A red square with white lettering saying "ETFO Strong."
Tammy Axt General

My Experience Teaching With No Collective Bargaining And No Teacher Union…Part One

I had the privilege of spending the first two years of my career working in a state in the United States that has a ban on collective bargaining. Yes, you read that correctly, since the late 50s there has been no bargaining. Since there is no bargaining, the government makes decisions about education and puts them into action. In addition to no bargaining, the state that I taught in has no teacher unions. The reason why it was an absolute privilege to work there early in my career is because it left me with a vivid example of what our system would look like with no union and extreme cuts to education. My experience there showed me a system where students were set up to fail.

When I arrived there, I was brand new to teaching and super keen to get started! The school where I taught had many, many classrooms where the person teaching students had no teaching degree because qualified teachers would not apply to jobs at this school. I was fortunate that I was given a salary of a teacher with 10 years experience which was $30, 000. Teachers here were also not financially compensated for upgrading their degree to a masters or adding additional qualifications courses so most teachers did not continue their university education. Ultimately, they were not paid enough to have enough money for upgrading their degrees. So, what happens when you have a building full of people teaching students without teaching degrees? The answer is that you have well intentioned people looking after students who are not trained in assessment, differentiation or special education just to name a few. You also have an entire group of students who are not learning mathematics or science by someone who has a deep knowledge of the content in which they are instructing. You have basically taken away an entire group of students right to access higher education or be prepared for what high school will challenge them with.

Class size was something that this state had tried really hard to do well. In my time there, I had around 23-25 students in my intermediate classroom and in the last couple of years legislation has come out to lower class size in K-3 classrooms to 20 students. Fantastic right? Yes, however, principals have repeatedly reported that they can not find qualified teachers to fill all the new positions that will be created from having smaller class sizes and have therefore requested to postpone the change in class size for the coming school year.

I taught in the United States at the height of the implementation of George W. Bush’s no Child Left Behind Legislation which had a distinct focus on standardized testing and “accountability”. The amount of time focused on the test, talking about the test, listening to my principal talk about the test, listening to my colleagues talk about the test and receiving teaching resources that supported the test was absolutely silly. Being new to teaching and really struggling to connect with my students I put the testing materials aside and used more engaging materials that would appeal to my students instead of just answering questions. I used my knowledge of modifications and accommodations to try and meet the students where they were at and used materials that were more relevant to them. My school served a population that was low income on average so answering questions about “Bed and Breakfasts” was not at all relevant to their lived experiences. The “accountability” part of the legislation meant that teachers were compensated financially for the number of students that passed the test. This meant that no one wanted to teach our most vulnerable students. This was one of the most heart-breaking parts of working at my school in the district. My students were spoken about horribly amongst teachers in the area. No one wanted to teach them because they feared that they may not get enough of a financial bonus from teaching them. Considering teacher’s salary started at about $22,000 a year and it took 25 years to get to the top of the salary grid many teachers relied on money from the tests. It was a very ugly and awful system that set up our most vulnerable students to be marginalized and forgotten.

A red square with white lettering saying "ETFO Strong."
Tammy Axt General, Why unions matter

My Experience Teaching With No Collective Bargaining and No Teacher Unions…Part Two

In my first year of teaching, some days went very well and other days I was ill equipped to support my students with what they needed. My students came from some very difficult homes. Many had addiction, drug dealing, and consistent violence in the home. One student that I will remember for my entire career shared with me that his job in his home was to hide in the closet while his mother turned tricks and  steal money from the John’s wallet before his mother finished. My students were very quick to anger and had very little in the way of self regulation or an ability to talk through their problems. As one student explained to me, to survive in their neighborhood, you had to punch first. My students needed so much more than I was able to give them. They needed counselling, mental health supports, addiction support and anger management interventions. None of which I was trained in at teacher’s college. They needed people who specialized in all of these areas supporting them and rooting for their success in school. Much of my time at school was spent trying to build relationships with my students so they could actually trust me enough to let me teach them. The majority of my students were 3 or 4 years behind in reading, and writing was an incredibly frustrating experience for all of them. They had needed reading intervention many years before they met me and needed additional supports that just didn’t exist in my school. There was no special education support or Educational Assistants. The guidance department in my school was completely overwhelmed trying to meet the needs. There was just me. A brand-new teacher with all the heart in the world but very ill equipped to support children through daily trauma. The system did not have enough supports to meet the students’ needs.

