Day 103 - Lauren Kippenberger, Memorial School Grade 3

Fraction Fun:

We are learning about fractions! As part of our math program, the students play a game called "Fraction Cookies." Today we learned how to play. The first person to collect 12 cookies wins!

Day 102, Andrew Marcinek, Burlington High School Staff

Subtext app update:
The social reading application, Subtext, recently added new features to its iOS application. Subtext allows teachers and students to read books on the app as well as upload ePub (and PDF files coming soon). Teachers and students can also pull articles from any website on the web and save them to subtext. This feature only brings in the text and some links.
In their latest update, Subtext allows Teachers to create assignments with any text or article on the group shelf and provides Google drive integration.
Teachers can add an assignment by clicking on the + sign



And then Teachers can title the assignment, select pages for students to read, add categorical tags (such as characterization, foreshadowing, etc.), and post a introduction message to the assignment and a message when the students finish the reading.



The other new feature that was recently added was Google drive integration. Students and teachers can now access their Google drive and all of the docs while working within the pages of Subtext. At the top of every page, there is a lowercase ‘g’. When users tap on that the page will flip and users can sign into their Google drive account.



Once signed into Google drive, users can access a previously created document or they can create a new document or spreadsheet. Plus, users can create a running bibliography list, or start a rough draft for an essay they are working on. This feature also allows users to bring in their highlighted passages and use while constructing their essay or research paper. In short, it’s a great, all-in-one application for research and reading.



Since its launch, Subtext has been one of my favorite applications for beginning a close reading of a text, building discussions around a text outside of the classroom, and engaging students in the reading and now, the writing process. Their updates are directly related to what teachers and students want. If you’re interested in starting your class on a Subtext reading assignment, please let me know. You can also follow them on Twitter @readwithsubtext 

Day 101 - Irene Farmer, Francis Wyman Elementary Grade 1

Spring show photos, Field Trip Updates and more:

Some photos from our Spring Show!

Field Trip to See Click, Clack Moo
Reminder:  The field trip to see Click, Clack, Moo is on Thursday, April 3rd.  Chaperones have the choice of either driving or traveling on the bus for this trip.  The students will eat lunch when we return to school, so there is no need to pack a brown bag lunch for this trip.

Off to the Rainforest!
We are waddling out of Antarctica and traveling into the Rain Forest for our next unit of study.  We will learn about the layers of the RainForest, the animals and plants which thrive there and how we can do our part to help save the RainForest from further destruction.

MATH
We are wrapping up our unit on measurement and you will soon receive all of their hard work from this unit.  Our focus now will be on adding and subtracting with tens and ones.  As always, please help your child's math fluency by having them go onto xtramath (click here) a few times a week.  (Please contact me if you have lost or misplaced your child's password.) It's quick and easy and most children seem to love it!  I've also opened up access to more homework in ST Math if your child is enjoying that program as well.

Day 100 - Burlington Integrated Preschool

Science Center Show -Reptile and Light Show:  Today Ms. Wendy and Mr. Sean from the Burlington Science Center came to our preschool to present a reptile and light show.  We learned new facts about reptiles such as they have backbones and they are cold blooded.  Wendy had an alligator, a snake, and two turtles to show us.  We even had a turn to touch the snake if we wanted to. She also showed us a turtle shell that had a backbone inside of its shell.

 We loved touching the snake to feel its scales. Many of the animals we saw in the show were in our unit books (Raccoon on His Own and Play With Me)

 The alligator was making sounds during the show.

 We loved watching the turtles have a little snack during the show.











Learning about light with Mr. Sean!

 Then Mr. Sean taught us about light.  We learned how the sun gives us light and makes our planet warm.  He had a white ball that lit up.  When he turned out the lights and spun it in a circle, it made new colors.  Then he showed us different kinds of mirrors.  This reinforced our unit of reflections.
Finally, he showed us a laser light. He explained to us that light travels in a  straight line.  When he put the lights out, Ms. Wendy sprayed "smoke" on the light and proved how light travels in a straight line.



It was an amazing show.  We are very lucky to have such an amazing resource in Burlington.
We love the Burlington Science Center!!
Thank you so much Wendy and Sean!!









Learning about reflections and the path of light.


When we came back from the show, we recalled the new facts we learned. They were really listening!!
Steven D.- Snakes have dry skin.
Stephen H. - Turtles have a backbone on its' shell.
Stephen B.- The laser light goes in a straight line.
John- The alligator has very sharp teeth for biting.
Paige- The snake has a long tongue to taste the air.
Michael- The turtle has bones inside its' shell.
Trevor- When you put your hand in front of a laser, it will block the light.
Jack- The alligator had a backbone.
Gabby- Alligators are born from eggs.
Sarah- A laser goes in a straight line.
Sophia- Reptiles temperatures goes up and down.
Nao- The snake had a long tail.
Kayden- The snake had a backbone.
Logan- The snake slithers to get around.
Boris- When you see your reflection in a bendy mirror it looks blurry.

Day 99 - Burlington High School Student Help Desk

Gear Heart:

A video put together to show the Help Desk’s new print “Gear Heart” in action.

The Heart itself is made of seventeen red, hallow PLA pieces. Just like a real heart, it is capable of breaking, and inflicting pain.

