0 Visualize the Day

Each morning I visualize the day ahead.  I troubleshoot, prep, and anticipate the twists and turns in the school day road. I find that this visualization...

0 Animation Exploration

Prepping for STEAM led me into an animation exploration.Here's what happened.First I labored over my first couple of SCRATCH animations marveling at my...

0 Tech-Connect: 24-7 Classrooms

As part of our school-wide collaboration with Framingham State University, Dr. James Cressey (@drcressey) has invited me to present to a number of pre-service...

0 Creating a STEAM Lab

Our efforts for STEAM Labs/Maker Station Fridays have started. Week one introduced students to the notion, and now we're in the development process.This week also showed us that we need to extend our...

0 Week Five: Focus Evolves

The school year blooms quickly. The roots have been established, and now we're moving towards goal setting and greater differentiation.The week ahead includes the following focus:Student Performance Folders...

0 New MA Evaluation System Tips

This little film can serve teachers prepping for the new evaluation system as well as students designing their learning paths.I've noticed that my...

0 A Day of Firsts

Today is a day of firsts for Team 15 2013-2014. It's the first time we'll start the day with a weekly review--a short assessment to gauge what students...

0 Learning in the Field

Soon the students will learn in the field. They'll visit a local nature preserve in our area to spend the day as young naturalists studying the environment...

0 Arne Duncan's Got it All Wrong, Again

I'm just back from Washington DC and now unhappily certain that President Obama is headed in the wrong direction with his efforts to get a handle on college...

0 Blended Math: Place Value Table 1

Example of student's work today.Today I'll guide 23 students and a number of teachers in a complex-for-fourth grade activity.  I will start the activity by telling students that this will be tedious...

0 Righting the Teaching Ship in Wavy Waters

I've noticed that the Internet buzz amongst teachers seems a bit quiet these days, and I'm wondering if the reason is that many teachers are righting...

0 Common Core Creativity at Fourth Grade

I spent the day digging into the Common Core Standards for fourth grade. The specific language of the standards, numerous resources on the Internet, knowledge of my students, and summer learning design...

0 Maker Station/STEAM Share Grant

Our collegial work on our Maker Station/STEAM Grant continues.  We've been researching tools, materials, and processes over the past few days to write this grant.  We'll add the finishing touches...

0 Rethinking Financial Aid's Role in Student Retention

The administration of federal student aid is a highly complex and bureaucratic job thanks to a great deal of program complexity and regulation. Financial...

0 Macro-Micro Focus

I move between the macro- and micro- focus of education constantly.  As soon as I challenge the macrosphere of education, I return to the microsphere...

0 Sharing Ideas

A leader recently chided me for sharing too much.  My response was to say, "Then what do I do when I have an idea or question?"  The leader...

0 Scores

The Massachusetts' MCAS (standardized tests) scores are in.  The scores are posted and ranked in the local news, and no we were not number one.  Of...

0 Complexity!

This week was complex. Multiple initiatives were in gear, and I was pulled in many directions including standards-base report card review, Math Institute...

0 Three Radical Ideas for Improving (not Reforming) Higher Education

While watching the annual Gates Postsecondary Education Convening from afar via twitter, I am struck by the apparent absence of discussion about several...

0 A Range of Friday Reflections

Contrived vs. AuthenticSituations that are contrived do not lead to the same kind of rich, real learning that authentic situations lead to.Who do you...

0 Classroom Close Reading Continues

The first week's close reading exercises were a true s t r e t c h.  The stretch actually gave us a chance to focus on how to figure out words you...

0 Injustice?

Injustice exists big and small, and the truth is that we're all perpetrators of injustice at one time or another, perhaps knowingly and perhaps unknowingly....

0 A Standards Routine

Yesterday our teaching staff met to discuss standards base report cards. Yes, yet another change, but a promising change that will serve to direct our...

0 UClass Enthusiasm

I continue to be enthusiastic about UClass.  I signed on a couple of months ago to participate in this start-up for a small fee.  Recently some of my PLN challenged my association for a number...

0 Learning Journeys: Fourth Grade

Elementary school teachers journey with their students down multiple content/skill paths during the year. Defining those paths helps with efficiency when it comes to the necessary research, materials,...

0 The Language of Learning

Note that much of this language came from John Hattie's book, Visible Learning for Teachers, Maximizing Impact on Learning Today students took a math assessment. The assessment will provide a baseline...

0 Classroom Close Reading Starts

I've begun to think about close reading strategies in earnest as I teach my students this year.  I've heard a bit about the topic, and I've had to do a lot of close reading throughout my life for...

0 Pulled in Many Directions

Classroom teachers are pulled in many directions.  I've written about this many times.  There's committee work, multiple leaders' initiatives,...

0 Third Week of School Promise

The first two weeks of school have passed. Those weeks were very busy as we began routines, tweaked schedules, and hosted parents for a curriculum night....

0 Frustration and Solution

Frustration often leads to compromised work.Often frustrations are given little time at the education table so they persist.I'm thinking about the frustration...

0 One of Many

A challenge for children in classrooms is that they are one of many--one of many who needs the teacher's help, one of many who want to use a particular...

0 Embedding Standards into Meaningful Learning Experiences

I am very excited about learning design. The goal is to embed standards into meaningful learning experiences. There is little time for this activity,...

0 New Tech To Try

New tech is outpacing my ability to try it all, so I'm starting this list of tech I want to try and will return to it when I have a chance.Voice Commenting...

0 Effective Process: Collaboration

As I ready for next week, I'm thinking about effective process and collaboration.As I think about this topic, I'm reminded of the following attributes.Sharing...

0 Teaching a Blended, Standards-Based 4th Grade Math Program

I am facilitating a blended, standards-based math program this year at fourth grade.Blended means that I'll be using multiple tools to teach math including tech, hands-on exploration, problem solving,...

0 Friday Journal: Week 2

One of the week's highlights was creating this bulletin board with the entire fourth grade team. Unlike last week's sunny, bright Friday, today was a sticky, humid day.  The children worked...

0 Know Your Place

When entertaining and studying big ideas in education, there's a temptation to forget your place as a teacher. Teachers are still workers who have leadership,...