Happy "Don't Go to Work Unless It's FUN" Day!!!!

BALANCE LEARNING AND FUN

If your students aren't learning in FUN AND CREATIVE WAYS then you need to find ways to make it fun and creative.  TODAY is the perfect holiday to get them up, moving, learning, and having fun all at the same time!!!

GET KIDS UP & MOVING

Instead of having students read an article or chapter at their desk, try a 'Walk-About.' Photocopy the text they need to read. Divide it up and then tape it to the wall in different areas of your classroom. Even if it's the most "boring material," having students keep moving stimulates their brain, as noted in this 2017 Edweek article.

LET KIDS COLLABORATE

Put students into pairs, groups, or teams.  Students then 'walk-about' in their teams, read each section of the article or chapter, and summarize it.

GAMIFY YOUR ACTIVITIES

If you are worried about time, use a timer or music. Let students know that when the timer beeps or the music stops, they have to move on to the next station.  This will gamify the walk-about and will challenge students to "beat the clock" at each station.

CHALLENGE THEM

Use different summary techniques. Challenge students to use a 6-Word summary or an ABC summary so that they are forced to boil the material down to only what matters most.

GIVE KIDS CHOICE

Instead of having everyone write a summary of each section in a notebook, give them a choice. Maybe they want to use SeeSaw or Flipgrid to record their verbal or visual summary.  Maybe they want to draw a picture of their summary and then explain it. The choice is theirs!

REFLECT

At the end of the lesson, bring everyone back together to discuss and reflect. Have each group discuss a different section to put it all back together. Then use an exit strategy like sticky-notes on the board or a question posted in your Google Classroom for them to answer.

Easy-Peasy!

CONGRATULATIONS! You have just changed a boring reading assignment into an interactive, collaborative lesson, complete with gamification and technological integration - and it took NO TIME AT ALL.  It really is a FUN DAY at work!

Where did all the JOY go? How to build relationships and joy in your classroom in 5 minutes or less...

Being a student of the 80s and early 90s, my school experiences were exponentially different than the children in schools today. I don't think that students of my generation had nearly the worries that these new students have.  There were no social media issues, because it didn't exist, and there were no mass shooting drills and worries, and we certainly had way less testing and testing pressure on us.  We also were allowed to enjoy school.  There were pep rallies, school dances, and carnivals then.  These days we spend all our time starting from kindergarten on pressuring children to do their best on tests and showing them how to 'run, hide, and fight.' Pep rallies are eliminated because they interfere too much with test preparation and carnivals and festivals certainly would not be safe for our students.

Where did all the fun go? As teachers, we feel the immense pressures right along with our students.  That is why I believe it is our job to make sure that students still have the opportunity to find joy in school.

Is it really hurting our students to take 5 minutes to build classroom relationships? Resources like Edutopia's 5-minute film fest are a great way to build camaraderie and add joy to the classroom.  On this April Fool's Day take 5 minutes to create joy and conversation in your classroom using the April Fool's 5-minute film fest.  I love the math teacher at the end. Now that's creativity.  You can't tell me his students don't love him - and as a result - love math.

Check it out below. (Live Slide HERE.)

Live Slide HERE.

Hyperdocs & Noodletools - A Marriage Made in Heaven

There are so many reasons to love hyperdocs, but one of the best reasons of all is that all of a teacher's content for the lesson is in ONE SPOT, which makes "I can't find it" excuses disappear.

I love this hyperdoc created by the amazing @bartelliyo that incorporates, research, argumentative writing, and Noodletools!

If you haven't checked out Noodletools yet, it is worth looking at. It will compile all of a student's research in one place and help them track sources, take notes, create outlines, collaborate with classmates, and format or print a works cited page!

Happy International Women's Day!

Do you need a 10-20 minute class activity today?

Here are three quick, easy-peasy resources for your classroom that you can start using immediately to keep kids reading, writing, and thinking while giving yourself some quiet time to catch up!

Check it out!!! Some of these will even grade themselves!!!! You can teach kids and look phenomenal without even trying!!!

RESOURCES TO GET YOU STARTED

9th-12th Grade Paired Texts for Women's History Month from Readworks.org

Podcasts from Listenwise on Women's History

Commonlit Texts with assessments on Women's History.

Digital Learning Day 2019

It's almost here! Digital Learning Day 2019 and here at The Valley we are ramping up!

I'm so lucky to work in a school with so many amazing things happening in classrooms! But sometimes getting teachers to feel comfortable sharing and showcasing their awesomeness is difficult.  So what will we be doing?

We will be awarding prizes to teachers for doing what they already do every day -- teaching amazing lessons using appropriately integrated technology!  Teachers who want to highlight their lesson with tech can add a pic and description to our school DL Day Padlet.  They can also tweet out a pic and small description using the hashtag #DLDay and @OfficialDLDay if they want. They must include me (@ACluttsSVHS)  and our school @SV_Vikings in their Tweet so I know they are participating and then they are then entered to win fabulous classroom prizes!

Who doesn't want to win dry erase cubes or foam dice to help gamify a lesson or two? These are easy and economical prizes that you can find on Amazon. Here are the Amazon links if you're interested: foam dice and whiteboard cubes.

Teachers will be entering all day on February 28th - Digital Learning Day. Check back to watch our progress!

Listening is a 21st Century Skill - We Need to Teach It

Good communication skills are one of the qualities that all employers want their workers to possess. Yet, teachers don't focus on listening skills as much as they should in classrooms. @thebalance rates being able to listen as number one on their communication list in the article Communication Skills for Workplace Success. 

So what should we do to help students with their listening skills? Practice listening. Teachers need to model good listening skills and then give students time to practice it. Without this essential skill, our students will continue to struggle with their critical thinking and problem-solving abilities. 

A great resource for helping students listen is podcasts. My new favorite resource is https://listenwise.com/. This site offers tons of 3-6 minute stories for students grades 5-12. It's very teacher friendly and is searchable by grade level and topic.  They offer transcripts, lesson plan ideas, and quizzes with the premium price, but their basic site is free for teachers and makes a great additional resource for students. Podcasts can be pushed out through Google classroom too!

Podcast Graphic Organizer Preview

Try my Podcast Graphic Organizer - All ready for Google Classroom - just make a copy,  distribute, and get started today!Enjoy!

Below is a video that explains more about how to use the graphic organizer with listenwise.com or any podcast.

The Big Game is Almost Here!

Get your students interested in learning with this great list of sports-related videos from Edutopia. Pair it with an SOS Strategy from Discovery Education and you've got yourself a quick, fun, easy-peasy mini-lesson!!! What a great way to start a Friday!

Regardless of if you are a Rams or a Patriots fan, (or an angry Saints fan), or even if you are just in it for the commercials.... here are some interesting and fun videos on the science of sports. These are great classroom warm-ups or discussion starters for a Friday morning right before the big game!

Try This Strategy

1. Watch one of the videos on the list above.
2. Have students complete an AEIOU strategy chart.

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.

For more strategies like this go to discoveryeducation.com and search SOS strategies.