tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-86078690276994543752024-02-18T20:24:40.739-08:00Coaching in and out of the classroomThis is a blog about my life, education, challenging discussions and what I learn. The mission and goal of this blog is to promote the sharing of ideas and resources to improve student performance.Dr. Christopher R McGeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17575214638218127989noreply@blogger.comBlogger218125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8607869027699454375.post-44485903787344393632017-01-16T10:07:00.002-08:002017-01-16T10:07:19.429-08:00The Importance of InteractionI've been thinking alot lately about interaction. The simple human to human interaction we have every day.<br />
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I firmly believe that in every human interaction we have the choice and ability to EMPOWER, INSPIRE others.</h3>
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I know that sounds silly, but I feel like it's true. We bring energy into every space we enter. That energy is felt by others and then transmitted throughout their world. In other words, our simple interaction with have with another human is like a pebble in a pond which create a ripple.<br />
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So what does that have to do with learning and schools. Well, imagine this, every interaction we have with our students matters. Check out this video:<br />
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<br />Every opportunity, every interaction, every word that is uttered, it either adds to, multiples, or takes away and divides.</h3>
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I was recently at a school and some of the words and phrases I overheard were:<br />
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<li>Don't Touch my things...</li>
<li>Pick your lab partner because I don't like to change seating charts. </li>
<li>Can you come back in 5 minutes this is the boring part.</li>
<li>I will eventually get to know kids. I can't get behind the pacing guide.</li>
<li>If you can't get the work done we will help you..</li>
<li>You know it's (blank) and then (blank)....</li>
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I also saw a poster like this hanging in a classroom:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzZfxeDCz6lwr3WVA9gurZJ5EJ8d93arAFAdjy9XH-M_CaHtnwOX7a1PLnmMRfe7rEH3h50E6zTz6I8Y0VZ6BWO-ztD2Tf6yokS6llxNWptlE_9oUnkreFL-_xdk1fXRmAo0BPxI96WNrY/s1600/IMG_0215.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzZfxeDCz6lwr3WVA9gurZJ5EJ8d93arAFAdjy9XH-M_CaHtnwOX7a1PLnmMRfe7rEH3h50E6zTz6I8Y0VZ6BWO-ztD2Tf6yokS6llxNWptlE_9oUnkreFL-_xdk1fXRmAo0BPxI96WNrY/s320/IMG_0215.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Think about those words and phrases listed above. Do they inspire something better for others?</div>
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What we do each day matters, and more importantly every interaction (face to face, through email, over the phone, etc.) matters. </div>
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Embrace each day as a choice to either ADD TO, Multiply, Create, EMPOWER, Inspire:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3rzWtsztvpUXDKQCOjib4ta06ve-uQ4H_a4kjoIPWM3X4IaZJL1c2ud50yoV5E-1KLvpjOEuCUemuNUfZIlBqNVcsH0tsOH1G_7PBDPyCZhl26Jqx7_tQ6G1YrMEaYoFzhRuJZ1N5fRoI/s1600/Screen+Shot+2017-01-16+at+11.44.22+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3rzWtsztvpUXDKQCOjib4ta06ve-uQ4H_a4kjoIPWM3X4IaZJL1c2ud50yoV5E-1KLvpjOEuCUemuNUfZIlBqNVcsH0tsOH1G_7PBDPyCZhl26Jqx7_tQ6G1YrMEaYoFzhRuJZ1N5fRoI/s320/Screen+Shot+2017-01-16+at+11.44.22+AM.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://www.amazon.com/How-Full-Your-Bucket-Rath/dp/1595620036" target="_blank">Fill buckets</a>, post 'UP' arrows, whatever you need to do to remind yourself about the impact you're making.<br />
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Or Belittle, Subtract, Divide, Quiet, Hush, Make less, Post down arrows. Just be careful you never know the ramifications of your actions:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhj9aRac-Mk0ojmObarq9cqZTb3bFVa2Dte5Cvj-SIW03HmrmjikRYIPbIQyqKdJVydMu1dEkfRoVFhjSYzVI1OiU03CN6gF1LbyH7tz7DDb1TqGkUvWpf5pvRL-7nA35LCCDhvQE0mTG6f/s1600/Screen+Shot+2017-01-16+at+11.44.28+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhj9aRac-Mk0ojmObarq9cqZTb3bFVa2Dte5Cvj-SIW03HmrmjikRYIPbIQyqKdJVydMu1dEkfRoVFhjSYzVI1OiU03CN6gF1LbyH7tz7DDb1TqGkUvWpf5pvRL-7nA35LCCDhvQE0mTG6f/s320/Screen+Shot+2017-01-16+at+11.44.28+AM.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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Jerry Seinfeld once had a portion of a stand up routine around the difference between Up and Down:</div>
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He states "When you're little your whole life is up" as adults we're always trying to put others (kids especially) down.<br />
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I ask you choose differently today, tomorrow, and every minute of every day.<br />
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Choose Possibility, creativity, and wonder.....<br />
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<br />Dr. Christopher R McGeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17575214638218127989noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8607869027699454375.post-81981355451266674112016-08-17T19:21:00.000-07:002016-08-17T19:21:29.900-07:00The Silence Is So So LoudAs a teacher we have all experienced it. Silence.<br />
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That moment you ask a question to a room and nothing happens.<br />
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Over the years that silence has grown into more than just a "wait time" moment. It means something. The silence is so so telling.<br />
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Sure there are many reasons that silence could happen. It may be nothing. What I've found more often than not is that silence is a signal.<br />
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That silence is evidence of a lack of relationship. A lack of trust. A lack of willingness to take risks. That silence can be deafening.<br />
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<a href="https://www.timeshighereducation.com/sites/default/files/styles/the_breaking_news_image_style/public/Pictures/web/o/y/c/man_with_finger_in_front_of_mouth.jpg?itok=bGlZrFqF" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://www.timeshighereducation.com/sites/default/files/styles/the_breaking_news_image_style/public/Pictures/web/o/y/c/man_with_finger_in_front_of_mouth.jpg?itok=bGlZrFqF" width="320" /></a></div>
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As a coach without a classroom now I see (and hear) this silence in classrooms and workshops across the globe. Teachers talking to fill the air and to share their views while students sit passively by in rows in their metal desks with the plastic seats. Don't our students today deserve more?<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2HAaqmJ20CLRzBS2tBV_K9cSl9jGb8nbqz22QrmRyam0Tu2eb5jB0-4ENgTWi3JDUtBoEd9NlLHAlSGD3ZkuePRkRHHnjR8Wo_JUAIrKCA7sozUQjcetkpgy4X9Qnkk7sSgMTZGuWP2Hc/s1600/Screen+Shot+2016-08-17+at+9.19.38+PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="198" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2HAaqmJ20CLRzBS2tBV_K9cSl9jGb8nbqz22QrmRyam0Tu2eb5jB0-4ENgTWi3JDUtBoEd9NlLHAlSGD3ZkuePRkRHHnjR8Wo_JUAIrKCA7sozUQjcetkpgy4X9Qnkk7sSgMTZGuWP2Hc/s320/Screen+Shot+2016-08-17+at+9.19.38+PM.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://dangerouslyirrelevant.org/2015/02/why-would-students-feel-valued-at-school.html" target="_blank">Learn more here</a></div>
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The silence we hear speaks loudly. It's truly deafening and is a part of the core as to why students across the globe are disenfranchised with the current (and outdated) concept of school. <br />
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So let's do something different. Let's ignore the pacing guide for a little bit. Get to genuinely know your students. Share a little bit about you. It's time to invest in kids so they will in turn invest in others. Put the person first and genuinely care about them. Their needs, interests, values must be authentically heard. <br />
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<a href="https://tourguidepastor.files.wordpress.com/2014/03/social-media-relationships.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://tourguidepastor.files.wordpress.com/2014/03/social-media-relationships.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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The content, curriculum and pacing guide will be there, it always will, but the relationships make the school a place where kids want to be.<br />
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Only when there is a meaningful relationship built will we ever get past the silence.Dr. Christopher R McGeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17575214638218127989noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8607869027699454375.post-67957225097480666892016-04-07T06:19:00.000-07:002016-04-07T06:19:06.563-07:00The importance of ketchup when building a team<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I recently was listening to one of my favorite podcasts “Reply All.” listen here:</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">They were interviewing Scott Page (TIME: 22:29), a professor of complex systems at the University of Michigan and an external faculty member at the Santa Fe Institute. And his connection between the lowly condiment and building a team struck me!</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><img height="140" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/PGmo6bSQswT-i-pRwNXlzeCbGnWFlveXcSRFuBBDu52NjxX2HKDQvPFQ__YEhktWqHN1Hd2c4XRVoK6BBFzhZdfCdhBq5qDUCF7dDHi8tKUv6MtUYIDV2NW1s63Pb5P4l7y_SjQe" style="-webkit-transform: rotate(0.00rad); border: none; transform: rotate(0.00rad);" width="187" /></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Here’s the <a href="https://gimletmedia.com/episode/52-raising-the-bar/" target="_blank">specific transcript from the website</a>:</span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">"SCOTT: Now turns out if you’re British or if you’re African American from the South, not as a rule but generally speaking, you’re likely to keep your ketchup in the cupboard. If you’re not British and you’re not African American from the South, you tend to keep your ketchup in the fridge. And you could think “Vive le difference, who cares, right?” Well it actually does matter because suppose you run out of ketchup. If you’re out of ketchup and you’re a ketchup in the fridge person, what are you gonna use? Well you might use mayonnaise, you might use mustard because those are things you think of when what’s next to the ketchup. If, alternatively, you’re a ketchup in the cupboard person and you run out ketchup, what’s next to the ketchup in the cupboard? Well, malt vinegar.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">GOLDMAN: So, the more diverse the backgrounds, the more associations you get, and the more paths towards solving a hard problem.</span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And there are actually a lot of real-life examples of this. Carl Zimmer, a science writer for the New York Times, he says that the ketchup story completely tracks with what he sees in the science world</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">CARL ZIMMER: You know if a scientist is looking at a problem and thinking about how am I going to solve it, there’s a range of approaches that they may think of just based on their training. You know, and they can’t even imagine that there’s another way of approaching it. You know, they can’t imagine that there’s ketchup in the pantry, really. And the fact is that another scientist can walk in and be like,“Oh, look, you’re looking at this totally the wrong way.”</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><img height="105" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/OlLYgUiG2fePIKJqqTe2FSOJQ2Qpx6oDuOWiwJ1fPUK7cFL1vC-_onPiR9wODHubpNwO4Dbw-pCfxjvSfx0IJZZUfNYQiHya6gxinadMYUAFLijWbrI0or8JFUn84FsC3kLL__ra" style="-webkit-transform: rotate(0.00rad); border: none; transform: rotate(0.00rad);" width="187" /></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">That’s it! The importance of building a great team is being able to understand where you keep the ketchup.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In all the profiling tools I’ve used, Strengthsfinder, Gallup, Myers-Briggs, Kolbe index, etc. All of these tell me about who I am and how I work. The importance of building a team is taking time to ask these kinds of questions, uncover the way we think and work and then build the best, most diverse, team possible.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.6667px; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Do you want more innovation at your school, business or team? Focus on diversity!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 14.6667px; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="https://hbr.org/2014/03/the-case-for-team-diversity-gets-even-better/" target="_blank">The Case for Team Diversity Gets Even Better</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 14.6667px; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="https://hbr.org/2013/12/how-diversity-can-drive-innovation" target="_blank">How Diversity Can Drive Innovation</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 14.6667px; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-diversity-makes-us-smarter/" target="_blank">How Diversity Makes Us Smarter</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 14.6667px; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="http://www.forbes.com/sites/stevedenning/2012/01/16/why-is-diversity-vital-for-innovation/#252b758a4e7c" target="_blank">Why Is Diversity Vital For Innovation?</a></span></div>
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Dr. Christopher R McGeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17575214638218127989noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8607869027699454375.post-32783063746966173412015-10-27T12:42:00.000-07:002015-10-27T12:42:19.453-07:00The importance of scheduling the parade...I live in St. Louis. We are not afraid to host a parade, we've done it a lot lately in honor of the St. Louis Cardinals. Here's an image from the 2011 World series parade:<br />
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<a href="http://www.foxsports.com/content/dam/fsdigital/fscom/legacy/mlb/images/2011/10/30/103011-MLB-St-Louis-Cardinals-parade-PI_20111030213202799_1280_1280.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.foxsports.com/content/dam/fsdigital/fscom/legacy/mlb/images/2011/10/30/103011-MLB-St-Louis-Cardinals-parade-PI_20111030213202799_1280_1280.JPG" height="153" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.foxsports.com/content/dam/fsdigital/fscom/legacy/mlb/images/2011/10/30/103011-MLB-St-Louis-Cardinals-parade-PI_20111030213202799_1280_1280.JPG" target="_blank">Image from Fox Sports</a></div>
<br />
I was listening to the latest edition of the EntreLeadership podcast when Dave Ramsey said something that made perfect sense. <br />
<br />
Here's the episode link: <a href="https://www.entreleadership.com/podcasts/les-parrotthow-conflict-can-help-you-wi">https://www.entreleadership.com/podcasts/les-parrotthow-conflict-can-help-you-wi</a>, Dave's interview starts 24 minutes into the podcast.<br />
<br />
If you aren't planning to win, you're planning to fail. If you're not planning the celebration, will you set yourself up for a win?<br />
<br />
Dave's exact quote:<br />
"You don't schedule a loss, you schedule a win"<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/eb/Partyhat.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/eb/Partyhat.JPG" width="267" /></a></div>
<br />
I'm working on our school's Comprehensive School Improvement Plan and couldn't help but think about that statement. <br />
<br />
Sure we have a goal, a scale for measurement, and action steps to accomplish the goal, but do we have a date for the celebration? How will we celebrate? <br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/a/a5/Canada's_fireworks_at_the_2013_Celebration_of_Light_in_Vancouver,_BC.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/a/a5/Canada's_fireworks_at_the_2013_Celebration_of_Light_in_Vancouver,_BC.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
Whenever you start a task, a goal, an assignment, a unit, a season, a game, think about this and plan for it: How will we celebrate?Dr. Christopher R McGeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17575214638218127989noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8607869027699454375.post-33837677466654678832015-01-19T08:13:00.002-08:002015-01-19T08:13:54.515-08:00Can I be defined by a number?My colleagues and I were having a great conversation around Data, Data-drive decision making, and numbers. It was riveting and got me thinking.<br />
<br />
Is there a number, any number really, that I would want to define me?<br />
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
Credit Score</h4>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2634/5856793551_2efa2e32af.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2634/5856793551_2efa2e32af.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
Test Score</h4>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2177/2230010178_40c2741290.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2177/2230010178_40c2741290.jpg" height="213" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
BMI</h4>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d3/BMI_grid_nb.svg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d3/BMI_grid_nb.svg" height="177" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
Reading Level</h4>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5e/Reading_speed_by_age.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5e/Reading_speed_by_age.jpg" height="262" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
AimsWeb Benchmark</h4>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://old.akronschools.com/dotAsset/69415.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://old.akronschools.com/dotAsset/69415.jpg" height="95" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
IQ</h4>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/42/Excel_IQ_EwB_Chart.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/42/Excel_IQ_EwB_Chart.jpg" height="201" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
Driving test score</h4>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b1/2009-03-11_Student_driver_SB_on_N_Gregson_St_in_Durham.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b1/2009-03-11_Student_driver_SB_on_N_Gregson_St_in_Durham.jpg" height="213" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
Often I'm in meetings when we talk about kids, then list numbers associated with that kid. Do we spend enough time on the <b><u><i>qualitative</i></u></b> descriptions of students than we do the test scores that they achieve.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a8/What_if_I_ask_for_help.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a8/What_if_I_ask_for_help.JPG" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
<br />
What if we started discussing:<br />
<br />
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
Likes/Dislikes</h4>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
Family History</h4>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
Home life</h4>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">
Favorite colors/foods/songs/movies</h4>
<br />
I'm not asking to eliminate ALL data from conversations with students, I'm just asking us to not LEAD with data. Let's lead with the things that make a student special, unique, individual and real.<br />
<br />
I'll be honest and say there is NO, I repeat NO, number I want to define me. Please don't let numbers define the kids in your schools.Dr. Christopher R McGeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17575214638218127989noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8607869027699454375.post-13220321853593230492014-11-24T04:57:00.001-08:002014-11-24T04:57:47.990-08:00The "Power of Habit" and working in schoolsEvery day we react. We react in the way we were taught, programmed, advised, mentored, parented, etc.<br />
<br />
Our reactions have become a habit.<br />
<br />
I recently was reading this:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51Ml%2BjD9l3L._SY344_BO1,204,203,200_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51Ml%2BjD9l3L._SY344_BO1,204,203,200_.jpg" height="320" width="208" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
Then again came across this podcast about habit. <a href="https://www.entreleadership.com/podcasts/the-power-of-habit-with-charles-duhigg" target="_blank">Learn more about habit here</a>.<br />
<br />
But do we ever analyze the way we react?<br />
<br />
Have we even thought about whether we'd react the same way if we were given new opportunities?<br />
<br />
Imagine this:<br />
<br />
A kid is misbehaving in class.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWFDLPpQHOUPCBq6rReSRpndBhRN2Otb96Lg1cyac-bklZZAMlcCwfqK6-CTFEeQhXdS5B_D9scrR2mFJLPTcc7gPOIqhnjFvMwhrPNOhsk-O57jYpabn_xiw58DkPhlbYNjA3Fnz4dUKe/s1600/excellence.001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWFDLPpQHOUPCBq6rReSRpndBhRN2Otb96Lg1cyac-bklZZAMlcCwfqK6-CTFEeQhXdS5B_D9scrR2mFJLPTcc7gPOIqhnjFvMwhrPNOhsk-O57jYpabn_xiw58DkPhlbYNjA3Fnz4dUKe/s1600/excellence.001.jpg" height="87" width="320" /></a></div>
The kids misbehaving are the stimulus. The black box, being the thought process happening in our brain based on habit. This leads to a response<br />
<br />
That stimulus typically leads to a response from the teacher. The teacher can:<br />
<ul>
<li>discipline the student</li>
<li>reteach expectations</li>
<li>redirect the students</li>
<li>ignore the stimulus</li>
<li>send the student out of the class</li>
<li>etc.</li>
</ul>
But what if........<br />
<br />
What if we imagined a different school? What if we projected how they might behave, what their responses might be? What if we taught differently? What if we thought differently...<br />
<br />
Imagine the staff of "THE SCHOOL OF EXCELLENCE" (I know cheesy).<br />
<br />
But how would the teachers at that school respond to stimulus?<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgU0e1McsSHCCIfuvJc3Mfozp7A5GVBX5EQviQEZlc1z8mOhPA8NQL_1smDEln3B5JOz9izzeJ2qpiyfIVwIS0-kTh4pHrBvji5NEdqJ0TKAKTUu_8jlV-0IEyECB0UDeyTFmBSTONasaeP/s1600/excellence.002.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgU0e1McsSHCCIfuvJc3Mfozp7A5GVBX5EQviQEZlc1z8mOhPA8NQL_1smDEln3B5JOz9izzeJ2qpiyfIVwIS0-kTh4pHrBvji5NEdqJ0TKAKTUu_8jlV-0IEyECB0UDeyTFmBSTONasaeP/s1600/excellence.002.jpg" height="183" width="320" /></a></div>
