One thing I like about this school is that it encourages students to focus on their strengths, rather than their weaknesses.  As teachers, we are all familiar with Howard Gardener’s multiple intelligences……some people are good in music, others excel in art, some are excellent writers/readers, etc. 

While I was eating in the teacher’s lounge today, a teacher commented on a conversation she had with a parent earlier in the day.  A parent had commented that her daughter was very smart.  The teacher’s response to the parent was that “if this young lady was smart, then she is hiding it from me because she sure isn’t showing it in class”.  The teacher further commented that she wasn’t going to tell a lie and mislead the parent into believing that her child was smart when she wasn’t.  I was quite appalled by this statement because I was sure that the child she was referring to was smart in something.  Maybe the child is not “book” smart, but she very well could be a talented musician, have a beautiful singing voice, be a shining athlete, or an artist.  What else does her teacher know about her other than that she is making bad grades in her class? 

I think we forget that every person is unique and we are not all meant to be gifted at the same things.  My brother struggles with school despite my parents’ efforts to hire several tutors, take him to Sullivan, and work with him at home. However, he is EXTREMELY talented at playing guitar. He spends countless hours practicing every day and learning new songs.   He can listen to ANY song (and I’m not exxagerating) on the radio and play it after hearing it once.  You can’t tell me that isn’t “smart”.   

http://ghsprincipal.edublogs.org/2006/08/09/15/

Bet that subject heading caught Nate’s attention!  This was the title of a blog I read.  I found this blog very interesting.  It goes right along with our discussions this week.  The author discusses the importance of talking openly with children about difficult topics such as sex.  She says she would rather her boys get information directly from her rather than their friends.  She further goes on to comment on how we as teachers need to engage in open discussions with our students about how they how they use the Web.  Many of them are creating, linking, and searching websites such as MySpace and Friendster.  They are creating blogs and wikis and watching podcasts. Some of these students are posting massive amounts of information about themselves on these websites, including their full name, address, phone number, email address, etc.  This makes them easy prey for predators.  It is our job as educators to teach them to put a minimal amount of information out there for other people.

Also, the author also mentioned that teachers need to explain the difference in writing that is used in blogs, wikis, email, etc. and the writing that is produced for professional documents such as portfolio pieces.  This is something I had never thought about before, but it makes a lot of sense to teach students the difference.

This is a hard one………….sometimes it feels like we don’t have much choice here because administration doesn’t give us a lot of leeway.  At my school, I even have to document core content in my lesson plans, so I can’t teach anything that doesn’t meet state standards. 

I have found that if students have an opportunity to make choices and take responsibility for their learning, then they truly “learn”.  For example, in this class we get to choose which articles we read and write about………I have learned more because I am reading and writing about topics that interest me and those that relate to the grade level I teach.  During center time, my students get to choose which books they want to read.  I have many nonfiction books.  The students can’t read yet, but I have taught them to read the pictures (for example, this morning by reading the pictures a little boy discovered that a tiger weighs more than a cat).  At the end of library time, I allow the students to share some things they learned from “reading” the books and they always have interesting facts to share.  This probably wouldn’t happen if I forced them to read a particular book.

I think students would learn more if we gave them more choices throughout the day.  Many times they are simply not interested in the content we force them to learn.  As Kentucky teachers, we still have to meet state standards, but maybe rather than make all students learn about the same topic, for example:  hurricanes……………students could be given choices instead:  The assignment could be………Create a PowerPoint Presentation on one of the following weather types:  thunderstorms, snowstorms, hurricanes, tornadoes Afterwards, students could share their presentations with the class; this way students would get to focus on one topic they were really interested in, but also learn about the other weather types as well.

No parent has ever succeeded at “protecting” their child from the world.  It was impossible 50 years ago and with the increased technology we have today; it is even more difficult.  Kids have Internet access, cell phones, Ipods, cable television in their bedrooms, etc.  Even most home schooled children have access to these tools and if they don’t have them in their own home, they most likely know someone who does.  A child who wants to know about something has information literally at their fingertips; it’s a click away.  As a parent, I think it is best to be open my child and talk to herregulary about my viewpoints/beliefs/opinions about issues, because like I said, she will get the information somewhere…………….so I’m better off talking to her instead of avoiding certain conversations and pretending like everything in the world is always peachy.  This goes for the classroom too.  In my classroom, we have class meetings where we discuss issues/concerns/things that are bothering the kids or things they have heard……..we get it out in the open and deal with it.  One time we had to deal with a student who was saying cuss words and we had a meeting about inappropriate words and why we don’t use them. 

Joyce Valenza has been a librarian for the past 30 years.  She has developed a table that shows technologies used 30 years ago and technologies used today.  Some of the technologies that students will use in projects and assignments they create today include:  email, Wikipedia, ebooks, texting, Skype (VOIP), PowerPoint, websites, podcasts, video editing, Internet, wikis, blogs, digital storytelling,  WebQuests, wikis, blogs, digital portfolios, subscription databases (is this a gator?)

