Going with the flow....

I have found that I am not really much of a gamer. The assignment was to play a video game for an hour and examine it for elements of flow. Flow being the feeling of time standing still, enjoyment and relaxation as you become involved with the activity you are doing. The desire to improve your score or level you are on, there is a direct outcome to what you are playing. Well.....I just didn't get there with any that I tried. Maybe I was just playing the wrong game, I have several students that would say I need to play Minecraft because it is the greatest game ever and has educational value. I looked at it but didn't want to invest money to complete this assignment.
I remember playing PacMan and Asteroids when I was a teen, could have played those for ever. Not so long ago I was a little addicted to Farmville, well really just felt I had an obligation to harvest and care for the animals, didn't want to see it all die. I could also play Jewel Master for quite some time. My own kids played Math Blaster, Operation Neptune and Treasure Mountain for hours and then when in junior high got hooked on The Sims.
I tried to play Zombie Trailer Park but it was just too bloody. Tommy Q Zombie Defender was OK but I was bored after about 20 minutes. I also played Dance Mat Typing, entertaining but the voices got a little annoying after about 15 minutes. I tried to play word games on dictionary.com but I had flash player issues.
I can understand how you can get in a zone while playing a game that catches your interest and provides a challenge, I can do the same thing when I am working on an art project and especially when reading a good book. It is a great feeling when you are doing something  you enjoy and are good at. I can find something kind of resembling flow when I am Christmas shopping online, Amazon.com is my shopping addiction.
But overall I just don't really like video games much, there are so many other things I would rather be doing.

EIT Global Learning Project - Sandra Steinfadt and Joel Weeks
Dr. Zeitz - Fall 2012

Global School News

Project Summary:
Have you ever wondered how you can offer your students a view of the world? How to give them a voice about local, national and international news? The Global School News is an international project where students produce an online newspaper with a partner school from another part of the world. Each student will be partnered with a student from their cooperating school to collaborate on the news article creation process. The goal is to have two editions of the online newspaper published. Students reading, writing and cooperative learning skills will improve while they are getting the opportunity to view local, national and global issues through the eyes of others. Global School News is a great opportunity for you and your students, sign up soon and become part of a global learning network.

Model:
http://www.globalschoolnet.org/GSH/project/newsday/
http://pulitzercenter.org/blog/news-points/youth-connected-technology-and-journalism-shape-world-views

Ages:
This project is designed for students 11 to 14 years of age.

Duration:
Global School News with cover a one year time frame, starting August 2013 and concluding in June of 2014.

Curriculum Fit:
Language Arts
Multicultural Studies
Social Studies
These are the three main areas of curriculum that will be focused on  with this project but there are multiple opportunities for cross over to other areas as well.

Collaboration Types to be Used:
Information Collection and Analysis

Electronic Publishing

information exchange

Technology and Information Types to be Used:
Email
collaborative document sharing
email communication
LIve audio/video conferencing (depending on partners locations)
Information Types:
Text: Stories, Essays and Letters
Graphics: Photos, Drawings
Creation Technologies:
Web Publishing

Process:

• Producing a school newspaper with a global perspective
• The newspaper will be published online in cooperation with a partner school from another region of the world.
• Sections of the paper will include:
• Local news
• National news
• School news
• Editorial
• Special interest topics/Student choice options

Overview:
Each school will work to create the stories necessary to fill all the pages. The stories will tell what is happening in their part of the world and will give a picture of life as a middle level student.

Stories will be published on a website so that each school has access to the paper as it is in progress. There will be a section on the site where readers can make comments and ask questions.

Project Steps:
Step 1

• Set up meeting with you partner school, if possible this will be done in a video conference.
• Discuss the focus of your shared newspaper, what topics would you like to cover, what do you want to learn from your partner school through the stories they submit for publication. Decide which school will be in charge of each of the two issues. Each school will take the lead for one of the publications.

Step 2

• Teach lessons on developing a quality news story and journalism basics.
• Discuss the differences between an editorial, opinion, feature, and reporting information.
• A review of copyright laws, and how to cite a source will be given for each respective country. If there are differences between each region those differences will be taught and adhered to as well since the paper will be published on the Internet.

Step 3

• Students are assigned the stories they are to write.  Each page will have a Google Doc on which the stories will be posted for editing. The partners will read the stories and ask questions about points that are not clear or are not understood. Changes will be made and submitted to teachers and editors for final approval.
• Stories will be reviewed by teachers at each school before they are approved for publication.

Step 4

• Lessons will be taught on how to create the paper and upload the stories to the paper.
• Management of the website of the paper will be done by each school for one of the two issues.

Step 5

• The paper will be created and published on the web.

Step 6

• Students meet again to reflect on the experiences, and discuss new perspectives they learned about through creating the project.

Step 7

• The process begins again for the second edition of the paper.

Timeline:
August 2013
Step 1 - Classes will learn of the project and will set up a meeting with their partner school.

September 2013
Step 2  - Students will work on lessons that teach journalism concepts.

