It's Time to Celebrate Education

This summer I was selected to be part of the Michigan Educator Voice Fellowship. I had the opportunity to travel to Grand Rapids to meet the other fellows, talk about important issues in education, and learn how to promote our voices as educators. There were many valuable lessons shared during this time that have helped me change how I look at education and helped me to adapt my role as an educator. One of the things that has stuck with me as I started this school year was the importance of celebrating all that we are doing in education.

Despite the criticisms that we hear about public education in America, those doing the criticizing are often not in the position to see what is really happening in our schools. I did not have to look far to find examples of educators who should be celebrated for their dedication, innovation, and commitment to creating an excellent education for their students.

In my position as a Media Specialist, I have the awesome opportunity to work with many different people at our school. I often help teachers with technology questions or resources, collaborate with them about a lesson or unit, or push-in to teach a topic that integrates technology or literacy. In just the first few weeks of school, I worked with educators who were doing great things! I saw teachers lead students in the creation of digital portfolios for the first time, teachers eager to incorporate Makerspace activities into their curriculum, teachers learning new software so they could create hands on lessons for their students, and teachers discussing how to use digital stories in their classroom after viewing a presentation on the topic that a colleague and I presented earlier this year. There are teachers diving into lessons that incorporate technology in meaningful ways to help their students achieve success, and teachers who are willing to try new things to create the best educational opportunities for their students. There is collaboration, innovation, creativity, and an enthusiasm for learning among our school.

A Maker creation by one of the teaching teams

These characteristics could also be seen when we kicked off our school year with a Makerspace Challenge for teachers. The challenge had obstacles, time limits, varying degrees of difficulty, a range of materials, and above all, an emphasis on the importance of collaboration and creativity to share your message. It was a fun experience that highlighted the upbeat attitudes and innovative mindset that make great educators.

In the short time we've been back in school, I can already celebrate the many lessons I've gotten to teach across subject areas, the numerous teachers who I've gotten to plan with or discuss technology ideas with for their classes, my super motivated and dedicated news crew kids who wasted no time creating a great show, the kids who are already jumping into the Makerspace activities with enthusiasm, the students who are eager to talk with me about books they've read or want to read, and so much more.

It can be easy to get caught up in the stresses that come with going back to school.  It is easy to focus on the negative, but it is so important, for our students and ourselves, that we don't. There will never be enough time for teachers to achieve everything they plan to accomplish, and things may not always go as expected (in fact, they probably won't), but it is important to take time to reflect on what has gone well and celebrate it. It's time for all educators to speak up and share the incredible things they are doing. There are great things happening in our schools thanks to dedicated educators, and it's time to start shouting it from the rooftops. I urge all educators to spend time throughout the year reflecting on their successes and to share those celebrations with colleagues, Twitter, or in a blog post-just be sure to share some of the greatness going on in your classroom or school!

Tech Tools: Pocket

It's been a while since I shared a tech tool, so I thought I'd share an app that I've been using all the time lately. I thought it would be fun to try my first link up too! So I'm linking up with the Teaching Trio blog this week to share technology tips with other educators!

I first heard about this app in a Twitter chat a few months ago, and I've been hooked ever since.

Image Credit: itunes.apple.com

The app is called Pocket. It's a free app that lets you easily and quickly save images, video, websites, and other text all in one place. You can also view it online at https://getpocket.com/.


When I get involved in Twitter chats with other educators, I notice that great websites and articles are mentioned frequently. However, I want to stay engaged with the chat, so I always feel like there's no time to check the sites out. Pocket lets me conveniently save these links, videos, and more all in one place. Then, when I have a little extra time, I can go back and read these resources. If I like them, I can star them to make them easy to find, or share them out through social media links within Pocket. If I've decided I've read the article and I'm done with it, I can click the check mark and it moves out of 'My List' and into the 'Archives'. I can also decide to delete it completely.

Even better- once the items are saved to Pocket, you can view them even if you are offline!

Image credit: itunes.apple.com

I almost exclusively use Pocket through the app on my phone, however, I am easily able to access it on my computer and view all of the same items that I had saved to my Pocket app. I love that I can save items from my phone and access them from my computer or iPad later.

One of my favorite features of Pocket has been how neat and readable the screen looks. In 'My List' it shows the item title and a picture from the item, as well as a short description or introduction. With all of the different articles I have saved, these little thumbnail images are great visual reminders for me. When I first heard about Pocket, I wondered what the advantage was over just bookmarking the items. I have to say, besides the huge advantage of being able to read the articles when offline, the format makes it so much easier to find articles and star your favorites. When viewing it in your browser, the articles are set up like tiles, similar to Pinterest, which still makes it very readable.

As an educator, I am constantly coming across ideas that I want to use later, articles that I am interested in but just don't have the time for, or videos that I want to share with students later. This really is a great tool for busy educators who are constantly finding information online that they will want to access later. It's easy to access, easy to find content, and easy to share the information with others. What educator doesn't need a tool to make their life a little easier?

Makerspace Challenge: Paper Airplane Catapults

As I mentioned in a previous post, I try to go into each club meeting by introducing the students to a new item we can use in our Makerspace, or concept to consider, or video to watch. At this point, we have plenty of materials and plenty of stations to explore, and I certainly don't want to keep adding 'stuff' just for the sake of having lots of 'stuff' in our Makerspace.