Day 98 - Patrick Larkin, Assistant Superintendent

But How Will Their Students Pass The State Assessment?:

As our students in Massachusetts settle in for their annual round of "high-stakes" testing, I think it is the perfect time for people to take a few minutes to watch the video from TEDxCreativeCoast titled The Future Will Not Be Multiple Choice.  The presentation by Jaime McGrath (an elementary school teacher in Savannah, GA) and Drew Davies (a web designer) was posted on Mind Shift's blog about a month ago and I forgot about it until I saw a tweet last night with the link. It really is a must watch for anyone who thinks that our current educational structure is adequate.

It's no newsflash the current structure of most classrooms is unchanged from the structure that was created to educate students for an industrial society back in the 19th Century.  At one point in our history fitting the right piece in the right hole as quickly as possible and being able to retain large amounts of trivial information in order to regurgitate it or draw from it quickly may have actually been useful. However in a day and age where asking the right questions is of more value than providing a quick response to a multiple choice question, we are past the point of needing a change.

In fact the findings of educators like McGrath, who stray from the current script and look at problem-based education and a focus on "design thinking" are clear.

"All we did was give them the challenge, point them in the right direction and give them the space to be creative," noted McGrath.  

Here are a few of my take-aways made by the co-presenters Jaime McGrath (an elementary school teacher in Savannah, GA) and Drew Davies (a web designer):

• Reports predict that 65% of our students will be working in jobs that don't exist yet.

• "Such simple tasks as manipulation of blocks helps infants and toddlers develop early skills, including math literacy - the language of numbers." Huttenlocher, Jordan, and Levine 1994

• Don't need students skilled in picking A, B, C, D 

• "A true understanding of reality is not possible without a certain element of imagination..." Lev Vygotsky 

• Design in education compliments all learning styles 

• Will it be messy and risky? But what is the reality we are trying to prepare our kids for? 

• The future is not a multiple choice test, it is a design challenge

So my question about the state assessment (or a national assessment) posed above was - "How will these students pass the state (or national) assessment. Here's my answer -  "Who Cares!"

I think the bottom line is that students who are being taught in classrooms where they are being taught to think will be successful on any measure.

Day 97 - Dennis Villano, Director of Instructional Technology

Early Update About 1:1 At MSMS:

Marshall Simonds Middle School in Burlington is 1:1 with iPads. About 860 students in grades 6-8 have been using iPads in the classroom since January. Teachers and students at MSMS were recently asked about how the 1:1 program is developing. Here are some of the early updates about the 1:1 environment and a current top ten list of MSMS apps.
Foreign Language
Students are using iPads to to practice and reinforce vocabulary. Educreations is being used to write vocabulary as dictated and translate. Educreations is also used as a review tool before assessments. Students are accessing Quia.com in order to play games that reinforce vocabulary from class. They have the option of taking class notes in Evernote or Notability. Many students are creating virtual flashcards with pictures or voice attached. Students have shown excellent growth in organization of materials using the iPad.
Music
Students in the MSMS Select Chorus use their iPads instead of sheet music. Students use a number of apps to record their parts when rehearsing. This is useful as they can hear themselves singing the correct notes, limiting the number of times a particular passage needs to be reviewed. Practice tracks are created for each part and designated Section Leaders use their iPad to reinforce music to their peers. The entire grade 6 General Music curriculum is on NetTexts. They can view videos and complete worksheets on particular topics. This eliminates the need to make photocopies. Students love the app and appreciate the consolidated organization of content.
Art
Students are using iPads to find images for art projects and incorporating the digital images into paintings, Photoshop projects, and sculpture. Students are using iPads for digital video art projects as well.
English Language Arts
iPads are being used to find poetry in music lyrics. iPad apps including Evernote and Notability are being used for note taking, worksheets, and practice. Highlighted apps include Edmodo, Socrative, Grammar, and Explain Everything. Students are using Haiku Deck and Explain Everything for presentations.
Math
Students are completing daily MCAS warm up questions and using Notability and Evernote for note taking. Explain Everything is being used for student videos and screen casts as well as some interim assessment activities. Educreations has been helpful for group or partner work and JogNog has been used for MCAS practice and review. Socrative is being used for quiz review and MCAS style questions. Students are using Google Chrome to check their stocks daily as part of the stock market game. They use Google Spreadsheets for keeping track of their stocks and Google Drive for creating letters to their companies. Edmodo is also used for daily homework and test preparation.
Social Studies
Socrative is being used for practice, review, and quizzes. Most students are using Evernote for note taking. Students have created presentations using Haiku Deck and Explain Everything which have been shown through the classroom AppleTVs or Reflector app. Students are also using the Globe and Google Earth apps to locate and describe places as topics are discussed in class.
Science
Students are using Evernote and Google Drive for note taking and science lab activities. Students are reviewing for the science MCAS using the JogNog app. Students are video recording classroom presentations and reviewing projects created by their peers. Many students have used Explain Everything and the camera roll as presentation tools.
MSMS Top Ten List of Apps (as of March 25, 2013)

1) Evernote

2) Explain Everything

3) Google Drive

4) Notability

5) Haiku Deck

6) Socrative

7) Educreations

8) Edmodo

9) NetTexts

10) JogNog