Wordle...

I used the Wordle App and I used my blogs RSS feed to supply the text. I really like the visual and I think it is something I could use in my class.

1. copy essay text into Wordle... What words stand out?
2. Introducing a new topic/unit and the vocabulary it contains
   

My Delicious Account

I recently posted this comment at Banks 2.0

What encourages me in the journey we are on, to transition our teaching practices and philosophies to one that incorporates what we are learning about the 21st century learner, is the ability to let the individual student find his/her voice in our system.

Students no longer have to represent every thought into some highly structured written assignment. Technology, I find, allows the student's inner voice to shine through with some sort of creativity that I couldn't comprehend.

Teaching is really just learning how to learn. Do I learn the same way I did 2 years ago? Nope...not even close. Should my students be learning the same way I was taught or in the same or similar manner in which I'm learning today?

Just keeping the passion alive!

thanks MW your unique perspective on the system is needed and too often goes unheard.
thanks Dean Shareski @ ideasandthoughts for the latest posting it make me want to:

Something to take away -- student feedback
1. gather it
2. polling...
3. does it make you change?”

Pushing Limits...

I've been so enthusastic and filled with passion with my teaching and where I'd like to see me and my students go. I know my students will need to be prepared for the 21st century so they can have a chance to control their own destinies. Some students will naturally do well and others will need more coaching.

The visionaries I've had a chance to hear from, through blogs, wiki's and social networks have given me some great ideas and have really changed how I gather information and share. Through the creation of my PLN I've learned so much in such a short period of time. I have had a glimpse of the power that creating PLN's can bring me and I really want to share this with my students.

Today, I had the opportunity to present some of the projects my students had created using xtranormal. The students had a lot of fun working on the project and it showed in the projects. After the 1st project I had a few students that wanted to re-do and fix their projects. The best part of this was that they realized what they needed to do to make their projects better. The ability to share, without judgment, and see what others can do is a powerful tool that I too often do not utilize.

The more that they can learn to "collaborate" without me telling them to can make a difference in their learning, however, this will not 'naturally' happen. A lot of work will have to go into mentoring the students into becoming 'digital citizens'. My pal Stephen, at Banks2.0, and I were discussing and trying to 'solve' things with which there truly are no absolute answers we realized that no matter how much we love web2.0 and all things technology the curriculum needs to drive the tools we choose to use. If our students can not understand the objectives of the assignment then why are we using the technology?

When I reflect on why I chose to let the students use Xtranormal I may know all curricular objectives, but I doubt my students would have a clue....

And the journey continues..........

Learning to change-Change to Learning

And the journey continues...

Excellent Thoughts

I'm only catching up to the current trends, but the theories sure makes a lot of sense to me. My passion for my career is at or greater than the moment of my graduation.

I love learning...

Leading Learning

View SlideShare presentation or Upload your own. (tags: learning change)

Curriculum and Teaching in the 21st Century

I have been part of an interesting dialogue with my colleague over at Banks2.0 about technology, curriculum and the future of learning. Alright, when I said interesting I might again be announcing my membership to the “propeller-head” club once again.

The talk centered on what we believed it meant to be a 21^st century teacher and what the 21^st century class would look like. A lot of this dialogue started from an article/interview that we came across on the Half an Hour Blog. It was here that Downes' shared his philosophy on where teaching and learning is or should be going. Banks and I discussed what we agreed with and what we disagreed with and how we saw our role as teachers. Banks’ questions had me looking out into some of the blogs I read and I came across Jeff Utecht’s, The Thinking Stick blog, and here he was discussing curriculum, teachers and technology.

Teaching in a technology rich class, with the inclusion of a lot of web2.0 tools, is interesting and I believe engaging. The question comes as to how I am meeting my curricular requirements using this technology. I am someone who is always trying to use tools that connect students to each other, the curriculum and engage them in a rewarding activity. I am always thinking, "That's cool, how can I use that in my class!" Often other teachers, especially those that are a little technology challenged, ask, "Why would I want to use that tool?" The answer comes from the myriad of curricular outcomes and the differentiation of assignments that can be met with a Web2.0 tool like a Wiki, Blog or a mashup like Glogster.

I can see myself helping my colleagues answer the why, and they may choose to move from the technologically challenged to 21st century.

The journey continues.....

Student Learning Networks

I consider myself a professional learner. This infectious and often overwhelming desire to know everything and have an opinion on it probably best describes me. So, I call myself a professional learner and behind closed doors I do call myself an "info junkie".

I did not even know this term was real until I did a "Google search". My wife wonders why I would even consider searching the term. This question probably puts the process I go through in context. Therefore, I spend my time near the computer doing searches and reading. Over the last summer I discovered Google Reader and suddenly a whole waft of information is now streaming my way. Much of this info was so over my head and was coming in such vast quantities it was like channel surfing a 1000 channels at the same time. Apparently I checked a whole bunch of interest boxes and voila I had 2000 things to read the 1st day! Then this last November during the Leading and Learning Conference, I attended the David Warlick presentation on RSS. Warlick used a term describing teachers as "Master Learners"! I thought, "That's me!"

The Light bulb went off... I could bring control to my information universe! I could control the info coming to me; I could shape my learning. I could learn what I wanted and I began creating my "Personal Learning Network"! I couldn't wait to get back to the classroom and start sharing what I learned. Yes, I revealed a level of geekiness to my Junior High students that I never thought possible. I stood in front of the, class and announced, "I am a propellorhead!" Well, technically I didn't, but it was pretty close; some did ask is that all you do.

As I continue to teach this year I am going to focus my energies on helping the students create their "Student Learning Networks". How can they learn more efficiently, how can they learn to love learning and how can they create their own "Personal Learning Network"!

Wow...

Here it is... My foray into the 21st century continues. I've created wiki's, participated in social networks, tweeted on twitter and now I blog!

What have I gotten myself into...

It is here where I'll tell my story of the journey my students and I will take through technology integration and what it means or could possibly mean in the classroom. I'm sure there will be successes and I know there will be failures.

Over the next few weeks I'll make posts concerning the journey I've purposefully began this year in my grade 7, 8 and 9 classes. I'll try to answer the "why" in a meaningful way.