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My Journey on How to Properly Share Content with a Global Audience

“When we see teachers and students learn how to properly share content, and how their global audience takes note, it is amazing how students’ interest and  motivation soars.”

Now Classrooms K-2 book

What I am thankful for…

As a mom, I am thankful that my children’s teachers use Twitter to share what happens in the classroom.

As an educator, I am thankful that teachers worldwide share their ideas on Twitter.

As a classroom teacher, I am thankful that I found a way for my students to share, in their own words, both to their teacher, parent and other students all at the same time through the free app, Seesaw Learning Journal.

My journey on how to “properly share content”-

It all started with Twitter.  When our district started first using Twitter years ago, it was something that some teachers gravitated to and others stayed far away from.  For me, I logged on and was simply an observer for a while. I sat and watched what others were doing in their classroom and how they were sharing information.   Then one day, I got brave. After checking my “Do not photo list” I decided it was time to post about my classroom

Here are my first two posts from 2013:

What I realized quickly, was that people were watching.  My district was watching, my bosses were watching, other teachers were watching and parents were watching.  Twitter was the first avenue I used to help parents and others understand what happened in the kindergarten classroom.  It was a way for parents to engage in a rich conversation with their children about something that happened during their day.

I found a way to share my experiences with a local and global audience, but I needed something that the students could do with more independence.

In 2015, I was introduced to Seesaw.  Again, I went to a class about it and then…I waited.  I am not sure what got me to try it for the first time, but I am beyond happy that I did.  What I realized quickly, was that when I used Seesaw, “students interest soared” and SO did their learning.

Here is an example from one of my first years using Seesaw.  This is a non-English speaking student. It shows how he was able to collaborate in a meaningful way with his peers to better understand a challenging science concept.  I chose this video for the blog because I think it shows how collaboration and use of technology also has a hands-on, personal side. Imagine the social-emotional learning and cooperation that happened at this center while this student was creating this video:  Collaborating, communicating, critical thinking and creativity. He as doing it all. The best part is, that as a teacher, I could evaluate his understanding of science vocabulary and concepts (at a convenient time for me) and his parents could hear what his was doing in school.

Watch the video here.

The power that we have as teachers when we find the right tools is truly amazing.  When we can share what is happening it the classroom with peers, parents, teachers and the world, the desire to learn truly deepens.  It is my hope, you will read this today and become inspired to try something free…and new… that can be life changing in your educational career!

Tell us about your experience on Twitter using #nowclassrooms and tag me @MrsHatlen

 

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All Five Books Have Been Published!

Time to celebrate, all the #NOW Classrooms books have arrived! I spent the morning yesterday racing around to deliver the 9-12 books to three high schools in the Chicago area. Once the books arrived each of the schools did some type of surprise for my five co-authors. It was so fun to watch Twitter to see the surprises. Here are a few pictures. 

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NOW Classrooms Book Series Press Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Twenty-Seven Educational Experts from Across the Nation Share Best Practices for Using Technology in Classrooms

Bloomington, IN (November 1, 2017)—The NOW Classrooms series, published by Solution Tree, presents classroom-ready lessons that support the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) Standards for Students. Educators can use the lessons, which are grounded in the essential four C skills—communication, collaboration, critical thinking, and creativity—to connect technology to key learning outcomes and prepare learners to succeed in the 21st century.

“My books are written with the classroom teacher in mind and contain strategies that are practical and easy to implement in the classroom,” explained author Meg Ormiston. “The tech-rockstar teachers get everything quickly and are racing on to the next tip, app or tool. Most teachers need more time to practice as they familiarize themselves with various digital tools—I write for these teachers.”

The books are organized by grade bands of K–2, 3–5, 6–8 and 9–12. Each book’s chapters are divided into several sections containing three lessons each—one novice lesson, one operational lesson and one wow lesson (spelling out “NOW”)—that readers can choose from, based on their experience with the technology and their students’ needs. The series also includes a leader’s guide, which outlines a flexible framework for driving instructional innovation schoolwide or districtwide.

Carole Colburn, a technology teacher at Highlander Way Middle School in Michigan, praised NOW Classrooms, Grades 6–8, stating, “I love this book and how the authors organized it around the ISTE standards, including terrific lesson ideas that teachers can immediately implement in any middle school classroom. It is a great resource, and I highly recommend it for any middle school teacher who wants to create a classroom environment full of engaged, 21st-century thinkers and learners!”

Readers interested in getting technology updates from the authors can follow #NowClassrooms on Twitter or Facebook.

The NOW Classrooms series is available to order at SolutionTree.com.

Books in the NOW Classrooms Series

NOW Classrooms, Grades K–2

By Meg Ormiston, Beth Hatlen, Kristy Hopkins, Kirstin McGinnis, Lissa Blake and Nicole Ring

NOW Classrooms, Grades 3–5

By Meg Ormiston, Sheri De Carlo, Sonya Raymond, Grace Kowalski and Justin Gonzalez

NOW Classrooms, Grades 6–8

By Meg Ormiston, Lauren Slanker, Jennifer Lehotsky, Megan K. Flaherty, Janice Conboy and Whitney Cavanagh

NOW Classrooms, Grades 9–12

By Meg Ormiston, Scott D. Parker, Tom Lubbers, Gretchen Fitzharris, Ellen K. Lawrence and Katie N. Aquino

NOW Classrooms, Leader’s Guide

By Meg Ormiston, Cathy Fisher, Jamie Reilly, Courtney Orzel, Jordan Garrett, Robin Bruebach, Steve M. Griesbach and Becky Fischer

About Solution Tree

For nearly 20 years, Solution Tree (https://www.solutiontree.com) has worked to transform education worldwide, empowering educators to raise student achievement. With more than 30,000 educators attending professional learning events and more than 4,260 professional development days in schools each year, Solution Tree helps teachers and administrators confront essential challenges in schools. Solution Tree has a catalog of 515 titles, hundreds of videos and online courses and is the creator of Global PD, an online tool that facilitates the work of professional learning communities. Follow @SolutionTree on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Learn more about Solution Tree.

