Newspapers in the Classroom

National Newspaper Week began in 1940.  And today, almost eight decades later, “American newspapers are demonstrating their resolve each day to help readers determine fact from fiction and to inform the nation of all the important news and issues.” (Thomas W. Newton, Chairperson, 2017 NNW)

To celebrate, this Thursday (October 5), every student and every teacher will receive a copy of the Standard Journal.

Newspapers can be used in any classroom in so many different ways, and in all content areas.  Newspapers can improve literacy, highlight everyday math and science, and connect school to the world.  They contain practical vocabulary and “something for everybody,” like sports, weather, and entertainment.

Here are just a few ideas for using newspapers in the classroom.

• Read a map
• Find vocabulary words
• Study stocks
• Compare interest rates
• Use classified ads and sports statistics for math problems
• Analyze advertising
• Determine bias in editorials
• Read current events
• Locate spelling and grammar mistakes
• Create a classified ad
• Write a letter to the editor
• Make papier mache

And here are links to more ideas:

Ten Activities for Any Classroom

Enhance Language Arts Skills

Use News in the Science Classroom

Lesson Plan: Today’s Front Page (written by a teacher in State College)

Newspapers are also available daily in all Warrior Run Libraries. If you’d like to spread out in your building’s library, just ask!

The Super Helpful G Suite Training Extension

When we first started this blog, Liz did a post on why you should be using Google Chrome (if you aren’t already).  In addition to using chrome, you should also be signing in to Google chrome on your personal device.  If you see your name like this:

Then you are signed in to chrome.  When moving through Google pages and apps, you will remain signed in.  It will also remember you when you shut down and restart.  DO NOT USE THIS FEATURE ON A SHARED COMPUTER.  If you see this:

Then you are not signed in.  You can be signed in to Google WITHOUT being signed in to chrome.  As noted in the picture above, signing in to chrome will sync your tabs, bookmarks, history, and your other settings.  View this page for more information and instructions.

In addition to this super useful feature, check out G Suite Training.  This icon appears in the top right hand corner of your browser on most G Suite apps (Drive, Docs, Slides, Sheets).  It autopopulates as an extension on your pages.

Depending on the page, it will give tips and tricks or instructions on how to use it (as interactive lessons).  It invites you to learn about features that you may not have already known about.  Here’s an example for Google Docs:

You could use it to learn how to use a feature, explore new features that you didn’t know about, or refresh your memory on something you haven’t used in a while.  Check it out and let us know what you think!

Google NEXT '17 Highlights for Teachers

Google recently held a conference in San Francisco entitled Google NEXT ‘17.  While I wasn’t there, I have been reading a lot about news and announcements coming out of this event.  There are lots of exciting things going on, so I thought I would share some of them with you.  I am certain that they will impact your teaching in some way in the next five years.  

1. Team Drives - Greg has already shared this one with you, which allows you to create a shared space in Google Drive for teams that work together often.  This could be departments, grade level teams, or classes.  Any file that is placed into this area can be manipulated by any member of the team, so plan accordingly.  For more information on team drives, watch this video.
2. Hangouts Meet and Hangouts Chat - Google Hangouts is getting an overhaul.  If you use this to collaborate with colleagues, you may have noticed a number of changes over the past few years and none of them seemed efficient.  This is an attempt to compete with a company known as Slack to create a place for whole teams to collaborate in real time.  There are improved video features, too.  I just want the original extension back, but I’m ready to try it out!
3. GMail Add-Ons - You may use some add-ons in other G Suite products, such as Doctopus or Flubaroo in Sheets.  Now you will be able to add functionality to your email with add-ons for GMail.  Right now they are just announcing that developers can start creating, so once something great comes out, we will let you know.
4. Jamboard - Will the next interactive whiteboard be mobile?  All other classroom tech is.  This whiteboard comes on a stand and can be used by a whole team at once, to allow for seamless collaboration.  I would love to get my hands on one, but they price at $4,999.00!

