Lego WeDo Exploration

Third graders are exploring the Lego Education materials called "Lego WeDo"during a set of class periods. The Computer Lab provides an open setting for students to work in pairs to select one of twelve projects. Working together they follow the directions to put together the blocks to make the project. Then they connect it to a computer so that the motor or sensor can follow a program students made using the Lego WeDo software.

This video shows the students working on their projects.

 

K-2 Flat Connections - Building Bridges

Once again we have a classroom participating in a global project communicating and collaborating with students across the U.S. and in some international settings. This year Laura Wetmore is participating with her class and they are posting to the project wiki. All classrooms are posting a multimedia greeting (called a "handshake") and a View from Our Window project. The project schools are divided into three working groups to collaborate on a topic, this year the topics will be Sharing Stories and Celebrations. Teachers are communicating via. email as well as a project "ning" and students are using Google Earth to "travel" to the various locations. This is an example of a project that meets the new Global Awareness theme of the updated Social Studies Framework.

This is a map of the schools in the project.

Yarmouth Elementary iPad Roundtable

Today was the first of what we hope will be a series of iPad Roundtable conversations. About thirty educators from area schools gathered at Rowe School from 3:30-5:00. Tara Maker, the regional Apple Sales rep., and Jim Moulton, K-12 Education Development Executive at Apple, provided snacks and managed the registration. We had determined three topics for possible discussion:
 • Using the Book Creator app for students and teachers to make books that are read via iBooks - getting started!
• Using 1:1 iPads - what apps work well, what ideas can we share?
• Using iPads at stations in grades K-5

Groups formed around the three topics with some people moving between groups. There were a mix of technology integrators and classroom teachers from grades K-5. I learned some new tips about using any iPad as well as some good app recommendations.

EdCamp Maine 2014

There was a terrific energy for the third Southern Maine EdCamp, held at Waynflete school. It was very valuable to connect with innovative educators from Maine, Massachusetts and New Hampshire. This event and the fall ACTEM MaineEd conference are the best times for me to connect with others and share ideas. The "unconference" model of EdCamp has become more familiar and there were more interesting sessions offered than I could fit into my day. Meal times and the coffee table were also sources of sharing and conversations that gave me many new ideas for working with students and teachers.

My notes from the day are on a shared Google Doc. One very dynamic person was the K12 integrator from the Wilmington, MA schools. Her session on CCSS Nonfiction Resources seemed valuable enough that I shared it with our K12 Lead Literacy teachers and I have referred to it for ideas for teams at YES.