Just as my students were not supported, neither was I as a brand-new teacher. On one particular day, I had a lesson that was not going well. One of the students in my class had an altercation with another student the night before and was having extreme difficulty being in the same room with him. During this lesson, he got up and attacked the other student. At this moment, a senior teacher at the school came into my classroom and sat down and told me that I was being evaluated by her. I was not notified of this evaluation and I was not clear about the parameters of the evaluative process. The teacher stayed and heavily criticized me for my performance. The teacher did not provide me any supports or ideas of how I could improve. It was to this day one of my worst days in the profession. When I inquired about the process of evaluation in my district, I was told that the principal could assign a senior teacher any day at any point to come and observe me. The turn over rate of teachers is around 10 percent a year in this state. Without fair transparent evaluation practices and processes in place to support newer teachers, beginning teachers are not set up well to support their students.

My school was a very also a very violent place to work. There was some form of student on student or student on teacher violence daily. There were no stats collected on violent incidents and there was no accountability from administrations to follow up on violent incidents. There was never a plan to stop the violence or improve the violence within the building. What I was told on more than one incident by my administration was that I was not from here and that I didn’t understand the community I was teaching. Basically, there was no expectation for the situation to improve for the students or for the teachers in the building. Again, my students were set up to fail because there was no one looking at changing the system in which they were exposed to violence every single day.

I was also discouraged from protecting my students outside of school. During my first round of parent teacher interviews one parent stood up and grabbed a meter stick off of my blackboard and attempted to beat their child. I luckily had a phenomenal hallway of teachers that I worked with and they assisted me with stopping the parent. I went to an administrator and notified them that I would be calling child protective services. Again, I was told that I wasn’t from around her and I didn’t understand the community. There was no union to call and no support to ask for.

All of these experiences remind me why I will stand up to any cuts or erosions to our current world class Ontario education system! I stand up and fight back because….

  1. Supports for kids in need are a mandatory part of a strong education system. Taking away funding from students with special needs is not okay. Taking away funding from students with mental health needs is not okay. Taking away funding from students who need to have additional support to be successful in school is not okay.
  2.  My students deserve a well qualified, highly educated teacher. Most teachers have two university degrees and countless Additional Qualification courses. I have two degrees, 8 AQs and an extensive list of other self-directed learning to become the best teacher I can possibly be. My colleagues have Master Degrees, PHDs and College Degrees. The reason why Ontario has a world class education system is because we have world class highly educated teachers who are committed to education. un
  3. Hiring practices/Evaluation practices need to be fair and transparent. Otherwise, you end up with an entire teaching profession that looks like the principal they were hired by.
  4. Violence in school is not okay. Reported incidents needs to be transparent and analyzed to find solutions to protect all students. Every child deserves to come to school every day and feel safe. For many, it is the only place that they are able to be safe.

 

Thank you to the 83, 000 teachers that have stood up to stop the cuts to our education system over the past two weeks. The students of today and tomorrow will thank you for it!

 

 

Laura Bottrell General

New Teacher Induction Program

Most newly hired permanent teachers aren’t exactly “new teachers” by the time they achieve permanent status. This is actually my fourth year as a classroom teacher, and the case is similar for many (most?) others.

However, participation in the New Teacher Induction Program (NTIP) is a mandatory part of a new permanent teacher’s first year in their position. The program consists of the following three elements:

  • orientation for new teachers to the school and school board
  • mentoring for new teachers by experienced teachers
  • professional learning relevant to the individual needs of new teachers

In addition to the three elements, all new teachers are evaluated twice within the first 12 months of their teaching position through the Teacher Performance Appraisal (TPA) process.

At first, the process might seem daunting or overwhelming for someone in a brand new position, especially if they are a somewhat new teacher. Not to worry – so far the process has been easy, clearly defined and even enjoyable!

All school boards implement the orientation, mentoring and professional learning in their own way. In my board, I have participated in two wonderful experiences so far.

First, I attended an NTIP Open House one evening after school. The board organized a drop-in event for new teachers to become acquainted with certain board staff members, board level services and introduce themselves to their mentoring groups and mentors. I had the opportunity to chat and network with many other people in the same position as I am. Booths and stations were set up in the room for teachers to visit and chat with board services such as Human Resources, Early Years, Speech and Language, Resource Libraries and many more. It was a great “get your feet wet” event that offered a glimpse into the rest of the process to come.

