This past Friday morning my class and I finally had the chat I've been wanting to have with them for the past several weeks. It's been at least that long since I've done any form of traditional calendar with them. To be perfectly honest our calendar time has been pretty sketchy for a while.
For those unfamiliar with the calendar routine found in many early primary classrooms it involves a number of routines to help our students learn basic calendar features such as days of the week, the date, yesterday, today, tomorrow, weather graphing etc. It typically follows a structure in which one activity follows the next every time you do calendar. It's far from rocket science. While it has its benefits in the beginning by introducing children to concepts around a calendar after a while it seems more of a waste of time. Friday's class chat was about how it was going to change because it had clearly become something that wasn't working for the class.
In my classroom calendar is a job that the special person of the day gets to lead. They like this. They like being the boss. They like having their weather illustrations up on the picture graph and they like being able to cross out the date on the commercial calendar. They didn't want to loose this privilege either and by scrapping calendar I had inadvertently scraped something they really enjoyed doing. We had to come up with a solution that worked for them, and for me. So it was decided that on the days we have a special person, the special person will do the special jobs related to calendar time. But they will not do it while the rest of the class is watching. They will do the calendar jobs during our class planner message writing time and I (or a friend) will write in their planner for them. Both the students and I are happy with this solution. The students are getting what they want, and I'm not losing my valuable teaching time. Problem solved right? Not exactly.
One of the things I've noticed happen since we stopped doing calendar is that we don't think as well as mathematicians. Dropping calendar routines also meant that I dropped the math chat that we typically had during the second half of our calendar time. We used to talk about tallying, or skip counting, or numbers ten more than or ten less than, or number sentences that equaled the number in the date. We used to talk math like mathematicians would talk math. So while I've gotten rid of some of the silly routines, I've also gotten rid of some of the good parts of the calendar time too. This is a problem.
As we continued our discussion I told the class what I was noticing. I told them that I noticed that while they are very good at math they never chose math activity as a free choice activity and I wanted to know why. They couldn't really tell me but I know it's my fault.
As I teach my kids to write I stress how important it is for them to be writers. As I've written in a previous post I don't tell my students what to write I just teach them components of good writing so that they can become good writers. What they write about is completely their choice. I am fostering genuine writers, not people who write to please me. It's the same with reading. I rarely tell them what to read because I am trying to create genuine readers. Because of this my students think like readers and writers.
But I haven't being doing this with math. Yes I've taught them a lot of math, and most of the math I do is open ended with a huge exploration component to it but I've never treated them as mathematicians. Heck I've never called them mathematicians like I call them readers and writers. Our math chat time during calendar was the closest thing I came to to treating them like mathematicians. We were exploring number concepts, they were showing me what they knew. I wasn't looking for specific answers I was looking for mathematical knowledge. I got rid of that time when I got rid of calendar and it's not sitting well with me. So what's the solution?
I need math chat time again. So starting tomorrow math chat is being reintroduced into my classroom routine. It doesn't have to be a long chat, but the chat is most definately returning. During this time I will be certain to refer to my students as mathematicians. And not just at this time during our regular math block too. How exactly this math chat time is going to run is still up in the air. I think however I will return to our previous calendar routines and have my students find different ways to represent a specific number (the date). For example today is Jan 22 so my students will be encouraged to create number sentences that include 22 on one side of an =, <, or > sign. For example 22 > 13 or 7+4 + 11=22. Ultimately the goal is to have them discover that there are infinite number sentences you can make for any given number. I want to get their mind spinning around math concepts, and I want them to see the patterns in numbers. I want them to think like mathematicians.
Of course this thinking like mathematicians concept will be fully integrated into the rest of my math program. I'm eager to see how things go.
What do you do that makes you feel like you are a good at teaching your students math? If you are still leading routine calendars what do you like about them? If you aren't why have you changed your ways. As usual, I'm curious to hear from others.
And by the way, Friday afternoon children chose to play math games during their free choice time. A mini success!
