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Photo of Mike Beetham
Mike Beetham Before School Starts, Challenging Topics, Wellness

Keeping That Balance In Life

If you are feeling at all like me (due to the amazing summer I had), you can best be described as refreshed, energized and motivated to begin another academic year. Excited to see those fresh faces arrive into your classroom regardless of what academic, emotional or socio-economic concerns they have. What occurred over the last two months that has brought me to this healthy status? The answer is BALANCE. Balancing your lifestyle naturally brings your entire self into harmony. Of course there is only one time in a teacher’s year where that time frame is available. So what do we do to keep that balance in place and thus keep ourselves healthy for the remaining twelve months?

The beginning of an academic year is one of the busiest and demanding on teachers as everything from long-range planning, classroom management, parent connections and the endless forms to be collected occur. Thus it is critical that, not only are classroom routines developed early but also that teachers build in or continue on with incorporating routines that bring balance into their lives. Summer months should not and must not be the only time in teachers’ lives where they do the things they love or spend time with the people that are most important to them. Of course this is easier said than done. That does not make it any less important. Keep the balance going as the healthier you are, the healthier your classroom will be.

Shawna Rothgeb-Bird General

Why My Facebook Profile is Private (A Cautionary Tale)

Every year, I find myself having a discussion with a colleague about social media. Often times it’s with a newer teacher who is excitedly posting photos and details about his or her new teaching assignment to their Facebook page. I don’t blame them for being excited; I am often proud of things I have done in class and want to share them! When I got my contract, I couldn’t wait to tell people. And you can do that! Just be careful about HOW you post details of both your personal and your professional life.

At least once a year, I find a teaching colleague who has a public Facebook profile. Sometimes these profiles are perfectly tame – no details, no real status updates, and I get the distinct impression that they have a profile only to read other people’s posts. Often, however, I find a wide variety of details: names of family members, home address or phone number, e-mail addresses, photos of themselves and their families or friends, sometimes some truly unflattering photos which don’t even approach “professional”…

I’m not Facebook stalking, I promise. When I come across these teaching colleagues’ profiles, it’s usually because they popped up in my “People You May Know” tab, likely because Google and Facebook are forever stalking ME and connecting all of my social media accounts without my knowledge. I should probably stop leaving five Gmail tabs and two Facebook tabs open at all times.

Back to the topic at hand. Sometimes, I find photos of students at my school. Posted by teachers. Purely innocent – it’s often a “Look what awesome thing my students did today!” kind of post. The intention is kind. The thing is, those aren’t your kids. You don’t have permission to post those photos. And if I’m not on your friends list and I’m finding these photos, it means that anyone can see them – along with any other details you’ve posted, like where you work.

Now, lots of people think, “Really, Shawna? Who even cares about that kind of thing, though? I have ten Facebook friends. No one is ever going to find my profile… definitely not my students or their parents.”

Ha. HAHA. 🙂

In five years, these are just some of the experiences I have had on social media:

  • Students looking me up by name on Facebook;
  • Students looking me up by e-mail on Facebook;
  • Parents finding me through mutual friends because they saw me comment on said friend’s profile and figured out who I was even though I was using a pseudonym;
  • Parents finding me through posts I made on ETFO’s Facebook page;
  • Students finding my personal e-mail address which does not have my name anywhere in it and isn’t connected to ANYTHING I do professionally;
  • Students finding my personal Twitter account;
  • Students finding my XBox Live account with my personal e-mail address they found somehow…

I could go on, but it would become (even more) glaringly obvious to everyone reading this that I spend entirely too much time on the internet.

Those are all things that have happened to me in five years of teaching Grades 4 and 5, and I’m careful. I didn’t use my real name for ages on Facebook. I never do anything professional with my personal e-mail address. My personal social media accounts are not connected to my work e-mail address in any way. When commenting on friends’ pages, I do not give any personal details. Still, they find me. They request to add me as a friend. I turn them down. We do the same dance six months later when they find me again. Try having a parent/teacher interview after you’ve (kindly) turned down a parent’s Facebook friend request. It’s awkward.

