EEND 678 Effective Technology Integration. Artifacts

The topics we have covered over the last 8 weeks focused on leveraging technology effectively. This looks different for all of us given our roles, students, resources, and districts. My role as a teacher-librarian is to provide instruction, support students' literacy and reading for pleasure, and create collaboration opportunities with teachers.  Technology allows me to achieve these goals. The tools/artifacts I decided to share support students' literacy both in the classroom and for their own reading pleasure. 

Sora is the student reading app from Overdrive Education. It provides students with access to ebooks and audiobooks that can be downloaded to their devices (Chromebooks) and or phones.  Schools can set the number of ebooks students can check out and the length of the checkout. District libraries can share books between schools and/or help students borrow from public libraries. Teachers can assign books to be read and check on reading statistics. Students can highlight and take notes that can be downloaded as a PDF or to Google Drive. Here is a presentation on how to access our Sora App. 

Newsela is an instructional content platform that publishes daily online articles on a range of topics and reading levels and integrated assessments. Newsela helps students develop critical nonfiction literacy skills. Teachers can engage each learner with up to date content, view metrics on student usage and performance, differentiate with 5 reading levels, including articles in Spanish are available as well for ELL, and search by standards.  

EEND 713- Reflection

My two takeaways from this class are Authenticity and  Flexibility. For engagement to happen in an e-learning environment students must feel their assignments are authentic, relevant to their learning, providing them choice and ownership. Alongside authenticity, there needs to be flexibility for students and teachers to adapt to change, to modify plans, to change technology, to abandon and pick up new projects.

EEND 713- Engaging E-Learning- Artifacts

I tools I chose to highlight for this class allowed me to engage with students during remote learning. While I had used them in the past it was during remote learning that I truly realized how helpful they were to connect with students and help them stay engaged with their learning.

Screencastify allows Chromebook users to record video tutorials, presentations, etc. You can record your screen, yourself, or both screen and self.  Videos are limited to 5 minutes unless you have a subscription. Videos are saved to Google Drive and can be shared via Youtube.  Here is a sample I created for classes conducting research on how to use one of our library databases. Screencastify can be a great tool for students to review instruction after class, or to preview skills before class. For remote learning, it is a great way to connect with students by including yourself in the video.

Google Docs is a part of the Google family of tools.  A word processor that allows users to create and edit files online while collaborating with other users. Google Docs are versatile and allow users to include interactive links and multimedia.  Teachers can share documents with students, and students can share with students for collaboration during group work, with real-time work and/or the history of any documents available for all to see. Here is a sample of my unit lesson plan which includes links to multimedia, and additional Google docs.

Genius Hour week 8_ Reflection

Hard to believe that the last 8 weeks have gone by, that another school year has come to an end, and that summer is truly here. The last 3 months have been surreal, I don’t think any of us could have predicted how different our lives would be in 2020.  

For me, this project has been a way to reconnect with purpose and creativity in my life.  World pandemic and house confinement had me lacking initiative and the desire to learn new things.  By going back to doing things I enjoyed I found a renewed sense of purpose.  Throughout this process, I have learned that you have to push yourself out of your comfort zone to continue growing, that having routines help build preparation, but that you also have to be flexible to adapt to changes.  

This week I took another step to add a new challenge and push myself out of my comfort zone. I started a running plan based on the Hanson model. It is taught by Nikki Humphrey, wife of one of the founders, along with two other coaches. It’s virtual through Facebook and limited to 70 women from across the country. Some of these women have amazing stories and successes- running Boston in 3 hours! My goal is to become a stronger runner and person by following a prescribed training plan and leaning in for support.  

I found this quote on their book and struck me that it could apply to other aspects of life “Being a great racer is part preparation and part flexibility” 

This class has provided me with experiences I can take into my class, especially with remote learning becoming a part of our daily lives. Creating authentic assignments and opportunities for students to pursue their own interests will support the development of the skills needed to succeed in the 21st century.  Pursing inquiry, evaluating sources, leveraging technology, and ethically creating and sharing new knowledge. 

Genius Hour week 6- Showtime!

I started my Genius Hour project with a very loose idea of creating a “happiness project” I had been feeling uninspired to try new things, frustrated with some of my routines and/or lack of routines, and overall discouraged and wanted to get back some of the “fun” in my life.
After doing some reading and checking out some blogs and apps I ended up focusing on 3 things that I felt were helping me feel focused and centered: exercise, in particular running and yoga, playing piano, and journaling.  Reflecting on the process I realized that week 2 was really helpful to create new routines and to force me to stick to my new plans.  Looking at my learning styles I realized that all these activities are kinesthetic in nature which is my preferred learning style.

One thing I have learned throughout this experience is the need to push myself out of my comfort zone.  From sending my piano practicing videos to my teacher for virtual feedback, to joining small races around the community, to posting on a mediation blog and reaching out to a supportive community.

I realized that the learning experience is one of the things that bring me joy. I’m still struggling with finding the perfect balance between having fun with what I’m doing and not feeling like it’s becoming a chore. I realized that I need to be flexible with myself and kind of take one day at a time.  I would like to try a similar approach with my kids and let them decide what their Genius Hour project would be and see how that unfolds.

Genius Hour week 5- Learning Styles

My learning style is hands-on, I need to try things out, I need to do in order to figure out how things work. I realized that I’m very visual too. I like to make lists and sketch things out, I highlight and take notes on my books, I love sticky notes and color-coding things. I think that there must be a mental connection/reward for me when I get to do something physical and see the end result.

When considering the type of learner that I am while attempting different activities during my Genius Hour project I realized:

• Playing the piano: It is a combination of kinesthetic, visual, and audio.  I have to practice, to physically touch the keys, I can learn from watching videos and listening to audio, but ultimately I have to practice to reap the benefits.
• Yoga: Again a combination of kinesthetic and visual. I realized that I enjoy practicing yoga videos more than I thought I was going to. In the past, I had gone to a yoga studio but creating my own playlists has worked out nicely. 
• Running: total kinesthetic activity and one that I enjoy better with friends. However, I have started reading more books (training books) and have joined a virtual team with coaches that will host Zoom meetings and Facebook live events.
• Meditation: journaling is a kinesthetic activity for me. I like to write down my thoughts much better than listening to a guided meditation or using any electronic format. 

Here is my Dip chart

Genius Hour Week 4- Mutiny!

This week I was able to focus on reading Mallika Chopra's book Living with Intent and found some passages and quotes that truly resonated with me. I’m sharing them with you here.  One in particular that resonated with me was this

“Change doesn’t happen when we feel confident, strong, and rooted. The blessing of uncertainty is that it gives us the nudge we need to dig deep- to incubate and reflect on what we want- and to find the courage to carve out a different path.” (Chopra, 51)

I struggled with my own frustrations this week especially around my fitness goals and desire to push myself to do more. Sometimes less is more.  Sometimes you don’t have to have everything figured out in order to achieve change but instead, you have to work through uncertainty to find your path.

I struggled with practicing yoga and piano realizing I’m frustrated to not have feedback at the moment. I found myself procrastinating and not enjoying those activities when instead I should focus not on the feedback and progression but on the joy they bring me. Who cares if I miss I beat? My only audience is my dogs and cats and they don’t seem to care but rather are amused with my attempts.

I guess this is part of the journey and while I felt the routines of week 2 had really helped I won't see a difference unless I stick to them long term. Setbacks are normal and we should learn from them. Reflecting on both of the books I have been reading I realized that both authors broke down their "intentions" over long periods of time and focused on developing routines that supported one or two changes at a time.