Kelly.McLaughlin Assessment and Evaluation, Celebrating Success, Language Learning, Learning in a Real Life Context, Literacy

Halloween learning opportunity

During the past few weeks, my students have been writing short scary stories. They have been working in groups to create stories with creative characters, a strong plot and a problem that arises in their story. 

About a month ago, my students were thinking hard to plan for our first drama task of the year. Knowing Halloween was at the end of the month, they wanted to plan a Halloween task. They wanted to have some sort of haunted house that would involve all of the grade eight students. Unfortunately that wasn’t able to happen, but for the 30 students that did participate, they worked well to create an exciting final product. 

With my students help, what we ended up deciding on was that each scary short story would be performed in our class in the haunted house. We would present our scary short stories. Five stories ended up being brought to life. Each story had unique characters, a unique stage, audience setup and music soundtrack. For that reason, students who did not want to act helped in other ways such as stage crew, music creator or class collector. This short story project ended up turning into a show for six classes to view. 

Students decorated the room to their liking the day before towards the end of the day. They worked hard to set up a spooky setup that would work for everyone. A student in my colleagues class donated decorations for the entire project and the students had fun setting them up. A few days prior to decorating, two of my students went around to the grade five and six teachers and asked them to sign up for a viewing time. The classes would come on October 30th to view the five shows. 

The performances went very well! Students were evaluated on the writing of their stories for literacy as well as many drama expectations for their performances. They were marked on their ability to plan and shape the drama throughout their many performances and were also evaluated based on their ability to use the elements of drama. They did an amazing job telling each of their created stories to their peers. 

It was great to see such collaboration for this project as many students invited other actors into their group as they enjoyed writing a story that would include as many as up to ten actors. They let students audition for the part and then the show became their own as well. Teachers complimented the students on their amazing show creation and very well written stories. The kids had a great time and are excited to try something like this again during the winter holidays. I am so proud of my students for their collaboration skills during this project and their ability to take on such a large task. I am excited for their next opportunity to showcase their incredible leadership abilities and their group work skills. 

Kelly.McLaughlin Behaviour Management, Celebrating Success, Classroom Management, First Week Reflections, Flexible Classroom, Inspiring Students, Learning About Your Students, self reflection, Start of the year, Student Ownership, Wellness

School year start up

A new school year has begun again and I am once again teaching grade eight, in my opinion, the most exciting and enriching grade I have taught so far.

The first few weeks have been incredible because of the honest conversations we had week one about how great their year can be if they make it that way. We talked about fun trips, ideas and awards that go on during their grade eight year. We talked about what the ideal classroom looks like, sounds like and smells like (ha!) so we made some ideas on how we can achieve those goals. The students have done an amazing job so far on adhering to all of the goals they set out for our own classroom.

A few things have been making this start up so incredible:

  1. There are many student leaders in the classroom who have helped to set the tone for all of the other students in the room. They model positive behaviours and shut down negative ones. There is little to no times where I have interjected to tell them what I expect because another student has already done that for me.
  2. I have already received the help during breaks and afterschool of about 9 or 10 students with teams that go on at our school. These leadership activities have made them stand out in the classroom as well as the extra responsibility has made them thoroughly enjoy each day. That feeling that they are making a difference in their school shows everyday in their mood and behaviours. I am hoping even more students will be interested in these opportunities as only ten of the 26 have stepped up so far. I have awarded these students with small circular stickers that they put on their desk organizers. At the end of the year, we will see who has volunteered the most and those students will be eligible for a token of appreciation (not sure what that will look like yet). It will also help the staff with selecting grade eight awards because they will see who has given up so much of their time for our school community.
  3.  I have offered students homework to complete every night which will help them prepare for grade nine. 19 out of the 26 students have taken this homework and completed it each night. I have three ESL students who I am working on preparing appropriate homework for them so then it will be 22 out of 26. We take up this homework each morning and new homework is given out every night before they go home. The fact that it is optional makes students actively take the initiative to better themselves and their after school time. I am so proud of these students as I mentioned it will help them get ready for grade nine and the few students who took that opportunity last year had the highest marks in the school (they won the principal’s award). It is great hearing groups of students want to hang out after school to work on homework. It is definitely a good after school option for them.
  4. I also have offered students level four or above and beyond opportunities that go with each task we have completed as a class. Seeing those 10-12 students select that option is awesome as they are actively selecting to do better and to challenge themselves each day. I remember being in school not knowing the difference between all of the levels and not knowing how my teacher came up with my mark. I make sure all of my students know how they can excel to the highest level possible.

