May 2015

Transcription

May 2015

May 2015
Newsletter
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Table of Contents
AASSA Calendar of Events ........................................................................................................................ 4
From Your Executive Director ................................................................................................................... 5
Welcome to Our Newest Associate Members......................................................................................... 5
The Year in Review................................................................................................................................. 6
A Special Thanks to Our 2014-2015 Major Sponsors ............................................................................ 7
Transitions ............................................................................................................................................... 7
Summary of 2014-2015 PD Events Hosted by Schools .......................................................................... 9
2015 AASSA Global Citizen Award Recipients................................................................................... 10
A Special Thanks to the AASSA Staff.................................................................................................. 13
Upcoming Events .................................................................................................................................. 15
2015 AASSA Business Managers’ Institute...................................................................................... 15
AASSA Social Media Institute .......................................................................................................... 16
2015 AASSA Governance Conference ............................................................................................. 17
AASSA Rio GIN 2015 Conference ................................................................................................... 18
AASSA 2015 Recruiting Fair ............................................................................................................ 19
2016 AASSA Educators’ Conference ............................................................................................... 20
Teacher and Exhibitor Workshop Proposals ......................................................................................... 21
Newsletter Article Deadlines for the Year Ahead ................................................................................. 22
Submit Articles to the AASSA Blog ..................................................................................................... 22
Success in School and Life ..................................................................................................................... 23
Blended Hardware: SMARTER SCHOOLS ............................................................................................ 26
Child Protection - A Comprehensive Approach ....................................................................................... 30
Defining and Tracking Skills for Intentional Curriculum Design ............................................................ 33
Innovate2015 – Re-Imagining School – Re-Thinking the Professional Learning Paradigm ............ 38
Recycling and Community Service Project ............................................................................................ 40
Earth Day Project Developed by 4th A Regular Spanish Class 2015....................................................... 42
Integrating Performing Arts and Language Arts to Generate Output and Promote Cooperative Learning
................................................................................................................................................................... 44
The “Trust Edge” for International Schools ............................................................................................. 51
Redefining Professional Development at CIPLC: .................................................................................... 54
Ed Camp, Play Dates, and Twitter ............................................................................................................ 54
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You'll Never Believe What This Science Teacher Has to Say about the Internet! It May Shock You. ... 56
Threering - P.E. e-Portfolio .................................................................................................................... 59
Actions Speak Louder Than Words: A TETO Experience ....................................................................... 60
My Story ................................................................................................................................................... 63
What’s the Affordable Health Care Act Mean to Me? ......................................................................... 68
The Path to Knowledge ............................................................................................................................. 69
Google Summit at Lincoln School ............................................................................................................ 73
Junior Achievement: ................................................................................................................................. 75
Tradiludis- Latin American Traditional Games ........................................................................................ 75
Two Big Takeaways from Innovate 2015 Conference ......................................................................... 79
Innovate2015: Developing Sustainable Change at School ....................................................................... 81
Take a Stand as a School on Climate Change! ......................................................................................... 83
Journeys in Podcasting ............................................................................................................................ 85
Reflections on Make A Change: Projects versus Project-Based Learning through the Peace on
EarthBench Movement ............................................................................................................................. 87
Strategies for Improving Oral Fluency in ELLs ....................................................................................... 93
Buenos Escritores, Mejores Lectores ........................................................................................................ 96
A PRIMER TO IMPLEMENTING BLENDED LEARNING ............................................................... 101
GOOOOOOAL! ...................................................................................................................................... 102
Escola Americana do Recife Cooperates!............................................................................................... 104
Lessons from Ghana: For Students of Music and Beyond ..................................................................... 107
Believe in the Possibility of Professional Certification .......................................................................... 111
Between a Rock and Hard Place Getting Concrete Thinkers into the Abstract with Kindergarten And
PBL ......................................................................................................................................................... 112
Flashback to the 2015 Educators’ Conference .................................................................................... 115
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AASSA Calendar of Events
2014 - 2015
Event
Refining Your Instructional
Leadership Institute
Location
American School of
Brasilia
Date
Deadline
June 11-13, 2015
May 15, 2015
2015-2016
Event
Location
AASSA Business Managers’ Institute
Marriott Residence Inn,
July 13-15, 2015
Aventura, FL
AASSA Board Meeting
Marriott Dadeland
Hotel, Miami, FL
September 22, 2015
AASSA Social Media Institute
Marriott Dadeland
Hotel, Miami, FL
September 23, 2015
Marriott Dadeland
Hotel, Miami, FL
Pre-Conference:
September 24, 2015
September 4,
Main Conference:
2015
September 25 & 26, 2015
AASSA GIN Conference 2015
American School of
Rio, Rio de Janeiro
October 22-24, 2015
VANAS Conference
Colegio Internacional
de Carabobo
November 20, 2015
Latin American Administrators’
Conference
Grand Hyatt, Atlanta
December 1-3, 2015
AASSA Recruiting Fair
December 3-6, 2015
AASSA Annual Business Meeting
December 3, 2015
AASSA Educators’ Conference
Colegio Roosevelt,
Lima
Teacher Workshop
Proposals
AASSA Governance Conference for
Heads and Board Members
Head of School
Workshop Rankings
Date
Deadline
June 11, 2015
September 4,
2015
October 7, 2015
April 12-16, 2016
October 13, 2015
October 27, 2015
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From Your Executive Director
Welcome to Our Newest Associate Members
EdTech Team
Envision Experience Latam
Explore Learning
MasteryConnect
PA Group
Shorelight Education
SkillBot, Inc.
TeacherReady
Our 71 Associate Members’ contacts and websites are listed on our website at:
http://www.aassa.com/page.cfm?p=466
Have you visited or subscribed or contributed to the AASSA Blog?
It’s easy…
Just go to:
www.aassa.net/blog
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The Year in Review
This has been a positive year for AASSA. For the sake of brevity, I will highlight a few key areas:
 The Board of Trustees revisited AASSA’s mission, vision and values and the result was a new
strategic plan framework which will take AASSA through 2020.
 Paul Sicard, currently the Elementary Principal at Escuela Campo Alegre, was hired as the incoming
Deputy Director of AASSA to start August 1, 2015
 Membership increased by 4 schools this year for a total of 75 member schools and our Associate
Members increased by 5 for a total of 70 Associate Members. Both our school and associate
memberships are at all-time highs.
 The Board’s investment policy has proven to be very beneficial amid the rising equities market. We
have met our reserve target and are well-poised for the future.
 We held our fourth and largest GIN Conference at Lincoln School in Buenos Aires.
 We held successful and well-attended professional development conferences: Business Managers,
Governance and the annual Educators’ Conference hosted by ISC in Curaçao.
 I particularly want to thank the International School of Curaçao faculty who were such great partners
in this year’s Educators’ Conference.
 The AASSA Purchasing Service placed orders, consolidated and shipped for 23 schools this year.
 11 schools used the AASSA Payment Processing Service to pay their staff.
 We created Google Group listserves for all the categories of staff in our Membership Directory as well
as GIN advisors to enhance communication within the region.
 Our foray into Social Media was skillfully handled by Silvia Tolisano who has served as a consultant
to AASSA this past year. We have gone from no followers on Twitter to 853 followers and 1387
tweets this month so far.
 The AASSA Blog has burgeoned to 199 entries and 11,541 views to date!
 Our office tech infrastructure was upgraded by the addition of a second server, a high-speed internet
connection and new phone service.
 The AASSA Recruiting Fair attendance was down this year as was the total number of candidates
placed—a reality that most recruiting agencies faced amid a rapidly changing market. We have taken
steps to better position AASSA for the coming year and will see if last year was the start of a trend or
an anomaly contributed to by our new requirement of confidential references.
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I would like to thank and recognize the AASSA Board for their commitment to the organization and
their unwavering support.
I also want to thank Dr. William Scotti and the Office of Overseas Schools. Without their assistance, we
would not be able to accomplish all that we have.