If we can examine the habits we have, we may be able to analyze possible solutions and the adjacent possible solutions that impact our kids.<br />
<br />
What we do an how quick we react impacts students.<br />
<br />
Take some time to list stimuli that happen today, how did you react to it? Would the staff of this fictional school react differently? <br />
<br />
Time to form some new habits....<br />
<br />Dr. Christopher R McGeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17575214638218127989noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8607869027699454375.post-56929797010142924142014-11-23T19:11:00.002-08:002014-11-23T19:11:44.191-08:00Time well spent?I am an amazingly productive person. I pride myself in being to do more with a minute than most people can do with an hour. I have leveraged a TON of resources to be more productive in a given day. But yet, there's still something wrong.<br />
<br />
I'm struggling with how I use my time. I hate to admit it but it's true. I'm not sure I'm doing the best I can.<br />
<br />
About a year ago I wrote this <a href="http://coachinandout.blogspot.com/2013/01/hows-your-balance.html" target="_blank">post about balance</a>. I still think I'm a work in progress.<br />
<br />
I turn to this space for a number of reasons:<br />
1. It's an opportunity to reflect.<br />
2. I know I'll get creative solutions.<br />
3. I know those of you that read this have something to give and are willing to give it.<br />
<br />
I ran across this today that prompted this post:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_vdPADAWFLdPzA3lMpXMX1LI3X1pa0qwEEnGV8DInZRP0KD3X_AKtlFh8QUD-CW9Ta00zvDwzYBzkEduuFvBYuYkH2gVboWhD1IjyzK_BV9vlOBErfg2iPJJRg5LY7uC9b26GB4Ach6gw/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-11-23+at+3.21.47+PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_vdPADAWFLdPzA3lMpXMX1LI3X1pa0qwEEnGV8DInZRP0KD3X_AKtlFh8QUD-CW9Ta00zvDwzYBzkEduuFvBYuYkH2gVboWhD1IjyzK_BV9vlOBErfg2iPJJRg5LY7uC9b26GB4Ach6gw/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-11-23+at+3.21.47+PM.png" height="52" width="320" /></a></div>
So here are my priorities:<br />
<br />
<ol>
<li>Family</li>
<li>Friends</li>
<li><a href="http://wgsdsciss.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Webster Groves</a> (where I work)</li>
<li><a href="http://www.connectedlearningstl.org/" target="_blank">ConnectED Learning</a> (the company I started)</li>
<li>Social media</li>
<li>Reading books</li>
<li>Reading blog posts (listening to podcasts)</li>
<li>Religious obligations (church on Sunday, etc.)</li>
<li>Working out</li>
</ol>
<div>
Here is how a day is typically structured:</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrCE3v0cv7-X-cN0P2cGHDPUq0L8a6A2uvxYIXh85OP5TTYrsDK4Pedeck0JeSvsYFExVRJjEQbRKDJ2KfTZ228Lk4NWNPYqd-RkS34NUvLv_DBUDte6sUxvuDzQMSmvll8sgyJVzDuh5K/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-11-23+at+9.03.19+PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrCE3v0cv7-X-cN0P2cGHDPUq0L8a6A2uvxYIXh85OP5TTYrsDK4Pedeck0JeSvsYFExVRJjEQbRKDJ2KfTZ228Lk4NWNPYqd-RkS34NUvLv_DBUDte6sUxvuDzQMSmvll8sgyJVzDuh5K/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-11-23+at+9.03.19+PM.png" height="279" width="320" /></a></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Where are my opportunities for growth? </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Where can I be challenged to do/think differently?</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
If I were to base my priorities on where I spend my time, it would be:</div>
<div>
<ol>
<li>Webster Groves</li>
<li>Family</li>
<li>Social Media</li>
<li>ConnectED Learning</li>
<li>Reading blog posts (listening to podcasts) *typically do this while driving</li>
<li>Reading books</li>
<li>Religious obligations</li>
<li>Working out</li>
<li>Friends</li>
</ol>
<div>
What do you do? How do you maximize and optimize your life? What does your day look like?</div>
</div>
Dr. Christopher R McGeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17575214638218127989noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8607869027699454375.post-74375117848328626792014-11-18T09:38:00.000-08:002014-11-18T09:38:51.890-08:00Thinking about Experiential Learning<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Great commentary from <a href="http://grantwiggins.wordpress.com/2014/11/17/hands-on-%E2%89%A0-minds-on/"><span class="s2">Grant Wiggins today</span></a> I wanted to share. It made me think of the conversations we’ve been having in social studies about content.</span></div>
<div class="p2">
<span class="s1"></span><br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Grant shares:</span></div>
<div class="p2">
<span class="s1"></span><br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">"Student members of the Young Americans for Freedom at a school in Rome, Ga., marked the 25th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall and the reunification of Germany with a re-enactment at their school. They knocked down a graffiti-covered, 12-foot-long wall made from wood for the dramatization. "It is great to see them internalizing the lessons of history and exhibiting the power of freedom," said Brad Poston, history department chair.”</span></div>
<div class="p2">
<span class="s1"></span><br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">This is a great step in the right direction, can you imagine how powerful that experience was,<a href="http://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/northwestgeorgianews.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/2/f7/2f79c104-6c8a-11e4-9290-a3cc01afa119/5466e7c48dd3d.image.jpg?resize=760,570"><span class="s2"> see the image here</span></a>? Too often we think of history as words on a page and events on a timeline. We can bring those events to life for our kids!</span></div>
<div class="p2">
<span class="s1"></span><br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Also this event above is fun, the learning that happens before and after the event makes it closer to “Experiential” Here’s a great resource on Experiential learning: <a href="http://grantwiggins.wordpress.com/2013/10/19/experiential-learning/"><span class="s2">http://grantwiggins.wordpress.com/2013/10/19/experiential-learning/</span></a></span></div>
<div class="p2">
<span class="s1"></span><br /></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">When you’re planning your next history unit, consider the lessons/activities/conversations kids are having with these questions:</span></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1"><span class="Apple-tab-span"> </span>• What are you doing?</span></div>
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1"><span class="Apple-tab-span"> </span>• Why are you doing it?</span></div>
<br />
<div class="p1">
<span class="s1"><span class="Apple-tab-span"> </span>• What does this help you do that’s important?</span></div>
Dr. Christopher R McGeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17575214638218127989noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8607869027699454375.post-72071282443030728282014-06-22T13:41:00.001-07:002014-06-22T13:41:45.639-07:00Stop saying you're busy.Stop it, just stop it right now. Eliminate the phrase "I'm Busy," from your mind.<br />
<br />
<h2>
Imagine this.</h2>
You're walking down the hallway and someone asks you how you're doing. You reply without even thinking, "I'm busy."<br />
<br />
Stop it. Stop it right now.<br />
<br />
<i>When you say you're busy here's what you're really saying...</i><br />
<br />
I'm working really hard. I have too much on my plate right now. I planned poorly and can't stop to talk to you. I'm prioritizing what I'm going to over building a relationship with you. I'm also REALLY important and you should think about that when you say "Hi" to me in the hallway.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://38.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_me3sc0pFTJ1ql5yr7o1_400.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://38.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_me3sc0pFTJ1ql5yr7o1_400.gif" height="180" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<h2>
Imagine this too.</h2>
You get a phone call from a colleague/friend asking you if you can do this task to help them out. You reply, "I could but I'm really busy right now."<br />
<br />
<i>When you say you're busy here's what you're really saying...</i><br />
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
I poorly planned my own projects or I don't even like you enough to help you out. I'l help you with your task but I'll reach back out after all of my other work is complete.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/WqFZsDI1Tca6qKG7MBBmDq2Um-ddz2b8PDAuOyiwuNvBG6OCyDIc59yPqq7qM5kSfwrYnZzOPaom-ze5Tf1oockOseyIa68uA4284mgQWgIGO1sAn9dvC3GJMQ" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/WqFZsDI1Tca6qKG7MBBmDq2Um-ddz2b8PDAuOyiwuNvBG6OCyDIc59yPqq7qM5kSfwrYnZzOPaom-ze5Tf1oockOseyIa68uA4284mgQWgIGO1sAn9dvC3GJMQ" /></a></div>
<h2>
Finally, imagine this...</h2>
<div>
You're on the phone checking you're voicemail and your get one from your grandmother. She just wants to check in and she says it, "I know you're busy."</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<i>When she says you're busy here's what she's really saying...</i></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
I haven't heard from you in a while, I miss you, I don't feel like a priority. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://media.tumblr.com/8a5ee07f1b9c31fcc804d3f694169c6a/tumblr_inline_mhdggtFNDs1ql4nrq.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://media.tumblr.com/8a5ee07f1b9c31fcc804d3f694169c6a/tumblr_inline_mhdggtFNDs1ql4nrq.gif" height="164" width="320" /></a></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<h2>
Stop it, Just Stop it. Stop it this instance.</h2>
<div>
<h2>
How to combat "Busy"</h2>
</div>
<div>
Saying your busy implies you're misguided, frantic, walking hard, but not towards a goal. You have a lot to do, we all do. But you know what successful people do? They do this:</div>
<div>
<ol>
<li>Set yearly goals in all aspects of their life. (See <a href="http://coachinandout.blogspot.com/2013/01/hows-your-balance.html">seeking balance</a>)</li>
<li>Prioritize tasks</li>
</ol>
<div>
When a new "to do" list item is presented. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Successful people check: </div>
<div>
1. Does this get me closer to my goals? If Yes, it goes on the list, if no, it gets omitted/deleted. NOTE: some things like going to the grocery store or folding laundry do make it on the list of "life maintenance."</div>
</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
2. How will it get prioritized? Will it become more important or less important than the tasks that are already there? NOTE: If the item takes less than 2 minutes to complete, do it now.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
When you're doing busy work, you're working on things that are misaligned with your mission. The items are NOT moving you closer to your professional or personal goals. Keep focused.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Stop saying you're busy, focus on your goals and work to achieve them.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Resources:</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<a href="http://www.slate.com/articles/double_x/doublex/2014/03/brigid_schulte_s_overwhelmed_and_our_epidemic_of_busyness.html">http://www.slate.com/articles/double_x/doublex/2014/03/brigid_schulte_s_overwhelmed_and_our_epidemic_of_busyness.html</a></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<a href="http://www.fastcompany.com/3029294/work-smart/why-you-need-to-stop-bragging-about-how-busy-you-are">http://www.fastcompany.com/3029294/work-smart/why-you-need-to-stop-bragging-about-how-busy-you-are</a></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<a href="http://lifehacker.com/stop-telling-yourself-youre-too-busy-1562989296">http://lifehacker.com/stop-telling-yourself-youre-too-busy-1562989296</a></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<a href="http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/06/30/the-busy-trap/?_php=true&_type=blogs&_r=0">http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/06/30/the-busy-trap/?_php=true&_type=blogs&_r=0</a></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<a href="http://www.chicagonow.com/social-butterfly-mom/2013/12/stop-saying-im-busy/">http://www.chicagonow.com/social-butterfly-mom/2013/12/stop-saying-im-busy/</a></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
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<a href="http://dc660.4shared.com/img/Misi7THO/s7/13eee02e800/im_a_little_busy_at_the_moment.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://dc660.4shared.com/img/Misi7THO/s7/13eee02e800/im_a_little_busy_at_the_moment.gif" /></a></div>
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<br />Dr. Christopher R McGeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17575214638218127989noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8607869027699454375.post-51923576339959109842014-04-01T07:25:00.000-07:002014-04-01T07:25:44.475-07:00Summary of "Remodeling Literacy Learning"Cross Posted on my work Blog here: <a href="http://wgsdsciss.blogspot.com/">http://wgsdsciss.blogspot.com/</a><br />
<br />
Find the original PDF here: <a href="http://www.literacyinlearningexchange.org/remodeling-together">http://www.literacyinlearningexchange.org/remodeling-together</a><br />
<br />
<br />
The report started with a survey:<br />
The "NCLE conducted a national survey of educators of all roles, grade levels, and subject areas to find out where we stand as a nation in the following areas:<br />
• What kinds of opportunities have educators had to learn about the new literacy standards?<br />
• What kinds of professional learning are most powerful in supporting teachers as they implement changes in their classrooms?<br />
• How are schools and districts approaching the transition to the new standards, and how involved are teachers in planning and implementing that transition?<br />
• Are teachers working on the change individually or collectively, and how does that impact how well the change is going?<br />
• What role is teacher expertise playing in translating the broad goals of the standards into specific learning experiences for students?"<br />
<br />
Page 4 FINDINGS:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhesKJi26n3k_rRUKCGXuIBTVhWiTCQp9UIh8kGutP_ALoXjoNZ5YeyAexDY0K21K403BRFuaQG_yMRdLxYAtCRamm77_w6TPQ-ZVLgD9tOO8QVt7Z5md_kHFXkin4UySJ9rHS1Kib4fDw/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-04-01+at+7.18.56+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhesKJi26n3k_rRUKCGXuIBTVhWiTCQp9UIh8kGutP_ALoXjoNZ5YeyAexDY0K21K403BRFuaQG_yMRdLxYAtCRamm77_w6TPQ-ZVLgD9tOO8QVt7Z5md_kHFXkin4UySJ9rHS1Kib4fDw/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-04-01+at+7.18.56+AM.png" height="277" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
PAGE 8 FINDINGS:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjh8yjssiBWtVaTiaw2Ye4EcH5oYC2f_f3SBNpQ5pbge5kyylCvEr7P3jzlDDyP9Sr6yqUREUbIKzjSRp45FtFyV-ZMANeAFeDZ6o9oNzC_iGn-leXDV_2LAqRil85q6sn-VA-W2wkSICw/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-04-01+at+7.22.18+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjh8yjssiBWtVaTiaw2Ye4EcH5oYC2f_f3SBNpQ5pbge5kyylCvEr7P3jzlDDyP9Sr6yqUREUbIKzjSRp45FtFyV-ZMANeAFeDZ6o9oNzC_iGn-leXDV_2LAqRil85q6sn-VA-W2wkSICw/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-04-01+at+7.22.18+AM.png" height="292" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
pg. 9 "Data from NCLE’s 2013–14 survey demonstrate the potential of the teacher-driven, capacity- based model of educational change. Put simply, the transition to the new standards seems to be <span style="background-color: yellow;">going best when teachers are highly engaged in the process and have time to work together to use their professional expertise</span> to bring all students to higher levels of literacy."<br />
<br />
pg. 11 "In our 2012 national survey on teacher learning, we asked educators to identify their single most powerful professional learning experience of the past 12 months. The number-one choice by a large margin was “co-planning with colleagues,” cited by 22% of respondents. Coming in second, chosen by 13% of respondents as their single most powerful professional learning experience, was “meeting regularly with a collaborative inquiry group.”"<br />
<br />
pg. 11 "Respondents could choose up to three reasons, and the top three all speak to the power of professional collaboration to impact classroom practice:<br />
• Helped me create new lessons, materials, or instructional strategies for immediate use (selected by 59% of respondents as one of the top three reasons the learning was powerful)<br />
• Provided opportunities for active learning, discussion, and reflection on my practice (34%)<br />
• Provided opportunities to collaborate with colleagues/to create a support network (32%)"<br />
<br />
pg. 11 "This result is consistent with extensive research showing that educators find professional learning most powerful when it affords them the opportunity to actively exchange ideas with colleagues and test them in their practice immediately."<br />
<br />
pg.11 Working with colleagues is GOOD!<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXu02fib_bx2ptiJLEavDrGw1lheJ5yGjEZ-w1z-4mCBEHV58K7VtajND1akHJk-3ax___MUUy-IL5R2pnMHsA0pER0t79lwkzi890-3Z_1ui51EY_mnJbWf7eqfmxZCP1dKgweILXIUw/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-04-01+at+7.29.56+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXu02fib_bx2ptiJLEavDrGw1lheJ5yGjEZ-w1z-4mCBEHV58K7VtajND1akHJk-3ax___MUUy-IL5R2pnMHsA0pER0t79lwkzi890-3Z_1ui51EY_mnJbWf7eqfmxZCP1dKgweILXIUw/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-04-01+at+7.29.56+AM.png" height="205" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
p.12 "This year’s data show that over the last year teachers have become even more isolated from each other’s professional expertise, even as they are being asked to undertake the large, complicated task of CCSS implementation."<br />
<br />
pg.12 DATA!<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaKPTEHQatnjjSYV_DKbotZMfaLDgi451uhoPHCwT49I_sevTJONeT6DqI8FovJm3YbUnUIFHVlKczJSIcKXlAx5Gl-6dCSV0jVKbbI4uRK6EuH0XVqp6scRQkjwIdu-Hw4ctptqfY72A/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-04-01+at+7.34.31+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaKPTEHQatnjjSYV_DKbotZMfaLDgi451uhoPHCwT49I_sevTJONeT6DqI8FovJm3YbUnUIFHVlKczJSIcKXlAx5Gl-6dCSV0jVKbbI4uRK6EuH0XVqp6scRQkjwIdu-Hw4ctptqfY72A/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-04-01+at+7.34.31+AM.png" height="181" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
pg.12 "Good teaching requires deep understanding of the goals we are trying to help students reach, analysis of their current level of understanding, and careful design of learning experiences, all of which are tasks that require professional time outside of the classroom and are best accomplished with the support of colleagues."<br />
<br />
pg. 13 "Beyond being given little time to work through the shifts called for by the standards, most teachers reported having little voice in how their school is making the transition."<br />
<br />
pg. 13 GRAPHIC<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0bhB_fnJWBMFWOSkTuhGiKEAO7NndEbtLfZY3KZJkIOAoKXHyvgKkwl5tc2gLqWxIgLZM5CWlgiP-63urbx2VG-xAMOOAuZcDmAdL3vlWpiQnRy1ylRRPEDzXedUvr9CZkjnZ9BsDn4g/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-04-01+at+7.44.36+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0bhB_fnJWBMFWOSkTuhGiKEAO7NndEbtLfZY3KZJkIOAoKXHyvgKkwl5tc2gLqWxIgLZM5CWlgiP-63urbx2VG-xAMOOAuZcDmAdL3vlWpiQnRy1ylRRPEDzXedUvr9CZkjnZ9BsDn4g/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-04-01+at+7.44.36+AM.png" height="166" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
pg. 15 "Compared to teachers who are working in isolation, teachers who had participated in collaborative work with colleagues around the standards were twice as likely to rate themselves as well prepared to help their students meet the standards and also much more likely to report having already made moderate or significant changes in the content of what they teach and methods of how they teach it in response to CCSS goals."<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiIq5fi-R4mInkpOtSGuGQI-FZGPV2Urw3-s6T_1Vn4koT7rzC_Ifvjwtme8bpjPgTkrCY4Xl0U88IX5sO0EH9SkRw-IqAXzWe6JPnuQUkRYfAIqmOAQEE6YRDDYO3Kg9OKHtM-g6zxoI/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-04-01+at+7.47.34+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiIq5fi-R4mInkpOtSGuGQI-FZGPV2Urw3-s6T_1Vn4koT7rzC_Ifvjwtme8bpjPgTkrCY4Xl0U88IX5sO0EH9SkRw-IqAXzWe6JPnuQUkRYfAIqmOAQEE6YRDDYO3Kg9OKHtM-g6zxoI/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-04-01+at+7.47.34+AM.png" height="201" width="320" /></a></div>
pg. 16 "Research has consistently demonstrated the value of teacher collaboration in improving student learning,"<br />
<br />
p.16 Keys to effective collaboration<br />
"(1) Deprivatizing practice: Teachers open their doors and their briefcases to share lessons, actual teaching, and student work with each other, so they can learn from each other’s successes and, perhaps even more important, failures.<br />
(2) Enacting shared agreements: Colleagues agree at a concrete, specific level on the student outcomes they are working toward and how to assess them.<br />
(3) Creating collaborative culture: Teachers demonstrate accountability to each other by following through on trying new instructional practices between meetings and reporting back on results, and they trust each other enough to engage in hard conversations about what works.<br />
(4) Maintaining an inquiry stance: Experimentation is grounded in evidence and focused on clear student outcomes.<br />
(5) Using evidence effectively: Teachers decide whether a lesson or practice worked and how it could be improved by analyzing evidence from students, from test scores to samples of student work.<br />
(6) Supporting collaboration systemically: Teachers’ shared work receives formal support including protected time, relevant and timely data, and leadership involvement."<br />
<br />
pg.18 Teachers need more time<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFuQP3OppN7VJQEtynQMEipgCxpIlV_wG2Z9WRYse1AylUtN4G4wHNogRCPBYYAgT0Qs0s0-KW0sE3XgHQGgaHCxRhTZCuS9Fv4IoMUNvOU3SovL09xNClG4YnN7VsQqfNu3eQox2SKio/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-04-01+at+7.54.47+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFuQP3OppN7VJQEtynQMEipgCxpIlV_wG2Z9WRYse1AylUtN4G4wHNogRCPBYYAgT0Qs0s0-KW0sE3XgHQGgaHCxRhTZCuS9Fv4IoMUNvOU3SovL09xNClG4YnN7VsQqfNu3eQox2SKio/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-04-01+at+7.54.47+AM.png" height="161" width="320" /></a></div>
