Writing Workshop

Staff Meeting 12.11.13

Writers' tools and supports (Nardia)
p43 The Writing Book

• Relevant
• Accessible
• Age Appropriate

Writing Wall - co-constructed with students, students to revisit, share in group work.

• Constantly changing

Mini Lessons

p70 The Writing Book

• Target specific skill eg adding adjectives

Positive Behaviour 4 Learning Conference

Rotorua, 19 ~21 September

Keynote Two: Dr Terry Scott

Professor and Distinguished University Sholar

College of Education and Human Development

University of Lousiville

Louisville,, KY 40292

t.scott@louisville.com

Snowball analogy - preventing the at risk students rolling down the hill (and getting bigger).

The further a student rolls into the failure, the harder it is to stop him/her from rolling and push him/her back up again.

How do we keep kids in Tier 1 in Tier 1.  Instruct, teach, encourage, remind ...  (influenza comparison).  Need more than one plan for Tier 2 students.  Need to develop a logical sequence - safe > small risk > bigger risk > outside help.  No logic in jumping right to the outside help.

Sometimes need to give up some accuracy to get to reality.

• Student behaviour won’t change until adult behaviour changes  - Adults Matter

• All behaviour change is an instructional process - Instruction matters.

Instruction is our fix.

• It’s all about probability - what’s the simpliest way to make a differecnce in the success:failure ratio of a student - Practices Matter

What really works with teaching, works best with kids with behaviour disorders.

Biggest effect 

Start with engagement. - The teacher has a  disproportionate amount of responsibility on the adult for the quality of the relationship with students.  

• Need to spend ALL time in class and during the day engaging with students and not ‘paper work’.
• Aim for 3 OTR per minute.
• Feedback 4: 1 positive:negative feedback.  

Student characteristics + School/Teacher Control = Desired State

(Home, community...) Curriculum, expectations, measureable

routinesmm examples, outcomes

physical arrangements (skills, behaviours)

engagemetn, prompts

time, feedback

OTR - opportunity to respond

iPad app for observing engagement ( check it out on slideshow and see if worth getting)

Warren Dawson

The Nuts and Bolts of Classroom Management

Missouri Mini modules

Awareness of staff changeover

Orienting new students in place

Relievers resource pack

Importance of data - don’t spend time supposing what the problem is, gather data, observe, talk with teachers, students ...

Expectations vs Rules

• Be a learner vs be prepared before school starts.

Outcomes and criteria

Student voice - but adult has final say

Class rules need to align to school rules

Guidelines for classroom rules. observable, measureable, positive, understandable, applicable...

Term 1 - teach rules in week 1 and review 2 x a week

Term 2 - review rules once a week

Term 3 - periodically based on table

Term 4 -         “

Consider

Relievers, job sharing, common year level, new students, new teacher/TA

Procedure - Transitions

• Everyone puts work into desks
• Put desk lids down quietly
• Quietly move to the mat
• Sit quietly in the correct place, facing the teacher
• Teacher praise for quick, quiet and respectful movement.
• Group 1 moves off to their activity and begin quietly - praise
• Repeat with Group 2, Group 3 ...

Schoolwide - one focus per week (one way of doing it)

Reinforcement - win a seat in a deckchair at assembly one week, drink bottle, 

• focus on improvement and effort

Peer observations and coaching

ODR - Office Descipline Referrals

Insoll Avenue Primary School

What it means to be an Insoll HERO?

Long time to agree on what a Major, Minor or Crisis behaviour.

Teacher and student walk through of classrooms.  Daily goals at the front of the class.  Teachers walking through can feedback to individuals who are achieving the goals.

Class to Cloud

Today I attended a session organised by Telco Technical Services (TTS) at Saint Peter’s College in Newmarket.  Saint Peter’s College shared their story of the last year as they introduced iPads to all year 7 students.

