Testing

Replace your audience response systems with Poll Everywhere

and now a break from the break!

time for a break!

Enjoy the season!

From Punta Cana

Some holiday magic from the DR!

sometimes it feels like

This post was inspired by John Spencer. He's the third edublogger on my list.* He thinks pretty deeply, and is a geek, which is how I identify myself to the students, because there is no other way to describe how I know what I know. He also is willing to talk about his relationship with God, and that's pretty bold for a teach to do publicly. I admire that.


***

In my job, I work with kids/teenagers. It's a great job. I enjoy working with learners.

Sometimes however there's a piece of me that feels incomplete, and an utter failure at my job. When something just isn't happening the way I hoped it would. When the atmosphere in the room is tense and ripe with disappoint from all parties. When kids and teachers are sick, tired, and grumpy and need more than what comes out of 65 minutes together in one shared space.

Sometimes I fear my class is boring. Linguistics as a science is not boring to me. Spanish is definitely not boring to me. So I wonder why it all translates that way, some days. Sometimes, we just look at each other.

Spanish spoken nicely enough causes temporary relief, and exuberant chatter and integration of ideas makes life bearable...but....

Sometimes it feels like I lack the secret to making language learning alive, vibrant, verdant, viral.

Sometimes I pray for patience, and I can only hold my attention to the matter for about 5 seconds. Is that long enough to have a serious conversation with God? And I ask these kids to pay attention to me? Sometimes I cry when I feel like a failure.

No wonder it hurts sometimes. Sometimes, not one of us is paying attention.





*Next and probably last I will share Will Richardson

crossposted

The digital age

The digital age, originally uploaded by panacealater.

This is what is coming.

From the archives

january 2007 038, originally uploaded by Amity Beane.

This was my favorite system of laptops. I had my own cart and my own printer.

It rocked.

January 2007, PVHS.

productivity

Here is my EDU580 tech component for my research!  Next I need to upload it at Voicethread and finish the task.  Of course this is all pending the stamp of approval from my adviser.  Consider this a draft.

good news

My lit review has been approved and it is time to submit my proposal.  This is exciting!  My research has been completed (it's been a backwards process) and I will be continuing the OER work until June thanks to a grant extension.  It feels great to be doing this work.  I am thankful for the funding, the team, and that it works seamlessly with my degree requirements.

Fruit of labors here.

Mountain Bike en Chile

Trailer Down to Earth 4: Seguimos de Pie 1080p30 from Omar Salas on Vimeo.

ACTFL 2010, Boston

ACTFL stands for the American Council of Teachers of Foreign Languages.


I had a great time.


I was right that it would be a long day.


Right now my head is exploding with positive pedagogical energy. No notes at the conference but many clear ideas ringing in my head. This was a GREAT day and I must thank my GREAT district for funding it. We did it as cheaply as we could and the payoff will outweigh the cost in the long run. Good for the children, this one!


BIG IDEA OF THE DAY
The target language MUST be experienced IN the target language 90-100% of the time.


The goal for 9-12 (according to ACTFL standards, my NEW favorite standards, sorry Maine Learning Results) is to reach Intermediate High.


From the GWU site:

Intermediate-High speakers are able to converse with ease and confidence when dealing with most routine tasks and social situations of the Intermediate level. They are able to handle successfully many uncomplicated tasks and social situations requiring an exchange of basic information related to work, school, recreation, particular interests and areas of competence, though hesitation and errors may be evident.






Intermediate-High speakers handle the tasks pertaining to the Advanced level, but they are unable to sustain performance at that level over a variety of topics. With some consistency, speakers at the Intermediate High level narrate and describe in major time frames using connected discourse of paragraph length. However, their performance of these Advanced-level tasks will exhibit one or more features of breakdown, such as the failure to maintain the narration or description semantically or syntactically in the appropriate major time frame, the disintegration of connected discourse, the misuse of cohesive devises, a reduction in breadth and appropriateness of vocabulary, the failure to successfully circumlocute, or a significant amount of hesitation.


Intermediate-High speakers can generally be understood by native speakers unaccustomed to dealing with non-natives, although the dominant language is still evident (e.g. use of code-switching, false cognates, literal translations, etc.), and gaps in communication may occur.

Think about that.  Students are pretty much destined to commit error.  It's ok.






There is hope.  I am from a very similar educational background as many of my students, and my level is Advance Mid.  Not bad for a kid from rural Maine.

Speakers at the Advanced-Mid level are able to handle with ease and confidence a large number of communicative tasks. They participate actively in most informal and some formal exchanges on a variety of concrete topics relating to work, school, home, and leisure activities, as well as to events of current, public, and personal interest or individual relevance.






Advanced-Mid speakers demonstrate the ability to narrate and describe in all major time frames (past, present, and future) by providing a full account, with good control of aspect, as they adapt flexibly to the demands of the conversation. Narration and description tend to be combined and interwoven to relate relevant and supporting facts in connected, paragraph-length discourse.






Advanced-Mid speakers can handle successfully and with relative ease the linguistic challenges presented by a complication or unexpected turn of events that occurs within the context of a routine situation or communicative task with which they are otherwise familiar. Communicative strategies such as circumlocution or rephrasing are often employed for this purpose. The speech of Advanced-Mid speakers performing Advanced-level tasks is marked by substantial flow. Their vocabulary is fairly extensive although primarily generic in nature, except in the case of a particular area of specialization or interest. Dominant language discourse structures tend to recede, although discourse may still reflect the oral paragraph structure of their own language rather than that of the target language.






Advanced-Mid speakers contribute to conversations on a variety of familiar topics, dealt with concretely, with much accuracy, clarity and precision, and they convey their intended message without misrepresentation or confusion. They are readily understood by native speakers unaccustomed to dealing with non-natives. When called on to perform functions or handle topics associated with the Superior level, the quality and/or quantity of their speech will generally decline.






Advanced-Mid speakers are often able to state an opinion or cite conditions; however, they lack the ability to consistently provide a structured argument in extended discourse. Advanced-Mid speakers may use a number of delaying strategies, resort to narration, description, explanation or anecdote, or simply attempt to avoid the linguistic demands of Superior-level tasks.

Still prone to error!  And I am the teacher.

How to get to Superior? The secret is travel.  More of it is what Maine kids and their teachers need.  Experience is the best teacher.  Frame it through service and it's nearly always win-win.


That is why the conference was so good.  It gave me a chance to hear from real experts, and experience the wisdom of many teachers.  Collective wisdom in one place lends incredible energy.  And now I feel more clarity.  I am moving in the right direction.  I must teach in Spanish and reduce my expectations and help my students reduce their expectations. 






