“Home is a shelter from storms-all sorts of storms.”— William J. Bennett This week was a storm as the number of Covid19 cases in the world exceeded 1,000,000 with a third of those being here in the United States. Stories of those in hospitals dying alone, of healthcare workers becoming ill, and uncertainty about the course of the disease filled the airwaves and the internet. Colorado ordered an extension of the stay at home order until April 30th and wearing facemarks in public became an expectation. We began teaching remote learning on Wednesday and by Friday it was announced that his new mode of learning would continue until the end of the school year.
Yet, even as the storm churned outside, our home helped us find solace. We enjoyed three meals together a day. We played games. We learned together. We zoomed with those we love the most and we gave each other hugs and LOTs of grace. We will be home for the foreseeable future, but it is okay. I am sharing my quarantine with those that matter most to my heart. We will weather this storm. Together. Not as easy is my job. Teaching remotely is more challenging that I could ever have anticipated. Our district supported an asynchronous approach so that families could do work in ways that make sense for their unique situations. However, that means that as a teacher, my inbox fills from early morning to late at night with questions. Live office hours are filled not with children looking for help but those looking for connection. Meetings that would have taken 20-30 minutes at school stretch to an hour or more. After the first week, I have not yet found a rhythm or boundaries. What I have found, however, is love from my students and our community. That is enough to keep me going until I figure this out.
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"One day a week should be set aside for field trips." -Frank McCourt One of my favorite parts of being a teacher at STEM is taking students on field experiences. This year I have taken my own class on 6! But as a mom, I haven't gotten to enjoy the role of chaperone on field trips since it takes writing sub plans! Alas, my chance has finally appeared this year as I have a student teacher and Jaxon goes to my school! Score!
Today we visited the Colorado State Capital and learned how laws are made in our state. Our representative, Faith Winters, has a son in Jaxon's class and she made this day super special. In addition to the traditional tour of the building (which is amazing), the kids got to pass a law on the state capitol pet. They also got to visit the senate floor! What a fun way to learn that our votes matter! "I want to ask you to consider finding a viable, long-term solution to school funding."-Jess Noffsinger Colorado recently had a blue wave as we elected the most democratic state government in a generation. This made me realize that it was an important opportunity to change how education in Colorado is funded and I vowed to write a letter to our new governor, Jared Polis. A few days after the election, Chalkbeat Colorado asked readers what we wanted the governor to know, so I wrote my letter to him and submitted it there as well. Guess what? It was published. So, here is what I asked:
I want to ask you to consider finding a viable, long-term solution to school funding. The approved text for my science class was approved the same year my students were born. We have not had money to adopt newer texts. My books do not address gravitational waves, Pluto is still listed as a planet, and climate change is barely mentioned. Students in my classroom have never lived in a world without an iPhone. They crave technology in learning, but with current funding levels we are unable to provide students with enough devices to access on a daily basis. We are looking at sharing devices or passing this cost on to families. All 440 students in our school are serviced by one amazing counselor, but as we expand next year, this ratio will continue to go up. My students have lived in a world of trauma. Since they started kindergarten, there have been 188 school shootings nationwide. Parents have deployed to Afghanistan, and teen suicide rates have risen. They need more support! My students have never participated in middle school sports or outdoor education, and have seen average class sizes slowly increase. With the defeat of Amendment 73, future opportunities will continue to be a juggling act for our system as we try to equip students with the needed skills to be successful in the future. Please work with the legislature to find an answer. — Jess Noffsinger, eighth-grade science and engineering teacher at the STEM Lab School in Northglenn I was shocked how quickly this made its rounds. Within moments of being published, it had been shared by no less than 10 other teacher to my feed with a thank you. The next day, someone at Luke's work I had never met talked to him about it. It was an amazing opportunity to use my teacher voice to ask for what my students need. Here is hoping this is a first step, not a final step, to using my teacher voice to advocate in a positive way. Want to see what other teachers had to say? Click this Link to Chalkbeat Colorado Article “If you were born without wings, do nothing to prevent them from growing.”-Coco Chanel ![]() Flying anything is fun--right? From a perfectly folded paper plane to stepping on to a commercial jet, there is something special about being able to soar. As a small girl, this joy took flight every time I checked out that same tired library book about Amelia Earhart from the local library. Fast forward to making my list, and the joy came back to life. Drones have been getting a lot of attention in educational circles for their potential to engage the next generation of STEM professionals. So, for my PBL this fall, I decided to dive in and learn all about drones and bring them to my students! In early September, I took a planning day at Mindspark education with their drone team and got to learn how to fly both the Tello drone and the Mavick. My heart nearly sprang out of my chest as I learned to control these little guys with a simple cell phones and I got to explore the area around the building. I was as giddy as a school girl when I took the Mavick Pro 300 feet above Lakewood and survived both the city and the front range from a birds eye view! Freedom and joy! In October, we were able to bring these same experiences to my students on "drone day". Students were able to fly challenges, learn to code programs for the drones to do and see the difference between small scale drones and the Pro. It was fun to see their eyes light up with the same joy I had felt! Part of my list was able to be shared! It was amazing! "It resonated with me because of what my troop leader had taught me: You can create your own opportunities, you can set your goals, you can break down what you need to accomplish ... and then just achieve them,"-Sylvia Acevedo For years, I have always gone "Awwwww...." when seeing book signings advertised or featured in pop culture. The idea of having a moment to speak to an author who has put their heart into writing a book speaks to my heart as a teacher and a creator. So, when it was time to make my list, I added this as one of my items.