A Special Thanks to Our 2014-2015 Major Sponsors
PLATINUM LEVEL
TieCare International
GOLD LEVEL
SUNY Buffalo
SILVER LEVEL
Curriculum Associates
George Mason University
International Schools Services
The College Board
Transitions
Heads of School
The following heads of school are leaving their positions this year, either for retirement or new
challenges. We have a wonderful group of school heads in AASSA, and on behalf of the region I wish
those departing the region all the very best and thank you for your contributions.
Edward Cooper, American International School of Bolivia, Cochabamba
Jack Delman, Carol Morgan School, Dominican Republic
David Deuel, Santa Cruz Cooperative School, Bolivia
Sylvia Echeverri, Colegio Bureche, Colombia
Margie Elhage, International School of Curacao
Lee Fertig, Graded School, Sao Paulo
Mark Lee, International School Port of Spain
Sarah Putnam, International School of Aruba
Michael Schramm, Uruguayan International School
Carmen Sweeting, Colegio Internacional de Caracas, Venezuela
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Patricia de Marin
I would like to recognize a very special person with whom I have had the pleasure of working closely
during my tenure, and that is Patricia de Marin of Cotopaxi Academy in Quito. Patricia is retiring after
34 years at Cotopaxi, most of her time spent in human resources. During her tenure, however, she has
served as the Director’s secretary and assistant, she was involved in the development of the English
Language Center for the community and the Imagine Nursery Program—both very successful
endeavors. She has managed the relationship between the school and the Ecuadorian Ministries of
Education and Foreign Affairs and even been in charge of the cafeteria, the nurses’s office and
transportation!
Patricia has been a regular presenter and participant at AASSA Business Manager Institutes and was
instrumental in the success of the 2012 AASSA Educators’ Conference.
Congratulations, Patricia, and enjoy the change of pace!
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Summary of 2014-2015 PD Events Hosted by Schools
This year, AASSA, with support from the Office of Overseas Schools, began sponsoring professional
development events hosted by member schools that were open to participants from other member
schools. I would like to give a round of applause and sincere thanks to the following schools for hosting
the following eleven conferences and institutes:
ClimA 2014 Student Leadership Conference Colegio Roosevelt, Lima
Redefining Fair Institute: How to Plan, Assess and Grade for Excellence in Mixed Ability
Classrooms American School of Brasilia
VANAS Conference Escuela Campo Alegre, Caracas
Using Data to Improve Student Learning Alliance Academy, Quito
Innovate Conference Graded School, Sao Paulo
Engaging All Students with Group Differentiation Strategies Alliance Academy, Quito
Refining Your Instructional Leadership Institute American School of Brasilia
Special Needs Institutes were also hosted by the following schools with the kind support of the Office of
Overseas Schools:
Alliance Academy, Quito
American School of Brasilia
American School of Rio de Janeiro
AASSA Educators’ Conference in Curaçao
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2015 AASSA Global Citizen Award Recipients
The AASSA Global Citizen Award sponsored by TieCare International recognizes a student or group of
students selected from AASSA Member Schools in good standing that has made exemplary
contributions through a school and/or community-based service program which has led either to: greater
international understanding, positive local or global change, addressing a global challenge, or changed
lives—thereby setting an example for us all.
This year’s recipients’ schools will each receive an equal share of the $4,000 which is to be used to
assist the project or charity for which the award was given. We received the strongest pool and greatest
number of applicants to date, and the decision of the AASSA Board of Trustees committee was to award
all of the applications for their exceptional projects and work.
The award recipients in alphabetical order are:
1. Centradas, Academia Cotopaxi, Ecuador: Lucas Calero was recognized for his work (which
began as a GIN Project) that was carried out at a local public school in Quito. Because of the
high poverty level of the students, teenage pregancy is a reality affecting 23 out of the school’s
300 girls. Lucas developed a curriculum aimed at curbing teenage pregancy among the
teenage girls and successfully taught the program to 25 girls.
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d5t3p5XZgCo AND
https://prezi.com/emlgrdsfe92x/gin-presentation AND
http://slide.ly/gallery/view/e5a6bebae54b020c259c760ec98daaaa
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2. CLima Core Planning Team, Colegio Roosevelt, Peru: Twelve students, listed below, were
recognized for their role in organizing the first-ever student leadership climate change
conference for the region—a conference incorporating elements of GIN, MUN and TEDx
style talks (clima14fdr.com)
First Name
Last Name
Position
Jana
Algaranaz
Business Team Leader
Matias
Andrade
Technology Co-Team Leader
Barbara
Aveggio
Arts Co-Team Leader
Diego
Carriquiry
Entertainment Team Leader
Jamile
De Medeiros
Communications Team Leader
Daniela
Delgado
Arts Co-Team Leader
Christopher
Dryden
Website Designer
Pamela
Paz
Carbon Team Leader
Clemencia
Pinasco
Guest Speakers Team Leader
Vasco
Piva
Experience Designer
Maria
Plevisani
Media Director
Carolina
Puigrefagut
Co-Team Leader of Hospitality
Carina
Sacchi
Co-Team Leader of Hospitality
Pedro
Sanchez
Technology Co-Team Leader
Lola
Sanchez-Carrion
Ambassador of Ambassadors
Diego
Sandoval
Ambassador of Ambassadors
Gisella
Silva
Logistics Co-Team Leader
Valeria
Wu
Logistics Team Leader
3. Dar Bolivia, American Education Association, La Paz, Bolivia: Two students (Ignacio
Cardozo and Carlos Fabricio Orosco) were recognized for their work with Dar Bolivia, an
organization that raises awareness about community needs and encourages students to donate
and volunteer their time on behalf of children who are sick or recovering. Carlos Orosco is the
founder of the organization. (facebook.com/darbolivia?Ref=BR_TF)
4. Do Something at Graded, Brazil: Michael Nimtzovitch Borger was recognized for founding
and leading Do Something at Graded (dosomething.org), an organization that has as its main
goal youth empowerment with a focus on community action-based initiatives that have
involved entire divisions of the school in its projects. Michael is also an active member of
Graded Entrepreneurial Enterprise, a community service group that raises funds to support
projects.
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5. Fundación The Columbus School, Colombia: Felipe Monsalve Vélez and Esteban Rey
Londoño were recognized for proposing and creating an unprecedented program in Medellin
to teach programming to children in need in the hope that this discipline could improve their
lives. (http://www.clasepob.org/ AND http://youtu.be/V_UY0v2B_fc)
6. Galo Plaza Foundation, Colegio Americano, Ecuador: Antonia Alvarez and Paulo Torres
were recognized for their work with the foundation whose main goal is to revive the thinking
of Ecuador’s ex-president on promoting education, conservation and development. A major
part of their work has focused on the development of a library in Zuleta, but they have gone
above and beyond by opening up the possibility for children with extremely low economic
resources from Zuleta to avail themselves of academic and athletic scholarships at Academia
Cotopaxi. (https://www/youtube.com/watch?v=Ohf–2yvGRc)
7. Keep Culture Alive #KCA, American International School of Kingston, Jamaica: Katia
Theresa Chuck is recognized for her passionate work with cultural diversity, recruiting
Cultural Ambassadors, and sharing their cultures through an extended web of social media
networks. (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCpViK_4UO9fUjv4Kwqitvyg AND
https://www.facebook.com/keepculturealive)
8. Lincoln Community Service Salta, Argentina: Four students (Ming Lei, Manuel Lopez
Mazzotta, Violeta Bullrich and Jeong Eun Kim) were recognized for their work with the
Lincoln Community Service Salta Project. The project’s purpose is to offer food, clothing,
medical supplies and other donations to local communities in the área and to allow interaction
between Lincoln students and the Salteñan residents for mutual cultural enrichment.
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lHhEartUIs8&feature=youtu.be)
9. Misión Internacional Voces de Esperanza, Escuela Internacional Sampedrana,
Honduras: Five students (Mario Kafati, Mario Faraj, Natalia Larach, Faris Andonie and
Diego Panayotti) were selected for their endless dedication and work with this organization
whose purpose is to provide people in need with a worthy life and equal opportunities through
improving healthcare, housing and general conditions. (fundactionmivoz.org AND
https://www.youtube.com/user/FundacionMiVoz)
10. Proyecto Biblioteca Luis Cisneros Noriega, Colegio Alberto Einstein, Ecuador: Maria
Paula Heredia Flor is recognized for starting a project at a low-income school where she took
it upon herself to create a library. She raised funds to install shelves and furniture, got
donations of 650 books, and created her own tracking system. The library has been named in
her honor. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=37M-mpOc_BE)
11. Service Oriented Students (SOS), Escola Americana Do Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: Julia de
Almeida Guimaraes is recognized for her involvement in SOS, raising the bar through her
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tireless effort and dedication. SOS focuses on community service projects, attracting over
1,000 people at their major cancer walk-a-thon project.