.......might I add, World Language Teachers know how to socialize.  The ACIS event was wonderful, and a lady we were chatting with earlier (out of 6,000 participants, you meet a lot of kindred spirits!) won a trip to Paris!  The view of the city of Boston was incredible on a cold November night.  I was proud to be a native of Massachusetts.  There was so much brainpower in the room that it felt magical to be a language teacher for Maine kids.  Our ideas were fun to share! Sharing is good!




We (my super-colleague Mme. K)  are proud to be part of a cool organization like ACTFL.





This trip  was a good use of public transportation.



We took car, bus, and train to the heart of the city!  Here is our late night happy face routine because we are heading home to God's country, Maine!

ACTFL!!!

This year my super colleague and I have the great privilege of attending the best conference available in our content area, as it is coming to Boston. I've never been to this conference, which is hosted by ACTFL. When we attend I hope to be able to blog all about it, but we'll see. I am not sure how I feel about this laptop and traveling. I need something smaller, easier, less conspicuous. Ok I will just say it. I need something like the NEW Macbook Air.

Anyway...stay tuned for more on ACTFL. I am yearning for a t-shirt that says "Yo hablo español. Yo uso Recursos Abiertos Educativos. I speak English. I use Open Educational Resources."

Maybe I will just have to make it.

The sharing of OERs is very exciting, but the overwhelming unknowns of the conference prevent me from planning much more to say at ACTFL. The fact we are commuting down from Maine and back in a day, and attending a swank cocktail reception, all while schlepping oodles of stuff in high heels, leaves me worried already that it will all be very tiring and not as fun as say, a conference in sneakers with rolling duffels to carry our loot. We can't look like shoppers at Black Friday. We have to look like teachers, teachers in the big city!

Juan Luis Guerra - La Llave De Mi Corazon (DVJ Maxi Remix)

My fave edubloggers

First I shared David Warlick. He's cool.

Now it's Scott McLeod's turn. I really like him. His video on revised Bloom's taxonomy and No Child Left Behind is one of my top hits on this blog. The link takes you to his main site, but I subscribe to his blog, Dangerously Irrelevant.

Sometimes Scott is a bit sharp. But he makes his points, and he asks lots of questions, and he shares, shares, shares.

Next up: one of my all time favorites. His name is John Spencer. He writes "Musings from a Not-so-master Teacher".

no longer blocked

Flickr and Blogger are now unblocked in my building. (Readers with me for a while recall when this first came up). Between then and now have been many emails, help desk requests, and meetings with administrators.

I feel lighter today than I have in ages. I am thankful to have administrators who make time to listen. I am thankful to have a job in this economy. I am thankful for a lot of things.

But mostly I am thankful that I can use these tools once more with students.

Los Van Van TEMBA TUMBA Y TIMBA

Educational Bloggers I read

I am going to start sharing the folks on my Google reader (use it if you don't already, saves a lot of clicktime and makes it much easier to see patterns in what you read--if you analyze mine you'd realize that I love technology, education, learning about Portguese and Swedish craft culture, farming, sewing, photojournalism, design, infographics, and a healthy dose of brain mush: basically fashion and gossip sites to help my brain dissolve at the end of a long day).

Here are my shared sites from my reader, sites I pick to share with anyone else who is in my field. Meaning, click in if you want lots of vibrant discourse on education today.

So, número uno is David Warlick.

Here is a pearl of wisdom he offers in his most recent post:

I can’t put my finger on any one statement or situation, but what came to mind several times is how much we, in K12 education, have lost our confidence. I remember, when I was teaching 25 to 35 years ago, a sense of educational entrepreneurship. I couldn’t have expressed it that way then, but I was free and felt encouraged to innovate in order to motivate learning — rather than applying teaching.

One of the professors said that when his daughter came home from her first day in sixth grade, she said that the principal had told the students that they will not be having fun. They will be learning. That is not innovation. It is blunt force education.

Not only have we lost our confidence, but our students are losing their childhood.

People wonder why I am in such a rush with change. Well, his last statement is why.

Next up: Scott McLeod. He really makes me smile with delight when he writes about education today.

bread maker's son

So I wanted to write about pain. About the pain I experience every time I stick my neck out at work and how hard it is for me to articulate what I know to be right. And so I went to my Flickr (naturally) and searched for pain to see if there were any scowls or anything I could find in my stream. (I search my own stuff--I have 17,000 plus items). Flickr has been on my mind a lot lately, given that I am blocked from it at work and all the visual learning that I use it for is blocked. Pardon me for saying so but any one with 17,000 plus items in her stream, many of them educational in nature, is clearly using a visual pathway to learn. And not being able to use Flickr causes me pain because it forces me to speak out loud about how I learn and how I am different. And really, I know I am different. (Anyone who grew up in a living laboratory called a working farm, anyone whose idea of "community service" means "those neighbors on that island in that ocean that we share....close enough" is clearly going to be different). I know I am total Alt Ed all the way (let me learn my way and please don't punish me for not being like you). I know that normal school has never worked for me. (I tried to quit twice, once in seventh, and once in eleventh, and ended up graduating early). And I know that this is painful and I need to talk about it. It's painful because no one should be forced to sit in neat even rows for hours on end doing worksheets. That kind of learning isn't learning. It's painful because I remember the day when I was 16 years old and took responsibility for my own learning. "We can't give you a transcript for junior year." Guess what I learned junior year? Spanish. It's painful because I know how expensive travel is, but virtually, one can travel for free. It's painful because this, and this, and this, all help me teach. And the blockage....it's just painful. 


 So blah blah blah...I searched for pain on my Flickr and lo and behold it spat back a few loaves of bread...pain is French for bread.  And with bread came this photo of the breadmaker's son.  And I laughed out loud.  And I felt better.  And so this blog is therapeutic yet again.






In terms of work and pain, I know it will all pass in time.  I know that I need patience among other lacking virtues.  I know.

Cross-posted.  My school and my emotions intertwine.  That is why teaching hurts sometimes--because we teachers have feelings and we spend 90% of the time meeting the needs of others, at work, and we have needs, too.

it's the beginning of the end

No panic button, I mean the end of grad school. I have affectionately called it grad skoo since the whole process began, but now that a formal application for a diploma has been submitted, it's beginning to feel serious.

I really do think that my degree program at Farmington has made me a better teacher. I feel I have learned a LOT. Interestingly enough, I don't think Farmington was about stretching my skills in the Technology piece of TPCK. I don't feel it addressed my Content piece of TPCK because I did not take one Spanish course. I did all my literacy work up at Orono, so no connection there. But what Farmington brought to me was a series of challenges to the way I do business. It helped me formalize my teaching strategies and it validated my pathways of teaching and learning. It forced me to consider WHY I do things and WHAT the kids will learn as a result. I learned so much about the different ways that people learn and how to chart growth. I read so many pages of interesting theories and philosophies, and more importantly subscribed to some of the most exciting educational bloggers out there, that give a much more eloquent public discourse about education than I can, at this point.

