The Baron Byte
MCSD INSTRUCTIONAL & EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY NEWSLETTER
What teachers need?
I read an article last week from Catlin Tucker about what teacher's need to feel engaged in their role as an educator. They need autonomy, mastery, and purpose. AUTONOMY to make decisions in the classroom that will make a positive impact on the students. Not necessarily making the job of the instructor easier, but making the decision based on what is right for students. MASTERY! Do you desire to get better and better at your profession? Tucker notes, "some of the BEST teachers are the BEST students." Can you say that you still have the drive to improve? Lastly, do you have PURPOSE? She states that "the key to maintaining a clarity of purpose is to connect with other educators who are passionate and inspired."
Make it your mission to be THAT educator, colleague, person, that others feel inspired to be around.
I follow Catlin on Twitter (@catlin_tucker), so can you! Build up that PLN and GET INSPIRED!
To read the full article (which is short), click HERE!
Participate in our FIRST BARON'S LEARNING COMMUNITY Flipgrid POST!!!
How to earn entries:
1. Get 5 entries for making a video post
2. Get 1 entry for each time you respond to another teacher's post
3. BECOME a BLC Challenge winner, when I pull a name on Nov. 30th!
VIEW VIDEO!
The video below is necessary for staff. Please watch and use this information BEFORE visiting a technician or placing a tech ticket.
Discovery Education
- Go to www.manheimcentral.org
- Click on Students
- Click on Discovery Education
- Login using your school email (.org) and your regular laptop password.
SPOTLIGHT ON STRATEGIES
A-E-I-O-U
Materials:
video segment, paper, writing tool
1. Preview the video segment and select appropriate points at which to pause for students to jot notes.
2. Show video segment. Important: As students watch the video, do NOT have them take notes. If they look down to take notes, they will be missing content. Assure them you will pause the video every few minutes for them to jot down their thoughts related to the following categories:
A = Adjective: List a word or two that describes something you saw or learned.
E = Emotion: Describe how a particular part of the segment made you feel.
I = Interesting: Write something you found interesting about the content/topic.
O = Oh!: Describe something that caused you to say “Oh!”
U = Um?: Write a question about something you learned or want to learn more about.
3. Pause at the predetermined points to allow students 60 seconds to add information to their list.
4. When the movie concludes, have students complete a Pair & Share of their A-E-I-O-U statements.
5. Regroup as a class and have students share their favorite parts.
This strategy provides scaffolding that helps students look for and remember key ideas about the information presented in the video segment. It also provides a conversation structure for debriefing with classmates and reporting out, in small groups or as a whole group.
Have students create a vocabulary list of different emotions they experienced while watching the video segment.
Each time you use this strategy, have students add to an ongoing list of adjectives that they can refer to as they engage in writing activities throughout the year.
Opportunities for Our Students!
1. Annual PA Middle School and High School Computer Fair (Click HERE for rules)
Catagories Include:
- Animation
- Computer Fair Logo
- Digital Movie
- Graphic Design Challenge
- Programming Challenge
- Web Page Design
2. Student Inventor's Competition at PETE&C.
Find details HERE!
Trainings for Staff
Newslea: Designed for 3rd & 4th grade teachers to try this platform. This is a great program for TDA's.
HCB: 11/15
DR: 11/20
ClassFlow: Designed for Doe Run teachers who would like to use the writing features without issues with glitching that you see in your Flipcharts.
DR: 11/28
BrainPop & BrainPop Jr: How to incorporate active learning strategies with BrainPop and how to integrate with Schoology. Want to learn more about how students can use Movie Maker and Make-a-Map?
HCB: 11/30
DR: 12/4
Espark Dashboard: Review of the dashboard and how to review student data.
HCB: 12/5
DR: 12/11
Middle School Trainings begin at 2:45 - 3:15
BrainPop: How to incorporate active learning strategies with BrainPop and how to integrate with Schoology. Want to learn more about how students can use Movie Maker and Make-a-Map?
11/29
Actively Learn: Using this powerful platform to close read and prepare students for TDA's.
12/1
High School Trainings - available upon request for Department Meetings
Actively Learn: Using this powerful platform to close read
Formative: Using this free tool to interact with students and get real-time data that you can use to assess "just in time" learning.