The Season of Gratitude

            As we come into the holiday season, it is essential to acknowledge, and thank those around us who make us better and happier people. Since we spend so much of our time at school, I always feel like it is our second family. There are many people in my professional life that show support in many different ways. This year I am grateful to the people who are always there, as well as the new friends and colleagues that have been wonderful and supportive.

 

1.  I am grateful for the hilarious friends I have on campus because without talking to them every single day; I am not sure what I would do without them. They are an ear to listen to my worries, run teaching strategies by, and they are always there for a good laugh (The best kind of laugh too, where your stomach hurts from laughing so hard). They are the adult interaction I need to be around to stay positive.

2. My students are the sweetest and kindest group of kids to be around. They make work    not seem like work at all. I    chose to switch grade levels this year, and I am so lucky to be the person to teach them. The kids are indeed a fantastic group.

3.  My team this year has been so welcoming and supportive. They are always sure to include me and keep me up to speed on the routines they do as a grade level. They make me laugh, and they share and plan together. Again they made the change of moving grade levels into the positive experience that I was seeking professionally.

4. Last but not least, the ladies in the front office and our custodians are hardworking and amazing. They are so helpful and very willing to help colleagues and me. It must be hard to deal with so many demands, but they can pull off running the school.  

 The holiday season is a cheerful time, but it can be a sad time for many people, so I think it is essential to share all the good that others do because you never know who needs to hear it. Our school families need to be appreciated, so make sure to let the people around you know that you are lucky to have them in your life; the holiday season is the perfect time to bring warmth and happiness.   I will be letting all of these people know the positive impact they have on my life.

Diana Eberle

Learning Targets - Part II

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I hope that you are looking forward to the winter break this year as time to yourself.

Last month I talked about Learning Targets and some thoughts I had on them.  This month I want to just give a little bit more for you to think about as you write learning targets.


One important aspect of the Learning Targets that I did not talk about last month was gathering data on how students did in meeting the learning target for the day.  Students will be working towards the learning target during the period and they need to be able to reflect and report out how they did in achieving the learning target.  Some methods I use in collecting this data over the years is:  thumbs up/thumbs down at the end of the period, Khan Academy score for the period, Exit Ticket questions, Google Form Question.  In addition, students need to know what criteria will be used in meeting the learning target (the 'look fors').  For example, in my class today the learning target was, "I can find the perimeter of a shape using the Pythagorean Theorem (by getting 50% or more on the Khan Academy lesson)."  Students are then able to assess, for themselves, by the end of the period if they met the learning target for the day.

Gathering of the data is important as it gives important information to the teacher in moving forward the next day - does any review need to take place, does more rigor need to be added to the lesson, can I move forward in the learning process?

The data you gather can be done through a variety of means - find ways that are meaningful and relevant for you and your students.  The important part of this is that you have evidence from your students that allows you to make a personal decision about whether the class achieved the learning target for the day or not.

I, personally, find the data gathering and review of it the interesting part of the day - it tells me, in black and white, whether the students grasped the learning target.  The data then influences my deliberate decisions for the next lesson.

Writing learning targets is important in that it gives students a goal for the lesson - having a data tool to gather the amount of success in achieving the learning target is an important next step in implementing learning targets. 

Students need to know what the criteria is for achieving success and teachers must be able to measure that success.

I wish everyone a well deserved restful break.

Still teaching and loving it,

                      Kevin Stott

De Anza Middle School

Reading Rainbow Dot Com

Reading Rainbow Dot Com

When I was a kid, books were made of paper. Simple paper, dressed in leather and covered in ink. The library was a castle of books, with rows of endless imagination waiting to be discovered. Alice and her adventure into Wonderland, Mr. Toad and his wild rides, Peter Pan over London, it was all available and accessible with a swipe of your library card. 

Fast forward 30 years, and that has all changed. Now reading a book is more of a technical accomplishment, where the luxury of opening a gathering of pages is as foreign as using a payphone. Amazon Prime, Audible, Kindle, Nook, Barnes and Noble have all contributed to the evolution of the “library experience,” and the development, although scary may increase student literacy as we know it.

Grab Those Tablets

Most children in our classroom have access to a phone or a computer, perhaps more regularly than a bus or a car. Moreover, certain demographics may find it intimidating to explore the maze of books that is available to them at those brick cathedrals that smell of glue and paper. This is not an excuse, and should not be looked to as a negative side effect of the digital revolution that imposed itself in history during the 1990’s. I argue that digital resources can, in fact, open the door for students less skilled in navigating the library, but who have been exposed to apps and websites since birth.