Next, was a full day of Professional Learning offered at the board office. New teachers were divided into groups based on their area of teaching. I teach grade 3/4, so I was placed in the Primary mentoring group. The day consisted of whole-group learning as well as time with our individual mentoring group. Led by various board staff, the whole-group session offered information about board resources, the NTIP process, basic board orientation information, discussion of best practice and even some mini-PD sessions led by various mentors that offered exposure to new resources, tools and ideas. Each mentoring group was assigned three or four mentors (experienced teachers), who led their smaller groups through further professional learning that was relevant to our specific positions. Time was given for informal conversation, a chance to ask questions and get to know other mentees.

For me, the most valuable information that I was given was a full explanation of what to expect during the TPA process for new teachers. We were provided with a full description of the process, advice for a successful TPA, time to ask questions and even a head start on filling out our Individual NTIP Strategy Forms.

The Individual NTIP Strategy Form is intended to serve as a vehicle for discussion and learning, as well as a means of planning, tracking, and recording the NTIP induction elements in which each new teacher participates. It is intended to reflect when a new teacher has completed participation in their program – almost as a diary of your learning. This form helps guide your professional development over the year and is a tool for documenting that learning for you and your administrator.

I left our first official day of NTIP feeling empowered and prepared for the next step of the process, the Teacher Performance Appraisals – which you can read all about in my next post!

Still curious about NTIP? You can read more about it here!

 

Will Gourley Challenging Topics, General, Making a Difference Through Education, Mental Health, Resilience, self reflection, Teacher Wellness, Teacher Working Conditions, Weather

The end is here

The end (of January) is here. Thankfully. I thought wrapping up 2019 would have signaled my surrender. I didn’t know another white flag needed to be waved so quickly, but here goes.

The month of January has been particularly trying on my mental health and well being. When I say my mental and health and wellbeing, it’s important to know that it implies the way a lot of my colleagues in education are feeling right now. It’s tough sledding right now. Let me explain what’s been going down.

The usual demons

The entire month has elapsed as a slow motion dream sequence of continually compartmentalized interactions. Meet here, teach now, listen here, discuss there, teach again, receive devastating news, listen, meet, teach, share, support, listen some more, put on a brave face, teach, weep for a student lost in a senseless act, grieve, cope, support, listen even more, meet, teach, and try to make sense of what the heck happened?

I’d like to blame Mother Nature for the storms, poor commutes, and frigid school days, but I can’t because I bought snow tires which ensured that the weather would only be bad on weekends this month. I’d like to say it’s the flu, but I can’t because I got my first flu shot in 10 years. I’d like to say that my students are being difficult, but I can’t because they are truly interesting and engaging learners.

So it’s got to be me right? I’ll own my part of things knowing that I am sharing with 7.2 billion others in January right now. Let me reiterate. It’s been an incredibly difficult month even though my usual January demons were uncharacteristically co-operative? Now that the month is over things can get better right? Either that, or something really bad is in store for the future once the demons get back from vacation. Fingers crossed, salt over my left shoulder, ladders put away, black cats all in their homes, and artificial rabbit’s foot rubbed something more positive is possible. Anything will be better than the start of 2020.

This January’s tragic events were completely out of our hands. Yet, as teachers, we were all working together in support of our students, as well as one another. At my school, the death of a student on UIA Flight 752 was devastating. Upon confirmation of the news, it was as if the air had been taken from our lungs in a flash. It was hard to breath that day. We were all in shock, and had to put on a strong face for our students and each other as the news unfolded which was not easy.

We are told to try and return things to normal as quickly as possible, but all I remember is feeling numb in the weeks that followed. I wonder how normal I looked trying to hide how it hurt to lose a student? In fact it has taken me a few weeks to even process the feelings in order to share them here.

Despite, therapy dogs, social worker support, and incredibly kind admin/school board officials it has been one of the toughest times I’ve ever experienced as a teacher.  When tragic and senseless events occur the losses are hard to overcome regardless of the supports in place. Finding “normal” again would have been very tough without help, but isn’t enough in itself. This leaves many of us having to manage some of the restoration on our own outside of school.

