Filtering Issues I've seen a lot of issues with the iBoss connection that was installed on our student ipads yesterday afternoon. I have reported them to tech services and they are working with iBoss on the issues. My thinking is that many parents dealt with the issues on their own. It appears that the main issue is a pop-up telling them that a secure connection can't be made to the proxy server. It seems to point them to Settings to sign in. Several parents I've talked to followed this route but are still getting pop-ups. One thing to suggest is to have families update their ipads to the latest version. When I hear more, I'll let you know.
Mark Twain Award Nominees Next week I'll be launching our Mark Twain Award challenge for fourth and fifth graders. Per Abbey Upton's suggestion, I made a Keynote presentation with an audio recording of the first chapter of all twelve books. I found a local celebrity to read them! If you teach 4th or 5th, shoot me a 15 minute window next week when I can "visit" your classes to get them started.
Sora I also want to have time to talk with all 2nd through 5th grade classrooms about Sora. There are a few changes this year that are pretty cool. I have also spent nearly $1000 this month on new ebooks and audiobooks for our students. I know many of you push Epic, but Sora has a lot of great stuff and is always available. I'm planning on spending a good chunk of my budget this year on Sora, so let me know if you want additional titles. I can have them up and running with a 15 presentation that is sure to be memorable.
STEM Activities Next week I'm hoping to start a process for students to check out materials from me to explore at home. I will include challenges and "how to" videos to guide them. I doubt it'll be up and running next week, but I'm fine with you sharing the concept with families who might be looking for extension activities. Just tell them it's coming soon and it's going to be really awesome. Or make up your own line.
Happy Friday! These five days weeks are crazy. Here are a few updates from the media center. I've been holding off on emails, so there's a lot of stuff here. I sat in a media specialist meeting this morning where they walked us through how to set up a Zoom meeting. I know. We are so proficient with our practices and things are running so smoothly here at Cedar Ridge. It's so cool seeing all the interactive features of your classes and sheer number of quality posts kids are making to your courses. Great job!!
"Sit and get" Powerpoints are dangerous to your health.
Library Drive Thru We've had a nice turnout for the drive thru this week. As of this publication, we have 36 kids come through. We will continue next week with all grade levels. If you are 3rd or 4th grade teacher and haven't scheduled a time with me to talk to your class, you know how to reach me.
YouTube This info might not apply to you, but there have been an increased number of blocked videos. Technology Services has indicated they are making changes to the parameters. If you have come across this issue, you are supposed to call the help desk (if you can get through, Larry will buy your lunch the next day). Or send me the link and I'll handle it for you.
So an email just went out to everyone in the world. I would not worry right now about having your students login to Youtube. I have a few followup questions for Dr. Monroe and then I'll pass along my suggestions. Update: she says that students will still be able to view video without logging in. I would highly suggest you test your YouTube videos by using the Chrome Incognito browser. What the heck is that, you say? Click on the three dots in the upper right corner of Chrome. Choose "new incognito browser". The paste your YouTube video there. That shows you what happens when someone not logged in as you accesses your links. Next level stuff.
iPads for Justin and Rebecca Rebecca came to me and asked if she could have an iPad to better support you. What a great idea! So both Justin and Rebecca have an iPad so they can see what the students are seeing and learn more about the apps. Now that I'm writing this, I'm wondering if Emily might want one as well. If you are reading this message, Emily, then come see me! Right now I'm eavesdropping on Ainsley's class as Justin is leading them on a lesson. He's doing an awesome job! Very cool!
ST Math Here is a video about how students can get into ST Math. I've also put it on the webpage under the "Learning at Home" tab.
SeeSaw Courses Our specialists have asked that our students practice how to go in between courses in SeeSaw. If you haven't already, on Tuesday of next week can you show them quickly how to toggle between their courses? Each classroom teacher will continue to post the schedule on your homeroom course.
Battery Life Students are using the heck out of these devices. I see how drained Maggie's and Ainsley's iPads are after a morning of usage. I'd suggest you tell the kids to plug in during their lunch break. If parents are having charging issues, I'd suggest you first have them try a different cable if possible. Those are the most likely point of failure. Lemons do happen, so if it can't be resolved with a cable swap I can issue a new device after we go through all the other variables.
Jamboard I got to spend some time this week with Nikki's small group work on Jamboard. It's an interactive whiteboard app from Google. There are some pretty cool features and would support cooperative learning with students. If you'd like to learn more about how you might be able to use Jamboard, let me know and we can meet.
