Family Virtues and Values from Home

My family photo from our reunion


I love the Desmond Tutu quote, "You don't choose your family. They are God's gift to you, as you are to them."


I see my seven brothers carrying on the family virtue of hard work and achievement. Our daughters are able to see the power of their roots when they visit their cousins. It is inspiring to see how we are finding niches of service in our various communities. I'm thankful for the gift of family connections and support.


--mj

Green Thoughts

Environmental issues are getting a lot of media attention. A high school girl in our school district created a fabulous public service announcement about "Trail Etiquette".
I love her use of iMovie to share a powerful multimedia message. What a great way to earn her Girl Scout Gold Award.





Another reason I'm thinking so many green thoughts is that our daughter is traveling with the EMHS Discovery 2007 group. Their web site will give you an insight into their deeper learnings about land stewardship.

"That land is a community is the basic concept of ecology, but that land is to be loved and respected is an extension of ethics. ... A land ethic, then, reflects the existence of an ecological conscience, and this in turn reflects a conviction of individual responsibility for the health of land."

—Aldo Leopold in 'Land Ethic'

--mj

Collaboration with Claymation

Yesterday, I had the opportunity to learn the beginning steps of creating a claymation movie using iMovie. The deepest joy came as I had a chance to collaborate with a fellow teacher at my school. We commented about working together more in the future. If we had more shared planning time during the school year, this would become a reality. My vision for the coming school year is to strive to collaborate more with classroom teachers. It is a tricky goal. At our elementary level, there are few moments that we can find for shared planning.




How have you found creative ways to collaborate in the school setting? I'm eager to hear ideas from others.

Literacy Learning using Digital Storytelling

Embedded below is a movie clip of the digital stories that my First, Second and Third Graders created. I saw them edit and revise their storyboards and scripts since they knew they were going to have a real audience.

I like what Bud the Teacher said in his blog,

"The change comes when we begin to realize the power of sharing the information, of making the walls more transparent."



The Learning and Laptops blog features ninth grade honors students as they explored the BIG question, "What does literature say about human beings?"

Emotions come to the surface as I witness literacy learning at its most real and meaningful level.

mj--

Students Discovering Symmetry and Congruency in the School

My first graders used their digital cameras and iMovie software to capture examples of symmetry and congruency in our school.

Pay Attention

Please take a few minutes to watch the movie clip that I found on Teacher Tube: "Pay Attention". It motivates me to make sure that I create our students' curriculum that is appropriate to their current needs.






Teach Me More About...

* A Revision of Bloom's Taxonomy
* Using Google in the Classroom - Google Tools Podcast, Google Docs Podcast, Internet Survival Tools
* Rigor, Relevance, and Relationships
* Blogs (Social Software in the Classroom)
* Wikis
* Podcasts - Podcast Creation Guide (Apple), How to podcast
* Geocaching Games
* Google Earth
* Webquests
* E-Portfolios
* Virtual Manipulatives
* Cellphones in the Classroom
* iPods in the Classroom

The life long learner is open to making her classroom more appropriate for the students that walk through her classroom door this fall.

An additional nugget for reflection: Shift Happens



The enhanced, revised, expanded, etc. Did You Know/Shift Happens video from Karl Fisch and Scott McLeod:




--mj

Finished products: PSA using iMovie

Here is what my students created using iMovie software.

Public Service Announcements


I enjoyed seeing the students apply their writing skills as they wrote drafts of their scripts.
Limiting the clips to 15 sec. caused a lot of discussion about what are the main ideas to cover in the message.

Attending the Northeast Discovery Educators Conference in Valley Forge was my place for inspiration. I love to integrate technology into our learning in real life ways.

Public Service Announcements

My students are currently working on creating public service announcements. These are the topics that they have developed so far: 1. Bike Helmet Safety 2. Healthy Snacks 3. Seatbelt Safety 4. Internet Safety 5. Test Taking Tips 6. Environmental Awareness


It is exciting to see them type up their scripts and edit their storyboards. Now as we edit the video clips, we are trying to make them more clear, concise and convincing.

I'll be eager to see their finished products.

Warmly,
Margo

Grant Ideas Needed

Today I researched possible grants for enhanced technology integration at the two schools where I work as a gifted ed. teacher. Does anyone out there know about possible sources of funding for technology tools and student projects?
If I'm going to reach my students' learning needs, I need to get funding to assist.

Please send me any ideas for public school grants.
MJ

LifeLongLearner...begins a new chapter

Howdy out there.

I'm looking forward to using this site to interact with educators and students. What new thoughts and inspirations are on your minds?

I have more questions than answers:
How can I make learning real for my Challenge (Gifted Ed. students K-5)?
How can the integration of technology into the curriculum really make a difference?

I've just been at a five day Discovery Educator Network Regional Conference. Now I'm so inspired to incorporate new ideas and techniques into my lessons.
Thanks to Aaron Smith for his inspiring workshop on blogging.
Warmly,
Margo
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