What's the best gift for a teacher?

It is that time of year again when the students start to ask, "what is your favorite store" and "where do you like to eat".  I work in a very fortunate school where almost all students present me with a present and a generous one at that.  The giftcards are always plentiful.  Now, having had worked in schools that were not as fortunate as the one I am in now, I realize that family struggle and can not afford a present for their teacher. 

Whenever a student asks me what I want, I always respond - "make me a card".  I give them paper and tell them that, that means more to me and that I can always hold on to it and remember them.  No one feels left out because they can or can not afford a gift for me.  At the end of the day, I dont want presents from my students.  It is always nice to get a gift unexpectedly but it should not be expected.  Some teachers I know get nothing and some get more than they need.  It just goes to show you that there is economic divisions between schools and families. 

Keeping Track of What You Read

I found this to be useful information posted on Google Reader.  I believe it would be helpful to students to know what they have looked at and to help them remember their sources.  Vice versa, it would be beneficial for a teacher to see what sites students have viewed and utilized. 

Middle school students and up should know how to bookmark a page as their work entails more research and papers.  This would be just be teaching them another way to be proficient while using the computer.  I have found bookmarking a page to be beneficial for me during this course as I have to go back and weekly research different blogs being posted.  Once it is bookmarked, I can easily go back to where I left off.  It saves time too, which is always a positive!

No Surprise to iPhone Users, as Consumer Reports Calls AT&T Worst Carrier

I have to admit, as much as I love the iPhone, it literally has the worst service I have ever experienced.  I do not own the iPhone but I have used others to see the applications and understand what it offers.  I think it is amazing and I would totally get the phone for myself but the coverage is horrible.  Whenever I call family members who own the phone, I can almost guarantee that I will have a hard time talking to them because of the coverage. 

The last I heard, Verizon Wireless was suppose to pick up the phone and offer them their service.  Now, I have Verizon and I love my service.  I am nervous that if iPhone comes to Verizon their coverage will to be suffer when so many people switch over.  The phone itself is amazing but how good is a phone if you cant actually talk on the phone, its real purpose.

This article was great to read and I would suggest it to those who are interested in getting the iPhone. 

Project-Based Learning: A Case for Not Giving Up

I think project based learning is a cooperative attempt for students to work together for the better of a cause.  When I think of project-based learning, I think of oppotunities for students to work to help a community or another individual out.  This time of year is a great opportunity for students to adopt another student or family and help them financially by providing gifts or food. 

My school does a food drive for Thanksgiving and continue it into Christmas.  We have a program in which individual can adopt a family and provide items that they can not afford.  I think this is a great thing for students to do and it allows them to help others out.  I promote the schools program and encourage my students to participate and volunteer there time anyway that they can.

The Power of Literature Circles in the Classroom

There really is power in literature circles.  I have always liked the idea and the possibilities that one can do while having literature circles.  I have found that students too love getting into their groups and working with one another.  I have always valued cooperative learning and literature circles definitely promote learning.  This gets students out of the traditional learning mood too, which is always needed.  Students need to move around and interact with one another.  I have found that students who sit in their desk too long can not focus and are easily distracted with things around them. 

This article suggests a book about literature circles that I would like to look into and read more about.  Again, promoting the idea and supporting the idea of students working cooperatively in groups to discuss a book, article, or even paragraph that they may read.  This creates great conversation between peers and requires a higher learning/comprehension level.  I use literature circles because I want to promote and create that higher level of learning atmosphere with my students.

Should laptops replace textbooks?

The census is in and yes, many believe that laptops should replace textbooks.  I thought the debate would be more divided but it was in favor of laptops.  I am not sure if I totally agree with the article and the opinions being posted on the page.

I am in favor of students using laptops but not all ages and grade levels.  I believe each grade should be introduced to a computer lab and know the basic functions of using a computer.  However, I do not think that laptops should be the sole form of learning in school, especially in the elementary level or middle school. In high school and college, I can justify students using laptops only as their form of learning.

The students in my school are required to purchase a mac laptop at the beginning of the year in high school and high school only.  I teach elementary so I still teach from a textbook and I have to admit that I see no problem in this.  I think my 5th grade students need a textbook. I believe that one day, textbooks will be a thing of the past however.  I can see the laptop movement has started and it will continue to grow- even at a 5th grade level.

Ten Simple Strategies for Re-engaging Students

This was a good read as often times I will need to re-direct or re-engage students in my class.  I sometimes forget that they can not sit very long and listen tentatively.  There have been many studies done on the brain and research proves that students can only pay attention in incidents of seven minutes.  Therefore, if I am teaching a class and am trying to get a point across - some of those students may be tuned out and some may be tuned in.

I have to remind myself of this because I will teach from bell to bell and yet get frustrated when a student is not paying attention or does not understand the concept.  They may understand the idea but its just too much for them at one time.  This makes sense and the ten strategies presents easy and logical solutions to re-directing or re-engaging, when it is needed.