Sunday, January 22, 2012
Monday, January 16, 2012
Ed Camp Delta - Jan 14, 2012
This past Saturday I took part in my first Ed Camp experience. For those that are unfamiliar with what an Ed Camp experience is let me explain. Ed Camp is a FREE educator's conference. Participates suggest topics in advance of the conference and during the morning of the conference. The sessions being offered through out the day are not actually decided upon until that morning. There are no keynote speakers or pre determined themes. Everything is finalized the morning of the conference when the participants (like me) show up. Let me tell you how the day went for me.
I arrived in Delta early and I got myself registered. I had registered in advance on line so there was a name tag waiting for me. You didn't have to do that though, anyone could have shown up the morning of. I was also given four post it notes and was told to put my name on each one. I was then directed to the library, the gathering point of the day.
When I arrived in the library there were several topic sheets on a wall, each listing a different potential topic for the day. I looked over the topics and started to put my post it notes on topics that were of interest to me.
In the days prior to the conference I had actually submitted a topic - Technology in a Primary Classroom. To be perfectly honest I was leery that the conference would have no relevance for me so I figured if I submitted a topic that was relevant to me then maybe I would connect with like minded educators. As it turned out there were other people interested in my topic.
I didn't put up all my post it notes up at first because I wasn't sure what else I wanted to learn about. Also as more people arrived, more people were adding topics to the board. Suddenly I thought of another topic I wanted to talk/learn more about - Twitter in the Classroom. I quickly scribbled my topic down on a blank paper and posted it to the wall. To my surprise other people added their names to my topic too. I was excited inside, maybe it was going to be a good day after all.
Around 9:30 in the morning all the post it notes had to be up on the board. At this time the organizers counted post it notes for each topic and created a schedule for the day. It was interesting to watch because they had to be careful not to put the highly popular topics (the ones with the most post it notes) at the same time. If you clicked the link above you can see that there were seven different topics per session and four sessions per day. You can also check out any notes that are available for each of the topics.
In the end my four post-it notes landed on Techology in a Primary Classroom, Using an Ipad as a Tool for Digital Literacy, How Can We Improve Professional Learning, and Twitter in the Classroom.
After a few introductions and presentations the participants (like me) headed off to their first sessions.
I walked into the room for Technology in the Primary Classroom. I had been the one that suggested the topic but I had no idea how it was going to work. David Wees @davidwees was in the session along with one of my district's math helping teachers and several other interested educators. It was a good session where we shared ideas.
From there I moved to my next session - Using and Ipad as a Tool for Digital Literacy. The discussion started with Doug Tennant stating that he didn't like iPads and saw no use for them. It was a great discussion starter weather he really believed that or not. We listened as people talked about the iPad projects there were involved with both the positive and not so positive aspects. There was a lot of discussion and it got me thinking about my ideal number iPads if I could have them. It was interesting to hear how different grade levels see iPads being used in their classrooms. I certainly think they are an ideal tool for primary students.
Then it was lunch time. We were all treated to a free (by donation) bag lunch. I managed to connect with Bryan my trainer at the Apple Training Centre back in December. I couldn't figure out something on my iPad, but for what ever reason he couldn't figure it out either. It was no big deal though but I'm glad I was able to ask for his help. That's one thing that was really cool about Ed Camp Delta. I met several people that I follow on twitter. Instead of us having discussions via 140 character tweets we were talking face to face. That was a pretty cool aspect of Ed Camp.
After lunch it was back for session #3 How Can We Improve Professional Learning? This session brought out some great discussion as well. What was interesting is that everyone in the session (there were 11 of us) were from different school districts. I listened a lot and found it fascinating to hear what others were doing successfully. One district has a lot of inquiry projects. It reminded me that I need to seek out more of them in my district. I've been involved with some in the past but need to get involved again. It's such a great way to learn with support from your district.
My final session was Twitter in the Classroom, another topic I suggested. It was nice to have other people interested in this topic too. Again there was some discussion and ideas were shared. While several of the participants are already tweeting to, or with their classes, it was a new idea for others. Again, it was another good discussion.
After the final session we all met back in the library for closing comments and door prizes. While I was lucky enough to win a prize from simple K12's online global education community, I wasn't lucky enough to win the iPad 2.