(youtube.com/watch?v=hIRhGHCmx24 AND
www.youtube.com/watch?v=qXWW1E82jzc AND
www.youtube.com/watch?v=KyV1UNUkNgE AND
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qXWW1E82jzc AND
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KyVIUNUkNqEA)
12. Snacks for Tots, Carol Morgan School, DR: Gabriela De Los Santos was recognized for
founding and running her organization which serves children in Santo Domingo’s slums and
those living on the streets by providing health snacks and playtime as well as special visits and
gifts during the holidays. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=20DrOTU31rs AND
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f-3MObcmHFw)
Thank you to TIECARE International for their funding of this program and congratulations to this year’s
recipients, their advisers and their schools for the fine work they are doing.
A Special Thanks to the AASSA Staff
I would like to recognize the AASSA staff and take this opportunity to thank them for their dedication
and fine work throughout the year.
Paul
Terri – Esther
Arianna – Miriam - Marie
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Upcoming Events
As you will see from the list below, there is no shortage of events coming up in our region in the coming
academic year. Please visit the AASSA website at http://www.aassa.com under the Conferences tab for
specific information on each conference:
2015 AASSA Business Managers’ Institute
July 13-15, 2015
Marriott Residence Inn, Aventura, Miami
Preparing Today's School for Tomorrow's Future
A conference for Business Managers and any office staff members interested in
effectively using technology
Facilitated by Silvia Tolisano and Felix Jacomino
Attendees will experience many hands-on opportunities to be exposed to and explore technology in
action. Learn about innovative ways to become more efficient and organized. Be part of the 21st
century branding of your school and become a connected, networked employee with a clear awareness
of “behind-the-scenes” logistics.
Please visit our website for information and to register for the conference and reserve
a hotel room directly with the Marriott Residence Inn:
The deadline for both conference registration and hotel reservations
is June 11th
……………………………………………………………………………………
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AASSA Social Media Institute
September 23, 2015
Marriott Residence Inn, Aventura, Miami
Social Media Strategies for International Schools
A conference for Heads of School, Admissions, Marketing, Professional
Development Coordinators and anyone involved in learning about or promoting
their school through social media
Facilitated by Silvia Tolisano
Attendees will be introduced to the Social Media concept, will look at current platforms and tools and
learn to develop a customized social media strategy for their schools. This will be a hands-on event in
which participants will experiment with social media and developing their own professional social
media presence.
a hotel room directly with the Marriott Dadeland Hotel:
is September 7th
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
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2015 AASSA Governance Conference
for School Heads and Board Members
September 24-26, 2015
Marriott Dadeland Hotel, Kendall, Miami
The Challenge of Governance:
Strategic Leadership from the Boardroom
Facilitated by Richard Detwiler
………………………………………
Pre-Conference: Thursday, September 24
Boardsmanship: The Fundamentals of Effective School Boards
This pre-conference will provide new or relatively inexperienced board members and heads of schools
an overview of effective governance practices in international schools and board veterans a review of
"board basics" through the fresh perspective of new board members.
………………………………………
Main Conference, September 25 & 26
Enhancing the Board: Good Governance in Practice
The aim of the main conference is to actively explore critical aspects of effective governance: board
culture, strategic leadership and board operations.
a hotel room directly with the Marriott Dadeland Hotel:
is September 4th
……………………………………………………………………………………….
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AASSA Rio GIN 2015 Conference
Hosted by the
American School of Rio
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
October 22 – 24, 2015
This will be our region’s fifth AASSA Global Initiatives Network Conference for students in Grades
7-12.
Each school may send up to four teams of students, and each team may be comprised of from 2 to 6
students. That means each school could send as few as two students or as many as 24! Two chaperones
must accompany each school’s students.
Please visit the AASSA website for information and registration:
or
go directly to the conference site:
http://globalissuesnetwork.org/rio2015/
Note that hotel deadlines are early: September 15th
The conference registration deadline is October 7th
……………………………………………………………………………………..
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AASSA 2015 Recruiting Fair
December 3 - 6, 2015
Registration for recruiters is now open!
Every AASSA Head of School has received an email announcing the opening of the system before the
end of May. Please follow the instructions in the email to register and make hotel reservations.
…………………………………………………………………………………….
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2016 AASSA Educators’ Conference
Colegio Franklin D. Roosevelt
Lima, Peru
April 13 - 16, 2016
Looking for Learning
Next year’s AASSA Educators’ Conference, hosted by Colegio Roosevelt, will be novel in many ways:
there will be a one-day Pre-Conference followed by a 3-day Main Conference. The first day will feature
a keynote and an entire day of Practitioner-Led Workshops. The subsequent two days will feature main
presenters and Learning Lab classes of FDR students being taught by teachers who will volunteer and be
selected: small groups of observers will debrief the class “looking for the learning.”
The Looking for Learning theme will be supported by the following impressive group of keynoters and
workshop leaders:
Kevin Bartlett
Mike Johnston
Laura Lipton
Ewan McIntosh
Howard Pitler
Scott Poland
Martin Skelton
David Willows
John Zola
Conference information will be posted on the AASSA site in August and registration is scheduled to
open in early October.
………………………………………………………………….
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Teacher and Exhibitor Workshop Proposals
Currently Being Accepted for Lima
Teacher workshops have become an integral part of the AASSA Educators’ Conference and teachers in
the region are encouraged to put themselves forward as presenters. At the Lima conference, teacher
workshops will be the feature of the first day, with no competing sessions from hired presenters!
Please see the requirements and submit an online proposal
at: http://www.aassa.com/page.cfm?p=437
Presentations must be evaluated by a panel at each presenter’s school and the head of the school must
submit the ranking sheet to me. We will then schedule the top-ranking presentations.
If you need any information on this process, please contact either Esther (enicolau@aassa.com) or Paul
(ppoore@aassa.com).
The absolute deadline for submission by teachers is October 13, 2015.
Heads’ rankings are due by October 27, 2015.
Associate Members’ workshop proposals are due October 13th
………………………………………………………………………………
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Newsletter Article Deadlines for the Year Ahead
We welcome articles from our schools and Associate Members for the AASSA Newsletter. We are
currently accepting articles for publication at the end of August.
The deadlines for the 2015-2016 academic year will be as follows:
August 28, 2015
January 11, 2016
May 9, 2016
Publication notes:
•There is no limit on article length since we have an electronic publication
•Please submit in MS Word (Times New Roman font, 12 pts)
•Either insert photos or send them as attachments, preferably in jpeg
Thank you for your contributions.
Submit Articles to the AASSA Blog
Visit AASSA’s blog at http://www.aassa.net/blog and see instructions to submit an article.
Be sure your piece is unique and well-written, contains no unauthorized or copyrighted pictures,
information or music, and showcases you name, title, school and country.
Articles submitted to the Blog will also be published in the AASSA Newsletter.
Onward to articles submitted by our schools and associate members……..
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Success in School and Life
by Barry Déquanne
How would you answer the following question: What are the factors that most influence how children
achieve success in school and life?
Several EAB teachers are currently attending the annual AASSA teachers’
conference with a focus, in part, on answering this essential question. To that
end, our teachers are spending three days engaging with professional
colleagues and internationally renowned educational specialists. Two of the
specialists, Dr. Michael Thompson and Dr. Catherine Steiner-Adair, both
highly recommended authors, have offered insights towards answering this
question.
The psychologist, Michael Thompson, challenges adults to remember what school is actually like to
better understand the psychological journey that students experience during their K3-12 school years.
Thompson argues that children are constantly searching for three things: connection, recognition, and a
sense of power and highlights that children are able to find these three needs in a variety of ways within
the life of a school.
