Author: Teach2Connect

I finally took some time yesterday to check in with my google reader. It had the lovely marking of 1000+ new posts from my subscriptions. I suppose I should read more often huh?! I found quite a few gems, but this particular post from Carol Broos provides the exact sentiment that I feel about technology in schools. I completely understand “I don’t get it” and “can you help me” but it is terribly disheartening to hear “I’m not doing that” or “this has always worked for me, so why change”. If our kids used phrases like that we would not accept it, so why from each other?

I step into a new responsibility this year of working with teachers to integrate ISTE standards in their instruction. The role is not completely defined but I am certain I will encounter discomfort or apprehension with the possibility of realigning curriculum and instruction. I feel like my major role will be that of cheerleader, both for small successes by teachers and for the value that tech integration brings to the classroom. At the end of the day, the most important thing for me is the impact on the student. I hope that objective is one that no one will choose to argue.

Every year, I put forth my “summer reading list” in hopes that I will grow professionally. I usually get through one and skim the others. This summer, I have loftily chosen three to engage my cognitive side while my the brain wants to be at the beach.

Integrating Differentiated Instruction & Understanding by Design (Connecting Content and Kids) by Carol Ann Tomlinson and Jay McTighe

This selection is part of my “school assigned” reading but I’ve had the book a while and it has been waiting to be read. We are working to use more DI strategies in the classroom school-wide and I am very interested in reformatting my curriculum for K-4 in a UbD mode.

Why Don’t Students Like School: A Cognitive Scientist Answers Questions About How the Mind Works and What It Means for the Classroom by Daniel T. Willingham

My twitter PLN was all a buzz about this particular book so I became intrigued. I have struggled a lot with motivating my middle schoolers. I feel like I’m not reaching them. I hope this book provides me with a research point of view regarding student apathy.

 Using Technology With Classroom Instruction That Works by Howard Pitler, Elizabeth R. Hubbell, Matt Kuhn, Kim Malenoski

I’m taking an official role to work with MS teachers to connect curriculum to ISTE standards for Teachers and Students. I’ve been a fan of the Marzano “folks” and thought this might provide me a springboard.

I do also have a stack of “read for pleasure” books a mile high, but am certainly open to both professional and personal recommendations.

As I say to my students, “Here is your summer homework: get dirty, play outside, eat ice cream, ride your bike, read at least one good book that no one told you to read, and WEAR SUNSCREEN!”

Happy Summer!

Super super excited about using Prezi to create an introduction to The Magic Flute for gr. 4. I hope that this will add to their engagement in order to increase their understanding. This tool is very easy to use and I hope it will glean excellent results.

The Magic Flute Prezi

I just read this great blog post about blogs in the graveyard for lack of blogging.  He suggests blogging thoughts, in the same vein as tweeting, and to not worry so much about the perfect post. I love this, but fear of ramble.

Nevertheless, here’s a thought…

I dusted off some old Godspell choreography for some 8th graders today. It was a hoot of a good time, heart pumping, and reminded me of a skill that I don’t use but love. It is nice to have moments like these.

More profundity and contributions to my PLN next time….

I had some time to look at “old bookmarks” and found a few nuggets to share with my music teacher folk. (Or people who just like to play cool music games)

San Francisco Symphony: Keeping Score

I used this site in the fall with my gr. 2 students as we explored Beethoven’s 3rd, 5th, and 9th symphonies. They were enthralled watching the musical score play out. It really helped them “hear” with their eyes and ears.

Phil Tulga’s Counting Rhythms

I love all of the resources on this site. The kids have used his Fraction Pies in a lot of different ways with a lot of different kids. I just found this one for the first time and I love love love that it uses a variety of counting systems to read the rhythms. I use the “French” system in my classroom. Likewise, it validated the way that I count rhythms using numbers (I had recently had this questioned by a student and therefore, questioned myself.)

There are so many many more amazing things out there. I will try to post more as I find them.

A few weeks back, I read a great post about the reconstruction and refining of professional values as one grows and learns. This post and its many “pages” of comments led me to think about how I have changed as an educator-learner in the last four years, since I began my new journey in an independent school.

In no particular order, these things are newly important-refined important-or-reassured important to me as an educator-facilitator-learner.

