Thoughtful Thursdays: Empowering Our Learners & Leaders

A big trend here in the land of Wisconsin goes with our state university at Football or Basketball Season: Teach Me How to Bucky. If you haven't heard of this before, watch the YouTube Video Below.

This video got me thinking so much about what we do to teach our students and allow for personalized learning and universal design - we flip the learning. Kids learn from watching how other people have worked through a learner progression, and rewind/rewatch as needed. 

With this notion of learning comes another thought - empowering our learners and leaders through videos. As my school is preparing for a 5-8 device rollout, we brought up the idea of having learning modules to teach the tech tools and ways to use them. These app flashes are not only universal and grounding for our students, but also for teachers to have an opportunity for those conversations alongside our students and embody the mantra of lifelong learning together with and for our students. What a better way to start our journey!

Have you done the groundwork with a student tech team around learning modules? How would you envision this? Share your ideas - let's collaborate together!

#OnWisconsin

Tracy's Tuesday Tech Tip: Ask Away

Many of us have heard of the Danielson Framework - the tool in which teachers practices are evaluated. Teachers are assessed in four basic areas - planning for instruction, classroom management, instructional strategies and professionalism with colleagues, etc. There are various components to each area, but a major part of all of them is communication with students, as well as facilitating the environment for learning with student collaboration. How are we creating an engaging learning atmosphere for each one of our learners? How do we attest to their individual learner variability within our learning environment and allow them to truly express their thoughts and demonstrate their knowledge of deeper, higher order thinking skills.

I've recently become even more entranced with discussion boards or blogging - that medium we use to get kids discussing how they feel, what their thoughts are, their reflections on various things. I've used both KidBlog and the discussion board within the Blackboard Platform. Now, by exploring the uses of Google Classroom, my energy for utilizing these means for integrating writing, thinking process, reflection and student-goal setting has been key. For me, as a new teacher in my school and district this year, engaging with these middle school students has helped me get to know them in a closed format - where they can write and say what they truly feel and not fear what others will say in response to their answer. This is a key to success in my classroom and also the Danielson Framework - creating a culture for learning where students are not afraid to take risks.

So many of the kids' responses are amazing to read - well-written, very thoughtful, and also, feedback for me - what a better what to create the culture and excitement for learning than for students to know they have a forum to share their thoughts and reflections. I've already assigned multiple prompts within our Google Classroom interface, some of which works with our website, listening activities and more - it amazes me how much kids know and how much they will share with you if you just ask.

Give your students an opportunity to share their thoughts and feelings in a way that works for them, whether it's blogging, sticky notes, journals or more. They ask us questions all the time where we facilitate their learning to help them find their answer. Return the favor through your questioning and start asking away!

Tracy's Tuesday Tech Tip: Starting the Year Strong

Welcome to the 2015-2016 School Year!

One of the great things about teaching, is that each year we get to start fresh - new memories to make, new class dynamics, new students, and the intangibles of the unknown. I love the start of the new school year because I always try to go into it feeling prepared and ready to go for the new kids, eagerly looking forward to whatever will come.

Many people know that I am a planner - I often say that to my coworkers that very comment when I am asking tons of questions and preparing that "I am a planner, and enjoy getting everything in order." While charts, tables, seating arrangements are all great, it doesn't exactly prepare us for an extra student added to our class last minute, or other things that occur that we can never get ready for the first few days of school.

So what can you do to get started and how does that involve technology? One thing that I have taken into use is creating Google Forms to draw learner surveys and interest as a means to get to know my students and for them to create goals for themselves. It's also a great way to have a quick exit ticket reflection at the end of class!

Another medium I have begun using this year is Google Classroom. So far, I love it - ways to give personalized feedback, and the platform itself is very efficient and very easy to navigate for student use. A great medium to use with iPads, Chromebooks or any device!

Have you used technology to kick off the year to find out your learner variability? Share with us so we can learn and grow together!

Wondering Wednesday

I took a mini break from blogging for a bit with a few major events happening both in our school, and balancing work and life happened to get me a bit under the weather. So for this week, Teacher Appreciation Week, how do we do just that: Balance. It's definitely hard at times as conferences, concerts, curriculum nights, and more are happening, but yet we keep doing what we do with and for our students because we love them and it truly is what matters and what makes a difference, although sometimes it takes an extra step to remember that.

