The past few months I have been incorporating Google Classroom more and more into my science classes. Students are becoming very familiar with Google Docs, and they are starting to wake up from worksheet induced comas and starting to think again. When I first presented them with Google Classroom and Google Docs, they seemed dazed and confused at what I was showing them and what I was expecting from them. What I was showing them were the tools to create, collaborate, communicate, and apply critical thinking beyond a textbook and beyond the standard worksheet. What I was expecting from them was to learn in a meaningful, authentic, personalized way. It was a rude awakening for many. While a few students are still wanting to "sleep in" a bit more, most are already awake and are energized to learn. Students are telling me, "I really like doing these (tasks)," "This doesn't even feel like school," and "Have you looked at my work yet? I'm real...

This time of year has to be my favorite time of year. I am seeing so many wonderful things from my students with how they are taking ownership of their learning, collaborating with each other, becoming more and more creative, and starting to see some quiet students really begin to open up and share their personalities. It is also my favorite time of year to try out new ideas, reflect on my successes and failures, and start thinking about how and what I want to accomplish with next year's students. I find myself building my PLN more and more, as I search for new ideas and ways to improve my current practice. The information I am getting through Twitter, Voxer (thanks to the suggestion of fellow educator Rachelle Dene Poth), Google+, and my director of technology is extraordinary. While I have heard of Alice Keeler for years, I recently started following her on Twitter (@alicekeeler). I honestly do not know why I waited so long to follow her. Everything she tweets is outstanding....

With my blended learning classroom running very well and Google Classroom taking off in my class, I keep thinking about what's next. There is still so much out there to learn and to improve upon, but I keep coming back to sharing as the next thing. I have been very fortunate to have had the support of my administration in my blended learning venture, that I feel compelled to stop thinking about my classroom and start thinking about my school, my district. What I have learned from this year, I feel I need to share with my colleagues. However I do not want to push anything on them. I simply want to share my experiences and engage in discussions with them and work together as we move forward. But so much of the discussions need to begin with questions, from them and me. At the most recent inservice, my director of technology and I had the opportunity to share our knowledge about blended learning and my failures and successes from this past year with the faculty. What came out o...

When I first started thinking about running a blended learning classroom last year, I envisioned three stations running efficiently and effectively, while at the same time bringing in the 4C's (collaboration, creativity, communication, and critical thinking) daily. For the most part, I finally feel like I am seeing what I envisioned a year ago. But I am also seeing things now that I never envisioned, and I don't think they would have been possible without me trying something new. Probably the best thing that has come from running a blended learning classroom, that I did not envision, has been the relationships I have been able to build with my students. With having stations, and one being direct instruction, I have been able to meet with no more than nine students at a time. This small group setting allows us to cover the lesson effectively but also more informally, which allows for a more relaxed and social atmosphere. In this small, relaxed, and social atmosphere I have h...

Quick rundown of new ideas I have implemented in my teaching and shared with my colleagues after attending PETE&C 2016: Kahoot, Classcraft, Aurasma, Google Chrome, and Chromebooks. Plus, a more refined focus on blended learning, Google Classroom, Google Docs, Google Slides, and not to mention building my PLN more. I'd say PETE&C was worth it. Kahoot, the engaging formative assessment tool that students and teachers love, went over extremely well with my students as they used their Chromebooks to answer. Every day since using it, at least one student has asked me about when the next time we will be using it. Classcraft, the classroom-based role-playing game, took off among the students, too. They were extremely excited to setup their avatars and start playing. They also showed me they knew a lot more than I did on the subject matter of XP (experience points), HP (health points), and AP (action points). I think I might have them design a Kahoot formative assessment on ...

You get the grades, so you give the grades. That is what I told my students this past week. Needless to say, they were a bit shocked. I have struggled with giving grades and giving homework for some time now. Many of my students just have focused on the letter grade, whether it was an "A" or a "F." They stopped becoming focused on what really matters most, the learning. They started having fixed mindsets, and that is not something I want 6th graders to have. Are those things their fault? No, I do not believe they are. I believe several parties are to blame, myself being one of them. However, things are changing. Grades will now have personal meaning to my students, and I hope that what I am attempting will bring the focus back to what matters most, the learning and having a growth mindset. Attending PETE&C 2016, engaging in Twitter and Twitter chats like #paedchat, and also having a very supportive administration has allowed me to develop the "Contin...

I attended my first PETE&C conference this past week with my district's technology director. What an incredible amount of sharing from so many passionate educators. There were so many practical, student-centered, and forward thinking ideas there that were shared. With all of the positive energy and exciting ideas, I couldn't wait to get back into my classroom and start to try them all. But with so many ideas to take away from PETE&C 2016, where would I begin? So, I started reflecting about my time at PETE&C, and the biggest take-away for me, after reflecting, was the idea of sharing. All of those educators were there to share, so that teachers and students could have better learning experiences going forward. Then it became clear to me. I have to stop thinking about my classroom and starting thinking about the school and the district. Now the only question, how do I effectively help bring back all of those exciting, practical, student-centered, and forward think...