Posted in Food for Thought, Meme

Meme: Passion Quilt

Posted on by Tina Coffey

Last week I was tagged with this meme by fellow Elementary Instructional Technologist, Kevin Jarrett. I do have to say that this is the first time I’ve ever been tagged for a meme, so I feel quite honored! Thanks Kevin!! I’ve been a little delayed in responding, though. I was supposed to post a picture and tell what makes me passionate about teaching with technology, I actually had a hard time deciding on just ONE. There are so many reasons I love technology and what it can do…

I finally decided, though, on this picture (thanks to FlickrCC), which I will call, “Technology: A Key That Opens Many Doors.”

doorOne of the things technology can do for students is to open doors: doors to new places, doors to new ways of thinking, doors to an entire community of learners and thinkers very different than themselves, but also very similar. It can broaden the meaning of community. It can allow students to see and listen and even talk to people in places across the globe and to learn empathy, understanding, and tolerating opposing points of view. It provides a means to teach students what it is like to stand in someone else’s shoes, and helps gives them an audience when they tell what it’s like to stand in their own place in the world. These skills are of utmost importance in the 21st century, as our world gets smaller and flatter…

I can quickly think to some of the projects I’ve seen in going on in our classrooms during the past couple of months, and I see where this is true…

  • Third Graders exchanging brochures and letters with students around the world, thanks to Jennifer Wagners’ Technospud projects.
  • Classrooms virtually traveling to underwater with Meg Swecker as she explored coral reefs thanks to VoiceThread.
  • Students collaborating, writing and publishing their own podcasts, and the excitement and creativity that this medium inspires.
  • The 4th Grade bloggers who now have a global audience for their writing, from Connecticut to Australia…and to hear them talk about the impact and motivation that audience has for them as they share their ideas.
  • I could go on and on and on…

3 Simple Meme Rules:

  • Post a picture from a source like FlickrCC or Flickr Creative Commons or make/take your own that captures what YOU are most passionate about for kids to learn about…and give your picture a short title.
  • Title your blog post “Meme: Passion Quilt” and link back to this blog entry.
  • Include links to 5 folks in your professional learning network or whom you follow on Twitter/Pownce.

So I’m tagging these 5 folks to keep this meme going…

Posted in Links, Online Testing, Salem City Schools

Online Testing Practice Sites

Posted on by Tina Coffey

Just wanted to pass along a website that was mentioned for SOL practice in the 5th grade meeting yesterday.  It came from Mary Hollar at West Salem Elementary.  It’s called www.thatquiz.org, and it has online review problems for Math…including a way to practice with a protractor and a ruler (be careful, though, since the cm ruler on this site starts at the end of the ruler).

There is also an entire page of links that Pam and I have put together to allow you to practice for SOL tests using computers, including released practice tests from prior years (they don’t look exactly like the test, but they are still good practice).  Take a look when you have a chance.  To find it, go to Your school’s homepage>Students>Links for Kids>Your Grade Level>Online Testing Practice or click here.

If you know of anything else that should be added to this page, please, please let me know.  The more ideas and resources we have, the better!! 🙂

Posted in Projects, Salem City Schools

Third Graders Participate in a Global Penpal Project

Posted on by Tina Coffey

Have you noticed Third Grade’s bulletin board in the upstairs hallway at G.W. Carver? If so, you might have noticed all the colorful cards, letters, and brochures from schools all around the globe! The students in Mrs. Naves, Ms. Pillis’, Mrs. Hughes, and Mrs. Travitz’s classes have been participating in a global penpal project called, “From Me to You 2008” organized by Jennifer Wagner on the Technospud Project Website. Teachers from all over the world participated, from California to Maine, Canada to Hawaii, and even Australia! Each Third Grade class sent cards to 23 other classes (and to a Ronald McDonald House) and included a brochure (created by seven very creative third graders) that told the classes all about G.W. Carver and Salem, Virginia. In return, they are receiving cards from other classes, and learning all about places all over the United States and beyond. Students will even have a chance to view the location of all the classes on Google Earth (and learn how to use the ruler in Google Earth to measure distance)! If you haven’t had a chance to take a look at some of the things they have received, take a walk by Third Grade. If you want to learn more about this particular project, you can check out the project homepage here.

Also, if you think you might be interested in doing a global project, I highly recommend looking at some of the other ones on the Technospud Project Website. It looks like an exciting project for K-3 is about to start in March for St. Patrick’s Day (involving Lucky Charms and lots of Math) , one later in the Spring for grades 4-6 based on Prince Caspian (the 2nd book in the Narnia Series), and more! If you choose to do one, please let me know. I’d love to help!!

Posted in Fun

We are Multicolored

Posted on by Tina Coffey

Celebrate your uniqueness! Create you own flag at We Are multicolored, a digital art project put on by the Lower East Side Tenement Art Museum. You can email it, save it, print it, or download it. I could see this as a writing prompt to celebrate diversity and global awareness…plus it’s a way to practice clicking and dragging with precision.

Here’s mine…a mix between the USA, Mexico, and the UK. I live in the United States. The country that has most affected me is Mexico because I spent a summer there learning to scuba dive. The country I would love to visit is the United Kingdom (though there are at least four others close to the top of the list). I most value the blue in the US flag that represents justice, loyalty, and perseverance. What would your flag look like? What do the colors and symbols mean?

multicolored flag

Need directions? Here’s Langwitches quick and easy “How To.” It was through her blog that I found this site (though she credits twitter). Got to love having a network!

Posted in Salem City Schools, Video

Newest Version of Did You Know?

Posted on by Tina Coffey

This is the version I showed to to GWC yesterday during the faculty meeting. I know some of you were interested in seeing it again or taking a look at the wiki that goes along with it. Here’s the video:[kml_flashembed movie="http://www.youtube.com/v/pMcfrLYDm2U" width="425" height="350" wmode="transparent" /]

And you can find more information and all the versions of the presentation on the Shifthappens Wiki.