Thompson further describes the different student needs by elaborating on the “three types of children in
school:
I. those whose journeys are characterized mostly by success,
II. those whose journeys are characterized by a chronic but manageable struggle,
III. those whose journeys are characterized by fury and despair.
Each journey has its own different pressures. Every child is constantly developing strategies for coping
with the pressures that he or she feels.”
Thompson uses the metaphor of a person preparing for a long hike and the importance of finding just the
right shoe “fit” to facilitate the hike and avoid painful blisters. While there is an important element of
resilience and persistence associated with the learning process, the shoe metaphor challenges schools to
find the right educational program to “fit” student needs so that the three types of children in schools are
not subject to unnecessary “blisters” and are able to achieve personal success.
Returning to the need of children for connection, recognition, and a sense of power, Catherine SteinerAdair’s book, The Big Disconnect: Protecting Childhood and Family Relationships in the Digital Age,
addresses the impact technology has on the relationships between children and adults. While SteinerAdair advocates for the use of technology and the benefits to be gained, she also shares research findings
that highlight how the ubiquitous presence of technology in our lives can result in serious negative
implications for our relationships. Steiner-Adair offers insights and advice that can help parents and
educators to determine how best to integrate technology in our daily lives without diminishing our
personal connections. She asks us to question how we interact with technology when engaging with
children (e.g. Do we give children our undivided attention when they are speaking with us or are we
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continuously looking at our cell phones?) and how our need to access technological devices frames our
days and lives.
If we are to respond to each child’s need for connection, recognition, and a sense of power, then we
must not only question how well our educational program is addressing these needs, but also review the
degree to which technology may be adversely affecting our relationships with students and adults alike.
The further integration of technology into our lives is a reality that will not go away. Therefore, it is our
responsibility to control how technology affects our lives to ensure that we are taking advantage of the
tremendous benefits and available opportunities that technology provides, while also addressing the
inherent challenges to our relationships and overall wellbeing.
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Blended Hardware: SMARTER SCHOOLS
by Michael Spencer
How hardware is an essential component of blended learning and individualized instruction.
Blended learning is a mix of not just online and offline instruction, but of several different necessary
items including the right hardware, curriculum, instruction, and individualized instruction. This second
column in a series specifically discusses ideas and considerations surrounding the subject
of hardware for blended learning.
If blended learning is “a formal education program in which a student learns at least in part through
online learning, with some element of student control over time, place, path, and/or pace; at least in part
in a supervised brick-and-mortar location away from home; and the modalities along each student’s
learning path within a course or subject are connected to provide an integrated learning experience”
(according to the Clayton Christensen Institute for Disruptive Innovation), then for this discussion, let us
consider “modalities” and “connections” to be the hardware, or devices, and the education networks that
make it all possible.
Whether self-paced online or classroom instruction, a student in a blended learning environment requires
the correct device(s) and connections to assist them in a smooth, age-appropriate and academic levelappropriate user experience. This experience would of course be productive and result in measurable
gains in comprehension along a given curriculum (used as a mainline resource), or minimally enhance
certain points along a given curriculum (a supplemental resource). It would also be organized, orderly,
and somewhat pleasurable if not simply for the high morale generated by student productivity.
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Devices
From desktops and laptops to smartphones and tablets (not to mention interactive digital
whiteboards), devices are a vital element in a blended learning environment. Major considerations here
include:
 price point
 quality and reliability
 service / support & replacement plans and
 what will go on that device and how – i.e., curriculum content and some level of workflow
operating system allowing sharing, filing, collaboration and even reporting mechanisms between
teachers, students, administrators and parents.
This last point about what goes on the device and how somewhat straddles hardware and curriculum
issues and will be covered in more depth in this series when we get to curriculum as a discussion area.
This is not an exhaustive list, but is meant to begin to get education technology leaders thinking in the
direction of what to consider.
Connections
It would be nice to simply call up the local company and set up (or even better, have a service person set
up) a wireless connection quickly and easily, just like you would at home, and in a single afternoon you
would have your wireless connection. So what’s all the fuss when it comes to schools?
That approach just doesn’t work with a classroom full of students. There are a host of vital issues to take
into consideration, including:
 bandwidth concerns
 capacity
 access points
 user authentication
 security
 privacy
 rogue users on your network
 settings for legal compliance.
The Consortium for School Networking (CoSN) is a good place to start in seeking guidelines for such
matters. CoSN provides briefing sheets, whitepapers, guidelines and a host of other pertinent
publications for school technologists and policy makers.
In Conclusion
Blended learning works and works well only when the basics are there. An education network designed
to support a range of devices both tethered and mobile is the foundation for any successful blended
learning program.
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Following that, cost-effective, quality devices, whether through a school district-provided program, a
Bring Your Own Technology/Device program or some hybrid of these — are the second layer on that
foundation.
Even before that foundation, however, comes something else entirely, and something that you are doing
right now in reading this series of columns, which is educating yourself on all of this – which is all a part
of careful and strategic planning.
There’s a lot more to it, from Acceptable Use Policies to strategic buy-in from key stakeholders, but this
is merely intended as a simple view of a complex issue. May this hardware broad view assist you — and
your entire learning community — in moving down a path of better learning.
Michael Spencer is Senior Director of International Business Development at K12. He is past SVP at
The American Education Corporation and past president of One2OneMate and Co-Founder of several
other education companies. With years of success in taking educational products to the domestic and
international markets, Michael also has extensive experience in working and implementing blended
schools. He is a regular columnist writing the Smarter Schools column for EdTech Digest. Write
to: mspencer52163@gmail.com
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29
Child Protection - A Comprehensive Approach
By Francey Hakes, Bruce Mills & Patricia Handly
www.clearpathepm.com
A fundamental responsibility of all schools is to safeguard its students. Doing this successfully requires
a firm commitment from school leaders and all other school stakeholders. Without commitment, safety,
security, and emergency preparedness will be viewed by many as inconvenient and disruptive. In
addition to the commitment to protecting students, schools must come to grips with the realistic threats
and hazards they face. Each school environment is unique; so knowing and understanding specific
threats and hazards is the first step to a comprehensive student protection program.
One threat that all schools face, regardless of location, size of student population, or even level of
commitment to student protection, is that of the sexual predator.
Understanding the predator’s modus operandi is central to building an effective Child Protection
Program. Child Protection is the term often cited for school protection strategies designed to defend or
mitigate against the threat of the sexual predator. This is not a pleasant topic, but it’s critical to gain
insight into how predators view schools as environments rife with accessibility.
Social scientists tell us there are two different types of child offenders, typically categorized as
situational or preferential. The situational predator is often one who can be impulsive, seeks targets of
opportunity, and because they can be sexually indiscriminate, may go after boys or girls. Some
examples of a situational predator operating in a school environment could be the “stranger lurking”
outside of the campus or a temporary contractor working on campus, both waiting for the opportunity to
approach an unaccompanied student.
The preferential offender, on the other hand, is often a master manipulator and may lay in wait for a
particularly vulnerable child who can be groomed (either in person or online) and manipulated prior to
engaging in abuse. This predator is typically more intelligent and compulsive. In a school environment
this could be a teacher, an administrator, a chaperone on an off-campus trip, or even a parent.
Once schools accept the fact that they all face the potential threat from predators, and understand this
threat can be digital or physical, then they can develop comprehensive solutions to prevent or mitigate
the threat. Since neither the situational or preferential child sex offender is easy to spot or identify, any
comprehensive Child Protection Program must begin with vigilance.
Continuous vigilance remains key to any school’s comprehensive Child Protection Program. Other
suggested components include:
 Robust physical security program (i.e. fences, gates and locks)
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 Access control policies and procedures (who is allowed unsupervised access to students)
 Vigorous pre-employment screening for all personnel who have unsupervised access to students.
This includes not just teachers and administrators, but also contract and subcontract workers,
service personnel, as well as temporary and volunteer staff who may have unsupervised access to
students.
 Social/Emotional Curriculum where students learn about predatory behavior and how to speak
up with confidence against harm. The topics of offender behavior and signs of grooming should
be taught in order to offer students the best defense of all: knowledge.
 Training for teachers and staff so they can recognize offender traits and behaviors, as well as
signs of at risk children and the appropriate actions to take.