Featured App: Reminders I've been really impressed with how you are teaching kids how to augment their executive functioning skills using the timers and alarms on the iPad. Next week, see if you can blend in the Reminders app. It's a great way for kids to document things they need to do. You can schedule reminders just like calendar events and can also make them recurring. Students can check off completed reminders as well (everyone loves checking things off their list). Schedule a time with me if you'd like a Zoom breather and I can walk them through it next week.
I'm confident in saying that the last seven days have been the most intense of my
19 years in CPS. It was about at this time last week when the iPads stopped communicating and my weekend took a turn for the worst. Looking back now, it was a great opportunity to see that our Cedar Ridge staff is the most patient and hardworking group of people around! You all were truly impressive in handling the week. All the preparation and collaboration paid off big time. But I'm glad it's over (knocking on wood right now)...
Wondering how things are going across the school? Check out these stats from SeeSaw (this hasn't been updated with Friday's activity, so it's just three school days!):
For those of you who are new here, I try to send out a weekly blog with highlights and updates. My goal is to only send emails for time sensitive issues and keep the main info here. This blog is linked on the Media Center website for anytime access. Here we go...
Circulation Plan We will begin circulating books next week. The plan is to start with kindergarten and 5th grade. I'll be connecting with 5th graders on Monday to show them how to place holds in Destiny. We will check those out to them and have them ready for pickup. The little people will drive up and will pick from a mobile library. We have 127 book bundles ready (thanks Stormi, Stephanie, and Emily). Colleen is creating something really special to display the books. Seriously, it's going to be incredible!! Here are the current times for pickup:
Thursday 11-1 Friday 11-3
If you teach kindergarten or 5th grade, I'm going to attempt to send out an announcement to them via SeeSaw admin with directions. I'll let you know how it goes! Once I get a look at the process next week, I'll start bringing other grades online.
Overdues The Locust/Cedar Ridge library currently has over 400 overdue books. That's a
roughly $5000 expense. Starting Monday, I will place a book return on the front porch. Please message your families and ask them to return their books. I will be sending out a video next week on how to login to Destiny and see what is overdue. I will also start messaging families through SeeSaw directly at some point.
Specialist Zoom Info In the spirit of continuity, please make sure you are posting the document I sent you for specials on Wednesday. Each specialist will also be posting an activity in SeeSaw for all their classes to access the link. Participation was great this week and we're excited to see them again on Wednesday.
Matt Time For Your Class I would like to make contact with your students next week. I have a scope and sequence to follow each week. I didn't bring that up initially because you are totally booked. I also looked at what they wanted me to do and pretty much all of it is being handled by you right now anyway. So please contact me to schedule a time to join in and a topic to cover. I am planning on just 10-15 minutes of a focused skill. I'll do the same thing for each grade. For 5th grade for example, I'm getting them set up with Destiny and Sora.
STEAM Home Integration Next week I'll be formulating a plan for home based STEAM activities. One piece will be the ability for students to check out materials we have at school (Spheros, Dash and Dot, Ozobots, Cubelets, etc). Each device will come with directions and challenges to complete. I'm hoping to get that up and running the following week.
That's it for now. You all did an amazing job this week. Rest up this weekend!
Welcome back! Hard to believe my last post was at the end of November! Lots of great info below: Outdoor Learning Courtyard We were excited to start installing the new CRE chicken coop yesterday that is being built by Josh's class. It was decided that we can start adding elements to the north courtyard (by kindergarten) to create a super cool outdoor learning environment. So we are looking for suggestions! This might be a great activity to do with your classes. There's a bunch of space out there that could fit raised flower/vegetable beds, benches, tables, etc. Ideally we'll be able to have the students help build and install each element. So talk to your students and let me know what you come up with. CREdX Update I must say that I'm a little disappointed that Amber was the only person to offer suggestions for potential donors. Ten points to Amber! I know there are families in our school that own/run businesses. Please let me know. The committee will handle contacting potential donors so you won't have to do any of the awkward asking. Our student committee is working to talk to each 3-5 classroom over the next week to start recruitment. I hope to be there for the talks but if I'm not able to make it, please help them out if they miss any important details or aren't clear. It's scary talking to groups of kids (as you know) so they'll likely stumble a bit. I will be meeting with K-2 teachers over next week to share the info with you. Because our theme of "Dear Cardinals" is so open, I think we will do some school-wide activities in addition to the live event. Look for more details in April. Classroom projects brief
Students present to our expert panel
Julia's class just finished their chicken coop design project and will start building soon. Abbey's class will start after spring break
Second grade is about to start a green screen project to go along with their animal research posters and virtual zoo
Third grade is starting publication of a grade level iBook for their country research
Taryn and Nikki's classes have both completed "Mystery
Asking questions to figure out the other class location
Skypes" with other classes around the country.
