Celebrating Failure in Rm 613

I have a new tradition for the summer: travel abroad with students. It started last year when I took a group of students to Western Europe (Spain, France, and England) and this was where I formalized Minarets Abroad  for my school site. You can read about our adventures here . The group pictured in the city center of Kraków, Poland. This year, I decided to shift the focus away from Western Europe and give students the opportunity to explore Eastern Europe, including Germany, Poland, Czech Republic, and Austria. Unlike the previous trip, our trip was specifically focused on exploring the historical sites of the Holocaust in Europe, which made it a true one-in-a-lifetime trip. By the end of our fifteen day adventure in Berlin, Warsaw, Kraków, Prague, Nuremberg, Munich, and Salzburg, my students and I came to the conclusion that visiting historical sites is far more influential than learning about it in the classroom or from a book. Each and every location left me with new ...

No. Negative. Nope. Nah. Not going to happen.  These are some of my least favorite words. For many reasons, I've never been a fan of saying no. Maybe its because it closes an opportunity or goes against my desire to help people, but I just don't like doing it. Its not to say that I can't say no; I learned very quickly growing up that always saying yes lets people walk all over you. I just like to help people if I can, especially when it comes to my career in teaching.  I thought I had done a pretty decent job saying no, but recent health developments this year has shown me that I still have a lot of work to do.  In November of last year, I was diagnosed with systemic sclerosis, also known as scleroderma. Scleroderma is a rare autoimmune disease where the body overproduces collagen that builds up in the body. The systemic type means it builds up in your organs, not just the skin. They don’t know what causes it or how to cure it.  Previously, I had bee...

In June, I spent twelve days traveling across western Europe with a group of students. We started in Barcelona, Spain and slowly made our way north, ending in London, United Kingdom and it was a whirlwind of exhaustion, excitement, stress, blisters. Like any great travel adventure, I gained a new perspective on the world and a better understanding of new culture, but most of all I understood the benefit of traveling with your students. During those twelve days, I got to witness a whole new side to my students. I was used to seeing them in my classroom or in the hallways at school surrounded by their peers, but on the trip I got to see them away from their friends in a new environment, experiencing a foreign culture. Within the first 24 hours, one student had a meltdown because the Coke in Spain did not taste the same as the Coke in the United States; it was mostly the jet lag talking, but it became a running joke and we made him try Coke in every country, just to be sure. There w...

I'm in the final stages of my Master's program at Boise State University and my personal blog has definitely slowed down as a result. Even though this blog has been really quiet, I have been updating my edtech blog for my degree quite regularly. Its seems silly to double post things that I have published on one blog to another so I figured I would just share the link. Each class has had varying levels of blog integration and I've linked them below: Edtech 501: Intro to Edtech Edtech 502: Educational Website Edtech 503: Instructional Design Edtech 504: Theoretical Foundation of Edtech Edtech 505: Evaluation Educational Technologists Edtech 532: Technology Integration   (still being updated) Edtech 533: Youtube in the Classroom Edtech 537: Blogging in the Classroom (that was actually done on this blog!) Edtech 541: Educational Games and Simulations  (still being updated) Edtech 542: Project-Based Learning

Hectic.  That has been my school year so far.  No, it hasn't been anything bad. But there is so much to do: New responsibilities at work. Finishing my Master's Degree. Moving. Trying to be more 'present' at home. Teaching. Grading. Lesson Planning. Taking care of my fur-babies. I could go on and on, just like anyone.  Unfortunately, I have been neglecting my online #PLN. Ironically when I published my last post on August 11th, I was incredibly optimistic about my blogging plans for the future and I totally failed at it. So much so, that 'Blogger' didn't even show up in my suggested websites when I got on today. My twitter is pretty much in the same state.  I'm so frustrated at myself.  I know that I am not the only one to to fall off the grid when things get crazy.  So this is me brushing off the cobwebs and making a conscience effort to be more engaged online with my #PLN.  What do you do to tell balance your online and...

Below are my plans for blogging over the next two months. The bright blue indicates when posts will be published while the brigth yellow indicates important dates.