October 2013
Step 3 – Stories will be assigned and students will begin the writing process.

November 2013
Step 4 – Students will learn about how the web site works and will begin to assemble the online newspaper.

December 2013
Step 5 – Students will finish the online paper.
Step 6 – Students will read and comment on the paper.

January 2014
Step 7 – Students will meet again to discuss the process of creating the paper and what they learned through the process of creating it.

February 2014
Step 1 – Students will discuss what will happen with the second edition. What did they learn in the first paper that will help them improve the second edition.
Step 2 – Students will review the lessons learned about writing a good news story.

March 2014
Step 3 – Students will begin the writing process. They will also go through the peer review process with their cooperating school partners.

April 2014
Step 4 – Review how the web site works, what lessons were learned from the first edition that can be applied to improve the second edition.
Step 5 – Begin construction of the online paper.

May 2014
Step 6 – Students read the articles and make comments on the online paper. They then respond to the comments made about the stories they have written.

June 2014
Step 6 continued – Meet for the final time to discuss what was learned in the process of creating and reading the stories for the on line paper.

Outcomes:
When the project is completed the students will have created two online editions of their jointly created newspaper. They will have learned how to write, edit news stories and how to put them together into an online newspaper.

Iowa Core Standards:
21st Century Skills:
Employability:
1. Communicate and work productively with others, considering different perspectives, and cultural views to increase the quality of work.
2. Demonstrate productivity and accountability while aspiring to meet high expectations.
Technology Literacy:
1.Collaborate with peers, experts and others using interactive technology.
2. Understand the legal and ethical issues of technology as related to individuals, cultures and societies.
Writing Standards
Production and distribution of writing

• W.7.4. Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development, organization, and style are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience. (Grade-specific expectations for writing types are defined in standards 1–3 above.)
• W.7.5. With some guidance and support from peers and adults, develop and strengthen writing as needed by planning, revising, editing, rewriting, or trying a new approach, focusing on how well purpose and audience have been addressed.
• W.7.6. Use technology, including the Internet, to produce and publish writing and link to and cite sources as well as to interact and collaborate with others, including linking to and citing sources.

Text Types and Purposes

• W.7.1.Write arguments to support claims with clear reasons and relevant evidence.
• Introduce claim(s), acknowledge alternate or opposing claims, and organize the reasons and evidence logically.
• Support claim(s) with logical reasoning and relevant evidence, using accurate, credible sources and demonstrating an understanding of the topic or text.
• Use words, phrases, and clauses to create cohesion and clarify the relationships among claim(s), reasons, and evidence.
• Establish and maintain a formal style.
• Provide a concluding statement or section that follows from and supports the argument presented.
• W.7.2.Write informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas, concepts, and information through the selection, organization, and analysis of relevant content.
• Introduce a topic clearly, previewing what is to follow; organize ideas, concepts, and information, using strategies such as definition, classification, comparison/contrast, and cause/effect; include formatting (e.g., headings), graphics (e.g., charts, tables), and multimedia when useful to aiding comprehension.
• Develop the topic with relevant facts, definitions, concrete details, quotations, or other information and examples.
• Use appropriate transitions to create cohesion and clarify the relationships among ideas and concepts.
• Use precise language and domain-specific vocabulary to inform about or explain the topic.
• Establish and maintain a formal style.
• Provide a concluding statement or section that follows from and supports the information or explanation presented.
• W.7.3.Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, relevant descriptive details, and well-structured event sequences.
• Engage and orient the reader by establishing a context and point of view and introducing a narrator and/or characters; organize an event sequence that unfolds naturally and logically.
• Use narrative techniques, such as dialogue, pacing, and description, to develop experiences, events, and/or characters.
• Use a variety of transition words, phrases, and clauses to convey sequence and signal shifts from one time frame or setting to another.
• Use precise words and phrases, relevant descriptive details, and sensory language to capture the action and convey experiences and events.
• Provide a conclusion that follows from and reflects on the narrated experiences or events.

Resources:
http://pulitzercenter.org/blog/news-points/youth-connected-technology-and-journalism-shape-world-views
http://www.jhuapl.edu/education/elementary/newspapercourse/forteachers/lesson.htm
http://www.educateiowa.gov/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=2485&Itemid=4602
http://www.nytimes.com/
http://www.washingtonpost.com/
http://www.thesundaytimes.co.uk/sto/?CMP=INTstp2
http://winchurchill.com/
http://www.cmschippewa411.com/
http://www.ljhsnews.com/
http://www.schoolnewspapersonline.com/clients/client-list/middle-schools/

Examples of archived Newsday papers from Texas, Montana, New Zealand and Africa
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1prYLEtXn2ekIYD9hkAlWh_Ze6Hl1vfeiooVYX5MBBgc/edit
http://www.globalschoolnet.org/gsh/project/newsday/examples/newsletter_tca_harrison2.pdf
http://www.globalschoolnet.org/gsh/project/newsday/examples/cobhamintermediate/nz%20scoop%201.pdf
http://www.globalschoolnet.org/gsh/project/newsday/examples/newsday_2009-montana.pdf
http://www.globalschoolnet.org/gsh/project/newsday/examples/pink_link.pdf