So today, as not only Teacher Appreciation is happening, but Mother's Day and many other end of the year events are coming, I'd like to spotlight a few websites for safe images to add to interactive projects to close out the year in a handy chart made by Richard Byrne. All props go out to him for this, but I've found it SO helpful to use as a resource when collaborating with other colleagues as well as my learners. These are really helpful to avoid those common "Google Image" searches, although do come with some cautions for classrooms as well.

If you're looking for my personal top resource for photos, check out http://photosforclass.com/ which are great for any learner in any setting!

• All are rated G
• They come with auto citations (so no more copyright infringement)
• Creative Commons Licensed for Schools!

Tracy's Tuesday Tech Tip: Stand for Something - Spring into Action

I love the week after spring break because everything seems so refreshing for the students to be back at it with bright smiles and ready to finish out strong.

This week, my 2nd and 3rd Graders have launched a new project around service. We are integrating our music composition skills to build eBooks as "retells" for others using soundscapes. Not only are students working within the music realm, but they are also working on recognizing main ideas of books and summarizing!

Perhaps the coolest take away is that kids are serving others. Kids get it, they want to help - they want to be involved in things to better the world. Providing these opportunities, connecting through digital methods is a great avenue to spring into action for a cause. Take a look at this Kids Consortium link on Technology Service Learning Projects.

How can we help our students stand for something and use technology or just innovation through low tech means? Is it makerspaces to allow for creating and exploring? Is it filming an iMovie as a public service announcement? Is their passion recycling and keeping our streets clean where they want to make a poster for advocacy? Think about integrating thematic messages into literacy and math to allow for this exploration and give to our students to allow them to be proud and support something they care about.

We stand for our kids because we're in this profession. It's their turn to stand for something too, and it starts with you. #MakeEmBelieve.

Tracy's Tuesday Tech Tip: Disrupting the Norm

The snow is melting, the brightness of the skies - this can only mean one thing...soon it *WILL* be spring in our lives! Okay, so perhaps yes, but maybe a little wishful thinking, but I think anyone living in Wisconsin can appreciate this statement after a long and cold winter. 

As the season change and our students' get a bit antsy, the big key is what do we do to make the learning fresh and new? What do we change up to make something innovatively different and deepen the thinking and meaning to our learners' minds?

A couple weekends ago at the EdTech iOS Summit at Waukesha North, Holly Clark presented the idea of The Digital Disrupters Mindset - making the adjacent possible. She described how digital disrupters start with and continue to focus on the questions and inquiry. 

Connecting with the Depth of Knowledge, how do we make this thinking visible; how can we allow for students to handle and tackle the daily problems in their learning? The first step, in any realm, is focusing on instructional design. The next step, is creating student agency to move from the consumption to creation of learning!

Opportunities for oracy in "Turn and Talks/Stop Think and Listen Pair Shares," using them as an exit ticket on Notability or something similar! Student TED Talks, Explain Everything Presentations, iMovie Trailers or Google Forms are all quick and efficient models utilizing our key instructional design cores, but adding the fresh and innovative mediums that our students crave in using technology for higher order thinking.

Something new and fresh can be a sunshine-filled day with our students or perhaps a familiar tech tool used as a revamped new project - it doesn't have to be the full "spring" into action, but just a simple change in season. Take time to appreciate the change with your students as we move from consumption to creation and deepening understanding and comprehension with your learners! 

Tracy's Tuesday Tech Tip: New to the Tube

The day after the Oscars everyone talks about who wins and who didn't win. Being an outdoors enthusiast, I was cheering for the lovely Reese Witherspoon to take away the Outstanding Actress title for her performance in Wild; however, am just as impressed with Julianne Moore winning from Still Alice. So, I can understand the Outstanding Actress category, but as far as animated film, I thought How to Train Your Dragon 2 HAD IT. Seriously, a great movie and storyline, albeit a little sad in the middle, but triumphant and uplifting. Additionally, because of my profession, I have to mention the eloquent soundtrack that took each character's theme from the first movie to expand upon it and make it turn into an amazing soundscape to accompany the second films scenes. Just love it and am sad it didn't take away an Oscar.

