Thursday 23 July 2015

Beautiful sketchnote, wonderful reminder!

Thanks for this sketchnote Sylvia Duckworth! This is one of my favourite mantras as an educator - every child needs and deserves a champion!

Thursday 16 July 2015

Another poster

Poster to change students' perspectives on making mistakes in the classroom.

Classroom Poster

This classroom poster will be displayed at the front of my class as soon as the students walk in. Nice message!

Tuesday 14 July 2015

Attention Grabbers!

I came across these attention grabbers on Pinterest last night and just had to share. I learnt a few of them this year from my Grades 5s. They're catchy and fun! Welcome to my world :-)


Morphing into a 21st Century Teacher

Reflection drives change and the long lazy, crazy,hazy days of summer is the perfect time to THINK, REFLECT, REPEAT!

My search to become more tech savvy has resulted in a tremendous amount of learning, some of which I am too shame-faced to admit! Thanks to my teenage daughter and online tutorials my comfort level with 'technology' is getting stronger. I am  slowly morphing into a 21st century teacher and shifting my mindset.

Increasingly integrating technology in the modern day classroom is a definite mandate in preparing our students for future careers which will inevitably include technology of one form or another. It is also a tool to engage students with diverse learning styles and foster 21st century skills in the classroom  - collaboration, communication, critical thinking, creativity and innovation.

I'm excited to incorporate more technology to support my classroom practices in the upcoming school year but this enthusiasm is also tempered with the common sense knowledge that technology is just a tool and not a learning outcome.

Going forward, I know I will need to be mindful of the evidenced needs in my class and continuously question if my actions in the classroom (with or without the use of technology) encourages relevant and personalized student engagement and most importantly whether or not it promotes achievement for ALL students. Student achievement is my ultimate goal!

I truly believe every child can learn. In all my years of teaching, I've never been proven wrong.

Thursday 2 July 2015

Food for Thought

Don't get me wrong, I'm not bashing the use of technology in the classroom. In fact, I've been spending the first few days of summer trying to wrap my poor brain around all the wonderful tech tools I can incorporate in my lessons for next term. But, I stand by my belief that technology is only a TOOL that should be used to facilitate learning. It should never be a substitute for instruction or human interaction. I am not a fan of over zealously using technology for 'technology sake'. It should serve a purpose and not be used as a distraction to get a 'break from the students'. #justmythoughts