Every learner needs a purpose. Purpose provides the passion to move from mediocrity to great. Purpose fuels us to move forward. It provides the drive and motivation to succeed.

How do we create a sense of purpose within our students? Is the purpose of education to create students who can pass a test or course? Or is it to develop students that contribute to the world as a whole? How can we guide students to create their own sense of purpose and contribution?

Much of my time recently has been devoted to getting a handle on the Common Core/Iowa Core in order to assist teachers in the transformation. While I believe we should be preparing students to be college or career ready, my hope is that we are setting our sights on even a higher pedestal. Not only do we need students ready to enter higher learning institutions or the work force, but we need students ready to join us in our quest to make the world a better place. We need students to contribute to society not just “be in society.”

Listen to Sam Parker (author of 212 Degrees and Cross the Line) describe his thoughts on reinforcing contribution with students.

What would your own students stay is the reason for going to school? Would their answers be as Sam explains in the beginning of the video clip? Or would their answers move to the contribution side of the spectrum? Are they creating their learning or going through a set requirements.

So, how can we move to helping students to making a contribution? There are several learning approaches that can be implemented in conjunction with the Common Core. Summer is a great time to begin to investigate and make plans for the coming year.

Project Based Learning (PBL) – In Project Based Learning (PBL), students go through an extended process of inquiry in response to a complex question, problem, or challenge. Rigorous projects help students learn key academic content and practice 21st Century Skills (such as collaboration, communication & critical thinking). To learn more see http://www.bie.org/. The website provides many resources for teachers to get started in PBL. The goal is to become familiar with your grade level Common Core Standards and then begin to integrate them in a problem based learning investigation. With any new approach, start small and teach/model the procedures to students.

Service Learning – Service Learning is a teaching and learning strategy that integrates meaningful community service with instruction and reflection to enrich the learning experience, teach civic responsibility, and strengthen communities. GenerationON provides a wide variety of resources to assist teachers with Service Learning. Search for ready to use PK-12 lessons by grade, issue and subject area here. Watch recorded webinars to equip yourself for service learning here.

Inquiry Based Learning – Throughout the Common Core, inquiry is imbedded. The premised is that instruction should move to student centered learning. In Iowa we are fortunate to have 5 Characteristics of Effective Instruction embedded in our work with the Core. One of the characteristics happens to be Student-Centered Learning.

As we move to enact the Common Core in our classrooms, let’s not lose sight on the purpose of learning. Let’s guide students to create learning for themselves. Let’s remember, as Angela Maiers has so eloquently stated:

cc licensed flickr photo shared by mrsdkrebs

I’ve picked up a new crafting hobby for the summer. I have spent a lot of time scouring flea markets and garage sales for just the right materials. As I walk the endless aisles I can’t help but wonder about the stories behind each treasure. Was the item a gift? Did it have any sentimental value? Did it make a person smile or was it a reminder of something unpleasant? Why is someone wanting to rid the item from their possession?

For some reason each item found itself of the shelves of a flea market or tagged for a garage sale. Each item is waiting to be treasured by new owner and a develop a new story. Each item wants to recycled, recreated and given a chance to have a fresh start. Moving forward on a new path.

The re-creation process is a apart of our educational journey. As we end one school year, we await for a fresh start to come again. Summer vacation provides us time to relax and reflect on the past while making plans for a new beginning.

Come fall, we will be taken from the shelf, dusted off and put with a new set of people – even if we head back to the same classroom or school we’ve been in for years. We are ready to write a new story or chapter in our lives. What will that story be? What can you do now to create your new story?

Read: Not only does reading provide a sense of enjoyment and/or new learning, it give us a chance to analyze what good readers do. Try monitoring your reading. What do you do when you encounter confusion? Learn from your own reading habits to better assist your students.

Reflect: Many summer time activities provide for time to reflect on the past year. Gardening or mowing the yard can be perfect times to ponder past events in order to plan for new happenings. Here is a great set of reflection questions to get you started. (20 Teacher End of the Year Reflection Questions)

Renew: Summer provides us the opportunity to seek out new learning in order to renew and refresh classroom practices. I highly encourage you to check out Twitter! You will find a very passionate group of educators readily sharing ideas to guide you in a renewal process. Here is a set of resources that provides information on why Twitter is beneficial to educators.