It is about the kids, what they like, and was definitely a topic of our "weekend shares" community building today. They loved Big Hero, they loved How to Train Your Dragon. Any film or show action packed is sure to get an audience from kindergarteners to the big kids (like me).

So, in talking about what's new, the big news to hit the techwaves is YouTube Kids. This new app is out TODAY and is built with kids in mind. A safer way to YouTube, definitely an app to explore with an easy-to-use interface. Check it out today!

Looking for other safe video resources without those add-ons and annoying adds? Use SafeShare at  http://safeshare.tv/

Tracy's Tuesday Tech Tip: How do YOU Confer?

One of my alumni students comes back every day, greets me with a hug, and pick ups his little brother. I asked him how he was doing with academics, and he said great! I have threes and fours, especially in math! I was blown away by this, and asked him how'd he begin doing so well. This student, now in seventh grade, acknowledged his tendency to be a bit chatty during elementary school, but how he recognized the importance of learning and using the time in school "smartly" so he has less homework. Smart kid! :)

We have conferences coming up tomorrow, which I find a great time to catch up with those alumni siblings, but even more parents about how students are doing in the classroom both academically and behaviorally. A great way to reflect on learning is through the use of portfolios.

Whether a Google Site, Evernote, Blackboard or other medium, portfolios can be a great tool to place all articles to save them and collectively reflect on learning. The first step is teaching ORGANIZATION to our learners, to work toward finding out what truly is their best work. Linking weekly work into a bigger showcase site works well for easy access, as well as the universal naming convention, so that work is easily alphabetized and categorized.

On the teacher side, Confer is a great way to start the conversation flowing on math, reading, behavior, or truly any subject. Make anecdotal notes about learners to target strengths and growth areas for the ease of data analysis.

Start the conversation today with your learning and colleagues on creating a digital hub of weekly and spotlight work to best showcase their learning!

What approach do you take? Share with all of us!

Tracy's Tuesday Tech Tip: ONE Singular Sensation

"We are the music makers, and we are the dreamers of dreams." ~Arthur Shaughnessy

My first memory of hearing the "One singular sensation" song comes from, like many people, Sesame Street. Counting, that was the way to go, learning what each number was and a little rhyme to go after it. My second memory of "One" is hearing it in a dance recital as a kid and standing in awe as the kids older than me danced in a kick-line and just wowed the audience.

As we come away from the inaugural ONE Conference this past Friday, can't help but think of this song, and define for myself what "One singular sensation" truly was throughout the conference. I loved Molly Schroeder's speech about living in beta and making connections with my learners. I enjoyed passing by the Rock Star Stage and was motivated by those speakers to try something new.

Even more, I was inspired by my students that came with me - the kids that gave up a day off to come help me out with a presentation. Through their eyes, their words, the magic of using technology and learning with it came alive. This truly helped ground me and see that it matters, it makes a difference. Those moments of on-the-spot learning where they had the courage to talk with an educator in Waukesha that they didn't know, or their initiative to fight through nerves to say why Notability "works for them best" or that Explain Everything is the "way to go." That's what it's all about - when our learners can articulate how the technology is helping to learn and understand better, and make instruction and assessment and more, more meaningful.

Yesterday, we had some professional development about strategies to impact behaviors and keep the flow of our classroom going, and the term "grit" was brought up - what is it, how would we define it? Not only do I believe each of my students' has grit, the power to overcome obstacles that are in our path, but especially each one of us as educators. It's that passion to work one-on-one with a student who needs that additional support; it's a perseverance to keep going when something tough happens in our personal lives and put a smile on for our students; it's the presence of mind to take a risk with technology even after all devices have seemed to shut down and not work on the same day when you had the coolest lesson planned!

All of the presentations were excellent - from learning about QR Codes, to Thoughtful Logs, to Aurasma, to our Core Apps - so many good resources to find and look at and try in the classroom. Each of these strategies and tools and more can be our ONE Commitment, our ONE singular sensation, to take a risk and try something new!

Yet remember ultimately, for us, as teachers, grit is coming into work and knowing, we are going to give some kid a safe place to be, to make some kid's day, some kid smile. That's grit. That's passion. That is who we are. We are educators and teachers.

Check Out our Waukesha BB9 Instructional Strategies Course for handouts on sessions!

