Bring reality to your classroom and having fun too

I have two gems to share with you today …..

1. Making math real: “How can four friends share six cookies equally?”
http://www.educationreporting.com/viewArticleDetails.php?id=817

2. Five star teacher blog: from toys to tools – how to use cell phones in class.
http://www.educationreporting.com/index.php#blogs

Jack

The invisible key is relevance …….

I’m displaying 15 links below to provide lesson relevance and skill building for K12 teachers…

….. no worries about your political party these days ….. seems everyone has gripes about the Feds “improving education” and what they do … or don’t do ….. been dat way ever since the Dept. of Ed got created.

….. with K12 ed our kids suffer the losses as nothing gets done to produce, enforce, and fund sutainable K12 improvements ….. as more and more double sided rhetoric gets stimulated.

… unfortunately our government – like any large corporation, or even school district, that’s outta control – has become bloated with 1) powerful folks voting their own agendas instead of what serves a sensible solution, 2) domineering special interests groups wanting to take control, and 3) disturbing political agenda groups twisting facts and figures….it gonna be a while to see what’s capitulated.

No doubt, there is a bumpy road ahead for K12 education while teachers are left to steer the course and dig the trenches. Well, the Los Angeles school district has taken matters – a link to that news is below – into their own hands ….let’s see what they’re gonna have articulated.

Click here to read the newsletter.

The project learning and service learning RSS feed is updated with new resources;
http://www.educationreporting.com/greenschool.xml

Jack

Teaching and innovation – the right mix – with evidence

I’m combing the web to bring you the nuggets that juice up teaching skills to electrify lesson and jolt critical thinkin’ opportunities ….

…. no worries about your time …. it won’t take hours to read thiese and grab some insights.

1. Segway inventor Dean Kamen highlights the flaws in American science education as he discusses how to use innovation in class rooms. Click Here.

2. The strong performance of Cleveland’s schools using innovation schools are compared to other public schools citywide. Click Here.

3. The devastation of Hurricane Katrina four years ago brought with it many changes for this city, but perhaps its most enduring mark may be the new charter school system that came cascading in during the storm’s aftermath.  Click Here.

You can get thousands of free learning games resources here http://www.educationreporting.com/Education_Games.xml

Jack

I’ve done the research – you save the time and reap the rewards.

…. the 15+ links below will surely blow some fresh breezes in a few classrooms across this world – no doubt.

I’ve had three of my own major myths revealed to me – so far this year …..

……one, robots can never replace teachers – I covered this in an earlier issue.

…… two, technology won’t shift the shape of K12 classes too, too much.

……. three, no sustainable and equitable effort is …. or will be made….. to educate young people by public institutions – across the K12 curriculum.

Last week I discovered the Open Education Resources (OER) and the Open Language Learning Initiative (OLLI)……..so much for the floor of my myth #3. You have a link to ‘em both -and other FREE K12 courses, and higher education as well – below.

http://www.educationreporting.com/archive.php

Teachers: Seven Top Replete Resources & Strategies

Time to begin gearing up for classes and building those dynamo lessons ….

You’ve had a well deserved summer break, ready to start thinking about lesson ideas and learning strategies for this new year?  You don’t wanna just use what you did last year or even the year before.

Hey, we would have never stepped foot on the moon, it ain’t no hoax, doing the same ole stuff year after year.

Yep, I encouraging you to break outta da box – starting now!

http://www.educationreporting.com/index25k.php#Seven

Jack

Teach using projects or service learning feed: http://www.educationreporting.com/greenschool.xml

Teach with online games feed: http://www.educationreporting.com/Education_Games.xml

Mechanics of experiential education in K12

Today, competent and competitive businesses don’t succeed using ideas or technology from yesterday. K12 schools are no different. The makeup of classrooms varies considerably from the past: students are digital, a growing number express restless behaviors, and class sizes swell as schools struggle with shrinking budgets. Experiential education, as I used it when teaching high school science, is an excellent method to combat lethargic learning behaviors and support students in building critical thinking skills, i.e., lifelong learner habits.

Read the article @ http://www.educationreporting.com/article-how-to-teach-with-ee.htm

Innovation – anyone can teach math program – research included

John almost failed first-year Calculus in the university, but his love of math and his belief that everyone has great mathematical potential led him to found JUMP Math as a kitchen-table tutoring group in 1998.

Here is the street cred: Dr. Mighton completed a Ph.D. in mathematics at the University of Toronto and was awarded an NSERC fellowship for postdoctoral research in knot and graph theory. He is currently a Fellow of the Fields Institute for Mathematical Research and an Adjunct Professor of mathematics at the University of Toronto. Dr. Mighton also lectured in philosophy at McMaster University, where he received a Masters in philosophy.

Honestly, I am impressed with the approach the program takes to include all students, at their learning speeds, using relevant materials and methods. He says his programs works for teachers, parents, and tutors – I believe him.

Link to material at “JUMP Math“: check out “JUMP Math” http://www.educationreporting.com/curriculum.php#mat

Sizzle of service learning: helping students shine and extend their reach

I didn’t wake up one day and say, “I’m going to do a Service Learning (SL) project with students.” The neighborhood of my school is recognized as the poorest area in the state, most students don’t speak English as the primary language at home. Over 80% of students take advantage of the free lunch program and just a small percentage will get to college; even fewer will graduate with a degree. When I first considered sponsoring an after school club to do recycling, I thought a few students might be interested. I had to gear myself up to deal with the overwhelming student participation, which was all volunteer on their part.

Read the article, get my top six service learning resources, at http://www.educationreporting.com/article-sizzle%20-of-service-learning.php

Teachers – easily – tweak your tech skills

Two free and simple to use resources allow you to fortify your lessons, in any content area, using technology. This is not rocket science, all you have to do is find the best fit for your classroom or campus. Doing this over the summer means you can save time later. Plus, show off your skills when school opens. Here they are:

1. Digital Storytelling
Not to worry, there are step by step instructions on setting this up and rolling it out. You can also browse some examples. On the second page (click arrow at botton of first page) are the detailed answers to all the potential “how to” questions. http://www.educationreporting.com/viewArticleDetails.php?id=681

2. Learning with online games
Thousands of free games that can be simply used over the internet – no special software required. This is a big win-win: students learn the subject content and technology skills.
http://www.educationreporting.com/Education_Games.xml

New study reveals best methods to improve student scuccess

When students are underachieving, school policymakers often examine class size, curriculum and funding, but University of Missouri researchers suggest establishing relationships may be a powerful and less expensive way to improve students’ success. In a review of the research they show that students with positive attachments to their teachers and schools have higher grades and higher standardized test scores.

An new study reports that the best method for improving student success is relationships.
http://www.educationreporting.com/viewArticleDetails.php?id=700