Even though schools may have a proactive Child Protection Program they should also be prepared to
handle allegations of abuse should they arise. Establishing and maintaining policies and procedures for
reporting suspicions and anomalies regarding inappropriate or unsuitable behavior will also be required.
These include a prompt response, investigation and the archived documentation of incidents and reports.
Initiating and maintaining a relationship with the responsible local authorities before an incident is also
critically important. In order to be prepared, these policies and procedures must be widely known and
well-rehearsed by responsible staff and administrators before an incident occurs. For those in countries
without law enforcement trained in these kinds of investigations, schools should consider having on
retainer an expert or team with a strong law enforcement background who could be contacted at short
notice, liaise with local law enforcement, and attempt a fair and impartial inquiry.
The above suggestions are just part of what is needed for a Child Protection Program – each alone is
insufficient. The best defense is to embrace an integrated and comprehensive preparedness, safety, and
security program.
Keeping students safe and secure – from a multitude of threats and hazards – is not an easy endeavor but
should remain a top school priority so that educating children remains the focus of schools instead of
tragedies, litigation, and criminal probes.
The Clearpath EPM Team will continue to periodically publish articles that address various comprehensive
student protection solutions.
Clearpath EPM provides advice, training and products to enhance student protection worldwide.
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Defining and Tracking Skills for Intentional Curriculum Design
By Catherine Saldutti
President, EduChange, Inc.
Several organizations have named complex skills sets, ranging from 21st Century Skills to Digital
Citizenship to Global Competence to Design Thinking. Many educators and leaders study relevant
documents to compare their own school’s work against these expectations, or to better articulate goals
and learning targets. While it is good to keep abreast of new work in the field, and even to unpack
standards documents with staff, these activities are insufficient if the end goal is to effect changes in
instructional practice. And unfortunately, many popular planning software programs aren’t helpful in
skills articulation within a course or year.
If you are interested in truly incorporating skills instruction, skills-rich experiences, and skills
assessment into your curricula, there are some relatively easy and illuminating steps to take. These steps
may be followed by an individual teacher, by a team of teachers or inquiry group, or across the whole
school. Regardless of group size, the goal is to intentionally define, track and plan lessons, units and
projects with these skills in mind. In this article I share with you the methods that EduChange has used
to help teachers and instructional leaders articulate and track skills.
Aren’t Skills for Remedial Students?
The label “skills” has a bad reputation in some circles, representing “basic” know-how required only in
remedial settings. We invite you to broaden your understanding of skills, since those that universities,
corporations, ministries of education and other organizations are naming are far from rote. These skills
are complex and not easily mastered. For example, most educators realize that collaboration is actually
a collection of different behavioral demonstrations that cumulatively make someone a good collaborator.
When trying to teach or assess “collaboration,” it quickly becomes apparent that we are dealing with a
multi-faceted skills set. This is why creating a single row for “collaboration” on a rubric is often
frustrating for students and teachers to use as a guideline.
Complex skills sets require multiple opportunities for practice because a) it takes a while to internalize
how to perform the skills and feel comfortable doing so; b) sub-skills of the larger set may work in
different combinations in different situations; and c) the same skills may vary slightly when applied to a
given scenario. Teachers need to offer ample practice in order for students to become proficient; it is
simply unfair to assess students who have not enjoyed sufficient practice.
First Steps: Disaggregating Skills from Content/Concepts
In order to design units and projects, some teachers go straight to the content (e.g., texts, topics, time
periods) without a careful understanding of the particular skills they want students to use to learn the
content. Many teachers review descriptions of skills and practices and respond by affirming, “Oh, I do
that in my course.” This may be an accurate statement at a high level, but a more useful response
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involves a set of inquiries into the given curriculum. We guide teachers to engage in exactly these types
of inquiries, which illuminate what “doing that” really looks like.
In order to proactively teach students a complex set of skills, it is helpful to label and name all skills in
content-agnostic ways. It is absolutely true that skills and content are enmeshed inside a learning
experience, but the intentional design of a learning experience requires that teachers know exactly how
certain skills will be leveraged in the service of the content. Further, the need to practice complex skills
over time requires that they apply to multiple topics and texts.
Another important tactic is to list specific sub-skills within a larger skills set. This allows teachers to
select the most appropriate facets of a skills set to apply to a given learning experience. There isn’t time
to teach, practice and assess the entire skills set in one experience, nor is that necessarily wise from a
learning standpoint. Creating a taxonomy of sub-skills allows teachers the planning flexibility they need
to teach skills effectively. Much like a takeout menu, teachers choose carefully from a single,
comprehensive list based on the learning experience at hand.
Let’s take a closer look at collaboration as an example:
There are other sub-skills required for collaboration, but these three serve as an example of the
articulated sub-skills. For any large skills set, whether you are using extant standards or building the set
on your own, it is important to state precise demonstrations of proficiency. Sometimes standards provide
details akin to those in Table 1, but sometimes teachers need to further clarify standards to arrive at this
level of precision. The precision supports both instructional as well as assessment design, making it
easier to select the correct sub-skill at the correct time.
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We recommend trying this out with a couple of large, complex skills sets that are addressed multiple
times in a single year. If a team of teachers is involved in the process, convene to discuss the various
sub-skills as they apply horizontally across subject areas and/or vertically through the years. Yes—you
are doing curriculum articulation and making your programs more coherent! The process is iterative,
and it is likely that teachers will refine the lists once they start tracking skills throughout the year, which
is the next step in the process. Avoid getting bogged down if possible.
Next Steps: Tracking Skills over the Year
We still have half of a school year left, so it is possible to gather some rich data if you begin to track
skills now. However, we usually recommend that teachers track articulated skills over an entire course.
With articulation comes clarity, and with clarity comes honesty. It is now time to take an honest look at
exactly how many times, and in which learning experiences, these skills are truly practiced by students.
When we give opportunities for explicit practice (meaning that students also realize they are practicing
the skill), we are allowed to say “we do that.” You can view the tracker as evidence to support your
claim.
A tracker is very easy to
design, and we find that a
simple spreadsheet works well.
Learning experiences form the
headings of each column (we
recommend using a lesson
series, a lab, or a “chunk” of
curriculum that is smaller than
a unit), and the articulated subskills are entered into each
row. Every time a learning
experience explicitly affords
an opportunity for students to
practice a given sub-skill, a
tick-mark is entered into the
corresponding cell. See Table
2 for an example of tracked
Algebra skills in our secondary
science program.
Note that math skills are
tapped to enhance the rigor of
the science learning. Algebra
skills form the larger skills set, and the sub-skills are articulated in Table 2. Again, this is an excerpt and
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is not intended to be exhaustive. Some skills are intentionally not introduced until a bit later in the
course when students have become proficient in precursor skills. This is an example of how a skills
tracker can shift from a documentation instrument to a proactive planning tool.
The processes of skills articulation and skills tracking are iterative, each one feeding the other in
responsive ways. So what are you waiting for? Select a complex skills set, then convene with colleagues
or proceed individually to articulate this larger set into precise sub-skills. Do your research first; many
of the skills you want to articulate have been articulated by others. Try searching for standards or rubrics
as a starting point. Then set up your tracker, knowing that you can change the way you state each subskill if it doesn’t seem quite right for your course. The benefit of working with a colleague is that it
prevents you from creating sub-skills that are overly particular or tailored to your discipline. The most
desirable skills sets are applicable across subjects. While there are certainly disciplinary nuances, check
that you are not combining skills and concepts/content needlessly.
Reflecting on Skills Articulation and Tracking Data
Once you begin the simple tracking process, it is amazing how the frequency of sub-skills practice
quickly surfaces. Upon reflection, you will see how often are students practicing the skill, and how
much time lapses before they practice it again. This trajectory is critical for determining fair skills
assessment practices.
I liken the process of skills practice to my godson learning to ride a bicycle at age four. The basic subskills involve balancing, stopping with brakes and/or feet, turning, and steering straight. The basics may
be learned if guidance (modeling) and sufficient practice are part of the equation. Also, the bicycle needs
to the correct size; 4-year-olds don’t do well on adult-sized bikes. The more often my godson rides his
bike, the better he gets. He becomes more confident and begins to enjoy riding. He wants to show others
that he can do it, and he wants to ride with others who know how.