If you're looking for a start on Core iPad Apps, click icreateatwaukone.weebly.com

Tracy's Tuesday Tech Tip: Start the Discussion!

I developed a new lesson where we are doing a film study - starting with a story map, my students are describing the characters, setting and plot of an old school Mickey - The Opry House. They identify what is happening in the beginning, middle and end, as well as what Mickey is doing in the scenes.

Here's the catch: they watch it in SILENCE.

Taking this a step further, they are beginning the process of composing music to accompany what is happening, but planning out what instruments and sounds would "make sense" with what's going on in the scene. As they began the discussion, the atmosphere became lively as they started debating what they should use and why based on the scene.

Building in sentence starters and prompts for oracy, and in general just the collaborative aspect of sharing can help build students' levels of deeper thinking and language skills. Therefore, as I shared in an earlier post, an online platform can be a useful tool for students to share their thoughts and feelings in a safe environment about those happenings in your classroom instruction in connection to any subject.

Those discussion boards or blogs are becoming ever popular to allow students to GET WRITING and describing their own thoughts as an evidence piece to deepen their thinking and making it visible. Additionally, seeing others' thoughts and perceptions can also help and clarify their own understanding on any subject! Kidblog is a great tool to get you started!

As a teacher, I always think of myself of as a "big kid" - still learning and having fun (despite a few gray hairs these days), but know a valuable strategy is those discussions portals online or in person to the wheels turning of creating something new with and for my students!

How do you make thinking visible in your classroom - is it digital? We'd love to hear some of your practices and share out what's working for you!

Tracy's Tuesday Tech Tip: Renewed and Rejuvenated

I always love the start to the New Year - a fresh look at something new, reinvigorated for the second half of the year with my students! Definitely a fun time look at new things to do in the classroom, getting back to or refreshing routines for learning, and taking a risk for something you perfected over winter break.

Yet, in the start to the New Year sometimes comes that point of "where do I start," "what do I do," "what comes next," or, just a thought of "I need something fresh."

In a time of new beginnings, I wanted to share a listing of some GREAT resources where other educators and professionals have put together to share out ideas that are organized and just what you might be looking for:

Class Tech Tips is filled to the brim with ideas! Through a thorough summary explaining the tech specs and uses of apps or web tools, Monica Burns collaboratively shares her thought on the latest and greatest and best tech specs.

Corkboard Connections is a great resource from Laura Candler about ideas and structures to implement in the classroom. 

Free Tech 4 Teachers has some awesome information on it and great tutorials to learn from. Richard Byrne offers many guides for web tools and more within his website and is a great starting point as you are breaking into the #edtech world.

Smart Exchange is build for SMART Notebook files that are created from teachers, for teachers! View and download something that works for you and upload something that you think can work for someone else!

We Are Teachers is filled with anything from classroom management to lesson plans to grants and blogs and more! It's a great resource for ANYTHING Education you're wondering about.

As we start a new year, take a look to take a risk and make a commitment to trying something new with your learners. I often find when I'm trying out something and a little unsure and am upfront with my students, they end up teaching me many lessons along the way!

Looking for more ideas or to collaborate and share what you're doing! Comment and share out with us - we'd love to learn together!

Tracy's Tuesday Tech Tip: Reach Out

Two of our fifth grade teams of students are geeking out right now - it is the eve of their Google Hangout or Skype with Ms. Abigail Harrison, an aspiring Astronaut Student, and also Dr. Thomas Marshburn, a NASA Astronaut! As excited as they are to ask their questions and hear the answers of these individuals, I think it's safe to say that we as teachers are just as excited for this opportunity for them!

When it comes to tech, there seems to be a new app or instructional practice around every corner. Something new and "shiny" to interest us as well as our students. It's really interesting to hear the latest talk about the "next big thing" in their eyes, that they're doing - and it's ever so engaging and empowering when it's something where our learners can take the lead in for their learning to demonstrate their understanding around a concept or a skill. 

Yet, what happens when you get stuck? What happens when you're fresh out of ideas, and the tank has run dry? Herein lies the power of collaboration, which is beyond just the communication, but the co-working and co-creating with educators together to design new lesson and ideas with our learners in mind. From EACH OTHER we can learn so much and figure out what's best, brighter, and brilliant for our students.