 

I think all of these things working together have made it impossible for the students in my room to have a negative experience or to make the day negative for someone else. It is incredible to see such focus and leadership day to day and it makes me so proud of my class. I was away last week at a junior baseball tournament (coached by two of my students) and my supply left only this note, “Your class rocks!” This would not have been possible last year as I must have missed many of these steps in the school year start up. I am really hoping the year will continue in this positive manner.

Having faith in your students and challenging them daily is the best way to go 🙂

Will Gourley Advocacy for public education, Celebrating Success, General, Making a Difference Through Education, solidarity, Why unions matter

Beyond

Did anyone else go to sleep on the last night of school already thinking about next year? I did.

It’s not the first time either. After 10 years in education, it is now a given that I will go to sleep on the last day of school reflective, happy, and excited about the past, present, and future of this calling.

2 sleeps into the Canada Day long weekend and the reflections continue. Along with my REM time retrospectives (not the band, although they are awesome) come some big looks forward to September. It’s okay if you think this is not normal. I’m good with it. It’s not above, but it is definitely beyond what I ever expected to happen the very moment I started teaching.

For me, it is a great time to look back and recognize the growth over a school year at the speed of learning. It is also a time to reflect on the emotional highs and lows and to unpack the instructional tool kit for some much needed organization and maintenance. However, this June seems a bit different because of the current political climate in Ontario. This has me thinking even more about the importance of some advanced preparations. And why not?

I do this now because the year is still fresh in my mind. Whether I can control it or not, I remain in teacher mode – my internal alarm clock is still waking me up on teacher time. Since it takes time to wind down, I might as well wean myself off bit by bit and I know there must be many others out there as well going through eduwithdrawal. Want proof? Check out #onted on Twitter. There is still so much happening on an hourly basis directly relating to eduction.

Consider this recent tweet from Sam Hammond to our newly appointed MOE Stephen Lecce. It appears that despite going on a nearly 5 month break from the legislature, the new minister was concerned that teachers did not know their schedules.screenshot-twitter.com-2019.06.30-20-35-53
You’ll come to your own correct conclusions about the collection of castigating contrarians currently in public office. I have. With so many educators still in teacher mode, more are becoming actively engaged in challenging the effrontery of messages like Lecce’s. This is in order to protect all students from the political dynamite intended to undermine the bedrock upon which our stable and progressive society was built. It may be Summer, but time out of the classroom can be well spent in dispelling false claims and  controversial assertions coming from the ruling party.

One of the biggest loads of misinformation in need of incineration has been the outright promise that no teacher jobs will be lost. This has been a massive cause of concern as class sizes have been co-opted. It has also come with the staggering and sad losses of positions for many amazing educators. Many who continued to go beyond the job in order to serve their students all the while holding the cards of an uncertain future.

Someone who is going beyond to inform us all is Andrew Campbell. He curates a comprehensive document that shows how the cuts to education are affecting our profession by the numbers and from board to board. Warning, this might provide many with night terrors if they read it before bedtime.

This is what keeps teachers awake at night. We have to deal with stunted salvos like the one above from Mr Lecce and disrupt its corrupted political narrative. We must take a stance for the students whose voices and opportunities are being stripped down to the basics in act that will only destabilize their future by limiting their access to education. This is beyond anyone’s mandate or scope of power. No decent citizen voted in the hope of shortchanging the future of our youth.

In order to get past it, we must go beyond signing petitions or retweeting.

So stay up late.
Write a letter to your MPP.
Support and encourage one another.
Read up on the issues via @ETFOeducators on Twitter or via the Building Better Schools website.

We must go beyond the government insults, the inexplicably random policy choices, the gutting budget cuts, the acrimony, the villification, the distrust, the disingenuous praise, and the indifference because the 2 million students who we are fighting for are worth it.

There is something each of us can do to make sure our collective voices are heard. Sharing yours in July and August while you rest, recharge, and prepare for September will ensure that our support of students will be heard loud and clear all Summer too.