I’m beginning to feel like every blog post I make has a list.  I hope you appreciate lists, cause I’m definite a list creator.  Check these things out because they will definitely impact your working in the future!

Using Discussion Boards Effectively

With the use of new learning strategies that combine online and face-to-face communication, discussion board posts have become more common in the classroom.  The high school teachers have come to use resources like Google Classroom as an essential part of their routine.  With that in mind, I thought it might be a good idea to share some pros and cons and activity ideas.  Please feel free to respond with tips or tricks that you have found to be effective in your classroom.

Discussion boards can serve a lot of purposes in any content area.  Here are some of the general benefits:

• Builds a classroom community
• Allows time for reflection before responding to a prompt
• Allows students to reflect on each other’s work
• Develops writing skills

When preparing to use a discussion board, it’s important to make sure it’s effective.  Questions related to discussion boards might include:

• How do you grade participation in a discussion board?
• What requirements do you outline in advance for the students?
• How do you ensure that students do not wait until the discussion is wrapping up to participate?
• How do you keep students on topic?
• How often should a teacher respond to posts?
• Should students have to cite their sources in a discussion post?

I completed my masters online through Clarion University.  Discussion boards were usually used as a question prompt, and I had to answer the question and respond to two classmates.  While I know this may have been beneficial, I did not always feel we were making the most out of the discussion board.  Some other activity ideas include:

• Ask Experts - Invite someone who knows about the topic to answer questions from your class on the discussion board.  This allows them to participate from any location.  There are plenty of online or community experts who would love the opportunity to answer questions posed by the students and a greater opportunity to participate in the classroom.
• Debates - While this is something that you may already do face-to-face, it would certainly be possible to use this as an online tool as well, allowing students who might not participate as much in person to craft convincing arguments and think in depth before preparing their rebuttal.  It could be done as an extension or as a side activity while working on a different unit or a different project, so that students could come back to it in their spare time.
• Polling - In the new ISTE standards from 2016, asking students to gather and analyze data is emphasized.  This is something that is used in a variety of career settings and would be beneficial for them to gather real-world data and then discuss the results on the discussion board.  Google Forms is a great way to start, but there are other web resources, such as PollCode for creating a survey.
• Role Play - Asking students to role play encourages them to see a new side of a topic.  Having students respond as their “character” lets them consider a new viewpoint.  Another version of this might be de Bono’s Six Thinking Hats, which could be used in conjunction with NEWSELA.
• Peer Review - Student’s view each other’s work and leave constructive criticism on how they did, allowing for student growth.  They will gain new ideas and see new opportunities by sharing.  In this way, technology broadens the audience of a student’s work.

Learning is social.  Discussion boards have been and will continue to be a basic but effective way of creating learning opportunities for students.  If you have other ideas to add or if you want more resources on the topic, please email your friendly building librarian!

References:

[Chromebook with speech bubbles]. (2013, November 8). Retrieved from

https://www.usnews.com/cmsmedia/80/262f3dff4f667d3009b189975e0aa0/49555FE_DA_discussionboardnewl.jpg

de Bono, E. (n.d.). Six Thinking Hats. Retrieved March 1, 2017, from The de Bono Group

website:http://www.debonogroup.com/six_thinking_hats.php

Finley, T. (2014, August 21). New Classroom Questioning Techniques for the Best Year Ever.

Retrieved March 1, 2017, from Edutopia website:

https://www.edutopia.org/blog/new-classroom-questioning-techniques-todd-finley

International Society for Technology in Education. (2016). 2016 ISTE Standards for Students

[PDF].Retrieved from

http://www.iste.org/docs/Standards-Resources/iste-standards_students-2016_one-sheet

_final.pdf?sfvrsn=0.23432948779836327

TeacherStream, LLC. (2010). Mastering Online Discussion Board Facilitation [PDF]. Retrieved

From https://www.edutopia.org/pdfs/stw/edutopia-onlinelearning-mastering-online-discussion-board-facilitation.pdf