Contact

Solution Tree

Erica Dooley-Dorocke

Erica.Dooley-Dorocke@SolutionTree.com

800.733.6786 ext. 247

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Mirroring Early Math Concepts

Exploring and playing with manipulatives is one way that our students start to develop an understanding of shapes, counting, patterning, sorting, and other early math concepts. At the beginning of the year each year, I give my students time to just play with the manipulatives we have and I observe.  You can learn so much from seeing how they build, organize, and communicate about their work.  Some kids like to sort objects, some like to make patterns, and some stack things high into the sky. All of these are valuable experiences for both the student and his/her peers.

Fast forward to mid-year, when we break out the manipulatives again, this time to be used with our iPads.  We work in partner centers to design with tangrams and mirror those designs on our iPads.  Partners design patterns with tangrams on the table and then use the tangram objects on the iPad to mirror their designs.  This helps the kids with motor planning, creativity, and communication. They make larger shapes and designs form smaller shapes. They manipulate the objects and challenge themselves.  Most importantly, the students communicate with each other, describing what they made and how to mirror the image on the tangram app.

We complete a similar activity with our rubber bands and geoboards. I just love watching my kids problem solve and figure out the app without my explicit instruction.  So much of kids learning to work with technology and make it applicable to their learning is allowing them time for play.  When they play, they make connections and their learning can expand, allowing many students to innovate beyond our expectations.

How do your students connect and collaborate over tech use in your classroom?  Do you mesh hands-on activities and tech?

Post by former kindergarten teacher turned instructional coach Kirstin McGinnis

@KirstinMcGinnis

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Book Reviews are Starting to Roll In!

NOW Classrooms, Grades 3-5: Lessons for Enhancing Teaching and Learning Through Technology (Supporting ISTE Standards for Students and Digital Citizenship) Released September 29, 2017

by Meg Ormiston (Author), Sheri DeCarlo (Author), Sonya Raymond  (Author), Grace Kowalski  (Author), Justin Gonzalez (Author)

Order yours today!

“NOW Classrooms, Grades 3-5 is a simplistic tool for all elementary educators wanting meaningful and relevant strategies of engaging students in their learning through the use of technology. Rather than organizing and sharing ideas of how to use a tool, NOW Classrooms, Grades 3-5 authors share effective strategies to learn how to focus on the skills and content of the lesson and how technology will enhance that learning. Having examples of model lessons, NOW Classrooms, Grades 3-5 is a valuable tool for any elementary technology specialist coaching educators in the school.” —Nichole Allmann, Technology Integration Specialist, Columbia, South Carolina

“The text provides readers and coaches with practical, ready-to-implement technology integration ideas that emphasize instructional decisions rather than technology tools. In addition to sample lessons, teacher tips and tech tips sidebars prepare teachers to consider common stumbling blocks before presenting a lesson, making first-time implementation more successful and meaningful. In addition to providing sample lessons and applicable integration tips, the text sets a standard of student empowerment with a positive urgency to create a more authentic learning environment for students today. The lessons in the text are appropriately differentiated for both student and teacher comfort levels regarding technology integration and are device and content neutral. Any content-area teacher working with any devices will benefit from the examples shared in the text. The book provides supports to ensure teachers consider instructional goals first and technology integration second. By emphasizing data-informed instruction with an emphasis on instructional practice, student learning outcomes always remain at the center.” —Brady Venables, Technology Integration Specialist, Columbia, South Carolina

“I believe NOW Classrooms, Grades 3-5 can be an invaluable resource for teachers of many levels of technological ability. It provides great guidance as well as inspiration for how to integrate technology into their lessons. I believe that these lessons embrace the SAMR model and help to move the integration of technology and tools forward for our students. Additionally, the sidebar tips would be very helpful for adapting the lessons if the devices or programs varied by classroom.” —Amy Tong, Instructional Technologist, Azle, Texas

Leadership Book

NOW Classrooms, Leader’s Guide: Enhancing Teaching and Learning Through Technology (A School Improvement Plan for the 21st Century) Released October 13, 2017

Order yours today!

by Meg Ormiston (Author), Cathy Fisher (Author), Jamie Reilly (Author), Courtney Orzel (Author), Jordan Garrett (Author), Robin Bruebach (Author), Steve M. Griesbach (Author), Becky Fischer (Author)

“I found this book incredibly timely and practical to help schools and districts move from deploying technology to developing a plan to transform student learning. The Why, What, How, and Then What are critically important to creating a growth mindset for educators as well as students.” —Eric Ferguson, Director of Instructional Technology, Bellevue School District, Bellevue, WA

“Leveraging relevant K-12 advice and intuitive frameworks to build on, NOW Classrooms, Leader’s Guide is a must-read for anyone in classroom technology leadership. This book can easily become a foundational guide in any institution looking for innovative approaches to teaching and learning.” —Chris Cummings, Director of Information Technology, Klein Independent School District, Klein, TX