Connectworking...

Let's face it. If we are networking, we are connecting with other sources. So, why not add the word "connectworking" to our vocabulary? 
I have started to follow the maestrosdeespanol. I looked around this site and found a lot of useful things. It was easy to use and easy to navigate. I was able to narrow my search quickly and found a lot of things that I could use in my lesson planning. 
It is comforting to know that there are people out there that are willing to help and connect with you to make teaching a little bit easier. It definitely isn't the easiest job in the world. Every little bit of help makes my life easier. 
On this page,Spanish teaching tools, I found a lot of conversations on short stories in the Spanish classroom and I just read a short story in my level five class this week. I am going to end my blog and check that out. 
Hasta luego, 
Alissa

A learner is like knitting a scarf...

      I know, I know. My analogy is strange but knitting is a part of my life and so is learning. Let me explain my reasoning. As I read A Learning Theory for the Digital Age , I thought about the "digital age" and the way we spend our spare time.  When people see me knitting, they look at me with this strange look as if to say "Girl, you are 26 years old and you knit?!" For me it is a break from the "digital age". It is a break from a screen in front of me. When people look at my husband's cell phone they act like he lives in the stone age. "A flip phone, really?" We are constantly measured in decades as the article says. As a "knitter of today" I feel that I am outnumbered by the "non-knitters" of today. As a "terrible user of technology of today", I feel as though I really am a learner of today. I learn about technology every day from my students. I add layers to my "technology scarf" every week. My knowledge grows and grows. Just like my knowledge, the scarf or blanket that I am knitting grows and grows. Each stitch that goes together is like the knowledge that the learner gains. In the video, The Changing Nature of Knowledge, the development of knowledge is discussed. We are all a part of a wider network. Our mind is part of a neuro-network. The external network is when we connect with other individuals and other sources of knowledge. Each piece is like a stitch on a scarf. 
     When I first started to knit I was in the ninth grade. My scarf was made from chunky, thick, multi-colored yarn and I was so excited to start it. I worked on it at my knitting club with all of my friends and when I got home I couldn't put it down. I was so enthralled with learning something new and creating this scarf. As I knit by myself, I noticed that my scarf was getting wider and wider... and messier and messier. What was I doing differently? Why wasn't this working like it had an hour ago? I swear I had it. 
     Many times I think that this is what happens when my students learn something in class but get home to practice and are too distracted by other things, or simply have forgotten how to conjugate those darn verbs!
      Just like there are many ways to learn things, there are many ways to knit things as well. A long time ago when I started to knit I thought that I could never learn how to do something so complex and time consuming, but it came to me very quickly. In the article it says that "knowledge is an objective that is attainable." This piece of knowledge was definitely attainable for me and I am so glad that it is a part of my life. 
         As I continued to read the article I thought that the definition of "constructivism" was very interesting. "Constructivism suggests that learners create knowledge as they attempt to understand their experiences." I believe that we all create knowledge and begin to understand new experiences throughout our lives. I believe that this process happens each and every day. This is exactly what happens as I knit a scarf or blanket  or sweater. 
       The article also states that "Constructivist principles acknowledge that real-life learning is messy and complex. Classrooms which emulate the “fuzziness” of this learning will be more effective in preparing learners for life-long learning." In real life, my knitting is messy. I am constantly making a mistake, reflecting on my mistake, pulling out the stitches and moving forward with what I am making. This messiness seems to happen in my classroom as well. For example, I have three classes of level three Spanish this year and I have noticed that I might make a mistake in my first class or skip over something, or a student might bring up a great point and I take all of these things and make my next class better and by my third class of the day, I have reflected so much and tweaked things just enough to make it a perfect lesson. (Sometimes, I get it on the first try, but who doesn't do things better the third time, right?)
    When the article discusses connectivism, I thought about each stitch and how it is connected to the next. Just like the theory states that it is "important to see connections between fields and ideas." If we aren't knitting our theories, ideas, and lessons together, we aren't creating that beautiful product at the end. "The starting point of connectivism is the individual. Personal knowledge is comprised of a network, which feeds into organizations and institutions, which in turn feed back into the network, and then continue to provide learning to individual. This cycle of knowledge development (personal to network to organization) allows learners to remain current in their field through the connections they have formed."
    Learners of today have a huge advantage over those old "knitters". We have screens full of information that can lead us to the next source of information that we need. We are constantly connecting with another "stitch". 
Thanks for reading and trying to follow my analogy. 
Alissa

I scooped up Diigo...