It’s the intersection of technology and liberal arts that makes our hearts sing. 

-Steve Jobs

Most libraries have a website where they catalog their entire collection, Lord of the Rings is just a click away. The Los Angeles County Library District has an app called “Libby” which collects audio and digital collections from multiple libraries in their network making checking out material as easy as 1, 2, click! Students can venture into genres without fear or anxiety. They can explore fictional worlds at their leisure. With digital resources such as this, the students are encouraged to try books, and return them if they feel it the literature was not a fit. Often both audio and digital versions of the same book can be checked out, providing additional support for the young reader. What’s more, most of the classic stories that have impacted generations of readers have been converted into digital, showing that even those lost in Neverland can grow with the times. 

This statement comes from personal experience. As a kid, I loved the library. I loved to walk the halls and imagine the adventures I could have as a princess, a dancer, or even a villain. This experience has not been lost; it has evolved. Perhaps it is time we evolve with it. 

Sharing one last story with you,

Yvonne Milian

Photo by Patricia Prudente on Unsplash

R-E-S-P-E-C-T

R-E-S-P-E-C-T This Is What It Means To Me

Gilbert paced up and down the back row of my 6th-grade classroom one early September afternoon. I knew he struggled with Math, and the problem his table was working on proved to be more than he could handle. To say he felt frustrated would be an understatement. However, I already knew this about Gilbert. His fifth-grade teacher had shared just that with me. That Gilbert can get easily frustrated when faced with a challenge he could not conquer. The other piece of this dilemma, shared with me by his previous teacher, is that when Gilbert could not find the answer he was seeking, he would turn to distract others. He would participate in off-task behavior and even become a bit violent with himself to avoid the task at hand. I knew that I had to approach this situation carefully. I wanted to get Gilbert on my side. 

  

Teammates 

I called Gilbert over to my desk and asked if he could sit next to me. I began our conversation by sharing a personal story with him. A story about me, my struggles as an English Learner, in a classroom where I felt like an outsider. I did not fully understand the language, what my teacher was asking me to do, or even what my peers giggled about during play centers. However, I did understand one thing, and it was the love and patience Mrs. Androlli demonstrated to all of the students in her class. 

I understood where Gilbert was coming from, and at that moment, he realized that as well. He knew that my goal was for my students to see that I respected them; I valued them, and that they are an essential piece to our classroom. Gilbert and I made a pact that afternoon. I told him that I was on his side, on his team, and that as long as he and I understood that we were each going to put in 100% into our goals that year, we could not fail. Gilbert walked back to his seat that September afternoon, sat with his team, and carried out his role in solving that problem- to the best of HIS abilities. 

Children are human beings to whom respect is due, superior to us by reason of their innocence and of the greater possibilities of their future. -Maria Montessori

Respect- A Two-Way Street 

1. I have always found that respecting your students' individual personalities will give you the most buy-in from your students.

2. Each child is different. They react differently to situations, they perform differently on any given task, and they will also demonstrate their gratitude to you in very different manners. Honor these differences, nurture these differences because this is what makes our students unique, and they will thank you in their unique way for valuing who they are.

3. Remind your students that it is not you vs. them. You are on the same team as your students. Their goals are yours, their struggles are yours, and their successes are also yours. 

Gilbert finished the year successfully. Gilbert did not have one outburst that year. He was not sent to the office. He was not off task. He was a leader. 
Gilbert is set to graduate High School this year. He stops by and visits me at least once a year. We exchange stories, and we laugh, we reminisce. I'm not sure if he knows this, but to this day- his story of success is one of my favorites to share. 

Sharing her stories with you, 
Yvonne Milian 

 

Building Math Fluency

Building Math Fluency

This is my 5th year teaching fourth grade.   By now I know most of the curriculum and standards like the back of my hand.   I know exactly where I need my kiddos to be by the end of the year, especially when it comes to math and I know how much work it is going to take to get there.  We teach 2-digit by 2-digit multiplication, division, and fractions in 4th grade!  It is not easy no matter how long you have been teaching it. All of those concepts require students to have fluency with addition/subtraction as well as multiplication facts.  It is important that I have time in my daily lessons to help students build their fluency. 

Eureka Math

The great part about using Eureka Math is that fluency is already built into each lesson.  This is almost always found at the beginning of lessons.  I know that sometimes as teachers we may feel tempted to skip that part for the sake of time, but I'm here to ask you not to skip over fluency.  It is so key to help spiral students' learning and set them up for the lesson you are about to teach. 

