Everyone knows that STEM impacts our world much more than just inside our classrooms. Preparing our students for a STEM-filled life after high school and college is a growing concern for many future employers. STEM has been in the workforce since our ancestors walked on land. Our brains are wired for engineering, and our communityContinue reading “STEM Beyond the Classroom”
Category Archives: Uncategorized
It’s So Easy Being Green
Going green in the classroom is just SO easy! No, I’m not talking about recycling, or global warming (although those are easy too), I’m talking about Green Screen technology! I’ve been using green screen technology in my classrooms for over 5 years now. Students love it, and if you can press “record” on an app,Continue reading “It’s So Easy Being Green”
My MIE Journey
The Microsoft Innovative Educator (MIE) is a program through Microsoft that I’ve had my eyes on for a few years now. And as always, if you want to get something done, you might as well sign up for a college class during a pandemic. What better time to get started, than now! The focus IContinue reading “My MIE Journey”
Not Enough Time…
What do first grade teachers, a district administrator (and author), and technology integration have in common? Not enough time! That was the most common answer to the “biggest hurdle” in implementing educational technology best practices: We need more time! Today marks another new Daylight Savings Time. Thankfully, we will “get” another hour’s worth of sunshineContinue reading “Not Enough Time…”
Fusing STEM in Anything
First – STEM doesn’t have to be technology. It doesn’t have to be stand-alone. It doesn’t have to be complicated. We also don’t have to do STEM alone. STEM can essentially be fused into virtually any lesson. The challenge of STEM is to see if we can combine two or more subjects or two orContinue reading “Fusing STEM in Anything”
Ode to Buster Poindexter
OK, I’m reaching a bit on this headline, but this topic is going to be about the “Hottest” trends in Ed Tech today! Unfortunately, I have had teachers suggest (or imply) that what I teach is simply a FAD that will disappear in a few years, like all of the other failed educational experiments. Hey,Continue reading “Ode to Buster Poindexter”
I’m in Love… with Micro:bit!
I am in love with Micro:bits. To be honest, I heard about these a few years ago, and they looked interesting, but I had very little interest in them for several reasons. One, they were super cheap – and that does not always equate to quality. Two, it was just another “cool tech gadget” inContinue reading “I’m in Love… with Micro:bit!”
The Honest Teacher’s Approach to Design Models
I combine the ADDIE and Dick and Carey Models of designing lessons into a simple formula that any teacher can follow.
Digital Citizenship
Being a middle school teacher, I had the unique opportunity to teach a lesson on Digital Citizenship to a classroom of third graders. My school district has recently began a push to increase our digital citizenship lessons this school year. In January, they exposed the elementary staff to the CommonSense Media website. Previously, this webContinue reading “Digital Citizenship”
Teaching in the 21st Century
I am jealous of the kids in school today. Yes, I’m going to throw out the, “when I was your age” thing, because when I was their age, my education consisted of individual core curriculum lessons, taught in separate classes, with reading passages, informational text, and weekly quizzes and tests. If we made anything ofContinue reading “Teaching in the 21st Century”
Building Up STEAM 