Virtual Connections

VES grade readers and writers participated in a virtual meeting with Will Hillenbrabd, author and illustrator.  They were hooked by the stories of his childhood, and the childhood of his son Ian.  The classes discovered that authors and illustrators weave "life" throughout their work.  Interesting uses id technology were demonstrated right before their eyes!  What a great way to enter Will's studio without leaving the classroom!  

Number Sense

Our K-2 teachers are reading the book Number Sense Routines by Jessica Shumway.  Shumway says we need to provide our students with opportunities to "bump into" number sense daily.  Solid number sense is built over time and can rarely be directly taught.  As teachers, we must design these opportunities for students to grow their understanding of numbers, relationships between them, and how to manipulate then to solve problems.  Here are some ways number sense was developed in VES students today!!

Cyber Bullying

Kids can be bullies.  This is not a new concept.    Now, however, bullies have a new platform.  Social media evolves faster than we can keep up.  Heard of Yik Yak?     As soon as we monitor one site, they find another.  It is impossible to monitor all  online behavior.  From Call of Duty to Snapchat, our students live, work, and play in a digital world.  Are we educating them to be productive digital citizens?  Are we educating them about their digital footprint?  Is this a piece of our "whole-child education?"

Slide from a presentation by Jason Jackson of Common Sense Media.

Are all worksheets created equally?

Worksheets get a bad reputation.  Worksheets based in recall do little to extend student thinking.  Mrs. Smith used this worksheet with her students today in math class.  How does this worksheet engage students in high-order thinking?  Is student learning centered on the answer or the process?

Answer Only

What would happen if you asked students to write their own word problems?  Ms. Bobcheck created a center called "Writing and Reading Word Problems."  In this center students were given an answer and they were asked to write a problem with that answer.  Why is this beneficial?  How could you use this in your classroom?