Through this thoughtful process, we take our thinking and our students' thinking to new levels, with the trudacot model, or Technology-Rich Unit Design and Classroom Observation Template - click for more info - which couples well with our SAMR Model for technology integration. With this thinking and guide, we can challenge ourselves to how we can take our lower level thinking lessons to higher levels - moving our students to richer, deeper levels of inquiry, demonstrated with their uses of technology. 

But, as has been a central theme, it doesn't have to be big or the next Skype or Google or the coolest tech tool - it's about starting small with that collaborative nature of students and teacher in mind. It's those conferring notes and reflections from our students that allow us to see the process of their thinking, and our next steps as teachers to make the "educational magic happen." Go beyond the C of communication to Collaborate. Create together. Reach out.

Thoughtful Thursdays: A GPS For Learning

When I traveled to South Dakota a couple years ago, I remember the car rental agency worker asking if I wanted a GPS. I have a tendency to get lost, so this probably would've been a good idea; however, I did decline at the time, thinking I would "figure it out" in my seven days in the Black Hills. 

When the closing speaker of the #SLATE2014 Conference, Julie Mathieson, spoke of South Dakota, traveling, and more, I knew it would be a great speech to reflect upon, just because I love the area and insights. One of the questions she prompted was being mindful of how we are empowering our learners through time, space, path and pace of learning for our students. If we are mindful of these concepts and foundations, through self-paced design and thought toward learning styles, our teaching strategies and mediums prompt intrinsic rewards for students!

The doesn't mean there isn't going to be traffic jams, detours, road blocks, and perhaps even an accident along the way - both for the student and for the teacher or technology even. As a teacher facilitating this learner, we are the encouraging drivers ed instructor in the front seat, calmly encouraging our learners to approach cautiously yet with confidence, thinking ahead on their map to where they need to be academically, thereby encouraging higher levels of thinking and those intrinsic rewards to get there!

Throughout the conference, my mind was swimming with new ideas and things to do with my learners, to integrating tech throughout the general education classroom. The way in which technology has allowed for personalization and relevancy in application is amazing to watch or see. The tools we heard are so applicable to redefine our learning experience and move towards an agency for change - for student agency in their learning.

Learning, just like traveling, is an epic road trip across various cities, counties, states and even countries for the worldly traveler. It starts small, as a road trip starts simply with starting the car. Our responsibility as teachers is to continually ignite the engines of our learning community of students, confident to try something new as a risk taker, and ultimately, a kid, a student, fostering curiosity to take the next step together - to try, to be, to LEARN, together.

Three Easy Things to Start Small from the #SLATE2014 Conference:

1. Explicit Vocabulary Instruction can be as fun as Trading Cards or a ThingLink Word Wall!

2. Students need a place to share their feedback digitally beyond a doc or project - make a blog or backchannel! (Also check out some blogging rubrics...)

3. Use Free Resources that Work: Wisconsin Media Lab, Badgerlink and more - a lot is here for US as teachers and educators and for our learners!!!!

Have you been using any of these resources or more? Give a shout! We'd love to collaborate!!!

Tracy's Tuesday Tech Tip: Start Speeding!

As I have grown as a teacher from my first year until now, I've taken on many new things into my classroom. I remember my second year where trying to do some project-based learning was something new and different and it totally freaked me out! Well, I ended up liking it so much that I began to bring in the technology, and my passion for learning, integrating and coaching about technology just grew into what it is today.

This year, one thing I have been focusing on is how I get and receive feedback from my students - what ways I can leverage my assessments so that they "make sense" and are engaging for my learners. While it's nothing new, one way my learners have grabbed onto is the use of exit tickets. I presented it initially by saying that "we've sped through the material, this is a way to let me know if I should pay a fine, or can keep going past the checkpoint." They loved it, and now when we use this as a quick formative at the end of the lesson, they will tell me they caught me speeding as they line up and hand it off. It makes my day that they're so engaged and like this method of communication.

The thing is, I could put anything on that exit ticket - have them work out a problem, have them write a definition or connection...it's just a sticky note and can become anything!

As I was browsing around for other ways of Formative Feedback, I came across a great Edutopia Article. Edutopia is a great resource about innovative tools. David Wees, a Formative Assessment Specialist at New Vision Schools, put together a presentation called "56 Examples of Formative Assessment."

