Reflections on Fall CUE from a Pirate Wannabe....

We have just returned from Fall CUE in Napa and I am in that fuzzy state of being glad to be home, being overwhelmed by what my week holds, and being euphoric about learning new things to try in my job as an Instructional Coach. 

I love going to learning conferences. I love traveling with my colleagues and laughing. But what I love most is the almost frenetic idea sharing and planning that happens during our breaks and during travel time. The group of educators that I travel with are dedicated, hard-working, and diverse. We can take a small nugget and turn it into something awesome to share in our district. We can brainstorm a difficult situation and find a solution. We can gain inspiration from speakers and then use that inspiration to bolster each other and the teachers we work with.  All of this was true of our time at Fall CUE.

The conference started with a rousing keynote by Dave Burgess. That man is exhausting!  But in such a good way.  I came away with this....engage kids, build relationships, tap into your fun side, take it to school with you.  I think my colleagues did too and we can use that to inspire ourselves, each other and those we work with daily. 

Every session I attended helped push me. Whether it was Meghan Ellis giving me ideas about getting kids reading, Ryan O'Donnell (my new hero) sharing his ideas to get kids creating with Chromebooks, or Acacia Warren giving us templates, advice, and work time to create PBL units, I am coming home with many new ideas to try in the classroom and in my work. 

But the biggest aha I came away from CUE with is this. I need to give myself more time to learn and create. I need to dedicate some of my time to searching out new knowledge and building lessons or presentations. I need to be present in that learning time and not worry about the other things that may be looming. For it is during this learning and creation time that I become a better, more energetic teacher and leader. 

We (and when I say "we" I mean "I") always challenge my co-conference goers to have a goal to bring back from a training. Something that we push ourselves to do to benefit our classrooms or district. I have two goals from my time at CUE: First, to offer some sort of short training at least once / twice a month to teachers in my district - on Chromebook creation, a new reading strategy, or Google basics. Second, to carve out 1 hour a week to really focus on my learning - some ideas include new assessment apps/software, creative activities / assignments with Chromebooks, a PBL unit for 6th grade, and creating a reading challenge for students. And, as I always strive to do, be supportive and helpful of my fellow coaches, the dedicated teachers that I work with, and the administrators who work hard to make positive changes in our district.

Looking forward to another CUE conference, or any learning conference! 

New Year, New Learning - #RaesBlogChallenge   Post #4

Wow!  How do you just pick ONE new thing to learn? Do you make it school related or personal? Does it benefit others or just yourself? 

And then the light bulb goes off.....

This is usually me.....I have the best of intentions, but then I can't focus or I don't prioritize or I don't use ALL the time I have in a day to complete tasks and learn new things. 

I think what I really want to focus on is not learning just one new thing, but learning how to get more done with my time. I can plan more carefully, block time out during my day for task completion, say no to some new projects, be more present with the learning that matters, know that I love my work and it is an extension of who I am. I don't have to stop at 4 or 5. If it makes me happy I can do it until 8 or 9!

 I think Ryan G. is going to be inspirational in my quest!

#RaesBlogChallenge  #goals #2016

How I Make School Different  - #RaesBlogChallenge  Post #3

I hope that I am making a difference for teachers and that in turn helps them make things different for their students. In my position as the Instructional Coach Coordinator, I try and take care of some of the "paperwork" or "research" that can suck up a teacher's time. I also try and share useful PL opportunities. Hopefully that is freeing up their time to plan engaging lessons and/or learn something new and exciting that they can pass on. 

My big goal for making school different is to help make teachers more comfortable with the idea of failing. So many times in my own classroom I would not try a lesson if there was ANY chance that something would go wrong. What was THAT teaching my students? Nothing!  
Some of my favorite classrooms now are those where I walk in and the teacher is letting kids figure out a new program. Saying "I don't know" or "You show me". Those students are learning a whole bunch and so are their teacher and I!

So I guess that I #MakeSchoolDifferent by helping teachers and freeing up some of their time and encouraging them to take risks and show their students that failure is okay. We learn from it. 

#RaesBlogChallenge  #MakeSchoolDifferent 

Making Memes - #RaesBlogChallenge - Post #2

So, I struggle with this. I love memes and I get the humor behind them. I can even see how they can be used in an educational setting. I just really struggle to make them. I guess I am not "witty" enough....or good enough at those plays on words that memes seem to require. Nonetheless, I do love the challenge that Rae provides to me and my professional growth. She is always encouraging all of us to do more and be more! Soooo even though my meme pokes fun at her a little....I do have fun every time she asks me to learn with or from her. 

#makeameme  #raesblogchallenge

@raefearing thanks for the challenge!

#RaesBlogChallenge  Post #1

Advice from an "old" teacher to a new one...

