Thursday, February 27, 2014

Jumping on DLD

     By nature, I am hesitant to jump on badwagons, especially if I don't see how the "new" way of doing something is any better than the "old" way.  Like Jennifer West and Kim Hindricks, I used TodaysMeet this week in support of Digital Learning Day.  My AP Literature class tried this on Tuesday to discuss their literature circle books and then again on Wednesday to support our discussion about persuasive analysis.  For many of these students Tuesday was the first time using TodaysMeet.  I asked students to post a line from their books, then choose a peer's line,  and reflect/connect it to their own lives and their books.  The discussion was okay...but I still wasn't jumping.  Wednesday, however, as we toggled between print and digital media, the texture of the activity and the class changed a bit.  Most students were able to navigate in and out of print and screen while choosing specific examples of text ("When I first read this, I didn't notice all of the moody words to make it seem happy at first, like "skipped lightly" and "light and good") and reflecting on skills needed to strengthen their writing:  "This time around, I noticed that the voice is incredibly important and can play a key role in the difference between a 6 and 9 essay"; "Reading the sample essays really helped me understand, what things I need to work on and add to my writing."    So, my takeaway from this is that the "old" way for me would have been a ticket out the door via a post-it, which is fine, but the "new" way--though similar--saved some post-its and gave me time to interact with students immediately versus after they left my classroom.  I'm jumping.  On this one. 

Sara

underrated tech tool gets some love

Yesterday was DLD, and in my opinion, a success at PHHS! I presented  TodaysMeet.com during our "Appy Hour" and it seemed to be appealing to many teachers. I think backchannel is underrated- seeming almost too easy to set up. Many of us use it as an avenue for students to ask questions or comment during class presentations. I have instead found my students LOVE using it as a digital study group. I teach mostly 9th and 10th grade students, not yet able to drive themselves and dictate their own schedule. I always encourage students to create study groups for my course, but the logistics are difficult when depending on rides. I created a TodaysMeet page and shared it with my students on D2L- students were then able to ask questions about vocab, free response questions, and concepts from the text or lecture. Students respond to each other's questions, helping their classmates while also assessing their own understanding of the material. I usually check in a few times to see if there is anything students are struggling with. This has not only helped my students, but I also have a new way of knowing whether I need to revisit material. My students are now requesting that I set up a page a few days before all of their tests. I never considered using this tool in this manner, but I'm happy I've come across it!

Wednesday, February 26, 2014

I have been Nearpod-ing it up! I have found that this my students both 9th and 12th are LOVING this tool and being able to interact with their notes. So much better than looking at a PowerPoint or Prezi on a screen. I used it for a vocabulary review and it was fantastic because it could be much longer than any worksheet, test, or live class review and the kids enjoy it and many want to do more! Even if you don't have computers on a regular basis, this could be something that you could create and then they could do as a HW assignment on their own. Nearpod will then send you the results from their work. AND it will accept your current PowerPoint presentations you have already made AND you already have an account through Google. This is a great tool that I will continue to use for the rest of the year. To quote one of my kids, "I wish more teachers used this!"

Andy Dale
February 26, 2014
Happy Digital Learning Day! One student came into my classroom to ask about the purpose of DLD. I explained and she responded, "So we just have normal class today?" Exactly!

Today I did try a new use of D2L discussion boards with my Physical Science class. I created a discussion topic called "Ask 1, Answer 1." Students used this space to brainstorm possible test questions. They then read through all of the other posts and found at least one that they could answer with a reply post. I think it is important not only for students to practice with possible test questions, but also get in the habit of predicting what types of questions will be on an assessment. I will pull a few of these and add them to their test next week.

-Jen Damti, PHHS Science Teacher

Thursday, February 13, 2014

  I had the chance to experiment with my AP Human Geography kiddos this week. My students completed a research paper on migration (they each chose a different migration experience that has occurred and wrote on the different aspects of the migration and its impacts). In addition to the paper they were to create a brief summarizing presentation to share their findings with the class. While they presented their fellow peers used the site https://todaysmeet.com/ to communicate with one another. They were able to ask questions and clarify content in real time, and really interact with the presentations rather than just being a captive audience on a topic that might not have held much interest. I could not have been happier with the results that my students gave me, they were on task and engaged the entire time. Once a student completed his or her presentation the first response was to go back and look at the comments made and answer any outstanding questions. I'll definitely be using this again for future presentations and class discussion options.

-Kim Hendricks