Setting aside a bit of quiet time to process each day helped. As simple as that sounds, it is hard to shut it all down at the end of the day or over the weekends. Taking time to remember the good things and dwell for some time on positive memories helps healing to begin. Sometimes laughter helps too. Especially, when the humour comes in the form of a joke, a meme, or a witty remark. Thank God for animal videos and Reddit.

As teachers we live and breath our callings. Our learners occupy a huge space of our thoughtlives. We have them with us as we process our days whether we are at school or not. There have been countless times where I’m reminded of a student, past and present, in a casual conversation with friends or family. The life of an educator guarantees that you will accumulate some incredible memories, and this is largely a good thing. For me there has been so much joy in reflection back on 2019, but in contrast comes a much harsher start to 2020 with the loss of a beautiful soul from our school family. As February takes over the calender, I am glad to say the end(of January)is here.

Wishing you all health, happiness, and good memories for the rest of the year and beyond.

Kelly.McLaughlin Assessment and Evaluation, Classroom Management, Differentiated Instruction, Flexible Classroom, General, Inquiry, self reflection, Student Ownership

Checklists and Independent Fridays

When I first started teaching grade eight, by Fridays I often found that only a few of my students were handing things in. It was frustrating as many students by the end of the week couldn’t remember what was due or what they had or hadn’t completed. Some actually forgot and some just pretended…it was often hard to differentiate between the two. This year, I came up with a solution that is allowing all of my students to complete most, if not all of the assigned tasks for the week.

During the weekend I plan the lessons and assessments for the week ahead. It is often a continuation from the week before for subjects such as math, science, history, geography and literacy. When planning, I come up with the tasks that will be due by the end of the week. An example of the tasks for the week of January 20th to 24th were: a map for geography, five reading response questions for literacy, a rough copy of an essay, a science experiment outline and a math task. By Friday, all of these items were due. On Monday and Tuesdays, I teach the lessons and Wednesday and Thursday are used for further instructions and independent work/group work.  At the beginning of the week, I write out on the board the four to six things that would be due by Friday. Students write these things out in a table like format on a large yellow sticky note with the subject on the left and the task on the right. Throughout the week, they check off each item that is due.

On Friday, I do not put any subjects on the schedule, I write the letters I.W. meaning independent work. Students work at their own pace to complete their checklists. Each task has been explained prior to Friday except for the math task. The math task is an extension of the math lessons from the week and they can ask for this math task at any time on the Friday. Throughout the day, they work on checking off items and completing their to do list for the week. This keeps students on top of their work and I often find students are excited when they get to check off an item. Then, by dismissal on Friday, all students hand in their sticky notes in a large blue organizer I have hanging on the chalkboard.

On the weekend, I mark their work as well as I view their sticky notes. Then I record their independent work mark for the week:

0 tasks complete- N
1-2 tasks complete- S
3-4 tasks complete- G
5+ tasks completed- E

Students that finish before the deadline of the end of the day Friday are given an extra tasks that will further their learning in one or more of the topics we covered during the week.

My students are very excited on Fridays because they follow their own set schedule. At first, I wondered if some students would just sit around and do nothing but that hasn’t ever been the case. My students that were slow to start tasks in September/October are often first to hand in their sticky notes. Fridays are my students favourite days because of the way they move at their own pace and they like the feeling of getting tasks completed and getting to checkmark something off their list.

I encourage teachers to try this handy sticky note idea as it helps students stay organized and hopefully, this organizational skill will help them set timelines in high school, college and/or university.

**For the week of January 20th to 24th, 16 out of my 25 students received an E for their sticky note checklists, completing all or more of their set tasks for the week.**

 

 

Tammy Axt General

Grinch Day

Taking time to celebrate and do something out of the ordinary is a great way to create community within your classroom and school. We had a very joyous day in December connecting with our grade 8 buddies and celebrating the story of the “Grinch Who Stole Christmas”.

If you are going to have a Grinch Day, you need to embrace your green coloured clothes!

 

To start the day, we read an interactive book where my students pushed the buttons for the sounds of the Whos, The Grinch and Max. It gave some of my students who were not familiar with the Grinch story some foundational knowledge about the story.

Next, we spent some time on our life skills. We prepared Grinch fruit skewers for all of our grade 8 buddies. We washed, cut and skewed strawberries, bananas, grapes and marshmallows.

With all of our Grinchy food ready to go, it was time to invite our grade 8 buddies over for some relay races. We used green cups and green ornaments and divided our two classes into teams. We took over our hallway and made it into a relay course passing the green ornament between green cups.

