Monday, May 26, 2014

Lessons Learned - Four Months of being a 1:1

Just a little over four months ago, my third graders and I embarked upon a journey of becoming a 1:1 Classroom!  Excitement and anticipation filled the air as our iPads arrived on our 100th Day of School and Learning!


 Becoming a 1:1 classroom was a huge game-changer in my teaching career!


 Top Ten Lessons Learned

Lesson 1 - Join Twitter

Thanks to +Brent Catlett for encouraging and pushing me out of my own comfort zone to join Twitter.  What a great way to connect and learn from other educators globally!  I am learning a lot from my PLN each day and truly appreciate all the connections I continue to make! My only regret is that I didn't join Twitter sooner!
 

Lesson 2 - Start an Educational Blog of your Journey

Thanks again to +Brent Catlett and +Ann Feldmann for encouraging me to start an educational blog.  Once again it took me out of my comfort zone, but this experience has helped me grow professionally.  Learning from each other is what it is all about!  The majority of the ideas I use in my 1:1 Classroom come from reading professional educational blog posts.
 

Lesson 3 - Create Lessons and Courses in iTunes U


Students will have easy access to lessons that tie in with district curriculum.  It is a great way of organizing student learning outcomes.  I have found creating all lessons in iTunesU is the best way to
 organize my teaching objectives and curriculum.











#4  Our Students are the best TEACHERS! 

Collaboration and Teamwork happen at its best on a daily basis!  I  learn so much from my third graders each day.  They airplay tips, suggestions, and how to use the apps; as well as share their work and projects when working on curriculum. Students become the teacher, and ownership of their learning happens when they are in charge. Students teach each other, their parents, and staff.


Thanks +Tony Vincent for creating this!


#5 Enhance and Enrich all Curricular Areas 
 Differentiate and Individualize Classroom Instruction

All you have to do is take your district curriculum and the rest is history when it comes to a 1:1 Classroom!
Students are 100% Engaged and take Ownership of their Learning

"Each child is unique, not only capable of learning but also capable of succeeding."
 ~ Robert John Meehan


#6  Connect Globally - Connect Outside the Four Walls of your Classroom


Global Connections is what True Learning is all About



Mystery Skypes
All the videos shown have been created by my third graders!

 Jobs involved in a Mystery Hangout




Friends from Maine




 
Virtual Field Trips
Take your Class to Work Day


GHO

Our Google Hangout with Mr. +Adam Bellow 


Our GHO with Mr. +Tony Vincent 




Kidblog


 Below are friends from Canada who are commenting on our Kidblog site!  My third graders LOVE to write.  The comments they receive from all over the world keep my students motivated! We always remember to "Keep it Worthy of the Web"!
Our classroom Kidblog site is Mrs. Evon's Third Grade Team.


Global Blog Challenge


Be looking for global learning opportunities for your students.  We participated in a Global Blog Challenge created by +Janine Crain this school year which was a huge success.  Students from all over the world participated in this global writing activity.  Student had topics to write on and commented on other students' posts.



CritterKins

There are a lot of amazing people out there who can make a huge impact on your students.  My students love hanging out with Ms. Jena Ball, author of CritterKins and Mr. Marty Keltz, producer of The Magic School Bus and Goosebumps!  We draw, write, blog, laugh, "wiggle waggle" dance together, and have fun!  I met +Jena Ball and +Marty Keltz through Twitter and we consider the two of them family in our classroom!


Lead with Your Heart


Our CritterKins Pinterest Site

 CritterKins/GHO with Ms. Jena and Mr. Marty
CritterKin Site

CritterKin Blog Swap Classes Connect



TodaysMeet


20 Useful Ways to use TodaysMeet in Schools


A great site for students to have discussions with each other in their own class or with classrooms from around the world.  It is great to use during Mystery Skypes and Google Hangouts.


 “Don’t be afraid to give up the good to go for the great.” – John D. Rockefeller




#7   Give Students a Choice

Make Learning Relevant and Engaging
When creating projects that tie in with district essential objectives and curriculum,  give your students a choice to "Show What they Know"!


Students Need to Create and Share their Knowledge

“It is our choices, that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities.” – J. K Rowling
When Students are given a Choice....Learning becomes Relevant

Reading Lesson created by Natalie
 



#8  Favorite Go-to-Apps  Have Go-To-Apps that Work in all Curricular Areas

Actually we have a fairly long list of Go-to-Apps, but here are four of our favorites.





Ava created this video of her favorite app...Stick Around







 “If you can’t explain it simply, you don’t understand it well enough.” – Albert Einstein

#9 Accountability and Work Flow

Google Drive and gClassFolders


Google Workflow on the iPads


Setting up a Google Workflow with GClass folders is awesome because it automatically:
  • Creates and distributes student work/assignment folders with share settings
  • Creates and shared class resource folders
  • Organizes student work neat and tidy in Google Drive
  • Create the framework for paperless workflow
  • Core apps share either to Google Drive or publish to YouTube
      Video Tutorial by Mickie Mueller on gClassFolders Script.



eduClipper 

 eduClipper created by +Adam Bellow is a great place for students to share their work with a global audience.  In all curricular areas my students add their work to eduClipper when they are finished.  They have folders that reflect our district curriculum where they add their work.  My third graders use this as a portfolio of their learning! My students and I love the recording feature! They also use eduClipper at home.


Brie app smashed and created this video of her favorite app-eduClipper



#10 With all the Positives in a 1:1....Things do go Wrong

*District Broadband Connectivity Issues
*Reflector/Airplay Not Working when it is Time to Share Work and Projects
*Not enough Memory on Students iPads - This is one of our biggest challenges.
*Students don't want the school day to end or go out for recess! - Maybe this is a positive!  



21st Century Learning at its Best
Students are creating, collaborating, and connecting globally! Students are enhancing and enriching their learning of district curriculum and objectives through the use of technology on a daily basis!

One of my favorite quotes written by Jane Goodall! 
My students are making a difference each day!