YOU Must Try This App!

If you teach primary children you know how long it takes for a child to type in a website.  At all costs I try not to have my children do this.  Imagine, twenty 7 year olds trying to type in a 30 character  URL on their iPads all at the same time.  It is true madness, "It's not working," "I need help!" "Is that an i or a l?" and this is why the app that I am about to tell you about is pure genius.

A couple of weeks ago a colleague of mine asked me to participate in "Talk Like A Pirate Day."  Of course the catch was that Pirate Day was the following day.  It took me two seconds to respond with a yes.  I quickly drafted up a letter and sent it home.  We decided we would use todaysmeet to connect the classes.  Sarah's class would pretend to be pirates and my class would ask them questions.  The following day my pirates walked in and it dawned on me that I had not made QR codes for my students to scan to go to the todaysmeet site, nor did I put the website on their home screen of their iPads.  From my description above, you knew that I was not going to put the website on the board for them to type out....I would rather walk the plank.

This is when the must try app comes into place.  The app is called chirp.  Don't go looking for it in the iPad apps, it is an iPhone app.  This app shares links using sound.  All you need to do is download it to all of your devices (it is free!) and turn it on.  You type in the website you want to share and press the chirp button.  It sends out a noise that all of the devices will hear and it goes to that link.  GENIUS!  I am not done...my classroom is a NOISY place and Chirp is designed to cope with music, speech, TVs blaring in the background, and so on!  It can share pictures too. 
Here is video showing you how it works:





This app has made my life so much easier in sharing information with my students.  I would love to hear how you use it in your classroom!

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Ready To Use Fact Family iPad Station

My students have been working on fact families the past couple of days.  To reinforce what has been taught in class, I try to incorporate a math station that practices the skill and incorporate it into our math stations the following week.  I modeled the station today and had them give it a go to make sure they would be able to do it independently next week.  I was pleasantly surprised how my grade 2 students did the station independently.

To prepare this station, first download  and print the station here.  Then cut out the slips of paper with the numbers on it (the fact families).

Next, download the app - Draw and Tell by Duck Duck Goose.

Finally, go over the station directions sheet.

Your station is ready to go!  

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A Classroom For Discovery And Curiosity - Part 1

One of my goals this year was to weave a wonder and curiosity theme into our classroom.  I wanted to put the choice in the students hands this year.   We will learn through inquiry and discovery.  We will question and be information seekers.  We will be wonder experts.

The next few blog posts will be about my journey, first starting with the space, second with a few of the key lessons that were delivered and finally a reflection of how it is going from my point of view and from my students point of view.

Before the students even stepped foot into our classroom, I wanted a space where my students curiosity would be peaked instead of flattened.
 I wanted a classroom that would encourage my students to learn, explore and investigate. Now don't get me wrong, I know the space is not the only factor in the equation.  However, through modeling and explicit teaching I knew that my students were already asking questions and seeking answers to those questions.

I began with the furniture.  I was able to replace the desks in the classroom with tables.  Some are round and others are rectangle.  I also made a few crates into stools and brought a large ottoman in that I had donated.  Other furniture additions were two high stools that sit in front of the observation window  (a place where children can sit and write about their observations of the outside world) and a new carpet for the students to gather on to work alone, with a partner or a group.

The next thing I added was a science table where I invited my students to bring in things they found that they may have questions about or natural treasures they have at home they wanted to share.  Currently, we have an assortment of bugs in bug jars that the students have found outside at recess, 2 different bird nests that were found around their homes and a strawberry/blueberry bush that I brought in to model my inquiry question.   We also are growing crystals in a jar (One of my students found a crystal making recipe in a book from the library that he wanted to try). There is also a science notebook for the students to write their predictions, questions, observations and answers in.

Another thing that I brought in was various potted plants for the children to take care of.  Our window sills now have plants growing on all of them and it is a favourite job of many of my students to be in charge of pruning and watering them for the week.

On the first day of school, instead of a large pillar in the middle of the classroom there is now a large tree with branches stretching throughout the classroom.  The bulletin boards are all a chocolate brown with green borders to give the space a more calming and "green" feeling.

From the first day of school we started wondering.  Some students brought in their wonder jars I had given them as an end of school token with treasures from the summer in them (one student even brought in a toad!)

I aslo picked many read a louds at the beginning of the year that would inspire my students to wonder.  A few of my favourite are:

 A story that encourages children to put down the TV remotes
and video-game controllers and take a look at the wonder of
the world around them.

On a Beam of Light:  A Story of Albert Einstein

Me...Jane - A Story of Jane Goodall

Finally, our first completed bulletin board was our "Wonder Wall"  where students wrote their wonders on with dry erase marker so they may change their wonder as frequent as they wish.