The point is, they’re looking. They look up everyone. Students, parents, colleagues – someone out there has looked you up on Facebook, almost certainly. And if my Facebook profile wasn’t private, they would suddenly have access to ten years’ worth of photos, status updates, events, rants, laments… I’m pretty open with my students, but not THAT open.

While I am in no way a fan of the idea that everything you do online can have professional repercussions, like it or not, we are members of a profession which doesn’t really have “off hours.” Before you post that photo of you at the cottage with friends, before you post a photo of a few of your students doing your hair because they met their Terry Fox goal, before you use the same address for both Facebook and communicating with parents… imagine your students looking you up. Or their parents. Or your boss.

Be careful what you post. Be mindful of your privacy settings. Know that nothing is ever completely “private” on the internet because someone with access could repost it without your consent.

And for heaven’s sake, set your Facebook profile to be private. 🙂

Shawna Rothgeb-Bird General

Summer Reading – Blog List

Here it is, last day of June, and I am finally finding the time (read: sequestering myself in the office while my husband watches the baby) to post. Sigh. 🙂

In simpler times, when my only real concern over the summer was daydreaming about my class the following year (because I am a giant nerd), I found myself perusing blogs for ideas the way many newly engaged women pore over bridal magazines. My summer has always been full of planning, thinking, dreaming, and preparing. In my travels, I’ve come across a few really wonderful teaching blogs which have provided me with a wealth of ideas and inspiration. I can’t possibly be the only one always looking to others for new strategies, so with that in mind, here are a few of my favourite places to visit:

Runde’s Room – Home to heaps of resources and ideas. She has a VERY good shop on Teachers Pay Teachers. When I was teaching Math, I purchased several of her resources and my students always loved them.

That Artist Woman – So many engaging, wonderful art projects on her blog, complete with tutorials. I always find lots of inspiration here. I think I might have more fun doing these projects than my students, but that’s just because I love art so much!

Living Avivaloca – Another well-written blog full of reflections on teaching and learning, written by a Grade 1 teacher.

Madame Bellefeuille – She doesn’t post too terribly often any more, but this blog has been great for finding resources for beginner French Immersion.

Teaching FSL – Mme Aiello maintains her blog regularly and her Teachers Pay Teachers store is FULL of great products for FSL teachers. She regularly offers freebies, and her blog is full of advice for new and experienced teachers. Her ideas saved me regularly while I was doing occasional teaching work, and now that I have Core French on my schedule next year I expect to be visiting her blog even more regularly.

 

Hopefully someone out there finds one of those links as helpful as I have. 🙂 If you have any other favourite places to visit online, I’m always looking for new sites to add to my blogroll!

Photo of Samantha Perrin
Beverly Papove General, Year End Activities

Keeping it calm during the last week of school…

To be honest, it isn’t really possible to keep calm and carry on during the last week of school. There is so much anticipation for the summer holidays that everyone is feeling a little giddy with excitement. However, it is possible to keep your students occupied and happy, and not push yourself too far towards further exhaustion by involving your students in an all-ages/all abilities project that takes little preparation and that can evolve over an afternoon or a few days.

Although workbooks and school materials may have begun to make their way home, usually you can find the bare minimum of materials the students will need to complete this project. What they need, they often make themselves or find in the school yard if you don’t have it in the classroom. The project involves students making a board game that employs elements of math, arts, and language. As an added challenge, perhaps they can include an aspect from a strand in science or social studies topic that will truly be a culmination of their learning over the year. Sometimes, however, the games are modeled on games they already know well, such as Pokemon or Mindcraft. Regardless of the genesis of ideas, students seem to have plenty of enthusiasm for creating a game and for fine-tuning it so that is will be successful.
Materials needed;
• Scrap paper for rough copies
• 1 sheet of legal-sized paper, car stock or poster board per person/group for final copy
• Pencils, erasers, markers
• Rulers

For the criteria for creating the board game, I ask students what elements make a game fun to play.
Criteria for Creating a Board Game;
• How many people can play?
• Will you need dice, spinners, or numbered cards, etc. for probability?
• What will you use to move across the board? (ex/ stones, coloured blocks, lumps of plasticine)
• What is the goal of the game?
• How can you win the game?
• What are some challenges that may prevent you from winning the game right away?
• Are there colourful graphics?
• Are the rules easy to understand?

