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LET ME BE ME

As a child, I was thrilled each time my mom told me I can go visit her school and classroom.  I would excitedly pretend to have students while writing on the board or get tickled putting checkmarks on my moms' students' math drills. I was destined to teach...

Twenty one years ago, just like any new teacher then, I firmly grasped textbooks in my hands. They were my bible. I stuck to the curriculum to the tee, giving math drills with a hundred items for 5 minutes and lessening the time each day. I was ecstatic when my best student scored a perfect hundred in 50 seconds, no one has ever beat her record! Teaching spelling routinely - pretest, definitions, post test was another traditional activity I did weekly.  Were these traditional methods effective then? Most definitely, 20 some years ago...

About 10 years into teaching 3rd grade Homeroom, I started noticing changes. Instead of having that usual 1 child that stood out in class as he needed more of my attention, I started having 2, 3, 4... Moreover, it was not merely my extra attention they needed as well, they needed me to modify my lessons, they needed me to find different ways to explain the lessons to them.  I would join in on the complaints in the teachers lounge about how so much more 'difficult' students are these days. "I was able to do spelling sentences and definitions for 20-25 words before...now I can only do 15-20"; "I used to be able to get my students to write 6-8 sentence paragraphs and write 4-6 paragraphs per book report...now I'm lucky if I can get them to write 3-4 sentences, complete ones at that!"; and "we used to be able to do math drills with 100 items, now we do 5-10 at a time" are just some of the common comments I was hearing more frequently at the teachers' lounge.

This made me reflect upon my teaching. What's going on with these students? Something is missing here...is it them or is it me? This got me started on tweaking the lessons here and there. Putting in more game based activities, interactive lessons, and more hands on learning experiences.  For students with more specific needs:  I let Student A type up his stories because he would clam up otherwise or give me the usual "nothing" after being asked what he did on his 3 week Christmas vacation;  I quiz Student B orally, otherwise she would sit on the floor for 2 hours to get through a 15 minute test (with additional prodding and calling out her name 10 times);  for Student C, I let him draw his scene first for his story, and let him choose his own topic, due to his excitement about the extremely detailed scene he just drew, he is just overflowing with ideas to write his story.  I can go on and on with the little tweaks I did here and there over the years. Was it more work? YES.  Did it frustrate me in having to do 20 mini lessons instead of just doing one? YES. Did it leave me exhausted at the end of the day? YES. But most importantly, was I now teaching these students more effectively that they no longer stood out as the "usual 3-5 difficult students"? The answer is a resounding YES...and that's all that matters in the end.

We now live in a world where a 'one size fits all' no longer works. Future jobs that await the next generation require more creativity, thinking outside the box, driven young boys and girls who want to make a difference and stand out in the crowd. So why do we keep on forcing them inside the box that no longer serves their growing needs? Why do we continue to make 20 copies of the same worksheet?  Instead, let's try to see the best in each and everyone of our students. Let's believe that someday, each and every one of them will make it in the real world, each in his own time. Every one of my former Grade 3 students have made it in this big, harsh world. Each and everyone of them make me so proud, and yes, even those "difficult' students made it as editors (trust me, way back in 3rd grade, some of their writing made me cry, it was like pulling teeth, a very painful activity some 10-15 years ago)  for famous fashion magazines, teachers in Ivy League schools, doctors, entrepreneurs... Twenty, fifteen or ten years ago, I may not have believed in those "difficult students", I may have wondered how will they ever make it through school, but each and every one of them have proven me wrong...it's a good thing I didn't give up on them...it's a good thing I believed in them.  Each one is unique. Each and everyone of them has a voice that just wants to be heard saying, "let me be ME".  

TEACHING WITH THE HEART

Teaching the curriculum is what they teach us in college. Getting those lessons across to our students in a meaningful way that will leave an impact is something we learn through experiences with our students...@DJCE57

Teaching the different communities to my 3rd grade students...I get all eyes on me for the first five minutes, then one starts to stare into space, the other starts to doodle, another fidgets with something on his desk...we have all been in this scene at least once in our teaching life. To get their attention back, fast, I told them a personal story regarding my experience in a suburban community, a funny one. There you go...I got all eyes back on me, I got their undivided attention. 