When the bells ring again in September, our answer to the ruling party will be in the form of 83 000 + strong devoted educators each ready to teach far beyond the destructive discourse of a politician’s disputes, and instead straight to the hearts and minds of our students like we always do.

Best to you all this Summer. Thank you for a great year of interaction and inspiration. See you on Twitter.

Will Gourley Celebrating Success, Constant Learning, General, Making a Difference Through Education, Year End Reflection

Building bridges


The Photographer [CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)]

Recently, I found myself staring from the platform of a steel, wood, and wire bridge at the top of Les Chutes Montmorency in Quebec. As the water spilled down the worn rock face into the St. Lawrence River, I could feel the structure moving, ever-so-slightly. Dozens of tourists were there too. I wondered if they felt it while they crossed, stopped, and admired the power and natural beauty.

To me, the vibrations were reminders that things are in constant motion and that the gentle movement of the bridge was making my senses aware of my surroundings much more than usual. What struck me in between the movements were thoughts of the incredible collaboration that went into designing and building this structure for everyone to safely enjoy the view. So much commitment, preparation, and care had to be put in long in advance of the first steps ever being taken across this spectacular wonder.

This made me think about how teachers are so very much like bridge-builders in their schools. We start laying out possible plans in late August and September. Once the first bell rings, we usually have to head back to the drawing board in order to re-coordinate, re-calculate, and reconsider it all once the classroom is filled because it is not until then that we really know the exact terrain or the distance we will need to span. Experience says that there is always a danger when we start construction too soon. Ocasionally, a demolition is required to re-start the build on a stronger and more secure footing.

Come October and November, construction of our bridges is in full swing. Shifts are organized, jobs are evolving with new work being delegated daily, and of course, focii reframed. Foundations are set and you can see signs of progress. As with any project, unknowns are constantly popping up that could not have been predicted on paper while planning. Usually these are best mitigated through preparation, experience, and flexibilty. Construction must go on.

December and January has our crews working productively in all areas. A well deserved break to rest, recharge, and regroup sees everyone returning to routines. Unlike September, the plans are not in flux. There is clear evidence of the mission, along with a sense of quasi-accomplishment, and it is encouraging to be at the half-way point. By now, some significant challenges have been overcome. Trials and tests are natural parts of overcoming impassable terrain. There is much to learn on a construction site.

It seems like we roar through February and March at school. Our bridge is really occupying the skyline now. We are able to see things from new perspectives. There are so many clubs, teams, and lessons to reckon with and distractions are not uncommon. It is important to remind everyone about the goal and the importance of the bridge they are building.

For me, these are some of the most frantic yet peaceful months of the school year. Frantic because of completing first term reports and peaceful because the rhythms of learning are clearly clicking. March Break doesn’t hurt either. Through it all brick by brick, board by board, and wire by wire it is all coming together. Through all of this time, attention is focused on safety and stability. Each day, measurements are taken to make sure everything is going as planned. In the classroom this might be a conversation, or an observation. Some times the ears and eyes of a teacher notice more and gain far more insight than is ever conveyed on a paper through a pencil.

April and May seem to happen at an accelerated pace. The end is in sight, yet somehow it can seem like the finish line is being moved further down the track. Students have become increasingly more interested in outdoor activities after being cooped up all Winter, and then kept off the grass for nearly the first 6 weeks of Spring. Movement is crucial here. Construction on our bridge is nearly complete.

Come June, our 10 month bridge building project concludes. What was once a rough and uncrossable expanse is now connected from one side to the other. As if, for the very first time, we collectively look up from our work, take a few steps back, and marvel at the work that has taken place. Our work.

By June’s end, the memories of lessons, tests, and reports are already fading, but not the positive relationships made, the acts of kindness shared, or the struggles overcome. Know that these memories will last like a well built bridge that can be crossed over years after being completed.

Thank you for being the bridge builders teachers. I look forward to building new ones with you all in September.

