Extending International Dot Day

I am always looking for ways to extend International Dot Day and promote creativity. Recently, I was watching this video of Eric Carle and Mr. Rogers when inspiration struck.

Last year for Dot Day, my junior high chorus made awesome designs using "Washable Markers" and coffee filters. If you haven't seen this, the student draws on the coffee filter and when he/she is done, they are spritzed with water. The colors blend into an amazing piece of art.

The idea I got from watching Eric Carle create is that once the art has dried, it can be cut into shapes. I used Bot from Boy + Bot as my inspiration for the above pieces. Boy + Bot was written by Ame Dyckman and illustrated by Dan Yaccarino

A few precautions: you'll want to have something underneath the coffee filter when spraying it and make sure it is very dry before cutting. Also, as you noticed from the Boy on the right, they tend to curl a bit.

Special thanks to Shannon Miller who shared her students coffee filter creations that inspired me!

Give it a try!

Connecting Kids and Authors

I love books and I love the authors who write them. I still remember the first time Sharon Creech "Liked" something I had written on Facebook, I jumped up and down because she's one of my heroes. Just today the amazing Judy Blume replied to a tweet and I had to tell everyone I know. This last week, one of my students was retweeted by Lisa Yee. When the student told me about this she said, "She's the woman who wrote the books that defined the part of my life when I was too awkward to function." Interacting with authors can be very empowering, but it can create hard feelings.

Recently, I saw an author post something on Twitter about students writing to her with questions that were already available on the web. It wasn't an author that I have ever interacted with before, but decided to jump in to suggest that kids are merely looking for a connection and, although the questions have been answered, it's a place to start connecting for the kids. I received a reply from what I assume was another author with a somewhat snarky response to what I had written.

So, that's been rolling around in my head for a few days and I decided to try to write a post to help clear things up and maybe help teachers and students to navigate this situation. I asked some of my author friends to offer advice and have included that.

Before I start, let me tell you that virtually every author I have interacted with online has been nothing but warm, kind and amazing. Some have created Celebridots and I love them most of all. They are people just like you and me, busy with their 'job' and lives.

Advice for students interested in connecting with authors:

• Check the author's website to see what questions have already been answered. Encourage kids to be creative and ask thoughtful questions.
• If students are emailing, have them "be brief and limit the email to 1 or 2 questions" was advice from Sharon Creech 
• Don't expect an instant reply, authors can receive between 10-700 emails a day and are busy creating new books.
• Remember there are lots of fans and only one author. You might not always get a reply.
• Many authors have blogs, search those out. I think author blogs may be one of the most motivating and inspiring things available for young writers.
• If you are using USPS mail: enclose SASE (self-addressed stamped envelope).
• "Don't ask for help with your homework." was advice from S.E. Hinton, author of "The Outsiders" (Can you imagine kids do that???)
• I've heard of teachers giving assignments to write/email an author. This seems like a ill-advised to me. Perhaps save those interactions for authors that the student really wants to know more about and have a greater connection with. On this subject, S.E. Hinton said, "It is very unfair to an author to make them responsible for a student's grade. That should between the student & the teacher." She is so right!

Advice for authors connecting with students:

• If the answer to the students question is already on your website, could you kindly send them there?
• Remember that kids want a connection with you because they love your work and the simple question might be all they are able to come up with on a cognitive level.
• Know that all of us teacher types are watching you and admiring you more than you can know for the place to have in a kid's life.

Here are authors and illustrators I have in my network. Click on their names to go to their website. I've learned so much about the writing process from them, maybe if you start following them and check out their blogs, you can pass that on to students. Follow them on Twitter and learn all about their latest projects and get sneak peeks of things to come:

Sharon Creech @ciaobellacreech
Ame Dyckman @amedyckman
Peter H Reynolds @peterhreynolds
Kristin Tubb @ktubb
Katherine Applegate @kaaauthor
Debbie Ridpath Ohi @inkyelbows
Zachariah OHora @zachariahohora
Tom Angleberger @Origami Yoda
CeCe Bell @cecebellbooks
Michael Grant @thefayz
Augusta Scattergood @ARScattergood
Courtney Stevens @Quartland
Lisa Yee @LisaYee1
Stephen McCranie @stephenmccranie
Jarrett J. Krosoczka @studioJJK
Judy Blume @judyblume
Barney Saltzberg @BSaltzberg
Margo Sorenson @ipapaverison
Michele Robinson @MicheRobinson
Chris Barton @bartography
Lauren Castillo @studiocastillo
Lynne Plourde @LynnPlourde
Florence Minor @minorart
Wendell Minor @wendellminor
Bethanie Murguia @aquapup
Deborah Underwood @underwoodwriter
Eric Wight @Eric_Wight
S.E. Hinton @se4realhinton
Katie Davis @katiedavisburps
Susan Verde @susanverde
Erica S. Perl @ericaperl
Anita Silvey @anitasilvey
Beverly McClure @beverlymcclure