Sometimes you really try to do things right and get them done on time and life kicks you in the pants...ya know?
So, after a small mental break down, screaming, a computer virus and complete shut down of my brain and the computer, I figured out Diigo and Scoop it. Might I add that both of them are great sites that I will use from now on. I learned my lesson.
I think I like Diigo more. I believe that it is more user friendly. I liked the set up better. I also like that I can highlight text and put little post-it notes on things that are important. I like that I can follow others on both sites because I feel like that is a HUGE benefit for teachers. When you can put more than one brain together and help fellow teachers it is a win win situation. On Scoop it I felt as though the suggestions that the site was making were not helpful at all. Perhaps I was not specific enough when creating my topics.
Diigo is something that I would suggest to my students. Ten of my students are seniors and i feel as though that would be something that they could use as they start to look at colleges to compare and contrast important things about each one.
I do like the "bigger pictures" on Scoop it but felt that having Diigo at the top of my toolbar was super beneficial, especially because it travels from computer to computer. On Scoop it, I like that people that can leave comments about things that I post. I always like to hear opinions of other teachers and other users of these sites.
Again, I have learned my lesson this week and will use these in the future. Ahhh, I think I might take a breather.
Alissa

I would NEVER say that!!

I promised myself I would  never say "well, when I was in high school we didn't have or I never did..", but I find myself saying and thinking that more than one time a day. Did I have these things? Could I have set up a blog in 2004? I am sure I could have, I just didn't have a teacher that used it in the classroom. I hope my students never say that about me. I really try my best to add new, fun, and exciting things into my classroom. My school has barely any technology, only computers in the library and the computer lab. One teacher was able to get a class set of ipads for his classroom this year, but they are his and only his. I will say that he worked very hard to get them, and I don't blame him for keeping them.
After watching a few of the videos assigned to us today I caught myself reflecting on my own teaching habits, always saying "well we just can't do that here," or "I wish our school had something like that". Have i ever blogged in my classroom? Nope! Have I ever used a voice thread in my classroom? Nope! Have I ever thought to use them in my classroom? Nope! (See people, I NEED this class.) In the video "A Vision of 21st Century Teachers"Video #1 a teacher holds up a sign that says something like "Unleash the power that they bring with them to the classroom". I don't know about you, but usually I want them to keep the power inside and listen to what I have to say. But, really we SHOULD be unleashing their power. They ARE powerful and they DO know more about technology than I do so why not?! At the end of this video it says "I am a 21st Century Teacher... and Learner." That sums me up perfectly. How about you? I want my classroom to look like some of the classrooms in the video called "Classroom of Tomorrow". Video #2 Does your classroom look like this? Mine looks like its stuck in 2001. As an official 21st Century teacher I believe it is my job to create this technology rich environment with virtual field trips or blogging. Students need to have a better understanding of the global community in foreign language classes.
Now is the time to act on this. Some teachers and schools are going to leave us in the dust. And I hate dust! I want to be a teacher that students look back and say "Mrs. Dunham taught me how to blog. Mrs Dunham was always incorporated technology into our Spanish class." Wish me luck?
-Alissa
This picture has nothing to do with blogging, but my sister is an awesome photographer and took this of my husband and I. I thought I could share with you all. Have a great week!

Simply teaching in NYS

Simply teaching in New York is almost impossible these days. I know that many of you are reading this and probably thinking the exact same thing. The question is, will we ever be ably to simply teach again?
I find that I am so worried about an SLO or LLO or running to my lunch duty that I forget that teaching Spanish vocabulary can be fun. I forget why I got into this profession some days. Sometimes I wonder if what I have a passion for really isn't possible anymore.
I love to plan lessons, create ways to learn vocabulary, and grade papers with my fun colored markers but sometimes even that doesn't make my day any better because New York State has made it impossible for me to sit down and grade a paper or plan a great lesson.
I just want to teach. Plain and simple. One great way to add some fun to an ordinary day might be to have students create a blog! One of the NYS Standards of Foreign Language is Communication. In the video that I watched on blogs it talked all about why blogs were created for communication. What a fun way to practice our Spanish skills! Students could create a blog in Spanish on a current topic in class. The teacher could grade the students on their Spanish, the creation of the blog, and their communication skills in the language.
In the article written by Rita Zeinsteger she says that blogs can be used for collaboration skills. Collaborating is one of the most important 21st Century Skills. (I know this from ALL of my lesson planning of course)
Collaboration is important for both students and teachers. I can collaborate with other teachers by reviewing articles and posting articles. My students can communicate practice their language skills and read articles that might interest them as well. Communicating with their community, or talking about other cultures are two things that they could also do and both are a part of the official ACTFL standards of LOTE!

ACTFL Standards Check it out! 

I love this tool. I look forward to being an "official blogger". 

Hasta luego,
Alissa