Sonya's Teaching Blog

Reading Dalton and Grisham's Love That Book: Multimodal Response to Literature , the authors describe using "glogs" as a response tool for students showing their learning from a piece of literature. Glogs are multimedia posters created digitally - they can contain images, graphics and text like a regular poster, but also video, audio, links or even 3D, virtual reality, or other manipulable features. A screencap of a glog that appeals to the geologist in me. Access the interactive version from Glogster here . They are meant to be interactive and give multiple ways to respond to an inspiration such as a piece of literature. More and more, teachers are incorporating student choice into projects they use to show their learning. I have particularly been inspired by author and educator (and one of my professors during my B.Ed), Jennifer Katz (2012) and her work in this area, as well as educator and advocate for inclusive education, Shelley Moore. Jennifer Kat's...

Last week, when musing on my Final Vision project , I was looking into creating a website to help teachers and librarians with access to 3D printers, but no idea how to use them. But why use 3D printers in schools at all? What use are they to teachers, librarians and students? Kids' drawings turned into 3D printed objects. Image from The Guardian . With school budgets getting cut all the time ( with numerous consequences ), and models for classrooms can get expensive. If you have access to a 3D printer, you can bypass the cost of many classroom tools and just make your own. Want a human skull? Make one ! Need a 3D model of your province? Totally doable ! You can even use a 3D printer to build replacement parts on broken tools or models you already have, getting more life out of them. Just this one tool can be used for all kinds of classroom objects, like making rewards for students - they can even choose their own! A 3D printed model of the anatomy of a human heart. Th...

I have been thinking a lot about what I believe would make a good library and what modern libraries are for, but it is now time to consider the creation of something practical- a tool to help the efficient and effective use of school libraries in the future. However, as a teacher with little experience in the classroom, let alone in a library, it's going to take some thinking to know what to produce. Looks like I, too, may need to visit a library. Image care of Whitehot s. Through my recent inquiries, I have definitely refined and cemented what I consider to be my personal teaching philosophy. Reading Will Richardson's Why School? , I really came to believe that technology is an integral part of inquiry learning in the 21st century, and that it really the "how to" skills that need to be taught in school, rather than the "what". And if we aren't teaching students piles of facts anymore, we have to think about what skills are important, and what ca...

The following are two fictional examples of teachers in need of support to improve the implementation of reference resources in their classroom practices. Looking at each case carefully and using the Concerns-Based Adoption Model, or CBAM (from Loucks-Hoursley, 1996 ), I have outlined specific steps that can be taken to encourage these teachers to use the resources available more effectively. Typical expressions of concerns about innovations. From Taking Charge of Change  by S.M. Hord, W.L. Rutherford, L. Huling-Austin, and G.E. Hall, 1987. Typical behaviors at levels of use of innovation. From  Taking Charge of Change  by S.M. Hord, W.L. Rutherford, L. Huling-Austin, and G.E. Hall, 1987. Case Study #1: “Pat” Pat has been teaching Social Studies at the same high school for several years. Classes have an established routine of teacher-centered learning where the students fill in notes from PowerPoint presentations. Pat has decided to branch ...

What on Earth have I been learning? Image care of Britannica Digital Learning . Over the past few weeks, I have been delving into the depths of the internet to research topics that are important to those in the education field, particularly to teacher-librarians. School libraries these days are so much more than just a place from which to borrow books - more and more they are becoming a hub of activity in schools. They are places to learn and use technology, places to meet up and collaborate on projects, places to ask questions and to get unexpected answers. That isn't just the case for the students - it's a place for teachers and librarians to ask questions and to learn and grow as well. I certainly have learned and grown during my explorations. Studying ways to foster reading culture in schools and global access too books, I have notices some similarities. Everyone needs to have access to books that are culturally relevant and language appropriate. In a multicultura...

At the beginning of author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's TED Talk, " The Danger of a Single Story ", she tells of her experiences with stories as a young girl in Nigeria. Growing up reading books from Europe and America, the only stories she new were of people with white skin and blue eyes, eating apples and doing other distinctly European activities. Since those were the only stories she had read, that was all she knew to write. It's a powerful example of why it's important to have stories available everywhere by local writers. Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie "The Danger of a Single Story". Video care of YouTube. Writing and publishing books around the world would surely have amazing benefits, but is easier said than done. Adichie mentions in her talk the non-profit  Farafina Trust , which currently provides annual writing workshops in Lagos, Nigeria, and their dreams of building and refurbishing libraries there. To be inspired to write, people first need...

I have never been drawn to technology. In fact, I'm much more likely to seek, out very old tools and technology, such as learning to spin and dye my own wool. That being said, I can still recognize that technology is inevitably becoming a part of our lives and I will gladly integrate any tool that that will make my life easier as a teacher or improve the experience of the students in my classroom. Reluctant as I am, there are certainly teachers in schools even less inclined towards technology that myself. I believe that my reluctance towards technology puts me in a better position to understand the more technology-averse teachers in the school and as the teacher-librarian, I would be in a great position to try and reach out to support their development of ICT skills. 3D printers are incredibly satisfying to watch. Video by WildRose Builds. One of the most scarce resources for teachers is time. When in their busy schedule of writing lesson plans, marking and (hopefully) livi...

When it comes to technology, I am far from an early adopter. That being said, if I see something that I think will make my life easier or my teaching better, I'm going to jump on it. During my teaching practicum, I had been frustrated that I had no way to physically draw on documents that I was either creating as handouts or showing to the class on the projector. So when I found myself in need of a new laptop, I decided to get one with a tablet option and drawing tools. Until now, I had not learned to use it in any way other than as a conventional laptop. Now is the perfect time to learn, and I decided to document my process as an example of how I develop my own ICT skills as a teacher. Someday, this will be me. Image care of   Getting Smart . Initially in this process, I leaned heavily on my personal learning network. I asked fellow teachers what worked for them and consulted my many friends who work in IT for their advice. In the end, I wound up with a Lenovo Flex 5 ...

Reading in the sunshine is the best! Image from Reading is Fundamental ( www.rif.org ) It is well understood in our society that reading is an important skill to develop. Not only do we use it for entertainment or important documents, but it is an important part of our education system. In fact, reading for fun can improve a student's educational performance . So how can we encourage students to read more? I am a firm believer in modeling the behavior we want to see. In my life, I have heard many people declare that their love of reading began with a read-aloud in school. For older students, we can model just by reading in front of them. Working as a teacher on call, I have exposure to methods used in several schools. At one high school, there is a daily 20 minute period of silent reading every day observed by the entire school. During that time, I would also pull out a book to read, showing that it is a fun activity that will stay with you. It is also important to meet s...