Students seem to be happier to do this in partners, although some students prefer to work alone. Whether they work alone or in pairs, students plan to have a game day on the last day of school where they invite other students from other classes to play their game with them (your colleagues will love you for this!) When the weather is nice, students can play out doors in the school yard. Every year, I love to see everyone busy creating and playing and trouble-shooting their games, and then proudly sharing their creations with their peers. And, a fun, student-led activity is definitely a great way to end the school year.
Let the games begin!

Photo of Tammy Axt
Tammy Axt General, Year End Activities

Do you like the band Rush?

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Do you like the band Rush? I guarantee no matter how much you think you love Rush, you are no match for the man who sat beside me at the Rush R40 concert last night. He knew every drum beat that Neil Peart played, every lyric that Geddy Lee sang and every guitar solo that Alex Lifeson wailed. He didn’t just love their music, he loved their music and worshipped the band. We all have music that speaks to us in that way. For me, when I hear Fleetwood Mac or Michael Franti, I have an emotional connection to their music that is unlike any other.

During the school year, my students spend a lot of time writing music or playing music that is from a variety of cultures and time periods. This June, I decided to let the students create a list of what songs they would like to sing in music class to tap into the songs that they love. Most songs that they chose were modern pop, rap, hip hop or alternative songs. The goal was to give my students the same experience that the man at the Rush concert had when he cheered and high fived me for all his favourite songs.

I took the lists that they created and went on line and previewed the lyrics. Some songs had just one or two bad words and with the magic of “YouTube” I found clean version of the song. Songs that had inappropriate themes got omitted from the list. After the list was created, I made a word document that had all the YouTube URLs. I projected the lyrics on my screen and had a good old fashioned sing-along.

These sing-alongs were also a great opportunity to talk about musical tastes with the students. I started off every class by telling the students that “I guarantee that there will be at least one song that you do not like today.” I asked the students what they should do when they hear a song they don’t enjoy. The students quickly said that they should be respectful of someone else’s choice. I added on a quick conversation about how musical tastes develop and that interests in music are very personal.

I have spent the last two weeks singing songs like “See you Again” and “Firework” with my students at the top of our lungs. We have been high fiving each other when we hear our favourite songs. It has been a great way to end off the school year!

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Photo of Tammy Axt
Tammy Axt General, Year End Activities

Gearing Up For The Last Day of School “WOOT WOOT!”

With 9 days left of school, many classrooms around the province are starting to wind down. But not us! Here at my school, we are gearing up to the craziest, wildest show that will take place on the last day of school.

The idea for what is now known as the “variety show” came out of a need for something to keep students engaged on the last day of school. The premise began and has remained very simple. If your class would like to attend an entertaining performance, then they must prepare something for the show. Also, anything and everything is welcome in the show. In past shows we have had classes tell jokes, make up a play, do dances or sing songs. This year, we will be entertained by a glow stick dance, a stomp inspired basketball routine, kazoo “name that tune” and a variety of other performances. Classes usually use the last two weeks of school to practice a little bit every day.

Sometimes teachers approach the music or drama teachers to help with ideas and we are happy to help. Many of my ideas that I share come from YouTube. I just search something like “grade 5 basketball stomp performance” into YouTube and tons of ideas come up.

In between each performance, the drama teacher and I (decked out in a crazy costume) entertain the audience. We use chants like Boom Chicka Boom or tell cheesy jokes. We also do lots of cheering and build up school spirit. In the past we have ended the show by singing a song like Bruno Mars’ “Count On Me” as we celebrate all the friends we have made this year.

The drama, music and gym departments work together to make the schedule and provide any technical support required. We plan the show so that the groups alternate the performance space between the stage and the gym floor. This keeps the show moving at a very quick pace and keeps everyone on task. When each class is done performing, they go right back to their spot in the audience.