Overall it was a really positive experience. I was extremely impressed with the organization and the quality of people that attended. I liked learning with admin, teachers, parents and students. There were some very intelligent people sharing some excellent ideas.
SO the question is... would I take part in one again? Definitely, in fact my school district is hosting one in February and I'll totally be there. Will you?
If you've ever been to an Ed Camp what were your experiences like? I'd love to hear about them.
I arrived in Delta early and I got myself registered. I had registered in advance on line so there was a name tag waiting for me. You didn't have to do that though, anyone could have shown up the morning of. I was also given four post it notes and was told to put my name on each one. I was then directed to the library, the gathering point of the day.
When I arrived in the library there were several topic sheets on a wall, each listing a different potential topic for the day. I looked over the topics and started to put my post it notes on topics that were of interest to me.
In the days prior to the conference I had actually submitted a topic - Technology in a Primary Classroom. To be perfectly honest I was leery that the conference would have no relevance for me so I figured if I submitted a topic that was relevant to me then maybe I would connect with like minded educators. As it turned out there were other people interested in my topic.
I didn't put up all my post it notes up at first because I wasn't sure what else I wanted to learn about. Also as more people arrived, more people were adding topics to the board. Suddenly I thought of another topic I wanted to talk/learn more about - Twitter in the Classroom. I quickly scribbled my topic down on a blank paper and posted it to the wall. To my surprise other people added their names to my topic too. I was excited inside, maybe it was going to be a good day after all.
Around 9:30 in the morning all the post it notes had to be up on the board. At this time the organizers counted post it notes for each topic and created a schedule for the day. It was interesting to watch because they had to be careful not to put the highly popular topics (the ones with the most post it notes) at the same time. If you clicked the link above you can see that there were seven different topics per session and four sessions per day. You can also check out any notes that are available for each of the topics.
In the end my four post-it notes landed on Techology in a Primary Classroom, Using an Ipad as a Tool for Digital Literacy, How Can We Improve Professional Learning, and Twitter in the Classroom.
After a few introductions and presentations the participants (like me) headed off to their first sessions.
I walked into the room for Technology in the Primary Classroom. I had been the one that suggested the topic but I had no idea how it was going to work. David Wees @davidwees was in the session along with one of my district's math helping teachers and several other interested educators. It was a good session where we shared ideas.
From there I moved to my next session - Using and Ipad as a Tool for Digital Literacy. The discussion started with Doug Tennant stating that he didn't like iPads and saw no use for them. It was a great discussion starter weather he really believed that or not. We listened as people talked about the iPad projects there were involved with both the positive and not so positive aspects. There was a lot of discussion and it got me thinking about my ideal number iPads if I could have them. It was interesting to hear how different grade levels see iPads being used in their classrooms. I certainly think they are an ideal tool for primary students.
Then it was lunch time. We were all treated to a free (by donation) bag lunch. I managed to connect with Bryan my trainer at the Apple Training Centre back in December. I couldn't figure out something on my iPad, but for what ever reason he couldn't figure it out either. It was no big deal though but I'm glad I was able to ask for his help. That's one thing that was really cool about Ed Camp Delta. I met several people that I follow on twitter. Instead of us having discussions via 140 character tweets we were talking face to face. That was a pretty cool aspect of Ed Camp.
After lunch it was back for session #3 How Can We Improve Professional Learning? This session brought out some great discussion as well. What was interesting is that everyone in the session (there were 11 of us) were from different school districts. I listened a lot and found it fascinating to hear what others were doing successfully. One district has a lot of inquiry projects. It reminded me that I need to seek out more of them in my district. I've been involved with some in the past but need to get involved again. It's such a great way to learn with support from your district.
My final session was Twitter in the Classroom, another topic I suggested. It was nice to have other people interested in this topic too. Again there was some discussion and ideas were shared. While several of the participants are already tweeting to, or with their classes, it was a new idea for others. Again, it was another good discussion.
After the final session we all met back in the library for closing comments and door prizes. While I was lucky enough to win a prize from simple K12's online global education community, I wasn't lucky enough to win the iPad 2.
Overall it was a really positive experience. I was extremely impressed with the organization and the quality of people that attended. I liked learning with admin, teachers, parents and students. There were some very intelligent people sharing some excellent ideas.