pg. 18 "Looking at practices like lesson study in Japan and periodic curriculum reviews in Finland points to some answers: these are structured, purposeful tasks which immerse teachers deeply in the substance of what they are teaching, the best methods to get concepts across to students, and how best to assess student mastery. Most of all, these structures provide a lab-like setting, an ongoing cycle in which ideas are developed, tested, and refined, tapping the collective insight and practical experience of multiple teachers to strengthen learning for all students."<br />
<br />
pg.19 "We then looked at whether teachers who frequently engage in specific collaborative tasks report being better prepared to teach the standards."<br />
<br />
pg.19 What works when teachers work together<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPVlcTWCjTGAOzU1PHauxJsc4rMTes6UlY_KceEzxvO4RpIS3Xkec9jztuTGTeRubmggztuW89iITSd2TqvX7KBXw-hsRIxcvOEUAZ4ntLgE24J-hFC_Pp5K3xO-lXdEVEhO78_mtM5Qo/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-04-01+at+7.56.46+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPVlcTWCjTGAOzU1PHauxJsc4rMTes6UlY_KceEzxvO4RpIS3Xkec9jztuTGTeRubmggztuW89iITSd2TqvX7KBXw-hsRIxcvOEUAZ4ntLgE24J-hFC_Pp5K3xO-lXdEVEhO78_mtM5Qo/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-04-01+at+7.56.46+AM.png" height="270" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
pg.21 "Professional learning that is embedded in the real work of instruction is far more likely to lead to desired changes. Such tasks let teachers pool their insights and experiences and adjust their practice in real time"<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlM-uhVodp1XL-zShMsMgLShWgxKfSaQYrzYurxgLnB7QhbfkJWPJpBhAvaDA4hnSElUzTOc5Z_uQBIpr8lYGZz9u-9UlBAohlDZRG78UDB4eOLuTgc3L_Cgpcw5D3u7fwLCknyuAxJzQ/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-04-01+at+8.03.06+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlM-uhVodp1XL-zShMsMgLShWgxKfSaQYrzYurxgLnB7QhbfkJWPJpBhAvaDA4hnSElUzTOc5Z_uQBIpr8lYGZz9u-9UlBAohlDZRG78UDB4eOLuTgc3L_Cgpcw5D3u7fwLCknyuAxJzQ/s1600/Screen+Shot+2014-04-01+at+8.03.06+AM.png" height="184" width="320" /></a></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
pg. 22 "When asked specifically how big of an impact standards are having so far on classroom practice in terms of both what is taught and how it is taught, solid majorities of teachers across subject areas reported a moderate or significant impact on HOW material is taught. There was more variance in the reported impact on WHAT is taught."</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
pg. 23 "The most consistent shift reported by teachers in our survey is in spending more time having students defend arguments with evidence, which more than three-fourths of teachers in all subject areas report doing more of this year in response to the CCSS."</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
pg. 23 "The bottom line is that these standards ask students to work collaboratively and analyze evidence coming from multiple kinds of texts that cross disciplinary lines. This is going to be difficult to pull off if teachers of different subjects remain isolated from each other and so many have minimal to no time to work together."</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<h3>
Recommendations</h3>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
pg.28 "Recommendation #1: Provide educators with more shared time for planning and professional learning about elevating literacy learning for all students."</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
pg.29 "Recommendation #2: Encourage and support educators to take initiative in designing and using innovative literacy teaching resources that are appropriate for their students, and not rely on prepackaged programs or solutions."</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
pg.29 "Recommendation #3: Draw upon the insights, skills, and experience of everyone with a stake in improving literacy learning to help students achieve more."</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Pg 29-30 HOW TO:</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
"Principals and School Leaders Can . . .</div>
<div>
• Allocate and protect time for teachers to work together in developing literacy instructional practices and in analyzing student work.</div>
<div>
• Provide training, support, and structures that make teacher collaboration time purposeful and effective.</div>
<div>
• Build trust among staff by participating in groups not solely as an instructional leader, but also as a collaborative colleague.</div>
<div>
• Respect the expertise of teachers in building-level decisions about literacy teaching materials and curriculum and in the application of formative and summative assessment data to instruction.</div>
<div>
<div>
• Monitor and understand emerging research about literacy learning and educator collaboration, making this a focus for their own professional growth.</div>
<div>
• Make literacy learning in every subject a school-wide priority and establish a structure for staff-wide participation in planning and monitoring progress toward the attainment of student literacy growth goals."</div>
</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
"Teachers and Other Educators Can . . .</div>
<div>
• Engage in focused, purposeful collaboration with colleagues (both in person and online) about instructional shifts that can be made to deepen student literacy learning in every class.</div>
<div>
• Open doors and share practice so that others can learn from both successes and failures.</div>
<div>
• Commit to continuous, collaborative assessment and analysis of student work and agree to</div>
<div>
shift their strategies as they learn more about students’ progress as literacy learners.</div>
<div>
• Demonstrate accountability to each other and to students by developing and documenting</div>
<div>
shared plans for deepening student literacy learning across a school year.</div>
<div>
• Build professional capacity by choosing literacy teaching strategies and materials based on</div>
<div>
learning from collaborative activities with other teachers.</div>
<div>
• Tap the literacy expertise that resides in all subject areas and job roles (including coaches,</div>
<div>
librarians, and administrators) to build a coherent school-wide literacy experience for students."</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
Dr. Christopher R McGeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17575214638218127989noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8607869027699454375.post-70317363545662888192014-03-14T08:13:00.000-07:002014-03-14T14:25:19.302-07:00Resources for Union R-XI Staff Development<h2>
Slides:</h2>
<div>
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="356" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://www.slideshare.net/slideshow/embed_code/32317104" style="border-width: 1px 1px 0; border: 1px solid #CCC; margin-bottom: 5px; max-width: 100%;" width="427"> </iframe> <br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 5px;">
<strong> <a href="https://www.slideshare.net/cmcgee200/connected-educator-keynote-union-school-district" target="_blank" title="Connected Educator - Keynote Union School District">Connected Educator - Keynote Union School District</a> </strong> from <strong><a href="http://www.slideshare.net/cmcgee200" target="_blank">cmcgee200</a></strong> </div>
<b><br /></b>
<b><br /></b>
<b>General Resources</b></div>
<div class="p5">
</div>
<ul>
<li>Horizon Report 2013 Emerging Technologies - <a href="http://goo.gl/iTM15"><span class="s3">http://goo.gl/iTM15</span></a> </li>
<li>Professional Learning in the Learning Profession - <a href="http://goo.gl/0rBhc8"><span class="s3">http://goo.gl/0rBhc8</span></a> </li>
<li>Crab Mentality - <a href="http://goo.gl/C7yS"><span class="s3">http://goo.gl/C7yS</span></a></li>
<li>Average of the 5 people you spend time with - <a href="http://goo.gl/t4hbE"><span class="s3">http://goo.gl/t4hbE</span></a></li>
<li>Types of PLNs - <span class="s3"><a href="http://goo.gl/8HMWiu">http://goo.gl/8HMWiu</a></span></li>
</ul>
<br />
<div class="p3">
<span class="s1"></span></div>
<div class="p3">
<span class="s1"></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<h2>
<b>Consuming - Phase 1 of Connecting</b></h2>
<h3>
<span class="s1">Subscribe to blogs/websites with a RSS reader, here are two options:</span></h3>
<div class="p5">
</div>
<ul>
<li>Feedly - <a href="http://feedly.com/"><span class="s3">http://feedly.com/</span></a></li>
<li>Flipboard - <span class="s3"><a href="https://flipboard.com/">https://flipboard.com/</a></span></li>
</ul>
<br />
<h3>
<span class="s1">Email Subscriptions via newsletter, options:</span></h3>
<div class="p5">
</div>
<ul>
<li>Farnam Street - <a href="http://www.farnamstreetblog.com/"><span class="s3">http://www.farnamstreetblog.com/</span></a></li>
<li>EdSurge - <a href="https://www.edsurge.com/"><span class="s3">https://www.edsurge.com/</span></a></li>
<li>Marshall Memo - <a href="http://www.marshallmemo.com/"><span class="s3">http://www.marshallmemo.com/</span></a></li>
<li>Dan Pink - <a href="http://goo.gl/iKg6cx"><span class="s3">http://goo.gl/iKg6cx</span></a></li>
<li>21st Century Fluency Project - <span class="s3"><a href="http://fluency21.com/blog/">http://fluency21.com/blog/</a></span></li>
</ul>
<br />
<h3>
<span class="s1">Podcasts - For iPhone, iPad, and iTunes, some options:</span></h3>
<div class="p5">
</div>
<ul>
<li>CNet - <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/all-cnet-video-podcasts-sd/id264659389?mt=2">https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/all-cnet-video-podcasts-sd/id264659389?mt=2</a></li>
<li>Freakanomics - <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/freakonomics-radio/id354668519?mt=2">https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/freakonomics-radio/id354668519?mt=2</a></li>
<li>Dan Pink Office Hours - <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/dan-pinks-office-hours/id447440893?mt=2">https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/dan-pinks-office-hours/id447440893?mt=2</a></li>
<li>Coaching for Leaders - <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/coaching-for-leaders-people/id458827716?mt=2">https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/coaching-for-leaders-people/id458827716?mt=2</a></li>
<li>TED talks - <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/tedtalks-hd/id281315460?mt=2">https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/tedtalks-hd/id281315460?mt=2</a> </li>
<li>60-Second Mind - <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/60-second-mind/id262750202?mt=2">https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/60-second-mind/id262750202?mt=2</a></li>
<li>EntreLeadership - <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-entreleadership-podcast/id435836905?mt=2">https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-entreleadership-podcast/id435836905?mt=2</a></li>
<li>Accidental Creative - <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/accidental-creative-creativity/id93424211?mt=2">https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/accidental-creative-creativity/id93424211?mt=2</a></li>
<li>Entrepreneurial Thought Leaders - <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/entrepreneurial-thought-leaders/id80867514?mt=2">https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/entrepreneurial-thought-leaders/id80867514?mt=2</a></li>
<li>This Is Your Life - <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/this-is-your-life-michael/id502414581?mt=2">https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/this-is-your-life-michael/id502414581?mt=2</a></li>
<li>Andy Stanley Leadership Podcast - <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/andy-stanley-leadership-podcast/id290055666?mt=2">https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/andy-stanley-leadership-podcast/id290055666?mt=2</a></li>
<li>RadioLab - <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/radiolab-from-wnyc/id152249110?mt=2">https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/radiolab-from-wnyc/id152249110?mt=2</a></li>
</ul>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhs-rURzUuM9avXO_YyfUAyzRPywA7mwzssyvOZshf8R-Dzd5p3uV2fl2vtJukHIecDnHLxM8WxTTu6lUv37jYE9m11X8hh8E2FWDqy3CaTOikd23BI86M2BGRJaWj9kO4MGdS5CsCUZxbA/s1600/Two+Lurking+Phreks.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhs-rURzUuM9avXO_YyfUAyzRPywA7mwzssyvOZshf8R-Dzd5p3uV2fl2vtJukHIecDnHLxM8WxTTu6lUv37jYE9m11X8hh8E2FWDqy3CaTOikd23BI86M2BGRJaWj9kO4MGdS5CsCUZxbA/s1600/Two+Lurking+Phreks.jpg" height="150" width="200" /></a></div>
<h2>
<span class="s1"><b><br /></b></span></h2>
<h2>
<span class="s1"><b>Lurking - Phase 2 of Connecting</b></span></h2>
<div class="p5">
<span class="s1">Definition of Lurking: “Lurking is a slang term for when an individual reads a message board without posting or engaging with the community. Lurking is sometimes encouraged by forum moderators as a way for new members to get a sense of the community and etiquette before participating. Lurking also may occur if a user simply wants to get some information without adding to the discussion.” via <a href="http://goo.gl/0YOsAi">http://goo.gl/0YOsAi</a></span></div>
<div class="p3">
<br />
<span class="s1"></span></div>
<div class="p3">
<span class="s1"></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.harvestcommunity.org/Content/10188/New%20Web%20Pics/Get%20Connected%20-%20Title%20Bar-01.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.harvestcommunity.org/Content/10188/New%20Web%20Pics/Get%20Connected%20-%20Title%20Bar-01.png" height="101" width="320" /></a></div>
<h2>
<span class="s1"><b>Actually Connecting - Phase 3</b></span></h2>
<div class="p6">
<span class="s1">Remember: Jab, Jab, Jab, Right Hook - GIVE, GIVE, GIVE, then Ask.</span></div>
<div class="p5">
<span class="s1">14 quotes from the book - <a href="http://goo.gl/XnmDHU"><span class="s3">http://goo.gl/XnmDHU</span></a></span></div>
<div class="p3">
<span class="s1"></span><br /></div>
<h3>
<span class="s1">Twitter - #MoEdchat 9pm Thursdays<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0TVChrQ4AZEprlw88l2ALilOsgqyCG88ya1mVPhug-1ZOWh8HAYuUNh-bzbW64RAN8Bi__zf0pumDfLR4hH6WZjGPPFX7DHy8x6P6oaiN1H1P1aVJ1uUXc9nnJGybk6WcFQI1gImxXuc/s1600/MOedchat.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0TVChrQ4AZEprlw88l2ALilOsgqyCG88ya1mVPhug-1ZOWh8HAYuUNh-bzbW64RAN8Bi__zf0pumDfLR4hH6WZjGPPFX7DHy8x6P6oaiN1H1P1aVJ1uUXc9nnJGybk6WcFQI1gImxXuc/s1600/MOedchat.jpg" height="195" width="200" /></a></div>
</span></h3>
<div class="p5">
<span class="s1">Maximizing your PLN document - <a href="http://goo.gl/rdbTr"><span class="s3">http://goo.gl/rdbTr</span></a></span></div>
<div class="p5">
<span class="s1">Complete exhaustive list of hashtags - <a href="http://goo.gl/YPElr"><span class="s3">http://goo.gl/YPElr</span></a></span></div>
<div class="p5">
<span class="s1">When is a twitter chat happening - <a href="http://goo.gl/xTkQt"><span class="s3">http://goo.gl/xTkQt</span></a></span></div>
<div class="p5">
<span class="s1">Twitter 101 - <a href="http://goo.gl/VORdQ"><span class="s3">http://goo.gl/VORdQ</span></a></span></div>
<div class="p3">
<span class="s1"></span><br /></div>
<h3>
<span class="s1">Facebook</span></h3>
<div class="p5">
<span class="s1">Edchat - <a href="http://goo.gl/KoQzA"><span class="s3">http://goo.gl/KoQzA</span></a></span></div>
<div class="p5">
<span class="s1">edReach.us - <a href="http://goo.gl/55wDZ"><span class="s3">http://goo.gl/55wDZ</span></a></span></div>
<div class="p3">
<span class="s1"></span><br /></div>
<h3>
<span class="s1">Other Connected Sites</span></h3>
<div class="p5">
<span class="s1">Educators PLN - <a href="http://goo.gl/DkAB"><span class="s3">http://goo.gl/DkAB</span></a></span></div>
<div class="p5">
<span class="s1">Classroom 2.0 - <a href="http://www.classroom20.com/"><span class="s3">http://www.classroom20.com/</span></a></span></div>
<div class="p5">
<span class="s1">Edmodo - <a href="https://www.edmodo.com/"><span class="s3">https://www.edmodo.com/</span></a></span></div>
<div class="p5">
<span class="s1">Flipped Learning Network - <a href="http://goo.gl/XaH8U"><span class="s3">http://goo.gl/XaH8U</span></a></span></div>
<div class="p5">
<span class="s1">Kagan discussion board - <a href="http://goo.gl/RfZOH9"><span class="s3">http://goo.gl/RfZOH9</span></a></span></div>
<div class="p3">
<span class="s1"></span><br /></div>
<h3>
<span class="s1">Google Plus</span></h3>
<div class="p5">
<span class="s1">Beginners Guide - <a href="http://goo.gl/x090dk"><span class="s3">http://goo.gl/x090dk</span></a></span></div>
<div class="p5">
<span class="s1">LiveBinder for educators - <a href="http://goo.gl/wYFYFV"><span class="s3">http://goo.gl/wYFYFV</span></a></span></div>
<div class="p5">
<span class="s1">Tips for teachers - <a href="http://goo.gl/OvNZm"><span class="s3">http://goo.gl/OvNZm</span></a></span></div>
<div class="p5">
<span class="s1"><b><br /></b></span></div>
<div class="p5">
<span class="s1"><b>Communities</b></span></div>
<div class="p5">
</div>
<ul>
<li>Connected Classrooms</li>
<li>Digital Leadership</li>
<li>EdReach</li>
<li>Edcamp</li>
<li>Educational Leadership</li>
<li>Minecraft in Education</li>
<li>Google docs and drive</li>
<li>Google Apps</li>
<li>Connected Learning</li>
<li>Discovery Education</li>
<li>EdcampSTL</li>
</ul>
<br />
<h3>
<span class="s1">Pinterest</span></h3>
<div class="p5">
<span class="s1">How to use it for educators - <a href="http://goo.gl/hrIH4"><span class="s3">http://goo.gl/hrIH4</span></a></span></div>
<div class="p5">
<span class="s1">Tips for teachers - <a href="http://goo.gl/wjx1p7"><span class="s3">http://goo.gl/wjx1p7</span></a></span></div>
<div class="p5">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqxG1x3yW5sy7wsOKTvVRmphe8EryyMW8ydcJicErJnncsUo7GrJZNjYJo7F83FQEkEDc7uguAHdqUscBJHxYHFRxW3IAFIXFnzAUVGzfYInNB-Cd3WiUXlHD2gKD0M-QwCqSnFOGYAhWs/s1600/edcamp+logo+fav.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqxG1x3yW5sy7wsOKTvVRmphe8EryyMW8ydcJicErJnncsUo7GrJZNjYJo7F83FQEkEDc7uguAHdqUscBJHxYHFRxW3IAFIXFnzAUVGzfYInNB-Cd3WiUXlHD2gKD0M-QwCqSnFOGYAhWs/s1600/edcamp+logo+fav.jpg" height="152" width="200" /></a><span class="s1">Using for education - <a href="http://goo.gl/ZVpg1T"><span class="s3">http://goo.gl/ZVpg1T</span></a></span></div>
<div class="p3">
<span class="s1"></span><br /></div>
<h3>
<span class="s1">Events - for a little Face-to-Face (F2F)</span></h3>
<div class="p5">
<span class="s1">Meet Up - <a href="http://www.meetup.com/"><span class="s3">http://www.meetup.com/</span></a></span></div>
<div class="p5">
<span class="s1">Edcamp - <a href="http://edcampstl.wikispaces.com/"><span class="s3">http://edcampstl.wikispaces.com/</span></a></span></div>
<div class="p5">
<span class="s1">CLstl - <a href="http://www.connectedlearningstl.org/"><span class="s3">http://www.connectedlearningstl.org/</span></a></span></div>
<div class="p5">
<span class="s1">3/29 ShareFair - <a href="http://goo.gl/z90ZRF"><span class="s3">http://goo.gl/z90ZRF</span></a></span></div>
<div class="p3">
<span class="s1"></span><br /></div>
<div class="p3">
Things I'm excited about trying</div>
<div class="p3">
</div>
<ul>
<li>TeachADE - <a href="http://www.teachade.com/">http://www.teachade.com/</a></li>
<li>Diipo - <a href="http://www.diipo.com/">http://www.diipo.com/</a></li>
<li>LORE - <a href="http://lore.com/">http://lore.com/</a></li>
<li>Teaching Channel - <a href="https://www.teachingchannel.org/">https://www.teachingchannel.org</a></li>
<li>EduClipper - <a href="https://educlipper.net/">https://educlipper.net/</a></li>
<li>Twiducate -<a href="http://www.twiducate.com/" target="_blank"> http://www.twiducate.com/</a></li>
</ul>
<br />
<br />
<h2 style="text-align: center;">
</h2>
<h2 style="text-align: center;">
<span class="s1"><b>Who are the 5 people that do your job better than you? Connect with them.</b></span></h2>
Dr. Christopher R McGeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17575214638218127989noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8607869027699454375.post-42052221669029328872014-01-20T19:57:00.002-08:002014-01-20T19:57:57.542-08:00Learning: Culturally Relevant PedagogyI'm preparing for a after school workshop on Culturally Relevant Teaching. While doing some research on the topic I ran across this article from 2011: <a href="http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ914924.pdf">http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ914924.pdf</a><br />
<br />
This article provided some amazing insights and began a foundation of understanding what it means to be "Culturally Relevant."<br />
<br />
See below for some of my take aways, questions and musings. Please add other resources, books, comments, ideas to the comments.<br />
<br />
<h2>
Quotes/Questions</h2>
"Scholars have pondered over strategies to assist teachers in teaching about diversity as well as interacting with diversity found within their classrooms in order to <a href="https://www.google.com/search?q=define+ameliorate&oq=define+ameliorate&aqs=chrome..69i57j0l5.1548j0j7&sourceid=chrome&espv=210&es_sm=91&ie=UTF-8" target="_blank">ameliorate</a> the effects of cultural discontinuity."<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://depts.hre.wvu.edu/dtf/event08/images/crt.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://depts.hre.wvu.edu/dtf/event08/images/crt.jpg" height="199" width="200" /></a></div>
<br />
Cultural discontinuity = difference in culture between the white middle class teacher and classroom that isn't reflective of that. (vice versa can also be true for an African American teacher in a classroom of students that are not reflective of that culture.)<br />
<br />
"The problem embracing the American educational system is how to ensure that all students, especially racal/ethnic minority students, achieve.<br />
<br />
"Theories and research which argue that students, especially those from status-oppressed minority groups, are sensitive to their treatment in school by teachers, administrators, and peers will look for answers in these social relationships"<br />
<br />
<h3>
How do we move from theories and research to solutions?</h3>
"Viable teaching and learning environments are:<br />
<br />
<ul>
<li>culturally appropriate</li>
<li>culturally congruent</li>
<li>mitigating cultural discontinuity</li>
<li>culturally responsive</li>
<li>culturally compatible"</li>
</ul>
<br />
<h3>
How is a student's home reflected in my classroom?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://craigatkinsonlaw.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/home-icon.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://craigatkinsonlaw.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/home-icon.png" height="200" width="200" /></a></div>
</h3>
<br />
"Just as the student body is not homogeneous, teachers may come from a culture quite different from that of their students, resulting in cultural clashes that can potentially lead to gaps in learning."<br />
<br />
<h3>
What are the cultural gaps that exist between you are your students?</h3>
<br />
