Mote-rrific

 Blog 10 - Technology

Mote Google Extension

I have recently discovered a fun extension for Chrome called Mote. It enables the user to leave short voice messages in most Google apps. I can use it to leave comments for my students on their work, which is novel and therefore more motivating for them. I can add voice to my Slides presentations, send voice messages in gmail, and even leave myself voice messages in a doc to remind myself what I was thinking - HA - I'm getting old! 

I also love to respond to my students with emojis, because I feel like this is a language they definitely understand, and Mote makes this very easy and quick to do as well. The Mote website claims that using Mote can save teachers time because a voice message is much quicker to record than it is to type. I have not had enough experience yet to see if this is true, but I would imagine so. Saving teacher-time is something I am so on board with!

Finally, I have been thinking about suggesting this app to our ELL director, because it can translate a teacher's comments to many other languages. In supporting our 5th grade team with their English language learners, I have found that these classroom teachers feel very much at a loss for how to help the students. I think this could be one simple way for them to facilitate at least a bit of conversation that would be comfortable and comprehensible for these students.

Check out a Mote here: Click to hear my voice note... https://mote.fyi/xv778pn

 Blog 10 - Catlin Tucker's Blog

Blended Learning in a Whole Group with Rotations

I really enjoy this blog because Dr. Tucker not only offers some practical ideas and innovative techniques, but she also is very inspirational! Here's a little inspiration for you; Dr. Tucker encourages us as educators to see ourselves as "architects of learning experiences". She also stresses how important it is for us to be intentional about our lesson design. 

As always, Dr. Tucker is looking out for teachers and she understands that many of us find the idea of blending learning to be a bit daunting. In this case, she suggests trying out the "Whole Group Rotation Model". This may be structured different ways, of course, but Dr. Tucker's suggestion is to follow this routine:

Offline: Hook activity or small-group discussion

Online: Choice Activity (such as "Would You Rather" from an earlier blog); offer at least 3 online choices to present/reinforce content

Offline: Teacher-led activity using the gradual release of responsibility model

Online: Choice Activity; offer online choices, or offline work with a partner

Dr. Tucker advises choosing activities for offline work that will benefit more from interacting with each other and social learning. Online activities should allow students to choose how they want to engage with the learning and help them build agency. Specific ideas and suggestions can be found in her blog. She also has a list of very thought-provoking questions to help teachers be more intentional with our lesson design. With a freebie and lots of helpful graphics, the blog is definitely worth a look!

https://catlintucker.com/2021/03/whole-group-rotation/#comments

Thankful for Tech!

 Blog 9 - Technology

This week my technology focus was drastically different. Instead of exploring new things, finding ways to be more efficient, and creating exciting projects and activities, I spent my time praying for the wifi to work. I was visiting Costa Rica this past week, as a chaperone with our high school students from Spanish classes. It was like a throwback for me to when I was in college, which was a looooonnng time ago. I was not able to use my cell phone much at all, because I do not have service outside of the US, and I had a difficult time getting any work done on my assignments for classes, because the wifi that was available to us was very spotty and very slow. It really made me think about how much I am able to accomplish at home, with the extensive resources that are available to me. It also made me wonder how much more difficult it must have been for the kids, and even the teachers in Costa Rica when the pandemic first began. I am so thankful for all of the technological resources that I have at home, and I realize that they are so easy for us to take for granted. Thank goodness I am home!

Student Self-Regulation

Blog 9 - Catlin Tucker's Blog

Hitting the Nail on the Head

I can tell that Dr. Tucker is really in-tune with teachers, because almost every blog post she shares is something that directly relates to a struggle I have had or a colleague has had recently. This week, she touches on how to help students who are lacking self-regulation skills, especially in blended learning situations. What we may think of as a student's lack of motivation or engagement, suggests Dr. Tucker, may actually be due to underdeveloped self-regulation skills.

