Living Out Loud

I recently had the opportunity to hear Kevin Honeycutt deliver the Opening Keynote for AETC2013. If you have never heard him speak, I highly recommend that you look him up on YouTube. He tells heartwarming, poignant stories which leave you laughing until your sides hurt or tearing up because they hit so close to home. While he spoke, I sent out this tweet:

This idea of sharing our stories has really stuck with me over the last several days. Stories...we all have them. How many times have we reminisced about how we should write all of these stories down? Teachers have stories of student successes, challenges, heartbreak, and triumph. With our lives in the classroon, we are walking anthologies of the lives we have have touched or been touched by. But, how many of us are sharing these stories? Are we taking the time to show the impact that our teaching brings to the lives of our students every day? Or, are we allowing someone else to author our lives...someone who is not living our life; someone who is so far detached they could not cipher all of the clues upon which we pick up from our students every single day; someone who is creating a work of fiction instead of a collection of memoirs.

The idea of "living out loud" came to mind when a couple of news stories were released this week and (per usual) "experts" weighed in on the ills of today's schools. How many teachers were asked their perspective? How many of our stories were being shared? None! I've heard many teachers bemoan that they don't have something important to offer to an already inundated information age. I strongly disagree. If we don't start sharing our students' stories, who will? Those "experts?" If that is the case, who will become the victims of these fictional tales? Our students.

So as we take some time this summer to reflect and begin making plans for the upcoming school year, devote some time to document and share some of these stories. We live in a time where there is a host of media where we can amplify these unforgettable stories. Tweet about them. Photograph them. Write a blog about them. Video them. Curate them into one easily "shareable" location. These collections become a living testimony of what our students are accomplishing, many against great odds. Reach out and connect with other educators and spend some time swapping stories.  We are teachers and it's time for us to share our stories and live out loud.

Mythbusters: Technology in the Classroom

I recently had the good fortune to hear Rick Riordan speak (he's the author of the Percy Jackson series...plus many, many more amazing books for middle level readers). Of course, when you mention Rick, one can't help but think about myths as those are the foundation of all of his books. His keynote was about the "Myths of Reading." This got me to thinking about the myths that many educators believe regarding technology in classroom. This is 2013 and I think that sometimes we get caught up in the minutia of our teaching and non-teaching responsibilities and forget that the world around us is changing. If we want to remain relevant for our students, then we too must adapt.

Here are the five most common myths regarding technology in the classroom that I hear from teachers. Let's bust these myths.

Myth 1: I don't know enough about technology to use it with my students.

Many of us grew up and were educated during the time where the teacher was the disseminator of information. The teacher was considered the content expert within the classroom. Once we begin to teach, it is easy to fall into the mindset that we must know everything and be able to answer all of our students' questions.

Yes, we are the content specialists and strategists in our classrooms, but students no longer need us to just deliver content. They have access to content 24/7 in the palms of their hands. They need us to guide them in how to use and apply this knowledge to create, collaborate, and critically solve authentic problems.

How do we overcome the fear of not being the classroom expert in technology? We change our mindset. Yes, we need to have some basic understanding of how a tool is used. However, the most important aspect is not how a tool works, but how a tool supports the learning needs of our students. My students learn how to use tech tools much faster and more efficiently than I do. Nevertheless, they understand that a tool is just that, a tool to support their learning. I am honest with my students and let them know that we are all learners looking for new ways to strengthen and grow as individuals. This takes the focus off of me (the teacher) and places it on the students and their learning.

Myth 2: Technology is an "extra" in the school day.

Believe it or not, I hear this one quite frequently. Often technology is treated as a separate entity where students go to a computer lab or the classroom computer/iPad to play games as a reward. Is that really the role of technology? Absolutely not! Technology is fully embedded in their daily lives. We need to embed technology seamlessly into our lessons and into their learning activities in a meaningful way. It's a tool, just like a pencil, a book, a globe, or a microscope. We only pull those tools out when they are relevant and meaningful for the learner. Technology is no different, but is a part of their lives; it cannot be ignored. As their teachers, we need to provide them with the opportunities for harnessing these tools to safely support their learning.