Please stay tuned for my next blog post on "Lessons That Spark A Sense Of Wonder".

                                     

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2nd Grade Math, My Way

This year, I am teaching a grade 2/3 split.  I have had some of these munchkins since Kindergarten (with a year mat leave in-between).  Needless to say, we didn't need much time to go over procedures and classroom norms because I have had many of these children for 3 years.  I am team teaching math with 2 other teachers, so for math I teach all of the second graders.

My school board uses the math program, "Math Makes Sense" and for the most part I really like the program except for all of the worksheets to photocopy.  Now, if you know me at all, I try to use the iPads A LOT during math.  Why photocopy a worksheet when you can use manipulatives and the camera on the iPad?  Not to mention the ability to annotate and capture students talking about their thinking.  

So, I took the first unit of the year which was sorting and patterning, looked at the overall expectations and tweaked the lessons to incorporate the iPads.  Here is what we did:

Learning Goal -  to be able to create a pattern and explain the core

To introduce patterning, I first showed the pattern video on brainpopjr.com.  I then modeled different patterns and we talked about what the core or unit was.  I then invited the children to use any type of manipulatives they wanted to create a pattern.  Students were instructed to take a picture of their pattern then use an app to draw a circle around the core of the pattern and upload it to their blog.  Here are a couple of examples:

The second learning goal was to be able represent a pattern in different ways.  After the lesson.  I again instructed the students to get out the iPads, manipulatives, paper, markers and whatever else they wanted that would help them to answer the problem prompt.

Create a pattern using three colours of snap cubes.  Find another way you can represent your pattern.

I also had 2 students create videos and use sound (clapping, snapping and stomping)  I would love to show you, however the video is at school on the iPads, so you will have to take my word for it until I can upload the video to my blog.

The final learning goal for this unit was to Use "look for a pattern" to solve a problem.    After the mini lesson (different problem solving strategies and how to make a plan to solve a problem), I put children into groups of three and gave them the problem prompt.
There are 9 red beads, 3 green beads, and 6 blue beads.  Make a pattern using all the beads.  

I had students use any type of manipulative they wanted and they got right to work.  Some drew pictures but most got manipulatives.  I was pleasantly surprised how many groups got it without much prompting.  I did have one group that I worked through the problem with.  The following day we did a similar problem with different amounts of beads and only one munchkin was still having trouble.

I did not use one single photocopy or worksheet for this unit.  My students choose how to demonstrate their learning and I have evidence of all of their work on their blogs for assessment.  Best of all, all of my students were successful with this unit.
Is it because I gave them choice? 
Is it because they weren't sitting at their seats doing worksheet after worksheet?
Is it because I am able to give small group instruction while the other children are busy showing their learning on the iPads or any other way they choose?
I think the answer is yes to all of the above questions.  I still covered the curriculum, I still delivered math mini lessons and I still have a group of students that are excited when I say that it is math time!

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6 Ready To Go iPad Centers

A few of the following iPad Centers/Stations I have posted before, however I thought it might be useful to post them again, at the beginning of the year so you know they are here if you want to try something new during your literacy or math block.  All of the centers can be done using one or two iPads at the center and are actual centers that my students used last year.  I hope you find them useful or they spark new ideas to try with your students.

Writing Center:

App Needed - Write About This

Download Here

Fluency Center

App Needed - Audioboo, iPhone version

Download Here

Research Center

App Needed - Pocket Zoo

Download Here and Here

Math Center

App Needed - Draw & Tell

This one might be a bit confusing at first.  Here is a video of one of my students completing this math station:

Download Here

Math Center

App Needed - Explain Everything

Download Here

Math Center

App Needed - Explain Everything

Download Here

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I Created A Class Twitter Account, Now What?

Each morning as we start our day together, I draw attention to things that my students may have missed or mentions from our Twitter feed.  This short time together each morning discussing our Twitter feed has resulted in rich discussions that prompt thinking, cause us to wonder and lead us to seek out further information.  

There are many opportunities during the school day to incorporate the use of twitter.  A good place to start is to read the tweets from the other classes you follow, ask questions or provide comments as a whole class.  The following examples will give you some ideas on how to involve Twitter in literacy, math and science.  All of the Twitter activities explained can be done as a whole group, small group or by individual students. 

Wonder Questions

I encourage students to continuously ask questions and be curious about their surroundings.  Students are always encouraged to pose questions they are wondering about on Twitter.  It has been fascinating how many people have responded to my students’ questions.  This activity has shown my students that Twitter can be a place to acquire information from others.

Fairy Tale Riddles

During our Fairy Tale unit my students discovered by reading the class Twitter feed that a class in Maine was also learning about fairytales.  They connected through Twitter and started tweeting a fairytale riddle to each other each day.  You can see some of their riddles on the right.