What a great resource that is super easy to browse through and can BLOW UP the way we assess - both low tech and high tech ways are evident - but through these great strategies and forms of assessment, we can make our learning even more meaningful for our students to make it visible for themselves and others!

Tracy's Tuesday Tech Tip: Being Thankful

In an time of change - warm weather to cold, legacy to personalized learning and so many more, it's often hard to remember the little things in life that make everything worth it.

This Thanksgiving, after a busy and somewhat hectic year, I'm thankful for many things. My family and friends are very near and dear to my heart, but also, my students each and every day. This tech tip isn't about the latest new way to use our iPads or Macbooks, it's just simply this:

Thank you for reading. Thank you for teaching. Thank you for being a part of these kids' lives who are the next generation. Thank you for sharing your ideas. Thank you for your collaboration. And thank you for your inspiration.

#HappyThanksgiving

Tracy's Tuesday Tech Tip: Beyond the Grocery Store

While shopping, it's not uncommon for me to meet up with some of our students' parents/families. Over the past month, I've met up with students spinning in Woodmans, riding in and underneath the shopping carts at Walmart, and just walking along.

Perhaps the most memorable meeting over the past couple years is when I turned the corner while at Pick n' Save, and heard "Ms. GAROOOOOOOOON!!!!!" Then was bear-hugged by a student who immediately went shy after that initial exchange. I didn't even have to turn look down to see who this student was, I just knew... :)

Beyond meeting up in the grocery store and having the impromptu mini-conference while checking out, how do we make learning visible for our parents' and families who want to know what's going on our classrooms?

The connection is the Blackboard Sites, the Portfolios, and those evidence pieces where we as educators can not only SEE our learners' thinking and learning, but where they get excited to SHARE IT with their parents and families! With Blackboard our students' can have those centralized places to share their learning or to work through a video project with their families at home. 

By connecting the portfolio to spotlight work and beyond, we work to bring that awesome cute factor of the graduation hats into something more, leveraging the conversations with our students to have with their families of a REAL-LIFE WEBSITE of their Work. 

If we go beyond the spotlighted work, we can work toward using the portfolio as great exemplars for furthered study, preparation for Smarter Balanced Assessments, building blocks for teachers of the future to see strengths and learning styles that seem to "gel" for the learner!

All of these Tech Tools can work together to enhance your communication with our students' families and work to redefine what and how we flip our learning, showcase exemplars, and build our parent/community!

Tracy's Tuesday Tech Tip: Share Your Story

I just finished with a Skype with a military friend that I connect with every so often. We did many a fun things together - between playing sports, having sing-outs together (you know, those songfests in the car rides where other drivers look at you as you're pretty much making a fool of yourself at a stoplight...yep, I still do those), or just sitting at the lake and watching the waves crash, there's nothing like it, especially experiencing it with someone you love in that friendship. Tonight, we got a bit philosophical and deep...noting how different the world is now, how different we are...how much things are evolving and renewing into something new each day.

She shared how things are different now, after active duty overseas, missions that are pretty intense, or simply missing friends and family. Yet how she described it, all of it, I was right there with her. In her story, our friendship hadn't changed. It was the same it always had been, with her as my friend, a pop-music-loving, practical joker, that remains close no matter how far we are apart.

While Skype was a key technological feature and remains an awesome tool to connect, even more power is something more simple: her words. Her story. With technology, any scholar can share their story in his/her own way, using what works for them.

Sharing can be as easy as a Google Doc or Slide, an iMovie, a Book Creator, a Notability poster, or just a "shout-out" commercial via Garage Band. Allow your learners to share with you who and what they are - what makes them tick, what they're thankful for, and their goals for the future. If we are reflective and thoughtful in instructional design, a "Share Your Story" project can become goal-setting, community building, and a writing assessment using technological literacy all at once.

Both this friend and I have overcome a number of events in our adolescence and adult lives - both small and big, all meaningful in their own ways. Who are we today? Well, it changes...each and every morning, each and every challenge or triumph, we change as well. Yet the biggest takeaway for my friendship, is to share my story - both with her, and also in ways to motivate my scholars. How we can overcome many obstacles, as our servicemen and women do each day, and how we can be stronger and serve so many through our actions.

