Enrichment

My students are varied in ability as all classes are. One way that I try to differentiate is by providing enrichment activities for my students to do when they wish. I am exploring the model of the "google 20"  in my classroom and allowing 20% of the structured course time for enrichment. In my classes this only totals 10 minutes a week but it has been huge for me to see how just labeling something as "enrichment" and talking about the 20% time has motivated my students to do something they may find otherwise boring or of little interest to them.

To clarify the boring bit, I don't always intend to offer boring enrichment choices, but sort of fell in to that this time around with many of my kids complaining that typing is SO boring, while having a blast practicing. TEENAGERS!  Currently there are 3 enrichment offers. I just post them in marker on my white board underneath the list of all my weekly objectives (we only meet once a week).
Doodle 4 Google
Typing Olymics
WeGiveBooks

If you aren't doing the doodle 4 google, you should! Plain and simple you can't lose. Winners are offered some hefty prizes including a $50,000 technology grant for their school and $30,000 for college.

The Typing Olympics is my first annual, and I am piloting spending very little class time on typing instruction and attempting to have the children practice/train at home. I will keep you posted on its success.

WeGiveBooks is a charitable site that has many quality children's literature selections to choose from. For each book read, one is donated to a needy cause. I teach at a Jewish day school and we do class Mitzvahs (mitzvot). This is a way to keep my little guys reading, reading, reading and using technology.

My regular lesson are big hits and then the kids are asking me "can I do some enrichment?"

Does it get better than that?

My letter home about the Typing Olympics

The start of  a new year always is a goal setting and planning time. We are doing that as young as Kindergarten here in the lab. All classes K-8 are spending time this week and next doing an introduction to our Typing Olympics.  Students are evaluating their typing skills and creating a plan to improve them.  I have created a page on my Links site dedicated to Olympic Training.

http://www.livebinders.com/edit?id=232572

Our youngest students are still working on identifying and locating individual letters and numbers on the keyboard, determining what all the extra "stuff" is for comes later.  First through eighth grade are working on using some type of fast finger movement to increase their speed while increasing/maintaining accuracy.  Through inquiry and discussion, my older groups have come to understand my expectations are not touch typing memorization as many of us were taught.  Our classes are filled with tablet users and  mobile phone aficionados; one strategy of typing does not fit all in today's expanding technological  market.  However, the students are exposed to the "normal" finger placement patterns and will practice that in their tutorial.

As is true with all Olympic Athletes, practice is KEY! How punny (wink wink)

I will not be spending more than 10 minutes during our class periods on training. Students are encouraged to train at home using the above link and come to an after school training session if desired. (dates TBA)

The Olympics will be held the week of March 19^th and each grade will participate in a fun, developmentally appropriate competition. Olympians will be rewarded for their efforts and our speediest, most accurate students will enjoy some pomp and circumstance!

Please help me keep my website safe by informing me of any undesirable material. Some of the typing games have pop-up adds on the sides. They are always very "G" here at school but they do populate by browser history- (if you were shopping for trips online there would be travel ads.....).  The students are very good about avoiding them all together. Just a reminder for at home use.  Please favorite the Live Binder site and do "Like" us on Facebook as well.

Do you TED?

Do you use TED? 

I do and I am just "Adoring" Adora Svitak. Check her TED talk out. What adults can learn from kids

She is even using a Prezi which is way cooler than some dried out old PowerPoint.

Stumbled on a Fav, Heard of All My Favs?

I had never seen this site until I found it using Stumble Upon. I looked at some of the links in the edu section and this looks as though it could be a good place to bookmark for later. Anyone using this? BTW...I love Stumble Upon for a laugh, a resource and a place to spark an idea. It worked for me tonight.
AllMyFavs

My Stumble Upon Profile

Typing Olympics

My students are getting ramped up for our first annual Typing Olympics. We are spending this week in the lab planning training and completing an introduction to the web links I have compiled. I plan to offer multiple after school training sessions and to keep my students on track with weekly goals on my live binder. My Links Site

I will post the letter I sent home to parents.

Any recommendations about the final assessment piece, or PRIZES?!

Welcome

Well here I am in the blog-o-sphere! I had an inspirational chat with a friend today and decided that continuing to be a passive blog reader and exploiter is just not going to cut in in terms of attaining my personal goals and being the best educator I can. Hence my attempt in creating a blog to share some of lessons, favorite sites and perhaps learn a thing or two from the community I have been passively enjoying for a while now.