Tinkerings

I recently purchased a flip cam for use at school.  After the purchase, I used it for a few things and then it sort of went into hiding.  Oh, I filmed a few sports clips on campus, and I’ve definitely used it at holidays to record the grandkids.  But I’ve really struggled with both how to use the camera and how to get teachers excited about using the camera for themselves.

Below is a Slideshare presentation on 42 ways to use a flip cam in the classroom.  I really like them.  Even the ones geared at younger kids will work in a middle school setting.  And it definitely would help with project based learning in a number of ways!

How are you using flip cameras at your school?

A few days ago I was privileged to be invited to a focus group conducted by Discovery Education concerning possible changes to some of the features within DE Streaming.  It was a wonderful experience, and I enjoyed the give and take of doing the focus group online.  Somewhere about half way through the meeting I had an epiphany about my own classroom instruction.

I am closed.

No, I don’t mean I’m closed for business (or out to lunch).  I mean when kids ask me questions, I give them the answer.  “Mr. Childers, what am I supposed to write on this line?”  “Your name, Johnny, just like it says.”  “Mr. Childers, what is 2 plus 3?”  “That’s 5, Sam.”

Case closed.

But the focus group was different.  We would look at a screenshot of a new form design and someone would ask, “If I click on this drop down menu, am I going to find XYZ?”  Me?  I would have said yes or no.  Closed.  But not the person conducting the focus group.  She said, “What would you expect to find if you clicked that drop down menu?”

Wow.

Now, this might not mean much for you, but it was huge for me.  Students need to struggle more than I let them.  They need what one person (I can’t remember who) called “controlled floundering.”  Let them tread water for awhile.

I’m trying to make my classroom more open.  This semester, especially, I have told my kids to talk to their neighbors if there is something about a new website they don’t understand.  If they look around and see someone else in the room who is already two steps ahead, just ask how they got there.  I’m trying to develop peer teaching.  But still, when the questions come to me I am too quick to just blurt out answers.

Maybe its a man thing.  You know what I mean.  Men feel powerful and important when we can spout out answers to stuff, fix stuff, and find our way somewhere without having to stop and ask for directions.  Whatever it is, I want it to stop.

To turn an old adage on its head, closed gives a man a fish.  Open teaches a man to fish.

And therein lies the difference.  Are you open or closed?

This is the time of year I really like my job.  Well, OK, I really like my job the entire year, but this time of year is really special.  I get to work with 8th graders to help them discover things about themselves they might not have already known and point them in a path toward high school graduation that will make them love school all over again like they did in kindergarten.

When we are dealing with our Career Education section of our lab classes, one of the personality assessments we look at is the Holland Hexagon.  We watch a DE Streaming video on the subject over a couple of days and then the kids take their own assessment to see which personality traits are dominate in their lives.  For those who are unfamiliar, let me give you a brief (and somewhat stereotypical) breakdown of the 6 Holland Types:

The Doer is someone who likes to work outdoors, work with his hands, is mechanically inclined, athletic, and doesn’t really care much what other people think about what he does. (Think auto mechanic, forest ranger, athlete, etc)

The Thinker is a person who likes to investigate and research, works better alone, not athletic (usually), and can get lost in the process of finding answers to complicated questions. (Think scientist, researcher, data cruncher, etc)

The Creator is a student who doesn’t like rules, does everything in her own unique way, loves art, music, and drama, and can get lost in the creative process.  (Think artist, singer, graphic designer, architect, fashion designer, etc)

The Helper is someone who is very social, engages with others easily, empathetic, and tries to offer solutions to personal problems that his friends are facing.  (Think teacher, minister, social worker, nurse, etc)

The Persuader is a person who just naturally takes charge, extremely social, loves to use words, likes to organize events, and is usually respected for his or her leadership qualities.  (Think politician, salesperson, televangelist, etc)

The Organizer is a person who loves numbers, usually more comfortable alone, meticulous, well-organized, and doesn’t usually relate well to people with personal problems.  (Think accountant, math teacher, etc)

The thing to remember about the Holland Types is that none of us are just ONE type.  We are a blend of all these things, but usually 1 or 2 rise to the top as dominate traits.

I have about 130 students I teach this semester.  Out of those students, the 3 predominate personality types were the Doer, the Creator, and the Helper.  Think about that for a moment.

In education, when we talk about differentiation we are usually referring to teaching those that already “get it,” those that are struggling to “get it,” and those that will never “get it.”  We design different types of activities for these levels of knowledge or engagement.

But think again about the Holland results.  The majority of 8th graders (at least in my classes) are kids who want to be outdoors and love to work with their hands, other kids who don’t like to follow the rules and express themselves better with pictures than with words, and a group of kids who are extremely social and drawn to friends with problems in order to help them (what we lovingly call “drama” in middle school).

Maybe differentiation should focus more on how kids learn than on their present level of knowledge.  A Doer might not ever write a great essay.  She might always struggle with words.  Be fidgety in her chair.  And just long to breathe some fresh air outside the classroom.  The Creator may want to draw you a picture of what he thinks about a certain subject.  But that isn’t the assignment, so we stifle them (one of my favorite Archie Bunker terms…stifle).  The Helper really just needs some time in class to TALK for goodness sake.

What kind of differentiation are you doing?

This past Sunday my mom, daughter #2, grandchild #1, and I hopped into the car and drove up to Nashville to see daughter #1 in a play entitled, “Secrets of a Soccer Mom.”  (Hence the asterisk after “Review” in the title.  I will admit up front that I am most than just a little biased).
“Secrets of a Soccer Mom” is a snapshot of three moms sharing an afternoon at their children’s soccer field.  Although I’ve never really seen (or even heard of) a soccer day where the mom’s form teams to play against their children, that is the premise of this story, and it is an important part of what is going on.

The play alternates beautifully between funny and touching.  There were a couple of times I was wiping a small tear out of my eye, and trying my best to do it in such a way that no one noticed.

Throughout the play, we get to see the intricate personalities of moms, wives, and women in general.  The way they are overly concerned about making sure that everyone is happy.  The way they hold want to hold back to make sure the kids win because they are convinced that is what their kids need.  The frustrations they feel for giving up their individual “lives” to be everything to everyone.  The way they feel “stuck” with no way out at times even though they love their husbands and their kids totally and completely.  The difficulty they have in getting out complete sentences because their focus is always on the kids.

In addition to personal struggles, we also catch glimpses of small triumphs along the way.  I was reminded of the movie, “The Holiday,” and Kate Winslet’s search for “gumption.”  These ladies have it, but they lose sight of it at times, or maybe forget that its ok to use it.

I thoroughly enjoyed the play.  The three stars were fabulous, and the script was terrific.  If you are in the Nashville area, check out Secrets of a Soccer Mom playing at the Looby Theater.  It will be there for a couple more weeks.  They also have a FB page where you can get more information.

I will be headed back to Nashville this Sunday for 2 days of training.  I plan to leave early enough to see it again.  It starts at 2:30.  Come on down and join me.  Then we’ll all go get coffee afterwards and you can tell me how much Brittany reminds you of me!