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Wednesday, May 3, 2017
Monday, August 31, 2015
Kids help me hack the MakerSpace sign! The OCD/everything needs to look perfect person in me had to let go and just let them design. I was only reminded once that "mom, you just told me to be creative!" Ugh, they are SO right. Kids are naturally creative creatures, we need to allow it more. #lifelessons #smartucate @makerspaces @makerfaire @makershed @nmhslmc #gomaples #APSMaker
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Sunday, August 30, 2015
Our first makedo project
Last week I purchased a set of Makedo tools along with a project kit! What a great, safe, and easy way to have fun!
Tuesday, August 18, 2015
Passion Talk from Jackson EdTech Kickoff
Slide 1: It's a popular quote from some football coach that I care less to follow, but has become my philosophy, my brand, my passion.
Slide 2: Last year on a brutally cold winter day as I stood outside Lincoln elementary waiting for my daughter; I was thinking of an excuse I could make to get inside the warm building to wait for her. As a parent and as someone who is passionate about educational technology I looked at my daughter's school and saw a need for some type of technology enrichment. I thought to myself, “wouldn’t that be cool if they had an after school club?”
Slide 3: This was my next do something. I approached the principal, he did not say why or how, he said when?
Slide 4: Within a few weeks we had 10 kids signed up and held our first “Lincoln Tech Club” session. Little did I know how much these kids would inspire me.
Slide 5: During the first few weeks we played around with Makey Makey’s, coding, green screens, and just plain old fashion technology
Slide 6: (video).
Slide 7: As I searched for more hands on activities the kids could do I came across these cute little Bristlebots, and read the definition:
"A bristlebot is an extremely simple form of walking robot. It is one of the simplest of all mobile robots, both in its function and its construction. As a result of this ease of construction, they have become popular projects at the school science fair level."
Cool! We were going to make bristlebots. Little did I know that this “simple” walking robot would completely change how I few teaching and learning.
Slide 8: That day I laid out all the materials on the table and asked the kids what they thought we were going to make? I explained that I was not extremely successful and had tried a few different configurations with the battery and motor and I tried a few different toothbrush styles. My challenge to them was to be scientists and use the skill of inquiry to see if they could get their bristlebot to move forward on a flat surface. The kids took right to the task of making these "simple robots".
The first 5 minutes were pretty quiet as kids began to work. However, I soon learned how quickly kids will give up if something does not work the first time. I heard a few of the kids say this is stupid, it doesn't work” and “Mrs. Smart, are you sure you know what you are doing?”I looked around the room and saw one kid crying, two arguing with one another, one throwing his stuff on the ground, and Mr. Jackson the student teacher helping strip wires and trying to keep the peace. My own daughter standing on a chair cheering everyone on telling them that “WE CAN DO THIS” because she can now see the frustration on my face and knowing how excited I was about this project.
This was hard for me to hear, I spent SO much time planning this and was SO excited for them to make the bots. I thought to myself “I should have had a plan, I should have had more directions, this is chaos!”
But then I looked around again, those tears were not “I hate this tears” they were tears of “I am going to make this work dang it!” the boys arguing were actually arguing over the trash can with a pair of scissors and a toothbrush on how they thought the toothbrush bristles should be changed. Tape was flying across the room and kids were running with scissors... because they had an idea they thought would work and were eager to try. My daughter was still standing on her chair cheering, not making a thing.
Slide 9: (video)
Slide 10: By the end of the hour we did have a few successful bristle bots, and the kids were stoked. They all gathered in the gym to watch the working bots go. I realized Griffen was not in the gym. As I walked back to the computer lab I found Griffen stuffing left over batteries, and motors into his pockets, he asked if he could take some tape home. I asked him why. He said, “I am going to make this work Mrs. Smart” he wanted to take the materials home to keep trying. I said, “here Griffen, take the whole role, do you need some toothbrushes?”
As the kids left that day and we looked around a room that had stuff everywhere I looked at Mr. Jackson and said “what the hell, just happened?” His response “I guess that was inquiry based learning”
Slide 11: He was right, but it was also much more. For me it was a huge game changer in how I view education and how our students learn. Before this day I thought I had a good idea of what good instruction felt like and looked like. But I was missing a few pieces. Kids and... more importantly teachers need to take risks, explore, play, question, create, and fail.
Slide 12: As educators and parents we need to do more to make things like these happen for our students. Yes it may be outside your comfort zone, yes, it make take up some of your free time, yes, you may not get paid for it but remember...