PETE&C Takeaways

Earlier this week, I accompanied a few colleagues to the annual Pennsylvania Educational Technology Expo and Conference (PETE&C) in Hershey, PA.  This is a wonderful (but very crowded) conference organized by PAECT every year.  When thinking about what I want to share out from this opportunity, here are my top takeaways that I hope you can start conversations around:

1. Seesaw is the go-to platform for digital portfolios in the elementary school setting.  Check out the slideshow by the presenters.
2. Aurasma is changing the way we interact with our reality, allowing opportunities to scan and see augmented versions of reality.  Some schools use it to give tours of their schools or for seniors to be a visible part of their yearbook.  Matt Hill had the great idea to do this with our Hall of Fame!
3. The new ISTE standards released last summer highlight so many opportunities for student engagement and active learning.
4. Vibby allows you to take a video from the internet and crop it so you are only showing your audience the part that you want them to see.
5. PHeT contains a wide variety of online interactive science activities.
6. It’s possible for a teacher to learn alongside a student in a content area that they are interested in but not an expert.
7. It’s important to give students a voice in the changes at their school.
8. Learning is more powerful when it is directed by the students, such as the example of a session about Breakout boxes conducted by students at a professional conference!
9. You can do digital Breakout boxes (if you solve the Poe-ch the Raven one, give me and Liz the answer!).
10. Digital portfolios don’t need to be fancy.  Google sites is the perfect option for students to collect their learning for Google schools.

If you want to see our notes, they can be found here. I hope this will inspire someone to check out something new or start a conversation about innovation for your classroom.  Speaking of innovation, there’s a new WR Twitter account - @wrsdinnovate.  Give it a follow.

How Students Use the Library

At Warrior Run, students can visit the library in one of two ways: with their classes or on their own.  When they come with their classes, it’s usually because they’re working on a project of some kind:

• At the high school, they could be researching for a paper or collaborating on a multimedia project.**  
• At the middle school, they could be learning the steps in a new project or creating with a web 2.0 tool.**
• At the elementary school, they’re learning how the library works and checking out books in “library class.”**

Even though classes are not scheduled in the libraries all day every day, students are using them independently all day long.  Why??  According to AASL (and we librarians know)...

So what are students actually doing when they visit the library on their own?



As you can see, students make the most of their libraries at Warrior Run. They are taking charge of their education and making wise use of their free time. With ever-increasing demands on students' time, they have found a space that allows them to work efficiently and effectively during the school day.

Encourage your students to visit the library as soon as possible!

**These lists are by no means comprehensive.

Feedback vs. Grades

Joe gets 100% on his project.  Sara got a 60%.  What is the difference?

Within the classroom, I have seen teachers that give back scores and allow time to meet with students to discuss and give feedback on why they received the score that they did.  We are moving into an age where instead of the percentage being the focus, the feedback will be the focus.

Giving continual and consistent feedback is much more time-consuming than giving a percentage grade, but it is also much more meaningful.  It encourages the student to grow, seeing the skills or concepts where they are proficient and focusing their efforts on the areas where they are struggling.

Project-based learning lends itself to assessment via feedback.  It allows for a continual process of improvement, getting input from the teacher, making small edits, growing into the best and most polished example of the student’s ability.  This also strengthens the student’s “soft skills:” communication, collaboration, adaptability, reflection.

Have you ever told a student that they are really smart?  I’m guilty.  But this feedback isn’t enough.  How are they smart?  What made me believe that?  Is intelligence able to be ranked?  Instead of giving this general feedback, what else could we say?  See this link for some ideas.

We have some amazing examples of teachers already implementing this idea in our district, from the World Language Department using proficiency-based grading (see below for resources), to the standards-based report cards at the elementary level, to the shift from quizzes and tests to project-based learning.  

As the workplace becomes an environment that focuses on “projects” and collaboration, I hope you will continue to feel inspired and encouraged to move away from traditional assessment and embrace a more modern and meaningful approach by giving feedback.

For some ideas, check out this article from Edutopia.

-----

Language department proficiency based “grading” system resources

PBGS Parent Letter

PBGS Explanation

Language Proficiency Targets