I recently went to a district training on math fluency and boy did I learn a lot.  I really had to take some time to think about how I was conducting fluency practice and how I could make it so much more meaningful for my students.

What I learned

• Grades K - 5 are all about units! When practicing fluency it is important to remember the unit. Whether it is fractions, place value, or measurement always include the unit.
• Signaling is so important.  This was totally new to me.  I thought that establishing a signal to use with Happy Counting would be easy.  Once I started practicing with my team I was so wrong.  If I wasn't clearly signaling for my colleague to understand, then how would my students be able to understand what I was asking of them?  I recommend practicing with a partner a few times before you try with students. You might also want to videotape yourself with your class to see how it went.  You can adjust your signaling after watching yourself.  One thing that I have struggled with in the past with students is when they start to count too fast.  Once I started using the signaling with fluency practice I notice that problem pretty much stopped altogether.  This helped me set a pace in the classroom that was perfect for everyone, not just the high achievers.  
• Smile -  At first I was so focused on getting my signaling down, that I probably looked like I wasn't enjoying the lesson.   If you look like you are trying to rush through fluency or unhappy about including it in your lesson then students will pick up on it. Encourage students through your smile.  
• Set a timer.  If you are struggling to fit math fluency in your lesson, then start with a minute or two. Fluency should not be the main part of your lesson.  The idea is not to drill and kill your students but to help them build their number sense and mental math skills.  

This training was such a game-changer for me.  I am sometimes guilty of falling into the same routine year after year.  I was so excited to see different strategies and teaching practices to make math fluency more accessible for my students. Have you been to this math training yet?  What were some of your takeaways? 

Learning and Teaching with Grace,
Alina

Teaching Through Inquiry

Teaching Through Inquiry

One of my favorite inquiry-based teaching strategies is a type of group investigation called a Puzzlement.  A puzzlement is an activity that starts with an observation of some kind, which leads to questioning, research, and synthesis of information.  If can be used for any topic or subject.  This is a great activity to use at the beginning of a unit of study.  However, it doesn't have to be confined to just at the beginning.

Getting Started

Start by showing students something (a picture, video, etc) that is both interesting and new to them about the topic you want them to learn about.  In the past, I have used a photo, illustration, video, excerpt of a text, and even a word problem during my puzzlement lessons.   The idea here is to get the students to think and wonder about the specific topic.  This helps students buy into their own learning.  Your goal is to get them to start thinking about questions they have about a topic.

After students have seen the puzzlement, ask them to come up with questions they have about what they have just seen.  As students are coming up with questions about the topic, list their questions on chart paper.  Next to each question, I like to put the names of the student that asked it.  This part of the lessons does take some time to complete.  I make sure to tell students to think about their questions and look at the list of questions before sharing their own.  This helps the process to go a little faster.  Before students share whole group, I have them do a think-pair-share first.  If there is a repeat question, then I will place a checkmark next to the question and write the new student's name as well.

Once the list of student questions is done, it is important to focus the inquiry on just a few questions.  Sometimes we analyze the questions together to decide which questions would be great research questions and other times I decide for the students.  In that case, I will place a star next to 3-5 questions that I think will guide students in the learning I want them to have.  Even though they will only work on answering the selected questions, I like to leave the entire list up for the class to see.  This is why I prefer chart paper to a whiteboard.  I want the questions viewable throughout the lesson.

Now that students have a set of questions to guide their learning the inquiry begins. Have students work in groups to respond to the focus questions you decided on. Remember students are not going to respond to all the questions on the list, just the selected ones.  How you chose to set up the inquiry groups is up to you.  Sometimes, I jigsaw the learning, giving each group different text sets.  Othertimes they all have the same text.  I usually place students in groups of 3-4, but I have also had students work with a partner as well.  As students are researching, I have them use the prompts of depth and complexity to guide them, I love using a frame with prompts to help them learn.

Finally, when students have finished their inquiry we come back to whole group to share our learning.  I will use a chart again to take notes on what each group learned.  Students always surprise me with what they have learned.  Their insights are amazing and this leads to such rich conversations about a topic.

Have you used a puzzlement in your classroom?  Leave a comment below to share how it went.

