Lit and Tech

Branching Google Forms are a fantastic way to differentiate assessment and reflection in my classroom. Linear forms are great, but not every student follows the same path. Branching forms allow me to account for their differences in pacing, and outcomes. Let me share an example. Back in the fall, my students were working on projects related to novels they had just read in small groups. Early on in their progress I wanted an overview of how they were doing. Some students were still in the very beginning planning stages, some were almost done, and some were ready to submit their work and move on. I teach a de-tracked 9th grade English class. My students are always all over the place. Enter the branching form. It allowed me to ask my students where they were in their process and then differentiate their next questions based on that answer. Students who were still getting started needed to respond to questions that would help them plan. Students who had already finished were ready for

The Infographic Syllabus Template

The idea of turning a syllabus in to an infographic has been around for at least several years. This year my colleague made one for herself in a not-free, not-collaborative, tool, so even though we normally share all of our materials, there was no easy way for her to share her version with me. I did a bit of searching for templates, but I mostly found links to paid services. So, I challenged myself to create one from scratch in a Google Drawing. Lots of people have asked for a template version, so here you go. It's free. Course Syllabus Infographic Template The preview from the link above will look a lot like the image to the right. You'll notice on both that there are some arrows pointing onto the canvas. Those are the directions I added to help you recreate your own version of an infographic syllabus. You'll need to click "use template" to see the directions in the side boxes. Once your syllabus is complete you can move them off the canvas or delete

NBCT: Component 1: The three hour test

Stock Photo: Not from the testing center. In the summer of 2016 I began the process of National Board Certification. I stumbled upon a program from our county office that supports teachers through the process over two years. I just finished Component 1 and 2. For more on Component 2 see my previous post . While Component 2 is a year long process of collecting student work and writing about it, Component 1 is a test I took last weekend. This test counts for 40% of my overall NBCT score, and that's more than any other component. Of course it is a three hour test, and yes, every time I say that I hear the theme song to Gilligan's Island in my head. So just sit right back and you'll hear a tale, a tale of a fateful test... Actually, I can't tell you anything about the test. I agreed to a confidentiality statement when I sat down to take it. I can tell you about my experience, and how I prepared, and what the day was like. The testing center is a 20 minute drive

Turning SAMR into TECH: What models are good for

Image created by Dr. Ruben Puentedura, Ph.D. http://www.hippasus.com/rrpweblog/ SAMR, developed by Ruben Puentedura, is one model for examining the evolution of tech integration in classrooms. It focuses on the type of work students are doing and how much that work deviates from traditional classroom practices. In a sense, it measures the future against the past. This four minute video is great if you would like to hear him explain it in his own words. I like the SAMR model and I think it does what models are supposed to do, it get us talking and thinking about the work going on in our classrooms. This graphic shows the progression of a teacher's thinking with a bit of humor too. As a model though, I think SAMR has some issues we need to talk and think about more. This is my list of concerns. For further exploration: It privileges the modification and redefinition stages such that good teaching without tech is marginalized. Even after five years of 1:1 I still have

Supporting Independent Reading in a 9th Grade English Class

Reading during the fire drill. About 24 hours ago I wrote a tweet about why I don't use reading logs with my students. "Reading logs are worthless. I asked my 9th graders how many of them had ever had a parent sign a reading log that both of them knew was a total lie. Every hand went up and they laughed. I won't waste paper on reading logs." - @JenRoberts1 This got a lot of likes and retweets because it seems a lot of EduTwitter agrees, but it also prompted a lot of discussion about what to do instead. (Do we have to do anything instead?) I think the "what to do instead?" question comes from the assumption that there needs to be some accountability for reading, that if we, as teachers, aren't checking, then students won't be doing any reading. What implicit message does that send to our students? That reading is so awful we assume they are not doing any unless we hold them accountable? My amazing PLC team has a lot of conversations a