Sometimes when we are feeling extra energetic, we put a staff act into the mix. The students always love seeing their teacher dance or sing to Beyoncé or Rush.

Our “Variety Show” Keeps things positive until the final school bell rings.

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Alison.Board Celebrating Success, Year End Activities

Reflect, Create, and Celebrate

These are the words that I chant as the end of the school year draws near in June. It is a challenging time, unlike the busy planning and organizing needed to set the pace in September. The days now feel longer and there seems less content to cover, as it was mostly completed in time for reporting. So, this may be a good time to review the concepts that your students struggled with throughout the year, or a time to introduce a topic related to the curriculum or their inquiry work that wasn’t in your long range plans. But filling in the days with worksheets and outdoor play is not the answer, it leads to issues of classroom managements and student discontent.

Here are some suggestions that can be adjusted for your age group or subject area:

  • create math teams that solve math problems from all strands. Then have teams present their answers and compare their strategies. One word problem a day.
  • provide time for student groups to create a summary of their literature circle book. They can present their summaries as a series of tableaux, a movie trailer on iMovie, or as a skit. These are presented to the whole class or another class to promote reading for the summer months.
  • list 3 or 4 issues on the board and have students sign up accordingly. Provide them with a structure to research and present in a debate that you monitor (debates can be informal or formal)
  • show students a youtube video on branding and logos. Then ask each student what their brand is. Have them design a logo (that doesn’t reveal their name). Display all logos with a number when completed and have students complete a numbered list, matching each logo to their classmates. Discuss the most effective logos and why.
  • provide groups of 4 students with a bag of mixed materials to encourage STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math) learning. Provide them with an hour each day to design and create a product with the recycled or mixed materials. Display and share  in the last week of school for other classes.
  • Read aloud. Students of all ages love to be read to. Pick a recent and relevant chapter book and read to your students each day. Have them draw character sketches, write 3 predictions, or create alternative cover for the book.
  • Use large paper to ask about 5 reflective questions related to your year. Questions such as, What would you change in the past school year? How has your understanding about Mental Wellness changed? What projects did you find most meaningful to do? Then have students do a gallery walk and fill-in responses on the large paper. Display for the last week and highlight evidence of learning and understanding.

Enjoy the last weeks and keep the students engaged with the meaningful work they will value.

Photo of Alison Board
Alison.Board Building Inclusion, Challenging Topics, Equity, Professional Learning and Growth, Wellness

Addressing Equity

The elementary school that I teach at is a K-8 school with approximately 540 students. It has grown over the century with new additions, since its original build in 1923. I have only known the school for the past three years that I have been teaching there. So I consider the school to be diverse with many new Canadians, mostly from Bangladesh. It is also higher needs in terms of the challenges students face for success, according to the Learning Opportunity Index. The family income has declined for families attending the school, as demonstrated by the data. Many of the parents work part-time, multiple jobs, and through the evenings, nights, or on weekends.

What I found interesting to note, is that teachers who have taught at the school for more than ten years, many for more than 15 years, have difficulty seeing the demographics of the school as they are. They continue with the same fund raising projects as they always have, yet lament that there is less participation or interest from the students. They continue to book trips that cost more that an hourly wage that most families would make, then are disappointed in the attendance. It is only in the past year that they have been questioned about the cost required for students to attend their own graduation celebration. The teacher response in regards to how they are accommodating a student population with a decrease in family income, is to encourage students to come forth if they don’t have the funds and the staff will address it or provide the funds, based on the individual situation.

Recently I was talking to a teacher from another school board about equity and teacher bias. She recommended the ETFO publication, Possibilities: Addressing Poverty in Elementary Schools to read.  It is an excellent resource. It not only encourages a change in mindset by educators about assumptions and biases in regards to poverty, but it provides strategies and literature connections to address the real needs of students for academic success and well-being. It also provided information on how to engage parents and the community of a lower income status.

According to TDSB, “Educational research has demonstrated that children from lower income families face more significant barriers in achieving high educational outcomes.” It is essential that we as educators are aware of these facts and barriers, as well as the strategies and supports necessary for the students that are in our schools right now.