Learning and Teaching with Grace,
Alina

Children CAN Read: Building Relationships through Reading

Children CAN Read:  

Building Relationships Through Reading

by: Ashley Ewert

From the beginning of the school year we, as teachers, build relationships with students using a variety of models and strategies. Have you ever thought how you can build a relationship with a student over a simple book? We encourage parents to read to their children every night, we even assign reading homework to students to encourage reading outside the classroom. Parents who read bedtime storied to their children build relationships and take adventures through the stories they read each night. So, as teachers, let's take that same that same idea and build relationships and take adventures through stories we read to the students in the classroom. Great teaching practice involves encouragement at all levels of reading abilities. Giving students the confidence that they can read at any level will help build positive relationships with the students. Reading can be a powerful way to help build acceptance, understanding and social emotional needs. 

Ways  to Encourage Reading - 

Reading development can be similar to language development. When do children learn to communicate? Is their first form of communication crying or saying words? Reading development is very similar. Some believe that reading begins when children learn to read sentences in a book and others believe that reading begins when children point and read pictures in a book. There are so many modalities of reading that reading development can really begin with at a very young age. I have always encouraged my preschool students that they can read. They can read pictures in a book. They can read words and letters in a book. They can also read by re-telling the story after it has been read to them. Encouraging students that they can read gives them motivation and helps to establish and build relationships in the classroom between students and teachers. 

"A person is a person no matter how small" - Dr. Seuss, Horton Hears a Who!

Student & Teacher Reading Connections- 

Reading is often thought of as a self contained act. Meaning that many children read silently alone. This does not have to be the case. Teachers can build connections through reading when reading aloud or pulling a small reading groups. Reading in small groups allows opportunities to meet student's social emotional needs thus allowing teachers to build and make connections with students. I enjoy adding additional reading materials to my Language arts block during the holidays. When I have read holiday books as a whole group read aloud I often place the books in the classroom library for students to choose when they have a library center rotation. During the library center rotation I am sure to provide the students with staff support so they can have the opportunity to read with an adult individually or as a small group. reading can be fun. Reading can be adventurous. Reading can build connections, relationships, acceptance and foster social emotional needs. 

"You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think." - A.A. Milne

"To teach is to touch a life forever." - Anonymous 

Ashley Ewert

Gingerbread Man Exchange

Gingerbread men are a popular staple to the Christmas holiday season.  There are many variations to this fairy tale, which can make for a plethora of lesson ideas: summary, compare and contrast, character study, genre study, cause and effect, etc...                                                              

This year, I have been focusing on building relationships within my classroom à la Conscious Discipline. My last three blogs (1, 2, 3) delved into the beginning stages of implementing the strategies. In November, the opportunity came up to belong to a gingerbread man exchange with kindergarten classrooms across the United States (via a Facebook group), so I thought this would be a great way to continue to build relationships among my students while also making connections with other students.

Our elf, NERF, brought all the supplies with a task card.  The students had to collaborate with a partner to create two different gingerbread man. They had to agree which supplies to use, colors, size, boy or girl, placement of decorations, etc...  Then, as a class, we had to decide what information we wanted to share about our school and classroom with these other classes.  We put the information sheet and gingerbread men into the envelopes and NERF mailed them off for us (22 in total). We eagerly await the mail each day.

Our first packages arrived on Friday.  NERF brought us a United States map so we could chart where each gingerbread came from. We read the information about each school and class.  One class even sent us a salt dough gingerbread ornament scented with ginger to hang on our tree. We've compared our classroom with the others with whom we've already connected.  Mostly we found similarities; one class sent a picture that had the same United States map as us!).

My students and I have enjoyed this activity so much that we are planning to do a Valentine exchange and a spring flower exchange with the same classes. My students are learning that there is a big world out there and that we are more similar than we are different.

Enjoy your winter break and...

Erin Grebel

Integrating Depth of Complexity Gate Frames in Math

As December is upon us, so are these three words: deadlines, drowsiness, and decisions. One thing that probably does not change is the running to-do list that seems to pop into your head as your in bed. Don't forget tomorrow you have yard duty. I have to get to work early to make copies of my math assignment. Jacob, Darren, and Julie were absent, so I need to make sure they make up their test. Remember to switch my ELA and math times because students need to leave for band practice during my regular ELA block.  With extra holiday activities and chronic absenteeism, where do you find time to teach and make sure that everyone is on the same page? How do you alter your instruction to present the material in a way so they won't forget it in over the break and without coming up with something new every single time? Little did I know that the solution was one frame, a soft whiteboard, a dry erase marker, and a dry eraser. Yes! That's pretty much it. Embedding Depth of Complexity frames during my math instruction provides a solid structure for students to further their understanding of a math concept and manipulate it in many different ways. It also offers an opportunity to review previous lessons quickly. The best way for students to find the value in these frames is by using them consistently. 