SO the question is... would I take part in one again? Definitely, in fact my school district is hosting one in February and I'll totally be there. Will you?
If you've ever been to an Ed Camp what were your experiences like? I'd love to hear about them.
Thursday, January 12, 2012
Why Twitter?
A while back I was asked to write a blog post for the Engage Teacher to Teacher section of the International Reading Association. After some back and forth discussions it was decided that I would write why I speak so frequently and highly about Twitter. Today my article went live. If you're interested in reading it here is a direct link.
Ms. Lirenman's Blog on Why Twitter?
Ms. Lirenman's Blog on Why Twitter?
Tuesday, January 10, 2012
A Day in the Life of One iPad in My Grade One Class
I feel very blessed to have been given an iPad2 to use with my grade one classroom. In the few short weeks that I have had it, it has been used for many different things. Here are some of the ways I have been using the class iPad2.
A student is using the Word Wizard App.
The Word Wizard App allows my students to touch letters and hear their corresponding sounds. It helps my students gain more letter sound knowledge and use that knowledge to phonetically write their own words. The Word Wizard App has also been used to help students practice their spelling of CVC words, and basic sight words.
Creating a story using My Story App.
My Story App has allowed my students to draw, speak, and write their own stories. These stories, when complete, can be sent to and stored in iBooks for everyone to enjoy.
Practicing our Word Wall Words using Magnetic ABC App
The Magnetic ABC App is just like using magnetic letters but it's more. This version has different backgrounds and some pictures to add. It makes practicing Word Wall Words even more fun! We have several other apps that we've been using to practice our word work.
Monster 1 - There is Monster at the End of This Book
During reading time my students have been using the iPad to read and/or listen to stories. A favourite story right now is The Monster at the End of This Book starting Grover. Another favourite is The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore. Both books are highly interactive. Often there are five or six children sitting around the iPad interacting with it as they read/listen to the story.
Math Bingo App
PopMath App
My students have used several different math apps to practice their basic math facts.
Using the iPad to project a movie from YouTube.
My class has used the iPad in conjunction with a projection device to watch content specific videos. Here we are watching a version of Goldilocks and the Three Bears because right now we are learning about Fairy Tales.
These are only some examples of what we've been doing with our class iPad. In addition, I still have what feels like a million more ways to use our wonderful tool. If you have some suggestions of ways I can integrate one iPad into my classroom program I'd love to hear them.
Monday, January 2, 2012
My One Little Word For 2012
I've been reading posts on Twitter written by people who have chosen a single word to inspire their 2012 year. If I'm not mistaken credit for this idea belongs to Two Writing Teachers. While I'm not one to make resolutions one word did instantly pop into my head. After commenting on two separate blog posts (Laura's and Cathy's) I figure it was time I wrote my own post sharing my word.
My word for 2012 is CAN.
I CAN make a difference in the lives of my students, my friends, and my family.
I CAN make things happen when others feel it is impossible.
I CAN block out the negative.
I CAN embrace the positive.
I CAN make changes.
I CAN inspire others.
I CAN learn from others.
I CAN push boundaries.
I CAN do anything I set my mind to.
I CAN make a difference in my life.
I CAN ...
What's your word?
My word for 2012 is CAN.
I CAN make a difference in the lives of my students, my friends, and my family.
I CAN make things happen when others feel it is impossible.
I CAN block out the negative.
I CAN embrace the positive.
I CAN make changes.
I CAN inspire others.
I CAN learn from others.
I CAN push boundaries.
I CAN do anything I set my mind to.
I CAN make a difference in my life.
I CAN ...
What's your word?
Getting Me Thinking
Last night I read an inspiring blog post written by my school district's Director of Instruction, Elisa Carlson. Elisa has been a huge fan of what I've been doing with my grade one class this year and I can't thank her enough for her support. While I am a very self motivated person having her support has meant more to me than she will ever realize.
Elisa's post got me thinking about why I do what I do. I've always been one to do my own thing but the longer I'm in the profession the more confident I am with the reasons for my choices. As I've said several times before I'm on a constant search to improve my teaching. I am loving Twitter so much because it has linked me up with like minded individuals.
