I can't believe that we are halfway through the first marking period. We had midterms earlier this week and it was eye opening to both some students and parents. Middle school is a little different than elementary school and the expectations have moved the bar up just a bit. Overall, I think the transition for most kids went very well.
Classes are going well. The resource rooms are going slower than I would like but we will speed up at some point. I have found that one day worth of lesson plans in those classes last me two or more days. But, the kids are showing growth. Even though we are 1 to 1 with an iPad for each student, I put into place a interactive math book. In the book, we have the typical table of contents, but I have also included their "I Can" statements complete with a place to show they that they can solve the problems. In addition, I have started to add a QR Code that links to a You Tube Video on how to do the skill. Sometimes we all need a little help remember what we did in class.
I am still loving my iPad classes. I can count more days when everything is working and going well. Although this week was another story. Everything went wrong. The projector bulb is quickly dying, my Activboard wouldn't work, the laptop was stuck at the loading Windows screen and then went black, and then the Internet wasn't working. Days like that make me want to cry and I feel like a failure to my students. I have to remember to take a step back and realize there are so many amazing things that the kids are creating. We just finished creating Snap Guides which are how to guides. I saw everything from how to make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich to how to put a saddle a horse. My 7th graders were more willing to take risks with this. They loved eating all the things that people created in class. The 6th graders kept it a little safer. It was amazing to see a student type on a braille typewriter and the confidence that they showed. Typically we don't always see the confidence in kids, but this project brought it out.
There are always a ton of ideas swirling around in my head in relation to the iPad and student creations. Some of them work, others are HUGE failures. Still a learning experience for all of us,