Recreate: As we reflect on our past year, we may find practices or procedures that need to be recreated. Summer can be a time to reorganize and be ready for the coming of a new year. Have you checked out Pinterest? So many teachers are pinning creative ideas to spark new plans for the coming year! Feel free to check out my Pinterest Boards.

RELAX: Most importantly, summer is a time for relaxation. Find a new hobby. Travel. Connect with friends and family. Do what you’ve always wanted to do! Summer time is a beautiful gift!

My new crafting hobby will fill my days along with other activities that involve reading, reflecting, renewing, recreating and relaxing! New stories are bound to develop.

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Interested in my newest crafting craze? I have many supplies for unique, one-of-a-kind bird feeders. Just let me know if you are interested in purchasing one!

Boji began his career as a therapy dog this past spring and decided blogging would be a good way to share his experiences and connect with young readers! He plans to spend the summer fine-tuning his blogging abilities whenever I feel like sharing the computer with him! He hopes to connect with young readers around the world, share reading strategies and promote a love of literacy.

He has already made many friends at the Sioux City Public Library and at an area elementary school. He is proud to be a member of the K-9 S.T.A.R.S. His favorite thing to do is listen to kids read!

Visit Boji’s Blog to follow his adventures as a “Read to Me” dog!

This post is a cross-post of a weekly newsletter I write for the staff of two schools where I serve as an instructional coach.

There has been much publicity around the movie BULLY, some of which was shot right here in Sioux City, Iowa.  The movie has helped open up the topic of bullying and harassment across the country. I encourage you to check to see if the movie is playing in an area near you. It sends a powerful message. We must do our part to erase bullying and harassment in our schools and communities. As Secretary Arne Duncan says in this video “talking about bullying is not enough. We must work together and take action to make things better.”

The Sioux City Journal had a full-page editorial (OUR OPINION: We must stop bullying. It starts here. And it starts now) on the front page of the paper today (April 22, 2012). It is a must read. Another article features Sioux City Superintendent, Dr. Paul Gausman, as he answers questions after the release of the movie Bully, partially filmed in Sioux City.

I have attempted to gather some resources that may assist you in the classroom as well as help educate us on the topic of bullying. The more we all learn, the more we will know and the better we will be able to help eliminate bullying. We must be a part of the solution. We all deserve the right to live in a world that is bully free.

The Bully Project website offers many resources. If you click on the headings (parents, students, educators, advocates, viewing guide) you will find free tool-kits. The parent tips are also translated in Spanish.

Stop Bullying - Is an US government site. It contains a wealth of resources for teachers, parents, and community members.

 The KIDS section of stopbullying.gov provides additional resources that you may find useful for the classroom. Check out the Webisodes section for several short videos that can be used in the classroom. Each video has a set of multiple-choice questions. Incorporating your responders may be a good way to generate a class discussion around the topics.   (Please remember to view videos yourself prior to using with student.)

The Iowa Department of Education has a helpful set of resources on their website dealing with Anti-Bullying and Anti-Harassment. If you scroll towards the bottom of the page you will find some helpful “Tip Sheets” for you to review. Check to see if your own state department of education has similar resources.

Pacer’s National Bullying Prevention Center  is another site that offers many resources. The site has some videos for you to preview as well as several items under the RESOURCES tab including a free bookmark, information handouts and educational activities.

The Cartoon Network is showing that one of the most important things young people can do when they see bullying is to speak up. provides resources for teachers and students. Again, there are several videos you may find helpful including the Stop Bullying: Speak Up Special with a special introduction with President Obama. The Make Your Own Stop Bullying Comic section looks like it could be a powerful activity either using the online comic generator or paper in the classroom.

Education.com provides resources for “Bullying at School and Online” -  Click on the link on the right entitled SPREAD THE WORD for several resources including a free eBook for parents/teachers.

