In one of the classes that I'm currently taking we were given the assignment of creating a lesson plan that uses social media. Cool. I hadn't created a lesson that would work with that, but I use it regularly to communicate with my students and their parents.
So, what did I do? I took a unit plan that I had been working on and made some tweaks to it that would allow for social media integration. In addition, this forced me to look at some of the ISTE (technology teaching standards) and how my unit plan would push kids to meet the requirements of those standards. For example, understanding the permanence of an online post is one of the standards, albeit paraphrased. Now, in this unit plan students will be creating blog posts that both respond to literature and invite discussion through comments made on blogs. The blogs, and related comments, need to be school appropriate and follow the structure of a blog, which is less stringent than other types of formal writing. Integrating this idea into the unit plan will definitely make an impact on how my classroom looks at discussions, as well as how my students- and I- will respond to one another. SAMR. Substitution, Augmentation, Modification. Redefinition.
It's more than a little difficult to begin making that change into my curriculum, but over the past couple of years I have tried some new ways of teaching and new ways for the kids to show their understanding of the material. I've also failed miserably at times! There has been issues with technology, attendance, planning, and even implementation. Sometimes I have to scrap a lesson halfway through, and other times I can bounce back to save it- or at least salvage it. Mrs. Klimpke and I have been working on a unit plan for the upcoming survivor memoir unit, and I think that it is going to be pretty interesting. The students will be building a website and maintaining, adding to, and revising it while they read their novel of choice. This will take a lot of work both at home and at school, but I think that in the end it will be well worth the effort on my side and for the students. This year the students will be my guinea pigs (insert evil laugh here) in the hopes that next year and the year after that the lesson will be better and I will have better command of what I'm aiming for, which is understanding and knowledge of the material, as well as using technology to amplify one's voice and opinion. Wish me luck!
When I was a student, I came to class armed with a pencil, paper, and a pink rubber eraser. Oh, and a book. I always had a book in my back pocket.
As a teacher, I come to class armed with pencil, pen, paper, pink rubber eraser, cell phone, tablet, laptop computer, dry erase markers, a cup of coffee (or three) and stacks of papers to grade, hand back, or sort through. Oh, and a book. I always have a book in my back pocket. I'm trying my best to be a teacher who is connected to his students through social media, student management systems (I'm looking at you eSchool and Schoology) and the myriad of other ways that are presented to us as teachers. It's tough, but I have found that in the past two or three years my students have really begun to open up to me in ways that they never did before. I am approachable; I am available; and I am accountable. While this takes some time, effort, and dedication, I firmly believe that my students get the best of me as a result. They are never lacking for feedback, advice, or even friendly banter about new books, movies, etc. What do I get out of it? I get the satisfaction of knowing that I'm doing a good job. I get to see my kids improve, both educationally and socially. I get to watch their progress and build strong relationships with them. I get to make a difference. What else do I need, other than more coffee and the next great book? |
Mr. HopperArchives
December 2018
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