Number one? Graduate school forced me to share my ideas and I became better at that. I developed a very unique, very awesome personal learning network. Not to brag but my personal learning network is very international and very connected! A high point was presenting at PUCMM in the Dominican Republic. I presented to a faculty there about learning with multimedia and gave strategies for designing learning with multimedia. I did this IN Spanish. It was SO hard and so good for my brain!

Now the sweet spot of my graduate school experience. My research. This research is all about open educational resources and I am part of a powerful movement. I lead a team of 9 others to focus on World Languages. I've put 80 hours in to the research already (yes, a lot!) and will have 60 more in before I am done in June. And I graduate in May! It's all so exciting--to realize that Farmington was a good investment, because it stretched my mind and pushed me to be better at this teaching gig. It pushed me to share more, and dare I say fight more for the pathway I represent.

So yeah. It's a lot of work right now, but I'm close. And it feels so good.

Have I mentioned...?

I received three Pearson sponsorships (read: free money) for three of my social networks? All are private, but here is the list:

Dirigo Photo--this year Alternative Education students comprise this network
Dirigo Spanish--for my advanced classes, and possible collaboration with the two other high schools in my district
DR2010--I plan to present to the school board soon and this network will be renamed DR2012. This is open. This was great!

My students are most active on the photo network. Great work alt ed! Can't wait to print those pictures large and share with the whole school.

correction codes

Two great resources.  One is a link, one I will post here.

First, this comprehensive list of codes IN SPANISH for correcting Spanish, from the University of Rhode Island.  Click in!

I have a list also of correction codes from this source.

Correction Codes

AA Adjective/noun agreement wrong (includes gender and number)

AC Accent wrong or missing

AGR Subject/verb agreement problem; make sure subject agrees with verb.

AP Personal ‘a’ required

ART Article wrong or missing (includes definite [el/la…] vs. indefinite [un/uno/una…])

CC Wrong copula choice; choose between ser and estar  

GEN Gender wrong; check whether noun is masculine or feminine and make it agree with article.  

INF  Infinitive needed

OP Object pronoun wrong or missing; may include direct/indirect object pronouns or masculine/feminine; make sure pronoun agrees with the noun it is replacing.

PART    Participle form of verb required; be sure the participle agrees with the noun if it is being used as an adjective or in the passive voice. Ex.: Las composiciones fueron revisadas por el profesor.  If it is used in a perfect tense, use the masculine singular form. Ex:  Yo he estudiado para el examen.

PREP Preposition wrong or missing

REL Relative pronoun wrong; frequently ‘que’ is missing. Ex.: La casa (que) yo compré.

REF Reflexive pronoun wrong or missing

SP Spelling error

SPN Subject pronoun problem; Ex: Yo, tú, él, ella, Ud., nosotros, ellos, ellas, Uds.

TNS Tense incorrect (includes preterit/imperfect distinction)

VF Verb improperly conjugated (includes wrong verb forms, e.g., stem-changing verbs)

WC Word choice – more appropriate word required; vocabulary error; may be the result of a direct translation from English. 

WO Word order incorrect 

 

A student sent this to me :)

Rita Indiana y los Misterios

(Feat. Los Misterios)

La canilla preparada pa juir La pantalla en treintamil Me trague la gasolina con un ambenil Entero Sin abri la boca toy metiendo Miedo Con eto beat haciendo colte E patelito de epinaca en to eto cuero Son ajeno, son del que lo toque con ma Fuego Exodo Voy pa Puelto Rico Exodo Ma lejo que Egipto Con un pentagrama e cicatrice En la cabeza a lo Jack Veneno Mandale la horma a tu tío en el Etranjero Pa que manden tenni Que se armó el juidero (Puente) Con un pentagrama e cicatrice En la cabeza a lo Jack Veneno Mandale la horma a tu tio en el Etranjero Pa que manden tenni Que se armó el juidero (bis) Exodo Voy pa Puelto Rico Exodo Ma lejo que Egipto (Rezo Oyá) Te vi mamadeo con lo deo en bola Deso te gotea la jugola Vaina cocola Si me la pide te la canto en yola Tu ta buenona, te sabe to la rocola Mi sone son de cuando pitola De cuando Cuca bailaba con Lola Punqui pun el tablazo en la tambora Soba soba Ni con bengay te mejora Güay Tu viene dique hinchao con to lo viento en contra Si te me cuadra a mi La Montra Buuuu, Ponte lo papo de escarba el gallinero Plumero y pico en pote Que se armo el juidero Exodo Voy pa Puelto Rico Exodo…

social media

At our opening workshop in August I really struggled with the idea that social media is not a part of an educational experience.  Today I found an article that shares 7 fantastic free social media tools for teachers.  At the end of the article are related links that make a case for social media.

http://mashable.com/2010/10/16/free-social-media-tools-for-teachers/

I'm curious: what do you use for social media?  Do you have connections with students?

Personally the most "student connected" social media I use is Flickr.  There is a reason I keep a clean Flickr.  I keep all of my social networks clean but I am especially careful with this website, and when my students use Flickr, I have always modeled responsible networking.  I used to allow students to friend me on Google and use Google chat to talk to me, but that was before schools hosted educational networks like email.  I require my students to use email, and they receive grades for responding to short, simple e-mails in Spanish.  Talk about modeling...letter writing at its finest. 

So...talk to me....do you use social media with students?  Is it educational?

viva colombia

Free High School Science textbooks

http://www.fhsst.org/

Discovered while researching Open Educational Resources.

Basically a team of invested parties set about to create a high school science curriculum that is totally free and aligned to South African learning results.

Makes me curious:

To what standards do you align your curriculum?  Maine PEI, your own state standards, Common Core, or some other standard?

Educacíon en RD

Neruda

Bilingual baby

Love this vid!!

L'exam/El examen

El examen de Manu Chao

This blog is blocked

My lovely portal of digital knowledge is partially blocked at school. Blogger is blocked, but since I have my own domain (thanks, bro), I only lose tiny relevant bits here and there. It's driving me a little nuts. The Dipity slideshow I posted below for my threes is blocked since it uses Flickr. Not all blocked, just a few relevant bits. Thank goodness Google is not blocked. You're welcome, trees!