To many I'm a total learning geek but I truly love what I do. I love that challenges that each day brings me. I love that my job is not always easy. I love that I am making a difference in not only my life, but in the lives of those I teach. Being so "out there" with this blog and my tweets on twitter has been a bit scary for me, but it has given me a place to use my voice.
Another blog that got me thinking today is one written by Jonah Salsich. He talks about how many educators are afraid to do exactly what we are teaching our students to do - take a risk, try something new, change our thinking. He talked about how professional development as we know it isn't really working. I added to the conversation with the following comment.
I’ve just stumbled onto your blog via twitter and this blog post really reasonates with me. Why do you think that some of us are self motivated enough to truly put ourselves out there and take risks to learn new things while others are so afraid to make a change? I don’t believe that the professional development we have with people talking to us works. We all come in with are own agendas of things we want to learn. For me Twitter has been the best professional development I’ve discovered. I often feel as though I am learning from truly brilliant people. But I am a self motivated learner and I thrive on learning new things so for me it’s been a no brainer. What we really need to do is find a way to make others self motivated too, both our students and our staff. I feel I do a lot to make my students thrive on intrinsic motivation but it’s a lot tougher with my colleagues. You’ve certainly got me thinking and I thank you for that.
As I get ready to start my second term with my class I am thinking not only about things I can do for my students but how I can also help motivate my colleagues too. I appreciate reading posts that make my head spin and I want to thank both Elisa and Jonah for that. There are a lot of exciting things in store for me in 2012.
Elisa's post got me thinking about why I do what I do. I've always been one to do my own thing but the longer I'm in the profession the more confident I am with the reasons for my choices. As I've said several times before I'm on a constant search to improve my teaching. I am loving Twitter so much because it has linked me up with like minded individuals.
To many I'm a total learning geek but I truly love what I do. I love that challenges that each day brings me. I love that my job is not always easy. I love that I am making a difference in not only my life, but in the lives of those I teach. Being so "out there" with this blog and my tweets on twitter has been a bit scary for me, but it has given me a place to use my voice.
Another blog that got me thinking today is one written by Jonah Salsich. He talks about how many educators are afraid to do exactly what we are teaching our students to do - take a risk, try something new, change our thinking. He talked about how professional development as we know it isn't really working. I added to the conversation with the following comment.
I’ve just stumbled onto your blog via twitter and this blog post really reasonates with me. Why do you think that some of us are self motivated enough to truly put ourselves out there and take risks to learn new things while others are so afraid to make a change? I don’t believe that the professional development we have with people talking to us works. We all come in with are own agendas of things we want to learn. For me Twitter has been the best professional development I’ve discovered. I often feel as though I am learning from truly brilliant people. But I am a self motivated learner and I thrive on learning new things so for me it’s been a no brainer. What we really need to do is find a way to make others self motivated too, both our students and our staff. I feel I do a lot to make my students thrive on intrinsic motivation but it’s a lot tougher with my colleagues. You’ve certainly got me thinking and I thank you for that.
As I get ready to start my second term with my class I am thinking not only about things I can do for my students but how I can also help motivate my colleagues too. I appreciate reading posts that make my head spin and I want to thank both Elisa and Jonah for that. There are a lot of exciting things in store for me in 2012.
Sunday, January 1, 2012
Small Steps Can Take You To Great Places
I've never been one to make resolutions. I've always thought if there is something in my life that I'm not happy about I need to find a way to fix or change it. I don't have to wait for the calendar to switch over to a new year to make a change. For me change happens as soon as I recognize that change has to be made.
