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Sorry for the mathematical play on words in my title, but it truly is a testament to the conclusion to this semester. Adding up all the components of a successful blend gives me something great to take away from this course. My blend is looking a lot different than the three station rotation model that I started trying to model, but it feels right for my classroom and my students. My blend often includes digital content, but I am sending students away from the teacher station with better lessons - digital or otherwise. Two groups are the norm in my classroom and Group One and Group Two rotate back and forth from day to day. Most of my students have bought into the blend and are coming in eager to learn.
The implementation of Khan Academy has given my students some ownership of their learning, and therefore some motivation. I am still trying to find ways to integrate daily digital math that is not Khan Academy or ALEKS, but I would be remiss if I didn't admit it's a daily struggle. The digital shift is a lot of work, especially when everyone within a collaboration group is not on board with the shift. I'm trying to transform one lesson per unit, in an effort to get students using their technology as more than scrap paper. There is far more to the shift to blend than cutting up a worksheet and turning it into a Nearpod, or uploading a worksheet to Classkick, or watching an EdPuzzle video to replace lecture. Finding ways to weave digital applications into the fabric of my classroom is challenging, but I must admit the rewards have been great.
Ellen Baltz may have said it best when she said she was trying to "emote" collaboration and teamwork. It's such a tell when we aren't as vested in the delivery as we should be. Our students see it, feel it, and it gives them the opportunity to "opt out" of learning for the day, the unit, or the year. Setting up a successful classroom means putting together a community of learners, where the students trust each other enough to try, and trust the teacher enough to buy into their "job" as learners. The ASSURE model gave me some valuable insight as to how to understand my learners well enough to effectively plan for them, and it's because of this new model that I feel my blends will be more successful moving forward, and my business should be much more successful with my new tools!!!!!
The implementation of Khan Academy has given my students some ownership of their learning, and therefore some motivation. I am still trying to find ways to integrate daily digital math that is not Khan Academy or ALEKS, but I would be remiss if I didn't admit it's a daily struggle. The digital shift is a lot of work, especially when everyone within a collaboration group is not on board with the shift. I'm trying to transform one lesson per unit, in an effort to get students using their technology as more than scrap paper. There is far more to the shift to blend than cutting up a worksheet and turning it into a Nearpod, or uploading a worksheet to Classkick, or watching an EdPuzzle video to replace lecture. Finding ways to weave digital applications into the fabric of my classroom is challenging, but I must admit the rewards have been great.
Ellen Baltz may have said it best when she said she was trying to "emote" collaboration and teamwork. It's such a tell when we aren't as vested in the delivery as we should be. Our students see it, feel it, and it gives them the opportunity to "opt out" of learning for the day, the unit, or the year. Setting up a successful classroom means putting together a community of learners, where the students trust each other enough to try, and trust the teacher enough to buy into their "job" as learners. The ASSURE model gave me some valuable insight as to how to understand my learners well enough to effectively plan for them, and it's because of this new model that I feel my blends will be more successful moving forward, and my business should be much more successful with my new tools!!!!!