Day: October 29, 2018

Hello fellow bloggers,

This week I decided to look into assessment and communication to parents/guardians through technology. In my investigation I discovered something I had never heard of before, which is exciting for me. I think most of us have heard about Fresh Grade in our classrooms but I had never heard of Seesaw.

Fresh Grade and Seesaw are both FREE. They are forms of assessment and communication online. They are both informative and make it easy for students to share their work and make a personalized e-portfolio.

Seesaw is another form of communication and sharing students work through the internet. It has more features than Fresh Grade and it is easier to use for younger students. It is also easy for teachers to control who is seeing what and what is shared. It can be used through Chromebook, iOS, Android, and though the web.

Fresh Grades bonus is that it has an online grade tool. It can be used to formatively assess students and share with parents online. It is a little more complicated, but still has some features, just not as much as Seesaw. It can also only be used through iOS and through the web.

I am very excited to have learned more about these two applications and I look forward to implementing them in the classroom. I am very happy with the way communication and the sharing of students work is going. I think it is very important to be in touch with parents/guardians and to be able to share the students work with them. I think that adults have a huge influence on the children and if they are kept in the loop with the students schooling the better it will be.

Here is a link of a little youtube clip comparing and contrasting Seesaw and Fresh Grade.

watch

Here is a link of a tutorial on how to use Fresh Grade.

watch

-Kenzie

Within Reggio Emilia, there is a high focus on the environment of the classroom and allowing students to speak in their “100 languages”. While allowing students to document learning in different ways is wonderful for their learning it can be difficult if you are looking from a traditional grading perspective.  So what can be done?

One of the very important aspects of Reggio Emilia that I have found that gets passed over very often. People use many different ways to document, to me technology makes it the easiest.

The addition of iPads into the classroom has made it very easy to communicate and document learning. With students using art and the spoken word and even acting to show their learning how are we supposed to show parents the learning. With technology, we can take photos, videos, audio recordings and many other ways to document learning. You do not need to be using a Reggio approach to implement technology into documentation, but it helps a lot with a Reggio approach.

I have learned a lot about Reggio Emilia throughout this inquiry. Specifically what I want to include in my teaching pedagogy and how I can add different aspects of different approaches.

Salut!

Of course I am going to talk about us. Teachers stress too and actually more than many other occupations. “Teachers are actually tied with nurses, with 46 percent of both groups reporting high daily stress. Such reports are comparable with other notoriously demanding occupations, such as physicians and business managers.” 46% of teachers say they have high daily stress. DAILY!? That is absolutely insane. In this post I am going to give some examples of what causes teachers to stress.

1. “Teachers are expected to perform these tasks effectively”. We are assumed to be the most fantastic of teachers all the time and that our lessons should be time after time amazing.
2. “If teachers already face high levels of occupational stress, it’s not hard to see how the recent spate of deadly school shootings”. This is terrible because it implies that teachers should maybe arm themselves or be ready for the worst.

I also like that they separate it into two groups:

1. Threats to Teacher’s Wellness

• Weakens immune system
• Reduces stamina
• Heart disease
• Chronic fatigue

2. Threats to Teachers Performance

• Calling in sick
• “High Teacher Turnover”

Finally, it talks about what can help reduce stress in teachers. The one that is most impactful is teachers taking care of themselves first, “Teachers also need to make sure they take care of themselves so that they can take care of others. Without actively caring for themselves, teachers lose the capacity to care for others.”. We need to take care of ourselves because if we are not in the right place mentally or physically the students will see that and act accordingly.

Next post I will be sharing about how to help students when they are stressed.

http://theconversation.com/the-hidden-threat-of-teacher-stress-92676

Finding resources that talk about bringing Regio Emilia concepts into an older class are few and far between. I found a teacher in Victoria had done her masters degree in just that topic! What was so amazing was that I found that she found what worked best for her was to include “Genius Hour” as a way to create a space for open-ended questioning and wonder.  She also included makers space

By bringing in these techniques it allows for the creative and open-ended learning that Regio Emilia stands for. It does not look the same as what a Regio Emilia class would look like in lower primary classes, but it still uses the same techniques.  What is important is viewing the classroom as the third teacher.

If you are aware of the importance of the environment as part of what teaches the students then that is what really matters with Regio Emilia. Thinking of how your lessons and provocations will work in the classroom will lead to a strong feeling of calm to your students.

.http://reggioinspiredmakerspace.weebly.com/blog

What I feel is one of the major aspects of Regio Emilia would have to be provocations. That begs the question though, what is a provocation. In the most simple descriptions, a provocation is just something that provokes. That could mean a lot of different things to a lot of different people. To me and what I have seen a provocation is something that draws the students in and makes them want to engage in the learning you have set out.

When I first started looking into Regio Emilia I was overwhelmed with this idea. How was I going to engage with what it is that I want them to learn set up in an aesthetically pleasing way? I can barely get my own decor to be aesthetically pleasing and now I have to make my lessons aesthetically pleasing? It seemed to truly impossible. What I didn’t think about was the fact that I just had to think small.