What advice can possibly prepare you for the journey you are about to embark on? How can anyone explain the contrasting feelings you will feel in that first minute, day, month, year that you stand in front of a room full of young people? I am certainly no expert, but here are a few things that I wish someone would have said to me:

1.  Forgive yourself. Being on all day is exhausting, especially when you have worked hard on your classroom and lesson plans, when you have responsibilities outside the four walls of your classroom. You are going to make mistakes, say the wrong thing, not return a call, hurt someone's feelings, be unprepared. Forgive yourself. 

2. Do something for yourself once a week. Take a class, get a massage, watch a movie, go for a hike. It is so easy to get totally absorbed in prepping, grading, meetings, and the million other things we have to do to make our classrooms run. Make yourself a priority. Your students will benefit from the time you make for yourself.

3. Ask for help. It is impossible to know everything and do everything. Ask a colleague to explain a policy, ask a parent to grade some papers, ask your mom to pick up your dry cleaning, ask a friend to listen. We get better when we ask for help.

4. Pay it back. When you have been teaching for a few years, remember how tough that first year was. Remember the people that helped you. Remember that something special that helped you survive and then share that with a new teacher. 

We "old" teachers are very glad that you decided to join us in this amazing career. Let us know what you need. We want to help.

Thank you +Rae Fearing for the December Blog Post Challenge!

'Tis the season to give thanks....

'Tis the season to be thinking of what we are thankful for. The things that make our life and our work better. These three tools make my WORK easier and better and I am thankful for them:

iPad / Apple TV -

These tools together allow for so much exploration and exposure for students. With a few clicks I can take my students ANYWHERE and they can share with the whole class what they find interesting or have worked on. This combined tool is powerful in sharing and creating knowledge with and for students!

Google Apps for Education -

This remarkable set of apps allows for creativity, collaboration, communication, and critical thinking. We can share our knowledge with each other and the world when we use the versatile tools that Google Apps offers. Students can create presentations, share their thinking through drawing and writing, and collaborate in numerous platforms. As a teacher these tools make lesson planning and delivery, grading, and communication so easy.

Markers, Colored Pencils, and Crayons -

While tech in education is important in this day and age, some good old fashioned tools also have a treasured place in classrooms, especially mine! I love color and I love students to express themselves and be creative with color. With a well stocked supply of colored pencils, crayons, and markers our normal work can go from drab to fab. Students can use color to highlight, underline, circle, create, edit, and stylize their work. Colored implements play an important role in the work I do and the work I ask my students to do.

When I think of teaching and the learners in my classrooms, I am thankful that I have these three things to support our work and allow us to be collaborating and creating everyday!

When I think about my life, I am thankful for my family and my community of colleagues that make life AND work fun!

Happy Thanksgiving!

C

Technology Integration and Instructional Coaching

In most areas of the Technology Integration Matrix, I fall within the adaptation level. However, in the authentic area, I am sadly still in the adoption category. 
I really view this matrix as a challenge, looking at each "teaching" opportunity and trying to move the experience over on the matrix. 

Goal One: 

Working with the new instructional coaches to integrate technology into their coaching. I want teachers and coaches to use technology throughout the process or cycle. Whether it is for communication or creation, I want everyone to feel comfortable with technology. I will need to explore ways to manage their data and contacts and for keeping track of next steps. I can help myself reach this goal by looking at blogs written by experienced coaches, follow Twitter chats for ideas, and engage in professional relationships with coaches who have been successful at this.  In the constructive area of the matrix, I rated myself as in the adaptation stage. I look for stuff and then tell them how to use it. I want to provide tools and choice to teachers and coaches about managing their interactions. This will help me move along the matrix to the infusion stage. 

Goal Two: 

Part of my new position is to provide training for teachers on anything and everything. I want my trainings to be powerful for teachers and give them multiple choices for implementation and advancement of knowledge. I would like to make sure that there is a technology component to every training, something that teachers can take back to their students/classrooms. To complete this goal I can use resources in our district. I can plan/brainstorm with Rae and my fellow coaches, I can poll teachers on their needs, and I can look for my own professional learning opportunities with others that are experienced in this arena. I feel that this falls within the authentic area, my weakest area. I am just at the adoption stage here. I want to find ideas and expand my tool kit to move me over on the matrix.

Goal Three:

Digital Citizenship is such an important part of our work as digital educators. My goal is to become proficient with the new content and assessment components on the Digital Citizenship website that we use (Common Sense Media - Scope and Sequence). I want to be a resource for teachers and coaches. I can work towards my goal by exploring the site, work towards certification, and volunteer to teach lessons in classrooms. I think that this falls into the active area of the matrix, where I was at the adaptation stage.  


I always set goals, and most of the time my completion rate stinks. I am hopeful that my classmates in Cohort 2 will help to hold me accountable.