#HappyVeteransDay

Tracy's Tuesday Tech Tip: Being a Play-Caller

When you live in Wisconsin, Packer Nation is everywhere. You hear LALALALAMBEAU about every-other-commercial break on various TV Stations, people bring out the cheeseheads on Sundays, and the bumper stickers are posted proudly on Ford Pickups and other vehicles in Packer Country.

Regardless of your fan support of the green and gold or another team, one cannot deny the importance of the quarterback, the play-caller of the game. He's the one who makes the decisions, sees the intangibles, and is responsible for key communication to all members on the field.

In many ways, teachers are play-callers - they are the ones who have their eyes scanning all corners of the room (for more than checking in on behavior). But they also scan assessments to regroup students, the expressions of learners' of confusion or understanding during a mini-lesson, and also the first to cheer on a new touchdown of a student "getting it" after a lot of hard work.

Quarterbacks collaborate with their teammates - they get other perspectives of coaches, wide receivers, running backs and more to truly enhance their craft of route reading and learning the intangibles. Those intangibles to us are the teachable moments - where something went on a path we didn't expect, but allow us to build connections with our team of learners.

Ever-important in this process is building our community of learners - our learning team - together. Creating a PLN as was discussed in SDW Tech Integration Now can bring new learnings and perspectives to the classroom just as an offensive coordinator does with the quarterback. Viewing teaching and learning in a different light allows us to reflectively tweak and modify for the benefit of our learners.

One way that has worked in bridging key learning concepts and strategies with technology is with a student tech team. Each of our tech team members completed both an application and training modules to get the job as an iTechU Team Member. This practice allows for these students to become the play-callers and lead small groups through infusing technology practices. 

Students have their own way of teaching. Often, when they've demonstrated true mastery of the skills, there is so much rich fulfillment in watching them take the lead. As much as I love web-browsing, chatting online or exploring new ideas, they are just as much of a valid part of my PLN as anyone, as they have taught me many new ideas and strategies for teaching when they've had the opportunity as play-caller.

Try out a student tech team today! Who knows, they just might throw a touchdown...

Tracy's Tuesday Tech Tip: Mission POSSIBLE

So we have successfully made it through the first two months of school. WHEW! I don't know about you, but I'm tired. Lately, my students have been very savvy to my persona as to whether I have indulged in coffee or not lately. Somehow, they are just able to tell if I've had a morning cup of joe, or if I've lacked and am staving it off. Must be that time of year...

Coffee always reminds me of the SAMR, as I seemed to best understand technology practices in modification and redefinition through coffee. Take a look below to the image that Kathy Schrock uses to explain technology integration.

Perhaps the biggest takeaway, is that we do not have to always "live" in modifying and redefining uses with technology. Substitution, Augmentation is okay. Technology ebbs and flows - the intention and true meaning comes with instructional design. Consider what makes the learning come alive, the true target of the lesson and the reason for why the technology enhances the learning. 

And remember, it doesn't need to be the 'next big thing.' Maybe, you can just shoot a rocket to the moon, measure how far it goes or the angles. Record it and integrate a writing piece on any of the mathematical components as well.

(Thanks Sarah Sierszyn for the usage of your video)...

Start small, shoot for the stars, and trust yourself as a pilot and your co-pilots in your co-teachers and colleagues. Together, we can make each day Mission: POSSIBLE.

Tracy's Tuesday Tech Tip: Beyond the Blackboard

Let's get personal - with personalized learning! In Tech Tool Time today, we talked about the SAMR and the Core Apps as a significant part of lesson redesign for both ourselves and our learners. What new and innovative ways we are using all of our core apps - from anchor charts to forms, to books that are vocabulary and reading strategies - the possibilities are endless to redefine the future!

Let's put the learning on the backs of our scholars and flip the learning for them next - flip the lessons through Blackboard Sites with videos or at home work (that can be downloaded at school perhaps as a Do Now at the end of the day) are a great way to bridge innovation goals into at-home learning with parent communication and engagement through Blackboard. We can share learning strategies, give important documents for learning, and share tutorial videos for learners, as well as parents to increase and leverage parent engagement!

How do you flip the learning in your classroom or use any of these core apps as a part of the SAMR levels? Give a shout - we'd love to learn more and collaborate further