"For viable teaching and learning to take place, there must be connections between the home-community and school culture."<br />
<br />
"...intentional inclusion of students' backgrounds becomes a direct demonstration of the distinction between difference and deficiency."<br />
<br />
<h3>
How do we recognize difference and/or/vs deficiency?</h3>
<h3>
How does your school mirror the community?</h3>
<h2>
Historical Evolution of Culturally Relevant Pedagogy</h2>
"Bringing the relevance of the text to the child's own experience helps the child make sense of the world"<br />
<br />
"This illustrated the importance of teacher as a bridge between home-community and school culture."<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://docs.google.com/drawings/d/12EL3ogXvV0u5_v0x11DX5Yt25J7isV8WSFQCMsN5tMk/pub?w=960&h=720" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://docs.google.com/drawings/d/12EL3ogXvV0u5_v0x11DX5Yt25J7isV8WSFQCMsN5tMk/pub?w=960&h=720" width="320" /></a></div>
"...teachers need to recognize differences in interactional style (preference or learning style and demonstrating what was learned) as well as differences in cognitive style (cognitive information processing). They stressed that the teacher should be actively involved in ascertaining the learning styles of his or her students."<br />
<br />
<h3>
When students and teachers are from the same culture, evidence shows there is more learning.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.dashe.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/Training-logo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.dashe.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/Training-logo.jpg" height="150" width="200" /></a></div>
</h3>
<br />
"cultural incompatibility is one explanation for school failure."<br />
<br />
<h2>
Significance of Critical Race Theory</h2>
"...acknowledgement of who children are, how they perceive themselves, and how the world receives them."<br />
<br />
"...racism persists in being"endemic and deeply ingrained in American life"" <a href="http://kakali.org/edld6384/8561/readings/ladson-billings-and-tate.pdf" target="_blank">Ladson-Billings and Tate 1995</a><br />
<br />
"Critical Race Theory tenets:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.returnofkings.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/critical-race-theory.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.returnofkings.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/critical-race-theory.jpg" height="157" width="200" /></a></div>
<br />
<ol>
<li>Racialized power</li>
<li>the permanence or centrality of race</li>
<li><a href="http://www.adulterc.org/Proceedings/2006/Proceedings/Hunn_et_al.pdf" target="_blank">counter storytelling</a> as a legitimate critique of the master narrative</li>
<li>interest convergence</li>
<li>critique of liberalism"</li>
</ol>
<br />
"...reviewing the ways that, for instance, curriculum is designed, the delivery of instruction is executed, classes are composed and grouped, assessment is determined and processed, school funding is allocated, and redistricting lines are drawn."<br />
<h3>
How do you get to know, I mean know, your students, their families and their culture?</h3>
<h2>
Conceptual Framework of Cultural Relevant Pedagogy</h2>
5 themes:<br />
<br />
<ol>
<li>Identity and Achievement</li>
<li>Equity and Excellence</li>
<li>Developmental Appropriateness</li>
<li>Teaching the Whole Child</li>
<li>Student-Teacher Relationships</li>
</ol>
<br />
Figure 1:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://docs.google.com/drawings/d/15m2-UKlwA1I6xhEW6xZYOVN_qexyTUNHKwMbEPj0eII/pub?w=960&h=600" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://docs.google.com/drawings/d/15m2-UKlwA1I6xhEW6xZYOVN_qexyTUNHKwMbEPj0eII/pub?w=960&h=600" width="320" /></a></div>
<h2>
Identity and Achievement</h2>
"...both student and teacher identities are considered."<br />
"...identity is defined as a cultural construct."<br />
<br />
"parts of our identity that do capture our attention are those that other people notice, and reflect back to us."<br />
<br />
"Teachers should realize that students who are racial or ethnic minorities see, view, and perceive themselves and others differently than those who are of the majority group."<br />
<br />
"race is not to be ignored in the picture of identity development."<br />
<br />
"Teachers need to be aware of their own identities."<br />
<br />
"...individually and collectively students voices are heard, they matter, and their presence and contributions are valued."<br />
<br />
Teachers CANNOT be colorblind or race neutral because each "ignore the centrality of race and racism within American society."<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://sundial.csun.edu/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/Racism2-620x479.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://sundial.csun.edu/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/Racism2-620x479.jpg" height="154" width="200" /></a></div>
<br />
"When teachers acknowledge that the system is racist, they can move forward to not only avoid socially reproducing the racism, but also to rethink the system, recognize their actions in it, change them if they need to be, and embrace all cultures as equally important."<br />
<br />
"by embracing the reality of diversity through such an identification is critical in creating an environment for equitable learning."<br />
<br />
<h2>
Equity and Excellence</h2>
"...equity involved giving students what they need."<br />
<br />
"Giving students what they need means believing:<br />
<br />
<ul>
<li>Difference is good.</li>
<li>Differentiated instruction is essential for some</li>
<li>Culturally relevant pedagogy practices can enhance learning."</li>
</ul>
<br />
"when teachers do not see diversity, they truly do not see students at all and therefore greatly limit their abilities to meet students' diverse educational and social needs."<br />
<br />
<h3>
How do we incorporate more multicultural content?</h3>
<h3>
How do we provide windows and mirrors into our content that allow our students to see themselves in their curriculum?</h3>
<h2>
Developmental Appropriateness</h2>
"...acknowledge the importance of knowing where children are in their cognitive development."<br />
<br />
"The key is generating teaching styles that incorporate the vast difference in culturally-based learning styles and learning preferences of students."<br />
<h3>
How do we do we generating teaching styles that incorporate the vast difference in culturally-based learning styles and learning preferences of students?<br />What does it look like when teachers generate teaching styles that incorporate the vast difference in culturally-based learning styles and learning preferences of students?</h3>
<h2>
Teaching the Whole Child</h2>
"These cultural influences affect how students and their families perceive, receive, respond to, categorize, and prioritize what is meaningful to them."<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNoM4C-1V2FFokWdKpwNE4SaHUmov93ie3khKUseMlhy6O2ekBojIWekxi8Sp3YgfJjPv8-0jQ3NcNY677hTUpinRS4y3vtq2I3GucnWNCyayCauW9Q-T8ggHfwEMLpkLoEpMp3z5obsA/s1600/Whole_Child.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNoM4C-1V2FFokWdKpwNE4SaHUmov93ie3khKUseMlhy6O2ekBojIWekxi8Sp3YgfJjPv8-0jQ3NcNY677hTUpinRS4y3vtq2I3GucnWNCyayCauW9Q-T8ggHfwEMLpkLoEpMp3z5obsA/s1600/Whole_Child.jpg" height="150" width="200" /></a></div>
<br />
<b>"Culture resides in the individual."</b><br />
<br />
"...it is crucial for teachers to learn about all of their students, especially those who are culturally different from the teachers themselves."<br />
<br />
<h3>
How can we filter the content required by teachers to 'cover' to leave time for teachers to get to KNOW their students?</h3>
<h2>
Student-Teacher Relationships</h2>
"the nature and the extent of the relationships between the teachers and their students are crucial in promoting student learning."<br />
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<a href="http://www.cceionline.com/images/newsletter/Floor_reading_copy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.cceionline.com/images/newsletter/Floor_reading_copy.jpg" height="131" width="200" /></a></div>
<br />
"...teachers' knowledge and translation of different cultural communications styles can avert misinterpretations of behavior, demonstrations of disrespect, and conflicts in schools."<br />
<br />
Student-teacher relationships are "fluid and equitable and extend beyond the classroom."<br />
<br />
Teachers should "demonstrate a connectedness with all their students and encourage that same connectedness between the students."<br />
<br />
Teachers should believe that "community is a vital partner in students' learning."<br />
<br />
Teachers should "simply not accept failure, but <a href="http://www.ascd.org/publications/books/109001/chapters/Start-Where-Your-Students-Are.aspx" target="_blank">begin where students are</a> and works hard to help them succeed."<br />
<br />
"...through <a href="http://www.adulterc.org/Proceedings/2006/Proceedings/Hunn_et_al.pdf" target="_blank">counter stories</a>, teachers are provided a vehicle by which they can see what has, in some cases, been consciously invisible to them before."<br />
<h3>
How do we as teachers INVEST in our students and our students families? Only through that investment will true learning be achieved.</h3>
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<a href="http://media-cache-ec0.pinimg.com/736x/92/3d/a2/923da2de2fa6fc2b75040dd58a3f1b31.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://media-cache-ec0.pinimg.com/736x/92/3d/a2/923da2de2fa6fc2b75040dd58a3f1b31.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
That's it for now, add more resources in the comments section....</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
Dr. Christopher R McGeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17575214638218127989noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8607869027699454375.post-67932706403600961092014-01-07T14:03:00.001-08:002014-01-07T14:14:37.645-08:00EdcampSTL and Things you can't do with kids in the buildingSo I organize and lead a team of educators to create an event called <a href="http://edcampstl.wikispaces.com/" target="_blank">#edcampSTL</a>. Please <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=edcampSTL&src=typd" target="_blank">follow along with the hashtag</a> and participate. This year it will be on 2/8/2014.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://edcampstl.wikispaces.com/" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/4PW12BWEC28f_4EURbj0WCsxuw9qk70fyzeWd8h2D_DYpXaXAX19hsiLffYprogsyQ=s400" height="244" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
One of the things we like to do is get creative. To get creative we need people to get our of their shells. The whole day is pretty uncomfortable for those that have never attended an edcamp. This event really pushes them over the edge.<br />
<br />
After lunch, typically there is a lull. It's not anyone's fault, it just happens. Blame it on circadian rhythms, the ebb and flow of the day, the lack of coffee, or the cycles of the moon, regardless, there's a lull.<br />
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<a href="https://i.chzbgr.com/maxW500/5946874368/h8064D9EE/" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="229" src="https://i.chzbgr.com/maxW500/5946874368/h8064D9EE/" width="320" /></a></div>
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To combat this lull, to build community, to meet new people, we needed an activity. We came up with an activity we affectionately call "<b>Things you can't do with kids in the building.</b>" I know, long name.<br />
<br />
We gave every person a sign off sheet (see below) and a MAP of the school:<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/pnztM5x3dMtrZhP32vAsFIuQ3cAe1VUKGCFHyRX6KrW9mxWeOzBh7TfSxEYwRSx3X8jp6QUTTL1EL2WgZpVH5cM=s400" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/pnztM5x3dMtrZhP32vAsFIuQ3cAe1VUKGCFHyRX6KrW9mxWeOzBh7TfSxEYwRSx3X8jp6QUTTL1EL2WgZpVH5cM=s400" height="214" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
The idea is get people up, moving, doing things they normally wouldn't in their "professional day." The ideas below are accompanied by images if we were able to catch them. These images are from over the last two years of EdcampSTL. The stations we used included:<br />
<br />
<ul>
<li>Running in the halls - Super easy station and fun for everyone! Gets the blood pumping!</li>
</ul>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLLVISmRyq7tmdGDgY-6tF_DSU3aeCurieYHZFWSiCGfgj3te7s6KGcqy8gyIro-vBzwQZ2Q_5DSzJHhhBoo3Qiye1MYOUMRK2XY8cIsbeENfI0H3k11H-UpAoc0ssYh6anxWtQHvjP6AB/s1600/IMG_0195.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLLVISmRyq7tmdGDgY-6tF_DSU3aeCurieYHZFWSiCGfgj3te7s6KGcqy8gyIro-vBzwQZ2Q_5DSzJHhhBoo3Qiye1MYOUMRK2XY8cIsbeENfI0H3k11H-UpAoc0ssYh6anxWtQHvjP6AB/s1600/IMG_0195.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<ul>
<li>Screaming in the library - Wish I had a video of this. People had a blast since they never get a chance to do it. We really wanted to get a person in a white wig and bifocals (old-school librarian style) shhhhing people after they screamed. That would have been great!</li>
<li>Sliding down the rails - We all want to do it, it's great to give people permission to play!</li>
</ul>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1u58kuyKBh39SMX7yiZo5TQ52zgAYfdi0tX66VxWI1K2M2LtHo_OKsnzdfdmehCBWdrMNFEFaVXXOB1pfnRq5gmhSHJ-17BCwuDNzG2RP9f2ErIvrm8iZk0un3ErAnIlOHNbTR9T_wVig/s1600/IMG_0198.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1u58kuyKBh39SMX7yiZo5TQ52zgAYfdi0tX66VxWI1K2M2LtHo_OKsnzdfdmehCBWdrMNFEFaVXXOB1pfnRq5gmhSHJ-17BCwuDNzG2RP9f2ErIvrm8iZk0un3ErAnIlOHNbTR9T_wVig/s1600/IMG_0198.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
<ul>
<li>Bouncing balls in the hall - How many times have you said for students to not bounce the balls in the hallway, it's freeing to let go of that!</li>
</ul>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1h00-0I4m4grsUzNPX_WsckW0iCmMSDxTg6gz3j8yHy1PT83FYvno2dSc-SA12xHPIijH35BSLC5agdH069nP9lG2UfM_IQDBIsTKnmqy4i_dBKF7cdKmzfNa2XxTo-Jv-VT0tZ_AQgIn/s1600/IMG_0203.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1h00-0I4m4grsUzNPX_WsckW0iCmMSDxTg6gz3j8yHy1PT83FYvno2dSc-SA12xHPIijH35BSLC5agdH069nP9lG2UfM_IQDBIsTKnmqy4i_dBKF7cdKmzfNa2XxTo-Jv-VT0tZ_AQgIn/s1600/IMG_0203.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
<ul>
<li>Throwing food in the cafeteria - The one station people talk about every year. It's a classic. Both years we used mashed potatoes. We forgot about having people wipe their hands after throwing them, oops! We got smart and picked up an apparatus from the dollar spot to keep people's hands clean!</li>
</ul>
<iframe height="385" src="https://docs.google.com/file/d/0Bwz1J6fj2c9rWXRfeXZPdFBINFk/preview" width="640"></iframe>
<ul>
<li>Throwing paper airplanes - <a href="https://twitter.com/tbbrwn" target="_blank">Toby is the king</a>. People came up with creative airplanes and we learned who's a perfectionist. :-) </li>
</ul>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYUDqgfep7Q3UXWI54oStddNrgTIqxAHi8SrLkNR_uTBfRKHqstuTHq1lvwgnmxDYjsLEOwuRKHKFWucZbaFzWvDotDE3XIYjVd4cUZ_dxXLzxjsRhu6Ifqt3rGkjEF6k_BoFUDp7wsBud/s1600/IMG_0191.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYUDqgfep7Q3UXWI54oStddNrgTIqxAHi8SrLkNR_uTBfRKHqstuTHq1lvwgnmxDYjsLEOwuRKHKFWucZbaFzWvDotDE3XIYjVd4cUZ_dxXLzxjsRhu6Ifqt3rGkjEF6k_BoFUDp7wsBud/s1600/IMG_0191.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<ul>
<li>Texting in school - Really easy station. We used <a href="http://www.polleverywhere.com/" target="_blank">poll everywhere</a> to gather information to show teachers how they can use student's devices in the classroom.</li>
<li>Rolling chairs in the hallway - Awesome! Be careful though, we broke two chairs and had to replace them :-)</li>
</ul>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5pJN9vJCAUcZO8oYCXfNlRq5werG_G2L4xBi7i6S1khFqDX_LEv6M2KegYLD06qOq7tBVaTNeGjrzk75pFXm2rhwB1dTOoNzPDcPetveSe4qVCdMHJZicdrEzJaqQs_ojjXgyMX-jUId-/s1600/2012-02-11_12-10-42_32.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5pJN9vJCAUcZO8oYCXfNlRq5werG_G2L4xBi7i6S1khFqDX_LEv6M2KegYLD06qOq7tBVaTNeGjrzk75pFXm2rhwB1dTOoNzPDcPetveSe4qVCdMHJZicdrEzJaqQs_ojjXgyMX-jUId-/s1600/2012-02-11_12-10-42_32.jpg" height="320" width="182" /></a></div>
<ul>
<li>Playing with bouncey balls - I forgot the name of the game. We had cups and the bouncey balls had to make it into the cup. The only trick was there were directions of different tasks on cards. It was awesome. I do remember we purchased the game at <a href="http://www.urbanoutfitters.com/urban/index.jsp" target="_blank">urban outfitters</a>. No it wasn't beer pong!</li>
<li>Book Bowling - This was awesome! We built "pins" out of shoeboxes and then used books to knock them down. Very fun! I wanted to do a station called "Angry Books" Which we built a structure and then flung the books like angry birds, it just took too long to set up each time.</li>
<li>Bullying in the stairwell - Fun one! We came up with insults (see planning documents below) and people picked them out of a hat and read them to each other. It was all in good fun! Even the team from <a href="http://www.mentormob.com/beta/splash" target="_blank">Mentor Mob</a> appreciated it!</li>
</ul>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifr1cGxSzlaMkLZh2zsV7gXuRGhu3Y9kDq7guSsJSIyJtKS28ORG8tlcG2ECqr6uF02qn3ISYoGg1qJZ0VG7sKzcjSHbo-J2LBiVZuV-U0qkEX8cK9-mkqqNqim1S8-O6dhrODKIT7kFHt/s1600/BCrl-Y-CcAA9ct4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifr1cGxSzlaMkLZh2zsV7gXuRGhu3Y9kDq7guSsJSIyJtKS28ORG8tlcG2ECqr6uF02qn3ISYoGg1qJZ0VG7sKzcjSHbo-J2LBiVZuV-U0qkEX8cK9-mkqqNqim1S8-O6dhrODKIT7kFHt/s1600/BCrl-Y-CcAA9ct4.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<ul>
<li>Dance walking - Interesting. I really wanted video taken of this and then made into a promo for EdcampSTL. I'm not sure what happened to the video. Anyway, this was our inspiration:</li>
</ul>
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<object class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="https://ytimg.googleusercontent.com/vi/Ib3Duz_6a9M/0.jpg" height="266" width="320"><param name="movie" value="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/Ib3Duz_6a9M&source=uds" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/Ib3Duz_6a9M&source=uds" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<ul>
<li>Acting up - We had a room where people could do anything they wanted. Most just stood on the table. That's a big thing for people. I guess they wanted to reenact the scene in Dead Poets Society:</li>
</ul>
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/2EdWgsTUhmI?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<br />
Here's the planning document we used from last year: <a href="https://docs.google.com/document/d/1xRFvhkvrB569MM4GlbJGhlhcGdGFgXVK0NfEaYSqrys/edit">https://docs.google.com/document/d/1xRFvhkvrB569MM4GlbJGhlhcGdGFgXVK0NfEaYSqrys/edit</a><br />
<br />
And some brainstorming done here: <a href="https://docs.google.com/document/d/1bWXmmsKaS6JG2PicoaNmWE_J00XqCMmAaEWJKvIF9ns/edit">https://docs.google.com/document/d/1bWXmmsKaS6JG2PicoaNmWE_J00XqCMmAaEWJKvIF9ns/edit</a><br />
<br />
At each station is a volunteer that signs off on their form, these submissions are used to win a prize, yet another incentive to get people moving. Here's the form for 2012:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhj8RcQv2ZeGXXEmaMuN8sCO5uN4tyVhAcMonx7BLtKWn_nwUW3jhPVGmfq9LsEiRnuINbMX2IPnCU4WpU1jFOKbb1pgkwCBPzygdkJHLf8uCymMRBrevOwQmP8UXnND9UnP_En-Dg0Azp/s1600/514883495.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhj8RcQv2ZeGXXEmaMuN8sCO5uN4tyVhAcMonx7BLtKWn_nwUW3jhPVGmfq9LsEiRnuINbMX2IPnCU4WpU1jFOKbb1pgkwCBPzygdkJHLf8uCymMRBrevOwQmP8UXnND9UnP_En-Dg0Azp/s1600/514883495.jpeg" height="320" width="239" /></a></div>
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This is the one we used in 2013: <a href="https://docs.google.com/file/d/0Bwz1J6fj2c9rUUlMQXFpUllKYl9neHlZN0tvNGlIUTFLWjZj/edit">https://docs.google.com/file/d/0Bwz1J6fj2c9rUUlMQXFpUllKYl9neHlZN0tvNGlIUTFLWjZj/edit</a></div>
<br />
Steal this idea! Bring play, unprofessionalism and creativity to your school or team. With play and creativity we can accomplish anything!<br />
<br />
<h2 style="text-align: center;">
What stations could we have in the future? </h2>
<h2 style="text-align: center;">
Add your thoughts of things you can't do with kids in the building to the comments!</h2>
Dr. Christopher R McGeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17575214638218127989noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8607869027699454375.post-89613826422168455192013-12-27T14:28:00.001-08:002013-12-27T14:28:12.039-08:00More Homework MemeMy blog has been neglected. My job has shifted into curriculum creation which has afforded me the opportunity to write a TON. I have authored curriculum for kindergarten through 8th grade in both science and social studies.<br />
<br />
Luckily I keep track every day of the work I do and record it here: <a href="http://wgsdsciss.blogspot.com/">http://wgsdsciss.blogspot.com/</a><br />
<br />
Thanks to my good friend, colleague, mentor, guide and general inspirer of all things awesome <a href="https://twitter.com/stumpteacher" target="_blank">Josh Stumpenhorst</a>. He inspired me to write this post and I thank him for getting me back to my blog!<br />
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<a href="https://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/378800000820955511/2c9a1c287789befd15ad4cef23ee0278.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/378800000820955511/2c9a1c287789befd15ad4cef23ee0278.jpeg" /></a></div>
<br />
Here's his post calling me out: <a href="http://stumpteacher.blogspot.com/2013/12/more-homework-meme.html">http://stumpteacher.blogspot.com/2013/12/more-homework-meme.html</a><br />
<br />
<h2>
For starters, here are 11 random facts about me many people may not know.</h2>
<br />
<ol>
<li>I'm scared of heights, closed in spaces, and being underwater. Yes I'm a BIG scaredy-cat but I'm overcoming my fears every day. I owe that mostly to my amazing wife who constantly pushes me to overcome my fears.</li>
<li>While in high school I thought it was a good idea to have a mullet. It was not a good idea.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqY1VUSioorofe392H9u9Y-6rIMrNOKA6PayKuAhFruYG1OLAkYI7MyVw-J5v9Ixgk9BtwIRetZ_5iAc8fcq6V2vvnDWUeY_FO9SFG8-ALqlKwX9U-I_dxdzuAxZBvkdbUzhfSq7RHZSuU/s1600/ch16.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqY1VUSioorofe392H9u9Y-6rIMrNOKA6PayKuAhFruYG1OLAkYI7MyVw-J5v9Ixgk9BtwIRetZ_5iAc8fcq6V2vvnDWUeY_FO9SFG8-ALqlKwX9U-I_dxdzuAxZBvkdbUzhfSq7RHZSuU/s320/ch16.jpg" width="211" /></a></div>
</li>
<li>I'm against stinky cheeses.</li>
<li>I'm the one in charge of cooking and doing the laundry in our house. On top of that I fold my t-shirts using a folding board I was given from when I worked at The Gap.</li>