I just opened up a little about myself and that meant a lot to my students. They laughed when they realised, 'hey, my teacher is human too' or 'my teacher is like me'.  I was no longer the teacher who lived at school => "I saw you at the mall yesterday, what were your doing there? Wow! I thought you just stayed in school" (with eyes beaming, smiling from ear to ear).  When you become relatable to students, when they see you in a different light, they start to put their walls down and become more comfortable with you.  'The Teacher' is no longer from an arms length, you have let them in on your personal life, they, in turn, will let you in on their world. 

I can remember year after year, when I get each new batch of 3rd graders that I had to learn the latest in toys, games, movies, etc. Yup, I researched and learned about them all - 

Pokemon, Digimon, Ben 10, crystal bubbles that will grow over time in water, Chinese garter, jackstones, pick up sticks...  I can go on and on...these things didn't matter to me but they meant the world to my students and that's what counts. The second I suggest adding Pokemon in their journal drawing section, eyes lit up. The time I shared my own cup of crystal bubbles, the excited chatter spread across the room. The moment I showed them a trick or two in playing Chinese jackstones, awe and admiration was evident on their faces. I connected with each and every one of my students, in their language, and that, made a world of a difference in our classroom learning environment. Because I took the time out to get to know each one of them, they took their time out to listen to me, I earned their respect. They wanted me to teach them....and I did.

All these amazing experiences with my students have taught me life lessons that they never teach us in college. They made my teaching experience richer, more meaningful and most memorable. I have a book full of these memories in my memory bank, intact with details as if they happened just yesterday. Why have these teachable moments remained with me after all these years? Why can I remember student names and a story or two about them? How can I possibly remember each teaching modification I made for each of my students? It's because I taught each and every one of them in the way they needed to learn and I did so with my heart. I didn't keep them in learning boxes, I gave each of my students a voice, after all, it's their learning. I may have the most expensive textbooks, the coolest & latest gadgets, or the most fun filled activities...but its those lessons I taught with the heart that made a difference and impact in my students' learning.  

MY #MOONSHOT4ED

My #moonshot4Ed is for teachers not to use tech as a mere addition to their lessons, type up a document, do research etc...tech is a more powerful tool than that. Tech can enhance lessons that can bring about total engagement, enthusiasm, personalization, collaboration, motivation & so much more. It can help teachers deviate students from rote learning, mere memorisation of facts that they can't apply anymore in the real world. 

Let's start changing & it all begins with YOU...change these traditional methods -> into more engaging, personalised methods of teaching that will better prepare them for the future. There are thousands of apps and sites out there that can enhance your lessons further. Below are just a couple of examples:

Spelling tests -> online spelling games, personalised growth via levelled spelling activities...Spell Mania - Word Spelling Games and Boggle Trainer https://appsto.re/us/N9EiR.i; SpellingCity https://appsto.re/us/Yk3fG.i; Bitsboard - Education, Games, and Flashcards for Learning Reading, Spelling, https://appsto.re/us/IlMZE.i

Reading Comprehension/Retelling/Story Sequencing -> use Digital Storytelling Apps like Puppet Pals 2 https://appsto.re/us/OrzhJ.i; Comic Life https://appsto.re/us/AeaYz.i; Google Drawing...for the Ss to illustrate their learning of the stories read in class. 