Myth 3: It is time consuming to teach students tech tools.

I agree that if I did a mini-lesson on all of the tools that my students use throughout the school year, it would take an enormous amount of time. That is why I spend very little time focusing on the tech tool. When we begin a project, we focus totally on the content standards and learning goals. We do not ever mention their mode of publishing (the tool) until they at the point of publishing. Then students select the tool that they feel will strengthen their voice in this project.

Many teachers ask how they know what their options are. There are several ways that I expose my learners to the different options for publishing their projects. First, at the beginning of school, we have an online scavenger hunt where the students search through our different school websites, wikis, and blogs. Through the scavenger hunt, students will see many different projects that past students have published. They may not remember the name of all of the projects, but they do remember what the final product looked like. 

Secondly, my students are connected with their global peers through projects like the Global Read Aloud. On these projects, they collaboratively work with other students and learn from them different tools and manners of publishing their work. Because they want to find something new to share, often my learners go searching for new tools and apps on their own and bring it to me to share how it will support their learning. When I find a new tool, I'll share it with a couple of students and have them explore it and review whether or not it would fit into the projects on which they are working.

These methods take very little class-time, but they put technology where it belongs in the learning environment...it is there to support, not be the driving force in the learning.

Myth 4: My students don't have keyboarding skills.

Quite frankly this one surprises me. However, many teachers equate technology with typing. Let's face it, today's students usually have an email account, but they rarely use it. They spend a majority of their time using a smart phone, tablet, or iPod Touch. Although these have keyboards, they are not traditional keyboards. They are very adept at using their thumbs/fingers to type on these devices. Should their ability use technology to support their learning be hindered by the fact that they are not using the traditional typing methods on a desktop or laptop? My 5th grade students have never been taught formal keyboarding skills. Would it be helpful for them to learn? Probably, but when given the choice of taking valuable school time to teach them keyboarding or giving them time to collaborate and create with their peers, I will always choose the latter. I think what we really need to focus upon is how these devices are helping them grow as learners rather than whether they fingers are on the correct keys when they are typing. 

Myth 5: Technology will motivate students.

When a teacher says this, I always wonder how long they expect the motivation to last. Students are exposed to so many technology gadgets at such a young age, if this is the sole source of motivation, you run the danger of desensitization.  I call this "Christmas Morning Syndrome." All kids are thrilled on Christmas morning by all their new toys. All they want to do is spend time playing with them. But, where are those toys in July? Usually sitting on a shelf or in a closet. Toys and gadgets only give a brief moment of motivation; the more students are exposed to these tools, the quicker they lose interest.

How do we avoid this in the classroom? We must evaluate what truly motivates students for the long term. When students are given the opportunity to make decisions and take ownership of their learning, levels of enthusiasm skyrocket. Today's learners want to connect and collaborate with others applying their knowledge in meaningful and authentic ways. They want to know how what they are doing in class affects their lives today...not some vague, undisclosed time in the distant future. Our learners have high expectations for what they want out of their education. Is technology present? Yes! Technology is the medium we can use to provide all of these aspects for their education, but technology is not what will motivate students for the long haul....student-directed learning is.

I know that this is not an exhaustive list of educational technology myths, but these are the ones I hear most frequently. What myths do you hear? I'd love for you to share some ways for busting common myths for technology in the classroom.

photo credit: marksmotos via photopin cc

Are You a Disseminator or Facilitator?

At IRA 2013, I am doing my session "Can We Skip Lunch and Keep Writing?" Collaborating in Class and Online (yes, that also happens to be the title of my book ).  Each time I do this presentation, I have attendees who come because they are looking for strategies to teach writing. I also have people who attend looking for technology tools and applications. Do they get those? Absolutely, but I think they leave with much more. They leave with an understanding of what it means to create a classroom or school environment that is driven by student's choice.