Overview

Read ‘School ICT Infrastructure Survey Report 2013’
http://www.educationcounts.govt.nz/publications/schooling/school-ict-infrastructure-survey

Modern shared learning environments
Community  - is the main driver and enabler of MLE
Key Technology Improvements
SNUP
UFB
Network for Learning

Nimbus - Business Management System - http://www.nimbus.co.nz/

St Peters College - iPads for Learning
Ultranet - used for weekly resources for students, conversations between students -      students helping each other.
Wireless
BYOD  - checked out what other schools are doing/have done (Orewa College)
Capabilities within staff including Network Manager.
Key People -IT Team - include Senior Management and Principal must be behind it!
Costs for school and students - every teacher needed an iPad, device and apps,     consider how to help the students that can’t afford to buy their own.
Start slowly - do things right the first time.

The Vision
iPads are a tool to assist learning
allows for greater independence in the classroom
allows a link between school, home and beyond - everything on Ultranet page - open - everyone on the same page.
a tool for all - levels the playing field (reader/writers, etc)
organisational tool
engagement
student teacher relationships - opportunity for T to move around and interact with the students.

St Peter’s Teacher’s Perspective
Visited Tamaki Primary and saw how they used google docs, blogs, interacting with other schools
Developed and formed ideas and structures -
Rules around use and storage - no question is too small
What apps?  teachers were given an itunes card to buy and play with iPads - practical apps,
Engagement
Ultranet!!! Using what we already have.
Used in place of common learning tools -
Is not replacing writing - yet
A positive side afeect is less photocopying

First month
Cover the Basics - Apple ID, security, correct use
Using Ultranet
Keeping things simple
Rapid pace of skill development - esp in students - skills, creativity.
1st presentations - within first month

When is it being used?
every period possible
everyone uses it in different ways

Planning/Teaching
easier
online - parents can also see it
involves responsibility, teacher circulation, trust
helps S with learning difficulties

Moving Forward
WEBDAV - http://www.webdav.org/ - storage of work on a server, submit assignments, work is safe.
Project based learning - integration, cross-curricula, as little T input as possible
iBook author - for planning
tumbles

Storage
lockable filing cabinets
locking
charge each night at home

Upgrading iPads
- not considered yet, will need to in a few years

4 Key areas - mindshift These were decided by the school as the 4 main reasons to have iPads
- Self management
- Thinking skills
- Move from paper to online learning
- Computer based learning

Criteria to judge success of iPad implementation
St Peters has 14 criteria, 13 achieved but end of Term 2

Q and A
If internet is down
can work offline with iPads
work downloaded first week of term (or whenever)

Contingencies
- Loan devices supplied by the school
Consequence if student using iPad inappropriately

Support
full time tech person
part time person working in Ultranet

iPad apps/ tools /tricks and websites  (John Gray)

Reflector     - creates a virtual apple tv
        - cross platform
can record what you are doing - create own video resources
can have multiple devices connected at the same time.
       
Show me     - whiteboard app

Bookmarks vs
Reading list - allows you to read offline
        -
Socrative.com - survey, vote, website, free online (not an app)

Collaboration
- Padlet
Evernote
lino.com - like a giant corkboard
corkboard.com
stixy.com
noteapp.com

Living on the Future Edge - The Age of Disruptive Innovation

Lee Crocket
Keynote 3

Moore's Law - Twice as much power for half the money every 24 months - held true since 1979, now down to every 12 months

Augmented Reality

• How does it impact our teaching? - 
• culture teaching will be more important the language teaching
• inspirational teaching - a learning facilitator
• 'In the future, people who need managing will not be employable' - Lee Crockett
• The Arts are not ornamental they are fundamental - creative and service skills are needed

Disruptive Innovation

• Changes in technology that make something or someone obsolete
• There's a better way to do things
• eg phones, computers, cameras, tapes and cds, - all ways of delivering information
• Need to get your head around it and move with the times or become obsolete
• 'Nobody needs obsolete excellence' - Ian Jukes

Can't see what is happening right in front of us! Need to step back and think about what is happening for our kids and their futures.

3 'un' that lead to downfall

• unaware
• unwilling
• unable

1 action you are going to take starting right now.

The Same Thing in a Different Way - Day 2

Lee Crockett and Andrew Churches

Focus on Solution Fluency for 1 ~ 4 terms before introducing other fluencies.