Slide 13:
Blame No One
- Even with all the negatives in education (AKA testing), we are still responsible for how and what our student learn, how they perform, and who they become. We are the ones who need make it work. I get sick of hearing teachers make up excuse after excuse about why they can’t do this because of that, we are professionals, our job is to make it work! Have you reached out to others for help? Have you thought outside the box? Have you teamed to work with other to solve the problem?
Slide 14:
Expect Nothing
- No one is going to do it for us (Unless maybe you have a teachers pay teachers account)
- Set high expectations for yourself and your students and remember, you get what you expect.
Slide 15:
My challenge to you is to
Do Something.
- Be the change.
Thursday, August 13, 2015
Thursday, June 25, 2015
Open Education and the iiE
Open Education
Over the past seven weeks, I have been learning more about open education through cases of connected learning in the UofM-Flint course "Investigations in Open Education". We looked at open education through three lenses: tools, communities, and interest-driven practices. The term "open" is not new to education; educators and students have always openly shared, communicated, and learned with others. However, technology in the 21st century has given "open" an entirely new meaning. Open education now means freedom. Freedom to learn when and where we choose, and who we chose to learn with. So, how do we implement this new idea of open learning?
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| http://connectedlearning.tv/infographic |
Connected Learning
Connected learning gives us the framework for open education in the 21st century. In the connected learning framework teachers are no longer the “gatekeeper” of information and shift their schools and classrooms to a more student-centered approach where students become “connected” to social networks and learn to become responsible for their own learning.
"Connected Learning is an educational approach designed for our ever-changing world. It makes learning relevant to all populations, to real life and real work, and to the realities of the digital age, where the demand for learning never stops." (connectedlearning.tv)
iiE
This all came together during my three days on the UofM campus at the Institute for Innovation in Education (iiE). Day one was interest and academic driven with workshops offed for participants to attend. I had a great time learning more about gamification from Tim Saunders, Amanda Pratt, and Winona Tinholt's workshop, Playtesting: Remixing Off-the-Shelf Games for Your Classroom (gameful-learning.org). Classroom gamification is something that has really interested me over the past year. In the afternoon, I lead a session on instructional coaching. The session focused on best practices in instructional/technology coaching, from knowledge and skills to supporting innovation, to building relationships and trust. We discuss the role of both the coach and the coached, problem-solved, and network with other coaches. The session was open to current coaches or aspiring coaches, administrators, or anyone who wants to learn more about the role of coaching. (session notes)
Day two focused around educators and business leaders having a shared purpose for innovation in education and networking with one another to make that innovation happen.
Hearing from Richard Sheridan CEO of MENLO Innovations and author of Joy Inc. speak about how a positive work culture and space can help "reintroduce learning, so you can stop teaching" was very powerful and inspiring. The afternoon gave time for some with special projects to share their ideas, needs and wants to help strengthen their projects. I was proud to share the Lincoln Technology Club at the afternoon poster session. During that time, I networked with people in the education, STEM, and technology field to help further my ideas for the club. The un-conference sessions allowed P-12 educators, higher education, non-profit and private sector participants to collaborate, share, and inspire one another around topics fabricated by iiE attendees.
Day three and four was production centered with collaborative project work days. Day three simply allowed participants to produce, create, experiment, and design along with collaborate, share, network and receive feedback from peers. I spent the day working on designing the Lincoln Maker and Technology Club for the fall of 2015. During the breakout jigsaw sessions, I was able to review my work and discuss roadblocks I was having and help I needed to further the project. I left day three feeling that I got a lot accomplished!
Having such great experiences like the iiE and having it help me understand what open and connected learning sounds like, looks like, feels like was very powerful. What if more teachers could have this same experience? The experience to learn more about what interest them. To share, collaborate, and network with others of the same interest. To produce meaningful and innovate work and receive feedback and help from peers.
What would our schools, classrooms, and students look like then?
I imagine much differently.
What would our schools, classrooms, and students look like then?
I imagine much differently.
Thursday, May 21, 2015
Two Things I Recently Found That I Love
Ok, from the moment I learned about MakerSpace I have loved them. However, I REALLY love that Lincoln Elementary will have a MakerSpace in the 2015-2016 school year! What will make it even cooler...we get the grants we wrote for to supply the space.
I recently found emaze-amazing presentations and I love it! What a fun way to spice up your presentations. So I took the two things I LOVE right now and combined them.
Enjoy!
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