This weekend I was thinking about what we teach and how we decide what to teach. I am a big fan of Understanding by Design, or Backward Design Unit planning. I think it makes the most since because it not only forces us to think about what our goals are, but it also helps us realize that we can't and shouldn't teach everything. We have to be selective in what we teach. With that, tonight's topic is Which is more important... QuestionsI think many of tonight's questions will prove to be difficult to answer. I want to explain that choosing one doesn't necessarily mean that the other isn't important, but rather you chose 1 to be more important. Most Questions will start with "Which is more important to teach..." Q1 A. What are the most important concepts/content of your subject area? #sstlap Q1 B. How many most important concepts should we have for each subject? #sstlap Q2 Which is more important to teach Content or Skills? #sstlap Content and Concepts Q3 Which is more important to teach- the structure and idea of democracy OR the reality of government in action? #sstlap Q4 Which is more important to teach- the causes of war or the effects of war? #sstlap Q5 Which is more important to teach- the ideals of the Declaration of Independence or the actions/events that creates a society that more closely embodies those ideals? #sstlap Q6 Which is more important to teach, the differences or similarities of world religions? Q7 Which is more important - what we teach, or how we teach?
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We are a few weeks into the new school year, and I have had opportunities to work with a number of teachers and get into a few classrooms. It made me think about why I went into teaching, and what it is about education that is so special. So tonight's topic is Best of- a celebration of the best of education. I think there are too many topics to cover in 1 hour chat, but thought about pulling in a variety of important topics. I struggle to come up with 1 answer for each question, so hopefully you think about multiple responses, but most importantly connect with your fellow awesome shipmates to learn and grow. QUESTIONS I sometimes get songs stuck in my head, or at the very least when having a conversation my brain references lyrics that some how connect. Today as I am one day past an interesting conversation about Student Engagement, I found myself thinking about what to talk about this week. As part of our conversation we talked about does engagement look like, what are we as teachers in control of and most importantly the overwhelming connection to the relationship we have with our students. My thought for tonight is to look at the most fundamental things necessary to make a successful classroom and engaging lessons that could be Life Changing Lessons! As ABCs and 123s are the most basic concepts we teach to and learn as students, tonight let's discuss the fundamentals of a successful educator in a Pirate classroom? Q1 - What are the characteristics of a PIRATE educator? challenge go beyond the Acronym- #sstlap Q2 - Of those skills which do you think is most important? Why? #sstlap Q3a - Describe a Pirate classroom? #sstlap Q3b - What is not part of a Pirate classroom? (What doesn't belong) #sstlap Q4 - What role or part do students play in creating a Pirate classroom? #sstlap The back drop is set- now let's look at the fundamentals of rocking a PIRATE lesson Q5 - What are the essentials of an Engaging Pirate lesson? #sstlap Q6 - What are Life Changing Lessons? What do they look like? #sstlap Q7 - How can we create Life Changing Lessons for students? #sstlap Bonus Clip as long as I was checking out the Jackson 5 I thought I would share this. What I couldn't help noticing is the make up of the audience. I think that could be an interesting conversation. Hopefully none of us, Teachers and Students alike proved to be a Fool! Were this type of teacher this week? Very Passionate about his subject! Not so professional - but filled with Passion! -- sorry for any language issues - So most of us are a few weeks into the school year. It is time to do a reality check. How do your expectations compare to your new found reality? Tonight we are going to not only examine how things are going, but also look at how we can make our desired outcomes our reality. You have hopefully figured out the copy machine, received your 5th updated class roster and thus adjusted your seating/attendance chart, and most importantly begun connecting with your students. We all enter the school year with high energy, some nervousness, but mostly excitement about unlocking the potential in our students and what amazing experiences will unfold throughout the year. We have high expectations and then the first day of professional develop rolls around. Does this increase or curb our enthusiasm? Next students pass through our doors and we face another reality check. Is the grouping of students in this class a good mix that will work collaboratively, or are there dynamic personalities that could potentially derail our best efforts? After 15 years in the classroom I have experienced many moments where my expectations didn't meet my reality. While there are many reasons for that, tonight we are going to discuss how to redirect our reality to create match our expectations. QuestionsQ1 How does your current reality measure up to your beginning of the year expectations? #sstlap
Q2 What early hurdles or obstacles have you encountered so far this school year that have impacted your reality? #sstlap Q3 Refocus on positive- What have you done/can you do to overcome hurdles from outside of your classroom? #sstlap Q4 What can you do to overcome the hurdles within your classroom? #sstlap Q5 What are you doing to build the relationships between yourself and your students? #sstlap Q6 What engaging lessons have you used so far to build community in your classroom? #sstlap Q7 You can change the world and attitude is key- how do you stay positive and focused on your goals- advice for the rest of us! #sstlap |
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