<li>As a baby/toddler I was entered into a beauty pageant, and won.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXzlz06pUdyniJMikhAEUybOSmtDQo1VtYyXiXNZ4I7WB5kWcqpDdD-UTlK4ozfI_5ZkayG-xqQ3rnty9WrUvYRjjOBK0YjCkyjxpahEqLl023RlL-npbEwDqmGrGdQIHAuUMkwj_knvBL/s1600/cbrainbow3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXzlz06pUdyniJMikhAEUybOSmtDQo1VtYyXiXNZ4I7WB5kWcqpDdD-UTlK4ozfI_5ZkayG-xqQ3rnty9WrUvYRjjOBK0YjCkyjxpahEqLl023RlL-npbEwDqmGrGdQIHAuUMkwj_knvBL/s320/cbrainbow3.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
</li>
<li>My mom LOVED halloween. She made the best costumes of any kid I knew. She made this Voltron costume. Pretty awesome!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2aKSD74yG_vlnXh5sOtTXC2A_LTz3b_2vykOy3Xe4yygYjh_R2wPBd7MTwIxevo3bUjcm4hX_d8pY8nqegtovWrrI-HtW_VZtngKpcELXZzIMCcsRtN9N6nhb8rQGNZwnrOoagzAPIRh7/s1600/Halloween+85.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="234" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2aKSD74yG_vlnXh5sOtTXC2A_LTz3b_2vykOy3Xe4yygYjh_R2wPBd7MTwIxevo3bUjcm4hX_d8pY8nqegtovWrrI-HtW_VZtngKpcELXZzIMCcsRtN9N6nhb8rQGNZwnrOoagzAPIRh7/s320/Halloween+85.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
</li>
<li>I'm a "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Friends" target="_blank">Friends</a>" nut. I've seen every episode and can quote almost every line. I also own the "<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Scene-Friends-Edition-Board-Game/dp/B000B6MLNM" target="_blank">Friends: Scene it</a>" game, no one will play with me.</li>
<li>My favorite color is blue.</li>
<li>When I was in High School I worked at Pizza Hut and was a "Production Leader." Fancy!</li>
<li>I am committed to having fun, no matter the age. I do understand this comes with a trade off of not always being taken seriously. I accept those consequences.</li>
</ol>
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11. My dad and I once got into a fight about grades. He said I wasn't applying myself. I disagreed. I ended up running away only to return because I was cold. I'm such a wuss.</div>
<br />
<h2>
Here are Josh's questions for me:</h2>
<b>1. What was your favorite children’s book as a child or favorite to read as a parent?</b><br />
A. As a parent I have not had much of an opportunity to read to my daughter (she's only a couple months). When I was younger I loved this book about cars and trucks (seen here with my dad purchasing the same one for our daughter.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1CRyUA3eh5NJ43ysZd1-rh9z345ttWJw160l-md5W30-2FaXsFiVX3jbkIELe6ZFmZo69wy4GFJgqgi4LkuXak2YvS4CkdTzvKoLunSPhSSLJpq649tohpM5ZAalg95wvSIzACP83D2nw/s1600/isa-923.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1CRyUA3eh5NJ43ysZd1-rh9z345ttWJw160l-md5W30-2FaXsFiVX3jbkIELe6ZFmZo69wy4GFJgqgi4LkuXak2YvS4CkdTzvKoLunSPhSSLJpq649tohpM5ZAalg95wvSIzACP83D2nw/s320/isa-923.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<b>2. If you had won that insane lottery jackpot, what is the first thing you would buy?</b><br />
A. Google Glasses. They are ridiculous but I think they're so cool. I'm sure I'd also get a GoPro Camera and a new house.<br />
<br />
<b>3. Can you touch your tongue to your nose?</b><br />
A. No, but I can touch my nose and tongue simultaneously. Does that count?<br />
<br />
<b>4. If I were to meet you up at a bar, what drink would I buy for you?</b><br />
A. Scotch on the rocks....<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<object width="320" height="266" class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="http://img.youtube.com/vi/_GNoto7sVRc/0.jpg"><param name="movie" value="http://youtube.googleapis.com/v/_GNoto7sVRc&source=uds" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="http://youtube.googleapis.com/v/_GNoto7sVRc&source=uds" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object></div>
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<b>5. When was the last time you laughed so hard it hurt, and what was it that made that happen?</b><br />
A. Between my wife and I this happens often. Most of the time for no apparent reason. Also any time we are with good friends of ours that live in Chicago. We always end up laughing until our cheeks hurt.<br />
<br />
<b>6. What is that one movie that shows up on TV that even though you have seen it a hundred times you still leave it on and watch?</b><br />
A. Pretty Woman. It's so emasculating to admit that.<br />
<br />
<b>7. If you could sit down and interview one person, living or dead, who would it be?</b><br />
A. Martin Luther King Jr. How cool would that be?<br />
<br />
<b>8. Paper or plastic?</b><br />
A. Neither, reusable bags. That way we can ring the bell at <a href="http://www.traderjoes.com/" target="_blank">Trader Joe's</a>.<br />
<br />
<b>9. What is something you have always wanted to do but continue to procrastinate and make excuses as to why you have not done it yet?</b><br />
A. Skydive. See the random facts number 1 listed above.<br />
<br />
<b>10. Have you been able to unlock the code and figure out what a fox says?</b><br />
A. I'm sure it has something to do with the "one thing."<br />
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<br />
<b>11. If you could pack it all up today and move, where would you land?</b><br />
A. That's tough. I love vacations in paradise, on a beach with a cold beverage, but I couldn't imagine living there. Spain was amazing, Madrid was beautiful, but if you live there does it all become noise? I'm happy where I am, I say I'd stay right here. Lame but true.<br />
<br />
<h2>
Here are 11 bloggers I want to answer this next:</h2>
<br />
<ol>
<li><a href="https://twitter.com/justintarte" target="_blank">Justin Tarte</a></li>
<li><a href="https://twitter.com/ideaguy42" target="_blank">Robert Dillon</a></li>
<li><a href="https://twitter.com/curriculumblog" target="_blank">Steven Weber</a></li>
<li><a href="https://twitter.com/kylepace" target="_blank">Kyle Pace</a></li>
<li><a href="https://twitter.com/rebpoli" target="_blank">Rebecca Morrison</a></li>
<li><a href="https://twitter.com/greglawrence" target="_blank">Greg Lawrence</a></li>
<li><a href="https://twitter.com/jdsnwg" target="_blank">John Simpson</a></li>
<li><a href="https://twitter.com/iJoshmika" target="_blank">Josh Mika</a></li>
<li><a href="https://twitter.com/CyberBrown" target="_blank">Tim Brown</a></li>
<li><a href="https://twitter.com/venspired" target="_blank">Krissy Venosdale</a></li>
<li><a href="https://twitter.com/DanielPink" target="_blank">Dan Pink</a></li>
</ol>
<br />
<h2>
Here are 11 questions for them to answer:</h2>
<br />
<ol>
<li>Does the toilet paper go over the top or under the bottom? NOTE: there is only one right answer for this.</li>
<li>If you were a superhero, which one would you be?</li>
<li>What was your favorite project when you were in school?</li>
<li>Which color Starburst/Skittle/Jelly Belly is your favorite?</li>
<li>What quote inspires you every day?</li>
<li>What's your favorite sandwich, ever?</li>
<li>What is the most played song on your iPod?</li>
<li>What's your favorite sound?</li>
<li>If you could invite anyone over for dinner, living or dead, who would sit at your table?</li>
<li>What celebrity do you often get mistaken for?</li>
<li>What is the best gift you've ever given/received?</li>
</ol>
<br />
<h2>
Here’s how it works:</h2>
<br />
<ul>
<li>Acknowledge the nominating blogger.</li>
<li>Share 11 random facts about yourself.</li>
<li>Answer the 11 questions the nominating blogger has created for you.</li>
<li>List 11 bloggers.</li>
<li>Post 11 questions for the bloggers you nominate to answer, and let all the bloggers know they have been nominated. Don’t nominate a blogger who has nominated you.</li>
</ul>
Dr. Christopher R McGeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17575214638218127989noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8607869027699454375.post-58184278236965621492013-05-09T16:40:00.003-07:002013-05-09T16:40:50.619-07:00DRAFT Next Generation Science StandardsPost also hosted on my Daily work blog: <a href="http://wgsdsciss.blogspot.com/2013/05/k-5-draft-ngss-units.html">http://wgsdsciss.blogspot.com/2013/05/k-5-draft-ngss-units.html</a><br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://nextgenscience.org/sites/all/themes/science/logo.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="145" src="http://nextgenscience.org/sites/all/themes/science/logo.png" width="320" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Below are the DRAFT units, proficiency scales, essential learning goals for K-5 Elementary Science based on the Next Generation Science Standards.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">These will be updated throughout the summer to prepare and improve them for implementation.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">DESE's reaction to the NGSS: <a href="http://dese.mo.gov/divimprove/curriculum/ngss.html">http://dese.mo.gov/divimprove/curriculum/ngss.html</a></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Find out more about the NGSS here: <a href="http://nextgenscience.org/">http://nextgenscience.org/</a></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As of today we have <b>no timeline </b>for implementation however these are ready and will continue to be improved as we determine what the timeline may be as dictated by state adoption of the NGSS as the next Grade Level Expectations.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<h2 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Kindergarten</span></h2>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<br />
<ul style="background-color: #fdf7f6; line-height: 18px; list-style-image: initial; list-style-position: initial; margin: 0.5em 0px; padding: 0px 2.5em;">
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Weather and Climate: <a href="https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2myX1fkAsIBVmN3alZrX2tGZWM/edit?usp=sharing" style="color: #9900ff; text-decoration: none;">https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2myX1fkAsIBVmN3alZrX2tGZWM/edit?usp=sharing</a></span></li>
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Forces and Interactions: <a href="https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2myX1fkAsIBUGpmMFZTcHZQdmc/edit?usp=sharing" style="color: #9900ff; text-decoration: none;">https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2myX1fkAsIBUGpmMFZTcHZQdmc/edit?usp=sharing</a></span></li>
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Ecosystems: <a href="https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2myX1fkAsIBcXZVYnotNjQwS28/edit?usp=sharing" style="color: #9900ff; text-decoration: none;">https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2myX1fkAsIBcXZVYnotNjQwS28/edit?usp=sharing</a></span></li>
</ul>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<h2 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">1st Grade</span></h2>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<ul style="background-color: #fdf7f6; line-height: 18px; list-style-image: initial; list-style-position: initial; margin: 0.5em 0px; padding: 0px 2.5em;">
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Structure, Function and Information Processing: <a href="https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2myX1fkAsIBN2VFcThiT25udEU/edit?usp=sharing" style="color: #9900ff; text-decoration: none;">https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2myX1fkAsIBN2VFcThiT25udEU/edit?usp=sharing</a></span></li>
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Waves: Light and Sound: <a href="https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2myX1fkAsIBRDhWazRZRlIxakE/edit?usp=sharing" style="color: #9900ff; text-decoration: none;">https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2myX1fkAsIBRDhWazRZRlIxakE/edit?usp=sharing</a></span></li>
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Space Systems - Patterns and Cycles: <a href="https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2myX1fkAsIBelJqNzdJVUtsN2c/edit?usp=sharing" style="color: #9900ff; text-decoration: none;">https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2myX1fkAsIBelJqNzdJVUtsN2c/edit?usp=sharing</a></span></li>
</ul>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<h2 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">2nd Grade</span></h2>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<ul style="background-color: #fdf7f6; line-height: 18px; list-style-image: initial; list-style-position: initial; margin: 0.5em 0px; padding: 0px 2.5em;">
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Structure and Properties of Matter: <a href="https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2myX1fkAsIBS05wTXg0N1F4b2c/edit?usp=sharing" style="color: #9900ff; text-decoration: none;">https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2myX1fkAsIBS05wTXg0N1F4b2c/edit?usp=sharing</a></span></li>
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Processes that Shape the Earth: <a href="https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2myX1fkAsIBQXlIOHpjcDZiOHM/edit?usp=sharing" style="color: #9900ff; text-decoration: none;">https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2myX1fkAsIBQXlIOHpjcDZiOHM/edit?usp=sharing</a></span></li>
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Interdependent Relationships in Ecosystems: <a href="https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2myX1fkAsIBNUFfZ1NOYm5SYnc/edit?usp=sharing" style="color: #9900ff; text-decoration: none;">https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2myX1fkAsIBNUFfZ1NOYm5SYnc/edit?usp=sharing</a></span></li>
</ul>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<h2 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">3rd Grade</span></h2>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<ul style="background-color: #fdf7f6; line-height: 18px; list-style-image: initial; list-style-position: initial; margin: 0.5em 0px; padding: 0px 2.5em;">
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Weather and Climate: <a href="https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2myX1fkAsIBLWoyZm5lOEFCTDQ/edit?usp=sharing" style="color: #9900ff; text-decoration: none;">https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2myX1fkAsIBLWoyZm5lOEFCTDQ/edit?usp=sharing</a></span></li>
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Life Cycles and Traits: <a href="https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2myX1fkAsIBUEhTRmdTUFQwN28/edit?usp=sharing" style="color: #9900ff; text-decoration: none;">https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2myX1fkAsIBUEhTRmdTUFQwN28/edit?usp=sharing</a></span></li>
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Relationships in Ecosystems: <a href="https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2myX1fkAsIBZ1ZmRy1XYmV2Tm8/edit?usp=sharing" style="color: #9900ff; text-decoration: none;">https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2myX1fkAsIBZ1ZmRy1XYmV2Tm8/edit?usp=sharing</a></span></li>
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Forces and interactions: <a href="https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2myX1fkAsIBeWJ1YkhaaXZiVG8/edit?usp=sharing" style="color: #9900ff; text-decoration: none;">https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2myX1fkAsIBeWJ1YkhaaXZiVG8/edit?usp=sharing</a></span></li>
</ul>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<h2 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">4th Grade</span></h2>
<br />
<ul style="background-color: #fdf7f6; line-height: 18px; list-style-image: initial; list-style-position: initial; margin: 0.5em 0px; padding: 0px 2.5em;">
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Waves and Information: <a href="https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2myX1fkAsIBd3dIZ3ZUcng4dzg/edit?usp=sharing" style="color: #9900ff; text-decoration: none;">https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2myX1fkAsIBd3dIZ3ZUcng4dzg/edit?usp=sharing</a></span></li>
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Structure, Function and Information Processing: <a href="https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2myX1fkAsIBLTVpcllpQUYtakU/edit?usp=sharing" style="color: #9900ff; text-decoration: none;">https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2myX1fkAsIBLTVpcllpQUYtakU/edit?usp=sharing</a></span></li>
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Energy: <a href="https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2myX1fkAsIBcS1Tdjg1M2p5LTg/edit?usp=sharing" style="color: #9900ff; text-decoration: none;">https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2myX1fkAsIBcS1Tdjg1M2p5LTg/edit?usp=sharing</a></span></li>
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Processes that Shape the Earth: <a href="https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2myX1fkAsIBdHhoN0pFVVhGVzg/edit?usp=sharing" style="color: #9900ff; text-decoration: none;">https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2myX1fkAsIBdHhoN0pFVVhGVzg/edit?usp=sharing</a></span></li>
</ul>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<h2 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">5th Grade</span></h2>
<br />
<div style="background-color: #fdf7f6; line-height: 18px;">
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Structure and Properties of Matter: <a href="https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2myX1fkAsIBZkdEOWFPX1lnWmM/edit?usp=sharing" style="color: #9900ff; text-decoration: none;">https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2myX1fkAsIBZkdEOWFPX1lnWmM/edit?usp=sharing</a></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Earth's Systems: <a href="https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2myX1fkAsIBNXVPNl9KLTVVNDg/edit?usp=sharing" style="color: #9900ff; text-decoration: none;">https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2myX1fkAsIBNXVPNl9KLTVVNDg/edit?usp=sharing</a></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Matter and Energy in Organisms and Ecosystems: <a href="https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2myX1fkAsIBWG15THF6Ymd4MzQ/edit?usp=sharing" style="color: #9900ff; text-decoration: none;">https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2myX1fkAsIBWG15THF6Ymd4MzQ/edit?usp=sharing</a></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Space Systems: <a href="https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2myX1fkAsIBam80eUVOUC1KczA/edit?usp=sharing" style="color: #9900ff; text-decoration: none;">https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B2myX1fkAsIBam80eUVOUC1KczA/edit?usp=sharing</a></span></li>
</ul>
</div>
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<br />Dr. Christopher R McGeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17575214638218127989noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8607869027699454375.post-1717148856527181242013-03-25T15:02:00.003-07:002013-03-25T18:08:55.848-07:00Embracing Failure<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Failure is tough. Failure is humbling, humiliating and makes you feel inferior in every possible way.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
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<a href="http://fitsnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/sc-public-schools-epic-fail.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="189" src="http://fitsnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/sc-public-schools-epic-fail.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Heck, I even wrote a post after many, many fails on my part. <a href="http://coachinandout.blogspot.com/2011/01/5-stages-of-failure.html" target="_blank">Blog Post Here</a>.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">At a recent event I learned about the "Failure Bow" seen here:</span><br />
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<a href="http://www.seattleartistswaycenter.com/failure2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://www.seattleartistswaycenter.com/failure2.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Instead of cringing, sulking, hiding make the choice to put your hands up! </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Welcome the humility and celebrate the transparency in the willingness to celebrate. That transparency of recognizing your not perfect, you're human, gives you space. That space may be the little thing called happiness. This happiness can move from that space of failure to transform it into an opportunity to move you and other forward.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">See more about the failure bow from Michael Smith in his TEDx talk below:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/cXuD2zHVeB0" width="560"></iframe></span><br />
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hope you bow!</span></div>
Dr. Christopher R McGeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17575214638218127989noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8607869027699454375.post-76033107922137799362013-03-19T21:46:00.003-07:002013-03-19T21:46:57.518-07:00Questions inspired from Steve JobsI just recently finished the <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Steve-Jobs-Walter-Isaacson/dp/1451648537" target="_blank">Steve Jobs autobiography.</a> The book was amazing and fun and irreverent, much like I'm sure Steve Jobs was. There were many take aways and highlights that influenced my thinking about leadership and education. It also inspired more questions than answers.<br />
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<a href="http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lvlzzwhXtx1r2znxlo1_400.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lvlzzwhXtx1r2znxlo1_400.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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I'm going to use this post to pull out those highlights, connect them to education, and offer up questions to ponder, reflect on and give you space to determine if you value these same ideals.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/cFEarBzelBs?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
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<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"The people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world are the ones who do." - Apple commercial 1997</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<ul>
<li>How can we "think differently" about our education system?</li>
<li>How can we think diferently about (insert idea: RTI, student discipline, teaching, instruction, testing etc.)</li>
</ul>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moore's_law" target="_blank">Moore's law</a>, founded in 1965, states that technology will exponentially grow in capacity but cost will steadily decline.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<ul>
<li>With technology more than proving <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moore's_law" target="_blank">Moore's law</a>, how is education reacting or capitalizing on the capacity?</li>
<li>Are we charging too much for what we are getting?</li>