Even though reading is my favorite pastime, it falls by the wayside when school is in full swing. That's not to say that I'm not reading, but by the time I finish reading all the blog posts, assignments, essays I'm too exhausted to read-for-fun when I'm home.  Since reading is a stress reliever for me, I've tried to incorporate more reading into my every day life and the best way, for me, has been through  Audible . Initially, I was against listening to books since 'that is something old people do' but now I'm hooked.  I look forward to my commute.  I've always loved having time before and after work to decompress and reflect, but sometimes it can get a little boring. I've even found I'm more alert and awake instead of getting lost in my thoughts.  It keeps me engaged.  As a teacher, its so important to stay relevant and connected to the world around you. It helps me remain 'human' and also helps me connect with my students ...

While many people believe that the best educators earn respect with grand gestures, Aaron Hogan disproves this final myth in the sixth chapter of Shattering the Perfect Teacher Myth . He insists respect and rapport from students is gained through everyday interactions and gives simple ideas to implement every day. Its so simple. You don't have to do anything crazy, invest a ton of money, or take away from family time. You just need to do a few tiny things every day that show students that you care. As someone who is not the insanely outgoing and goofy teacher who has no fear, I appreciate that the 'little' things matter. I always try to be proud of my reserved manner and find beauty in it, but I still find myself beating myself up for not being the crazy, energetic that the myth requires. My three thing I plan to add into my every day schedule: Greeting students at the door - Hogan discussed how a daily routine or question will help you notice irregularities. A gree...

Without a doubt, I am a project-based teacher. I have set aside the "sage on the stage" mentality and have embraced my role as one that guides and facilitates learning for my students. If you walk into my classroom, chances are you will find me on the side, monitoring students, answering questions, or providing assistance where needed. But during my professional development sessions, I'm back in front of the 'class', with the learning and focus back on me. I know that its true; after sessions I would be exhausted from all the talking and would walk away wondering if the attendees got anything from my presentations. While the official feedback from the attendees were mostly positive, my worries were confirmed with the constructive feedback that I needed to make it more hands-on. #perfectionistsworstnightmare #imtheworst #whyme Then I realized: I have *mostly* embraced failure in my classroom, but not in my professional development sessions. #fail A...

I came across this video the other day on Facebook and I found it to be very thought provoking, especially with the increase of anxiety among students. Even though I also suffer from anxiety, many of these confessions are ones that I have not experienced. This video was a very powerful reminder that everyone's thoughts and emotions, including anxiety, manifest differently for everyone:

Three years ago, I had the honor to be featured on #edchat radio following an #edchat about authentic learning in Common Core. Below is the audio from the podcast: Do you believe authentic learning can occur within the common core?

For me, my favorite chapter of Aaron Hogan's  Shattering the Perfect Teacher Myth was Chapter 5: Valuing Vulnerability. He focuses on destroying the myth that the best teachers have all the answers, which is definitely one that I battle with every day. In fact, if you look back to the first time I did a project-based unit I struggled with my role changing from a 'sage on the stage' to a 'guide on the side': "By the end of the project, I was surprised at how much they were getting out of the project that didn’t involve me directly teaching. As self-centered as that sounds, its true. I grew up with teachers that stood up and directly explained information...it worried me that maybe the students didn’t learn anything from the research, but I know from their passionate conversations, presentations, and eagerness to complete the project that they did get something meaningful out of it. ( Original Post )" As I read through the chapter, I couldn't ...

Recently, I made a shocking discovery: I am considered a Millennial. Yes. I'm part of that generation that is the current bane of everyone's existence as shown below: Ok, I definitely laughed at a few of those and even made me think of my sister, who is also a Millennial. But I also kept thinking that I'm not that person. I don't think everyone deserves a medal. I struggle to decode slang. I moved out at 18 years old. And so on.  These thoughts were pushed even further into my mind by my EDTECH 537 course, where we've been reading about generational differences in regards to technology. The articles raised two major questions: whether or not generalizations about different generations are accurate AND whether or not these differences influences the way people approach technology.  For me, I agree with Professor Reeves who stated that, "It is definitely not recommended to make assumptions about any one individual, regardless of gender...

The fourth myth busted by Aaron Hogan in Shattering the Perfect Teacher Myth is that perfect teachers excel by meeting existing expectations. He challenges you to dream and rethink long-held ideas. Favorite Quote from the Imagine it Better Chapter. Every year I like to reconsider how I can design and organize my classroom. Last year, I mostly focused on tying everything in the classroom together with a clean, finished look. I got rid of a lot of the clutter and focused on simplifying the overall design.  For whatever reason, my focus this year is the lighting in the classroom this year. My classroom is notoriously dark; most of the fluorescent lights are off with maybe one off on the side. I keep the blinds shut because of the glare it causes for the project as well as the screens of students nearby. Fun fact: never realized that darker lighting means students can dim their screens and save their battery power.So many times, it ends up being much darker than I really ...