International Book Giving Day-Updated

There were three excellent entries, so I sent books to all of them. To make this more glorious, Peter H. Reynolds created an original surprise for each recipient. Love!




I will be giving away at least two copies of "The Dot" by Peter H. Reynolds today for International Book Giving Day. Nominate a kid to receive them using this form:

Our Journey to 1:1

Our Journey to 1:1

For the benefit of schools contemplating going 1:1, I've decided to chronicle my school's journey. When appropriate, I will share actual documents that we shared with the school board and community.

Our journey started when my school hired a excellent leader as a Superintendent. As he looked around our school, he realized that we were a bit behind in technology from other schools in our area and started to seek input on what we could do to close that gap. The most fortuitous thing happened when the Principal at the time, forwarded an email he had received about a device called Kuno. Since we were just starting to look at  1:1, so we invited the salesperson to visit the school, what happened then was amazing.

I walked in to that meeting thinking there was no way we could go to 1:1 because of the limited amount of time that our technology coordinator has available, but it wasn't long before I was convinced that it was an option. The Kuno is nearly locked down from student intervention so they can focus on educational usage. Only administrators can install apps. Best of all, there is a CIPA filter loaded at the kernel level, so students are safe.

Even better than that, teachers are able to push out information to students via CurriculumLoft and students can directly send assignments back to the teacher. All information is downloaded directly on the device so even if the student doesn't have the Internet at home, they are able to watch videos and keep up on work. This is a game-changer.

I first presented to the board in May of 2012:

1:1 Computing at North Tama

At the beginning of the year, approximately 25% of schools in Iowa were using 1:1 technology in their school and that number is expected to grow significantly every year.  In order to remain competitive with other schools, we need to look at what being 1:1 could mean for us. Even more importantly, however, it is important for us to make moves to strengthen our curriculum as well as prepare students for the careers they will have in the future.

The teachers and administration had a visit from Jeromy Franks and Monte Davis and were presented with an alternative that would work well for our school, Curriculum Loft and Kuno device. Teachers were very excited by the thought of moving forward.

Our plan of putting our curriculum on Curriculum Loft and purchasing devices to share work with students has these benefits:

--Creates 21st Century Learners

--Demands collaboration between students & students and students & teachers

--Promotes student engagement

--Reduces textbooks and worksheets

--Guides students in the production of knowledge (an AIW goal)

--Opens opportunities for education at all levels in our community.

--Allows access to current information and a means to manipulate information in ways that connect it in meaningful ways

--Increases enthusiasm due to the ability to use the web and other technological sites

--Promotes student pride through creative opportunities as opposed to textbook and worksheet assignments

--Improves students’ ability to self-assess and set learning goals

--Increases interactive possibilities with teachers and other students

Teachers will be able to:

--Help students learn to manage their time and projects

--Teach laptop/computer ethnical and responsible usage of technology

--Assign tasks of inquiry, collaboration, research, and polished/published writing knowing that students have the needed resources

--Provide student opportunities including independent learning and practice

--Collaborate through interdisciplinary teaching and online professional development

--Provide practice, review sessions, additional readings and differentiated learning for all students

--Include the instructional component of the Iowa Core Curriculum which addresses the principles of “Challenge-Based Learning.” Challenge-Based Learning is differentiated, project-based learning during which students collaborate on problem-based, real world situations and solutions.

Our faculty is 100% committed to adapting our current curriculum to include new technologies. In a recent survey, 95% of teachers said they would volunteer to come in over the summer to learn the curricular part of the 1:1 device if it would help adoption move quicker.  

The board was intrigued, but cautious. This was all so new to our school. The board suggested we take a look at some other devices. The board did spend a considerable amount of money last summer upgrading our infrastructure to better support any change in our school system. 

