Sonya's Teaching Blog

It's hard to turn on the news these days or go on social media without hearing about social justice issues: from the battle for SOGI 123 in schools, to hate-driven attacks on mosques, schools and night clubs, to demonstrations for indigenous rights. These arguments and events rarely lead anywhere. Change is slow to come and always seems to leave someone upset and feeling left out of the conversation. Many of us, myself included, have difficulties listening to opinions on social justice issues that differ from our own. You may be familiar with Karl Popper's "Paradox of Tolerance" Popper is quoted in Mohamed Farija's Deconstructing Karl Popper's Paradox of Intolerance as describing the Paradox of Tolerance thusly: "Unlimited tolerance must lead to the disappearance of tolerance. If we extend unlimited tolerance even to those who are intolerant, if we are not prepared to defend a tolerant society against the onslaught of the intolerant, then the tolerant...

Collaboration is a common theme in school these days. Connections between subjects allow students to form deeper understanding of the content and ultimately retain more of what they learn (Katz, 2012). However, as many teachers these days are already stretched for time, finding room in our schedules to plan collaborative projects with colleagues can feel like a big ask. High schools are particularly guilty in this area as subjects are often literally separated by room, materials, time, and teachers. One thing we can do is incorporate ADST (Applied Design, Skills and Technologies) into projects and lessons in other subjects, and your friendly local teacher-librarian can help with that. Collaboration can lead to some incredible lessons. Image care of WeAreTeachers . Your teacher-librarian can introduce you and your students to digital tools that can broaden the possibilities for teaching and engage students in a wide variety of ways. As Frank Serafini (2012) points out, "pri...

What is an Infectious Disease and How do you Prevent it? Our body comes into contact with many harmful microorganisms every day. Thankfully, most of us have a healthy immune system capable of fighting off invasive viruses, bacteria and parasites at the cellular level. Constant battles are being fought on a tiny battlefield, and understanding these processes are key to staying healthy. In this lesson, students will use the Glogster virtual poster making platform to create multimedia posters exploring various pathogens, how they can affect us, how our body fights them off, and how they might affect us today. BC Curricular Connections Science 8: Life processes are performed at the cellular level. ADST 8: Complex tasks require the acquisition of additional skills; Complex tasks may require multiple tools and technologies. Introduction: -What are some things you have heard about the COVID-19 virus (also called the novel coronavirus)? Why do you think they tell you to wash you...

Connecting Stories to the World Using Tour Creator In BC’s updated curriculum, it is encouraged across the curriculum to connect learning with place. In the First Nations Education Steering Committee’s First Peoples’ Principles of Learning it states that “Learning is holistic, reflexive, reflective, experiential, and relational (focused on connectedness, on reciprocal relationships, and a sense of place).” In this increasingly connected world, we need to be not just aware of what is happening in our immediate vicinity but also what is happening around the world. Education needs to be grounded in its connections with the real world. The following lesson and activity guides students through connecting the stories they read with real world places and happenings through the use of Google's Tour Creator . Students will create a virtual reality tour using real images of places discussed in a novel and draw connections with other artifacts, such as news articles, drawings or videos. ...

Making Scale Models Using a 3D Printer In this two- or three-day lesson, students will learn to apply their skills and understanding of scaled mathematical relationships to create a scale model of an object using either 3D modeling software and then a 3D printer or by measuring and building an object out of cardboard. BC Curricular Connections: Mathematics 9: Similar shapes have proportional relationships that can be described, measured, and compared. ADST 9: Complex tasks require the sequencing of skills; Complex tasks require different technologies and tools at different stages. Required background knowledge: Students should already have learned the mathematical calculations required in scaling dimensions, but they will review it in these lessons. This is a great project to finish a unit on scale and proportions. Lesson Plan Tools: Projector connected to device with internet access iPads for students with the Measure app Computer for each student with internet...

We've all been there, in a classroom full of students who just can't stay on task. Then you bring out the ipads, laptops or take them to a computer lab and suddenly they are laser-focused on what they are doing. Students these days are steeped in a digital world and often often this is where they feel most comfortable. Bringing digital tools into the classroom can greatly enhance our teaching and the students' learning, but how do we know what is best to use and when? Sometimes the options can be overwhelming and learning new tools can feel daunting. Below I have listed a few tools classroom use and given my personal opinion on how and why to use them. If you have used any of them before, feel free to leave a comment and tell me what you have done with them and what you think of them! Student on iPad. Image care of apple.com Website Creation There are some great tools out there for creating websites, that are intuitive and students may choose them unprompted. As a ...