Back-Log: Book I am Grateful for...

I am very grateful for a book I read for an Aesthetics class I am taking.

The Arrival by Shaun Tan

There are no words in this book and it tells a powerful story

I will not ruin it by sharing my thoughts, but rather encourage others to explore it.

Grateful for...Bitter Sweet

Grateful for my mom for being the first and best teacher in my life. 

Picture above is of me graduating from college!

Grateful for my sister...we are 14 months apart and as close as ever

Grateful for my daughter.  This is my mom holding her.  Savannah is 7 now!

30 Day Blog Challenge: Thirty-Fear...What Fear?

What would you do (as a teacher) if you weren’t afraid?

 

A SCHOOL with KVC

Our UTOPIA

 Our CREATION

Our VISION

Our FRUITION

 Are you ready Karen?

30 Day Blog Challenge: Day Twenty-Nine-Change

How have you changed as an educator since you first started?

More reflective

Enjoying the job more

Allowing myself to be human

Using my leave for me and for rejuvenation

More empathetic

Lessening of control

30 Day Blog Challenge: Day Twenty-Eight-Which comes first?

Respond: Should technology drive curriculum, or vice versa?

My stance on this one?

Technology & Curriculum should have a symbiotic relationship of interdependence

I really like this company's logo which sums it up

LINK for LOGO

30 Day Blog Challenge: Day Twenty-Seven-Weekends & Holidays

What role do weekends and holidays play in your teaching?

This is a great prompt because I am in Virginia Beach!

I will update my post this evening.

Update 11pm:

Weekends/Holidays are for mostly rejuvenation and reminding myself of what is important 

I used my camera phone to take pictures of the beach with different effects

30 Day Blog Challenge:Day Twenty-Six-Go To Sites

What are your three favorite go-to sites for help/tips/resources in your teaching?

When I need to do something techy and I know it can be done, but don't know how to do it?

Credits

 For Theory of Knowledge Content Material?

Credits

Zite is the catalyst for finding sites like TeachThought

Credits

30 Day Blog Challenge: Day Twenty-Five-Collabo Utopia

The ideal collaboration between students–what would it look like?

• Working to achieve a common goal
• The goal is something that has multiple entry points for all students
• Active Listening by all
• Open-Mindedness to ideas
• Ability to wear multiple hats (leader; supporter; encourager)
• Norms & Expectations
• Learning from set-backs
• Holding each other accountable
• Celebrating accomplishments 
• Reflecting for the next collaboration

30 Day Blog Challenge: Day Twenty-Four-Learning Trend

Which learning trend captures your attention the most, and why? (Mobile learning, project-based learning, game-based learning, etc.)

I would like to reflect on my school experiences to respond to this prompt.  I have ADD and was recently diagnosed within the last 2-3 years.  I was talkative, inattentive, and struggled to focus and can remember this being an issue from 3rd grade forward.  Undergraduate work was very difficult for me as the first two years consisted of taking requirements for which I had little interest.

The memorable assignments from grade school are as follows:

Winning a Black History Essay Content in 9th Grade
Scoring 3rd Place in my School Science Fair in 8th Grade
Journalism Class:  Editor of the School Newspaper in 11th-12th Grade
Designing a Parts of Speech Board Game in 8th Grade which I called NACPAVI

All of these activities required the following:

1.  Choice
2.  Research over Time
3.  Authentic Assessments
4. Making/Designing Something
5.  Technology (typing, photos, templates)
6.  Creativity
7.  Presenting
8.  Meaningful for me as the learner
9.  Challenging & Fun
10.  An Audience

30 Day Challenge: Day Twenty-Three-Meaningful Community Involvement

Write about one way that you “meaningfully” involve the community in the learning in your classroom. If you don’t yet do so, discuss one way you could get started.


I am not quite sure in what way community is being defined in this context.

My thoughts:

1.  School Community
2.  Local Community
3.  Business Community
4.  Global Community

I have embarked on a journey with a wonderful teacher in Mexico through the org KnowMyWorld

We are using a Google Plus Community that I created and students are enrolling as I type!

We have planned to explore a few topics in our respective communities and share our findings.

Keep you posted!

30 Day Blog Challenge: Day Twenty-Two-PLN Description

What does your PLN look like, and what does it do for your teaching?

Forgot to take my post out of draft mode.....YIKES!!

 

MY PLN is interesting!

 What does it do for my teaching?

Reflective

Heightened Awareness of Student Needs

Student Voice in Classroom

Sticking to Rigor

Plan to Get to the Outcomes

Accountability for All Stakeholders

30 Day Blog Challenge: Day Twenty-One-Hobbies/Interest Integration

Do you have other hobbies/interests that you bring into your classroom teaching? Explain.

One of my hobbies in reading.  Since I teach within the core of the IB Programme, I read what the books that are required for our IB Literature class and work to weave them in to what we do in ToK especially when we work in the Arts.

Additionally, I have students read books that would provide them with a different perspective of their own.  Some of the used previously have been:

1.  The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Skloot
2.  1984 by Orwell
3.  The Trial by Kafka
4.  Anthem by Rand
5.  Shades of Grey by Fforde

30 Day Blog Challenge: Day Twenty-Curating Student Work

I can't believe I made it to day 20!!

Apparently, I was unofficial for most of the challenge!