 

 

Kelly.McLaughlin 21st Century Learning, Celebrating Success, Constant Learning, Curriculum Planning, Differentiated Instruction, Inquiry, Inspiring Students, Inspiring Teachers, Learning in a Real Life Context, Making a Difference Through Education, Professional Learning and Growth, Resources, self reflection, Technology in school, Use of Technology, Using technology well

Collaborative Inquiry Celebration

The other day, many teachers from across my school board gathered together to share with other educators how their year long inquiry project went. As I have mentioned in previous posts, mine was about starting our own business as a class and inspiring my students through leadership. I shared with the other educators these successful stories from our project “8A TREATS”:

  • how many of my less successful students with traditional subjects have been excelling during this project
  • the success my students had with gathering data from classes around the school
  • collecting permission forms from the entire school
  • advertising by making imovies, posters and using a dinosaur mascot to travel around with a fake smoothie
  • tallying the smoothie results for flavours and sizes with spreadsheets
  • counting and tracking the money with spreadsheets
  • find and then order paper straws from Amazon to be environmentally friendly
  • working with a budget that was donated from the student success foundation
  • designing logos as a class, voting on the best one and then collaborating with a clothing design company to recreate this on their products
  • painting and creating a wall in our classroom that will be the location behind our brand
  • creating a video to explain the project as well as talk about our favourite parts

Image-21    (<<<our student create wall)

 

Our next steps with our project:

  • doing the math to find out how much of each ingredient we will now (plus extra) to make the smoothies
  • ordering the cups
  • setting up our classroom as a pop-up smoothie store
  • making 340+ smoothies on June 6th with our 22 students

It was very exciting sharing this project with my fellow educators. My students were very excited knowing that this project was shared with other teachers. They were proud when I told them how excited other teachers were to find out about this student centered initiative.

There were other educators who shared exciting inquiry projects:

  1. My colleague Lydia shared about her “Community Helpers” project where her grade one students inquired in various ways about the many community helpers in our neighbourhood. She had a guest police officer come by as well as had the students use their hands to explore various jobs. They were able to build, play with food as well as research all of the jobs available to them. The final touch was when my grade eight class came to help them put their thoughts together in an inquiry package. It was great to see her students so passionate about their future. To find out about her project, you can visit her twitter account @AppolonialydiaL. You can also view her project on this link <iframe class=”wp-block-mexp-vimeo hwdsb-tv” src=”//hwdsb.tv/media/grade-one-collaborative-inquiry-2019/?embed=true” width=”560″ height=”315″ frameborder=”0″ allowfullscreen></iframe>
  2. Teachers used a choice board to give students options when creating or completing tasks. These boards are made in collaboration with the teacher at the beginning of the year to go over all of the ways that presenting or completing every day tasks can be done that year. Apps are explored and used in new and innovative ways. I cannot wait to create a choice board in my literacy class next year. There was also a SAMR model student choice matrix that was introduced to us. It’s not the app that makes the project/task, it is how it’s used.
  3. I also heard about makerspaces from one of my other colleagues Cara. She introduces these daily in her library and students are able to create very interesting projects from her instruction cards set up at the tables. They are always able to be creative, explore and build in her library. They also explore media literacy during these creative library sessions.

There were many other projects I could not get to since we only had a half hour to explore and the other half hour was to share about our own projects. Some other apps worth checking out are: seesaw, read&write, book creator, keynote, canva, geogebra, TC studio and pear deck.

 

 

Kelly.McLaughlin Celebrating Success, Inspiring Students, Inspiring Teachers, Teacher Appreciation

Prom Project Hamilton

On Saturday, April 13th at Delta High school in Hamilton, the Prom Project held an amazing event. This event is supported by the same foundation who gave my students our grant for our inquiry project, the Hamilton Foundation for Student Success.

The Prom Project allows students to pick out outfits free of charge to wear to their upcoming school events such as grad or prom. There were thousands of dresses, suits, shoes, accessories, hair stylists, make up artists and even on site seamstresses to help kids who needed their pants hemmed or their dresses taken in. I was able to volunteer at this amazing event along with many other teachers, principals and other adults from around Hamilton. The event was record breaking with almost 500 students walking away with new outfits. These outfits help increase their confidence knowing that they will have an outfit to wear to these events.

Among those 500 students who received outfits were 12 students from my own school. With the help of the prom project volunteers, the boys and girls found outfits that were their size, got these outfits altered and even left with their hair and makeup done. They received a swag bag full of helpful treats for their lives such as soap and other beauty products. It was awesome to see all the community partners there who donated their time, products and style capabilities to make the event the success it was.