So I've asked for a bypass for my students to use. I've asked very nicely. I hope to hear soon about it. These kids, are, after all, growing up. They are growing up fast, too fast for our rate of decision making. A generation of students, wondering why on earth we don't open it up, make transparent choices, choose to be learners in this century. Choose to be networked. These are the kids whose co-workers will ask, What do you mean, you don't know how to do that? We rant and rave within these four walls, when the whole world is out there. It's out there.

Sometimes I want to shout: If you think what is happening is what this room full of teenagers thinks is happening, well, you're wrong. There is a whole world out there, and my job is to show it to these teenagers, model how to get along in the world with all these tools, construct knowledge about it with them, discover the world.

A student today came to me and said, "I talked to Luis today." Luis lives in DR. He is an expert in his field, an athlete of old. "He told me to get ready for snowshoe season!" Her eyes sparkled like the sun. Her world has shifted because, quite simply, technology has allowed it to. My whole heart fills with joy that this is something I have shared, modeled, and helped her discover.

Rant over, issue not. I will keep the faith here--that in the end, teaching and learning will be supported, and we can carry on the business of educating our future caretakers and decision-makers.

PD for Teachers (Like Students Do It)

I read this article yesterday and I think it summarizes nicely where teachers need to be in terms of tech:

PD for Teachers (Like Students Do It). Will Richardson is very articulate. I find myself sharing a lot of what he writes.

We as teachers often start with how do I do this? Someone must show me. And students start with, how do I do this? I will play around and figure it out.

Neruda

Flickr: pablo neruda on Dipity.

hear ye, hear ye

Lately my finger has been pointed outward and the nature of things inevitably causes a few fingers to point back at me.

One of my flaws as a Spanish teacher is that I don't speak enough Spanish.

Last night decided that one week a month will be an all Spanish week. One week a month! In a school year that's nine weeks, which equals one whole quarter. That feels better to me. Dedicated time that adds up to something.

Reflections. I am not sure why this period of my life is full of so much inward reflection and outward motion. Maybe it is because I am nearly done with my advanced studies. And part of me wonders if I am ready to graduate? That is silly, right? Thousands of people earn degrees all the time. It's more than a piece of paper...right?

Right?

week three/semana tres

Week three, sickness hits.
My classroom is a ripple
that turns into a wave.
No one feels quite right today.
Even the Internet feels broken.
We shrug and sigh through the last period.
Finally someone
has the bright idea
to haul out the bean bags
and have me read them a story
"just like in kindergarten!"

The words are in Spanish,
the pictures, familiar--
it's a monkey! and
a man in a yellow hat.

They listen, rapt--
shining faces, smiles
emerging from shadows.

If only every day
could be like kindergarten.
We could rest, we could play,
we could read, we could run--
what am I thinking?

I hated teaching kindergarten!
They were messy!
They were loud!
They cried!
They had to use the bathroom
when I was in the middle
of Very Important Lessons!!

But yet--
the tranquility of
ears listening, eyes watching,
brains working out words--
I love this part.

So. No real answers.
Just happy the day ended
on a Curious George note.

close to tears

One of my classes came in today and I had just spent a good hour grading their work from the weekend before. I stood in front of them and said, "I really can't give any credit, except to one person. Only one person read the directions and did this the way I expected. So, the rest of the class did not receive any credit--I put a zero in for the first try. I'm not disappointed; you are all pretty new at this."

Several kids looked like they might cry. One boy started sputtering at me, and I had to ask him to speak more respectfully. I felt awful. Was I really the first teacher in the two weeks of school that has told them they aren't going to receive credit for work that does not meet my standards?

"Don't look so sad!" I hastily added. "I stay after school one day a week and I can help you, and show you what you need to do to make it right. That day is tonight. Please come if you can, and we can fix this."

After that I taught them the lamest joke in Spanish, which basically goes, What does the fish do? The answer is nada, which means both nothing, and swims. They got it, they laughed, the mood lightened, and we worked on skits for the rest of the time--lots of great questions, and mini-lessons.

Promptly after school several students showed up in my room, and we worked together to make the work right, and they were singing, and smiling, and one girl said, "This is actually fun." We sat in a big circle and laughed at how easy the work really was, with practice.

I hope they know that staying after is never a punishment, it's just another chance to practice and become better at these new things.

Grad school notes

(Thanks, Dr. M)

Working on design principles for sharing research in a presentation. We will use Voicethread this semester--cool.

Goal 1 Clear and to the point

Principle 1: Relevance

Tip: you can use media here to set the stage.

Build around take away message then tell them what they need to know to understand the message.

Don't saturate with the data. Not all of my data on OERs will be relevant to my presentation.

Principle 2: Appropriate Knowledge

Make use of what the audience already knows.

Present ideas that grow out of familiar ideas (OER is foreign but educational websites are not).

Know the audience and address concerns and interests.

Activate schema--give context.

Goal 2 Direct and hold attention

Principle 3: Salience! Tell things at the relevant time.

Tease it out.

Tip: you can use color in text. It also helps to organize.

Principle 4: Discriminability

Two properties must differ by a large enough proportion.

Basic design here.....headings etc.

Principle 5: Perceptual Organization

Viewers will consider together materials that are organized into a single group.

Goal 3: Promote Understanding and Memory

Take advantage of how mental processes help

Principle 6: Compatibility

Form compatible with meaning.

Principle 7: Informative changes

Every change in meaning should be conveyed by a change in appearance.

A change in appearance usually triggers an expectation that the information set will change.

Principle 8: Capacity Limitations

We have a limited capacity to retain and process.

Don't make it harder than it is.

(I think I will enjoy designing my presentation....)

My last professional presentation

This was shared in April in the DR...playing around with Slideshare today for grad class.

Presentaciónpucmm

View more presentations from Amity Beane.

does this happen to you?

I subscribe to Google reader and use their shortcuts to navigate the page. I hit the letter j on my keyboard, the next story pops up.

I now find myself hitting that key ALL THE TIME. I just want to get to the next thing on the page and not have to scroll through stuff that does not matter to me. Of course this does not work in other situations besides my reader, making me feel like the WHOLE WORLD NEEDS TO CATCH UP and QUICK to Google.

Does this happen to you?

Google-itis. When you rely on Google to do stuff that doesn't apply in other situations. What other things does Google do that you wish happened in other places?

Thanks Osocio

One of the websites I read daily is Osocio, which is a marketing-for-good site that collects ads that are essentially public service ads. I've seen some amazing ads since subscribing. This one I especially enjoyed because there seems to be a gap in knowledge of the culture of being Muslim in American. I hope you enjoy seeing this as much as I did.

Cuba en

http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cuba

Para leer :)

Diurno con llave nocturna--Neruda

For level 3.



