Pic Collage

I found a great new app the other day called Pic Collage. It is super simple! You can create collages with pictures and words. I like to make them and have them on the Smart Board. The students love coming into the class in the morning to see their pictures on the screen.

http://pic-collage.com/

Science: Structure Competition

My grade 5 students having fun building structures

The class was split into groups and they had 15 minutes to "plan" on paper how they would build the tallest free standing structure. After the planning stage, they had only 5 minutes work together to build the structure. During the second competition, students had to plan how to build the strongest structure. We loaded books on each structure, one at a time to see which group had the strongest structure. The students had a blast during the planning, building and testing stages!!

Drama fun!!!

My grade 5 students having fun creating a family photo tableau. The rest of the class had to guess where the "picture" was taken?

Tech Leadership Cohort at Brock!!

Check out this informational video all about the Brock Tech Cohort! So excited to be part of this cohort :)

Presenting today at the Tech Showcase

I am excited to be co-presenting with Stacey Robinson and Michelle Stasiuk at this year’s Tech Showcase, held at Brock University, in Hamilton, Ontario.  We will be holding a session on the Web 2.0 tool, Popplet.  We will also be discussing how to embed tools like Popplet into a Google Site or into a blog.

For more information on Popplet click here

Hope to see you at the showcase!

The 21st Century Classroom

During my tech leadership class on January 13^th, we had an in-depth conversation on what a 21^st century classroom should look like. Below are some of the ideas that we touched upon during our discussion.

We first discussed the implementation of Smart boards, tablets, laptops and cell phones into the classroom but then we dug deeper.  We discussed that a classroom that fosters collaboration is essential in the 21^st century. This means having moveable desks, tables and chairs that quickly allow for students to break off into small groups, which is perfect for discussion or group work. This type of furniture also allows for rearrangement of the classroom based on whatever set up may be need. For example, chairs can be moved to make a horseshoe or large circle for whole class discussions or pushed to the side to allow more room for DPA in the classroom.

Whiteboard walls is another idea that can create a physical place to collaborate. At the beginning of the year, the boards would be all white but as time progresses and ideas and questions arise they can be written on the wall for discussion and thought. Items such as articles or research can be posted on the whiteboards, adding colour and displaying student work.

Another important element of a 21^st century classroom is wired sound, i.e Front Row audio system. Front Row helps to save the teachers voice, while distributing the sound evenly throughout the class, allowing all students to properly hear the teacher. Wired sound also offers the opportunity to play music in the classroom, which can be used to help set a relaxing mood. For more information on Front Row check out this site www.diligent.ca/frntrw2go_brchre.pdf

The 21^st century classroom should also have as much wireless technology as possible, i.e. wireless Internet, Bluetooth, etc. This not only makes life convenient but also eliminates safety hazards, such as tripping over extension cords.

We also talked about the availability of outlets in the classroom. We have all been in a situation when you are typing away on your computer or doing research for a group project and your computer dies but there are no outlets for you to plug your computer in. Inconvenient outlets can also become a safety hazard. In a 21^st century classroom outlets should be flush with the ground and available all throughout the classroom.

As I said earlier, these are only a few of the physical aspects that a 21^st century classroom could have. The possibilities are truly endless! 

PD SESSION: Arts Matters: Integrating the Arts Across the Curriculum

On Thursday, October 27 and Friday, October 28 I attended the optional Arts Matters conference, where we discussed how to implement the arts across the curriculum. This experience was great! It helped confirmed my thoughts of wanting to teach the arts in an elementary school one day. I left the 2-day conference feeling motivated and confident. This PD session allowed teacher candidates the opportunity to interact with the fellow colleagues and experienced teachers who have the love for the arts.

About the Arts Matters Conference:

The conference started with a keynote speech by Dr. Larry Sawrtz. His speech was very inspirational and engaging. He helped to outline possible ways to integrate the arts in other curriculum areas. This was a great start to a fun-filled two days. After the keynote speaker, we were split up and attended an hour long visual arts workshop and then a hour long drama workshop. The second day started with a great performance called “Raven in the Sky” by Red Sky performance. The performance incorporated the various strands of the arts such as: music, drama and dance. We were then split into groups and attended an hour long workshop for both music and dance. All four of the workshops were engaging and offered valuable lesson ideas and strategies.

This workshop provided me with many ideas of how to effectively implement art throughout the curriculum. I also went home with many lesson plans that I can use in my own classroom one day. Overall, I took home the feeling of inspiration and excitement and will definitely use some of the activities learned in the workshops. I have already used one of the music activities, experienced in the music workshop, in my music presentation at Brock University.

Furthermore, I definitely see a real need for this type of session because I feel that many teachers often skip over the arts. I think this is because teachers are afraid of not being educated enough on the art curriculum or are just too busy and cutting the arts always seems to come first.  This PD session emphasized the importance of the arts and also made me feel like I can teach the arts, even without further education.

School Spirit is Very Important!!!!