As teachers we will be responsible for knowing how to use these technologies as well as our students.  How can we check their work if we don’t have a clue how to operate the program they created the work in?  Luckily, because of this class and other classes we have had in this program, we are all pretty well up to speed, for once!  However, if we want things to stay that way, we are going to have to “think like learners” and be up for learning new things on a regular basis because technology changes at a rapid pace.  (See link below.)

http://weblogg-ed.com/2006/how-our-lives-have-changed-and-will-change/

Some of you may know about this site already.  ProTeacher had a community for teachers.  It includes discussion boards where teachers write posts about issues they are facing in the classroom.  Teachers also post ideas/tips.  Some of the discussion boards include:

• Pre-K
• kindergarten
• first grade
• second grade
• third grade
• fourth grade
• fifth grade
• sixth grade
• middle school
• classroom management
• vent
• reading/literature
• math/science
• various blogs

Teachers add posts daily and anyone can post replies.  This site is a great place for teachers to connect and share ideas.  The only downside is there is no RSS feed, so you have to go to the site directly.  Click on link below:

http://www.proteacher.net/

I was aware that Nate seemed to be very busy this weekend.  Whenever I was online, he was not……………this was very unusual because I have grown so accustomed to him being available 24/7. It never occurred to me to stop working because he wasn’t around.  Instead, I just kept plugging away.  This would never happen in the real world college classroom if the professor had been absent.  Instead all of the students would have been thrilled that class was canceled and rushed home.  Noone would have read anything that wasn’t assigned let alone engage in discussions about the readings.

I was also very busy this weekend and although I didn’t have a lot of time to write blogs, I did read classmates’ posts and many articles on my ‘gator. In the past I would probably not have done this because my philosophy was “why read something unless I was getting a grade for it?”  However, now I have have this new desire to search my gator for interesting stories.  I am starting to look forward to sitting down at night and reading and learning about what other schools are doing.  I even sent one of the articles to my principal via email.  I think I may actually be on my way to transitioning from a student to a learner.

In “On Board”, published by the New York State School Board Association, President Carl Onken writes in his commentary “Said the Education Trust’s Kati Haycock, ‘The research shows that kids who have two, three, four strong teachers in a row will eventually excel, no matter what their background, while kids who have even two weak teachers in a row will never recover.’

http://ghsprincipal.edublogs.org/2006/08/02/and-more-to-the-point/

We have had some discussion in this class concerning the issue that a teacher cannot teach a child anything; the child has to be willing to learn.  This is true; I could pull out everything in my bag of tricks to help a child learn and if he/she is not willing to put forth any effort than there is littleI can do about that.  However, I do believe that there is a greater chance that the child will get “turned on to learning” if the teacher is of high quality.  An excellent teacher knows how to provide rich,hands-on experiences for children that will engage them and captivate their interests……..a weak teacher doesn’t know how to do this and often the child will remain unmotivated to learn.

I was very intrigued by Angie’s post “Home Where They Belong”.  Angie is absolutely right, so many parents have left it up to educator’s to teach students right from wrong.  I make it a big part of my day to talk to my daughter about her actions and how they affect others.  My husband and I do our best to teach her to follow God’s word; we are not perfect, but it is our responsiblity to raise her to know God and to follow the commandments that have been laid before us in the Bible. 

As a teacher, I spend instructional time on teaching my students to treat others like they want to be treated, to have respect for themselves and others, and to use good manners.  However, this is really something that needs to start in the home.   The article that Angie read said that:

In a recent academic study, homeschooled children were found to be significantly less likely than conventionally schooled children to watch MTV; use drugs; lie to a parent, teacher, or other older person; attempt suicide; drink enough alcohol to be legally drunk; or gamble. Homeschoolers were also significantly less likely to describe themselves as too busy, stressed out, angry with life, confused, or always tired.

Parents that homeschool their children often do it because they are christians and believe that homeschooling their child will “protect them from the immorality of the world”.  I don’t agree with putting a child in a protective bubble, however I do admire these parents for spending time teaching their children morals and values.  From the statement above, it seems like their hard work is paying off.

http://www.downes.ca/cgi-bin/page.cgi?post=35542

Blackboard has received a patent on their software program.  They claim they were the first to create “some of the basic features of the software that powers online education” and they are sueing other companies that have “copied” the features they claim to have first created. 

After reading this article I began thinking about the features in TappedIn.  TappedIn, as we all know, is MUCH better than Blackboard, however it does have some similar features.  As a member, you can have online discussions with other classmates and you can also post documents for others to see.  TappedIn has also put a twist on how they do things though.  They email members transcripts of discussions.  Members can move from room to room and chat with whomever they choose, unlike Blackboard which only allows users to enter the classroom they are enrolled in.  Furthermore, TappedIn members can receive online assistance from the HelpDesk and attend P.D. sessions.

So my question is……………..Is TappedIn safe?  Or will Blackboard sue them too?  Did TappedIn copy some of Blackboards features and put a twist on them?  Or did it use original ideas?  Personally I hope that TappedIn is in the clear because I think it has a great deal of potential for online courses.