Finally, we gathered, ate some yummy green food and watched the Grinch movie. It was such a fun and joyous day.

From my class to yours, we are wishing you a wonderful break and a fantastic 2020!

Goodbye Kelly Fraser
Tammy Axt General, Indigenous Perspectives

Goodbye Kelly Fraser

My music classes and I had the good fortune to discover Kelly Fraser’s music when she was nominated for a Juno in 2018. We spent much of January and February that year listening to and analyzing the amazing music created by the artists in the Indigenous Music Album of The Year category and we cast our votes in school for our favourite artist before the Junos aired in March. The Juno was officially awarded to Buffy Sainte-Marie that year but if my students had been on the selection committee the Juno would have been handed to Ms. Kelly Fraser for her album Sedna.

My students were interested in her at first because they recognized songs that she was covering like Rihanna’s Diamonds. But as we looked deeper into her music, we delved into conversations about music as a way to protest or covey messages and music as a way for people to connect. We all found power in her openness and honesty and I personally was moved by her message of hope.

Therefore, I was very saddened by the news that Kelly Fraser passed away at the age of 26 on Christmas eve in Winnipeg. A true Canadian treasure was lost.

Kelly Fraser taught my students and I so many things over the past two years. I have used her name repeatedly in conversations with other teachers about the power of her message and her ability to explain the generational impact of the residential school system. She shared that “when you grow up witnessing trauma and pain, you have scars too.” CBC did a short documentary a year and a half ago that tells part of Kelly’s story and her experience being Inuit. It is a great starting place for a conversation in your classroom about residential schools.

Kelly also fearlessly shared her experiences on social media about her own journey and that of her mother and stepmother.

“Both my mothers are residential school survivors, both their father’s dogs were taken away and killed so they couldn’t go dog sledding to get their food to feed their family. TB/influenza caused our people to convert to Christianity and let go of their culture (drum dancing, tattooing, throat singing, shamanism…etc)  because the priests were the only ones with the medicine and I’m not here to say being a Christian is not right, I believe in the freedom of believing what you want to and I respect ALL religions. The Mounties were sent by the government to take away our kayaks and made my family walk thousands of kilometers to a new settlement where they were told there would be houses when there weren’t any. I believe we can rise above what has happened to us by telling each other to please find healing and help by elders, mental health workers, there’s the internet where we can learn to meditate, learn about our culture and reach out and help each other heal. Its time for us ALL people to also call onto the federal/provincial/territorial/municipal governments to give us food that is affordable, programs that will help us heal, proper housing, proper education that allows us to go straight to college after grade 12 and proper healthcare by writing to them and calling them up, this is up to ALL Canadians too!!”

As a young, fashionable, brilliant, creative young women, my students connected to her and really listened to her story. This was not from some history book about things that happened in the past, she explained things through a medium that my students related to and brought the impacts of history to the present.

She also gave us some insight into modern Inuit music, art and culture. She spoke with pride about her Inuit culture consistently and took every opportunity to share other talented Indigenous creators. She introduced me to Nuvuja9, Rannva and InukChic and their fabulous designs. She also introduced me to an amazing cosmetic company called Cheekbone Beauty, where I ordered many items of Swag for our Women’s Dinner this year. I’m sure she was a fashion designers dream. Beautiful inside and out.

She also was a writer and her poetry was moving and told history from the voice of a young women trying to overcome her story.

I am beautiful
I am native
I am Inuk
I am made out of seal
With strength like steel
With land of impossible beauty that stretches so far on this earth.
I am a byproduct of colonization
Yet my tongue remembers a language my mother fought to keep in residential school, she fought assimilation.
Even when my grandfathers dogs were killed and kayaks sliced by the RCMP for infiltration
We still love the huskies
We still love the Qajaq
We survived the Canadian apartheid
We still think fondly of how our people survived.
We are survivors of genocide

 

I invite you to share Kelly’s story, music and love for her culture. Share it with your students who are going to be the next policy makers in Canada. Help them to have compassion and caring when they are making decisions that challenge us to really address some of the systemic problems that exist in Canada. Help them to understand the long-lasting impacts of residential schools. Although the last door may have closed, the trauma of being ripped from your home, abused and your identity taken is impacting an entire group of people. And will continue to have impact for generations to come. Help them to help our young Indigenous creators like Kelly find support, so that suicide is not the only way to stop the pain.