Math worksheets/tests -> use leveled math games that are more appealing to Ss & deviate from traditional drill & practice, memorization of facts...use songs/videos on YouTube to learn +, -, x, / facts; Math Ninja HD https://appsto.re/us/2z_rw.i; Sushi Monster https://appsto.re/us/6_MJE.i; Splash Math Apps for K-5, ex: 3rd Grade Splash Math https://appsto.re/us/Ge9YA.i

Science Lessons from Textbooks -> use YouTube & interactive apps to make your lessons come alive...Bill Nye The Science Guy https://appsto.re/us/tQr5M.i; BrainPOP Featured Movie https://appsto.re/us/qI9Vv.i; Science Physics For Kids https://appsto.re/us/SzgH8.i

Social Studies Lessons from Textbooks -> use interactive games/apps to explore worlds...Ansel & Clair's Ultimate Bundle https://appsto.re/us/yOOR8.i; Social studies for Kids: geography, history, world cultures https://appsto.re/us/hoQk-.i; Google Maps

MY THOUGHTS & REFLECTIONS ON 

GOOGLE SUMMIT FOR EDUCATION BY APPS EVENTS, BANGKOK, THAILAND, 25-27 SEPTEMBER 2015

At the end of September, I attended a Google Summit for Education, by Apps Events, in Thai Chinese International School, Bangkok, Thailand. On Friday, I attended a pre-conference on how to go about being a Google Certified Educator and the different google certifications available out there. This 'bootcamp' was given by James Sayer. It was an enlightening, motivating and inspiring pre-conference that basically set the tone for the entire weekend. 

Normally, the tendency is to get "info overload" by day 2 of the conference, right about after lunch. Don't get me wrong, yes, was still experiencing 'info overload' but was so eager to learn more, to keep going to one workshop after another. There were so many choices going on at the same time that I had at least 3 choices out of 6-8 and sat there just rereading the workshop descriptors, having difficulty deciding which one to attend. 

Moreover, I continued to be inspired even while back at work despite having a full work weekend and arriving home at midnight the day before Monday. I found myself trying the new chrome apps & extensions, keeping my notes organised via Google Keep, creating slides about each workshop I attended, doing screenshots to illustrate what I learned, watching tutorials & Google Demo Slams on YouTube...the list goes on. 

This prompted me to self reflect...what made this conference unique? Why was I so motivated to attend as much as I could and why am I still motivated to continue to learn, post conference? One thing that stood out was everything was hands on learning, whatever the presenter was doing, we had to make our own version or follow along. The presenters would not allow us to fail, they walked around, made sure we were following along with everyone else.  And because we were never left behind, we got a sense of fulfilment at having achieved a task assigned by the presenter (in essence, our teacher).  Another thing that made an impression was that the presenters touched base with their audience. They didn't merely talk "at/to" their audience, they interacted with them during their workshops, in between (snack and lunch breaks), and even post conference. 

Let's take this scenario back to our classrooms.  Take this time to reflect on how we teach our students. Are we merely teaching the curriculum? Are we assessing/grading with our calculators or with our hearts? What are your true teaching objectives? To merely teach at your students or to guide them, give them a tip or two along the way but let them take full control of their learning?  Do we want all of our students to succeed, support them and most importantly not allow them to fail, just like my #googlegurus from the summit did for us? Or are your students mere numbers and percentages? This brings me back to a PTC with a parent whose 3 kids I have handled. She asked me "did you ever imagine way back in 3rd grade that my sons will accomplish what they have now in Upper School and Middle School?" She went on further to say, "so for my daughter who is now in 3rd grade and is 'below reading level', I will just say, 'relax', they will get there, in their own time."  As teachers, we are there to support and believe in each and everyone of our students, we will all reach our 'a-ha' moment. We are not teaching PHD in the lower school, so for now, let's focus on the key things we must consider to keep our students engaged, motivated, and eager to learn more even after the bell rings?

I will be doing a series of 'take aways' from the summit in the form of a 'how to'. Check out my first take away...http://gg.gg/takeaway-1

*I would like to thank my #googlegurus from the Summit who inspired and motivated me to keep on learning, go after those certifications...don't let the traditional thinking of others get to you...make a difference and it starts with ME.  A big heartfelt thanks to James Sayer, Lee Webster, Sean Thompson, Wesley Przybylski, Davis Apas, Kru Noyneung whose presentations just rocked.  Honored to have connected with you all!