Do you know of other helpful resources for schools and communities? Please share them here. 

Together we can make a difference!

Each week I write a newsletter entitled The Learning Journey for the educators at the two school I serve as an instructional coach. Teachers lead busy lives. It is my hope that the weekly newsletter can streamline ideas on a variety of instructional strategies. The following post includes ideas recently shared in The Learning Journey.

On Saturday, April 15, I took my dog, Boji, to the Sioux City Public Library. It was our first day to volunteer in the “Read to Me” Program set up by the S.T.A.R.S. organization.

Boji and I had a great time meeting kids. Most were even from schools I currently serve or have served in the past as an instructional coach. Boji listened to several stories. The kids also loved asking questions about Boji. It was fun to see them in such an inquisitive state. Boji has even decided to blog about all of his experiences! You can follow Boji at Boji’s Blog: My Adventures as a Therapy Dog!

One of the books that was read to Boji (and I) was a book in English and Spanish. I attempted to learn how to say the Spanish sentence provided on each page. Whenever I’m faced with speaking/learning another language, I am reminded what many of our students deal with on a daily basis. I felt frustrated when my pronunciation was incorrect or when I didn’t understand what I was even saying. Yet, I felt encouraged by the assistance of the students. They guided me through the pronunciation and understanding of the text.

I found myself relying a lot on the cognates, words in two languages that share a similar meaning, spelling, and pronunciation. I felt secure in my understanding and pronunciation of words that looked similar to words I was familiar with in English.

Many of us do not speak the home languages of our students. Cognates are difficult to know if we don’t know the first language of our students. It helps if we educate ourselves. One way is becoming familiar with the cognates and similarities of languages!

Following are a few resources on cognates. I hope you find them helpful as you serve the needs of the English language learners in your classrooms. Perhaps they will be helpful as you work with your students’ caregivers as well.

Using Cognates to Develop Comprehension in English – This is a very helpful article on the ¡Colorín Colorado! Website. It provides some background information on cognates and their role in helping students comprehend English. It also provides several classroom applications. One such resource is a PDF of several cognates. (Note: While on the site ¡Colorín Colorado! do a search for cognates. You will find several other resources!)  The article also reminds the reader that there are “false cognates” or pairs of words that look similar but have different meanings. For example:

• In English exit means to leave
• In Spanish éxito means success

Quizlet – Flashcard Developer Quizlet is the largest flash cards and study games website with over 11 million free sets of flashcards covering every possible subject. It is a place to play educational games, memorize vocabulary and study online. There seems to be several sets cognate flashcards already developed. The cards also have audio of the English and second language pronunciation. Older students may find it useful to review some sets. Or, it appears that you can make your own Quizlet flashcard sets. For flash cards to be even more useful, picture support would be beneficial.

Cognate Commotion - This site explains a game in which you can use cognate flashcards. The two resources above would be beneficial. Determining cognates that go with a specific unit of study will help students comprehend the new learning expectations.

The Cognate Highlighter –  This is FREE resource produced by The Cognate Project. You just copy and paste English text in the window and those cognates understandable to Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, and French speakers will be automatically highlighted. Interestingly, hundreds of proper names (popular brands worldwide included) will also be highlighted. THIS IS PRETTY COOL! (Site indicates it works best with the browser Google Chrome)

Math Cognates – Math has its own language, even to English speakers. This link will take you to a list of MANY math cognates.

Familiarizing ourselves with cognates and helping students understand the link between languages is one way to help students gain a new language, comprehend what they are reading or listening to and feel successful along their journey. Cognates also are helpful to us, as we learn their first language. A shared love of learning languages can help students feel comfortable in their in their language acquisition process.  It all goes back to “People don’t care how much you know until they know you care!” 

Over the weekend I had the opportunity to travel to Omaha for #edcampomaha. It was great to learn from other educators! In one session  educators sung the praises of FOLDABLES.