• Teaching from a thematic perspective, so that all things can meet and connect around big ideas or topics
• It doesn’t matter if it’s “your job” or “your trash” or “your student”—if you are in the community, it is yours
• A mission driven approach is critical
• Criss-Cross Applesauce doesn’t help everyone learn
• Creation is messy and in our case, super noisy. but in the end it makes the learning so much stronger
• it’s ok to struggle, it’s ok to fail, it’s not ok not to learn
• ask lots of questions. lots. it’s ok if no one answers, even if it’s frustrating
• serving comes before receiving
• try something new, really try, and you can then truly decide if it works or if it doesn’t
• school is not about numbers, it is about kids. the numbers have a place, but the kids come first
• modeling oneself as a multi-faceted human is just as important as being a subject area expert
• kids are just plain awesome every single day

My future path as an educator is currently unclear, which is terribly disconcerting. However, these values are transitory and I’m happy to pack them in my shell and take them wherever the road may lead.

On Friday, I was off and away at the MMEA conference in Baltimore to practice some good old music nerd professional development. I truly enjoyed singing and dancing at 8am with Paul Cribari, a fun little colonial session with Dr. Marian Schultz of Fairfax, and a little Kenya with Tim Gregory. It was great to be with “my people” who sing, dance, and play the recorder and no one looks at you funny. Plus, you can create an amazing Orff piece in about 5 minutes….but…..

It was in coming back to my classes today and speaking with my fabulous sub that I gained perspective on some of the work the kids are doing (I’m merely their facilitator) this year. My 7th grade “Music with Ordinary Objects” class has just been sparklingly wonderful. They have created group projects in body percussion, household items, reading from a score, and using multiple timbres. They are currently working on a “solo percussion project” to finish the trimester. They spend each of their classes preparing a piece of music in ABACA form using our ordinary object instruments. They are serious about this project and they are working so hard. Which means…they are LOUD. We have to take “decibel breaks” of silence to protect our ears in our little room. Yet, I am amazed at their tenacity in working with rhythms and timbre. Ah how they are creating.

The perspective was gleaned from listening to my sub respond with joy in how the children are working. They respect each other’s work and space. They treat the ordinary object instruments with great care. They are taking amazing pride in their solo works. This is all a teacher could ask for; students creating, working hard, and generally needing only a reassuring look or word that they are on the right track.

Some of the traditionalists with whom I workshopped last weekend might look at our work as “noise” or useless in a musicians world. But I am thoroughly moved by the problem solving, creativity, and delight that the students are gaining through their work.

To hear it from “outside” the music room; this is priceless.

My middle schoolers don’t check their email. Their school email that is; the service we use to “communicate” with them about work, projects, games, etc. Alas, by the time they get to 7th grade they just don’t check it with the same fervor with which they check their gmail or facebook. This lends itself to frustrating communicative habits of my oldest students as I do not communicate to them via their personal email and will not, out of principle, connect with them via facebook (it is my personal realm, not professional).(And don’t get me started on how they think twitter is dumb.)

So I stumbled upon wallwisher today and wondered, “would an interesting medium such as this interest my students? My intermediate aged students enjoy using NING but I think that extra step would bother my kids too much in their world of fast moving thinking. And while I’d love to slow them down and get them to take the time to process, alas, I still need a way to get across a digital message. I wonder if a wall such as this one could be an effective communication tool for them? As long as clear ground rules about posting (and checking) are established.

I’m not sure? What do you think? Leave a sticky on my “wall”

Enjoy!

As part of the cool tools workshop, I created my first 30 second free clip with animoto. It could not have been easier and as a friend said, “looks pro-ish”.  Oh, the ideas abounded in our workshop with curricular connections for animoto! I’m thinking….composer pics and a sound snippet??  I’m allowing a little personal-professional collision with the picture sources, they are from my Ironman in 2009. The music is one of my favorites and happens to be part of their stock collection.

So very excited to share new tools with teachers from around Maryland today with my terrific colleague Alecia Berman-Dry. We are presenting on quite a few things and then giving a precious resource in PD—TIME to practice!

Here are a few I found really interesting… Cool Tools Workshop