We looked at ByteSpeed devices, iPads, and briefly at Chromebooks. For our needs, Chromebooks were dismissed almost immediately because of the online nature of the device.  We looked much more seriously at the iPad. Many of us on the tech committee were Apple fans, but in the end, the Kuno won out. Below is what we presented to the board.

I created a spreadsheet that compared the quotes from Apple and Kuno/Curriculum Loft and Kuno was also less expensive.

We submitted this to the board to share our findings:

After visiting two schools, and researching four different products, the NT Secondary Technology Team recommends the purchase of Curriculum Loft and the Kuno device to begin our 1:1 program at North Tama. We would like to request the board make a commitment to this so we may start loading the Curriculum Loft with content during the second semester, order devices for teachers before the end of the year, and be fully implemented in the fall of 2013 with students 7-12. We wish to be a model school for learning with the use of technology.

Curricular Rationale:

*The use of Curriculum Loft offers ease of maintaining content, ease of showing Iowa Common Core progress and artifacts that meet standards, ability for cross curricular sharing, and transparency of curriculum to interested parties.

*The Curriculum Loft affords us ease in pushing content to tablets and removing content from tablets later.

*Teachers are currently reporting compliance with the Iowa Core Curriculum using the ICAT checklist as a tool. Going to Curriculum Loft will allow teachers to assign standards to a lesson and then the district can look at the mapped curriculum and locate gaps in instruction. The district is currently looking at additional programs like Curriculum Mapper, which is a multi-thousand dollar program.  The Curriculum Loft has this built in. Full implementation of the Iowa Core for grades 9-12 in required by July 1, 2012, and grades K-8 by 2014-2015.

*Everyone on the technology team is a fan of the  iPad as a consumer product and there is no disputing Apple’s legendary respect in the world. However, the Kuno was designed as an educational tool and was created to compliment the Curriculum Loft. Many of the teachers we talked to at Cardinal alluded to the tablet as an educational tool for getting content to students and engaging them without the hassle and worry about security.  

Staffing Rationale:

*The iPad and ByteSpeed sales people recommended that North Tama would need a full time staff member to deal with all the tech issues involved with deploying their solutions.  So that would be a large additional expense to the transition to 1:1.  

Security Rationale:

*The feature of the Kuno that truly sets it apart from the other devices we examined is the ability for the school to retain complete control of the device so students are focused on educational usage.

*The Kuno comes with a kernel level LightSpeed filter. Kernel level means that it can’t be disabled by a student (a feature no other device has)

*Only system administrators can add Apps (programs) to the devices, which would mean students can’t add games and other distractors.

What came next was the most amazing part of this process. The board suggested a "Work Session" where community members could come and share their thoughts. Over seventy people attended that meeting and spoke passionately about the need for 1:1 in our school. I personally have been to many meetings where people spoke passionately about music or sports, but that was the first time where people were very vocal about wanting to change the education system. I am grateful to the community and the school board for that opportunity.

The next Monday night, the school board voted unanimously to purchase the devices and more infrastructure and go 1:1 next year for 7-12. None of this would have happened without a visionary administrative team and a school board who wants our students to be successful. The technology team did a great deal of work to make it all happen and spent a lot of time after school hours.

I actually got to hold the check for the entire program and it was an exhilarating feeling. We all had worked so hard that it felt like the beginning of something amazing.

We set up our CurriculumLoft last Tuesday via a webinar. The high school secretary was AMAZING in getting everything we needed to make it happen. Teachers attended a webinar on Wednesday to learn how to post content in the cloud and we are under way. The devices for teachers were handed out on Thursday and the excitement in the air is building. Every time I walked around the school with one of the boxes, the students excitedly asked questions.

I need to mention the awesome support we have received from CurriculumLoft through the entire process, especially from Jeromy Franks. Jeromy traveled to North Tama three times to make this happen. Since we have started, the staff at CurriculumLoft has been absolutely amazing at answering questions and keeping us supported (I joked that he was one trip away from getting keys to the school). Katie, Matt, and Melissa are rockstars! Today is Sunday and I actually got an answer to a question this morning!

We were helped on our journey with guidance by another Iowa school, Cardinal. Mr. Chamberlain & Mr. Pederson were a huge help in leading us through the process. They provided us a lot of information on best practice.

That's our story. Stay tuned for the great shift to follow!

Country Music

A while back, after a heated (and humorous) exchange on Facebook with two of my wife's former students, I posted something like this (I've updated it a little).

