Starting to connect globally

September 9th was the day I sat in the office talking about my professional growth plan for the upcoming year. Little did I know then how much my teaching life would change for the better and all because of global connection.

After my meeting, I initially thought about changing my topic for growth. Luckily I stuck with global connection, and I started to connect with others; through twitter, twitter chats, direct messages, Google hangouts and Facebook. I became excited and energized with teaching and tried new activities and lessons with my class.

My students were motivated and engaged each time we made global connections. They became excited about learning and sharing with others. We worked on the Student Blogging Challenge and put our work out there for others to enjoy. We loved visiting other blogs and leaving comments for other students taking part in the challenge.

As a teacher, I took part in the Student Blogging Challenge by becoming a volunteer student commenter. I was motivated to volunteer after seeing how excited my students were last year when they received comments on their blog. I wanted to be able to get other students excited by seeing comments about their work. Each week I had the opportunity to visit many different blogs and encourage students to keep up their blogging. Through visiting so many different blogs, I discovered a terrific school in Vancouver that delivers a unique and amazing program for their Grade 8 classes. Some of the students in this program have visited our blog, and my students have visited their blogs.

The Global Read Aloud Project was another project that had the students and I connecting globally. We participated in two Google hangout sessions and found out about each other and where we live in North America. The students and I loved seeing the other classes and exchanging our thoughts and feelings about the book.

I think the connection that my students have loved the most is Global Maker Day where we watched a live stream throughout the day. My students loved watching the students from Scheck Hillel Community School make their presentations. They also loved creating and designing their projects and sharing them with other children via Flipgrid.

Twitter remains by far the most instrumental part of my global connections. I joined my first twitter chat in September and immediately felt comfortable with the whole process. I get to participate in the comfort of my home and share resources with veteran educators. I like to call a twitter chat a virtual staffroom where the ideas flow. I have participated in chats on math, maker spaces, virtual field trips, Google slides, and the hour of code.

I have also kept in contact with people I have met at BLC’19 and made wonderful new contacts because of them. These contacts have let me know about special events happening; I got to watch some sessions on digital citizenship from Russia and Texas. I had the chance to connect with a school from the Netherlands and get in touch with them to help with blogging. Global Maker Day came to me through twitter as did so many other virtual summits and chats.

Global connection helps teachers and students learn about the world around them. It makes everyone excited to learn and share their work with others. I am hoping that the rest of this school year is filled with global connections in fourth-grade. The students and I have some great ideas and projects planned and we could not be more excited to connect.

Global Connection

Global connection in the classroom didn’t resonate with me a year ago. The only real experience I had was having my class become penpals with Brian Kom’s class in Japan many years ago. Our classes exchanged a few letters and a video, and my students (the current grade 7 class) loved the exchange.

I am happy to say that global connection means a great deal more to me now. The idea of connecting my classes globally for all subjects is so appealing. The students will get a better sense of geography, gain different perspectives about the world around them, and see how much in common we have with others. They will also get to learn about new cultures and languages.

I can offer my students all of this right from the comfort of my classroom. My classes have had the opportunity to connect with other students via blogs, and mystery skypes, and book talks. Each connection has had my students engaged, motivated, and excited about learning. I must admit that I have been equally excited during each of these connections. The students have loved talking with other students about the book they have read or the work they have produced. I daresay the students listen more attentively as they talk and share over skype.

I plan to continue connecting my classes globally throughout the year. We will talk to scientists and work on number chats with other classes. The ultimate goal is to connect with another class from a different part of the world to learn about a new culture and language. Perhaps we will collaborate on a project together. These authentic experiences will enrich the curriculum, motivate my students, and make school so much fun. The students will become better digital citizens who hopefully want to change the world one day.

For the love of reading

This post has been swirling around in my head ever since I started teaching in the older grades four years ago. By older grades, I mean Grades Three and Four. I have been surprised at how many words students do not understand. Words that I thought were common often stumped my students. My students now do online reading assessments throughout the year. I have seen students panic over the vocabulary while completing the assessments. I have been reflecting on how I can shine a light on vocabulary this year and help my students acquire richer vocabulary.