<li>When will we reach capacity for technology?</li>
</ul>
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<a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/00/Transistor_Count_and_Moore's_Law_-_2011.svg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="287" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/00/Transistor_Count_and_Moore's_Law_-_2011.svg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Steve Jobs hated school: "I knew school was at fault for trying to make me memorize stupid stuff rather than stimulate me."</span></div>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<ul>
<li>How has school changed since Job's was a student?</li>
<li>Are we still asking the brightest students to memorize stuff?</li>
<li>When will "standards" seek to focus on processing skills vs content knowledge?</li>
</ul>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"If it hadn't been for the blue boxes, there wouldn't be an Apple."</span></div>
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/HFURM8O-oYI?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
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<br /></div>
<div>
<ul>
<li>Where, in school, do we let kids tinker and play?</li>
<li>Where, in school, do we inspire new ideas from students?</li>
<li>Where, in school, do students get to take charge of their own learning?</li>
</ul>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"I learned the truth of the Zen saying that if you are willing to travel around the world to meet a teacher, one will appear next door."</span></div>
</div>
<div>
<ul>
<li>Can we learn from this that readiness for learning is crucial?</li>
<li>What if students drove the learning? Student interest will bring the curriculum to them when they are ready.</li>
<li>When we are hung, we eat. Not vice-versa. How does this relate to teaching and learning?</li>
</ul>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.jean-heydon-tookitch.com/photos/zen5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://www.jean-heydon-tookitch.com/photos/zen5.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"<a href="http://www.pbs.org/opb/thesixties/" target="_blank">The sixties</a> produced an anarchic-mind that is great for imagining a world not yet in existence."</span></div>
</div>
<div>
<ul>
<li>When will our educators of today live through their "sixties"?</li>
<li>Will our undergraduate programs that are creating the next generation of teachers create this same environment?</li>
</ul>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Wozniak" target="_blank">Woz</a> started a computer club who's theme was 'Give help to others.'</span></div>
</div>
<div>
<ul>
<li>This was the ethos of hackers and open source, what in education are you allowing to be open source?</li>
<li>How are you contributing from the open source environment?</li>
<li>How are student contributing?</li>
</ul>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Apple Marketing Philosophy: <a href="http://www.franchisemind.com/blog/articles-for-franchisers/2012/lessons-from-apples-marketing-philosophy/" target="_blank">Empathy, Focus, and Impute</a></span></div>
</div>
<div>
<ul>
<li>Are we empathetic in what we do?</li>
<li>Do students have a "voice" in our classroom?</li>
<li>Are we responsive to student needs?</li>
<li>Are we surrounded by standards and goals, can we live without some of them?</li>
<li>Does our facility, our classroom, our environment influence behavior and aspirations?</li>
</ul>
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://enterprisingfashion.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/applemarketingphilosophy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://enterprisingfashion.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/applemarketingphilosophy.jpg" width="226" /></a></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"You did the impossible, because you didn't realize it was impossible."</span></div>
<div>
<ul>
<li>How often do we say "Well, that's too difficult for a _____ grader?"</li>
<li>Do we give kids the ability to dream? Can we give kids the space to create their own "possible?"</li>
</ul>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"By expecting them to do great things, you can get them to do great things."</span></div>
</div>
<div>
<ul>
<li>Are our expectations of students, colleagues and supervisors too low?</li>
</ul>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"Mac retreat highlights: Don't compromise, The journey is the reward, people don't know what they want until we've shown them."</span></div>
</div>
<div>
<ul>
<li>How often do we settle for good enough?</li>
<li>Why do we focus on grades and outcomes when we could be celebrating the process and the learning?</li>
<li>When we share new and exciting experiences with students, when we can bring in or take students to meet passionate and successful adults we can open up doors to possibilities. Are you?</li>
</ul>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"In the first 30 years of your life, you make habits. For the last 30 years your habits make you."</span></div>
</div>
<div>
<ul>
<li>What habits are we teaching our students?</li>
<li>Are we teaching students habits that will make them successful later in life?</li>
<li>What are the most important habits?</li>
</ul>
</div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Jobs said: "Your thoughts construct patterns like scaffolding in your mind. You are really etching chemical patterns. In most cases, people get stuck in those patterns, just like grooves in a record, and they never get out of them."</span></div>
<br />
<br />
<ul>
<li>What grooves are you in?</li>
<li>How are our students "stuck"?</li>
<li>How do our habits shape our thinking?</li>
</ul>
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<a href="http://us.123rf.com/400wm/400/400/paulcowan/paulcowan0703/paulcowan070300201/832522-the-grooves-in-an-old-78rpm-record-with-the-stylus-needle-on-them.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://us.123rf.com/400wm/400/400/paulcowan/paulcowan0703/paulcowan070300201/832522-the-grooves-in-an-old-78rpm-record-with-the-stylus-needle-on-them.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What prepared him for the great success Jobs would have in Act III was not his ouster from his Act I at Apple but his brilliant failures in Act II.</span></div>
<div>
<ul>
<li>When can we allow students to fail, while with us, so they don't fail away from us?</li>
<li>When can we give students and colleagues the opportunities to try something new and take risks while support is still there to help?</li>
<li>How can we be Act II so student's post secondary career is their Act III?</li>
</ul>
</div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Through_the_Looking-Glass" target="_blank">Alice: Through the Looking Glass</a>, "Why, sometimes I've believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast."</span><br />
<br />
<ul>
<li>When do we let kids dream?</li>
<li>Do we inspire dreaming? Or punish it?</li>
<li>Do we ask kids to strive for their dreams or reach for what is right in front of them (the what's possible)?</li>
</ul>
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<a href="http://ia.media-imdb.com/images/M/MV5BMTIyODU5MDAzN15BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwODY2MzcyMQ@@._V1_SY317_CR3,0,214,317_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://ia.media-imdb.com/images/M/MV5BMTIyODU5MDAzN15BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwODY2MzcyMQ@@._V1_SY317_CR3,0,214,317_.jpg" /></a></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Jobs: "I think you still have to think differently to buy and Apple computer. The people who buy them do think different. They are the creative spirits in this world, and they're out to change the world. <i>WE </i>make tools for those kinds of people."</span><br />
<br />
<ul>
<li>What kind of students does our school produce?</li>
<li>What kind of students do we want to produce?</li>
<li>Are we creating the right environment and hiring the right people to help us achieve that goal?</li>
</ul>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Job learned that "a properly run company could spawn innovation far more than any single creative individual. 'I discovered that the best innovation is sometimes the way you organize a company'"</span></div>
<div>
<ul>
<li>Is your building or district arranged for innovation?</li>
<li>Most schools I see are set up to handle stimulus, not many are set up to create stimulus.</li>
<li>How would you change the way your building or district is organized to be forward inspiring instead of reacting?</li>
</ul>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Apple uses "Deep collaboration" or "concurrent engineering." Jobs realized 'A' people want to work with 'A' people. </span></div>
</div>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<ul>
<li>Does our hiring process reflect our values?</li>
<li>Do we have 'A' players? How can we pair them with other 'A' players?</li>
</ul>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Once a year Jobs took his most valuable employees on a retreat, which he called the "Top 100."</span></div>
<div>
<ul>
<li>How do you recognize the outliers in your organization?</li>
<li>How do we get the top students/teachers/administrators together?</li>
<li>Does your district collaborate with other districts to bring together the best to inspire new ideas and next practices?</li>
</ul>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Jobs on presenting: "if you need slides, it shows you don't know what you're talking about."</span></div>
</div>
<div>
<ul>
<li>enough said...</li>
</ul>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.presentationzen.com/.a/6a00d83451b64669e2015438911180970c-500wi" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="179" src="http://www.presentationzen.com/.a/6a00d83451b64669e2015438911180970c-500wi" width="320" /></a></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Innovators-Dilemma-Revolutionary-Change-Business/dp/0062060244" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Book: Innovators Dilemma</span></a></div>
</div>
<div>
<ul>
<li>How have you utilized technology to improve your organization or classroom?</li>
<li>Can you see past your current reality to the next innovation?</li>
</ul>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In order to institutionalize the lessons Jobs was learning, Jobs started an in-house center called <a href="http://appleinsider.com/articles/11/10/06/apple_university_revealed_as_plan_to_teach_executives_to_think_like_steve_jobs" target="_blank">Apple University</a>.</span></div>
</div>
<div>
<ul>
<li>How do we share the lessons we learn?</li>
<li>How do we create learning opportunities for every person?</li>
<li>Do we have a culture of learning and sharing at our institution?</li>
<li>How are kids sharing what they are learning?</li>
</ul>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://nexus404.com/Blog/wp-content/uploads2/2011/10/Apple-University-with-Apple-logo-Steve-Jobs-and-Quote.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="218" src="http://nexus404.com/Blog/wp-content/uploads2/2011/10/Apple-University-with-Apple-logo-Steve-Jobs-and-Quote.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When our tools don't work, we tend to blame ourselves, for being too stupid, or not reading the manual or having too-fat fingers...when our tools are broken, we feel broken.</span></div>
</div>
<div>
<ul>
<li>How are we ensuring students and staff experiences are quality and don't allow for people to feel broken?</li>
<li>Have we thought through possible scenarios that happen in our day to ensure we are providing experiences for people that empower them instead on marginalize them?</li>
</ul>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In the closed versus opened, integrated vs fragmented</span></div>
</div>
<div>
<ul>
<li>Why do we continue to purchase resources and textbooks we often go with the lowest bidder. If we really want a seamless environment, we should <a href="http://coachinandout.blogspot.com/2012/10/textbooks-they-just-dont-add-up.html" target="_blank">create or curate the resources ourselves</a>.</li>
<li>Isn't our school date fragmented and closed, isn't that the worst possible scenario?</li>
</ul>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"We're doing the best we can, we're learning as fast as we can-but we thought this rule makes sense."</span></div>
</div>
<div>
<ul>
<li>When do we apologize?</li>
<li>How do we apologize?</li>
<li>When do we take on our policies and practices to ensure we're learning and they are growing?</li>
<li>Do we have a procedure to call our rules into question? Does that involve students and our community?</li>
</ul>
<div>
The whole world is the same now.</div>
</div>
<div>
<ul>
<li>The kid in Turkey has access to the same tools as the kids in Canada, has your classroom changed?</li>
<li>When kids are allowed access to devices, they learn what they are interested in and what is available to them. <a href="http://www.ted.com/talks/sugata_mitra_the_child_driven_education.html" target="_blank">SOLE project</a></li>
</ul>
</div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"Teachers should be treated as professionals, he said, not as industrial assembly-line workers. Principals should be able to hire and fire them based on how good they were. Schools should be staying open until 6PM and be in session eleven months of the year. It was absurd, he added, that American classrooms were still based on a teacher standing at a board and using textbooks. All books, learning materials and assessments should be digital and interactive, tailored to each student and providing feedback in real time."</span><br />
<br />
<ul>
<li>WOW!</li>
<li>Steve Jobs on <a href="http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970203914304576631100415237430.html" target="_blank">education reform</a></li>
</ul>
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<a href="http://www.itsnotlettingme.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/SteveJobsEducation.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="207" src="http://www.itsnotlettingme.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/SteveJobsEducation.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<br />Dr. Christopher R McGeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17575214638218127989noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8607869027699454375.post-1055671775182690042013-03-14T17:35:00.001-07:002013-03-14T17:35:24.674-07:00Using Learning Goals to Transform Learning<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This is a post from my work blog: </span><a href="http://wgsdsciss.blogspot.com/">http://wgsdsciss.blogspot.com</a><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Our district is working on Learning Goals as an emphasis from K-12. We are using <a href="http://www.ascd.org/publications/books/107001.aspx">The Art and Science of Teaching</a> as our model.</span><br />
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<a href="http://images.betterworldbooks.com/141/The-Art-and-Science-of-Teaching-9781416605713.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://images.betterworldbooks.com/141/The-Art-and-Science-of-Teaching-9781416605713.jpg" width="155" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">These learning goals are constructed from our <a href="http://dese.mo.gov/divimprove/curriculum/GLE/">Missouri Grade Level Expectations</a>.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjo6ix718KQkVKd8o1s0VTG26zz5Fy6rot6b5BkgY7vYGIqKQFEBTgV3MneAhSJAzogk6ErJDOQQMjHgDffaDYYIzYez_Cn6RuwGFM4tchODBxryw4GTKKyXEddUVjHzqW2CgTyomPh4o4/s1600/Slide34.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjo6ix718KQkVKd8o1s0VTG26zz5Fy6rot6b5BkgY7vYGIqKQFEBTgV3MneAhSJAzogk6ErJDOQQMjHgDffaDYYIzYez_Cn6RuwGFM4tchODBxryw4GTKKyXEddUVjHzqW2CgTyomPh4o4/s320/Slide34.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So this process of developing learning goals for classrooms brings about amazing opportunities for demonstrating great work by educators.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Below is a third grade class. The teacher developed a proficiency scale for this learning goal:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><u>Students will be able to compare how where you live affects how you live.</u></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">4 - Student accurately describes how Environment/Climate affect (all three) clothing/food/housing</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">3 - Student accurately describes how Environment/Climate affect (two) clothing/food/housing</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">2 - Student accurately describes how Environment/Climate affect (one) clothing/food/housing</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">1 - Student accurately describes how Environment/Climate </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After our conversation we proposed a student formative assessment opportunity. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We created a graphic:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFAbAVZk29dwAnnnrmwBTpZmag2H7_7XChY9t4rtJFkWeWv9CbFzcOBwWzSVcmq95KwafiNrnVGGS6kt6hTpdvvitWqW1ombvU6OWbXDNoG3MPbk5P56ti7HAx4STCaV3hG5nCAddBT0w/s1600/1a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="78" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFAbAVZk29dwAnnnrmwBTpZmag2H7_7XChY9t4rtJFkWeWv9CbFzcOBwWzSVcmq95KwafiNrnVGGS6kt6hTpdvvitWqW1ombvU6OWbXDNoG3MPbk5P56ti7HAx4STCaV3hG5nCAddBT0w/s320/1a.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We added it to our proficiency scale. Then we posted that scale in the room. When proposing the learning goal as a question.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Based on this student performance was drastically improved.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Below are examples of student work:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This student was developing in their knowledge. Before, this student wouldn't have been able to answer anything in a written format. In this case the teacher decided to allow the student to simply tell her what they know about the topic, she wrote down the information.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibeM3ymqVyTO3-2puYgVUdyG0v5Ao3pLOuUrAFtSJaNu9rGgpZYSJFqWis_WOag1N2EWjsPoG5s8EcR0p7Qh4v4fq08Twx_Xo0IZXoqoMoXi5MiyElttpZeEbcVve1kdnwRMMCN8UdWhY/s1600/1a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="190" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibeM3ymqVyTO3-2puYgVUdyG0v5Ao3pLOuUrAFtSJaNu9rGgpZYSJFqWis_WOag1N2EWjsPoG5s8EcR0p7Qh4v4fq08Twx_Xo0IZXoqoMoXi5MiyElttpZeEbcVve1kdnwRMMCN8UdWhY/s320/1a.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjskAki58SQ6pQHmWqvIvQDDwQsnWt63pnnxREVk1cluRInCbesq_poQ6hMXqQY3AW9TKiugiJFRhAiMUbQyK_XygcY8UWOoGMhLKAJMNNG-EhqJ4qLgtre2Jw9ZsY44lOb7TS-2QPXVhY/s1600/1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjskAki58SQ6pQHmWqvIvQDDwQsnWt63pnnxREVk1cluRInCbesq_poQ6hMXqQY3AW9TKiugiJFRhAiMUbQyK_XygcY8UWOoGMhLKAJMNNG-EhqJ4qLgtre2Jw9ZsY44lOb7TS-2QPXVhY/s320/1.jpg" width="260" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In this scenario below the student needed differentiation strategies to allow them to communicate what they knew without being held back from a diagnosis of difficulty with written expression. The teacher provided the scaffolding of the boxes and numbers to provide the student with the opportunity to demonstrate what they knew. The addition of the boxes allowed the student the necessary tools to be successful and met the grade level expectation.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvbHwn_MMp6k9NZTokG2Z7_UOD5x7FsL4lIj8QP2yuvLYlhLMeeDHugqNkqLfAhu_3NA6g7IjG3JWvTXtHj1K3x_YxGeh2yY_wWdj6REkNGmCZrtvE60hGBGLGMKwDnZEoCM9L2rrBP-k/s1600/2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvbHwn_MMp6k9NZTokG2Z7_UOD5x7FsL4lIj8QP2yuvLYlhLMeeDHugqNkqLfAhu_3NA6g7IjG3JWvTXtHj1K3x_YxGeh2yY_wWdj6REkNGmCZrtvE60hGBGLGMKwDnZEoCM9L2rrBP-k/s320/2.jpg" width="273" /></span></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpR5WXkcrhMZpZ1wwmy8kHel3s-CPEiIFIBqrxE29lLTNcjETP9gKyQgVggUR3yShY6bmW_zQlrIPM81nOHMvxv2hOfNXgrEgrfBH3Jzzu5C_v4UBgnSw8wArjuQuywV9RQTelWUJO7aE/s1600/2a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpR5WXkcrhMZpZ1wwmy8kHel3s-CPEiIFIBqrxE29lLTNcjETP9gKyQgVggUR3yShY6bmW_zQlrIPM81nOHMvxv2hOfNXgrEgrfBH3Jzzu5C_v4UBgnSw8wArjuQuywV9RQTelWUJO7aE/s320/2a.jpg" width="247" /></span></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkkEUwgwKWCJxc9EJXbwrxuPg5Mx56_q3hg0GLV2cuR0v-Q4L9WhnRdQMrV5qzFeBrd23Qpf6eChNs6blq7DgVG7itd-pMQbAiHkyxFRLP1y3rGOdxppKpFHf10jh3aQp6sBzqI7TE3KU/s1600/2b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="208" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkkEUwgwKWCJxc9EJXbwrxuPg5Mx56_q3hg0GLV2cuR0v-Q4L9WhnRdQMrV5qzFeBrd23Qpf6eChNs6blq7DgVG7itd-pMQbAiHkyxFRLP1y3rGOdxppKpFHf10jh3aQp6sBzqI7TE3KU/s320/2b.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This student didn't need any scaffolding, also didn't need to write a ton and demonstrated and understanding of the content.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXAhQ-JJo1FY0pHRm3nxLhyZGVsecVUbtCzIimJD61Pc0FD4U1kxN297PeWochxHl4WLwCL-RNNMb3SLMzJvk8Nmrp5M_0JemSPeOlEOb9baDv6L7YLQU-1o1SbZoE2ZObG0b1UZ-sIGU/s1600/4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXAhQ-JJo1FY0pHRm3nxLhyZGVsecVUbtCzIimJD61Pc0FD4U1kxN297PeWochxHl4WLwCL-RNNMb3SLMzJvk8Nmrp5M_0JemSPeOlEOb9baDv6L7YLQU-1o1SbZoE2ZObG0b1UZ-sIGU/s320/4.jpg" width="319" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After this assessment the student below demonstrated partial mastery and needed either more time or more scaffolding to be successful. Conversations with this student are ongoing.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIxTGrB3ToKd-PmuXLQ30M-OkSrfXSnRoGt_6EV5NBDGXFZTVnnS2F6zhaY2M-E3xPaToj25-DRxG80o7uKGX5fPm_r8YC24LQY-EKU3VtbteQtCQ6CzWXEiEHmF9u9CC0UGYLyA7Pwek/s1600/4.001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIxTGrB3ToKd-PmuXLQ30M-OkSrfXSnRoGt_6EV5NBDGXFZTVnnS2F6zhaY2M-E3xPaToj25-DRxG80o7uKGX5fPm_r8YC24LQY-EKU3VtbteQtCQ6CzWXEiEHmF9u9CC0UGYLyA7Pwek/s320/4.001.jpg" width="304" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And of course no set of examples would be complete without an exemplar. This student has never written this much but having the rubric available gave the student the inspiration to write a ton. This is truly amazing for a 3rd grader!</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3SGDx32JXV744QIUYYme0t1GZezgK9A1TRvfJ0DjVR5urbGF9gp5dkEB5RnYl5aHuz8yYY878h55mCpOjRqdvbeTw_EpadXSRqEVLFww7Ji0k6s24au18Jlw9ipgWHQxNn3KMiMH3SZc/s1600/6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3SGDx32JXV744QIUYYme0t1GZezgK9A1TRvfJ0DjVR5urbGF9gp5dkEB5RnYl5aHuz8yYY878h55mCpOjRqdvbeTw_EpadXSRqEVLFww7Ji0k6s24au18Jlw9ipgWHQxNn3KMiMH3SZc/s320/6.jpg" width="228" /></span></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-P0oF1sHcuYa4eyy90kFS7RLLytPtmkfbXgXwoPpFrHCFp-fBjtM0_i-Gvhe9IEA7L5h8P89AsMhQKbCNWb4y9IW-Fp-FIVudYw_jqMq306TIXxwKyqOJsbk2c8XlWBm5Dunc-P7sSqU/s1600/6a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-P0oF1sHcuYa4eyy90kFS7RLLytPtmkfbXgXwoPpFrHCFp-fBjtM0_i-Gvhe9IEA7L5h8P89AsMhQKbCNWb4y9IW-Fp-FIVudYw_jqMq306TIXxwKyqOJsbk2c8XlWBm5Dunc-P7sSqU/s320/6a.jpg" width="228" /></span></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMxPOQFy3PS-DNVFPTY22B-Oqk8nVKYdF3y0GPGTgMXy2kdQ_gDREoK_vhIBiBk86HF2jWMr9v_OsrF848lL_Jq30qwycUIA4BnwKlHKd-izOfELm3zv7ZkRIl-1wFwqBiUxV6DT0mXaE/s1600/6c.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="178" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMxPOQFy3PS-DNVFPTY22B-Oqk8nVKYdF3y0GPGTgMXy2kdQ_gDREoK_vhIBiBk86HF2jWMr9v_OsrF848lL_Jq30qwycUIA4BnwKlHKd-izOfELm3zv7ZkRIl-1wFwqBiUxV6DT0mXaE/s320/6c.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After looking over this student work we had a conversation around these following questions:</span><br />