Link to ETFO publication: http://www.etfo.ca/ProfessionalDevelopment/ETFOsBookClubs/Lists/ETFO%20Book%20Club/DispForm.aspx?ID=37

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Photo of Samantha Perrin
Beverly Papove General, Making a Difference Through Education, Social Justice

“Reconciliation through Education”

It would have been hard to miss the news coverage of the closing days of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission last week. With the tabling of the Report, any doubt, misinformation or ignorance has been addressed regarding the cruel treatment that Aboriginal children were forced to endure for over 100 years of Canada’s 148 years as a nation. What was also made abundantly clear is that this history was not taught in Canadian schools in the past, and at present is still not expected to be taught by all teachers all across the country. Last week, many Canadians heard for the first time in detail the horrors that over 150,000 children experienced while attending residential schools across Canada between 1840 and 1996. Throughout the 360 pages of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Report, the accounts of 7,000 Survivors document the hunger, sickness, physical and sexual abuse, torture, humiliation and fear perpetrated by their educators and guardians in these schools. And if there was ever any doubt about the severity of the effects of the residential school system on Aboriginal children and families, this legacy in Canadian history was so calculated and so thorough in its aims that it is now considered a “cultural genocide”.
None the less, a week has passed, and the media has turned to other timely events. Where does that leave us? The talk of reconciliation is becoming distant, along with the concern of the general public. As teachers at this critical time we have the opportunity, responsibility even, to not let reconciliation become just another passing news item. Taking to heart what Manitoba Justice Murray Sinclair said in his closing remarks, there must be “reconciliation through education”. As Chair of the Truth and Reconciliation inquiry into the terrible legacy of Canada’s Indian Residential School System, Justice Sinclair urged educators to close the gap in our understanding about this shared history and walk with the Survivors and their families towards reconciliation. There is no better time than the present. Regardless of the fact that curricula across the country will take time to change, there are many ways that teachers can start the learning right now: beginning in the primary grades, by reading and discussing books like; Shi Shi Etko, Shin Chi’s Canoe, When I was Eight, Not my Girl, Arctic Stories, to name a few, or, following the lead of the First Nations Child and Family Caring Society’s initiative, by planting a Heart Garden at your school to commemorate the children lost and those who survived.
Now that it is over, it is not enough to simply have acknowledged the testimony of the Survivors and the work of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, and we cannot honour the lives of the generations of Aboriginal children and families who were affected by the residential school system if we wait for other teachers to teach this history. It is our responsibility as educators to open the dialogue now and to learn and grow in this new chapter of reconciliation between settler and Indigenous peoples. Indeed, Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne has admitted that “for reconciliation to succeed, we must also renew our commitment to educating Ontarians on the role that treaties and the residential school legacy play in Canada’s past, present and future.” So, although many teachers in the past may have faced scrutiny or a lack of support from colleagues and administration as they endeavoured to teach the truth about the Aboriginal residential school system in Canada, we can now consider Premier Wynne’s statement and Justice Sinclair’s words of ‘reconciliation through education’ as a rallying call to all educators to do what is right not just once, but every year we teach.

Photo of Mike Beetham
Mike Beetham Celebrating Success, Making a Difference Through Education, Wellness

You Did It

To quote my favourite author Dr. Seuss, “Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It’s not.” As the year is rapidly coming to a close it is so easy to reflect on what you did not get accomplished, how you wish you had more time, if only …. The reality is that for the last ten months you have given everything that you have to a group of students, their families and your school community. You have sacrificed your personal health at times, your family time and your passions in order to provide each and every individual under your care the best opportunity to learn and evolve as best they can.

It is now time to allow yourself to take a deep breath, look in the closest mirror and smile as you celebrate the relentless commitment you have put forth in your role. It is not easy for teachers to do this as we are by nature perfectionists that do not seek out the limelight. As the summer break quickly approaches it is important that you take the time that you need to bring that balance back into your life (family, friends, passions) so that in a very short two months from now, you are prepared to do it all again!