Understanding my dislike for country music comes down to this: I teach singing and have a degree in music education. I try to teach my students to sing in tune, to not scoop to notes, and to make a warm and pleasant sound.

Meanwhile, the students are listening to country music which scoops all over the place and has a nasal sound (on average). This is NOT helping my cause. I spend the majority of my time combatting the things they hear on the radio and *shudder* American Idol (where I have yet to hear someone sing in tune). It should be noted that bad singing isn't limited to just country music, but it is commonly found in that genre.

An analogy: Imagine if your job was to teach gun safety and kids watched and emulated what they saw on TV? Hanging out of car windows, driving down the highway at high rates of speed, shooting in any direction. Obviously those type of media are undoubtedly popular, and the people involved make a lot of money, but neither would help you to properly teach gun safety.

A second analogy: Imagine if you taught journalism (like my wife does) in an area the local newspaper doesn't follow the approved conventions of journalism. Imagine further that there are 'news' channels in which all news is skewed to fit their own agenda (I believe this happens for both political parties). Obviously a lot of people watch/read, but it doesn't help teach kids how to be journalists.

In the end, you are free to love what you like. I am seriously thrilled that music moves you. . . Just don't expect me to agree on your taste. I could (possibly) try to joke less about this subject (but don't hold your breath).

Edublog 2012 Nominations

Here are my nominations for Edublog Awards 2012

Group Blog: http://twolibrariesonevoice.blogspot.com/
  John and Shannon are the model of collaboration. Although their blogging isn't a regular thing (daily) thing, the posts are always informative.

Class Blog: http://mrcsclassblog.blogspot.com/
  Mr. Chamberlain and his class are awesome examples of what classrooms should look like. They regularly share what is going on in their class and it is always awesome.

Teacher Blog: http://blogush.edublogs.org/
  Brave, smart, and so very talented, Paul Bogush is a teacher with a huge heart and allows us all to have a peak inside his head and heart. I frequently read his blog and nod along. Things I have thought and felt are shared there and the message always makes me think (and frequently thing a different way). 

Library/Librarian Blog: http://mrschureads.blogspot.com/
  I am pretty sure that Mr. Schu never sleeps! His blog is a treasure trove about books and he has introduced me to many of my current favorite books and authors (Like "The One and Only Ivan" @kaaauthor, "Boy + Bot" @amedyckman and "Wonder" @rjpalacio) Sharing books is one of the most amazing things people can do for each other and Mr. Schu is a great champion for books and reading.

Influential Post: http://coolcatteacher.blogspot.com/2012/11/you-may-be-walking-wounded-but-teacher.html 
  I greatly admire Vicki Davis because she is a teacher and she is not afraid to say the things that need to be said (see Lifetime Achievement below). This post absolutely hit me at exactly the right time and I think it is an amazing example of what blogs can be.

Individual Tweeter: @wmchamberlain and @dmcordell
  William is one person I can always count on to answer a tweet. He is a great connector of people and a classroom teacher who shows us a glimpse inside of what classrooms COULD be like. I also admire him because he sometimes pushes back on the things I tweet (always respectful), especially if I am having a very bad day...he reminds me why I do what I do.

(Wait, I can have two, right??)

I call Diane "The Great One" of Twitter because she is so willing to help people. This past summer, I required my class of future teachers to be on Twitter. MANY of my students reported back how Diane had answered every question they had and had helped them to help students. I seriously love this woman, she is a great friend to have.

Twitter Hashtag: #thewonderofwonder & #choosekind
  If you follow my tweets, you have seen that I love the book "Wonder" by @rjpalacio. The reason I love this hashtag is because the book has spawned an entire movement of people who #Choosekind. Classrooms around the world are reading the book, and making changes in their school.

Lifetime Achievement: Vicki Davis
  Flat Classroom . . . Blogger . . . Wiki-Expert . . . CLASSROOM TEACHER. You will notice a trend in my responses, I love people who are in classrooms (and libraries) who take time from their overly busy schedules to make the world a better place. Vicki is an outstanding example of that. She speaks from her vast experience, and also from her heart. Education is not just a way for her to make money or make herself known, but her passion. I deeply admire and respect everything Vicki has done...and although I think everyone I know is too young for "life-time" achievement, Vicki has the breadth of work that makes up for her lack of chronological years.