Goodbye Kelly. I will miss you.

 

Arianna Lambert General, self reflection, Year End Reflection

Clear and Specific for 2020!

It’s the last day of 2019! I have to admit that as I blog, I’m often changing ideas and it always takes me a minute to determine whether or not I will  press “publish” on the pieces that I write. Sometimes I think that they’re too personal or that they aren’t quite finished or polished but eventually the idea forms, somehow gets written, and that button is pressed. This month, this is my fourth piece of writing and I think I’ll hit publish on this one.

Every time that there is a break in the year, I always seem to come down with something. LIke many other educators out there, the moment you get the chance to rest, it’s like your body shuts down for a bit to make sure that you do just that. Sadly, this year was no different for me. I took my vitamins and kept plowing through the beginning of the break as something was brewing. It hit just after Christmas and I’ve been taking it easy ever since. 

During this time, I’ve had the chance to reflect on the year and although there were painful moments, it’s been refreshing. 2019 was a year with challenges for me both personally and professionally.  From my health to making the decision to return to the classroom, there were a lot of emotions swirling around this year as I battled. Coming out on the other side, I have to say that I feel like I’m in that place where I’m truly content. Sure, there’s always room for growth but I’m actually in a really great place as I look towards 2020 and I’m grateful to have had the chance over the last few days to think about the highs and (definite) lows of the year.

I’ve been asked a number of times whether or not I will make New Year’s Resolutions and while I often make them, I think this year I want to be more clear and specific about what is is that I want in my life and work towards that. Here are 3 areas that I have identified that I would like to work on for 2020:

  1. Speaking My Truth. Many may know me as outspoken and even with that, this year I noticed that over the past few years I found myself drawing more and more within, afraid of being perceived as angry or disgruntled or argumentative. What that did was left me internalizing similar feelings and smiling through difficult and painful experiences; leaving me in an emotional state of unrest. In the long run, the only person that I ended up hurting was, myself. The past few months have been quite freeing as I have decided to no longer navigate spaces where my voice cannot be freely heard and accepted and am learning to speak my truth with love. Some things are difficult to say and yet need to be heard. This has been a process and I know that 2020 will bring further opportunities for me to grow in this area. Rather than being fearful of the perceptions of others, I’m going to embrace my truth and speak it when necessary, and I’m learning that it’s often necessary. 
  2. Accepting Help. Often the first person to offer to help and yet the last person to accept it or a compliment without a rebuttal.  I have an amazing colleague who has mentioned this to me a few times and I know this to be true about myself. Never wanting to be perceived – again that word – as a burden to others, I have often overworked myself to get a task accomplished rather than letting others join in or support the work that I might be doing. It’s time to let go of this one. In 2020, I’m going to say yes to help when it appears in its various forms.
  3. Defining Fun. This may seem silly but I don’t always know how to really have fun. Sure I love laughing and joking around with people but if I’m really asked what my idea of fun is, I might say things that I enjoy but I think that there is more to fun than just an enjoyable feeling. In 2020, I’m going to be working on identifying for myself what fun is really all about. What are the feelings associated with it? What are the things that I’m doing when I am experiencing those feelings. I’ve heard that I’m not the only one in this position so I’m really going to take some time to get clear and specific about what fun is for me in hopes of cultivating more of it in my life. 

Every new year brings about its opportunities for growth and challenge. For 2020, I’m working on being clear and specific about what I want out of life in hopes of manifesting a happy, healthy and successful year. No matter what type of year you’ve had, know that 2020 can be the start of something new. Wishing you all the very best in this upcoming year, happy 2020!

Will Gourley Celebrating Success, General

Foresight is 2020. Hindsight is 2019

At noon EST today December 31st, 364.5 days of 2019 have ticked off of the clock.
That’s 524 880 minutes that have not be banked for another time. It’s also means that we have been present for the 8 748 hours of inter/intrapersonal interactions that have happened. As I type, at my kitchen table, Spotify plays, my coffee grows cold, and the clock ticks incessantly towards a self imposed midday deadline to complete my last piece of 2019 for Heart and Art.

2019 was a year

If you look back on each moment of the past year, how do you feel?
Are you glad it’s almost over? December 31st is rife with reflection and anticipation for many. Although I am usually a procrastinator, I have been thinking about all things 2019 long before today.