Dr. Tucker shares a visual that she created based on Dr. Barry Zimmerman's work, and the visual is so valuable that I must share it with you!

Today we see many students who have lagging skills in self-regulation, but when they are in a blended learning situation, this becomes even more problematic. According to Dr. Tucker, blended learning environments require students to be more autonomous, to be active agents with more control over their own learning. If teachers see that students find this challenging, we should be creating routines and providing resources that will help our students to improve those skills they are lacking.

Finally, Dr. Tucker points to seven attributes that may strengthen self-regulation skills in blended learning environments, based on research from Laer and Elen (2017). They are authenticity, personalization, learner control, scaffolding, interaction, cues for reflection, and cues for calibration. For more information about how these skills can be addressed in blended learning, check Dr. Tucker's blog here: https://catlintucker.com/2021/03/self-regulation-blended-learning/.

On my own part, upon reflecting, I realize that student self-regulation skills are abilities I often take for granted and expect students to be able to utilize easily. This blog reminds me that many students do not inherently master these skills, and I need to be attending to their development daily.

Finally Flipgrid!

 Blog 8 – Tech

This week I finally had some success using Flipgrid when I used it with my elementary reading students. Here’s a little background; one year ago, when our school closed, our state made the learning activities “optional”, which meant that not very many students participated. As many teachers did, I taught myself to use some new technology, and one tool I tried out was Flipgrid. I prepared a prompt for any students throughout all of grades 6-8 to participate in, and I had 1 – ONE student – create a Flipgrid video for me. How disappointing!

Since we have been in person for most of this year, I have only tried out a few of the new tools I learned about. This class has been a helpful way to sort of “force” me to integrate some of these new ideas. So last week my fourth grade Title I students were working on retelling and summarizing a fiction story. One of the ways they fall short in their reading testing (Fountas & Pinnell) is not being able to retell important points of a story in order. After my instruction and practicing several different ways (gradual release of responsibility), I had them retell the story we were working on, in a Flipgrid using their Chromebooks. I thought the results were phenomenal! First, they were so excited to make their own videos. Second, they wanted to watch each others’ videos, which reinforced what we learned. And finally, when I evaluated the videos myself, I was able to gain insights into their understanding that I had not picked up on before. For example, I realized that one student still did not understand what a setting is.

This little project was even easier than I had anticipated, with more promising results. I’m sure I will be incorporating Flipgrid more often! If you have students make their own videos for occasional assignments, I’d love to hear what they do.

Formative Assessment through Data Collection and Designing Differentiated Learning Experiences

 Blog 8 - Catlin Tucker's Blog

In this blog, Dr. Tucker notes how difficult it can be to collect formative assessment data when working with students who are online. This formative assessment data is essential to be able to create differentiated learning experiences for students based on where there understanding currently is, and what they need to grow. Dr. Tucker offers six points during the teaching process when teachers might incorporate some formative assessment. Her ideas offer support for those who are teaching in person as well as online.

The two areas that I thought had the most helpful information, at least from my perspective, were #4, “Check for Understanding & Provide Feedback on Student Progress” and #5, “Analyze the Data, Make Adjustments & Differentiate the Learning”. To check for understanding, she uses some techniques I am familiar with, such as a 3-2-1, and also some things I had not thought of, like having students create an analogy or to complete a “Tell me how” prompt. To do this, present students with a problem to solve and have them explain how they would solve it. This gets the student to focus on their thinking, not just find the answer.

The fifth step involves adjusting teaching by changing the content, process, or product. Dr. Tucker encourages us to move away from doing whole-class instruction simply because it is comfortable. In moving away from whole-class, teacher-led instruction, we can more effectively differentiate learning, provide necessary supports, and make use of flexible groups that are responsive to what the data tells us.

To see a very detailed, complete list of Dr. Tucker’s ideas for formative assessment and responsive lesson design, check out this blog: https://catlintucker.com/2021/03/formative-assessment-designing-differentiated-learning/