One of the best decisions that my boyfriend and I have made was adopting our two dogs Of course, we would have gotten dogs much sooner if our previous apartment leases allowed it, but it worked out since we wouldn't have gotten our beloved maltipoos, Leeroy Jenkins and Pacha. Pacha is on the left and Leeroy is on the right. If you have ever had dogs or any animal, you know that every one has a unique and different personality. For example, Leeroy is the goofy and inquisitive older brother who has immense focus and moose-like characteristics (we were told he would be at most ten pounds and currently he is pushing 25). Pacha, on the other hand, is cuddly and sweet little brother who is really the mastermind behind most crimes committed in the apartment.  I never expected that I would have to use teaching strategies and techniques with my dogs. Of course there are the classic ones, like clear and consistent expectations, rewards and consequences, equity, patience, tria...

When I was little, my dream job was a meteorologist. I envisioned myself being a weather-girl/storm chaser that studied all the crazy weather phenomenon, mostly inspired by the movie Twister. My vision was set until my sister attended a college fair and got information for me about becoming a meteorologist. I realized that studying weather was more science and technical focused and less social and relationships. As a person who thrives on social interactions, I realized that maybe meteorology wasn't for me. While nerding out to my mom about something I learned in AP Biology, she suggested that I become a teacher; I enjoyed learning and talking with people about what I learned. Long story short: I became a teacher and it was the best decision for me. This is why the third chapter in Aaron Hogan 's Shattering the Perfect Teacher Myth  struck such a chord with me: teaching is inherently social. It is so easy to isolate yourself as a teacher, but that isolation can cause you...

The teacher myth buster, aka Aaron Hogan , continues on in Chapter 2 by busting the myth that the best teachers effortlessly earn compliance from their students . Unlike the "no behavior problem" myth, this was one that I believed as a new teacher, but I no longer believe. Before any teaching experience, I envied teachers that seemed to quickly build strong and positive relationships with students. Eventually, I learned that student rapport is like any other relationship; it takes time and effort to build a positive relationship. Hogan's recommendation to thrive is to hook your students throughout the entire year and I appreciated that his solution wasn't do-this-and-your-classroom-will-be-instantly-awesome . He encourages you to reflect and "take time to identify those core values that will set the right tone for your school year." He also suggests redesigning one aspect of your classroom and reflecting on it every few weeks. At the Model Scho...

Classroom of the Future. A simple Google search comes up with so many options and ideas that its incredibly overwhelming. With so many options, its hard to decide or even determine what would be best. Flexible seating? HD Screens? Voice Projection? Furniture? Coffee Shops? The reason I bring this up is because an exciting opportunity has come up about possibly redesigning my classroom, specifically the technology. Of course, I have a million ideas when I'm brainstorming, but now my brain is drawing a blank. So I need your help! What would your ideal, classroom of the future have? As a reference, my classroom has a standard projector with Apple TV. My classroom is completely 1:1 with Macbook Airs and all the tables are also whiteboards. Below are pictures of my classroom from this last school year and here  is a link of a 360 of my classroom.

Its time to start gearing up for the upcoming school year; I mean Target already has their back-to-school section set-up so I guess its official. A new year means the opportunity to try and experiment with new things and maybe project-based learning is something you are considering. With my experience at a project-based school and various courses focused on PBL, here are five tips based on my own trials and errors. Before we get started, here is a review of project-based learning: Project-based learning is when students actively explore real-world problems/challenges to acquire a deeper understanding.  Teachers act as facilitators and guide students through the project process.  Its not a project thrown at the end of unit where students all make similar products from information provided by the teacher For more information: Buck Institute of Education Edutopia's PBL Page Teaching Channel's PBL Page   MAKE IT AUTHENTIC.  Projects should be as rea...

As a history person, I guess its natural that I love documentaries and all these streaming services provide me with endless access to documentaries. Recently,  9/11- Fifteen Years Later  showed up on my Hulu list and, of course, I watched it. It was definitely a thought-provoking documentary and it got me thinking about how I'm going to teach September 11th next year. If you remember, it was last year that I realized I needed to change the way I teach 9/11 .  I've started to do some research about news ways to teach the event and I compiled some of the best ideas or collections that I found onto an Outliner on Diigo that can be found here . How do you plan on teaching September 11th this year?