July 2011 Blog Posts (43)

I signed up for RSCON3 after seeing my favorite Tweeters @shellterrell, @dwight_carter and others tweet about it... I didn't know what to expect really from a e-conference, but I put some time aside for the three days to see what this would be all about.  I came to find that there are a lot of people in this world who are doing the same kind of work that I do, with energy and passion that is truly contagious.  This is more then a conference (I have been to those, big rooms... no wifi, listen…

Personal Learning Networks (PLN) is networking sites where people such as educators can communicate with one another and ask questions. For example a useful tool I would use would be twitter. In twitter I can ask a question about, what site can I find worksheets about math fractions to provide for my students? From there I will receive many sites but my favorite site I liked was http://www.fractionsworksheets.ca/ where I was able to find for…

If you are getting ready for back to school and in search of lesson ideas that will transition your students back to “learn” mode and also facilitate an atmosphere for hands-on activities, I have created four free lessons  any teacher can use.

Lesson A (…

I recently read a post from Andrew Marcinek, an educator who I greatly respect and often agree with. Are We Chasing Technology or Mastering It? His post however caused me, for the first time after several years of connection, to disagree with him. In his post he asserts that we should slow down the way we expect teachers to learn and use technology as a tool for learning. He makes some valid points. We can never be on the cutting…

My Educational Core…

The answer is so obvious, it's been staring at you from the moment you had your first opinion. The best way to exude trustworthiness by the buckets is to pursue your passion. Because you love what you do, you don't have to lie. There is no need for gimmicks or hype or false hope or artificial rewards and bonuses. Because people see and feel that you enjoy what you do, they won't see the need to second guess you. 

If you want a longer explanation, read…

Amazing how much that made me swell with pride.  Thanks Corey! For my Year 9RE class I decided to try backchannelling http://todaysmeet.com/  with a wordle task http://www.wordle.net/.   As I have never used a backchannel in the classroom before, I was concerned about the ability of some students to "talk/post" inappropriate things that I couldn't delete from the space. With 31 students in the class it is tricky to…

Next Saturday I'm doing a presentation about QR Codes in T&L at the free online conference the Reform Symposium ... 

My session is midnight Thailand time ... but much more sensible if you are in Europe or the Americas ... it is 10:00am California time and 6:00pm in London

The online Reform Symposium is taking place using the webinar platform ...…

The Texas Education Agency (TEA) announced last year that they planned to replace printed science text books in their schools with eBooks that could be downloaded by the students and teachers.  A Houston-based educational resources company decided that schools would benefit from a far more ambitious resource and invested heavily into developing a 21^st Century science teaching program that will show the rest of the world the future of education.   Texas schools are not being…

Every three years I force myself to do something that, although it is geared to save me money and provide for my safety, I dread it more than the possibility of Kidney Stones. New York State Department of Motor Vehicles, the DMV provides a Defensive Driving Course for drivers to complete and earn a reduction on their insurance premium, or a reduction on points on their license as a result of traffic infractions. Not wanting to suffer alone, and needing to get the highest reduction possible…

"Childhood is measured out by sounds and smells and sights, before the dark hour of reason grows." ~John Betjeman, Summoned by Bells

All too often as adult we are…

A warm shout out to everyone that comes across this blog. I am hoping to continue using technology within the classroom, however at a more consistent rate. Teaching part time in a private Catholic school, over a few faculty areas keeps me busy :) I am excited about learning and always have been. I am passionate about not becoming complacent and engaging in a balanced outlook on all areas of life.…

School is still in session for GED students and I've been busy supporting instructors.



On Monday I was walking from the train to a GED site in the Bronx. I ran into a former student standing in front of an apartment building. She told me she passed the last regents exam that was alluding her and was headed to college in…

Once upon a time I was a 7th grade math teacher. I'm not any more. But education still runs deep in my bones so I began working on a thesis project to build an educational framework and to organize my thoughts I made this:

What do you think? Will this crazy idea work or am I way off base? I'd love to have some…

Do you create a classroom environment where engagement is the norm?  Do you get every student highly involved in focused work in which they are active learners and problem-solvers?  Are your students emotionally engaged?  Do you show warmth, caring, respect, and fairness for every student and build strong relationships?  

What will your students say about you at their 10 year reunion?  If there is any likelihood, possibility, chance, suspicion, or notion that the adjective BORING may…