In my first year as a science teacher at Chelsea High School, I took over the teaching duties for Dr. Richard Audet who recently vacated his position to assume a professorship of science education at Roger Williams University. To help my transition over those first few months, Richard spent quite some time with me discussing teaching methods. Richard had built a project-based program that utilized a small aquaculture system to teach inquiry-based science. He tossed me the keys and… Continue
This is part 4 of the "videos that WILL ignite a discussion" series. I have been using these videos during PD sessions, as well as during Power Lunch sessions to spur discussion and reflection. As educators, it is crucial that we are constantly in a state of reflection and evaluation, and with the help of these videos educators are able to engage in thoughtful and productive conversation.…
Newark residents are angry and they should be. Although the Newark Public Schools' strategic plan outlined that new school options were coming they didn't know when and they were left in the dark.
For years I experienced and witnessed school reform in NYC. The new schools movement spearheaded by Michele Cahill was a good one. New York City was plagued with large…
While attending the 2011 PLC summit, one of the presenters told us about an experience he had while watching Family Feud. The question was, “What is the reason your child’s teacher is calling your house?” Not one of the “right” answers were positive, not one! An example of some of the answers were, “Your kid is failing” or “…
Last year I read Outliers: the Story of Success by Malcolm Gladwell and had the opportunity to share this book with administrators from my district during our summer retreat. An outlier can be defined as an individual who not only have exceptional talent, but is provided and takes advantage of opportunities and resources to excel.…
So I find myself a bit anxious, asking myself, "What am I doing here?" As a brand new blogger, I am embarrassed that I don't know how to do it properly. This has long been a failing of mine and something that often has stopped me from diving into interesting new things. I might not do it right the first time and therefore look foolish. That's a crazy idea for an educator; we tell the kids all the time that it's…
I've been trying to use Twitter more and more to track valuable tech, edtech, 21st Century Skills, and literacy resources and points of interest. Do you have any key organizations or "power users" you follow that have proven particularly valuable? Or are you tweeting about similar conversations? If so, let us all know!
Also, if you'd like to follow my own "trickle" of tech, edtech, 21st Century Skills, and literacy tweets, you can find me…
Форум иновација у образовању (Innovative Education Forum) организује Мајкрософт у оквиру свог програма Партнер у учењу који је настао 2003. године, са циљем унапређивања образовнo-васпитне праксе уз помоћ ИК технологије, развијања педагошких вештина потребних за живот и рад у 21. веку, али и стварања мреже креативних наставника…
I am a lover of my vocation. I love teaching. I am writing about what it means for me to pursue EXCELLENCE IN TEACHING. Rather, I am trying to capture the essence of what the journey of exploring excellence in teaching is while collaborating with trusted colleagues!
Key books to check out (in all your spare time I know) are:
Parker J. Palmer, The Courage to Teach (10th anniversary edition).
Brent Davis, Dennis Sumara, Rebecca Luce-Kapler, Engaging…
Every year at the beginning of the Lenten season my religion department is asked to do a Lenten craft or activity to get the teens to enter into the spirit of the season. Most of the classes do the same identical craft every year so by the time I get them Junior year they are pretty…Continue
Added by Carmen on March 13, 2011 at 4:33pm —
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Have you ever left a Professional Development day wondering to yourself how relevant and beneficial the material was to your daily instruction? Well, this past Friday, March 11, 2011, Regional School District 6 of CT held an extremely successful PD centered around technology. Teachers expressed over and over how worthwhile and energized they felt after having participated in the day. Why was this successful? Of the 27 sessions being offered, all 27 were presented by teachers within the…
Irisih eyes are smiling, and so are we at TCI. For a little holiday fun in advance of March 17th, I have written a lesson to learn about Ireland’s most famous name. This skill builder lesson utilizes an emerging tech trend as well, QR codes. Now, have no fear if you’re not familiar with QR codes you can read a previous post on the blog here. Take advantage of the opportunity to have students learn about the life of St. Patrick and also get their geek on.…
I was told to try out voicethread to start a class conversation with my students as an assignment for a class that I am taking. Showed my students and pretty much got the NO from them; one student suggested using "VYEW" to do an online class. Only problem is that it looks complicating. Does anyone have any suggestions on what else I can use or how to use VYEW. Mush appreciate the help.
Essay Definition can vary widely depending on the Person DefiningEssay definition can be different depending on the source. The narrowest definition of essay is “a short piece of writing on a particular subject”, as appearing in Oxford Dictionary. Most common form of essay is written in prose. In practice, essays are regarded as short pieces of writing, though there are some exceptions like John Locke’s” An essay concerning human understanding”. In its broadest sense, definition of essay…See More