Son las nueve de la mañana
de un día enteramente puro,
a rayas azules y blancas,
recién lavado y estirado,
justo como una camiseta.

Todas las briznas olvidadas
de leña, de algas diminutas,
las patas de los insectos,
las pálidas plumas errantes,
los clavos que caen del pino,
todo reluce como puede,
el mundo tiene olor a estrella.

Pero ya viene el cartero
escupiendo cartas terribles,
carras que debemos pagar,
que nos recuerdan deudas duras, cartas en que
alguien muriò
y algún hermano cayò preso
y además alguien nos enreda
en sus profesiones de araña,
y luego traen un periòdico
blanco y negro como la muerte
y todas las noticias lloran.
Mapa del mundo y del sollozo! Diario
mojado cada noche
y quemado cada mañana
por la guerra y por los dolores,
oh geografía dolorosa!

Ya la tarde rota se arruga
y vuela como papel muerto,
de calle en calle en calle va,
la orinan los perros errantes,
la persiguen los basureros,
le añaden aliños atroces,
tripas de gallos, excrementos,
zapatos irreconocibles
y es como un Fardo el viejo día:
sucio papel y vidrios rotos
hasta que lo tiran afuera,
lo acuestan en los arrabales.

Llega la noche con su copa
de enredaderas estrelladas,
el sueño sumerge a los hombres,
los acumula en su subsuelo
y se lava el mundo otra vez,
otra vez regresa la luna,
la sombra sacude sus guantes
mientras trabajan las raíces.

Y nace de nuevo otro día.

ready

Room painted, books organized, supplies in order.

New programs installed. New music in the cd player.

New faces. It's a yearly thing.

Usually I feel great anticipation. This year I am just ready. I am prepared and ready and juggling the myriad other things in my life. I am trying to do this with a smile.

Tomorrow I see the kids for the first time. That is the best part of my job. The kids.

The major bummer of today was not having access to educational sites because they had been blocked at the venue.

I get so frustrated when teachers cannot access what they need.

But tomorrow the kids come and I am reminded why I love this job. Not because of cool tools but because learning is awesome. Learning in action is awesome.

comments on a useful course

EDU572, Technology as a change agent, has been a very useful course.

After reading Reeves, I realized the need for a one-page plan for my courses. These plans outline essential skills and concepts that are needed for mastery of a level. The document is aligned to the Maine Learning Results.

After reading Liberating Learning, I realized I need to advocate more for evironmental learning design--basically setting up spaces that are alive and not ignored due to being plugged in. I don't think interactive is quite the word--I think there exist separate values of different types of learning spaces. Face to face time in a living environment is superior to on-line learning in my value system.

Thinking out loud in a very informal grant proposal allowed me to focus on real data collected over time about how my students learn and how I learn and how we differ. I understand I teach to myself intrinsically and must develop outward practices of differentiation. Hopefully someone wants to pay for this professional development.

Evaluating the district tech plan was somewhat painful as I realized the infancy of our district and its culture. I have a Utopia in mind and sharing a strong vision of appropriate technology integration (see above, environment and living learning spaces) is really my goal. It starts in my own department of World Languages and will hopefully spill over.

This course was extremely practical because the activities on change readiness gave me the permission to be patient with myself and others. We are in the midst of a long, slow change. In ten years, I hope I can point to a successful student and say, "We learned together."

All work is here.

beanbags?

Today four bean bags that I have waited literally years for arrived in my classroom.

What a thrill! What excitement! Could they really fit in those boxes??

Well, once out of those boxes, four bean bags expanded so that one corner of my room is rather overshadowed by four HUGE bean bags.

I hope these are not an issue (multiple people jostling on bean bags is not a management issue I desire) but I realized if kids could settle down in a comfy spot to actually READ something, then the bags are worth it. I also figured that if 4 bags are just too much, I am sure I could find people to take one or two from me.

As it is, with the bags next to each other against the wall, I think 12 people could squeeze on them...not that I want that to happen...it's just...they are HUGE.

curriculum and assessment 2010

Today is the third time we've met and I must say Mary and I kick butt at this stuff.


Level 1 (ten hours)
1. Examine and reflect on the World Language Seminar model and tweak it. We did a survey, and sixty kids gave us feedback we will use.

2. Specifically, re-organize the Seminar to be a list of tasks instead of calendar-based. Started this. Done!

3. Create project sheets for each task and make them into .pdfs for the wiki (ETA we created these as we went along last year--not a huge timesucker) A lot of this has to do with me cleaning out my laptop before it gets re-imaged. Find that here.

4. Isolate the essential skills. Here they are.

5. Create a metalanguage master definition page with tons of examples. Mary is doing this in Pages until I fix that page of the wiki.

6. MAKE BINDER GUIDELINES with STUDENT SAMPLE
(colors for different tasks, etc?)

7. Make 1 page plan with essential skills, unit themes, metalanguage, translation guidelines, and contact info.

8. Make Metalanguage Flap Posters for level 1 These are almost done--waiting for definitions to be done (see above). I plan on making them like this: Kirsten's page.

9. Finish Welcome Letter with links on wiki Here it is

Level 2 (ten hours)

1. Create a metalanguage list Here they are!

2. Create a task-based list to meet Maine Learning Results. (Worry about project sheets as we go--at least create the first few). Here they are!

3. Isolate the essential skills. Here they are!

4. Create a metalanguage master definition page with tons of examples.

5. Create binder guidelines for students with student samples.

6. Make graphic organizer for ¿siete qué?

7. Make Metalanguage Flap Posters for level 2

8. Sign up and build the SAM series in Discovery Education What an exciting new tool we have been given from the district. SAM is in both French and Spanish and is perfect for our level 2. Most exciting is that the videos are embeddable!



Level 3 (ten hours)
1. Make a list of units by semester.
2. Make project sheets for each one. WIP
3. Isolate essential skills.
4. Create a metalanguage list.
5. Create Google sites for each student.

Level 4 (ten hours)
1. Create list units for each quarter.
2. Isolate essential skills.
3. Create a metalanguage list.
4. Create Google sites for each student.

Based on this list, the biggest investment to be made is time.

curriculum and assessment 2010

Level 1 (ten hours)
1. Examine and reflect on the World Language Seminar model and tweak it. We did a survey, and sixty kids gave us feedback we will use.

2. Specifically, re-organize the Seminar to be a list of tasks instead of calendar-based. Started this. Done!

3. Create project sheets for each task and make them into .pdfs for the wiki (ETA we created these as we went along last year--not a huge timesucker) A lot of this has to do with me cleaning out my laptop before it gets re-imaged. 