It wouldn’t be fair to begin to teach him how to ride a bicycle if it were only possible to ride once every
6-8 weeks. Though he would likely make some improvement, he wouldn’t make progress quickly
enough to make bicycling “stick.” This may make him feel that he simply wasn’t cut out for bicycling,
that he is less coordinated than his peers who seem to be riding quite well or, more tragically, that he is
simply not someone who learns quickly. Soon he may grow out of his 4-year-old bike without having
mastered the basics. His body will be ready for a bigger, more sophisticated bike, but it may be more
uncomfortable to learn the basics at an older age.
The metaphor speaks volumes, and helps all of us think about the trajectory of skills development we
can and should provide our students. The good news is that the steps of skills articulation and skills
tracking are relatively easy to tackle, and the process will offer numerous insights. If you desire a
PowerPoint deck related to skills articulation and tracking, we provide it free to our library users at
www.educhange.com/library.
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Innovate2015 – Re-Imagining School – Re-Thinking the
Professional Learning Paradigm
by Lee Fertig
Graded School
We often speak of flipping the classroom, leveraging more student-centered learning activities in order
to get the most out of our limited face-to-face time in the traditional classroom. We constantly strive to
make learning as authentic, relevant, and rigorous as we can by thinking of ways to maximize student
engagement, to have them own their learning as much as possible. We want students to make
connections across disciplines, to make connections with each other in order to harness the strength in
diverse perspectives. We challenge students to apply their new learning in powerful and innovate ways,
and to transfer knowledge and skills from one classroom to another… and to their life experiences in
general whenever possible. This is what we claim, as educators, makes so-called 21st century learning
unique. These are the things we aim for in student learning: authenticity, engagement, collaboration, and
transfer.
Well, why not practice what we preach? Why not aim to reach the same noble learning goals in
professional learning. We are often stuck in an old and tired paradigm of educator conferences
characterized by passive listening to keynote speakers, disengaged exhibitors, compartmentalized
breakout sessions, and limited opportunities to debrief, reflect, and act upon new learning. This is the
paradigm we challenge at Graded School’s Innovate Conferences. As adult educators, we are learners
ourselves. We need just as much authenticity, engagement, collaboration, and transfer in our own
learning, if not more, if we are to be the facilitators of student growth in the ways outlined above.
Innovate2015, hosted by Graded School in early March, set a new standard for professional learning at
a conference. As evidenced by the incredible energy on campus during the conference, verbal and
written comments made by participants, the conference’s Twitter dialogue, and much more… Innovate
2015 was viewed as a tremendous success for all involved. The fact that just about every stakeholder
group in a school community was represented at the conference- teachers, support staff, parents,
students, alumni, principals, heads of school, board members, those involved in external relations,
teachers from local host-country schools, corporate partners, presenters–only made the entire experience
even more authentic and collaborative in nature. This was Innovate2015, a comprehensive learning
journey that challenged and empowered all of us to re-imagine school so that it remains relevant in this
rapidly changing world.
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This was Innovate 2015. I encourage you to take a look for yourself what transpired on Graded’s
campus during those few days, an intense conversation among educators that continues post-conference
through various venues. Peruse the website. Scan the Twitter dialogue with #innovategraded. Speak to
those who attended the conference. The collective energy generated by participants was truly inspiring.
And the impressive transfer of learning that is currently taking place around the world as a result of
Innovate 2015 represents a genuine call for action to re-imagine school.
All of us at Graded urge you to re-think the professional learning paradigm
used in your own educational setting. See you at Innovate 2017!
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Recycling and Community Service Project
By Ana María Martínez
Lincoln Elementary School
Buenos Aires Argentina
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-lbM9sI3hbU
A new way to recycle!!!
Because bottle caps take many years to decompose, the main goal for
Recycling is to bring new environmental awareness.
The recycled bottle caps pass through many sorting stages:
✓ Some being used for the fabrication of fishing lure.
✓ Upcoming fleece sweaters and containers.
✓ Other stages being recuperation of plastic and metal.
✓ Re-usable material for other fabrications.
Billions of plastic and metal bottle caps enter landfill sites by the
billions yearly, yet these bottle caps could be turned into a new
product.
Lincoln Elementary School has decided to recycle the bottle caps to
send to the Garrahan Hospital. The whole elementary school
contributes by either bringing bottle caps or counting and sorting the
many caps we receive.
We all work hard as a team because together we
make things better!
The money the State Hospital of Pediatrics "Prof.
Dr. Juan P. Garrahan" collects from this program
enables them to buy medical equipment, provide
infrastructure arrangement, recruit professional
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nurses and doctors as well as support facility maintenance. It is also devoted to helping children
suffering from oncological and cardiovascular problems or children in need of transplantation.
Lincoln has been contributing with the State Hospital Garrahan for many years. Since last October 2009
to this date, we have gathered an approximate total of 18,000 bottle caps.
The Garrahan Foundation got his first record in the Guinness Book of Records in 2011, when 91 tons of
caps were collected. This campaign began in 2006 and has since gathered 1,600 million.
With the caps, the Garrahan ALSO got the world record in 2014 with THE COLLABORATION
OF Colombia: 477 tons of plastic have been collected.
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Earth Day Project Developed by 4th A Regular Spanish Class 2015
By Ana María Martínez
Lincoln School, Buenos Aires
The first Earth Day, observed across the USA on April 22, 1970, crystallized a growing public concern
about ecological crises. Earth Day was the product of local grassroots action to increase environmental
awareness, but it also focused the nation's political agenda on urgent environmental issues.
It was Wisconsin Senator Gaylord Nelson who in September 1969 proposed a national teach-in on the
environment to send a message to Washington that public opinion was solidly behind a bold political
agenda on environmental problems.
Inspired by the campus activism of the late 1960s, he employed a team of experienced students to help
him respond to the immediate and overwhelming public excitement for a national day on the
environment. However, Nelson insisted the first Earth Day's activities be created not by organizers in
Washington, but by individuals and groups in their own communities. As a result of this empowering
vision, 1 in 10 Americans participated in the first Earth Day, drawing extensive attention from the media
and jump-starting an era of bold environmental legislation.
Senator Gaylord Nelson’s aim with the first Earth Day was to light a fire for the environment in
Washington, and Nelson felt satisfied it had done so. He saw no need to replicate Earth Day. But Earth
Day, born in rural towns and big cities across the country in 1970, has remained an important annual
way to raise awareness of local environmental issues each year.
Senator Gaylord Nelson did work with allies to organize Earth Week activities in the 3 years that
followed, with the explicit goal of installing an annual event in schools to promote environmental
education. National observation of Earth Day peaked in 1990 for its 20th anniversary, with a focus in
forging international alliances, a goal carried into the 25th and 30th anniversaries. An estimated 184
countries held formal Earth Day celebrations in 2000.
Earth Day presentation created by 4th grade students Spanish Regular program permits awareness from
students in the recycling effects, consequences and benefits.
All the knowledge in the curriculum is a product of someone’s hopes, fears, passions, or ingenuity. I try
to get students to learn knowledge in a manner that will make it meaningful and memorable. Then we
need to bring it to “real” life for them in the context of those hopes, fears, passions, or ingenuity.
The great instrument that will allow us to achieve this routinely in everyday classroom is the
imagination.
The students not only develop knowledge about the planet’s problems, but also have created the formal
presentation, and also the generated RRR projects through Boards provided by me as follows:
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http://www.pinterest.com/ammartinezbar/ecologia-educacion
http://www.pinterest.com/ammartinezbar/you-can-do-it/
http://www.pinterest.com/ammartinezbar/you-can-do-it/2
This experience provides a deeper knowledge of the problems that affect our planet and helps develop
their creativity. Recycling is seen as a more natural process, to be able to find what and how to recycle
in order to prove consciousness about taking care of the planet, from different activities done in class or
at home, included the many recycling projects provided at Lincoln School such as: recycling paper,
electrical proper disposal, tetra pak containers, and--one of the student’s favorites--plastic bottle caps.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B-D7HleNKFf7dlZDdU9feGJ5M0U/view?usp=sharing
“The wealth of the nation is its air, water, soil, forests, minerals, rivers, lakes, oceans, scenic beauty,
wildlife habitats and biodiversity… that’s all there is. That’s the whole economy. That’s where all the
economic activity and jobs come from. These biological systems are the sustaining wealth of the world.”