In my own family, vocabulary and reading have been important focuses. My husband and I wanted our children to love reading and have rich vocabularies. We vowed to make this a priority. Our children were exposed to sophisticated vocabulary in family conversations. Books were also a priority and we spent valuable hours reading good books and talking about them.

As my children reached Grade Four they lost interest in reading. We let them buy lots of comics and magazines, anything to get them interested in reading on their own. It worked! My children started reading for pleasure on their own. We visited libraries and bookstores and let them choose whatever books they wanted. The bookshelves at our house are overflowing and my children have rich vocabularies. I have the same expectations for vocabulary and reading for my own students.

Last year was my first year teaching Grade Four and I noticed how some students lost interest in reading. I signed my class up for the Ottawa Senators reading program in conjunction with a school-wide reading challenge. I wanted to get my students interested in reading again. We won a pizza party from the Ottawa Senators for reaching our reading goals for one month. Many of my students were voracious readers and continued to read all year. Sadly, a few of my students did not start reading regularly.

This year I have made a concerted effort to make reading a priority in my class. I have my students entered the same Read to Succeed Program with the Ottawa Senators. We are also taking part in a school-wide reading challenge. I hope that all my students will learn to love reading this year. I have even donated our family collection of Archie comics to the school library so children can read something quick during morning care or their recess time. Our amazing school librarian Brigitte and I have talked at length about ways to get the students to fall in love with reading and read good books with rich vocabulary. I am going to start taking lots of different books to the class to encourage the children to pick up during the quiet reading time. We are going to try our best to get them away from graphic novels and encourage wonderful chapter books instead. My original plan was going to involve collaboration from the administration but I have not approached anyone yet.

We started the year off with a bang as we set a goal for reading 5000 pages in September. Most children thought it was an unattainable goal at first but we broke it down to about 225 pages a student. Everyone agreed to do their part for the class community. The looks on my students’ faces when they realized they had surpassed their goal by 12,000 pages were priceless.

Our November goal was to read 20,000 pages and the students have read over 54,000 pages.

All of my students are trying their best to read each night and contribute to our reading goals. Some students are reading hundreds of pages and some are reading 15-30 pages. I am happy that they are all reading. I hope the two reading challenges will help all my students become avid readers this year.

 

I am also reading novels aloud to my classes and using richer vocabulary in class daily. I am hopeful that vocabularies will expand and students will be talking about all the different books they are reading. I will keep repeating The more you read the more you learn and hope for the best. I will keep up my high expectations for reading and hope my students strive to meet those high expectations.

Reflecting with my students

I am finally writing about reflection. My students have had the chance to really reflect on their learning. The reflection process turned out to be very meaningful and empowering for my students. I introduced the activity by letting students know that I also stop and reflect on my teaching and learning twice a year with my Head of School. I explained that we all have areas we need to grow in, and it is good, to be honest about where our strengths and weaknesses lie.
Both of my classes were honest and open with their reflections and so many meaningful conversations took place. I had the opportunity to really get to know and understand my students on a different level. Shy and quiet students admitted on their papers that they don’t seek assistance from teachers when they need it. Students who were strong in the area of science and math opened up that reading and writing does not interest them too much. One student talked with me and let me know that he really has trouble getting his ideas into writing. The most powerful reflection came from a student that has had a difficult time getting along with classmates in the gym and at recess. I have been going the extra mile for this student for the last year and a half. She came up to me and showed me her sheet and pointed to the word flexible and told me how being flexible is so hard for her. We talked together and I told her that I would help her work in this area and she smiled the biggest smile.
I am so pleased with how this reflection went so smoothly with my students. They felt safe, to be honest, and open. Hopefully, this first reflection sets us on the right path with growth mindsets for a terrific year. Will I be doing ongoing reflection throughout the year? Absolutely!

A Time to Stop and Reflect

October is almost over, and I find it is a perfect time to stop and reflect on the school year. I had so many great ideas of things I wanted to implement into my teaching practice. Reflection was at the top of my list; ongoing reflection for my students and myself. I find myself wondering what kind of ongoing reflection have I done. My classes have accomplished so much academically so far, but we have not taken the time to reflect on the learning.