4. Isolate the essential skills. Here they are.

5. Create a metalanguage master definition page with tons of examples. I plan on making them like this: Kirsten's page.

6. MAKE BINDER GUIDELINES with STUDENT SAMPLE
(colors for different tasks, etc?)

7. Make 1 page plan with essential skills, unit themes, metalanguage, translation guidelines, and contact info.

8.  Make Metalanguage Flap Posters for level 1

Level 2 (ten hours)

1. Create a metalanguage list Here they are!

2. Create a task-based list to meet Maine Learning Results. (Worry about project sheets as we go--at least create the first few). Here they are!

3. Isolate the essential skills. Here they are!

4. Create a metalanguage master definition page with tons of examples.

5. Create binder guidelines for students with student samples.

6.  Make graphic organizer for ¿siete qué? 

7.  Make Metalanguage Flap Posters for level 2


Level 3 (ten hours)
1. Make a list of units by semester.
2. Make project sheets for each one. WIP
3. Isolate essential skills.
4. Create a metalanguage list.
5. Create Google sites for each student.

Level 4 (ten hours)
1. Create list of potential tasks for students to choose from. Each task must incorporate reading, writing, listening, and speaking. Students will choose one task for each quarter and the last quarter will be student-created task based on my model.
2. Isolate essential skills.
3. Create a metalanguage list.
4. Create Google sites for each student.

Based on this list, the biggest investment to be made is time.

Why I make those work lists I do...

Notes for Adobe Connect meeting

# What is the need? How did you uncover it?

The need for an aligned curriculum came about because of an “end of an era”—the French teacher who had taught at Dirigo for her entire career (and by all accounts producing French-speaking students by year 4) retired, leaving me as the “head” of the department.  There had been no strong Spanish teacher (or one that stayed more than 2 years).  The first year without Mme Murray at the helm there was a crisis with the long term sub since we did not find a qualified teacher in time—finally we hired the current French teacher.  By this time, about a year and a half on the job, I discovered the curriculum could be adjusted, as long as we were willing to do the work of alignment.   We discussed options, what we liked, what we didn’t like. We looked at the numbers in the beginning of language instruction (9th) and at then end (12th).  We decided we could re-articulate why and how languages are learned and we decided to collaborate on all themes, units, and assessments, starting at level 1 and working our way up.  That was last summer and we initiated the brand new World Language Seminar to freshmen last year.  Our goal was to provide rigorous, dynamic instruction that would serve as a foundation year for the rest.

# What is your goal?
The goal now is to put the time in to levels 2, 3, and 4—to discuss assessment, align to the MLR’s, integrate technology especially based on my findings from my research project—the end goal being a higher than 12% retention rate at the highest level.

# How do you plan on addressing this need?

This need is being addressed though hours of curriculum work with my colleague.  We set goals, make lists, and “attack” our curriculum time with very focused energy.  This year level 2 should be making its aligned debut.  Next summer level 3 is slated to be aligned, and in 2012 we should finished with level 4 and know the result of this four year initial period.  Ultimately we want to move from 12% in advanced instruction to 30%.

# And, how will you assess the intervention?

The easiest way to see if what we are doing is working is to see how many kids end up in level 4, and if they can compare on a national test of Spanish or French.  The issue currently is non-rigorous, poorly designed sequencing of instruction that neglects the basics.  We want to equip kids with the basics but go far beyond that in advanced study.  Currently our advanced level students are still of the cohort that had another teacher besides us. 

pecha-kucha

source

cool, right?  this presentational format is 20 slides/20 seconds per slide, and is a Japanese form of presenting a focused presentation.  I chose this for its visual richness, the fact I cannot understand him yet am delighted by the illustrations.  I am truly a visual learner--rich, gorgeous colors and images delight me.

So how do this translate to my grad class?  I think I might do one of these to talk about World Languages at Dirigo.

PD Needs Assessment, Goal, and Plan

I am using a situational gap analysis to precede my PD needs assessment, goal, and plan (taken from EDU572 Blackboard).

Situational Gap Analysis

The situational gap is the distance between today's reality and our vision for tomorrow.

Exercise 1: Focus on the current reality without making a value judgment about it (just the facts).

When you consider technology integration in your school-

1. What is creating that gap today? Time is the biggest factor in the gap between integration and my department at school. This is a gap created by value placed on time in the system.
   
2. Is it technical, cultural, and/or instructional? This is a cultural issue as it has to do with the value of time and how teacher spend non-instructional time.
   
3. What can we do to bridge that gap? Create a specific plan for developing curriculum and request the time to do so with clear goals and measurable results. Ask for meetings to be focused and on task. Respect and value the time of colleagues, administrators, and students.
4. What is your vision for your department? For your school? My vision is to have a four-year World Languages curriculum in place that is dynamic, integrated, and rigorous. My vision for my school is to become a healthy, robust network of connected learners in a more transparent learning environment.
   

Exercise 2: .

1. What do you see as your primary role(s) within your department? Within your school? Within my department I work in tandem with the French teacher to create units and align curriculum to the Maine Learning Results. Within my school I am a part of a leadership team that is currently undergoing revision.
2. What is the vision for your department as it relates to your school? The World Languages department seeks to empower students as communicators, which directly ties in to the Expectations for Learning at Dirigo High.
3. Why is this vision important? I recently heard a great quote that is posted to this blog that says, "It's not our job to make you happy, but rather to make you strong." This may sound a little harsh but I love the fact that it is my job to help students learn how to communicate and understand language, which will help them in every other area of life.
4. What difference will it make in student achievement? World Language instruction improves literacy across the board. A rigorous program will empower students in other content areas as they make connections between words and meanings. Cultural awareness is also a key outcome of World Language instruction and that adds value to a student's education.
   
5. How will you go about achieving this vision? What are some of the specific enabling strategies you intend to use in the next few years? My colleague and I dedicate curriculum time to making goals, working toward them, testing out new ideas, reviewing them and refining them. I see this continuing until we complete the four years of curriculum. Right now we have the first year aligned with specific steps for summer work, the majority of summer work being the development of year two.
   

The final goal of a situational gap analysis is to identify what the outputs/results are for each area. This activity forces participants to go BEYOND thinking about the activities as the results. It helps us focus not on the what is delivered (staffing, money, training, time, equipment, etc) but instead on what this resource does (results/outputs).


More time with my department ---> Curricular development that is dynamic, integrated, and rigorous ---> increased communication and literacy skills among students in the program

Needs Statement
World Languages at Dirigo include French and Spanish. Instruction begins in 9th grade. Students enter with varying skills. In the past 3 years, only 12% of students who completed level 1 matriculated to advanced instruction (level 4). Of those students, many lacked basic skills and consistency in communication. In addition, the number of students who studied Spanish was disproportionate to the number of French students, with no clear reason why.