Computer Carts MAP testing is approaching. Which means that our 3rd and 4th grade colleagues will get preference for scheduling the computer carts for their MAP preparation. Please please please watch every student shut down their computer after they are done. And please personally check to make sure each one is properly plugged into the charger. We always have duds so it's best to have a full arsenal of devices to pull from. As a reminder, you can always check the availability of the laptops through the Media Center Computer Lab Schedule. Book room materials Another reminder to you about how to turn in your book room bags. Please make sure you have the covers facing out and the teacher materials facing forward. Otherwise it's difficult for the next teacher to preview what they need for class. I've included a picture for your reference.
The correct way of turning in your materials.
Library Time Cedar Ridge is trending in the right direction with overdue books! We now have as many overdue books as Locust Street but with twice the students. I appreciate your help during all of these choppy weeks. It's nice to get back into a routine again. I decided to pause on the maker activities during checkout to help reduce the spread of germs. Hopefully we can get started again after spring break. Have a Great Weekend!
So I'm going with a Monday edition this month! I would like to apologize to my blog fans for my lack of posting. Conferences, book fairs, and trips to Tennessee have really messed with my schedule. Book fair is over On that note, thank you to everyone for bearing with us during the longgggg book fair. We sold nearly $10,000 in books/junk which brings us a lot of Scholastic dollars. I used those dollars to purchase your teacher stacks as well as more materials for the book room. When I get my updated total, I will announce a super fun plan that I think you will like. Stay tuned. Service learning projects
In case you don't know, we are currently in the process of building chicken coops in Mr. Higgins' class (and eventually the rest of 5th grade). Basically, they are completing extensive research, designing a coop, presenting to high schoolers, and building the winning design. A big piece of the process is determining how to use the coop afterwards so that it benefits an organization. The students have been great and it's been a huge challenge. My hope is that we can do some sort of project with each grade level. It doesn't need to be as large (I'm not sure I could survive if it were) but it's a great way to get kids really thinking and working together for a common goal. Think it over and we'll chat sometime next month to see what ideas you have.
iPads for everyone! I found out last week about the district's plan for elementary devices. Here are some highlights:
All teachers will be getting a new 7th generation iPad and case
All teachers will be getting a Dell 3390 touchscreen laptop (newer model than what you currently have)
There will be 1:1 iPads for K-5. This news is pretty big. I'll need to spend time during your grade level meetings to discuss this development with the K-2 teachers
Laptop carts will remain in the building but it sounds like they won't be replacing them anymore
I don't know about your classroom desktops. I'm guessing they stay for the time being, but I think at some point the laptop you have will serve as the presentation station as well.
According to the info I received, they are planning to start this process for a first wave of schools in January. And we are in the first wave. We are waiting for details on how this plan is going to roll out.
Laptop carts
I've been hearing from teachers that the laptops are not getting put back properly all the time. Here is what need to happen EVERY TIME you use the laptops:
Each laptop needs to shut down. I'd suggest you have each student keep their laptop open so you can make sure it is off
Each laptop needs to be plugged in and returned to the correct slot in the cart
Every cart needs to be plugged into the outlet at the correct location in the building
If this process isn't done correctly, it hurts the next teacher who has to use them. Please take the time to complete the process. Otherwise, we'll go back to lock and key and I really, really don't want another thing to manage...
Hot chocolate cart
I have supplies ready to go to visit your classrooms for some hot chocolate reading time. Light a fire on your flat screen and let's relax with a good book (not iReady) and a hot beverage. Pair it up with the book mobile for a truly crazy time!
The content you have been waiting for!
So it's that time of year again. The time where you break out your slippers, hot chocolate, and remote control. Yes, it's Christmas movie season. And like clockwork, here are my two favorite documents that live in my Google Drive: "Matt's fairly comprehensive Christmas movie spreadsheet" and "Christmas movie bingo cards". Enjoy!