You can still volunteer for the May 4th event by visiting http://www.promprojecthamilton.ca/. Follow the hashtags #PPH2019 and #promprojecthamilton for more info about the event. Pictured below is myself along with six students from my school who went home with Copley suits, Michael Kors suits and much more! An amazing event that really benefited so many children in our city!

Image-12

Kim Cousin 21st Century Learning, Advocacy for change, Advocacy for public education, Black History Month, Building Inclusion, Celebrating Success, Equity, Gender stereotypes, Genius Hour, Inspiring Students, Inspiring Teachers, Literacy, Math, Science, Social Justice, Women at Work

Social Advocate through Children’s Story

While many are marching to show the Ford Government our thoughts about the budget cuts, I am reflecting on how we can safely ride out this storm. As a Social Advocate for equal rights and positive outcomes for our children and this world, I am with my sisters and brothers at Queens Park today in spirit and via social media. I find myself planning ways to help the education team and students get through this next tumultuous time while supporting each other and focusing on self care. #ETFOstrong

This week I was privileged to be part of an audience engaged by the “beautiful” and talented writer, Helaine Becker. http://www.helainebecker.com/abouttheauthor.html

She presented to our school community to Grades 4-8 and then to Grades K-4.  I always enjoy an inspiring hero and artist who can inform and bring all those social justice issues that I am passionate about to the forefront with the power of words and books.

I am a woman science and mathematics teacher. This book excites me. It encompasses so many issues that I am passionate about.  “Counting on Katherine” tells the story of Katherine Johnson and the societal blocks she faced through her life.  She faced racism and sexism at every turn yet never stopped believing in herself. This story brings the truth to us about how she improved the world. She is one of the many previously unknown hero’s of my time.

countingonkatherinerevised_cover

During the very “beautiful” and talented Helaine’s presentation, I found myself and the school population, captivated with her presentation. She spoke of so many subjects which excite me. These topics open opportunities and possibilities for the many I educate. Helaine spoke of how she wrote about feminism, racism and suppression. She included topics of mathematics, science, space, and the “power of the pen”. She introduced the dream of writing to many during her amazing and dynamic presentation of her children’s books.

Thank you, Helaine for introducing me to another hero. I will now share Katherine Johnson’s story with many for years to come.

Kelly.McLaughlin 21st Century Learning, Celebrating Success, Inquiry, Making a Difference Through Education, Mental Health

Update: Inquiry project

An exciting update for my classes upcoming inquiry project, our board has funded the project for us! Students in my class will start to work with the supplied budget to help them start their treat company! This funding will make it possible for the students to make this project the best it can be.

This week they will start planning for the supplies to make the smoothies and their advertising/media project will be made possible due to the funding that will allowed them to order stickers or other items to be introduced with their treats. We are excited to begin researching paper straws and look at why it will be better to purchase the paper straws vs. the plastic ones. We will also continue to look at the best combination of ingredients in order for our smoothies to taste as good as possible!

We will have to look for suppliers for all the products now that we have the funds to buy them. This project is so exciting and I look forward to updating you all on the steps we take.

A group of ten of my students (out of 22) have indicated they would like to be in charge of delegating tasks and headlining the operation. I am so excited for my students to take this project under their wing. It will be great for them to understand that in the future they can all run their own businesses with hard work and sound thinking.

On another exciting note, two of my students applied for a grant for a mental health day at our school with fun activities for students in grade JK-8 to participate in. This will be another fun venture for my students to plan! It is awesome to see so many opportunities available to kids in our board… hopefully the funding will always be there 🙂

Kelly.McLaughlin 21st Century Learning, Celebrating Success, Inquiry, Inspiring Students, Learning in a Real Life Context, Literacy, Math, Questioning, The Arts

Inquiry Project

As part of a board focus group I am involved with, I am exploring along with a group of six other teachers, the inquiry model in the classroom. Each group that has gathered together to focus on inquiry looks at how it works in their classroom in a different way. My group has selected questioning. We are looking at how and if students select better questions, they will become more successful.

I just recently came back from Disney this Christmas break and I was overwhelmed with the many posts on instagram telling me what cool food I could find at literally every inch of the parks. There were so many options and I had to try them all and take pictures of them all. This has been an interest of mine for some time now, finding a really cool looking item of food and taking a picture with it. I came home from the trip feeling inspired and thinking, I can explore this phenomenon with my class of motivated grade eight students.