If these trends continue, advanced study of World Languages may dwindle to a degree that requires cutting the department. That would certainly inhibit the endurance of advanced skills. In addition, students need instruction that allows them to go beyond high school studies for leverage. Essential skills must be retained in order to advance to higher levels of study.

The World Language program has begun to shift practice from disjointed curricula to collaborative teaching and design. As a result of intense focus on essential skills at level 1, World Language Seminar was devised. Presently, the gap exists between levels 2-4 in terms of collaborative teaching and design to mitigate the problems addressed above.

The need to solve the problem has become evident as the department re-establishes itself after many years of constant change.


Goal and Proposed Plan
In order to successfully change the outcome of the past three years which has been very low numbers in advanced classes with students that lack essential skills, levels 2 through 4 must undergo substantial review and revision to become more dynamic, integrated, and rigorous. Based on how long it took to design Level 1 as a team, run it, review it and tweak it, the time period needed to implement proficiency level changes is 15 to 24 months per level, which can overlap. We are in month 19 of World Language Seminar (level 1) and are in the revise stage after reviewing the data from last year. Beyond level 1, lever 2 must be addressed this year in a focused, in-depth review. Levels 3 and 4 will be the subject of intense focus in subsequent cycles. The overall "overhaul" time period will probably be 4 years total.

A list of objectives that I created in June adequately states next steps for curriculum work in my department. The list is by level.

Level 1 (ten hours)
1. Examine and reflect on the World Language Seminar model and tweak it. We did a survey, and sixty kids gave us feedback we will use.

2. Specifically, re-organize the Seminar to be a list of tasks instead of calendar-based. Started this. Done!

3. Create project sheets for each task and make them into .pdfs for the wiki (ETA we created these as we went along last year--not a huge timesucker) A lot of this has to do with me cleaning out my laptop before it gets re-imaged.

4. Isolate the essential skills. Here they are.

5. Create a metalanguage master definition page with tons of examples. I plan on making them like this: Kirsten's page.

6. Create Google sites for each student.

Level 2 (ten hours)

1. Create a metalanguage list

2. Create a task-based list to meet Maine Learning Results. (Worry about project sheets as we go--at least create the first few).

3. Isolate the essential skills. Here they are!

4. Create a metalanguage master definition page with tons of examples.

5. Create Google sites for each student.

Level 3 (ten hours)
1. Make a list of units by semester.
2. Make project sheets for each one. WIP
3. Isolate essential skills.
4. Create a metalanguage list.
5. Create Google sites for each student.

Level 4 (ten hours)
1. Create list of potential tasks for students to choose from. Each task must incorporate reading, writing, listening, and speaking. Students will choose one task for each quarter and the last quarter will be student-created task based on my model.
2. Isolate essential skills.
3. Create a metalanguage list.
4. Create Google sites for each student.

Based on this list, the biggest investment to be made is time.

make a list

Take a few minutes sometime between now and our chat at 7pm and list 12-15 things you value the most about your current position - anything from the work itself, to your colleagues, to your classroom space, etc. Be as broad in your thinking as possible, but also choose the most critically important factors.

1. location to my home
2. location within the campus
3. actual room is good size good light "good space"
4. freedom of pedagogy-I align practice to MLR's
5. great colleague to collab with
6. WLS -- love this course
7. one to one
8. tech tools like projectors and cameras
9. small school, community school
10. sports program is entertaining
11. arts program is entertaining
12. dr2010 was allowed to happen
13. grants grants grants
14. rsu means more resources to my department

Next, prioritize the "job satisfiers" into three groups

• Important- things that you value, but, if gone, wouldn't cause too much difficulty

1. sports program is entertaining
   
2. arts program is entertaining
3. rsu means more resources to my department
4. small school, community school
5. location within the campus
6. one to one

• Very Important- one step up the scale 

1. location to my home
2. actual room is good size good light "good space"
3. great colleague to collab with 
4. WLS -- love this course

• Critically Important- things without which the job would be terrible

1. freedom of pedagogy-I align practice to MLR's
2. tech tools like computers, projectors and cameras
3. dr2010 was allowed to happen
4. grants grants grants

Once you have grouped them write the critically important list inside a circle. Drawing a bulls-eye-like pattern, write the very important list in the circle outside the center and the important list in the outer most circle.

My perspective

Please respond to these questions in a document (word processor of your choice).

1. How is the technology function structured within your school? How do you staff it? How do you support it? What are the structural elements put into place to make technology happen, in terms of programs and people? What kind of structure are put into place to make things happen?

We are a one-to-one laptop school of approximately 320 kids, 30 teachers, 3 administrators, and support staff. We recently regionalized and became an RSU. The main office of the RSU is located at my campus. I therefore have more access to technology specialists than others in my school or region.

At my school, there is one person in charge of acquisition and installation of hardware and software including the phones. I do not know who controls filtering of the internet, or who troubleshoots Apple issues, because that seems to be a regional office now and not specific to my high school, so different people respond to these queries. I do not know who controls the policies of what to do when a kid disobeys the laptop program.  I do know that there seems to be one person in charge of all the computers for my high school. She checks them in and out and she filters their content. I do know that administrators have had a rough first year with one-to-one integration.

I can’t speak for other people in my school, but I know that having more curriculum time with my colleague in World Languages is key to integration.

Thought in my head that needs to just come out: There is never time to just play and do on the laptops. No time to do whatever we want. That's too fun.  I want to integrate. I need time to create using these marvelous apps and time to tinker and fiddle with these tools.  Who cares how fun it is if it gets the job done?

I think the fear is Farmville. I could be stuck up and say I despise Farmville, but there is a serious lesson in economics there.  Not to mention--if a user changed the language to a World Language, I bet there would be some immersion language learning. The point is the technology we do use, we are not sure how to use in the classroom and there is a fear of it. We are a school in flux—that is the underlying narrative push.

2. How well does your school do the human resource side of technology, in terms of the tech support and tech integration function and also in supporting and empowering non-technology staff (teachers and administrators) to use technology?

The tech support at school has not been what I would call helpful in terms of helping me to access curricular components that are blocked. On the other hand, I have been given things to play with—especially cameras—and we make things with them in the classroom. When I had desktops, support was superb.

Maybe we need to serve the kids at their level? Offer workshops for them, by them—offer hardware and software sessions?  Teachers and kids together, learning how to do cool stuff.

There is very little support at school by anyone for any initiative-there has been in the past, but this year tech presentations on Google, wikis, and other tools fluttered to a standstill as change creeped in and reminded us of how things are different.