Once Upon A Tweet

Erin Mastin, a grade 1 teacher in Michigan created the hashtag #1uponatweet.  The idea is that one class begins a story with a single tweet adding the hashtag, #1uponatweet. Then a different class will continue the story adding to the previous tweet.  At the end of the week, day or however long you want to wait, have students read how the story has changed from when they added to it.  One idea to extend this activity is to type the story out for your students, have your students choose a tweet to illustrate either on paper or the iPad, then tweet out the finished product! Another idea to extend this activity is to discuss if the story has a beginning, middle and end or a main idea.  You could also discuss voice and or audience.  There are endless possibilities for this activity.  

Post A Daily Word 

Challenge your students to unscramble an anagram, contribute antonyms or synonyms, or tweet a definition to the word of the day.  This could also be done with their weekly spelling words or words of the week.

Creating Math Stories

Another great hashtag to participate in is Karen Lirenman’s creation #MathStory.  Students create math stories or problems for other students to answer. 

This is a great activity for any child because they can select the most appropriate leveled question for themselves.  Another great thing about Twitter is that your shy or more reluctant students will be more willing to participate in these activities because they choose what to answer or comment on.  The first time we did this activity, I connected with a colleague on Twitter and we set a time where our students would ask math questions back and forth.  I had all of my students on the carpet with the Twitter feed displayed on our white screen.  At the same time, my students all had their iPads and were on the Twitter app.  We read the questions together as they appeared on our Twitter stream and then students volunteered to answer the question they wanted to answer. We then took a turn creating and asking math questions. Not only were my students responsible for creating and asking the questions, they were also responsible for responding to the child that answered their question by telling them if they answered the question correctly or not.  We then had a Skype session to debrief the students on the activity and they ended up continuing with the math questions by way of Skype because they were having so much fun.  This example really illustrates how an authentic audience motivates and encourages students to participate and extend their learning. 

Many of my students enjoy sharing their art creations, a quick snap of the camera roll and an explanation of the art project is all that is needed to tweet it to the world.  Other students use twitter for research.  They may ask questions that need to be answered by experts in a particular field.  Students also like to respond to questions or comments from other Twitter feeds that we follow.  A great way to begin tweeting is to simply have students write about what they are up to at school that day, or start with the “Tweeter of the day”.  Where one student is responsible for tweeting the news of the day.  All the above examples incorporate, thinking, reading and writing for an authentic audience and best of all, my students are excited by it!  Bring a little excitement into your class this year and create a class Twitter feed!

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5 Things To Do To Get Your Class Connected Before School Begins

I strive to inspire and develop the skills necessary for my students to succeed in the 21^st century.  My students are encouraged to create, collaborate, communicate and motivate in my classroom.

If you step into my classroom you will quickly find out that we are a classroom with no walls.  Video conferencing, blogging, creating videos and books, teaching and learning from other peers in the classroom, in the school and in the world about what they are interested in is embedded into the daily instruction of my classroom.  The results of this purposeful connectivity is that my group of grade1/2 students have begun to develop a global perspective of issues that could not have been authentically discovered if they were solely engaged in books in our classroom.  I have not done this alone, using different forms of social media such as Skype, Google Hangout, Kidblogs, Twitter, Youtube and participating in global projects have transformed my classroom into a connected classroom.

You can have a connected classroom too!  Here are a few ideas to get you started:

1. Create a class Twitter account -  The benefits of having a classroom Twitter account are endless.  From learning from others, sharing their learning with a large community of peers to receiving encouragement and feedback.  It is a quick and easy way to start connecting with others right away.
2. Get your class blogging - If there is one way to empower your students to write and to give them an audience to write for, this is the way to do it.  
3. Sign up for The Primary Blogging Community - If you already have your class blogging, sign up for The Primary Blogging Community.  They will get to check out what other classes are doing on their blogs and receive a ton of comments from other kids around the world! Sign up here.
4. Sign up for the Global Read Aloud -The premise is simple; 4 books are chosen depending on the age of your students. You pick one of the books to read aloud to your students during a set 6-week period and during that time you try to make as many global connections as possible. sign up here.

     
5.  Sign up for a Skype account - connect with other classes through video from around the world while sitting in your own classroom.  Download Skype here.  Find other classes to connect with and projects to explore using Skype here.  

All you need to do now is try ONE.  Sign up for one of the above suggestions before you are back to school, before you have lessons to plan and work to assess.  Don't wait for tomorrow.  Do it now, I am sure once you see how your students respond to connecting and collaborating with the world instead of just in your classroom, you won't look back.  Get your class connected now, you won't regret it!

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