Gaylord Nelson
Bibliography
The imaginative research group.https://www.sfu.ca/~egan/
http://www.ierg.net/http://rosejourn.com/index.php/rose/article/viewFile/71/99
Imagination as a transformative tool in primary school education
Peter van Alphen http://www.cambridgescholars.com/download/sample/58654
Engaging Imagination and Developing Creativity In Education Edited by Kieran Egan and Krystina
Madej
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Integrating Performing Arts and Language Arts to Generate
Output and Promote Cooperative Learning
By: Marilia Donoso and Sherina Isolica
Pueri Domus School, Global Brazilian American Program
“Logic will get you from A to B. Imagination will take you everywhere.”–Albert Einstein
The aim of this article is to share the experience of the Performing Arts teacher and the Grade 5 teacher
who both work in a Bilingual School. The objective was to intentionally integrate P.A. and Language
Arts to generate and produce authentic and meaningful language and promote cooperative learning.
What is output?
Dictionary definition : The act or process of producing; production
Output Hypothesis according to Merril Swain
Definition: The act of producing language (speaking or writing) constitutes, under certain circumstances,
part of the process of second language learning.
Classroom Implications
Merril Swain’s output hypothesis claims that one way for a language learner to acquire or learn a new
language is for them to produce language that “makes sense.” This hypothesis works in conjunction
with, not distinct from, her previous “input hypothesis,” which claimed that the only way learners can
acquire a new language is from hearing or reading the language being learned in a way that it can be
understood.
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How Did It All Start?
“Nature uses only the longest threads to weave her patterns, so that each small piece of her fabric
reveals the organization of the entire tapestry.” Richard P. Feyman
In the Global Brazilian American Program, all elementary grades are expected to perform a play. Until
4th grade, students rehearse a prewritten play script. This time, the challenge was for the 5 th grade
students to come-up with a story based on their knowledge about Ancient Rome and then write their
own script. They were expected to create the story, characters and plot structure, in order to develop the
script and then perform on stage. (Bogart – p.2) This process was guided by the Performing Arts and the
Grade 5 teacher.
As in tapestry our goal in this project was to develop the creative process of a play that would embrace a
Social Studies’ theme, language output and cooperative learning. Moreover, it was an opportunity to
weave in the writing process as an instrument for the students to write the script. In order to succeed the
students needed to connect Social Studies, Language Arts and Performing Arts and then bring different
skills together including their cooperative learning skills.
Structure and development of the Project
“You cannot expect other people to create meaning for you. You cannot wait for someone else to define
your life. You make meaning by forging it with your hands. It is action that forges the meaning and the
significance of a life.” (BOGART, 2007, p.2)
Initially, our main methodology was to give the students the opportunity to experiment with different
possibilities for the story’s beginning, middle and end in order to develop a plot and create the script.
They were encouraged to work in pairs and small groups and eventually all together to create a
meaningful play.
The students were asked to use graphic organizers such as the one below, to structure their ideas.
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During the Performing Arts classes the students would improvise the scenes they were responsible for,
trying out the plot they came-up with through physical actions. In this perspective, we could say that like
a scientist who has to carry out experiments to prove his theories, the students had to experiment their
story with their own actions, forge it with their own hands, as said by Anne Bogart, to check its
feasibility and effectiveness.
In the theater the PA teacher presented lots of exercises and specific games for students. These games
served the purpose of exploring characters, settings and different “what if?” situations. At a specific
point there were twelve scenes developed on stage, woven with different actions and characters,
however the students were acting outwardly and not yet inwardly. They still didn’t know their lines by
heart nor was the script completely ready when we started to rehearse the entire play from the beginning
to the end. It was important to allow room for changes to the script as students became more familiar
with their creation.
We applied a technique from Stanislavski’s system, the known Russian theater director and teacher,
called the “magic if”. We proposed some situations analogous to the scenes’ conflicts, but closer to the
students’ experience, to generate a reaction. For example, we posed the following questions: “what if
your dad gave you the toy or trip you had always wanted? How would you feel?” Their answers had to
be showed by their bodies, not by words. This body response needed to be linked to the scene in which
the slaves were given freedom. We created an artificial memory to be revived on stage.
The exercises and techniques described brought to this project valuable tools to help the students take
ownership of the subjects they were studying and to generate meaningful outcomes in the learning
process.
Throughout this process the involvement of emotions and feelings proved to have an multi sensorial
impact on the students’ development of metacognitive strategies. Students had to notice language in
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order to produce an effective script. The opportunity to work in groups provided ample opportunities for
language exchange as well as cooperative learning. All in all, there was a boost in language acquisition
and students gained a wider, deeper and more self- confident command of the language. Acting also
reaches and embraces students who are more kinesthetic, and it engages and motivates learners to
incorporate fluency, intonation and to produce authentic language.
“The desire to write grows with writing,” Desiderius Erasmus
Writing is usually solitary and sometimes needed but it can also be challenging for language learners.
Some students lack ideas, vocabulary or even both.
Cooperative learning and Output through Performing Arts
This process provided an opportunity for output orally and on paper. There was a constant exchange of
ideas as students needed to discuss how to organize their scenes, they had to research appropriate
settings and had to carefully consider language structures and appropriate vocabulary.
In this project, there were 10 scenes plus lines for the narrators. Students were split into groups and each
group was responsible for a scene and the 2 narrators were responsible for their lines. Each group was
provided a booklet in which they first noted the scene it was responsible for, who was in the scene and
the personality of each character. The group then had to develop the scene: exposition, rising action,
climax, falling action and solution. During the P.A. classes, students had a chance to explore their ideas
and check for effectiveness and coherency. At this point they still had not written any lines, on stage
they improvised with guidance. In this part of the process, there was a lot of exchange of ideas, opinions
and suggestions. There was also opportunity for intervention with regards to language noticing and
correction.
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We read short plays to fully understand the elements of a play, character development, how to transform
a story into a play. We analyzed the language used, appropriate punctuation for dialogue and specific
verb tenses. We noticed how adverbs are used to help direct the actors on stage and help the
actor/actress express opinions and ideas which are coherent to the role of that character.
During the Social Studies classes, students gained knowledge of Ancient Roman history, the society
itself and all the factors which relate to and affect an ancient civilization. This was important as it
provided ideas for scene settings, character behavior, costumes and possible plots.
Once the students were comfortable with their characters and the process, each group began writing the
script for their scene. They were constantly guided to notice the language, spelling, punctuation and
vocabulary. At the same time the language had to remain as authentic as possible.
In the writing process the student learned how to identify the elements of writing a scene for a play,
brainstorm for ideas in groups, plan and outline the scene, organize and develop the first draft of the
script, use the revision to produce the final draft, proofread and edit before publishing the script.
Throughout the entire process output was generated orally (one-on-one, in pairs, in groups and teacher
led) and on paper.
Post – Project Evaluation
“The limits of your language are the limits of your world.” Ludwig Wittgenstein
After the final performance, we carried out an oral collective evaluation of the process. The discussion
was guided by the following questions: How did you do in the play? What were the difficulties or
challenges you had to face during the process? In which areas do you consider you could improve?
Each student shared his/her reflection about these topics, criticizing his/her own performance and
attitudes during the process, as well as identifying the aspects they did well and the ones they needed to
improve.
Students showed maturity in their positions, since they could accurately describe skills they needed to
develop. The main challenges and difficulties mentioned were: to speak louder and clearer, to keep
focused during rehearsals, to be more expressive, to make use of body language and to position on stage.
Some students also referred to their difficulty to face the audience and overcome their shyness. These
are all skills that students need in order to be more effective communicators.
