Dia de los Muertos

Guest Blog Post by Karen Van Nest, Lakeside Middle School Teacher

We are so proud of our LMS immersion and Spanish language students for all the hard work they put in to our Dia de los Muertos exhibit!  We have been learning all about this colorful, popular Mexican holiday and our students had the opportunity to share their knowledge in a variety of ways.  Some groups created altars or informational displays.  Others wrote poems called "Calaveras", made dioramas, or informational folders.  There were so many fun activities like face painting, paper flower making, papel picado making, games and even a photo booth!  Guests had the opportunity to sample foods made specific for this holiday such as  pan de muerto (bread of the dead), mole and tamales.  There was a wide variety of things to do and see! A big thanks to Ms. Drake, who directed The Harmonies (LMS Choir) for the event. Thank you Señora Hudson and Señorita Torres for helping to make this event a success!

Becoming Empowered Learners

Recently, ISTE (International Society for Technology in Education) came out with new standards for students.  According to the ISTE website, "The ISTE Standards for Students are designed to empower student voice and ensure that learning is a student-driven process of exploration, creativity, and discovery no matter where they are or their teachers are in the thoughtful integration of ed tech."

The first student standard is:

But what does this really mean? What might it look like in a classroom? How can teachers make sure their students are truly on their way to becoming empowered learners?

Here are a few ideas:

Allow students to chose and demonstrate their learning goals in different ways. For example, if you're doing a unit on force and motion, you could create three categories (gravity, friction, and force) and allow students to choose which topic they are interested in and want to learn more about. After you've stated your learning objectives for students and students know exactly what they need to learn and why (I am learning how the speed of an object affects it's impact so I can design a safety device for the tricycles on the kindergarten playground), students can choose how they want to present their knowledge- whether it be with an iMovie, a Google Slides presentation, a good old fashioned poster, etc.

Help students find their "go-tos"; People in their "network" they can go to for help. This might include making students "Experts" in certain apps or programs or subjects; "If you need help with Popplet, make sure to talk to Sally." Pairing students up with learning partners or in groups they can rely on when they are having trouble will help students build their learning network. And simply knowing who and how to contact a peer for work and information when a student is absent will help students create and maintain their own personal learning networks.

Students need to be taught how to become organized and independent learners. However this is much more effective when we allow students to organize themselves in a way that makes sense to them- not just to us as teachers. For example, we can teach students how to organize files in Google Drive. Often times when we model this skill, the students will mimic exactly what we do as teachers because it must be the only correct way to do it, right!? If I make a 7th Grade Art folder in my Drive, I've found students will do the same, even though they don't even have an art class. The question for students then becomes- What folders can you make, that will help you become more organized, and will make sense to you.

All of these things will help your students become empowered learners and take charge of their own learning.

Teachers can download these posters as a reminder of the things we strive to do each day in our classrooms to empower our students to become independent learners.

Sandy Patterson
Educational Technology

TdS' Cool Kids! Production A Success!

Guest Blog Post by Natalie Winspear, Executive Director of Pupil Services

This week I had the opportunity to see the production, Cool Kids. I was so impressed with the every aspect of Cool Kids! First, I want to shout out to Kellie Riganti and Darin Curtis for creating a relevant, meaningful, engaging and AWESOME show designed to teach and open a conversation about bullying.  There are so many positive things to say about Cool Kids. The TdS student actors and backstage crew were all professional and well organized.  They tackled a difficult topic with creativity and made students feel comfortable asking difficult questions.  The production was expertly layered to provide multiple opportunities for our elementary students to connect with older middle school students and ask questions/explore their experiences.  First was the "show" where the actors were in character and the acting was impressive.

The show was followed by middle school students breaking character and sitting on risers closer to the audience. Mr. Curtis facilitated this discussion while participants were able to ask questions to the actors about their feelings, the characters' feelings and about bullying. After about 20 minutes of Q & A, the middle school students came into the audience and "mingled" with the younger students, including signing autographs.  Finally, as each class left the auditorium, a few of the middle school students who were in the production went back to class with them to continue the Q & A.  Finally, students were able to respond to questions about bullying via an online survey created by Kellie and Darin.  I am so proud of our staff and students for tackling this difficult and important topic!