• Ask
• Acquire
• Analyze
• Apply
• Assess

Google

• The language you use to search google with affects the results that come up.
• How can u   v How does an individual
• Can filter by reading level, under Search tools
• Advanced search 
• Dihydrogen Monoxide - DHMO Homepage - useful for looking for misinformation
• Pacific Northwest Tree Octopus
• Martin Luther King
• 3 and No Repeats
• World Map dilemma on West Wing

Lee Crocket

Email :   lee@fluency21.com

Twitter : @leecrocket

The Same Thing in a Different Way

Lee Crockett and Andrew Churches

Service class jobs are replaced by technology

Creative class jobs are facilitated by technology

• freemium games - make most money
• apps design 
• Need to develop visual communication for app designs and the future

What are the critical skills students need to be successful in life beyond school?
Our list

• teamwork / collaboration
• creativity
• communication
• resilience
• risk taking
• problem solving
• critical thinking 
• managing self
• social analysis - ethical thinking
• filtering information
• dreaming
• interacting and contributing

Lee's list

1. Problem soloving
2. Creativity
3. Analytical thinking 
4. Collaborate
5. Communicate
6. Ethics, Action, Accountability

21st Century fluencies have nothing to do with hardware

but more to do with headware and heartware

Solution Fluency

define

• importance of assessment to be shared 

discover

• relevance and context
• understand and unpack the problem
• understanding strengths and weaknesses

dream

design

• What happened before that?
• learning progressions 

deliver

debrief

• review each of the steps and the outcome and consider how could you have made the product and the process better?

What do we want out of 21C Fluencies

• Relevance
• present work in a format that students will relate to eg videos, language...
• Start with the curriculum and identify a standard you would like to address.
• Who would encounter this in the world beyond school?
• What would be relevant, in context, or applicable to your students?
• Creating
• Real World

New Vocabulary

• Edutainment
• Creatical thinking - creative and critical thinking
• Describe - give a detailed account - who, what, when, where
• Explain - give a detailed account include causes, reason mechanisms - how and why
• Analysis
• Evaluation
• Elevator pitch - 60 secs to promote your idea.

Kiva.org
Khan Academy - https://www.khanacademy.org/
oDesk - Changing how the world works

• accountability and transparency (esp when work is outsourced)

Misbehaving Appropriately - A Blueprint for Teaching in the 21st C Our Way, Island Bay: A Curriculum for the 21st Century

Keynote - Perry Rush

The Learning Purpose in the 21C - we need a shared sense of purpose as individuals

• to enable the individual to be fulfilled to their satisfaction - cater to individuals
• diversity in our students
• if we are compelling students to come to school it needs to be an experience worthy of the time they spend at school
• to build capability to be successful in the 21C knowledge economy
• Catching the Knowledge Wave - Jane Gilbert
• The new meaning of knowledge
• is a process not a thing
• does things
• happens in teams not individuals
• develops in the now when it is needed
• develops to be replaced not stored
• just in time, not just in case
• Minds are
• resources - that can be connected to other resources in order to generate new knowledge
• to enable deep learning
• The difference in quality of inquiry is the teacher 
• Student initiative with deep 
• to grow students that are able to question the status quo and act on their beliefs
• Be quiet and listen to the kids

NZ Curriculum

• Student learning at the centre, not coverage
• Designed to reduce compliance and simplify requirements - essence statements
• Emphasis on local meaning ... what is important in your community
• Participatory view of learning... gaining knowledge is not enough... you need to be able to do things with what you know
• More generic,,, essence statements, reduced AO's...increased professional judgment
• Demands vision... is a significant shift from what we have known

• The Hidden Lives of Learners - Graham Nuthall
• most children's significant learning experiences were self selected or self generate even in traditional classroons
• need to develop clarity about how we learn - philosophy, culture, practice

21C Pedagogies the Grow Deeper Learning

• Conceptual curriculum
• Teaching for Understanding as opposed to knowledge acquisition
• Project Zero, Harvard University - http://www.pz.harvard.edu/
• Teaching by design
• Inquiry based learning
• its not about the inquiry model its about the teaching of the inquiry model

Personalised Learning 

• Discovery time
• Passion Projects
• Personal inquiry prompted by shared inquiry
• Children teaching children
• Writer's notebook

Lee Crocket - 21 Century Fluencies

Another school holiday course but one I'm really excited to be attending.  Learning Network NZ has organised a two day programme with Lee Crocket from the 21C Fluencies Institute.