Graphic Organizers are important tools that help students organize and understand key concepts.  Foldables are three-dimensional graphic organizers that are more interactive and appeal to kinesthetic and visual learners. Students are cutting, folding and gluing colorful paper to create the organizer.  The possibilities for higher-level thinking and engagement are endless.  Students are asked to organize information, compare and contrast, discuss cause and effect, make observations, etc… As with any classroom activity, the key is on the learning – The bridge between knowing and understanding!

One foldable in particular, that was mentioned at #edcampomaha, was something I had used as a teacher – but now has a “techie” component. I use to have my students fold one piece of paper to make what we called an 8-Page Book. We used these in a wide variety of subject areas. The “techie site” calls them PocketMods. I encourage you to spend some time exploring this site and all the possibilities.

The first PocketMod I plan to make is for a personal project.  Over the course of the last year I have been preparing my dog to be a Read To Me Dog at our public library. My dog, Boji, has passed all of his tests. I will complete the necessary orientation class in a few weeks and we will be ready to begin.

I plan to create a PocketMod book for Boji to give to the children that read to him. I haven’t decided the exact format. It may be a short story about Boji or perhaps a small book of reading strategies Boji would recommend. Either way – I’m excited to try out the PocketMod site!

As we head through the home stretch of the school year, keeping students engaged in their learning is so important. So much can be accomplished and learned in 9-weeks. Perhaps Foldables have or could play a role in your classroom. I’d love to hear how you use them!

I have created a Pinterest Board on the topic of Foldables. I’ll continue to add to it as I find more sites. I hope you are able to find some inspiration from the pins to enhance your current use of Foldables or give them a try for the first time!

HAPPY  FOLDING!

Learning is a collaborative venture. The more we can provide opportunities for our students to think, collaborate and learn from each other – the more we are preparing them for their futures!

Do you use the strategy Think-Pair-Share in your classroom? The Think-Pair-Share strategy is a three-step collaborative learning structure developed by Dr. Frank Lyman in 1981.  It is a relatively low-risk and is ideally suited for instructors and students who are new to collaborative learning. Each component is equally important in the process and shouldn’t be short-changed.

The General Strategy: Think-Pair-Share –

• Teacher asks a question or provides a prompt.
• Students are given time to THINK about their responses.
• Students PAIR up and discuss their responses.
• Student pairs SHARE their ideas with a larger group.

Do you want to spice it up with additional variations?

The strategy Think-Pair-Share, along with a variety of twists, is a versatile strategy that can be used before, during or after a reading, viewing or listening activity. It incorporates elements of strategies that are known to increase learning (summarizing, comparing/contrasting, restating an idea, collaboration, think time, and using different learning modalities).

Fran McVeigh challenged me in my last blog post, Check for Understanding, to think in terms of no-tech and tech variations. I have included some tech variations at the end of this blog. I would love to hear other ideas in the comment section!

NO-TECH VARIATIONS

Think-Pair-Share (Listen) – When student are sharing ideas with their partner remind them to listen to their partner’s ideas. When groups are asked to share, students share the idea of their partner – not their own.

Think-Pair-Square – Students share with two other students after they have completed Think-Pair-Share (4-square).

Think-Pair-Pod-Share – A “Pod” is a sharing with a small group (a table group) – prior to sharing with the whole group. Students first share with a partner. Then bring all thoughts together as a table (pod) prior to sharing out with whole group.

Think-Write/Draw-Share -  Students write or draw their own ideas before they pair up to discuss them with a partner. This allows students to more fully develop their own ideas before sharing.

Think-Pair-Share (reading strategies) – During “think” part students are asked to think in terms of summarizing, questioning, predicting, visualizing.

• Once students understand all four of these areas, groups can be asked to use a variety in a single “think-pair-share”. (One (or more) groups summarize, one (or more) groups visualize, etc…)

Think-Pair-Share (various perspectives) – After posing a question, ask pairs to “think” in terms of a different perspective.

• A character in a story, a career, a historical figure. Etc…

Formulate-Share-Listen-Create -

• Formulate your answer to the question individually.
• Share your answer with your partner.
• Listen carefully to your partner’s answer. Note similarities and differences in your answers.
• Create a new answer that incorporates the best of the ideas.
• Be prepared to present your answer if called upon.

