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As classroom teachers, we often don’t know what kind of technology support we need or want to enhance our teaching. Administrators will ask teachers what kind of PD they want or need, but the truth is that most teachers don’t always have a good response to this. I’ve often said that teachers “don’t know what they don’t know.” When I was an EdTech TOSA, one way that I reached out to the teachers at my three school sites was by creating short 2 minute videos introducing a new app or technology tip. This would give teachers the opportunity to get an idea of something that they might want to learn more about. For example, if a teacher had heard about Seesaw, but didn’t really know anything about it, they could watch a two minute video about it, and then decide if it was something they would like support with. I would send a new “Two MInute EdTech Tip” to teachers each week. I always tried to keep the videos short - two minutes or less. Many teachers liked this weekly video because it gave them new ideas to try in their classroom, or something to ask me more about when I would see them at their school site. Sometimes teachers would even ask me to come in and introduce the new app or tool to their class, which I loved doing! Now that I’m back in the classroom in a new state, new district, and new school, I think something like “Two Minute EdTech Tips” could really be beneficial to the staff at my school site. The school recently transitioned to iPads (from Chromebooks) and I think that the lack of PD on the new device is affecting the usage in classrooms. And, with iPads being such a new (and different) tool to the staff, they “don’t know what they don’t know.” What do you think? Watch a few of the “Two Minute EdTech Tips” and tell me what you think. Should I start creating more of these videos? Would something like this be useful as a classroom teacher?  As teachers and students begin to wrap up the school year, they complete memory books, sign yearbooks, clean out desks, and take home class work. But what about all of those digital projects student have created throughout the school year? What happens to those? How should students save their work, sign out, and clear their devices? What steps do you and/or your district have in place to support students with this? As the EdTech TOSA for three schools, I've developed a list of steps and videos to support teachers and students with the end of year procedures for iPads. The list includes the following:
You can find my list of steps for "end of year iPad procedures" as a FREE resource in my teachers pay teachers store "Love-Fleck EdTech." Be sure to check it out and download it today! While you are in my store, make sure to look through some of my other STEM-related resources and give my store a "Follow" to stay up-to-date on new posts.
This is part 3 of my STEM Lab Story. If you have not read Part 1 and Part 2, please go back and read those first. Kindergarten - Second Grade I finished out the 2015/2016 school year in the STEM Lab, having students rotate through the various activities in the STEM (Smart) Lab. K-2 students visited me weekly in the STEM Lab for a 45 minute lesson. They used materials including K'Nex, Zometools, and Ozobots, and they used computer programs like code.org and Pixie. We also used consumable materials like cups, string, tongue depressors, etc. to build bridges and towers. Third - Fifth Grade Students in grades 3-5 rotated through 5 islands: K'Nex, Snap Circuits, Vernier Sensors, Code.org, and Lego WeDo. One class would visit for 4 days, within one week (M, T, Th, F) for 1 hour each day, then would not return to the lab for 4-5 weeks. This was the best way for students to have enough time to build with their materials, however, it still made sharing the materials and kits a little bit tricky. For example, the students in Class A would come in for an hour, then Class B would come in for an hour following them. Class A and Class B were sharing the same materials and kits, so the students often had to build, then deconstruct their work before leaving. When working through an activity, students referred to the Creative Learning Systems curriculum for instructions. Some of the directions in the curriculum were difficult for students in grades 3-5 to comprehend, so I would scaffold and support during these activities. Students completed a slide within their STEM Lab journal each day that they worked in the Lab. This was built into the clean-up/closing procedure and quickly became routine. We also looked at exemplar journals so that students knew what was expected of them and their writing. The journals were completed in Google Slides, and distributed and collected through Google Classroom. Middle School Middle School students in grades 6-8 worked their way through 15 different activities, using their Google Slides journal as a form of goal setting, planning, and reflection. The students used the Creative Learning Systems curriculum to guide them through their activities, and for the most part, students were able to follow along with the curriculum independently. Students always worked with a partner and focused not only on the task at hand, but also on the 4C's of 21st Century Learning. At the end of the 2015/2016 school year, we held our first STEMfest event, where students in middle school were able to show off their work from the STEM lab to their families. I highly suggest organizing an opportunity for students to share their work with an audience (parents, classmates, experts, etc.). The students really felt the need to step up their presenting game when they knew that they would be sharing their work, and fielding questions, from an authentic audience.
Following the STEMfest of 2016, everybody was excited about STEM education at Stuart Mesa!! I spent the last few weeks of the school year, cleaning, organizing, inventorying, and reflecting on the STEM Lab. I came up with some pretty exciting plans for the STEM Lab for the 2016/2017 school year. Stay tuned for "STEM Lab Story: Part 4" to hear about changes and improvements I made to improve the STEM Lab for the following year!
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DiscLaimer:All thoughts, opinions, reflections, and ideas are that of Heather Love-Fleck, and not the school district that employs her. She reserves the right to change her thoughts, opinions, reflections, and ideas at any time. Subscribe below! Categories
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