It's Not Me...It's You (all of you)

Last month was International Dot Day (week). It was an amazing week filled with creative wonders from around the globe. The spotlight was turned toward me on several occasions and it's important for me to talk about that and to clarify. This year, there was a new website dedicated to Dot Day and it featured a story about how I started the event. There was a news story on the local news and Dot Day was read into the Congressional Record. All truly amazing and wonderful.

Although the initial idea may have been mine, what happened next was all you. There were literally thousands of tweets about #dotday and too many Facebook messages to count. I initially tried to comment or retweet and lost the battle (I am a full-time teacher). I did read each and every message and blogpost. Each of those messages carried a seed of opportunity and hope.

The picture above was sent to me from a pediatric unit in Vietnam where Dot Day was celebrated. When this year started, I didn't know anyone there...so I couldn't have made this happen. YOU made this happen. I didn't know a person on every continent or in every state of the United States...but the day was celebrated there. YOU are driving force for good and hope in this project. YOU made this what it is.

I would like to thank every single person by name. I WILL thank everyone that I can (and tried to on Twitter). I have joked on Twitter that after I retire, I want to travel to every single site that hosted a Dot Day event...what a dream that would be! Below I am going to list some Dot Day Heroes....but trust me, there are many more. I have waited an entire month to post this because I was afraid of leaving someone out. If you have ever tweeted, facebooked, talked about, emailed, or nudged anyone about this project, you should consider yourself a hero.

Peter H. Reynolds @peterhreynolds . . . Who made this all happen by writing an inspiring book

Paul Reynolds @fablevision. . . The driving force for change and a tireless advocate for creativity

FableVision Learning @fablelearn . . . Julia and Becky did an awesome job of helping to spread the word about Dot Day.

Bill Norris . . . Bill was the organizing force behind the huge Boston event! He spent hundreds of hours making everything work. Bill ways also my spiritual guide and my star that helped guide me.

John Schumacher @mrschureads and Shannon Miller @shannonmmiller... Two of the original Dot Day heroes! I can't begin to tell you how much these two have made the day grow!

Diane Cordell @dmcordell "The Great One" of Twitter. She has such a great heart and has connected so many people!

Karen McMillan @mcteach I love this girl! She is a force and she also has students who inspire me a great deal. They came up with a list of ways to celebrate that was phenomenal!

Matthew Winner @MatthewWinner I got to meet Matthew last summer at ISTE and he brought an entirely new angle to this worldwide celebration, he invited schools to Skype! It was AWESOME!! I appreciate his efforts so much. I was even lucky enough to be able to Skype in to one of his classes!

Erika Victor @victortweets Erika did an awesome job of getting the schools in her area (of Germany) to sign on to participate!! She also was a champion retweeter!

Suzanne Earley @ntredhawks One of the things that made this year extra special was that my school celebrated in a big way. In part do to the elementary principal, but also because of Suzanne. She is the secondary secretary and also the cheerleading coach. This year, Dot Day fell on Homecoming and Suzanne helped us celebrate in a huge way. The Thursday dress-up day was "Dot Day", the banner the boys ran through at the game had dots, and the locker/door signs also were dots.

William Chamberlain @wmchamberlain William is an awesome teacher and an excellent advocate for kids. He is one of my greatest retweeters as well as mentors in the Twitter arena. He is always there when I need him!

Sharon Creech @ciaobellacreech If you have followed me on Twitter for more than a day, you know I LOVE Sharon Creech!! She is an amazing author and amazing person. She was the inspiration behind the Celebridot movement and was a champion of retweeting and sharing. When I was telling people about Celebridots, I always mentioned Sharon and always got a rather large smile that she was the inspiration (guess I am not alone in loving her work!)

Kristin Tubb @ktubb Kristin was one of the early celebridots. She did so much to promote both Dot Day and Celebridots.

Katie Davis @katiedavisburps Katie was also a celebridotter. In addition, she featured Dot Day in her famous "Brain Burps about Books" podcast and LOTS of people came exploring after that!

Jodi Glucksman the driving force behind "Over the Moon: The Broadway Lullaby Project" was instrumental in getting us a lot of Celebridots!

Pippin Properties @LovethePippins is a talent agency and they helped so much with spreading the word about Dot Day as well as helping us find Celebridots!

Candlewick Press @candlewick is the publisher of "The Dot" and they helped spread the word about Dot Day.

All the Celebridots   www.celebridots.com


and YOU. ALL of you!