The classes have reflected on their actions and behaviour. We have had many meaningful conversations about being kind, using positive words, saying sorry, and performing acts of kindness. I have also talked about leadership and the importance of making a positive difference every day. During this time, we have also strengthened our relationships as well.

As I sit back and reflect on the last few weeks, I smile because there have been a few amazing moments as I have watched my students being so kind and caring. During our monthly visits to a nearby seniors’ residence, I watched with pride as my students made real connections with the residents. Another moment happened at a track meet. The students supported each other by cheering for every student. The good sportsmanship that was on display was amazing, and our classes stood out amongst all the other schools. Teachers and parents from other schools even noticed our tremendous support for each other.

The most recent moment came during our class speeches for class representatives. We had 13 out of 22 students who wanted the coveted position of class rep. The speeches were sweet and sincere. I listened to each child talk and express their true interest in working for their classmates and bringing their ideas to the student council. I looked to my teaching partner, and we shared a secret smile to acknowledge this special moment.

The personal reflection and relationship building done with the classes has helped to build a community of kindness and support where it is safe to take risks. I am pretty confident that the students are ready to take risks in their learning this year. I know that I am ready to take risks too. Academic reflection will start this week. My personal reflection will continue on this blog.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A New School Year

A new school year is about to begin. I am dreaming of what the future holds for my students; the sky is the limit! I am so fortunate to be able to play a small part in my students’ lives. I will inspire them to become life long learners, and hopefully, catch a glimpse of their gifts and passions along the way.

Two years ago, I had the chance to be part of a school team to work with No Tosh to develop our school’s North Stars. As part of our initial work, we interviewed students, teachers, and parents. The interviews with students have stayed with me to this day. It was during these interviews that I saw eyes light up when the students talked about what they would like to learn at their ideal school. After the interviews, I wanted to give my students more opportunities to work on what they are truly passionate about.

This past spring I read The Element by Ken Robinson. The Element talks about how finding your passion changes everything. Ken Robinson tells many stories of how people found their true talents and passions and also describes how people had their gifts and talents overlooked when they were young. There is one story of how a teacher overlooked the talents of Paul McCartney and George Harrison in music class.  After reading the book, I realized that I have the best seat in the house, a front-row seat to see my students’ true talents and passions shine during the school years.

This year I am lucky enough to be teaching the same group of students that I taught in Grade Three. I did see many eyes light and twinkle up last year. One student has shared that she would love to be an engineer. Another student built his own computer and loves any type of science experiment. There are natural storytellers, physicists, doctors, and mathematicians in our midst. It is amazing to see what students are really passionate about. There are also talents and passions that I have yet to see. I am ready to start a new school year, give my classes plenty of wonderful learning opportunities, and hopefully see the sparkle of many eyes lighting up!

 

Owning the Learning

I have the lofty goal of getting my students to really take ownership of their learning this year. My students owned a great deal of their learning in Grade 3. It is amazing to watch students immerse themselves in a project and work hard to learn as much as they can. I find children work harder, enjoy the process more, and dare I say learn way more this way. Classroom management is much easier as everyone is too busy and engaged to misbehave. Sometimes students even stay in at recess just to continue working. It is so much fun to teach in a class like this.

I had the opportunity to really own my learning when I worked on my professional growth plan two years ago. I worked harder and learned so much more than I did during past teacher evaluation processes. I got up early to watch inspiring Ted Talks, read books and changed my practice in the classroom. I learned along with my students and had the best time. I can tell you that it is incredibly satisfying to grow in this way.

This past year I had the opportunity to let my own daughter own her learning. She was having a challenging time in math class and was getting discouraged. I brought up the idea of dropping the math class and taking the math class online. My daughter would be in control of learning the content and completing assignments and tests independently. My husband initially thought it was a crazy idea to do such a thing during the graduating year, my daughter did have to get into university.

I am happy to report that my daughter loved taking ownership of her learning. She worked harder in this course than any other and even started tutoring a friend once a week. She got an excellent mark in the course, earned three scholarships, and is ready to study Neuroscience this Fall.

Taking ownership of one’s own learning is best for students and teachers alike. We can all reach for the stars when we own our own learning!

