The Sunrise Story

We are experiencing the final week of the quarter this week. It can be a stressful time...finishing assignments and grades. In room 734, we are reflecting. Yesterday I asked the students how many of them take selfies- ALL the hands went up (well, most of the hands). We talked about selfies and why people take them and share them. "So people can see how good you look!" "So you can see how you look, like a mirror." "For memories, to see where you've been and what you've done." "To see how you've changed over time." YES! And that's why we reflect...to see how we look today and how we've changed and grown over time and to share that with others for feedback.  From there I gave the class a list of questions as a guide for their reflection and they were off. Some created flipgrid videos, others wrote letters, and a few even shared their reflections in notebook pages.  Reflecting is a tough process for anyone and even toughe...

Today is an exciting day. After school, I am sharing a presentation with the staff at my school. They have five or six choices and I'm offering one of them. The exciting part is this...my co-presenters. I am presenting with seven of my seventh-grade students.  A couple of weeks ago, a colleague of mine, the brilliant Mrs. Jenny Miller,  came into my communications classes to teach the students skills that will help them become skilled interviewers and presenters. The kids loved it. I saw their eyes light up. They came alive!  It turned out that I had been invited to present today. It seemed like a quick turn-around, but I asked for volunteers. In one class, eight students asked to do this with me. We met and they brainstormed ideas. They created the promo video to get the audience to pick our presentation! I showed them how I plan out my presentations and they watched carefully. We decided on the message and the things we wanted the participants to do during...

This school year is a different one for me. I am purely a teacher of elective classes. The majority of my day is spent working with my seventh-grade communications students. In my county, it's the first opportunity that students get a say in their learning. Their choices include a foreign language high-school level class, coding, and my class. Last year, I taught communications and English. My communications classes totaled seventeen students at the beginning of last year. This year, I started with 72 and I'm already over 80 since the year began.  We create in our class! Right now they are finishing up photography portfolios. We collaborate on projects. Our next project is to create student presentations. We learn and practice communication skills. We struggle through critical thinking and problem solving and we contribute to the class, the school, and the world around us.  My friends, those of you who teach core content classes...did you know how different it is...

Questions. I have questions bouncing around my head. Questions mean wonder and curiosity. Questions are good. I don't have answers, so instead, I'm going to pose my questions... School?   How can I make it better?   What is my role as a teacher? Classroom organization? What's the best way to work with other teachers? How do I connect with students? What do grades really mean? How do I get better and meet their needs? How can school look different? Why do I do what I'm doing in the classroom? How do I balance technology and analog learning? Are tests necessary? Why? What is their purpose? How do they make us better learners? How can students demonstrate their learning in a meaningful way? How do I help them grow and learn? How can I find a way to better organize their notebooks? What books will help them fall in love with reading? What will make a difference to my students? Why? I'm not looking for answers. (And most ...