Credits:  Cooltext

Ways I Curate Student Work:

On my G+ Account
Using Thinglink
Posting on Website
Adding it to our Program App
e-Reflection through Google Docs
Submissions through Turnitin (great for storage)
Postings on our Class Blog
Youtube Uploads
Quarterly Newsletter through Biteslide

Ways I Help Students Curate Their Own Work:

Managebac for IB CAS Activities
Academic Resume
e-Portfolio through Moxtra (for post-secondary purposes)
e-Reflection Journal
 Reflection Presentations at end of Class

30 Day Blog Challenge: Day Nineteen-Powerful Tools/Strategies

Name three powerful tools/strategies students can reflect on their learning, then discuss closely the one you use most often:

SWOT (Group)

e-Reflection in Google Docs (Individual):

Self-Assessment using Rubric (Individual):

30 Day Blog Challenge: Day Eighteen-Philosophy

Create a metaphor/simile/analogy that describes your teaching philosophy. For example, a “teacher is a ________…”

30 Day Blog Challenge: Day Fifteen- 3 Strengths

I got my days mixed up, but here it goes!

I actually went to my end-of-course student surveys to pull from those:

"provides support for students to correct themselves"

"forces us to think and question our way of thinking"

"think about myself and how I view the world"

"Diverse methods"

"good feedback"

"clear and organized"

"open for discussion in person or online"

"timely"

 "interesting assignments and excellent discussions"

"variety of resources"

"interactive and thought-provoking"

I would like to to mention that I was given constructive criticism from students and a tool I used for myself and the teachers in the program to deconstruct the criticism is here:

Responding to Course Feedback

I really like this tool!!

30 Day Blog Challenge: Day Sixteen-Superpower

I would love to clone myself!

I could grade papers while providing instruction, and support students who need more assistance, attending meetings that interrupt my day, responding to parent emails, conduct conferences, and doing my own homework, and helping my daughter with her homework, and cooking and all of the other things that I have to do that require my attention.

All at the same time!

30 Day Blog Challenge: Day Seventeen-Most Challenging Issue

Paradigm Shift:  A significant change in a group or discipline

http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/paradigm+shift

These shifts also cannot come from people who do not know ANYTHING about T & L.

I will leave what the shifts are to  your imagination as we all have different interpretations.

 

30 Day Blog Challenge: Day Fourteen-Feedback

What is feedback for learning, and how well do you give it to students?


I have spent much of my time this summer doing quite a bit of reading.

Prensky & McTighe/Wiggins to be exact and feedback was one of the tenets to learning.

Prensky calls it iteration and McTighe calls it feedback.

Iteration's is loose definition is "repetition" &feedback's is "information used for improvement"

Wiggins (1998) says for feedback to be effective it must meet the following criteria:
1.  timely
2.  specific
3.  understandable to the receiver
4.  formed to allow for self-judgement on the part of the receiver

Prensky's iterative model is likened to a game or app that is updated and upgraded as it is in constant state of improvement.

I actually like both definitions!!

If I was to evaluate how well I give feedback, I think that I do #2 & #3 well, but could use work on #1 & #4.

For #1...well

What do all teachers want more of...TIME...time to plan...time to grade...

I use rubric quite regularly and have students provide feedback on some activities

For #4...

IB is big on using a question model for feedback.  I use this model, but sometimes wonder how well students track whether or not they are being asked the same questions or know how to improve their performance as a result.  I find the conversations the most effective and conduct them as follows:

1.  in-person before the start of 1st period
2.  in-person during a lunch period
3.  in-person after school
4.  Google Hangouts

30 Day Blog Challenge: Day Thirteen: Ed Tech Tools

My evaluation of tech tools and how I use them have become more critical over the last 3-4 years.  When deploying tools, I am constantly thinking of where I am on the SAMR Model.


I constantly strive to introduce tools to students so that we are working in the M and R of SAMR.


I don't think the issue is with the tools themselves, but how I choose to use them.

Google Forms

I have used them in a variety of ways, but I think my more recent use of them took the tool to the next level.  I created a rubric for each group presentation and students completed them at the end of the presentations.  There were two multiple choice options and the last text box was for comments and feedback for the group.  I then shared the spreadsheet with just that group of students.  The next phase will be to have students discuss in groups the feedback received and how they can improve the presentation for the next time.  Getting that activity to R would mean possibly videoing the students and having a global audience complete the rubric using the Google Form.

Piktochart

As a part of an activity through a grant we were awarded through YSA StateFarm Good Neighbor Grant, we used Piktochart to tackle perceptions of homelessness, hunger, poverty.  We started in TOK under the umbrella of the Arts chapter to discuss color, sizing, text etc and its effectiveness on viewer perception.  Students conducted research on 8 different subgroups and designed Infographics using Piktochart.  After the drafts were completed, we sent them via email to our IB Visual Arts students who critiqued them.  Students revised the infographics and we used part of the $ for the grant to print them in color and display them in a prominent hallway, during an assembly, during a technology conference, during our presentation on the GENC  in November 2013, and down on the National Mall during Global Youth Service day in April 2014 as a part of the annual NYLC.   Students and teachers from all over the world have seen this work on line and in person at NYLC.  I would say that this activity achieved a R to the nth degree.

LINK to Online Article: IB Blog

LINK to Online Article: YSA Blog

LINK to GENC Webinar