STEAM activity

I had such a great time planning and teaching a Gingerbread Man STEAM activity in 2nd grade this week. We based the activity off of this question: How can we help the Gingerbread Man get across the river safely? Their ideas were thoughtful, creative, and well implemented! Take a look at some of their creations.

Google Forms

Ms. Johnson's 6th graders are hard at work on a math PBL. To kick-off the project the groups were working on making a Google Form to share with teachers at Latimer. Each group was assigned a grade level to work on. The project will be focusing on Math Night at their school. Here they are hard at work:

Publishing Party in Kindergarten!

I had the joy of visiting Mrs. Flanagan's Kinder kids at Payne last week. They were presenting their writing from Writer's Workshop. The class was so proud to stand up and read what they had been working on. Not only was it creative but they were all so thoughtful! Here are a few pictures from that day.

CUE Rockstar TOSA Conference

A few of us were able to attend the CUE Rockstar TOSA conference this weekend in San Francisco. We saw some great (and funny) presentations discussing technology and ways to help our district and staff. We also went on a picture walk to create a photo collage of words we saw in everyday things.

Visiting an Outdoor Classroom!

I had such an incredible time visiting Amy Trayer and her K/1 kids. Every week they spend Wednesday outside in the Moreland Woods. Here is what Amy said about it:

This year several K/1 classes at EDS have been spending the day outdoors in the Moreland Woods as part of our curriculum.  Having the woods on site means we can take our classes out there and use the amazing resources it offers right on campus.  My students spend all day Wednesday out in the woods in an outdoor classroom environment.  With the help of parents, we have stations set up that include reading, journal writing, games, art, math and a heavy emphasis on science. Having an outdoor classroom allows students to explore nature and learn through hands on activities that encourage creative thinking, curiosity and motivation.  We notice that our students are focused, engaged, happy and excited to learn when out in nature!

Many other grades and classes at EDS are spending time out in the woods and using it for different PBL projects.  This has been a great opportunity to build our school community especially when the older kids are teaching the younger ones about science related concepts and caring for the woods.

Research has shown that by giving children opportunities to explore in nature we are teaching them how to solve their own problems, control their impulses, modulate their emotions, see from others’ perspectives, negotiate differences, and get along with other as equals.  By being out in nature and the real world, children are taught lessons of personal responsibility, self-control, and sociability.

The K/1 team applied for and received an Innovation grant from MEF to support the outdoor classroom!  We are so grateful for this support and look forward to building a science rich curriculum and creating an environment that benefits our students' overall health and well being.  

Follow my outdoor classroom on instagram: @edsroom19

~Amy Trayer. K/1 EDS

NGSS Training

It looks like middle school teachers are having fun on day two of the NGSS training! If you are on Twitter there is a feed going around #CANGSSROLLOUT. You can also look at Heather's at https://twitter.com/hscharer/status/664133175094849536

We are learning so much! The trainers are having us construct meaning through phenomenon. I can't wait to try this in my classroom! 

~Wendy Johnson, 6th grade at Latimer 

Math Presentations

The math committee spent the day listening to four presentations from different math publishers. We took all the information from the sites to help us choose programs to pilot for a new math adoption. It was really fun and interesting hearing what these publishers have to offer us!

MERIT Training

We are learning amazing ways to use technology! Right now we are becoming experts at Google Slides. We have also learned strategies to use in the classroom (using iPads, chromebooks, and laptops) and tools to make the life of a teacher easier. 

Imagine teaching a Flipped Classroom where the teacher facilitates learning while students do the work of scouring the digital world as they master the core curriculum. Teachers and administrators have spent three days immersed in this world of Screencastomatic, BlendSpace, and Photosforclass just to list a few, and the possibilities are endless!

For anyone who has not been trained yet, don't worry. Ed. Services will be holding a Tech-extravaganza in January 2016! 

Implementing PBL

Bobbi Frensley, K teacher at Payne, attended a PBL workshop this year. She has already started a wonderful project with her kids. Below is her explanation of what they are doing. 

Project Based Learning is learning by "doing". The PBL workshop allowed me to learn about the process by "doing" an actual lesson. During the 3 day workshop, I was able to work with my grade level team to design a project that went great with our Arts in Action program. Combining S.T.E.A.M and PBL was a perfect fit. 

Driving Question:

How can we use our knowledge in math skills to improve our art?

We decided to break the PBL up into monthly units of study. Each month students will learn about a new artist/medium in the S.T.E.A.M lab. The lesson is extended in the classroom throughout the month.  Students will learn new math vocabulary associated with the art, write about and then create their own art based on what they have learned.

Currently, we are on our first mini unit. The kids have really enjoyed learning about Piet Mondrian. We set up a research portal on the iPads through Symbaloo. This allows students to access photos, videos and games associated with the artist. Voice and choice is awesome! ~Bobbi Frensley

Meeting Dr. Kagan

Moreland in Action!

What an amazing year it has been so far. We have been very busy in Ed Services and wanted to keep everyone up to date on what has been going on.

 Many teachers have been involved in incredible PD days. They include CUE conferences, PBL, and Merit training. Let's not forget the once in a lifetime training with Dr. Kagan that we all participated in! We learned strategies to use in our classrooms and the reasoning behind them.

 Ed Services has also hosted a DELAC parent night on Technology Safety. This included a special presentation from Comcast and several technology classes parents were able to attend. Families learned about Common Sense Media,  setting up a gmail account, and how to find websites in their language.

We also hosted a very successful GATE night for parents. This was an amazing opportunity for parents to learn about state funding, GATE enrichment classes, GATE Parent Night, and advocacy in Moreland School District. Parents were also introduced to the plethora of differentiation strategies that our Moreland teachers use. Parents walked away knowing that GATE is more than a special label, and that GATE kids need all the help they can get.