I know, it's been too long. Hasn't it been busy? Here's a Monday update to start your week. EdTalk 2019 Looking for a great way to spend your Saturday morning? Come to Paxton Keeley on the 26th for an edcamp style discussion with teachers and a presentation from author Lester Laminack! Registration starts at 8:00 and the sessions will end by 12:15. It's a great way to get refreshed and load your toolbox with ideas from fellow teachers. Come on out! Library Stuff First, please make sure you are sending your returns down in the morning. We aren't getting the help we thought we'd have this year for circulation (checking in and reshelving) so it's important you send books down early so I can get to it before you arrive. Second, we won't be checking out new books to students who have overdue materials. I sent each of you a list of current overdue books. I'll run hard copies later in the week for you to send home on Friday. Then I'll have another round for you to pass out at conferences next month. Book Fair The book fair will be held in the media center the week of conferences. I will have the fair set up on November 7th before I leave for the Smoky Mountain trip. We will watch the preview video the week before and have students complete wishlists during their checkout time. I'd love some 5th or 4th grade help with the kindergarten classes again. Those times are: Friday the 8th at 2:40 with Ms. Huhman Monday the 11th at 2:40 with Ms. Lammers Tuesday the 12th at 2:40 with Ms. Hawf Wednesday the 13th at 2:40 with Ms. Schooler Matt's Projects Update Done: -Completed the PLTW "tiger rescue" with all third grades. Students built simple machines and then designed a compound machine to rescue a tiger from a pit. -Started 5th graders on their collaborative Minecraft Ecosystems projects. -Tried to do a breakout in Mr. Higgins' classroom... -Working with Ms. Wall and Ms. Geha students to 3D print an object after reaching their goals in Class Dojo. Coming up: -Maker stations with 4th graders for a job well done -Lots of Halloween buttons with kindergarten -Mini breakout with Ms. Maude's first grade -Google Hangout with author Abby Cooper on November 4th with 5th grade Have a great week!
Too bad there's no audio to go along with the picture!
Congratulations to Ms. Wall's class for completing the "decorate your book return bin" contest. Her musical box came down the hall this morning blaring Bryan Adams and decorated with custom student art. It's pretty awesome so she's definitely getting some cash. I only know of one other classroom that is attempting it. You have until next Friday to finish.
I have a new (hopefully recurring) feature in my blog this week. As we've been struggling to get fruit to grow on the pineapple chart, I thought it might be helpful for me to share the types of things I am doing in different classrooms. I try to tweet my activities so you can see what's happening, but maybe a digest each week would be more helpful. So I'm including things I did this week (one time only) and what's coming up. Pretty much everything I do can be modified to any grade level or content, so talk to me about planning it out with you. Matt's Projects Update This week: - Showed iPad productivity tools with all third grade classes
4th graders building their egg drop contraption
(15 minutes each) - Made "about me" buttons with Trisha's class - Completed an egg drop with Nikki's class for students to simulate the effect of heavy impact on the head - Visited Leanna and Taryn's classes with the bookmobile - Completed the Amazing Library Race challenge with all 3-5 classes Next week: - Working with all 2nd grade classes to design, build, test, and analyze machines to spread seeds over an area - Collaborative activity with Taryn's class - Showing Flipster digital resources to grades 3-5 during checkout times (no need for students to bring their devices) Down the road: - Collaborative Minecraft ecosystems with 5th grade - Country research with 3rd grade with final projects being published using Pages and iBooks Author. We'll also use a green screen to record travel videos of their country.
Global Read Aloud The Global Read Aloud is upon us. I know, I missed it last year. This year features author Yuyi Morales. We have some of the titles now and I'm looking to add the ones we don't have. If you would like to participate, I can lend out the books for you to read to your classes. The lineup of books is listed at this blog site. Let me know if you'd like to join up. Bookmobile
So many choices...
The bookmobile is rolling around the school. Sign up your class by emailing me. I can post up in your class or in the hallway. Students can return and checkout new titles. If you are focused on a specific genre/author/topic in class, I can find titles to support more reading. Bookroom Time for some friendly reminders about the bookroom. As of now, it's only accessible for our teachers. I think that might change at some point. Here are the key points:
All materials need to be checked out in the library. If someone isn't there to help, add the numbers to the clipboard on the counter behind the circulation desk. I need to have record of our circulations and to be able to track down missing copies. Which brings me to...
Make sure you are sending back all six copies in the bags.
This point might seem small, but I would appreciate it if you could return the bags with the information sheets facing out. That way the next person can see the title, level, and other info that they need to make decisions. And it saves me time. Because it's really all about me.
Finally, all materials need to be checked out. I know, I'm repeating myself.
New book orders
I'm planning on putting in another book order for the library in the coming weeks. Send me any titles that you would like to see in the library or would like to see more of.