Keynote - Lee Crocket
Different ways of doing things











TTWWADI - that's the way we've always done it.
Why do we accept things without questioning?

• holidays
• bell times
• classrooms
• hands up
• writing in books
• ...

Why do we need to examine our TTWWADIs?  For the kids!!!

Myths in education

• IQ is fixed - creatical thinking - creative and critical thinking
• Solution Fluency
• relevant, engaging learning opportunities
• Homework improves performance
• very little connection - John Hattie
• no correlation between homework and achievement
• Mendina - Brain Rules
• quality over quantity
• In partnership with the kids
• Text is better for communicating than images
• eyes process images at 60 000 x that of text
• 80% of info comes to us through our eyes
• we need to find ways to present with visuals 
• Learning is more effective when students sit quietly and listen
• digital learning mashup 
• Receiving Information - Passive Learning
• audio
• visual
• audio visual
• Participation - Active learning
• verbal 
• multisensory 
• Impact on learning higher when cooperative learning than competitive learning
• Small class sizes are essential for effective learning
• no effect, size doesn't matter
• impacts on management
• progressive withdrawal - from teacher control to student control of their learning
• we need to teach them how to learn - not how to be taught
• University education is essential for a successful future
• kids need to prepare for 10 ~ 17 careers in their life
• students are abandoning university
• information has a short shelf life
• information quickly becomes obsolete
• white collar jobs are just factory jobs in nicer clothes

Mathletics

What is Mathletics?

• child on computer practicing maths - live mathletics, curriculum activities
• teacher resources 
• printable resources - aligned to NZ Curriculum
• management functions - groups, results, reports

Engaging for students

Making life easier for teachers

Main page - Need Help? for all information about what is on Mathletics and how to use it.

• rewards systems - 
• 1000 pts in a week = bronze certificate
• 5 bronze cert to get a silver
• 4 silver certificates to get a gold

can check at different levels - top centre

2 hours a week is enough to get a bronze

Activities

• personalised learning - something easier/harder option for students
• activities randomly generated
• within the band of the course
• 2 wrong next one is easier
• 2 right next one harder
• instant feedback

? button - will take the question you got wrong and ‘teach’ how to get it right.

• used as an individual or group teaching tool

Live Mathletics

• against classmates very popular

Rainforest Maths

• explore

Times Tables Toons 

• for rote learning

Concept Search

• 750 teams included
• great content for Smartboard

Problem Solving

• check out for Friday activities

• Grouping students for differentiated learning

Set up groups

• group name, country, new group course - Level 1 ~ 8
• can customise courses completely
• click, drag and drop student into new group
• can only allocate a student to one course
• can have multiple teachers for a student

• use existing courses as a template
• show/hide topics to focus on what is happening in the class

• at a glance 
• Action bar
• assign activities 
• 85% is mastery
• Yellow activities must be done before student can go on live athletics
• Conversation with students about where they are and where they want to be - intrinsic motivation

Set minimal standards for live maths

• Live Maths Report - then bottom right Set level

Report Generator

• View button - print includes graph, strengths, weaknesses
• Part of triangulation

IKAN tests 

• Filter by - General

• can print page, chapter or book

iPads app

• has sound
• sound to be introduced online by end of month

Skype Session with Afghanistan

We have been reading 'Boy Overboard' by Morris Gleitzman, about an Afghan boy and his family who love their country but have to escape when the government forces blow up their house.  The students' curiosity has really been triggered by this book and they had many questions to ask.

Through connections I was able to set up a Skype session with a UN Ambassador to Afghanistan, the Hon. Chris Carter.  He got up before 6.30 am to talk with us.

Before the Skype session, the students brainstormed questions which were meaningful to them.  See them here.

During the session each student had a role to play - Leader, Questioner, Researcher, Notetaker, Photographer, and Videographer.

Mr Carter answered all of our questions, adding some interesting forsights.  He then showed us around his home in Kabul. The highlight for many of the class was seeing the guard with his rifle!  We also asked Mr Carter about how he has adapted to life after migrating from New Zealand to take up his role.