In or Out with Technology

Should technology education in lower elementary be integrated into the curriculum or be taught in a pull out program? Today I had the opportunity to sit in on a meeting of lower elementary teachers discussing technology. It seemed that they all agreed that students at this level need some direct instruction on how to use the computer but then parted about half and half as to the solution, integration or segragation. I agree with Brad Edwards that technology should be a “pull-in” instead of a “pull-out” program. Technology should not be something you go do once a week but instead something that happens every day. There are so many possibilities for integrating technology such as digital story telling using Voice Thread or an iPad App called StoryKit. These programs allow students create audio recordings of their stories and then add pictures and text that when completed can then be emailed to family members. Students can work with interactive maps in social studies and explore the solar system or insects through educational Apps or web sites. The possibilities are endless until you pull them out of the classroom and box technology into a half hour program in an isolated room. And the icing on this wonderful antiquated cake is …. The time for this pull out program can be accommodated by eliminating the students school library time. I don’t know about you, but on this rare occasion, I was speechless.

The true beginnings....

I have been hearing about PLN's for a lot of years and kind of blew off the idea, thinking it was just another thing I had to do in an already busy day. No one really explained exactly what a PLN could do for me and why it would be to my benefit. I really thought it was another craze and it would pass like all the others. As I have worked my way through the Masters in Instructional Technology program at UNI I have learned the purpose for and advantages of creating a PLN.
Today as I was reading my text for Emerging Instructional Technology I found several links for resources for library, technolgoy and art teachers. One that stood out to me was TeacherLibrarianNing. On the front page of this site right now is a PLN starter kit. I am excited to begin exploring this resource along with an art educators site. Working in a small private school I don't really have people within my building to brainstorm with, or bounce ideas around with. I am on my own when it comes to planning and figuring out what I can do to keep library interesting and to find new projects to complete in art. I don't want my students to be doing the same art projects their older brothers and sisters have done for years. Having quality resources to go to has been such a blessing.
If you are new to building a PLN check out The Innovative Educator Blog for 5 steps to begin building your own personal learning network.

Thoughts on thinking

I read a new blog this evening about thinking written by Grant Wiggins.  The article was entitled "Thinking about a lack of thinking" Now before you think that all this thinking is making your brain hurt take a few minutes and read the article. I started to think about how many times I just give information with out any real explanation as to why my students need to know what I am telling them? Is this why I can go over the Dewey Decimal System with each grade level every year and by the time they are in 8th grade they still do not recall or remember how to apply this knowledge. I need to make them think or to be more thoughtful and look for meaning and personal value in what I am teaching them. It is difficult to teach students how to look up and locate books on the library shelves when they have resources at their finger tips most hours of the day. Many of my students have an iPad, Kindle, Nook or a smart phone to read their books on, they see no value in the library. My goal for this year is to get my students to be more thoughtful about print resources. To expose them to the wonders of a library and to show them all the places they can go with their mind and a book. I am open to suggestions.....anyone?

I had students that begged me not to show the video! So of course I had to look up what video they were talking about. Hmmmm...maybe it is just obnoxious enough for them to remember.

What do you think, will this get them to be more thoughtful about using the library?

Variety is the spice of life

I have been exploring  many blogs this past week as I work to create my reading list. The majority of the blogs I have on my list are education and technology related such as Dangerously Irrelevant, eSchool News, Free Technology for Teachers, The 21st Century Principal, and Cool Cat Teacher Blog. These are all excellent blogs on education with posts that deal with many different topics covered, from classroom management to technology integration. All of them provide me with relevant information about my profession  and good ideas and tools that I can explore. I have gained a great deal of knowledge from all of these sources. I don't always agree with everything I read but it gets  me thinking about what I do believe and how I can make change for the better in my educational setting. With  this said the one blog that I go to first is lifehacker.com. I like this blog because it has a wide variety of subjects that it covers that range from DIY projects to simple tips on ways to make your life easier and more organized. When reading the same subject the majority of the time it is nice to take a mental break and read posts that go beyond ed/tech. There are a lot of posts each day to this blog but I scroll through I can pick and choose what I want to read about, I can then begin an adventure of leaning about many new topics. Curiosity didn't kill the at it just opened a whole new world of knowledge.

New Beginnings and a Giggle

As I work my way through the beginning of the school year both as a teacher and a student I find the best way to survive is to find a way to laugh. The following video cracks me up, it is just way to funny. But if you start to think about the two roles being played out here it makes you think, is this how some of our students feel? Does it all come to fast even though you have people telling you that it is so simple and basic?  Do I have this much impatience with my students when they just are not getting something?
I am making an effort this year to look at things in a positive way. Not to get sucked into the negative grumblings of co-workers and above all to find joy and humor in each day and to thank God for all that I have.
So watch the video maybe it will make you giggle and smile. Have a great year!