With Regio Emilia, it is important for there not to be too much going on with the provocation. The table shouldn’t be crowded and should only have what is needed for the activity. Instead of using regular plastic bins, use wooden or metal bowls from a thrift shop that are interesting or look like a part of nature.  Doing this automatically makes it look better and it makes students want to see what is going on with it.

Provocation does not have to complicated, it does not have to be super beautiful. provocation is just a simple way to help to engage students in their own learning.

Setting up the first one so students who need help to start have an idea.

Other possibilities that I would love to explore in an intermediate setting are:

• An interesting photo, picture or book,
• Nature (e.g. specimens)
• Conceptual (e.g. changing seasons, light)
• Old materials displayed in a new way,
• An interest that a child or children have,
• An object (e.g. magnets, maps)
• New creative mediums,
• Questions (from any source – i.e. What is gravity?)
• An event (e.g. a presentation, a holiday)

After the students have all finished reading their lit circle books, it is now time for the final assignment.  I have a few good ideas for students to choose from for their final assignment.  When it comes to presenting the assignment, students will get together with their group and present the final assignment they chose.  Once again, they will use peer assessment with a different format.  Below is the format used for assessing their final assignments.

Here are a few different final assignment ideas:

Story Board

Create a storyboard of three main events/scenes from the novel/book.  Each scene should reflect either the beginning/middle/end or problem/climax/resolution of the entire story.

Your storyboard must include the following:

• Three illustrated scenes with one paragraph for each scene
• Be handed in on 8 ½” x 14” legal sized paper, the legal sized paper must be divided into 6 sections – 2 for each scene (illustration/paragraph) and space at the top for the title and author of the book

Each scene must include the following:

• The illustration must be realistic and either colored or shaded
• Each scene paragraph must include a detailed description of the setting, characters, and plot
• Each scene paragraph must also include a text connection of justification for the selection of the scene

Your presentation must be rehearsed and not read off of the storyboard itself.

Your comprehension activity must be assessed by a peer and by yourself according to the project rubric and presentation assessment.  The two assessments and your project must be handed in together for teacher evaluation.

Shoebox Diorama

Re-create a scene from the novel/book in a shoebox sized display, using plasticine, clay, Play-Doh, Lego, or other such materials

Your Diorama must include the following:

• Contain at least the main character, however, other characters will add to the overall presentation
• The setting should be connected to the main plot or conflict
• Two to three paragraphs written ahead of time on index cards describing the scene, setting, characters, actions, place in the overall story
• One paragraph written on why the scene was chosen to represent the novel/book
• Diorama has title and author included on shoebox
• Evidence of having rehearsed the presentation

Your comprehension activity must be assessed by a peer and by yourself according to the project rubric and presentation assessment.  The two assessments and your project must be handed in together for teacher evaluation.

Grab Bag Book Talk

Select some objects which are vehicles for retelling the story.  Put them in a bog, and pull out each object one by one, explaining how the object related to the story.

You are required to include the following elements:

• At least six objects, and for the following purposes – one of which represents the setting, two for the main character, two for the plot, and one for the conflict of the story
• One paragraph written ahead of time about each object put on an index card
• The bag has title and author and has at least one illustration, you are encouraged to pick an appropriate bag, such as a duffle bad for an athlete, or a suitcase for the main character who has just moved etc. (if possible)
• Evidence of having rehearsed the book talk

Your comprehension activity must be assessed by a peer and by yourself according to the project rubric and presentation assessment.  The two assessments and your project must be handed in together for teacher evaluation.

Hello All!

Last time I spoke about what types of stress there is and how it can affect students. This post is going to be about things that students stress about. I was reading this link and it was crazy to see some of these reasons students are stressing. Here are some of the factors that surprised me or shocked me the most:

“Changes to routine: A routine including dedicated homework time and a consistent sleep schedule helps guide students through their day. When changes to the usual routine start to happen, your child may find it more difficult to manage his or her time, leading to more stress.” I know that some students do not like change to routine, and I see that in the classroom setting; but I had no idea that they could stress due to home routine changes.

“Participating in class: For many children, the thought of getting called on in class and speaking in front of their classmates can be terrifying. This can be particularly true if your child struggles to keep up in a subject or area (common examples are math and reading).” Looking at my class this semester (grade 1), I can not see any of them not wanting to share in the discussion or wanting to try and read in front of the class. Even though I don’t hear them say they don’t want to, that does not mean that they want to. This really turned my head a new way.

To conclude, there is a lot of things I did not know that cause students to stress. My goal is to take this information into the classroom to help the students feel safe and happy in this environment. I hope that this helps you as well and maybe there is something you read here that you may not know.

Next post I will be sharing a different perspective of stress.

Common Causes of School Stress For Students