The title of my book was chosen because as I was writing the first draft of a chapter, I shared a story about how my students wanted to write so badly, they were searching for any additional time within our very structured schedule. One student's solution was asking me, "Can we skip lunch and keep writing?" What can we as educators do to keep our students excited about learning?

The answer is simple, we must give them the power to make choices about what they will learn, how they will learn, and how they will be assessed on their learning. If you have no idea where to begin, the first place that I always turn is to my students. Ask them. Let them give you feedback. When you combine their feedback with your expertise as an educator, you've got a winning combination.

Although we are the content specialists and strategists, our role is no longer the sole disseminator of information. They have that in the palm of their hand, 24/7; they don't need us for that anymore. We must be the facilitator who guides them through all of the information and provides them with the individual support and opportunities they need to become the most successful student possible.

Those of you who read this blog know that I am very passionate about student-directed learning. Here are a few of the posts that I have written that give you a peek into my classroom to see what this really looks like when implemented:

• Students as Teachers
• Best Laid Plans...of a 5th Grade Class
• The Transformative Power of Writing
• When Things Click
• Weebly to the Rescue
• How We Love to Learn
• In Defense of Student-Directed Learning

I hope this gives you some inspiration or causes you to take some time to reflect on your teaching practice. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to ask them. Our classroom is an open book.

Top Seven "Forget-Me-Not" Presentation Practices

The busy spring time is upon us and for some of us, it will carry us into an even busier summer. One thing that I love is the opportunity to travel to speak and facilitate training all over the U.S. I thoroughly love the opportunity to meet and learn from other passionate and dedicated educators. Even though I do present, I try to take the time to continue by professional growth as well. I attend a lot of sessions. Every one of the presenters is knowledgeable on their topic, but sometimes it does not translate well to an audience. In Pay It Forward: 5.1 Ways to Share Your Expertise, I mentioned ways that we can guide our colleagues into sharing their teaching successes and experiences. Not one of us can claim to be where we are as educators without the assistance of others; it is important to give back to the educational community. Once teachers begin to feel comfortable sharing their best practices, the next progression is to present at a conference. The teacher who had asked for my advice in the previous post asked for some tips in creating an engaging presentation. Here are my top seven "forget-me-not" presentation practices.

1. Set the tone of your presentation. People walk in wondering if they are in the right place and whether or not this is going to be beneficial or not. Music does a good job of setting the tone when people arrive. Also, add humor to your presentation. I am not saying that you should be a stand-up comedian because that sends the message of "I am silly and what I am saying is not all that important." However, when you add humor to the beginning and people get a chuckle, their brains release endorphines that help them connect with you and become engaged in what you are saying.
2. Streamline your presentation. Slides with too many words or images takes the focus off of what you are saying. If someone cannot easily read or see what you have on a slide from the back of a ballroom, do not include it. The slide/image is there to support what you are saying. It is giving the attendees a visual or a graphic that will help your message stick in their brains.
3. Be prepared. Time is one of our most valuable commodities. How many of us have sat through "death by PowerPoint" presentations where the presenter read off of the screen? How much did you learn or remember about what they said? If you are going to speak, prepare a presentation where your expertise is the focus. You are the expert. Practice your presentation and prepare for tech malfunctions. Could you do your presentation without your slides?  If not, then you are not prepared enough to speak as an expert. Here's what works for me: I have a pretty good memory, but I am not memorizing a script....especially for those 6 hour workshops. My presentations have graphics. With each graphic, I learn key phrases that I want to say within the point. Practice makes it flow easily for me when I am in front of an audience.
4. Provide resources. Everyone wants to leave with something, but let's be honest about handouts. We get a paper handout, it goes home in our conference bag, and then it sits in the hall closet until we get rid of it a couple of years later. We live in a digital world so we need to provide our attendees with access to resources digitally. There are so many ways to share information in our world...blogs, websites, DropBox, Evernote, wikis, Facebook, etc. Most people now attend with a smart phone, laptop, or tablet. You can give them instant access to your resources and save them from lugging around the paper version. 
5. Accurately name your session. We have all attended sessions based on their title and then come to realize that the session was nothing like what the title indicated. You want the people in your session to know what you are going to present about so that you have the right audience for your message. Don't worry if there are only a couple of people there. Those are the people who need to hear your expertise. If one person walks away with something that makes them a better educator, your presentation was a success.
6. Listen and engage participants. As teachers we know that one of the least effective teaching strategies is straight lecture. Yet, you see educators doing this in presentations. The active participation strategies that work in your classroom with students will work those in attendance at your session. Facilitate conversations in your sessions, get them actively engaged, and remember it is about THEIR learning. Your goal needs to be to let them learn from your experiences. We know that the brain learns best when it is active in a fun and relevant manner. Don't forget to add that into your session.
7. P.S. They're looking at you. You are there to share your expertise with other educators. Although we have always heard that we "don't judge a book by its cover," let's face it, we do. When people first see you, they are going to make a judgment about your ability to lead professional learning. Flip flops and vendor T-shirts do not instill a lot of confidence in your professional credibility. They want to know that they are not wasting their time by staying in your session. If they walk in and you look like your going to the ballpark or making a quick run to the grocery store, they are less likely to stay or open their mind to learning what you are sharing. (see Because Books are Sometimes Judged by Their Covers by Amanda Dykes).