Fast forward to July when a Facebook Friend posted that the Tattered Cover had an author visit program that was free to schools. She posted that Sylvia Acevedo would be coming to Denver to promote her book "Path the the Stars: My Journey from Girl Scout to Rocket Scientist." This made a light bulb go off in my head--we needed to bring a book signing to our school. I texted my principal to ask permission and got the event set up. Well, today we had our visit and it was such a fun day. Sylvia Acevedo grew up a first generation American who loved math and Girl Scouts. She learned valuable lessons about creating opportunities through the scouts and shared that learning with our students today. It was exciting to see my students realize that they had similarities with this inspiring woman. After her whole group talk, students who had repurchased the book were able to spend time one on one with the author. She took time to ask each and every student what they had related to in her talk. This then turned into her inscription in their book. My son Jaxon was the only boy to buy a book, so I thought he might feel out of place. But instead, he embraced the moment and shared how much he too liked math. It was a proud mama moment. I can't wait to go to another book signing. My friend Aimee invited me to go see Anne Lamott in a few weeks and I am excited to hear her wisdom in person. I may have found a new hobby! "Anyone who stops learning is old whether at twenty or eighty. Anyone who keeps learning stays young." -Henry Ford I love to learn--this is a key part of my identity. A whole part of my starting my life list was that I wanted to have a "stockpile" of things to keep me learning. This fall, I am starting some really specific learning--how to be a great engineering teacher. I have been looking at "STEM" programs over the past few years to fill in my skill set, but most have focused on Math or Science. At the end of last summer, however, I caught wind of one that might help me out while attending a training. Tufts University has a Teacher Engineering Education Program that provides direct instruction in both engineering pedagogy and content. A perfect solution!
This semester I am taking an Engineering for Secondary Teachers Class and I'm so, so excited. So far I have learned to program the data logger on a LEGO Mindstorm EV3, tested how different shopping bags fail, and learned that my coffee stays hot on my desk for about 70 minutes. I am excited to see where this learning adventure takes me! A fresh start. This year school feels like a new beginning as we are poised to start out the school year in our brand new building. Organization and materials management have always been HUGE struggles for me, so I signed up to take the 40 Hour Teacher Workweek to lean how to make my classroom more efficient. And after 4 days of unpacking, organizing, and preparing, my classroom is beautiful. When I walk in the door, my heart begins to smile and I feel a calm, easy feeling. It is beautiful, new, and full of potential--just like every day of our life! And that is a feeling to be cherished.
"There are great slender models, great tall models, Amazonian models, great busty models-my point is models of all shapes and sizes, age, ethnic backgrounds should be embraced and celebrated." -Erin O'Conner If you had asked me just a few years ago to go to a photo shoot, I would have laughed at you. I'm a plus size girl and always a little self conscious about having my photo taken. But I pushed through those thoughts on Friday when I saw a candidate for the state senate put out a call for teachers to participate in a photoshoot for election materials. I decided last spring that it is important to get more engaged in politics especially around education. So I said I could help. This morning I took a bunch of pictures with cute kids and candidates to help them prepare to take back the senate in November. And you know what? it was fun! I am a model! (Curves and fuzzy hair and all!)
"Unless your name is google, stop acting like you know everything ;)"-Unkknown In January, I went to the Alice Keeler Training (see post here). After that day, I realized that I didn't know as much about Google Aps for Education as I should for my students. Thus, I added getting my Google certification to my life list. This week I finished both Level 1 and Level 2--and boy am I glad I did. Here are my 10 favorite things I learned:
10. Create and Host your Own You Tube Channel 9. Using the Explore Tool 8. Creating custom Maps for student learning 7. Adding Cards to Youtube Videos 6. Create your own learning adventures in google forms 5. Using the Unique Formula In Sheets 4. Conditional Formating in Sheets and Forms 3. Using Filter Views (and saving them) in Sheets 2. Appointment Spots on Google Calendar 1. Canned Email Responses I am going to take a break now from Google as school gets started. I think that I might try to finish the certified trainer course at a later date. "In order to create an engaging learning experience, the role of instructor is optional, but the role of the learner is essential." -Bernard Bull Online classes have been really hard for me to transition to. I tend to be a social learner, so the thought of interacting only with instructors via a computer seemed like too much of a shift for me. But this week, I have learned, that I can be successful.
As part of the Ed Tech Institute I am participating in, I have taken three different courses this week and learned a lot. The best part--I can turn my music on and enjoy while I go at my own speed. Now I wonder how to incorporate this in a meaningful way in my classroom. The success this week was enough to tip the scale for me to apply to the Tufts Online Teacher Engineering Education Program. I am excited to learn more about teaching engineering and can't wait to see how online learning can open up the world! |
AuthorAlmost 40 and tired of the treadmill, I am going to LIVE each day as a new adventure while finishing todo items on my life list. Mom, wife, teacher, geek! Archives
May 2020
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