 

 

Reflection

I have heard so much about reflection over the last year. I wanted to do lots of reflection with my classes and really have students thinking about their learning. Some students took this process seriously and some did not. Most of the reflection was done ar the end of projects or units. At the BLC’19 conference, my colleagues and I talked about reflection a lot. Ongoing reflection is key for the growth mindset. We all resolved to do ongoing reflection this year.

This summer I have been reflecting on my reflecting. Do I refect as much as I should? Could I do more reflecting to improve my practice and grow myself professionally?  I read about a blogger who felt writing blog posts allowed for deep reflection and a place to organize thoughts. Perhaps I should try to keep blogging this year and see what happens. I am beginning to understand that if I want my students to reflect on their learning I have to start reflecting first. This blog is the perfect place to reflect, share my ideas, and to be vulnerable. Wish me luck!

The First Five Days

Inspired by the BLC’19 conference I attended in Boston I decided to listen to a podcast with Alan November discussing the First Five Days of school. Fresh from the conference with so many ideas swirling around in my head I kept thinking of the First Five Days talk by Alan November I saw last October. I remember being upset at the time because I had not started the school year the way Alan November talked so passionately about. I vowed that this year would be different as I listened and took notes. It is all about Relationships, Risks, and Responsibility.

Day 1  Ask Questions

Day2  Search &Organzie Find your own answers

Day 3 Responsibility

Day 4 Be Problem Designers

Day 5 Global Collaboration

To get ready for Day 1 I will work on researching and getting comfortable with open-ended questions. It was surprising during a workshop session on Learner Driven Inquiry that most teachers ask too many closed questions. I will be looking to https://rightquestion.org for resources and ideas. I love how Alan November talks about starting off with no content and having students formulate questions will be engaging and motivating for them as no judgment will happen during this phase. Students of all abilities will be excited to formulate questions and work with a partner to look at questions to prioritize the top 3 questions. I cannot wait to start off the school year in an exciting way. This should be awesome!

Reflection of the BLC’19 Conference

This summer, I had the privilege of attending the Building Learning Conference in Boston with four of my colleagues from the OJCS. We spent three days together attending different workshops, making connections, sharing what we learned, and spending meaningful time together.

It was apparent on the first day that our school in Ottawa is well on its way to being the best school. The messages we heard at the conference of letting students be the problem finders, the problem designers, take risks and learn from failure and most importantly own their learning, were part of conversations already taking place at the OJCS.

I came away from this experience feeling inspired and so excited for the upcoming school year. I plan to put much of what I learned at the conference into my teaching practice this year. Digital citizenship will be embedded in the curriculum naturally by making global connections. The students and I will be documenting our learning and making our thinking visible through the blogging process. Learner driven inquiry will hopefully be the norm in Grade 4 this year.

I made some excellent connections with the presenters of workshops. One presenter Dr. Marialice Curran, created the first course on digital citizenship at a university. I was lucky to connect with this professor at the workshop. She gave me her book and has offered to help me this Fall as I start to connect globally. Another presenter Alisha Collins has promised to send me her Science curriculum for some teachers to try out this year. Our school will also be part of the World Peace Song Project with schools all over the world. We will be the first Canadian school to join this project. This opportunity came about as I chatted with a teacher in another workshop. Silvia Tolisano gave an amazing workshop about documenting learning and student portfolios. She urged us to start our own professional blogs before we start them with our students.

The most meaningful part of the experience was spending time with my colleagues. We all went to different workshops and shared what we had learned. We got to know each other on a different level and appreciate one another. It was nice to discuss our craft and brainstorm ideas.  It is upon reflecting on the whole experience that we come away feeling inspired to design authentic learning experiences, encourages students to take risks, to ask rich questions, to fail to learn, to collaborate, to think critically, and to learn along with your students. We have made new connections and learned new things. We are excited to share with our colleagues and start collaborating on new projects/prototypes.

It is worthwhile to send a team to this conference every year. The team will bond, learn new things, make connections, get inspired, and more importantly come back to share and inject their enthusiasm into the school culture. Each teacher and administrator deserves such an enriching learning opportunity.