These are my suggestions to those new to presenting at conferences. I would love to hear what your suggestions are about what makes a session a great professional learning experience.

Students Drive to Pass It On

Many of you who follow this blog know that my students are voracious writers. Much of their writing is through their KidBlogs (Did I Make the Grade?, Whose Voice is Heard?). They set the expectations the first week of school. Rarely do I give them a prompt, however, I wanted to know how they felt that they had grown and changed a person from our time together this year. I wondered if they had seen the same growth that I had seen or if they had made discoveries about themselves that I had missed. I always find these posts particularly insightful. If you want to know what a student thinks, ask them. You will gain a wealth of information that can guide you in preparing learning activities that will meet their needs.

What I learned this time was a re-occurring theme. Their own words express it best...

What I want to accomplish by the end of Fifth Grade is I want to learn how to teach other individuals how to become better learners so that they can teach others. 

I have learned to teach myself and others too. So now others can learn the same way I did. In the fifth grade, I have learned how to become successful in life. 

I want to accomplish learning about what everyone is like what their opinions are because they all matter.  what I want to accomplish at the end of the year to here what others think and what they got to say. 
I need to help other people to under stand the subjects that they are having trouble with. 

Well, when I began 5th grade I usually did things on my own, but now I see why it is important to work as a team and not always do things alone. I guess that is one way I have changed as a person.

In a world where so many in society are complaining about apathetic youth and bemoaning our future, I discovered a class who was very "others" centered. Yes, they want to learn, communicate, and share their voices, but they understand why it is important to connect and collaborate with others. My brilliant learners had come up with this separately on their own. Yes, in our classroom, we live that idea everyday by sharing our background experiences, thoughts, ideas, and respectfully challenge one another's thinking. However, through their experiences they found the relevance of it and pursue that course daily within and without of the classroom walls. We cannot be a world that only looks for what we need and "take" from others without being willing to jump in and give back our knowledge, our expertise, and parts of ourselves. 

Teaching or Learning?

This week I have been involved in an ongoing conversation about whether as educators we should be focusing on our teaching or on student learning. As was contemplating this idea, an analogy came to mind that I feel represents how I feel about this discussion:

A teacher is like a good cab driver. A good cab driver knows the best routes to get from Point A to Point B. He knows how to get around construction, avoid troublesome traffic, and make the ride a pleasant one for the occupant. However, until someone gets into the cab, that knowledge is superfluous. Once the occupant gets into the cab and tells the driver where she wants to go, it is the driver’s abilities and skills that help her successfully reach her destination. He gets her to her destination avoiding construction, gliding around traffic jams, while still maintaining an enjoyable experience. As teachers we must be knowledgeable and skilled in strategies and ways to meet all of the challenges that students bring to us. However, without the students showing us their needs, we have no way of knowing which way to navigating their learning. 

