I've mentioned previously that it is not always smooth sailing in my classroom. So much of the work that my students and I have done over the past year has been trailblazing - figuring out a way through the technological forest that is Web 2.0.
Documenting as we go has been crucial to our learning - I need to document in order to more deeply understand what it is exactly that I am doing. I would not in any way describe this trailblazing as refined. It is messy work, but, I truly believe important work. The overriding theme in my classroom has become share what you learn so others can learn.
Apparently, others are learning. This week I received several emails and had a few conversations with educators who have been influenced by the work we do in room 208. While it is lovely to receive kind words and positive feedback, what I see is impact. These educators are taking models that we've created or initiated and refining them. They're making them better.
Kelly Dunford, a grade 3 teacher at our school is a prime example. Kelly follows my blog and we have frequent conversations about transformative practices. I had a chance to visit her room today with Robert Martellacci from MindShare Learning who had come to award our prize for the digital classroom video contest. I was so impressed by the work Ms Dunford is doing. One grade 3 student shared the lesson that she designed and taught the class about point of view. This student was teaching while Ms. Dunford was working with another group. A boy in the class showed the tool for voice recording that he found and the instructional post he had created to teach students how to use the tool - all without assistance from the teacher.
Ms. Dunford is taking what we initiated and making it better. By the sharing what we do on twitter and in other social media platforms - by making our practice visible, an amplification and rapid spread of 21 century approaches to learning is occurring.
I am witnessing this first hand. Again, this is not something I anticipated when I began this process of documenting the transformation of my classroom. The work I do draws upon the rich resources I have found in social media - the knowledge flows through me and on to others, who take it, shape it, make it their own and hopefully pass it on so others can learn.
Documenting as we go has been crucial to our learning - I need to document in order to more deeply understand what it is exactly that I am doing. I would not in any way describe this trailblazing as refined. It is messy work, but, I truly believe important work. The overriding theme in my classroom has become share what you learn so others can learn.
Apparently, others are learning. This week I received several emails and had a few conversations with educators who have been influenced by the work we do in room 208. While it is lovely to receive kind words and positive feedback, what I see is impact. These educators are taking models that we've created or initiated and refining them. They're making them better.
Kelly Dunford, a grade 3 teacher at our school is a prime example. Kelly follows my blog and we have frequent conversations about transformative practices. I had a chance to visit her room today with Robert Martellacci from MindShare Learning who had come to award our prize for the digital classroom video contest. I was so impressed by the work Ms Dunford is doing. One grade 3 student shared the lesson that she designed and taught the class about point of view. This student was teaching while Ms. Dunford was working with another group. A boy in the class showed the tool for voice recording that he found and the instructional post he had created to teach students how to use the tool - all without assistance from the teacher.
Ms. Dunford is taking what we initiated and making it better. By the sharing what we do on twitter and in other social media platforms - by making our practice visible, an amplification and rapid spread of 21 century approaches to learning is occurring.
I am witnessing this first hand. Again, this is not something I anticipated when I began this process of documenting the transformation of my classroom. The work I do draws upon the rich resources I have found in social media - the knowledge flows through me and on to others, who take it, shape it, make it their own and hopefully pass it on so others can learn.
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