At first I posed it to them as a question, what are the most trending items right now on instagram. They came up with a huge list and then I made them create the questions. They came up with a few deep questions: Why do things trend? What makes an item trend-worthy? How can we explore a trending item in our classroom? What item could we produce as a class? It took us a while to get there but we figured out that it would be cool to market a food item as a class and then create it and sell it.

Since we were just finishing up our data management unit, we talked about how can we gather results from our student body about what item would be a hit in our school? First, we asked our office staff for advice about this exciting project. We were given the okay to market and sell an item as long as proper food handling techniques were followed. We then talked about what are the top six trending food items right now? We came up with six as a class: donuts, cookies, cupcakes, bubble tea, smoothies and the Harry Potter beverage. My students paired up, created a google survey and added all these options to the survey. They emailed every teacher in the school setting up meeting times to survey their class.

Before we analyzed our results, on our inquiry wall we came up with ways our project hits every subject we study. We talked about the literacy connections to marketing, advertisements, etc. We talked about art connections when designing logos, posters, maybe even creating a wall that would be a backdrop for a cool photo with our finished product. We talked about math connections when coming up with the cost of the item, the cost of ingredients, the profit calculations, etc. We made large lists for each subject so we can see how wide this one small question covers.

We have now gathered all our results and the top choice for our school was smoothies. We have now created a list of what to do next. It is on our inquiry wall along and our team leaders will check off our ideas as we complete them.

I would love to say we work on this six periods a day, which we very well could since it covers many expectations in each subject, however, grade eight is such a huge year that there is always so many other things that we have to be working on. Currently, we work on this project one period a day. We have 25 entries for logo ideas, 10 entries for company name and probably over 100 smoothie ideas. We will be narrowing down our choices on Monday.

I will keep you all posted on our progress! It is turning out to be a great project and the engagement level is incredibly high. We all sit around the back inquiry board and the hands that go up for ideas during this project are not up for any other time of day. My students are excited about the possibilities that this project presents. It is fun turning over everything to the kids and seeing how it all ends up!

Will Gourley Celebrating Success, General, Inspiring Teachers, Making a Difference Through Education

Best to you in all you do (an alphabetic acronym for educators)

Happy New Year! Well at least the Gregorian one. What’s really neat about teaching in Ontario is the amount of cultural sharing that occurs as part of our school calender. January 1st marks the start of 2019 on most calenders and in the spirit of rebirth, new beginnings, and good will I wanted to share a prosaic attempt to encourage you all to savour the good from 2018 and prepare to embrace the awesome potential of another new year.

Always take time to reflect on the impact you are having on the lives of others.
Being present is the best present.
Channel your energy into lifting others up and creating community in your classroom.
Dedicate to change and learning even when it is uncomfortable.
Everyone matters, most importantly you.
Forget past hurts and move forward.
Give freely of your time and resources.
Homework doesn’t have to be a worksheet.
It can be a conversation or a chance to play.
Jump up and show your students why movement is important while learning.
Kinesthetic learners need to move. So do their teachers.
Leave the answers in the back of the book to explore other responses.
Make room for culturally responsive pedagogy.
Never doubt the impact you are making on the lives of others.
Open your mind to innovative practices and take risks trying something new.
Play + timely relevant instruction = learning.
Questions are bricks to build a solid foundation in learning. They are not meant to be thrown.
Respect is at the forefront of all we do. It presumes positive intentions in everyone.
Some days, some people are going to push your buttons. See R, Q, F, and C
“Tough times don’t last. Tough people do.” Robert Shuller In case R, Q, F and C don’t work.
Understanding includes everyone. We need to seek it, model it, and share it daily.
Victories come in many forms. Somedays it will look different than others.
Wonder is the rocket fuel of enagement in education. We have the ability to send our students to the moon and beyond.
Xenophobia is an enemy that can only be defeated by dedicated educators.
You are a dedicated educator who has accomplished great things and will do so again in 2019
Zzzzzz. Sleep is your friend. Rest you deserve it.

Thank you for all you do to make education awesome. It is a privilege to share with you on this platform. Cheers to many great things in 2018, the many lessons too, and to all of the amazing potential that is to unfold in 2019. Will