My school is in flux. We regionalized this year and combined three districts. We have a new principal.
This post may be hard to interpret to someone not in my school world. I say things like school, region, district.  My school is 320 kids.  My region is about 1400.  My district is that 1400 plus two more regions, one bigger, one smaller.  When I say my school I mean 320 kids, not 1400 plus....  When I say my campus I mean where I teach which is separate from most of the 320 kids in a satellite building to the main building.  It just worked out that way--and I happen to be in the central office building, close to the tech action.

3. How well does this fear of technology operate within the political dynamics of the school system? Is it successful? Are there power struggles? Do you have troubles getting resources that you need? What are some political issues that surround technology function within your school?

The largest issue is regionalization and a desire to comb through everyone’s policies for “best practice”. The schools are so different in their approaches and so far this process has stymied the urge to grow with technology. The new one to one at the high school had given birth to new culture, one in which the kids are always in trouble for doing something on their machines that is not within the policy. Teachers are becoming enforcers. Learners have left the building and are reading Twitter feeds somewhere off-campus, where it is allowed.

The main issue is control and power. The balance has shifted and still shifts with the change that continues in our school. Combining resources and power structures is process that will happen over time.   I am not saying any one person, group or committee is vying for power, but power is shifting in a very large system.  And, it will take time to develop a new systemic culture.

I am most concerned with my school of 320 kids, and this small community and small culture we are trying to shape of kind, productive, thoughtful, contributing citizens.

The place for the most powerful growth, in my eyes, is to work toward a more open, transparent school.  Sharing tools and ideas and networking like mad would allow a lot of this control to be non-essential because everyone can see what everyone else is doing and there is a flow to work that includes these tools.

In this utopia of open sharing, no one ever has to ask for help. Someone is always there to show and guide. Awards are given out regularly to the best networkers, and they give workshops for how it is done. Average age of winners and subsequent expert presenters: 16.

4. What are the messages sent to your school about the technology? What beliefs do people hold in their heads and their hearts about technology in your school organization? How well is the symbolic function around technology fulfilled in terms of getting buy-in, getting passion, getting people to think that work is meaningful and essential as opposed to marginal and optional?

The message of the previous school year, when the one to one program was brand new, was that kids waste  a lot of time of the computers and often were "caught" doing bad things.  Some things were legit bad, but some things were just common ways of communicating today--through static messages of less than 160 characters.


Marginal and optional seems to be the key phrase in the preceding question.  Tech seems both marginal and optional to teachers and admins but not to learners.  In the times we are in, of flux, of change—no one seeks to buy in to the latest gadgetry and trainings and applications. People want culture to be steadfast, not fluid. People want less to do, not more. People want to teach, quite frankly—the tools don’t matter if the dialog is not there.

When I hear the word marginal I think about poverty.  I think about people living on the edges.  When I read the brilliant blog by John Spencer, it made more sense--we have told a lot of people these white boxes are purely entertainment, and there is no room for entertainment in school, and there certainly isn't time for learning at home since kids spend all their time at home catching up on their entertainment.

The idea behind the dissonance between learning at home, learning at school, entertainment at home, entertainment at school, is the tool can be controlled. Well, the mind can’t. That is the main problem. You just can’t control the mind.

EDU572 #2 SWOT Analysis

summer class

For the first time in a long time I am taking an on-line course. Long ago, learned that my social learning style did not go well with pure on-line coursework. I can't just read and comment! I need real live people to argue with!

Well, this class has promise as it will use Adobe connect to meet 4 times. I had never used Adobe connect before the OER project. The first time I used it, it felt so awkward. After three meetings I felt very comfortable. It is a good example of learning something because it is part of a way of doing things, not learning something just because. My motivation was high, and now that I know the app and am going to use it in another professional venue, I am very happy!!

My next major goal: Tandberg! We own the equipment and I designed a unit a few years ago that requires Tandberg between buildings in the region. Maybe it will happen this year? Maybe not? We'll see.

Back to the online class. It is called Technology as a Change Agent. I will post the sources for reading on the right when I can. This course looks right up my alley as it asks all kinds of great questions about technology in school--who controls, manages, etc. the technology. I think I will learn a lot about the structure of tech at my school and also how to move in a direction with it that makes sense for my learners. We are lucky (we meaning my colleague Mary and I) because in our content area (World Languages) there is so much available to assist learning.

So, back to school for a month. Online, not too bad. My two projects are full swing, OER and grad class. After this class only three left and I have a master's degree with a research focus. My research is in progress right now and I could not be happier about it--researching OER's has been a lot of organizational WORK but now that I am into it, it feels great knowing it will work toward my degree.

So, now on to read some text books and make some notes....

quote of the day

"It's not our job to make you happy, but rather to make you strong."

rays of light

If you want to keep your Ning for school

Got Ning?  I do!

Need a k-12 sponsorship?  I just applied!  (DR2012....)

Click here...

Updated Summer Goals

Work in Progress....

Level 1 (ten hours)
1. Examine and reflect on the World Language Seminar model and tweak it. We did a survey, and sixty kids gave us feedback we will use.

2. Specifically, re-organize the Seminar to be a list of tasks instead of calendar-based. Started this. Done!

3. Create project sheets for each task and make them into .pdfs for the wiki (ETA we created these as we went along last year--not a huge timesucker) A lot of this has to do with me cleaning out my laptop before it gets re-imaged.

4. Isolate the essential skills. Here they are.

5. Create a metalanguage master definition page with tons of examples. I plan on making them like this: Kirsten's page.

6. Create Google sites for each student.

Level 2 (ten hours)

1. Create a metalanguage list

2. Create a task-based list to meet Maine Learning Results. (Worry about project sheets as we go--at least create the first few).

3. Isolate the essential skills. Here they are!

4. Create a metalanguage master definition page with tons of examples.

5. Create Google sites for each student.

Level 3 (ten hours)
1. Make a list of units by semester.
2. Make project sheets for each one. WIP
3. Isolate essential skills.
4. Create a metalanguage list.
5. Create Google sites for each student.

Level 4 (ten hours)
1. Create list of potential tasks for students to choose from. Each task must incorporate reading, writing, listening, and speaking. Students will choose one task for each quarter and the last quarter will be student-created task based on my model.
2. Isolate essential skills.
3. Create a metalanguage list.
4. Create Google sites for each student.

Tech skills for 2010-2011
1. Learn to use Audacity
2. Play with Voki


I think I am done with Ning. I saw an awesome example of Google sites for World Language portfolios. I am going to keep the wiki with syllabi, though, as that is a great parent portal. I wish I knew how to use Moodle.