Mix-Pair-Share –

• Students silently mix around the room. NO TALKING!
• Teacher calls “pair.”
• Students pair up with the person closest to them and shake hands.
• Students who haven’t found a partner raise their hand to find each other.
• Teacher asks a question and gives think time.
• Students share with their partner per teacher instructions.

TECH VARIATIONS

Think-Tweet-Share – Students think of response and then generate a Tweet, or 140 character representation of a Tweet.

• Rather than Twitter students could use Today’s Meet.
• The Today’s Meet back channel could be Tweeted out by teacher to include global sharing and perspectives.

Think-Text-Share - If students are allowed to use cell phones in class, rather than verbally pairing their ideas they could text each other. Then share with full group.

Think-Pair-Wordle-Share – Teacher posses a question such as what are all the words you can think of to describe _____________. (character in book, historical figure, etc…) Students think individually, then share ideas with partner to develop one Wordle between the two of them. Then share with group.

Think-Blog-Respond-

• Student begins by thinking of blog post ideas
• Student creates his/her own post
• Reader responds

The post becomes the “pair” on a much larger scale. Another aspect of the “pair” is that a blog post is meant to be read by another person. The author’s  ideas are shared through the post. When the reader responds, this is yet another venue for sharing understanding with the writer.

The above has served as some food for thought. I would love to hear from you if you try any of these variations in your classroom. Do you have other ideas to share with the global community? When our ideas come together, we all become stronger. Our students benefit greatly from our online THINKING, PAIRING and SHARING!

Photo Credits:

cc licensed flickr photo shared by Mary_on_Flickr

cc licensed flickr photo shared by DerekL

Last February I wrote a post entitled, Angry Birds – A Lesson in Assessment FOR Learning. It has been one of my most popular posts. This past week I shared some quick formative assessment ideas in a weekly newsletter I write for teachers in my two schools. I thought I would include them in a blog post in order to reach a larger audience. I hope you find some ideas to try in your classroom.

As teachers we create conditions for our students to learn. As we plan it is critical to create opportunities that keep students engaged in the learning process. The outcome of this process is to determine if students have reached our learning targets.  In order to know if students have learned the concept(s) taught, formative assessment data should be collected to check for our students’ understanding. These can be short preplanned activities that serve as a closure to a specific lesson.  The data collected will help develop the your next steps.

• Where are my students headed?
• Where are they right now?
• How can I close the gap between where they are and where I want them to be?

The following strategies are quick 5 minute strategies that can be used in the classroom.  The strategies send a message to students – be the best learner you can be because you will be asked to demonstrate your learning  during class. Most were adapted from a PPT from D.C. Everest Area Schools in  Weston, WI recently found online.

Good Questions –

• On a piece of paper, write three good questions you could ask to learn more about the topic we studied today. (Ticket out the Door)

Three Minute Writing -

• You have three minutes to write everything you learned today. Don’t worry about the organization – just write for three minutes about what you have learned.

Draw Two Names -

• You have one minute to think about how you might summarize today’s lesson.
• Two names will then be drawn and those two people will stand and each gives a thirty-second (time can vary) summary of the key points of the lesson.

Simon Says –

• Simon say – tap your head if you understood _________ from today’s lesson.
• Simon says – hold your arms up if you didn’t understand ________.
• Simon says – turn around if you understood ________.
• Simon says – flap your arms if you know what _____ means.

Roll the Dice –

• Decide which person is “even” and which person is “odd.”
• The teacher asks a questions and you and your partner discuss how to respond.
• The teacher rolls the dice. If it’s an even number the “even” people stand and the teacher calls on someone to respond. If an odd number is rolled, the “odd” people stand.