Today was Spirit Day at Brock University Hamilton Campus.  We were asked to come to school today dressed in Brock’s colours:  red, white and blue.  Our cohort, cohort D, came together and all participated to the max.  It was a great day full of laughter, unity and team bonding!  To some, school spirit days or theme days may seem silly but school spirit is so important to the overall experience of “school”.   Having spirit days/theme days help to create a fun and positive learning environment for both students and teachers.   Creating this type of environment enhances overall school morale and the school atmosphere in general.  Students will be more likely to want to come to school, if you can make the experience exciting and fun.  Having a class or the entire school come together to partake in an event creates unity and provides bonding opportunities for the overall school population.   Spirit days or theme days are a way to create team building, while providing some laughter and enjoyment along the way.   It also enhances collaboration, as some students or classes may work together to come up with some unique “spirited” ideas such as matching capes and masks.  Basically, I think school spirit is very important and should never be over looked!   The benefits and relationships that school spirit can create are hard to achieve in any other way.   So next time that your school has a spirit day or a themed event, don’t forget to join in on the fun!

COHORT D ROCKS!!!

My First Day at Practicum

Three simple words sum up my first day at practicum..... puke, blisters, school-wide (700 students) roof-top picture.  My day started with a little girl saying..... “Miss Hodgins my tummy is not feeling well.”  Next thing you know this little girl is puking all over the carpet.  I thought to myself oh great what a nice welcome.   Later in the day, we had a roof-top photo where the entire school gathered outside, which was like organized chaos.  Lastly, after wearing dress shoes all day for the first time in awhile, I got a nice blister!  

That all being said I still had a wonderful first day! The children seemed extremely anxious to meet me, when they came in this morning. Once introductions were over and I had sat in the back watching calendar, I quickly jumped in walking around helping and guiding the students with their literacy centres.  I enjoyed seeing the children hard at work and still having fun!

On first nutrition break I had the experience of yard duty with my associate teacher.  Tattle-tailing seemed to be the thing... “so and so isn’t being nice to me,” “so and so jumped on me,”  and “so and so hurt my friend and she is really sad.”  I quickly learned the importance of active supervision.

My Grade 1 Classroom

Next was math and my teacher was teaching about patterning.  I loved watching how the lesson played out.  Starting with questions and the hook or “setting the stage” as described in the Brock lesson plan.  This helped to get the children thinking about patterns. Also, the core learning activity took longer than planned, which empathized how important it is to be flexible as a teacher.

Then we were called outside for a school-wide picture.  The fact that they included all of us made me feel valued even on my first day.  But imagine the chaos of 700 students and over 50 teachers trying to get organized and ready for the picture.  Thanks to many of the teachers whistles and “outside voices” they managed to get this done pretty quick!

Finally it was lunch time at 1:30pm.  The lunch room.... one work awkward! All 50-something  teachers, besides the ones on yard duty, are on lunch at the same time. There were goodies and a fruit tray on the table.  Oh how I would of loved to grab an oatmeal cookie, they looked so soft and so chewy.  But I didn’t want the teachers to be like “who’s this new placement teacher taking our delicious treats.”  So I continued crunching my carrots, anticipating the day when I will feel comfortable enough to have a cookie!

Now it was time for social studies, which was a great experience.  The children were learning about special helpers in their school and their responsibilities.  One of the little girls wrote “I love Mrs. Hodgins” on her social studies drawing, which put a smile on my face!  After most of the students had completed their work, I offered to read a story called Canadian Police Officers.  I saw the book to be fitting with the social studies topic of “community helpers.”  I asked the children the question, “what do police officers do,” and the children’s responses were too cute.  The best was one little girl said, “they get the robber that comes into your house looking for toys and kids.”  After reading the story, using different voices and expressions, deemed extremely important by my language arts teacher at Brock, I asked the children if they could tell me anything from the book that police officers do besides getting the robbers.  Offering to read a story allowed my associate teacher time to go around and help the few students that needed more guidance with their work.  I really enjoyed being at the front of the class and was very impressed with how attentive the children were to me.

At 3:30pm, when the home time bell went and I honestly couldn’t believe that the day was already over.  I had such a great experience and honesty can’t wait for my second day tomorrow J

Tomorrow: snack day and Friday! Can’t get much better than this! 

Video: How to Use the Livescribe Smartpen

Created and uploaded my first video to YouTube ever! The video discusses what a Livescribe Smartpen is, how it works and beneficial uses of the Livescribe in the classroom. I am excited about the possibilities that come to mind when I think of how I could use this in my own classroom one day! I also wish I had a Livescribe Smartpen during my time at university, would of helped in so many ways!

The Magical SMART Board

SMART Board Training Level 1: Complete!

Today I learned all about the fabulous SMART Board.  First I learned the basics such as how to make it work, orienting the screen, care and maintenance, as well as the basic functions of the SMART Notebook software.  But after that is when the real magic happened..... We were introduced to various ways of creating interactive lesson activities for the 21^st Century classroom. We were given total creative freedom and were asked to create our own interactive activities that we could use in our own classrooms. After playing around with the gallery, properties tab and various other built-in tools, I learned that the possibilities for creating a technologically advanced classroom, that fosters collaboration and student involvement can be done with ease.... well maybe a little more practice is needed but so far so good.  Below check out some of my interactive activities I created today!     





Activity 1:  Students will take turns coming up to the SMART board to drag the correct colour from the side to the correct mixture. Simply click the solution button to instantly link to another slide with the correct answers on it.

    

Activity #2: Students will drag and drop the words to the correct area on the picture of the flower.

 

Activity #3:  Students will solve the math equations and then take turns coming up to the SMART Board to use the magic wand to reveal the correct answer.

My first blog.... EVER!

Hello All!!!!

So I have created my first blog ever that will follow my thoughts, activities and experiences throughout my time at Teacher's College at Brock.