1 DOK frame, 5 skills captured, ALL minds learning

"Remember, yesterday, we learned about inequalities with rational numbers and how to order them, right?" A sea of wide eyes stare back at me, a few nods, and some furrowed eyebrows expressing confusion look back at me. Alright, let me do a quick 5-minute review, and then we will be good to go. I glance at the clock, and somehow 5 minutes turned into 10 minutes, and part of me questions how valuable it was that time and if I will be able to reach today's learning target because of it. Instead of thinking of what I covered, I think about what didn't I cover! I gave simple problems that I could create on the top of my head within a quick second. I didn't check to make sure they could explain and reason their answer using vocabulary, make them represent with a number line, or have them create a situation. To top it all off, the students who didn't need the review are now bored and off task. Its times like these when I wonder how can I be prepared for these hiccups without taking time out of my day to create a review I may or may not need. That's when I realized I needed something that I could have them take out on the spot to review. Something that required students to enhance their ability to follow written directions and me to pinpoint skills for one given math concept-a depth of complexity gate frame with a few icons did the trick. I didn't realize how much one little paper could allow me to focus on the problematic math skills but also be able to walk around and pinpoint the areas of weakness of strength within a second. With embedding these frames, I could complete

maybe three problems. Now, this may not sound like a lot. Still, within these three problems, students created a real-word problem, used and internalized academic vocabulary, explained the reasoning of their answer, provided their solution in an equation, and, last but not least, provided a drawing. Now I am not saying that the second I introduce them to a new gate frame, they will meet my expectations, so when I provide them with a new one, we complete one together on the smartboard. I then give an example they can complete on their own. I've learned that sometimes, students need to feel as if they can do it. It doesn't matter that they have seen the directions one hundred times; the fear of not visually seeing your expectations can hinder them more than anything. The way I see it, if a student is willing to use my example to benefit their own understanding, then we are all winning and the ability to understand another's thinking has been internalized.  

The begining .. but definitely not the end
So as all great things, the start of something new starts with the creativity of the teacher, however once you have created it, it can be used for years to come.

1. Pinpoint what math concepts students struggle retaining or are vital in knowing throughout the movule. Ex. Double digit multiplication
2. On a document edit the gate frame using icons and list components that are necessary for that skill. For example, in fourth grade for multiplication the strategies would be place value chart, area model, partial products, and algorithm form so those would complete your gate frame. **Lets say there are different components of one skill-integers/rational numbers then create multiple frames for that skill in scaffolds as seen in the photos. 
3. Print a copy for each student on cardstock and pass them out to place in a soft whiteboard (White cardstock on one side and red cardstock on the other). Students will slip the frame on the top. When it is time for a new one they will leave the previous ones and add to it. This helps review any strategies on a drop of a hat. 
4. Use as a quick warmup (fluency) for a lesson or to introduce a topic or to review a series of strategies within a topic/Module. 
5. Provide an example for students if necessary for the first time. Then only circle one or two portions of the gate frame. Continue adding portions until students understand or have been taught all portions of the frame.  
6. Put on a timer and allow students to complete independently while walking around the room and monitoring and assisting where needed
7. Pull students together and review their soft whiteboards visually and continue with following problems.

Taking it further

Accoutability: 

• Check one student's board if everything is correct and have them check their tables to determine their answers. Have them explain to a student if they do not understand. 
• Count it as an exit ticket
• If a student is really struggling with a portion of the frame, check the students by staying "yes" provide another problem for them to do, but doon't allow the struggling students to move on. Allow them more time to continue with the problem they are on. 
• Let students know that they will share their answer to a class under the document camera and another student will be referring to the frame as they are talking about it. 

Collaboration/: 

• In pairs, divide the portions of the gate frame between the two-meaning each student has to complete two portions and then when they come together they will have to determine if their answer is correct and if they can support it with numerous methods. 
• Allow students to complete one whole gate frame as a team switching up the portion of they gate frame. 

Kagan:

• After completion of the gate frame allow students to discuss their answer with others, especially if a challeging problem or a skill students struggle with. Students can complete with a mix pair share, complete as a team almost as a jigsaw rotation

Regardless of when you decide to implement gate frames within the school year, the impact they can make is tremendous. Remember there is no right or wrong way to create a frame. I encourage you to create one for an upcoming module or even a past one that you feel students may forget.  

