TTT - Quick Jots

Technology tips and tricks on a regular basis. View this email in your browser Quick Jots Writing Bursts  Greetings Sequoyah,  I just stumbled across this writing technique via Twitter today. The author (Vivian Robert@vivianroberthe) posted a bit on jot museums with a photo spread of students writing. This sounded interesting.  I did a quick search of Jots writing and came up with a handful of results. The first article really defines the process (http://www.uen.org/utahstandardsacademy/elaelem/downloads/level2/2-3-2-QuickJots.pdf)  The second covers cross curriculum issues (http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/curriculum/2015/07/using_quick_jots_to_write_across_the_curriculum.html) While the third goes into a variety of similar techniques. (http://www.davis.k12.ut.us/cms/lib09/UT01001306/Centricity/Domain/32/Stop%20think%20and%20write%20techniques.pdf) Take a look at Quick Jots. Let us know what you think.  Thanks and don't forget to be awesome,  Andy Twitter Google Plus Instagram Copyright © 2015 Sequoyah Middle School, All rights reserved. The Sequoyah Email List Our mailing address is: Sequoyah Middle School 1125 E. Danforth Edmond, OK 73034 Add us to your address book Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list

TTT - Graphic Design

Technology tips and tricks on a regular basis. View this email in your browser Graphic Design Creating and Designing  Greetings Sequoyah,  In one of our sessions on Monday we talked about creating printables for class. Posters, infographics and the like. We have a great interface on our computers in PowerPoint. PowerPoint is much easier to use for text and graphics than Word. PowerPoint allows the user a greater variety of design layouts and choices as well as easier placement of images. Font, font size, color, backgrounds, images, and whitespace all need to be explored when designing works for public consumption.  Suggested Websites: Piktochart - http://piktochart.com/ it is an online infographic creator. Canva (https://www.canva.com/) is a great site for creating a variety of things from posters to presentations. It is somewhat limited but a great place to start.  Elearninginfographics - http://elearninginfographics.com/ is a repository of some great educational infographics. I really liked their article on implementing good graphic design at http://elearningindustry.com/10-tips-improve-visual-design-skills-non-designers?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter Do you have favorite websites for designing items? Please share. Thanks and don't forget to be awesome,  Andy Twitter Google Plus Instagram Copyright © 2015 Sequoyah Middle School, All rights reserved. The Sequoyah Email List Our mailing address is: Sequoyah Middle School 1125 E. Danforth Edmond, OK 73034 Add us to your address book Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list

Focus

With new things comes a change of focus. Working on a project and that blots out all the other projects for a while. All my thoughts go toward the new project. Obsession really. Nearly singular focus upon it. Realize that the other things that require constant attention are suffering.  How to seperate the thoughts and the devoted time to bring the focus back to the whole?

TTT - Google Docs

Technology tips and tricks on a regular basis. View this email in your browser Google Docs Saving, Editing and Access Greetings Sequoyah,  Google Drive allows online (and offline) access to a suite of tools similar to Microsoft Office. Docs, Spreadsheets, Drawing and more are available at Google Drive. Items can be created using the Google interface and files can be uploaded to Google Drive.  On Monday we got to experience one of the odd things about Google Docs. The schedule for the EdCamp was created in Excel. The file was uploaded and is accessible as a preview, more like a photo. By uploading as a .xlsx file it is limited to preview and download. Making for a great way to store files to go between multiple locations or serve as a backup. For the file to be editable by the author and shared contacts the file needed to be converted to the Google Spreadsheet format. The file can be opened for editing within Google Drive and a copy of it is created. Please be sure the correct format of the document is then shared for editing and viewing.  The image below shows the icons for a Google Doc and Microsoft Word when stored in Google Drive. Note the file names are the same. Thanks and don't forget to be awesome,  Andy Notice the icons representing file formats. Twitter Google Plus Instagram Copyright © 2015 Sequoyah Middle School, All rights reserved. The Sequoyah Email List Our mailing address is: Sequoyah Middle School 1125 E. Danforth Edmond, OK 73034 Add us to your address book Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list

TTT - Twitter Bow Tie Tuesday

Technology tips and tricks on a regular basis. View this email in your browser Twitter Tuesday Justin Tarte Greetings Sequoyah,  Did you know there was even such a movement? Ben probably knows and maybe Link too.  Bow Tie Tuesday is a real thing. Thanks to Twitter we are wiser for it.  https://twitter.com/justintarte/status/643750906220163072 Thanks and don't forget to be awesome,  Andy Twitter Google Plus Instagram Copyright © 2015 Sequoyah Middle School, All rights reserved. The Sequoyah Email List Our mailing address is: Sequoyah Middle School 1125 E. Danforth Edmond, OK 73034 Add us to your address book Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list

Learn and Teach

I am not sure why this statement goes all over me.
"If the student did not learn it. You did not teach it."

John Walkup and I tweeted a bit about it today. Interesting stuff.

We teach the material. Often two or three times, two or three different ways. Students learn the material. They regurgitate it on a test. Often they do not retain the information. They do not care, it is not that important.

Examples in real life;
There is a check box in Groupwise that blocks email from coming to the inbox. I do not remember where to go for that checkbox. Every time a teacher asks "how do you do this task?" I have to look it up on the internet and share that information with them. I have learned the task over and over. I know how to do it. I simply do not care to keep that information in my head.

I blow glass. I can make a wicked nice Christmas ornament. For about three months each year I make ornaments. I know how to make an ornament. How much glass to gather, how much color to add, how to let it twist in the heat. how to shape it, how to blow it, how to jack it. Just how much heat is needed and when. How to knock it off and make the loop for the top. I know these things. I can teach these things. And yet every year I have to relearn how to make a Christmas ornament. In the nine months in between I have forgotten the nuances of ornament making. The first five or six created are learning how to do it again. Was I taught the material, Yes. Is it of relevance, Yes. Is there rigor involved, Yes. Is knowledge from other glass blowing projects transferred, Yes. But yet, I must relearn the process every year.

Dr. Walkup (http://cognitiverigor.blogspot.com/) made the point.

The content has to be important to remember. The student was taught the information. Best practices were used in the teaching process. Summative and formative assessment were integral parts of the process. Teachers taught, students learned. Neurons fired and dendrites were created. Cognitive learning strategies were examined and in place in the classroom. Everything was done right. But the student did not retain the information. They learned it, it was taught but it was not remembered. And really, why should it have been?

Which then brings us to this article, a link from Dr. Walkup's webpage. A very good read.
http://maverikeducation.blogspot.fr/2014/08/relevancy-check-why-am-i-teaching-this.html?spref=tw&__scoop_post=06a8b7e0-3ee9-11e4-aa25-001018304b75&__scoop_topic=2635117#__scoop_post=06a8b7e0-3ee9-11e4-aa25-001018304b75&__scoop_topic=2635117