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<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What do we notice about the student work that supports our </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">proficiency</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> scale?</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What do we notice about student work that was an unintended consequence of the </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">proficiency</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> scale?</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What worked on our scale?</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What didn't work from our scale?</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Do we see a true <a href="http://dese.mo.gov/divimprove/sia/msip/DOK_Chart.pdf">depth of knowledge</a> increase as we move up our scale? Does the increasing depth of knowledge increase <a href="http://www.justintarte.com/2012/12/depth-of-knowledge-student-engagement.html">student engagement</a>?</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Is the "4" of </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">labeling</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> all three really stretching to a <a href="http://www.scribd.com/doc/33673738/Transfer-as-the-Goal-of-Education-Wiggins">transfer level</a>? If not, is the a question or experience that we could add to reach the <a href="http://www.scribd.com/doc/33673738/Transfer-as-the-Goal-of-Education-Wiggins">transfer level</a> of <a href="http://grantwiggins.wordpress.com/2012/01/11/transfer-as-the-point-of-education/">understanding</a>?</span></li>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Since then many more proficiency scales have been completed, here is one more example. You tell us, does it answer our questions above? </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcXOjiHuLhtBQBx0Ien_wQjErD6HK-wmcaRbU9_WLVJWUGOlWejgG714TaKlg1RYlcj5jfjT7pESHIjyLV0N27DYrfyra8BWizovXqr88GTCiRuMRzmazjwWKGWZ-HFKfCLXimSSF_RZY/s1600/Proficiency+Scale+for+Government+Documents+REVISED.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="205" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcXOjiHuLhtBQBx0Ien_wQjErD6HK-wmcaRbU9_WLVJWUGOlWejgG714TaKlg1RYlcj5jfjT7pESHIjyLV0N27DYrfyra8BWizovXqr88GTCiRuMRzmazjwWKGWZ-HFKfCLXimSSF_RZY/s320/Proficiency+Scale+for+Government+Documents+REVISED.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I'm excited to see where this goes next!!! Way to go Betsy!</span><br />
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Dr. Christopher R McGeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17575214638218127989noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8607869027699454375.post-11022211047088591652013-03-13T13:18:00.001-07:002013-03-13T13:18:37.347-07:00The Importance of Blogging<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There is NOTHING more important that blogging. Do you agree with that? </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I'm not sure where I stand but I remember the day <a href="http://coachinandout.blogspot.com/2009/04/getting-started.html" target="_blank">April 15th 2009</a>, when I started this blog. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This blog hasn't been a place of regard on the internet, it hasn't changed education as a system. You know what it has done? It has given me a voice, given me a place to document my thoughts, cool tools and ideas. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What do leaders like <a href="http://www.sethgodin.com/" target="_blank">Seth Godin</a> and <a href="http://www.tompeters.com/" target="_blank">Tom Peters</a> think about blogging, well:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Ron-Berger/e/B001IGNKPW" target="_blank">Rob Berger</a>'s work from "<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Ethic-Excellence-Building-Craftsmanship-Students/dp/0325005966" target="_blank">The Ethics of Excellence</a>" challenges us to find <a href="http://21k12blog.net/2009/01/28/bergers-ethic-of-excellence/" target="_blank">authentic audiences</a> for our students' work.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So, why not Blog?</span><br />
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<a href="http://edudemic.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/blog-3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="150" src="http://edudemic.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/blog-3.jpg" width="200" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When I went to look up the <a href="http://www.corestandards.org/" target="_blank">common core standards</a> for writing, here's what I found from <a href="http://www.corestandards.org/ELA-Literacy/W/5" target="_blank">5th grade</a>:</span><br />
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<ul style="background-color: white; color: #3b3b3a; margin-left: 0px; padding-left: 20px;">
<li style="line-height: 16px; list-style-image: none; list-style-type: none; margin-bottom: 10px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.corestandards.org/ELA-Literacy/W/5/2/" style="color: #8a2003; text-decoration: none;">CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.5.2</a> Write informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas and information clearly.</span></li>
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<li style="line-height: 16px; list-style-image: url(http://www.corestandards.org/images/bullet.jpg); list-style-type: none; margin-bottom: 10px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.corestandards.org/ELA-Literacy/W/5/2/a/" style="color: #8a2003; text-decoration: none;">CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.5.2a</a> Introduce a topic clearly, provide a general observation and focus, and group related information logically; include formatting (e.g., headings), illustrations, and multimedia when useful to aiding comprehension.</span></li>
<li style="line-height: 16px; list-style-image: url(http://www.corestandards.org/images/bullet.jpg); list-style-type: none; margin-bottom: 10px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.corestandards.org/ELA-Literacy/W/5/2/b/" style="color: #8a2003; text-decoration: none;">CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.5.2b</a> Develop the topic with facts, definitions, concrete details, quotations, or other information and examples related to the topic.</span></li>
<li style="line-height: 16px; list-style-image: url(http://www.corestandards.org/images/bullet.jpg); list-style-type: none; margin-bottom: 10px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.corestandards.org/ELA-Literacy/W/5/2/c/" style="color: #8a2003; text-decoration: none;">CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.5.2c</a> Link ideas within and across categories of information using words, phrases, and clauses (e.g., <i>in</i> <i>contrast</i>, <i>especially</i>).</span></li>
<li style="line-height: 16px; list-style-image: url(http://www.corestandards.org/images/bullet.jpg); list-style-type: none; margin-bottom: 10px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.corestandards.org/ELA-Literacy/W/5/2/d/" style="color: #8a2003; text-decoration: none;">CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.5.2d</a> Use precise language and domain-specific vocabulary to inform about or explain the topic.</span></li>
<li style="line-height: 16px; list-style-image: url(http://www.corestandards.org/images/bullet.jpg); list-style-type: none; margin-bottom: 10px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.corestandards.org/ELA-Literacy/W/5/2/e/" style="color: #8a2003; text-decoration: none;">CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.5.2e</a> Provide a concluding statement or section related to the information or explanation presented.</span></li>
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<li style="line-height: 16px; list-style-image: none; list-style-type: none; margin-bottom: 10px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.corestandards.org/ELA-Literacy/W/5/3/" style="color: #8a2003; text-decoration: none;">CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.5.3</a> Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, descriptive details, and clear event sequences.</span></li>
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<li style="line-height: 16px; list-style-image: url(http://www.corestandards.org/images/bullet.jpg); list-style-type: none; margin-bottom: 10px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.corestandards.org/ELA-Literacy/W/5/3/a/" style="color: #8a2003; text-decoration: none;">CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.5.3a</a> Orient the reader by establishing a situation and introducing a narrator and/or characters; organize an event sequence that unfolds naturally.</span></li>
<li style="line-height: 16px; list-style-image: url(http://www.corestandards.org/images/bullet.jpg); list-style-type: none; margin-bottom: 10px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.corestandards.org/ELA-Literacy/W/5/3/b/" style="color: #8a2003; text-decoration: none;">CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.5.3b</a> Use narrative techniques, such as dialogue, description, and pacing, to develop experiences and events or show the responses of characters to situations.</span></li>
<li style="line-height: 16px; list-style-image: url(http://www.corestandards.org/images/bullet.jpg); list-style-type: none; margin-bottom: 10px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.corestandards.org/ELA-Literacy/W/5/3/c/" style="color: #8a2003; text-decoration: none;">CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.5.3c</a> Use a variety of transitional words, phrases, and clauses to manage the sequence of events.</span></li>
<li style="line-height: 16px; list-style-image: url(http://www.corestandards.org/images/bullet.jpg); list-style-type: none; margin-bottom: 10px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.corestandards.org/ELA-Literacy/W/5/3/d/" style="color: #8a2003; text-decoration: none;">CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.5.3d</a> Use concrete words and phrases and sensory details to convey experiences and events precisely.</span></li>
<li style="line-height: 16px; list-style-image: url(http://www.corestandards.org/images/bullet.jpg); list-style-type: none; margin-bottom: 10px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.corestandards.org/ELA-Literacy/W/5/3/e/" style="color: #8a2003; text-decoration: none;">CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.5.3e</a> Provide a conclusion that follows from the narrated experiences or events.</span></li>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">How can this all NOT be accomplished through blogging? PLUS we get a chance to allow family and friends to subscribe, comment, and all the while teaching <a href="http://www.p21.org/overview" target="_blank">digital literacy</a>. Hard to not pass it up.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Recently I listened to <a href="http://michaelhyatt.com/" target="_blank">Michael Hyatt</a>'s podcast on "<a href="http://michaelhyatt.com/044-how-to-overcome-the-resistance-podcast.html" target="_blank">the resistance</a>." It's that urge we all feel when we are going to try something new. The fear we have that creates all the doubt to try something new. He states that the first phase to overcoming that fear is to: Just Start.</span><br />
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<a href="http://www.hookingupsmart.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/Green-Light.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="255" src="http://www.hookingupsmart.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/Green-Light.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After all, What's more REAL WORLD, than the actual REAL WORLD! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So, Start blogging today! More importantly, let your students blog.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheybFdDrd2TYnIKscXEBe4Vlehxv_SUHN0fHQvXFg_rFOp8W5GgPq-Rfr5ZbruDZ1aD0wdUg0I1y0JTAoigYeBJ5tczVaYILwlcmg6EqwwfGm0iKETGUkoyU1W8c1ZEXvhyBbH1YYlQWM/s400/blogging_rocks_mug-p1688304583628703772otmb_400.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheybFdDrd2TYnIKscXEBe4Vlehxv_SUHN0fHQvXFg_rFOp8W5GgPq-Rfr5ZbruDZ1aD0wdUg0I1y0JTAoigYeBJ5tczVaYILwlcmg6EqwwfGm0iKETGUkoyU1W8c1ZEXvhyBbH1YYlQWM/s320/blogging_rocks_mug-p1688304583628703772otmb_400.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<br />Dr. Christopher R McGeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17575214638218127989noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8607869027699454375.post-16081592779441069432013-02-16T11:10:00.000-08:002013-02-16T11:10:11.283-08:00Fun, Meaningful Project: Wiring Project<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Students get excited every year for the wiring project. They know it's coming, they know it's awesome.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Once the project gets started every kids immediately is engaged, there's no way around it. There are too many ways to personalize this project, too much student choice to not let the be successful The project is nothing short of a BLAST.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Kids come back year after year and say "This is the hardest thing I've ever done, and I'l never forget it."</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The key to making this project a success each year is scaffolding and setting kids up for success. Every year I reflect with students and add a new piece to make the project better. Here's the project from finish to start....</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Finished Products:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibXm4f41-md3mRzS6zSr2sVfZrI6yIJpFevDgjXNq90fqB7b9RkZ0C5VVGY3Ou5HGFXEugic0tiBfuYMbQUcpVE5sgvTuhj1h7Vz8XH_v5RVNANNUZ0oDCPWK0PYFxJHaP3SsDgYiZkxla/s1600/IMG_0188.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibXm4f41-md3mRzS6zSr2sVfZrI6yIJpFevDgjXNq90fqB7b9RkZ0C5VVGY3Ou5HGFXEugic0tiBfuYMbQUcpVE5sgvTuhj1h7Vz8XH_v5RVNANNUZ0oDCPWK0PYFxJHaP3SsDgYiZkxla/s320/IMG_0188.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiN1qk_aMb1aK8VE7Rqcqz29HO-FvmKohVbij-hHIQLRsNPpvP-rKmNuqxPOu3xpZ9klOTyCzV_MMerNq-n0p1zrpZKxWnzIZuGB3FTFlsfkwwinugsp9Uf3aVifcgQyGTiIKotWKH539Gy/s1600/IMG_0172.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiN1qk_aMb1aK8VE7Rqcqz29HO-FvmKohVbij-hHIQLRsNPpvP-rKmNuqxPOu3xpZ9klOTyCzV_MMerNq-n0p1zrpZKxWnzIZuGB3FTFlsfkwwinugsp9Uf3aVifcgQyGTiIKotWKH539Gy/s320/IMG_0172.jpg" width="239" /></span></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOxU07zdWymwoqE3tVviIlMz-VWSRKFZOVEJnPsIrr3bUppFwTlAE1CoXGw0BSlMdZPDwqnmly_AMPW5qW2fsxf4KdCEdyWXmEroY3M_la0YEt4PC5OXJxWNZyidBwMEaOEJhfa7MNfGob/s1600/IMG_0168.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="247" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOxU07zdWymwoqE3tVviIlMz-VWSRKFZOVEJnPsIrr3bUppFwTlAE1CoXGw0BSlMdZPDwqnmly_AMPW5qW2fsxf4KdCEdyWXmEroY3M_la0YEt4PC5OXJxWNZyidBwMEaOEJhfa7MNfGob/s320/IMG_0168.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">To get to the final project students were given three phases with due dates to keep them on track. Each phase had a card to go with it. The cards were green (planning), yellow (caution/work phase), red (finishing phase). The cards looked like this Planning phase card below:</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgC_CYYrEWgP9C_9xLRfoYuoWMdt3JIeUB0hFroyd1QII4aiJyLfdggO1TWAPTcQn3KiWrR1ZMCzfIn39G53lZZuSSLS7gONIUdrygJuhepg1Gi6arSt4IfiIOdDmVQpbBW0zuTUjmez1iF/s1600/Planning+Phase+card+1+(dragged).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="270" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgC_CYYrEWgP9C_9xLRfoYuoWMdt3JIeUB0hFroyd1QII4aiJyLfdggO1TWAPTcQn3KiWrR1ZMCzfIn39G53lZZuSSLS7gONIUdrygJuhepg1Gi6arSt4IfiIOdDmVQpbBW0zuTUjmez1iF/s320/Planning+Phase+card+1+(dragged).jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I recently added the ability for kids to integrate some technology. Students (11 year olds) have been working on using Google Sketchup to make 3D models of their projects:</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_roGPRaJhrzlprpC0XP7fqFkdnMwsCAUepE3okACvZkqfANDnv5N6gYmM3rCnmT8DJWfHU2uvjca4IiUAWOUnOXeUd86oRYXwswYjiNHPWeiqZAyYimJSPyoCKyNAOVnMkCcAvmgtnX2r/s1600/sketchup.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_roGPRaJhrzlprpC0XP7fqFkdnMwsCAUepE3okACvZkqfANDnv5N6gYmM3rCnmT8DJWfHU2uvjca4IiUAWOUnOXeUd86oRYXwswYjiNHPWeiqZAyYimJSPyoCKyNAOVnMkCcAvmgtnX2r/s320/sketchup.jpg" width="247" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Student samples:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><iframe frameborder="0" height="300" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://sketchup.google.com/3dwarehouse/mini?mid=2a0ee8be3546e4133c5abaffbef38f65&etyp=sw&width=400&height=300" width="400"></iframe></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><iframe frameborder="0" height="300" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://sketchup.google.com/3dwarehouse/mini?mid=43873c3e35678cfc71357aff03d81968&etyp=sw&width=400&height=300" width="400"></iframe></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Student had a working circuit and attached it to their shoebox. Since this was difficult for some students I created image laden directions should they need it:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgz-rB_84co1BmhTqQBy52S4shl6g1Wgos-OoD3nwwvyZf9eTVNwP1LvRndPHAoeWc9gsDpzQ4wW1ASP-tn3OPepmGLU_CKer5dHW03jZmuj93tC8N8Lt2sqPfqGDMCt7G8bIMh4fg4J9js/s1600/Attaching+to+your+box.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgz-rB_84co1BmhTqQBy52S4shl6g1Wgos-OoD3nwwvyZf9eTVNwP1LvRndPHAoeWc9gsDpzQ4wW1ASP-tn3OPepmGLU_CKer5dHW03jZmuj93tC8N8Lt2sqPfqGDMCt7G8bIMh4fg4J9js/s320/Attaching+to+your+box.jpg" width="247" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">They learned about circuits and how to hook up circuits </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">(Classroom content and grade level expectations outlined by the state) </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Here's the video they used that I made when I flipped the classroom:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/ioR22P31Ev4?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Before wiring they needed to design their space using the project packet:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Wiring Project Packet: <a href="https://docs.google.com/file/d/0Bwz1J6fj2c9rRDBZZW5FckpLQTg/edit">https://docs.google.com/file/d/0Bwz1J6fj2c9rRDBZZW5FckpLQTg/edit</a></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And it all started with teaching them how to splice wires: </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinVAq49qPGA6r4CENUYatAHSJ0zhPY2sHgcOMP443X4Avq02sI1yoGBwahFwtnKBbFPNjLGM6MfT3HeatmkN8feXyvxUyWFgZWQ5c3VjY6gt63tUH2K1NtIgLQmhqL1wUpQ5yucSSVdHte/s1600/How+to+Splice+wires.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinVAq49qPGA6r4CENUYatAHSJ0zhPY2sHgcOMP443X4Avq02sI1yoGBwahFwtnKBbFPNjLGM6MfT3HeatmkN8feXyvxUyWFgZWQ5c3VjY6gt63tUH2K1NtIgLQmhqL1wUpQ5yucSSVdHte/s320/How+to+Splice+wires.jpg" width="247" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Why was this engaging?</span></h2>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Students were given the freedom of choice. They could choose a room in a house, a store in a mall, a part of a car, a part of a plane, a resort, anything. I didn't care. They could choose to use technology, the could go old school. They moved at their own pace, designed to their criteria, I sat aside and helped and guided them to success.</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<h2>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">How was it graded?</span></h2>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Scoring guides were made by the class. I only graded based on their knowledge and expertise with our content (series and parallel circuits) not their ability to wire. Outside of that the students made their scoring guides. Here's an example they made:</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpU7T2-Fp5t-pNotQs6-zYBNXipDEwbW6rWqYoEB0cNMqIAXnfhYLuEtVCKnW4XKgikXm-7csQvO-9wR03HClrozbKhcoWiUwGm_yfZ_YjVEvA-qkuA6AAAVG5_loTCmA8T6bDqK_ZOEfD/s1600/6+Rubric+BTE+11+Sheet1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="247" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpU7T2-Fp5t-pNotQs6-zYBNXipDEwbW6rWqYoEB0cNMqIAXnfhYLuEtVCKnW4XKgikXm-7csQvO-9wR03HClrozbKhcoWiUwGm_yfZ_YjVEvA-qkuA6AAAVG5_loTCmA8T6bDqK_ZOEfD/s320/6+Rubric+BTE+11+Sheet1.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
<h2>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Moral of the story:</span></h2>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Use your content to design engaging projects and solve real world problems through student choice.</span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<br />Dr. Christopher R McGeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17575214638218127989noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8607869027699454375.post-75561455046820061432013-02-15T16:26:00.001-08:002013-02-15T16:26:23.597-08:00Reimagining "School" for all learners<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I'm reading about a new way to think about "school", here are some of my takeaways: </span><br />
<h2>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Key question:</span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><div style="text-align: center;">
If we don't "Teach" it to the students how will they know they learned it? And how will we know?</div>
</span></h2>
<br />
<br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Any change, such as this brings "excitement and momentum, mixed with discomfort and disequilibrium."</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Moving away from classrooms that function in isolation, and toward collective intentionality and a team committed to thinking and learning collaboratively within a shared framework.</span></li>