This school year I have been making a lot of changes. I started the 2011/12 school year with quite a different mind set than I've had in the past. For one thing I spent the summer of 2011 not training for an Ironman which left me with a lot of spare time. I spent a lot of that time learning from others through Twitter. I read educators blog posts, and started making connections with other like minded educators. I began to develop my Personal Learning Network (PLN). While I've spent many of my previous summers swimming, biking, and running ridiculous distances this past summer I spent it learning. By the time term one began in early September I was determined to better integrate technology into my classroom. I took small steps, but those small steps have taken me to great places. Here is a recap of my growth term one:
• I created my first class blog and kept it updated with regular posts all term long
• I learned several different Web 2.0 tools and tried to use them with my teaching
• I participated in a weekly Grade One twitter chat
• I helped present technology tools to my staff at two professional development days
• I made myself available to help answer my colleagues technology questions
• I visited several other primary class blogs and was particularly inspired by what I learned from Leanne Kolenberg and Jackie Nelson's blogs in Adelaide, South Australia
• I attended the BC Primary Conference
• I attended the first three of five "Engaging the Digital Learner" technology dinner series evenings put on by my school district
• I was inspired by two fellow Canadians Aviva Dunsiger (Ontario) and Kathy Cassidy (Saskatchewan) as well as several other educators from around the world
• I introduced my students to their individual blogs and was amazed by how powerful they are
• I got to know my technology helping teacher, Orwell Kowalyshyn and utilized his knowledge
• I got to know my district's Director of Instruction, Elisa Carlson and shared my journey with her
• My professional blog link was added to a list of teachers and administrators blogging in my district
• I wrote an article for an international reading organization which will be published later this month
• I got invited to join a local high school for iPad training at the Apple Training Centre
This school year I have been making a lot of changes. I started the 2011/12 school year with quite a different mind set than I've had in the past. For one thing I spent the summer of 2011 not training for an Ironman which left me with a lot of spare time. I spent a lot of that time learning from others through Twitter. I read educators blog posts, and started making connections with other like minded educators. I began to develop my Personal Learning Network (PLN). While I've spent many of my previous summers swimming, biking, and running ridiculous distances this past summer I spent it learning. By the time term one began in early September I was determined to better integrate technology into my classroom. I took small steps, but those small steps have taken me to great places. Here is a recap of my growth term one:
• I created my first class blog and kept it updated with regular posts all term long
• I learned several different Web 2.0 tools and tried to use them with my teaching
• I participated in a weekly Grade One twitter chat
• I helped present technology tools to my staff at two professional development days
• I made myself available to help answer my colleagues technology questions
• I visited several other primary class blogs and was particularly inspired by what I learned from Leanne Kolenberg and Jackie Nelson's blogs in Adelaide, South Australia
• I attended the BC Primary Conference
• I attended the first three of five "Engaging the Digital Learner" technology dinner series evenings put on by my school district
• I was inspired by two fellow Canadians Aviva Dunsiger (Ontario) and Kathy Cassidy (Saskatchewan) as well as several other educators from around the world
• I introduced my students to their individual blogs and was amazed by how powerful they are
• I read (or almost finished reading) five professional books including Drive by Daniel Pink, Mindset by Carol Dweck, Choice Words by Peter Johnston, Math Exchanges by Kassia Omohundro Kedekind, and No More "I'm Done" Fostering Independent Writers in the Primary Grades by Jennifer Jacobson.
• I arranged for my school district's loaner set of iPods and shared them with my staff• I got to know my technology helping teacher, Orwell Kowalyshyn and utilized his knowledge
• I got to know my district's Director of Instruction, Elisa Carlson and shared my journey with her
• My professional blog link was added to a list of teachers and administrators blogging in my district
• I wrote an article for an international reading organization which will be published later this month
• I got invited to join a local high school for iPad training at the Apple Training Centre
• I was given a district iPad to use with my class
• I loaded the district iPad with over 100 apps all geared towards helping my students with their learning
• I created story bird accounts for my students
• I had many professional discussions while running with two fantastic teachers at my school Megan Birdsall and Erica Segec
When I started this school year I had no idea that it would take me to where I am today. I was just taking small steps on my journey. If you are reading this blog post as someone new to Twitter, or new to getting involved in this global world of ours, my biggest piece of advice is to take it one small step at a time. Perhaps you can leave a comment on a blog that got you thinking, or retweet a tweet with a link to an article that inspired you. Each small step will lead you towards your greater place.
If you are experiencing a rapid growth year like I am I'd love to hear from you. What do you struggle with? How much support to do you have? Does having or not having support change your desire to grow? Obviously I'd love to hear from you.
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