Fogginess -

• What part of the lesson today was the most unclear (or foggy) to you?
• Write it on a piece of paper. (Ticket out the Door)

Newspaper Headings -

• Create a newspaper headline that may have been written for the topic we are studying. Capture the main idea of the event. (Ticket out the Door)

Chalkboard Champs –

• The class is divided into 3-4 teams.
• The chalkboard/whiteboard is divided into a large space for each team.
• Each person needs a writing utensil.
• When the teacher says “Go,” all team members rush to their area and write or draw (symbols/pictures) to represent key ideas in the current topic of study. (It will be crowded!)
• At the end of 3 minutes, each team must present 2-3 ideas from their chalkboard creation.

Chapter Skim -

• Skim over pages _________ in your textbook that you have already read. You will have two minutes to skim.
• You now have thirty seconds to tell your partner some key ideas from the book. Then your partner does the same.

Retelling - 

• You have just finished reading/hearing about ______________.
• You have one minute to think about what you read/heard.
• Partner A – retell it to Partner B in two minutes.
• Partner B – ask questions to check for understanding.

Test Questions -

• Write two test questions that you think the teacher might put on the test.
• Make your two questions be about the most important ideas of the unit.

Mini Drama -

• The main idea of the lesson today was ________________.
• You and your partner have two minutes to come up with a short one minute play that tells the main idea of the lesson today.
• Present your play to another pair.

Letter to the Principal -

• Write a short letter to the principal telling him all of the ideas you have learned about this week.

Meet the Teacher -

• You and your partner decide on the most important idea from the lesson.
• Together, state that idea in one sentence.
• When you are ready, you and your partner should line up to “meet the teacher” and tell what you think the most important idea was.

Rock Paper Scissors -

• Have students pair up and number each group.
• Listen to the question the teacher asks and discuss it with your partner.
• Do “Rock, Paper, Scissors” with your partner.
• The winner stands and the teacher will choose one or more of the winners to answer the question.  Repeat several times. (Teacher could use number cards to determine students.)

Back-to-Back Boards -

• You and your partner each get a mini-white board and stand back-to-back.
• The teacher asks a question and you each answer on your board.
• When the teacher says “turn around” you show each other your answers and discuss.

Trio Rap/Song -

• Your trio should create a rap or a song that includes three main ideas from the lesson.
• If you’d like, use the melody of a common song.
• Perform your rap/song for another trio.

What strategies do you use to check for students’ understanding!

In business, location is everything. The same holds true in education. Parents desire schools that are a safe distance from home. Teacher need instructional resources at their finger tips. Administrators should be visible on the school campus and in classrooms daily.

For me, Twitter is my 24/7 source of professional learning. The location is just right. I can access Twitter from my computer, iPad and iPhone whenever and wherever I desire. Yet, for others Twitter is uncharted territory. The learning curve is steep and scary. The concept does not appeal to all educators.

As an instructional coach, aspiring administrator, and life-long learner I realize that we must inspire new learning on the teachers’ terms. Jim Knight, author of Unmistakable Impact, calls this the PARTNERSHIP APPROACH. The partnership principles include: equity, choice, voice, reflection, dialogue, praxis and reciprocity. More information on the partnership principles can be found here. The Partnership Learning Fieldbook is an excellent resource.

The Partnership Principles have become a part of my instructional coaching. One source of new ideas has come from an unlikely source. Yet, now that I look at it deeper – it fits the LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION concept! Many teacher are on Facebook. Facebook has led many to Pinterest. I have noticed that Pinterest has sparked interest not only in home and fashion related things, but professional learning and classroom ideas as well. Sharing is abundant. Dialogue about “pins” is happening in person and through other forms of social media. Teachers are trying new ideas and sharing their experiences.

Just as with Twitter, it took me a while to realize the potential Pinterest has in education. I even needed a “Pinterest Coach” to help me understand the whole Pinterest concept. Now I use Pinterest as a social bookmarking system to quickly share and gain new ideas. What a wonderful example of the Partnership Principle RECIPROCITY.

Jim Knight, in the ASCD article “What Good Coaches Do”, explains reciprocity in Instructional Coach as the following.

“Reciprocity is the belief that each learning interaction is an opportunity for everyone to learn – an embodiment of the saying, ‘When one teaches, two learn.” When we look at everyone else as a learner and a teacher, regardless of their credentials or years of experience, we’re often delightfully surprised by new ideas, concepts, strategies, and passions.”