</ul>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u>What does it mean to developing intentionality:</u></span></div>
<div>
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Type, condition and placement of furniture</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Values, roles, organization of materials</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Use of wall space</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Way aesthetics invite learning</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Ways we can share ownership</span></li>
</ul>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">All furniture is evaluated based on condition, purpose and placement</span></div>
</div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Materials were questioned as to age and condition. Looked at for potential for formal instruction and open-ended learning.</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u>Careful selection of materials and placement of furniture supported creation of spaces within the classroom for:</u></span></div>
<div>
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Publishing areas with writing utensils, book making supplies</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">construction areas with block, moldings, ramps, pulleys, etc</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">mini-ateliers with wire, clay, paint, sewing</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">dramatic play areas full of costumes</span></li>
</ul>
<h2 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Teachers and students work together to develop environments responding to interests, desires, expectations and possibilities.</span></h2>
</div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Entryways to spaces are purposeful and reflect the students and teachers in the room.</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Replacing of pre-made items with student generated materials.</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Physical shifts are easy, conversations must be had to transition spaces from teacher-centered to child-centered, teaching to learning, <u><i>every choice reflecting our values and our identity.</i></u></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u>Shifts in time must also reflect these values:</u></span></div>
<div>
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Minimize large group lessons and replace them with small group, collaborative and individual work.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Differentiate for children</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Create time and space to analyze the BIG questions</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Balance formal instruction with inquiry</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Reinforce collaboration</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Develop strategies to encourage on-going projects</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Analyze standards in borader more informed ways</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Nurture interests and intrinsic motivation toward relevant meaningful work</span></li>
</ul>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Professional development must reflect these values.</span></div>
</div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<h3 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Change is not always pervasive or linear. Each teacher has the right to have space and encouragement to construct their own shift.</span></h3>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<h2 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">HOW we learn far outweighs WHAT we learn.</span></h2>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-weight: normal;">What we learn has to stretch far beyond memorization and google-able results.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-weight: normal;"><br /></span>
<div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A space where our learning Includes:</span></div>
</div>
<div>
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Critical thinking</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Collaboration</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Communication</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Creativity</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Research</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Innovation</span></li>
</ul>
</div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As children seek to answer their questions their autonomy, ownership, collaboration, and engagement increases. Excitement momentum and accomplishment also grows.</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Inquiry and projects are not separate from rigor or releveance but interwoven.</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Challenge: making this learning visible and making the process transparent</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<h2 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Does this sound amazing!? </span></h2>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Exactly where I would want to work and what I want for every one of my students. I think I work EXTREMELY HARD to make this space real for my students. I teach middle school. Did I mention that all the above descriptors were for a pre-school. That makes it even more amazing.</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Our school is investigating what is called the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reggio_Emilia_approach" target="_blank">Reggio Emilia model</a> for primary school students. With all the latests and greatest research surrounding our earliest learners we are investigating what works best. (more research here: <a href="http://www.reaie.org.au/">http://www.reaie.org.au/</a>)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This investigation got me to thinking about the personalization we give every student in their learning. Why can this model not only make for a great preschool, but for a great ANY school.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Here's an interview from a school right here in St. Louis: <a href="http://www.mrhsd.org/ecc/home" target="_blank">Maplewood</a></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><object width="320" height="266" class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="http://2.gvt0.com/vi/2G_gfKZqNr4/0.jpg"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/2G_gfKZqNr4&fs=1&source=uds" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="http://www.youtube.com/v/2G_gfKZqNr4&fs=1&source=uds" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Background info:</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/m0mvbWEd61M?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Here's what we're reading: <a href="https://docs.google.com/a/wgcloud.org/file/d/0B2myX1fkAsIBTm1KOURSdVhDdTQ/edit" target="_blank">Article</a></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Here's where we are going to visit: <a href="http://www.riverfield.org/">http://www.riverfield.org/</a></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What if a High School modeled itself after this model? What about a corporation?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Modern companies are working hard to make <b>DESIGN</b> be an essential part of the learning and collaboration of 21st century workplace.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Design with Intent: <a href="http://www.danlockton.com/dwi/Main_Page">http://www.danlockton.com/dwi/Main_Page</a></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Influence behavior through design:<a href="http://www.slideshare.net/makeramen/design-with-intent" target="_blank"> http://www.slideshare.net/makeramen/design-with-intent</a></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Office Designs: <a href="http://www.hongkiat.com/blog/creative-modern-office-designs/">http://www.hongkiat.com/blog/creative-modern-office-designs/</a></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Collaborative Work spaces: <a href="http://design-milk.com/modern-coworking-weld-collaborative-work-studio-space/">http://design-milk.com/modern-coworking-weld-collaborative-work-studio-space/</a></span><br />
<br />
<div>
<br /></div>
Dr. Christopher R McGeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17575214638218127989noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8607869027699454375.post-71121045470573793372013-02-05T20:17:00.001-08:002013-02-05T20:17:53.210-08:00Never Work Harder Than Your Students: Chapter 4<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://images.betterworldbooks.com/141/Never-Work-Harder-Than-Your-Students-Other-Principles-of-Great-Teaching-9781416607571.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://images.betterworldbooks.com/141/Never-Work-Harder-Than-Your-Students-Other-Principles-of-Great-Teaching-9781416607571.jpg" width="133" /></a></div>
We are reading the book: <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Never-Harder-Students-Principles-Teaching/dp/1416607579" target="_blank">Never Work Harder Than Your Students</a> with our 2nd and 3rd year teachers as they come into our district. Here are some of my main takeaways from the chapter:<br />
<br />
<br />
<ul>
<li>Supporting students means <b>thinking differently</b> about misconceptions during your lesson planning.</li>
</ul>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/4oAB83Z1ydE?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<ul>
<li>Develop interventions before students fail</li>
<li>What if we provided the net below the tightrope instead of being right when they fall?</li>
</ul>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.rabodirect.co.nz/binaries/net_tcm93-135482.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="132" src="http://www.rabodirect.co.nz/binaries/net_tcm93-135482.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<b style="font-size: xx-large; text-align: center;">What if we prevented failure instead of predicted it?</b><br /><div>
<br /></div>
<ul>
<li>Proactive support is merely <i>matching</i> your teaching style to students' learning styles</li>
<li>We all have the belief that ALL of our students can achieve given the right conditions.</li>
</ul>
<h2>
MATH SECTION:</h2>
<div>
Specifying what students MUST know - what they already know = What we need to teach</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<h2>
Intervention Plan:</h2>
<div>
<ol>
<li>Plan in place before a student fails. The plan is communicated to students, parents, and posted.</li>
<li>Plan has a red flag mechanism, something that sets the ball in motion.</li>
<li>Plan has steps that are immediate results of the red flag. IF_______ THEN _______</li>
<li>Plan has roles and responsibilities for both the teacher and the student.</li>
</ol>
<h2>
I'm Confused....</h2>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://cdn3.blogs.babble.com/babys-first-year-blog/files/super-confused-babies/istock_000002755371xsmall.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="132" src="http://cdn3.blogs.babble.com/babys-first-year-blog/files/super-confused-babies/istock_000002755371xsmall.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<ul>
<li>Take steps to clear up confusion before it begins</li>
<li>We know which problems they are going to get wrong, but we let them anyway.</li>
<li>When students are confused it may not be for reasons we think. Listen first.</li>
<li>When you run into trouble have:</li>
<ol>
<li>A range of explanatory options for students</li>
<li>A thorough understanding of your content</li>
</ol>
</ul>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
ASIDE: Discovered in the chapter:</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Summarizers-Activity-Structures-Integration-Retention/dp/1886822050" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51BC4H4N3DL._SL500_AA300_.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<h2>
Demystify The Process!</h2>
<div>
<ul>
<li>We tell students to study but don't teach them how to study.</li>
<li>Make the process as explicit as possible</li>
<li>Clearly explain the purpose of each assignment or activity, if you can't maybe you shouldn't be doing it!</li>
<li>Provide all the necessary steps in written directions</li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">It's not "DUMBING IT DOWN" it's ensuring success.</span></li>
<li>It's unrealistic to think students can act like experts as soon as they are introduced to new material.</li>
</ul>
<h2>
Remove Supports SLOWLY!</h2>
</div>
<div>
<ul>
<li>Tell students it's a support and that you will remove it when they are ready</li>
<li>Don't change the learning task, change the supports to get students there.</li>
<li>Don't change the task, change students' role in relationship to the task.</li>
</ul>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://frankwicha.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/slow-children-playing.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://frankwicha.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/slow-children-playing.gif" width="199" /></a></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<h2>
SUPPORT:</h2>
</div>
<div>
<ol>
<li>Identify what support is intended to do, so you know when to remove it</li>
<li>Look for ways to ween students off of the support</li>
<li>Allow room for struggle</li>
</ol>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://detroitvelo.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/training-wheels.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="166" src="http://detroitvelo.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/training-wheels.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<h2>
Interventions are for BOTH sides of the triangle:</h2>
</div>
<div>
<ul>
<li>Often we use programs like <a href="http://www.rti4success.org/" target="_blank">Response To Intervention</a> for students struggling to meet the expectation.</li>
<li>We miss the opportunity to intervene with students who already "get" our material.</li>
<li>Both groups, high and low, need support and interventions to ensure success.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
</div>
</div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.manitowocpublicschools.org/webpages/abooster/photos/813053/3revised%20diamond.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="205" src="http://www.manitowocpublicschools.org/webpages/abooster/photos/813053/3revised%20diamond.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />Dr. Christopher R McGeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17575214638218127989noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8607869027699454375.post-65799661556328662792013-01-30T11:17:00.000-08:002013-01-30T11:17:21.713-08:00How's Your Balance?<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I love Podcasts. I'm addicted. There is no better way for me to stay current, stay thinking, stay connected in the time I have.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">One of my favorites is the <a href="http://www.daveramsey.com/entreleadership/podcast" target="_blank">Entre Leadership Podcast.</a> Subscriber here: <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-entreleadership-podcast/id435836905">https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-entreleadership-podcast/id435836905</a></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://a248.e.akamai.net/f/1611/26342/9h/dramsey.download.akamai.com/23572/daveramsey.com/media/hope/entre/images/el_podcast_album_cover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://a248.e.akamai.net/f/1611/26342/9h/dramsey.download.akamai.com/23572/daveramsey.com/media/hope/entre/images/el_podcast_album_cover.jpg" width="200" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Recently one of the podcasts, hosted by <a href="https://twitter.com/ChrisLoCurto" target="_blank">Chris Locurto</a>, mentioned <a href="http://chrislocurto.com/zig-ziglars-wheel-of-life/" target="_blank">Zig Ziglar's Wheel of life</a>:</span><br />
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<a href="http://chrislocurto.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/wheel1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://chrislocurto.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/wheel1.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This prompted me to challenge myself with a New Year's resolution to seek greater balance. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I started the year by printing the wheel and coloring in where I spent the majority of my time this past year. I basically came clean to myself about where I placed my priorities.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I posted this on the wall of my office and set myself a reoccurring task that simple asks the question, How's Your Balance?</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8fN_QBY0w2x0VUzcb4DBLmdK1wJPKWmgyyDCpDELcUN7SZGMD_OEDqYYsr-s5QGTo1_UhmsOWWrrmNxZM9rDbWciEgn5hZ3Bf6Iyrawxz4tlo6ukXgHLyxG1ro444nQqEJm5eUfHHV4Ck/s1600/photo.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="317" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8fN_QBY0w2x0VUzcb4DBLmdK1wJPKWmgyyDCpDELcUN7SZGMD_OEDqYYsr-s5QGTo1_UhmsOWWrrmNxZM9rDbWciEgn5hZ3Bf6Iyrawxz4tlo6ukXgHLyxG1ro444nQqEJm5eUfHHV4Ck/s320/photo.JPG" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I'll come back to this post at the end of the year and answer the question with a new graph, being completely honest and hoping to see I may not have reach total balance but I've made progress.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So I challenge you to print the wheel, ask yourself (BE HONEST), and seek greater balance.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Find more on Entre Leadership here: <a href="http://www.entreleadership.com/home/">http://www.entreleadership.com/home/</a></span>Dr. Christopher R McGeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17575214638218127989noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8607869027699454375.post-15436084467584729042012-12-26T07:51:00.000-08:002012-12-26T07:51:26.380-08:00Revolutionizing Education through NPROver break I'm taking some time to Build capacity. To find ways to plant seeds of ideas so that when I return to the educational system I can find ways to improve our systems.<br />
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<a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/building-a-better-classroom/id523121474?i=117197166&mt=2" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://www.vpr.net/uploads/photos/original/ted_radio_hour_logo_340x255_1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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I had a chance to listen to the <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/building-a-better-classroom/id523121474?i=117197166&mt=2" target="_blank">TED Radio hour</a>. This is a new show on NPR that takes a TED talk and combines it with dialog and conversation.<br />
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This radio show with Sir Ken Robinson is where he gets a chance to expand on his famous TED talk on how Schools are killing creativity. Awesome stuff!<br />
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<br />Dr. Christopher R McGeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17575214638218127989noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8607869027699454375.post-5934785060891931812012-12-16T18:20:00.002-08:002012-12-16T18:20:38.644-08:00What am I to do?<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In the wake of the Newtown shootings I've been in a state of unrest. Much like the rest of the educators in the world I'm sure. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Today's homily at my church (link coming soon) gave me focus. The topic being, "What is mine to do?"</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In light of the recent upheaval I feel it's time to think, reflect and refocus. What am I to do in light of such a horrific tragedy?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I am to:</span><br />
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<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">cherish every moment with ever student. Especially the tough moments.</span></li>
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<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">care deeply about ever student. Go beyond the surface.</span></li>
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<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">provide the best opportunity, using the talents I am given, to learn, grow, and share.</span></li>
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<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">provide safety and security at all times.</span></li>
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<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">provide a shoulder to lean on when a student or colleague needs it.</span></li>
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<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">leave every day having done everything I can for every person I meet.</span></li>
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<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">meet every day with a "YES!" and provide that same answer when asked if I can help.</span></li>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">build strong relationships with students.</span></li>
</ul>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">build strong relationships with parents.</span></li>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">realize the curriculum is important, but more important is the time I spend with each of my students and colleagues.</span></li>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">ensure that my classroom is a place where teachers/students can take risks, learn from mistakes, and develop their passion.</span></li>
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<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">share my passion with my students and colleagues.</span></li>
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<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">approach life with love, everyday.</span></li>
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<a href="http://smpalestine.files.wordpress.com/2012/12/screen-shot-2012-12-15-at-7-07-49-pm.png?w=660&h=412" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://smpalestine.files.wordpress.com/2012/12/screen-shot-2012-12-15-at-7-07-49-pm.png?w=660&h=412" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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Dr. Christopher R McGeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17575214638218127989noreply@blogger.com0