Keep an eye out for follow up activities.

 

Learning with iPads

Mandy Dempsey
30 May, 2013

A free introduction to using iPads in the classroom from eTime, a Christchurch based digital learning company.

SAMR Model

• a model for effectively implementing digital learning into the classroom.
• the higher up the model the more effective the teaching and learning.

iTunes U

• iTunes University - free learning resources available through iTunes but only accessible on iOS devices.
• Can create and share own material

iPad Apps and other resources are recorded separately.

Interestingly, was unable to implement any of the learning as the IT technician wouldn't allow any of the apps to be installed!!!!

Incredible Years

After a busy year in 2012 with Professional Development in Positive Behaviour for Learning, Written Language, Assessment for Learning and lots of Digital Technologies I have been enrolled in the Incredible Years course.  This is a 6 day programme spread over 2 terms.

Workshop 1

• Building positive relationships with students
• Proactive teacher - Preventive approaches

Workshop 2

• Praise and encouragement
• Coaching skills
• Goal setting

Workshop 3

• Incentive systems
• Parent involvement
• Behaviour plans

Workshop 4

• Decreasing inappropriate behaviours
• Behaviour plans

Incredible Years coaching complements our School Wide Positive Behaviour for Learning Programme.

Co-operative Learning

Mark Barratt, Ben Dyson et al

http://grooveshark.com/ - streaming music

Roles

Teach these, display and revise regularly

Choose the roles that suit the activity

Modeling of the roles, skills etc 

• Encouragement - teach students to give good feedback.
• Coach
• Equipment manager
• Reporters

Groups

• Groups of 4 ideal, changed every 5/6 weeks
• Top kids, middle and lower kids in each group.
• Face partners, shoulder partners - top/bottom kids sit diagonally so they don't work together.

Positives / Negatives / interesting of Co-operative Learning

• Needs to be taught, scaffolding, repetition of skills needed.
• Inclusiveness can be a +ve and a -ve
• How's is going to help my ...? raise student achievement? Must lead to an outcome.
• Transfer of skills, master in one area, link to other areas and practice.
• Take on things in bite sizes.  Don't take on everything at once. It's a process and takes time to master.
• Increases the likelihood of full buy in - no, or little, opting out.
• Teaching social skills 
• Grouping is important.  Change groups after 6 weeks.
• Peer pressure encourages involvement.
• Opting out - students see that activities are fun, interactive, and they'll want to join in.

Activities

• The Freeze - take turns to lead a group of four.  Each doing one dance move. New person leads after each 'freeze'.
• Think, Peer, Share
• Y-chart
• Quiz, Quiz, Trade - revision, definitions, basic facts, What am I?, vocabulary activities, 
• Rules - 'Stand up, hand up, pair up', don't seek out friends, trading cards, 2 tips and re-ask, must have a specific answer.
• Start with simple answers to build up the routines
• Steer away from new knowledge 
• Or for front loading

• Numbered heads

• Showdown

Vocabulary

Based on research undertaken by Caroline Chawke, 2012

'Almost all learning is based on the concept of transfer.'- Singer

• Creating multiple opportunities for varied practices
• Solve problems that are similar to those they will eventually have to solve
• Teach how to formulate general rules, strategies or schemes
• Provide cues that will allow them to connect to prior knowledge

'Background knowledge manifests itself as vocabulary knowledge  therefore teaching vocabulary is synonymous with teaching background knowledge.' - Marzano, 2004

Class Activities to Support Vocabulary Development:

• Habitat I Spy - choose a habitat and play I Spy using something you would find in that habitat.
• Charades
• 6 Thinking Hats to discuss a scenario
• Hangman
• Definition challenge - winning group comes up with the best definition for the word.
• The best sentence - using the word

South Auckland eLearning Cluster Meeting

Twice a term dedicated teachers from around South Auckland meet and share experiences in digital learning.  We meet at different schools each time and learn about the schools eLearning journey. Occasionally we have guest presenters from companies introducing new hardware, software or IT services.  Each session we include a Smack Down where we share apps, websites, shortcuts or anything else we think others will find useful.