hopi).

1. Gave each table group their assignment: Middle, Southern, New England Colonies, Great Britain, Native Americans, African Americans. Spent several minutes convincing them Great Britain, Britain, and England were one and the same. They didn't like this choice until I mentioned one of them could be King! The African American group probably has the least info in the text, so I gave it to a group of good researchers.
2. Each group of 4/5 students also will assume characters -- 1 or 2 children and a reporter, a politician/leader, and a farmer or businessperson.  They can find out how their characters would work, play, dress, live, etc and compare with same character in the other groups.We're voting on a class Postman (need to work Franklin in here somehow) and students will be able to write letters/questions to other characters, hopefully more or less in character. I'm also hoping we can use their blogs to post a diary/journal for each character so others can read and ask questions. Through all of that will each student learn about the other groups w/out having to read the entire text and do all worksheets?
3. Need some good historical fiction...
4. Students can build houses (Popsicle sticks?) to show the various ways people lived.
5. Each group's Reporter will create a newsletter to publish info and events from their area -- maybe discussing famous people from their area? Op ed and letters to editor as we get closer to shot heard 'round the world?
6. Art: pose as artwork from the period? Work up a script, what are these people doing, saying, and why?
7. Hmmm, King vs Colonist tax policy debate? Family Feud  game show?
8. Each group has a political figure, gov official, tribe leader. What power/responsibility does each have? How were they chosen? Why did they want position? Interesting to compare the various styles of gov. For AfrAmer need to find a Northern figure, or could they be represent a slave?
9. If there are 5 students in a group, do their characters all need to be connected? Same tribe, same town, etc? Will students have ability to research needed if all separate?
10. Time lines (or is it timelines?) -- I love timelines, and the kids love folding papers into cool shapes and gluing them into their journals, so we'll make a time line that expands out of their books and they can add events/dates as we go through unit. I'll start with them making a personal timeline and checking out something cool online, hopefully interactive -- any suggestions?
11. Maps. You know I love maps. Students can research cartography (right, like we have time for that) and create maps showing their groups area(s) and how connected to other groups areas -- follow that mail carrier! How would a letter get from one person/place to another? 
12. They also need help with paraphrasing, too much to use the Dec of Independence and have them reword it a little?
13. I need music! Need to start playing them colonial/British/spiritual music while they read and work... now what section if the record store will that be in?
14. Thanks to this awesome LiveBinder and a cool "foldable" I saved from my son's class got an idea for them to collect their key info (and anything involving folding and gluing they really get into).
15. I need to make a big puzzle where each group's puzzle piece fits together to make the map we've been looking at, Great Britain to the Adirondacks. On each piece they can illustrate key elements. I suppose each group's big piece could be broken into smaller pieces of puzzle, 1 for each group member to work on.  Now the question: How do I make a giant puzzle? Working out details of puzzle on google doc (link below)
16. The Domino Book! Liked this idea since Son #3 brought one home a few years ago, and now I know it's called a "Foldable" -- the tricky part will be getting the less hand-eye coordinated students to not end up with a big ball of paper. The facts for each category will be across the folded page from an example and/or illustration, when booklet is completely unfolded one side shows all facts and other side all examples.

Does a link to google docs work here? "Soc Studies Colonial..."

Teachers Done Got It Good

A comment on this much read and commented on post. I guess I'm just full of myself enough to repeat it here. ;)

We need a comprehensive, scientific poll: I always wonder how many teachers, the ones who love and respect the job and the ones who whine and complain (and yes, you could do both) would change careers if they could? Just pick another job and *poof* now you’re a contractor, lawyer, restaurant owner!* Then compare those stats to all who would switch to Teaching as their paycheck?

IMHO, and as one who as worked 20 years outside Education first, Teachers done got it good. Yes we work hard, yes we must be creative, yes we deal with bothersome irritations, constant frustrations, and seemingly unattainable expectations/goals, but what job worth doing doesn’t? Not to mention apathetic students and ignorant parents. Yet we are doing something that makes sense, means something, can and does have a positive impact, AND we can be home most days by 4:00 and never, ever work Christmas Eve!

Appreciate it, Respect it, and get back to work.


*Choosing “All Pro Linebacker” or “Multiple Oscar Winner” doesn’t count. Stay realistic.

Talk to ALL Your Students At Once!

I know, I know, that's called a "lecture" and it's easy to do. But do you really have every student's attention? How about giving every student feedback on essays they wrote -- detailed, personalized, meaningful feedback and assessment -- all at once?  Not only that, but the students can replay your comments and suggestions over and over, even let peers/parents listen and read to provide even more support and feedback. No more misunderstanding or "Uh, I forgot" what you said!

It all has to do with Google docs and screen savers, of which the details are all here, including great examples from actual student work.  I think it's a great idea/tool, especially with middle school and up.

Props and thanks to The Transparent Teacher -- awesome blog!


http://alytapp.com/2011/10/27/assessment-feedback-via-screencast-examples/

Vampire Teacher?

Am I a vampire? 'Cause I can't see any reflection...
As in, I know personal/professional reflection is beneficial and should be done in a timely manner, but I also know the road to hell is paved with good intentions, so I took a detour. I also know you shouldn't mix your metaphors with your beer and liquor, so I'll just hit enter and start over...

I planned on spending this Spring Break reviewing my first 10 weeks as a real live classroom teacher, going over the lessons, assignments, and planning so I could work out what could have been done better.  Well, it quickly became obvious the answer was "everything" so I put that on a back burner and cleaned up the office, organized the bookshelves, and read a lot. I also became addicted to Twitter, but that's another issue.

Now I'm in low-level panic mode because I did not plan every day through the end of school year.  I brought everything home from each subject and stacked it all up neatly, then dusted the stacks once a week.

History of English Language

Cool little video on where our words come from.  I'd show it in class (6th grade and up) but prob skip the slightly naughty bit (end of part 6, I believe).

 and here's the original on the Smithsonian page

Classroom Photos

Too much? Too cluttered? Too yellow?

Bonus points for finding WHERE the events from CNN Student News or anything else covered in class actually is. Twenty push-ups if you cannot find where you live.

I like maps.

Thank you Wonderopolis for the Spring Break Homework inspiration.

 That's as clean as it was gonna get. Eww, hope I didn't leave the apples there.