Lively Teaching,

Miss Magana

Co-Teaching in Action & Building Relationships with Co-Teachers

Co-Teaching in Action 

Building Relationships with Co-Teachers

by Ashley Ewert

Co-Teachers: Mrs, Curry & Mrs. Ewert

 I want to reflect on my co-teaching journey and offer some insight on what has been successful and the challenges we have come across. If you had read my previous blogs on co teaching you will have remembered that my co-teacher and I were approached with the idea of increasing our collaboration and mainstreaming with our students. Here is a link to my previous blogs about co-teaching ( Co-Teaching Part 1, Co-Teaching Part 2). In starting this adventure, my co-teacher and I dedicated ourselves to reading a book, Teaching in Tandem by: Gloria Wilson and Joan Blendnic, before dedicating to the idea of building a co-teaching classroom. From the book, we read over summer, we learned and became fired up about the idea that co-teaching is not only a benefit for adults working together but for all students involved. I'm not going to lie... I was a little ... ok a lot ..nervous about the idea of sharing a classroom with another teacher. 

  

Finding the right match

How co-teachers are paired is very important to the success of the school year. Teachers who volunteer to co-teach with each other often have far better success than those that are assigned by administration or for convenience. Effective co-teachers communicate honestly with each other. My co-teacher and I volunteered to pair together this school year. We seem to make a great team and compliment each other in so many ways. We have open discussions daily about activities and lessons that we have planned, prepared and delivered. We have trust in each other and we are able to model great friendship skills to our students. Effective co-teaching is about professionalism of the co-teaching pair and a commitment to understand how students learn and succeed.  Finding a right match for a co-teacher is important to the success of the co-teaching classroom. 

"Teaching together is much more powerful than teaching alone." - Gloria Wilson &Joan Blendnic

Making it work to overcome the challenges

Among the many successful outcomes of co-teaching there is their fair share of challenges that we have had to overcome. As a special education teacher, I found that the large class size was a challenge at the beginning of the school year. In previous years I have had up to 13 students. With a combination of the students we have on the general education caseload and the special education caseload we total more students than I have ever possibly imagined in one classroom! How do we do it you ask? Well ... It all starts and ends with a great team of staff in the classroom all supporting each and every student. Another challenge that came up during the school year was the task of collaborating with the service providers to take the students to their services. Service providers are very flexible with their times and really try to take students at a time that would least impact their academic education. The challenge is to remember who, where, and when all the students are while managing a classroom full of general education and special education students.  How do we manage this you ask??? Well... we have made a schedule for each student with services and have that readily available for staff in the classroom. I will attach a sample on my Spotlight page as a resource for those that this may help with! 

"When everyone is  included, everyone wins." - Jesse Jackson

"To teach is to touch a life forever." - Anonymous 

Ashley Ewert

The Power of One Book Part 1

A constant struggle of mine has been helping my students find a love for reading and writing, especially writing! I might be able to persuade a few to join me on my love for books but for writing I usually have more push back. Well last year I found the secret tool that helped me persuade my tweens to actually want to write while caring about grammar! Whaat!? That sounds unheard of, right? The secret tool is none other than interacting with other tweens: having a pen-pal.

Reading and Writing with a Purpose 

This year my tweens and I are reading the novel Refugee by Alan Gratz while collaborating with a 7th grade classroom in Canada. We are both reading the novel at the same pace while discussing the novel together. So far we've introduced ourselves by writing a friendly letter and then shipped it to none other than CANADA!😲 Oh yes you heard right, we're bringing snail mail back! 

Connecting with Google Meet

In addition to writing letters we also set up a Google Meet session where our students had the opportunity to meet face to face for the very first time! Ahhhh... The excitement was vibrating through our walls, literally. Prior to our live Meet session, my lovely partner and I tested Google Meet and were able to connect without any troubleshooting problems. Overall this tool is very user friendly even to new users like myself. We held our live Google Meet right before our Thanksgiving break and it was a huge success. Our pen-pals had received our letters and their teacher had placed us with our pen-pal! Both classes had the opportunity to ask questions, discuss the novel and meet their pals. Below you'll find a video of our Google Meet session.

After participating on this amazing opportunity I noticed that my students were anxious to read to see if their predictions were correct. They were also excited to write back to their pen-pals! Talk about the power of one book.

My challenge to you is to connect with other teachers in our district and perhaps collaborate by using a novel or informational text. Can you imagine a Socratic Seminar or Philosophical Chairs debate by using Google Meet? The opportunities are endless! Stay tuned to hear about our escape box that lead to our letters. 

Learning & Growing,

Nancy Vargas