 From what I've read and from my own experiences, a Makerspace really shouldn't be all about the stuff. Much like technology use in schools really shouldn't be about obtaining all the latest technology without a learning need to support it, a Makerspace shouldn't just focus on the collection of item after item. Both should really focus on enhancing learning and critical thinking skills, the fun gadgets should always come secondary to that. I'm not saying that we won't ever try to get more or different materials, but it's impractical and takes away from the purpose of a Makerspace if we're just adding new things to play with every single week. I want students to explore what we already have and if they're very familiar with an item, I want them to either find new ways to make use of those items, or to dabble in something else. Our Makerspace Club is all about exploring and experimenting. In order for the students to grow as thinkers and tinkerers, they need to challenge themselves to try new approaches and try new things. 

With that said, I decided it was time for a challenge!

I follow some amazing Media Specialists and educators online who have been kind enough to share their Makerspace journeys. In Twitter posts I read by Colleen Graves and Diana Rendina, I learned that they were collaborating on a Makerspace catapult challenge where students created all different kinds of catapults. From the pictures and videos they shared, it looked like they had a lot of fun in the process. 

Middle school students actually being encouraged to fling things across a room in a competitive (and collaborative) manner? Now that sounded like fun!

The same day that I read about their catapult challenge, a fellow teacher gave me an old book he had about how to make paper airplanes...and so the VHMS Paper Airplane Catapult Challenge was born! The kids were given two club sessions to create their catapults and airplanes. They could work in teams or by themselves. At the end of the challenge, whichever team could successfully create a catapult that launched a paper airplane the furthest would win!

The challenges I've read about online have largely been with two different schools, which I  hope to do in the future, but just doing it within our club really worked great too. The spirit of friendly competition was in the air as the kids hid their catapult designs from each other and tried to test them out in secret! Humorously enough, they found that the catapults really limited how far a paper airplane could go when compared to throwing it, but that just made for more of a challenge! They used Legos, rubber bands, paper clips, pencils, or K'nex to build their catapults. There were a few who had never made a paper airplane, so the book came in very handy. They also experimented with different sizes and shapes of airplanes to see how they would fly.

The winning team ended up with an airplane that shot all the way across the Media Center! 

 The kids loved the challenge! They wanted to do more, but unfortunately we were out of time-until the new spring session begins after break! Our last winter club session would be taking place elsewhere as a special, celebratory field trip. It was totally optional to participate in this challenge, but most of the students jumped right into it. They were discussing trajectory, the weight of materials to use, the type of materials to use, and more. They experimented, and failed, experimented some more, and continued with different designs until they found a catapult and plane that would fly the best. They were collaborative and engaged critical thinkers!

Based on the great response to the VHMS Paper Airplane Catapult Challenge, I am hoping to have more challenges in our spring session of the Makerspace Club. Whether it be collaborations with other schools (please contact me if you would be interested), or fun competitions within our own club, having a challenge activity is a fun way to encourage a different type of thinking that inspires students to work together and really engage in many of the elements of learning and exploration that a Makerspace is designed to encourage!

#LoveTeaching

On Twitter this week, I came across #LoveTeaching. Educators are encouraged to write why they love teaching, why they became a teacher, or what keeps them teaching, and to share the love by sending it out on a social media platform this week. Now that sounded like a challenge for me! What better way to kick off Valentine's Day then reflecting on my love of teaching?

Infographic found at: http://goo.gl/bHZNNn

The Past

I was one of those kids who knew that they would grow up to be a teacher. I come from a family of teachers, going back three generations. When I played 'pretend' as a kid, I always played 'School' and you can guess who the teacher was. My Barbie dolls were not fashion icons, but students heading to school in their Jazzercize outfits and ball gowns (naturally). My elementary teachers confirmed my goal. The care and attention they paid to each one of us never went unnoticed. They made us feel special and taught us to work hard and be proud of our accomplishments. While a few teachers certainly stand out in my mind, my entire elementary school experience really propelled me to follow my dream of becoming a teacher.

The Present

I've worked in a few different roles as an educator, and my reason for loving teaching always, always, always comes back to the students. Teaching is a hard job, not too many people would argue that, but the students make every late night or weekend work session worth it. 

Although I am no longer an English teacher, it was in that role that I first connected with my students the most. Reading their reflections, connections, and inquiries, listening as they participated in class discussions to form and justify opinions, watching as they took leadership roles in literature circles, group projects, and presentations, and learning as I watched them find themselves through each of these activities. 

Today, in my work as a 6-8 Media Specialist, I've found that it is still always the students that advance me forward as an educator. I am constantly looking for what are things that the students would like to read, how can I help the students to use technology safely and creatively, and what activities will help the students to grow. It is my on-going mission to continue to grow and adapt to meet their needs and to ensure that they always have a comfortable, engaging, active learning experience when they step into the Media Center. Our Makerspace is just one example of how I've tried to create such an environment and experience.

The Future

"The only way to do great work is to love what you do."

-Steve Jobs

This year, as an educator, I have tried to step outside my comfort zone more and expand my PLN in an effort to become a better educator. Blogging and Twitter have been incredible sources of reflection, inspiration, and growth for me in that journey. It is through these platforms that I learned about Makerspaces, Genius Hour, GAFE tips, useful apps, new books, conferences, and more. I have ventured into this world truly so I could continue to grow as an educator to meet the needs of the students. I want to continue to find new ways to connect them, help them to feel engaged, inspired, free to explore, and to find a love of learning in their own way. In making choices for the Media Center, Makerspace, and other activities, I will continue to make sure that it is always with the students' best interests in mind. I will talk with them and learn from them to see what they need and what they want. I want them to #lovelearning as much as I #loveteaching. 

When it comes down to it, I bet when you ask most educators why they #loveteaching, the answer is really always going to be the students. In what other job do you get to spend so much time with people who challenge you to be your best, and get to watch them grow right before your eyes? 

How could you not love working with students who write a rhyming poem about you during a poetry unit?