Thursday, April 30, 2015

Personal Mobile Devices as Assistive Tools in the Classroom

Check out Michael Kerr explaining personal mobile tech in the classroom. LDAO used Ryan's work as an example! So cool! Now this is transformational technology at its finest!

http://ldatschool.ca/pro-learning/articles/mobile-assistive-technology-for-learning-in-a-digital-world/

How Do You Fail Successfully?



After I watched this video, I thought about two things. First, how good of a balance bike rider Henry is and second Henry fell a lot! When Henry fell he was not afraid to get back up and try again. His teacher (in this case his dad), has taught Henry that falling is okay. Shouldn't we be doing the same thing in the classroom?

As a grade 8 teacher, I have found that sometimes, students are afraid to fail. From Henry's video don't we learn that failing good? I am curious to know why some are scared of failing. Sometimes scared to the point that they don't try. A wise man once said,
"If you don't shoot, you can't score!"
So isn't that the same as saying "If you don't try, you can't succeed"?

Some people I have met use the acronym "FAIL" (First Attempt In Learning), others call a failed attempt "learning mistakes" or "teachable moments". In essence, it is all failure. I encourage students to make mistakes when in class. A classroom is the best place to make mistakes and more importantly, a great arena for learning HOW to fail successfully!

Here is a simple adage...

Try... Fail... Reflect... Change...Try Again... Repeat...

All of this from watching a video of a two and a half year old learning to ride a bike. Amazing!

Tuesday, April 28, 2015

the most important thing I've learned at sagonaska



I've learn a lot at Sagonaska but one thing that I will keep in my learning toolbox, as I go thorough the rest of my years of my education and my life, is to advocate for my rights as a LD student and to ever GIVE UP no matter the challenge!

Thank You Sagonaska
for all the great lessons you've taught me!

Friday, April 24, 2015

April 13 - 24 Through Twitter

The most important thing I had ever learned?


The most important thing I learned was to use my technology. Before I knew how to use my technology for learning I had to write on paper and it was not the best writing. Technology changed all that! I can now use speech to text to hear what I wrote to see if it makes sense. If I didn't know how to write or spell a word I would of guessed but now I can use Siri to write. This is why I think that technology is the most important thing I learned.

Most important thing I've learned

I would say that the most important thing I learned is to I advocate for myself.
Advocating gives me a voice to unlock doors that lead to good things. But you have to advocate appropriately for it to work. I Learned that I have a learning disability and I need to advocate for myself and for my technology in order to learn. This is why I think that the most important thing I learned is to I advocate for myself.

The most important thing I have ever learned!

Learning how to stick with things and not giving up, this is the most important thing I have learned. If I am in a big soccer tournament, and I don't get the ball in the net, I don't quit. I just push through it! And something good will come out of not giving up. If I am writing a paper I try my best and I don't give up because you want to show your best work. To this day sticking with things is the most important thing I have learned.

The most important thing I've learned in life

The most important thing I've learned in life is to feel love and to able to be loved.
Loved by my family and love for my family. Loved by my friends and love for my friends. Love for something or someone you are passionate about.
Love for a place or a state of being.
That is the most important thing I've ever learned in life.

What is the Most Important Thing You've Ever Learned?

"What is the most important thing you've ever learned?" could possibly be one of the deepest questions a teacher could ask a group of students. As any teacher would, I asked my students to explain why they feel the way they do. I definitely was not anticipating the responses the students produced.



So why did I ask my students to explain the most important thing they have ever learned? There are two reasons. First and foremost I wanted them to self-reflect. Second, I wanted the students to see other peoples' opinions so we could learn from other people around the world.

Please briefly explain the most important thing you have ever learned in the comments section below.  

Wednesday, April 15, 2015

The Importance of Being Flexible When Using Technology in the Classroom

If you have watched "The Story of Stuff" then you know the definition of the word obsolescence. If you don't know the word, watch the movie! As teachers and students we know how fast technology changes. We also need to be mindful of the fact that most things that we use today are meant to become obsolete.

In our classroom, I explain to students that the technology we use to learn with today, may be obsolete tomorrow.  This is important because it fosters resiliency and grit. Teachers AND students, need to be resilient to keep up with rapid, ever changing educational technologies.

To prove the point, here is a photo of our "Tech Game Plan" from September compared to a photo of the same Tech Game Plan in March.  Look how much has changed in just 6 months!


Monday, April 13, 2015

The Importance of Teaching Students to Use their Personal Devices as Assistive Technology in the Classroom


Prior to coming to Sagonaska Demonstration School all students must provide an independent writing sample.  Here are two of Ryan's writing samples.  The first is from before attending Sagonaska and the second is from October of her second year at Sagonaska. Both samples were done totally independently. 

The difference between the two samples is some very explicit teachings about how to harness the power of a personal device as a learning tool. Prior to writing the second sample, Ryan was explicitly taught how to use her personal device to help her overcome to her LD.

When you watch the video, you will very clearly see that Ryan's true cognitive ability was masked by her LD. Now that she knows how to use her device to help her learn, and express her knowledge, we see how personal technology can help illustrate student understanding.



Thursday, April 2, 2015

Two Weeks in Review!

What Transformational Technology Means to Me

How have you blended your understanding and technology to make something awesome? Explain?

    I used my technology and my understanding to make my self advocacy pamphlet.
My teacher helped me understand my LD so I could make make my pamphlet.
I used a Mac and the program pages to make the pamphlet. I still could of make this with out my tech but wouldn't be as nice.

Transformational Technology



If you follow us on Twitter, you have likely already seen this image. We think it is important for us to explain what we mean by Transformational Technology. It is easiest if we frame the definition as question. Could a student have produced exactly what they envisioned without the use of technology? 

Students were asked to "explain how [they] have blended [their] understanding and a piece of technology to create something awesome?".

Read their posts entitled "What Transformational Technology Means to Me".