antiselfie @graduation

after the AP test

We all know motivating our students is difficult, but near impossible at this time of year, now pair that with the main reason that the kids take my course -the AP test and you have a Mount Fuji hurdle.(sorry for the strange allusion but I am personally in the midst of reading Haiku Murakami's 1Q84-loving it!!!)However, thanks to some technology and creative writing-my students had the best time and there was so much 21st century learning going on, I waned to spread the word.-so, we just finished reading Song of Solomon, a character experiences revelation, and Everything is Illuminated- of course some revelation(illumination in the Ukraine)-we hadn't done much creative writing, bound by literary analysis needs, but for the end of the year, we did something different: Many of my students take AP Gov next year so in collaborating with that teacher, I had them do some research on one of the countries they will study next year, also exposing them to some of our databases available here. Then they had to create a memoir of a character from that country that revealed setting and culture. They were fantastic!! I wish we could have done more creative writing. Then on to their own memoirs- we looked at the qualities of good memoir writing and they were to create a snapshot, an illumination. But then they took those pieces and created a graphic memoir with pixton comics and shared on Edmodo-I let them go with this project in the lab, watched them problem solve-I didn't tell them how to use the tools, they had to learn and teach each other-miracles-I have never seen any of my classes so engaged. The products were cool, but really the learning was cooler! A great way for me as a teacher to end the year-success is invigorating and I am so lucky to have such great students

May 9

well the big test is over. Whew, nothing I can do about it now, but hope they did their best. But I wanted to share a great activity I did today with my "tested out" kids. It is adaptable in any discipline that has words-it is a version of found poetry called "Blackout Poetry". I isn't new, just new to me and my students. They had a great time. There was no sushing and they were on task the whole time. The products are miraculous and it was great for them to stretch their creative muscles. I will try to post one here but the text is so small it's difficult to read them. I hope all of you readers take the time to go here to get an idea. It was a real breath of energy for them and for me.

We also did "Sketchnotes" last week based on Mike Rohde's illustraed guide to visual note taking-I was trying to teach them that using the part of your brain that enables you to synthesise and create an illustration for an idea helps them to remember.-It's a great book and I love the idea. We practiced by using a video lecture about "Why Read". Then we posted our notes in Edmodo. I am going to use this idea in their final this year by having them do 1 or 2 sketchnotes on one of the books we have read this year. -to include major themes, characters, what stood out to them -check out an example from my class

April 7, 2014

Another muddy spring here in Utah, but my kids are successfully "muddling" their way through Sound and Fury. Really hate the pun, but the blogs the kids have done should speak for themselves. I am so impressed with the level of analysis, writing and voice here-I know that using blogs did in fact effect their learning in this unit. One, the idea that other people will read what they've written infuses a genuine quality that is not evident in their formal writing. So much of what we do in A.P. has to do with the test that it is refreshing to know, I can still teach English-not everything has to be "about the test". Take a look at a few: C blog and J's and a funny one Also, today I discovered, perhaps you already all know, that it is best to give a "time" restriction when doing research. As a librarian, I watch many classes come up to our computer lab and use about 20 min. then the kids are done and messing around. But I gave my kids today specific questions, they met in the classroom to divide up the research in groups, then when into the lab and said you have 25 min. Then they came back into the classroom to discuss within their groups for 5, then presented to class-all in one day!, not a block period either- although not all presented today, it did give them the motivation to be finished and ready today and the focus was really successful-just an idea for the next time you are doing research- Just finished reading The Good Lord Bird, new by James McBride- not my normal reading but cool in it's own way-I recommend it to you-tracing John Brown's raid through a unique narrator

Mar.11-Old tool great tricks

Today was an amazing example of critical thinking, problem solving and collaboration-whoo! For our study of Sound and the Fury I thought I might make the kids do a blog, an online reading journal and provide them with guidance along the way. The objective, of course, was certainly literary analysis, however, if you really have read this book, the first objective is to get them to keep reading. Most readers give up because of the difficulty of following the first chapter, let alone the rest of the work, written from the perspective of a severely mentally handicapped character. On top of that the narration is stream of consciousness and not in linear time. The challenge? can technology help? Well, surprise, not only did it help with motivation with the reading, there was a lot of extra learning perks along the way. First, Blogspot was blocked at our school so they couldn't see my blog with all the assignment directions:solution, I displayed mine through the teacher server. Second, they couldn't view their own blogs but they could still post so that worked. One student figured out that she could post the URL for her blog under the Edmodo assignment in comments so everyone will easily see each others'. Great opportunity for me to teach about protecting their online presence. Also, securing their blogs, managing comments etc. What I really loved though, was the excitement in the room. They couldn't wait for other people to read their work. "Can I be funny?"yes, use your own voice. Although today was just a refelection on their research of Faulkner, I can't wait to really see their reading reflections. I have "high hopes". Particularly because we all took a pledge, no spark notes for this one.-we'll see. I said they could talk to me anytime they're confused, even email. I am their resident expert. Wish me luck.

February 26

Well, yesterday was my birthday. It was not monumental. Got a great run in which means I had time to think. Did you know that my AP Literature applications were only at 35 this year? They have been going down each year, but this is ridiculous. Let's look at what I think is happening. My class is hard. Look at the recent blog assignments from my students examining critical theory. First they researched the theories, blogged on them then applied that theory to five passages from Heart of Darkness. This was all based on resources I had compiled for them on my Learnist. This all involved a heavy use of technology. But the real beauty, I think, in this lesson, was the use of creatively looking at the passages as if they were someone else. Understanding a critical theory and attempting to apply it. Beat me with a stick but I think it is valuable. Being able to look at something through someone else's eyes. Do you do that in Math and Science? I certainly wouldn't bash those valuable subjects, but many parents feel that those subjects are much more valuable than English. Hmmm, I don't think you should count the Humanities out folks. As a colleague of mine states:"Ultimately, too, male students(I only had 6 apply) (and their parents) are deluded if they think a myopic focus on math and science will result in long-term career success. Those are the blue-collar jobs of the new economy. And a lot of them are already being moved to countries where programming and engineering labor is cheap and abundant. It's the social and emotional skills and abstract, critical thought that will pay off in the long run." He suggested these articles, which I then tweeted out. I think all parents and students should know this, but how do we get that info out? The business case for novels and Reading makes us smarter and nicer. This last one is a report from a study, ohhh math was involved!

February 11 Reflection

Last year I had put together a Learnist on Shakespeare and King Lear for students to read, watch and then blog. This year I used the Learnist but I made separate notes on Edmodo for students to comment on. I was stunned at the level of insight from their responses. I had just completed grading a formal essay on "The Dead". Although I had some brilliant ones, it was clear that several students headed straight to Spark Notes for analysis. Even though it wasn't direct plagiarism, it was making their brains lazy. And really, the essays boring. In contrast, the writing where they reflected on the resources was authentic and analytical, very insightful. Harold Bloom lectures, harvard lectures and different writers on Shakespeare joined our class and my students responded not only on the resources but also to each other. Making the assignments in Edmodo as notes rather than an assignment allows them to read each others responses. I am continually impressed with how much Edmodo has helped improve my instruction. Yes, there is a learning curve, especially when it comes to going through forty-fifty posts at a time. But if I continue to see such results it is obviously worth it. I am eagerly awaiting my kids to take the AP test and see if that success is reflected there. Regardless, it is amazing to me to really observe the learning through the tech tools I have been using this year. On Jodi Samsinak's blog she states, "Every student has the right to ask, 'Why are we doing this?'Technology should be used to enhance our understanding and not merely for the sake of using technology."