As an educator, I think it comes with the job. We are prone to reflection as part of our professional and personal practice. There are few times throughout the days, weeks, and months at school when I, or my colleagues are not processing something that has occured by design or happenstance.

2019 was no exception as my role of SERT/Transitions/Guidance and Drama/Dance/Health/Music/English/Math teacher evolved. So many simultaneous experiences, happening in classrooms around the world/province/city/board/school to navigate, mitigate, orchestrate, and educate. As Wendy Howes shares, “You can’t make this stuff up.”

Year ends, for some, are like trying to navigate through a maze full of mirrors and finally finding the one mirrored corner that shows you the way out after 364.5 days. For others, it seems that they find their way without a wrong turn, and get back in line to do it all over again. Most of us are probably somewhere in between for the sake of this analogy.

I know there were times that I felt lost in 2019.
There were also times where it felt like I was leading the way.
Did you take time to enjoy any of the special moments that have happened? I can imagine a range of feelings flooding in here. Based on my own year in education, I have wandered the house of mirrors making wrong turns and retracing my steps looking for the way out. The experience has left me with a profound understanding that I cannot do my job as an educator in a silo. What I quickly realized was that I was not walking through the maze alone and that others were helping to guide the way. Admitting this has allowed me to break a few figurative mirrors in the “funhouse”.

Having a personal and professional support network is crucial to teachers at every time of their careers. Being able to turn to someone within my circle of trust has been transformative in my approach to education. This includes connecting with the #ONTED family of educators and to an incredible global cohort via Twitter and TED Ed.

Although, there have been many incredible mentors along the way, it has taken me nearly 10 years in the classroom to realize that I cannot do this job well on my own. If you are a new teacher, I encourage you to do it now. Seek out those who inspire you, who challenge your thinking. Seek out educators who think differently than you do. Borrow/liberate/bandit ideas and good practices. Reinvent yourself every year and in turn inspire, challenge, and encourage others. The time is now.

2020 is almost here

We are counting down the final 1440 minutes until midnight.

Tomorrow gifts us with a fresh 365.
365 days to…insert limitless possibilities here, there, and everywhere else.

Cheers to 2019 and an even better 2020.

Michelle Fenn 21st Century Learning, Coding, Combined Grade Classes, Constant Learning, Design, General, Inquiry, Inspiring Students, Math, Modern Learning, Robotics, Technology, Technology in school, The Global Competencies, Use of Technology

Coding in Kindergarten

I have taught every grade from K-8 in some way, shape or form.  I can say that without a doubt or apology I have more respect for Kindergarten teachers than any other grade level.  Hands down.  I have loved every grade I taught while I was teaching it.  I was young and without children when I taught Kindergarten and can say that there is no tired like Kindergarten teacher tired.  That being said, I absolutely love going into Kindergarten classes with robotics.  Unabashedly Kinder friends approach you to ask your name and promptly tell you about the “owie” on the bottom of their foot as soon as they walk in the door.

I work with Bee Bots in Kindergarten classes to teach sequencing, estimation, problem solving, geo-spatial reasoning through coding.  Bee Bots are a rechargeable, floor robots designed for early learning.  It is easy to operate and does not require any other equipment.

We start as a whole group using the hundred’s carpet and decide how to move Bee Bot from our start to another point on the carpet.  Students decide upon the directions and we program them in to find out what will happen.  Wonderful mistakes happen here and we need to clear the code and start again.  When we achieve our goal as a group there is much rejoicing!

It isn’t really about teaching Kindergarten kids how to “code”.  Coding is used as a vehicle to teach many other transferable skills.  Planning, organizing and communication are just some of the learning skills that come from using the Bee Bots.   If you have access to the mats as featured in the photos, you can automatically see the ties to language and math concepts as well.  There is a romance period that needs to take place when the students first get their hands on Bee Bot.  However, even if they don’t know the words for “right” and “left” at first, they get to know them quickly through the use of Bee Bot.  Bee Bots in many of our Kindergarten classes now have homes and some have villages made from found materials so that Bee Bot can be coded to go to different places.  The possibilities for creativity really are endless.

For more information about using Bee Bot in the classroom, check out these resources:

https://krgarden.ca/media/hold/the-beebot-robot

https://blog.teaching.com.au/5-mathematics-bee-bot-lesson-ideas-for-the-classroom/