I have found that personal interest boards help me connect with the teachers I work with. At times we find that we have similar interests which opens up dialogue with one another. Or learning of unique interests unlocks opportunities to learn more from and about teachers. Sometimes the “why didn’t I think of that” conversations spark when a creative, yet seemingly simple idea has been found.

In addition to personal interest boards, I have boards with reading ideas, technology ideas, app recommendations, and many content specific ideas. I write a weekly newsletter for the teachers in my schools. Rather than sharing several websites, I can now share a Pinterest Board with all the websites such as my recent 100th Day of School board or Dr. Seuss board.

My boards go beyond topical. I recently shared ideas on  inquiry based learning using the Decorah Eagle Cam. I gathered many websites for teachers. I have since transferred them to a Pinterest Board for easier access. I also mentioned an inquiry process found on a Youth Learn website to help guide the inquiry process. Ideas shared in my newsletter continually spark interest with teachers – opening the doors to wonderful partnerships.

Other Pinterest Boards that have generated interest and dialogue amongst teachers include:

• There’s an App for That – iPad and iPhone App ideas
• iPad Apps for Administrators – Ideas originally shared by Eric Sheninger
• Inferencing – A board devoted to how to teach inferencing to students
• Classroom Transformations – Ideas to give your classroom an updated look
• Parent Involvement – Tips and ideas
• Common Core – Wide variety of resources
• Daily 5 and Café - Resources galore!
• Reading Ideas
• Math Ideas
• Vocabulary Ideas
• Science Ideas
• Technology Ideas

My boards are a work in progress. I have not checked out every link. Pins are merely ideas that have caught my attention. They are springboards. In order to be of use in the classroom, a teacher would need to find the curricular tie and make sure the idea is the best use of student time. They would need clear learning targets and know how they will determine student outcomes.

Pinterest has been a “foot in the door” so to speak. It has sparked dialogue and sharing with teachers. It has provided me an avenue to share ideas, specifically ones about technology, in a way that is understood by many teachers. For an example, one of my latest “pins” 101 Web 2.0 Teaching Tools Every Teacher Should Know About has been “repinned” numerous times. Location matters. If I tweet an idea, one sector of educators will might see the Tweet. If I “Pin” an idea many more are bound to be exposed to it. Giving ideas and getting ideas has been a fun experience!

While I would love to see more teachers on Twitter, I also cannot force it. Teachers are busy! It may be difficult to find time to learn something new at this time of the school year. For now sharing and receiving ideas on Pinterest is the right LOCATION.

Photo Credits:

cc licensed flickr photo shared by Gene Wilburn

cc licensed flickr photo shared by corey olsen

The #educoach Twitter chat that meets each Wednesday evening at 9:00 PM CST is currently reading and discussing the book Unmistakable Impact by Jim Knight. Dr. Knight joins the chat when his schedule permits!

Unmistakable Impact details a partnership approach to dramatically improving instruction. The book jacket summary includes:

“A staggering amount of evidence shows that our schools are no as effective as they should be, and they are working toward improvement. This book simplifies the process for becoming an Impact School through targeted, consistent professional learning that is done with teachers, not to teachers. Award wining author Jim Knight describes how to translate staff members’ joy of learning into high-leverage practices that achieve dramatic student outcomes. Characteristics of an Impact School include:

• A focused, clearly defined improvement plan that takes into account the complexity of teaching
• A school culture that encourages enrollment in ongoing professional development
• Alignment of purpose an actions among all staff members.

The book includes tangible tools for use by principals, workshop leaders, professional learning communities, and instructional coaches. When everyone learns, every student receives excellent instruction every day in every class. Unmistakable Impact provides the roadmap to remarkable results.

Visit the #educoach chat archives to catch a glimpse of the discussion held for chapters 1, 2, and 3.

We hope to see you at an #educoach chat! Together we can make a difference!

Never underestimate the power of a small group of committed people to change the world. In fact, it is the only thing that ever has. ~ Margaret Mead