I feel that this debate is really focusing on the role of the teacher and the role of the student. Do we want our learners to be passive recipients of information? Or, do we want them to dive into topics, applying their knowledge and skills in a real world, meaningful way? Do we want for our students to merely score well on a standardized test? Or do we want for them to become successful in their lives outside of the classroom walls?

What do you think? I'd love to hear your voice on this subject.

photo credit: Thomas Hawk via photopin cc

Pay It Forward: 5.1 Ways to Share Your Expertise

As we are beginning a new year, I have seen many posts, Tweets, and blogs about people paying it forward to individuals they do not know personally. In a world that is often driven with negative news, it is heart-warming to see people reaching out and helping others. It has gotten my mind to thinking about us as educators. We spend our days giving our best to our students, but often we keep what is happening behind the closed doors of our classroom.

I recently engaged in a conversation with another teacher at my school. She hesitantly shared an after-school program that she had started two years ago. She explained how she saw that her students needed some extra tutoring in academic subjects, but they could not afford to hire tutors. She also recognized that many of them lived in single-parent homes where the parents worked multiple jobs. This limited the types of extra activities that they could provide for their own children. To address those needs, this teacher began an after-school program on Friday afternoons where the students could stay after school for an hour for some additional help in academics. Then, the second hour each Friday, this teacher had arranged different community leaders to come in and do activities with the students. This has made a huge impact on her students, their families, and built a strong line of support from the community.

This amazing program was going on in the same school where I teach and I had no idea! When I encouraged her to share her experiences, she told me that she did not think it really counted as an important enough idea to share. That's when I realized how important it is for us to find these hidden gems that are lurking behind closed doors and encourage these teachers to share their ideas. She told me she had no idea where to begin so I shared with her a few of my suggestions.

Here are my suggestions for those just beginning to share their expertise:

1. Share informally with co-workers. Because she was so reticent about even talking to me one-on-one, I knew suggesting that she speak at a conference was an unreasonable idea right now. I suggested that she begin sharing her program with her grade-level co-workers. She has some really open-minded co-workers who I am sure would be interested in joining her program and helping it to grow.
2. Celebrate success at a formal meeting. In our weekly faculty meetings, occasionally, we are asked to share successes. This is an open opportunity to share a quick piece of what is going on behind classroom doors. This allows teachers in other grade levels and content areas to know what you are doing. Chances are they will have a contact that would like to participate or support a new and innovative idea.
3. Speak up at training session or presentation. The best sessions are the ones where there is audience participation and much discussion. This is a way to build more support for that new idea. You never know who is in that room who can help you sharpen your ideas or challenge to reflect on how you could make it more impactful for your students and your school. It also increases your level of expertise in this area and build further support for your project.
4. Volunteer to have others visit your classroom to see your expertise at work. Sometimes people are hesitant to try a new idea, program, lesson, tool or strategy until they see it at work. If you are the one they are visiting, it is really not any more work on you. You are not putting on a show, but letting them see your idea in action. Let them observe, get involved, and ask questions. They are not there to criticize you (they were interested enough to come for a visit), but to learn from your expertise.
5. Begin blogging. This is an excellent way to share what is going on in your classroom and it gives you a global audience. All of the educators that I have encountered through blogging have challenged my thinking and helped me become a much stronger educator. It helps you clarify your thinking and make tweaks to your ideas. By gaining a much larger audience, you are also broadening your horizons and influencing others by your experiences.
• 5.1 Tweet on Twitter. This microblogging site allows you to connect with other educators and have on-going professional conversations all within 140 characters per tweet. Like with blogging, you have the ability not only to share your expertise, but also learn from some of the best educators from around the world. Not sure where to begin? Here's a post I wrote Why Should I Tweet on Twitter?

As is often quoted from an unknown source, "The hardest part of any journey is taking that first step." That's what I hope I have been able to do for my colleagues as well as some of you and your colleagues...encourage people to take that first step and pay back what so many have given to us in our quest to become the strongest educator possible.

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