Teacher Collaboration
The experience of developing a collaborative project requires the teachers to be flexible and to be open
to listen to each other’s ideas. A balance must be struck between both teachers’ ideas, which demands
flexibility, willingness to share expertise and availability to learn from each other. The project starts
with a plan, but teachers should keep in mind they cannot anticipate everything; the plan therefore has to
48
be flexible according to the needs of the class. Moreover, the objectives and expectations for the project
must be established in advance, working as a guide to develop the play process, at the same time these
expectations will help in the evaluation process.
As a result of the project, the creative process of the play proved to be a valuable way to integrate and
develop contents and skills from different areas. Certainly, the writing process helped the students to
create and perform their characters on stage, to memorize their lines and to get a global perspective of
the play. On the other hand, the acting skills helped the students to increase their knowledge about
Ancient Rome and to write a script collectively.
“In order to be proficient and productive students, English-language learners (ELLs) need many
opportunities to interact in social and academic situations. Effective teachers encourage their students'
participation in classroom discussions, welcome their contributions, and motivate them by such
practices.” (Cazden, 2001; Stipek, 2002).
The Authors
Marilia Donoso holds a Master of Arts in Performing Arts and a B.Ed in Art Education. She currently teaches
Performing Arts for preschool and elementary students in a Bilingual School in São Paulo, Brazil. She has been
working as an actress for 16 years, having participated from International Festivals in Brazil, Argentina, Peru,
Cuba and Venezuela.
Sherina Isolica currently teaches Grade 5 in a Bilingual School in São Paulo, Brazil. She holds a B.Ed in
Education and a B.Ed in Business Administration, as well as TEFL certification. She worked as a TEFL teacher
for 10 years and has been working with bilingual education for 12 years. She has published 3 articles : Digital
Pathways, Class Meetings and Mentoring Programs
REFERENCES
Bibliography
BOGART, A (2007). And then, you act: making art in an unpredictable world. New York: Routledge.
CALKINS, L (1994). The art of teaching writing (new ed.). Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
_____________. Curricular Plan for the Writing Workshop. Portsmouth, NH: Heinmann.
LYSTER, R (2007). Learning and teaching languages through content: a counterbalanced approach.
Philadelphia: John Benjamins.
STANISLAVSKI, Constantin (1989). An actor prepares. EUA: Paperback.
SWAIN, M; DETERS, P (2007). New mainstream SLA Theory: Expanded and Enriched. Modern language
journal, 91, 820-836.
SWAIN, M; LAPKIN, S (1995). “Problems in Output and the Cognitive Processes They Generate: A Step
Toward Language Learning”. Applied Linguistics 16:371-391.
Online sources
49
ARUMUGAM, N; ABDULLAH, F (n.d.). Cooperative Language Learning in the Tertiary ESL Writing Classroom:
Students’ Views in Diverse Settings. Retrieved from:
http://www.academia.edu/1115655/Cooperative_Language_Learning_in_the_tertiary_ESL_Writing_classroom_S
tudent_views_from_diverse_settings
KOBAYASHI, M (2007). ‘Effect of mentoring on second language composition processes in Japanese.’ In
Learning Discourses and the Discourses of Learning, edited by Marriott, H; Moore, T; Spence-Brown, R.
Melbourne: Monash University ePress. pp. 14.1 to 14.13. Retrieved from:
http://books.publishing.monash.edu/apps/bookworm/view/
Learning+Discourses+and+the+Discourses+of+Learning/134/xhtml/chapter14.html
PEARSON, L (n.d.) ‘Output Hypothesis (Merril Swain)’ in Swain and Canale. Retrieved from:
http://www.wou.edu/~lpearso/website/Swain%20&%20Canale.html
SCHÜTZ, R (2014). Stephen Krashen's Theory of Second Language Acquisition. Retrieved from:
http://www.sk.com.br/sk-krash.html
Plot chart for short story. (n.d.) Retrieved from:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/pictopedia/3594266033/in/photostream/
50
The “Trust Edge” for International Schools
By Toby A. Travis
Academic Director
Alliance Academy International
Quito, Ecuador
My submission of this article is long overdue as we had the extraordinary
privilege of hosting on our campus nearly a year ago now David Horsager,
the national best-selling author of “The Trust Edge”, and yet the enduring
impact of his visit is still resonating on our campus – and shaping how we
approach leadership development on the campus into the future.
First, a little background on David Horsager: After directing an organization
in Arkansas in his twenties, Dave moved back to his home state of Minnesota
and started his first company. It went so well that within 4 months he and his
wife were living in a musty basement apartment with $1.40 to their name!
Since then, Dave has grown 2 successful companies and has taken the
platform as a keynote speaker across the USA and on 4 continents. His work has
been featured in prominent publications such as Fast Company, Forbes, and The
Wall Street Journal. His client list includes: Wells Fargo, The Better Business
Bureau, The New York Yankees, American Express, Good Year, FedEx, and many
more. He is a producer, professor, award-winning speaker, business strategist and
National Best-Selling author of The Trust Edge.
I have personally had the privilege of knowing Dave and his family for over twenty
years. Early in the 2013-2014 school year, our Administrative Team at AAI met to discuss strategies on
how to increase levels of trust between the faculty and the school leadership. In fact, and candidly, we
were discussing how to repair some broken elements of trust. I was aware of Dave’s book going to the
“National Best-Seller” status with The Wall Street Journal, and although he and I hadn’t connected for
several years, I sent him a note to see if there were any chance he would be willing and able to conduct a
Skype meeting with our team. Long story short… he agreed to travel to Quito and donate his services to
the school for 3 days as a speaker, trainer, and consultant!
His time here with us at AAI began by leading a professional development session with our faculty,
staff, and guest entitled, “The 8 Pillars of Trust: A Framework for Gaining an Edge in Life.” Throughout
his presentation it was obvious that although he had developed these “pillars” in the business and
corporate world – they are essential, bottom-line issues, for every international school. Without trust, we
know that schools lose teams, reputations, relationships, and revenue. But with trust, school
improvement moves faster, “margins” get bigger, and deeper and healthier relationships take off.
51
Through academic research and firsthand experience, Dave demonstrated what it takes to gain – and
keep what he calls “The Trust Edge.” It was a captivating presentation in which he combined his humor
and illustrations with deep insight and analysis. He showed how when little things are done consistently,
they add up to huge results. Everyone came away from the presentation with concrete steps that many
immediately put to use to improve both their work here at the AAI as well as their personal lives.
Here is a brief overview of Horsager’s “8 Pillars of Trust”:
 Clarity: People trust the clear and mistrust the ambiguous.
 Compassion: People put faith in those who care beyond themselves.
 Character: People notice those who do what is right over what is easy.
 Competency: People have confidence in those who stay fresh, relevant, & capable.
 Commitment: People believe in those who stand through adversity.
 Connection: People want to follow, buy from and be around friends.
 Contribution: People immediately respond to results.
 Consistency: People love to see the little things done consistently.
During the remaining time of Dave’s visit with us in Quito, he conducted several sessions with our
administrative and academic leaders sharing specific and practical strategies to develop and expand our
level of trust. Dave shared that…
“…Trust is not a soft skill. It is the single uniqueness of the greatest leaders and
organizations of all time. Trust has the ability to accelerate or destroy any business,
organization, school, or relationship. With greater trust comes greater innovation,
stronger brands, increased retention of good people, higher morale, multiplied
productivity, and better results. The trusted leader is followed. For the trusted brand
people will pay more, come back, and tell others. In the Twenty-First Century, trust has
become the world’s most precious resource.”
Perhaps one of the reasons why his training was so impactful, and continues to have a lasting residual
impact upon our school community, is that everything he shared with us was founded upon solid
research. As is true of the majority of international schools, we are passionate about staying abreast of 52
and implementing research-based practices in education. Well, the same applies when it comes to this
all-important asset of trust. For example, we learned the following:



Mistrust doubles the cost of doing business. – John Whitney, Director of Quality Management,
Columbia University.
Costs were five times higher with the least trusted supplier than with the most trusted supplier. –
Jeffrey Dyer and Wujin Chu, Dspace.
Companies with high trust levels outperform companies with low trust levels by 186%! –
Watson Wyatt, Work USA.
Since Dave’s visit with us several leadership groups of the school have started to take a careful look and
consideration of the pillars of trust in their areas – including our Board of Directors and our Academic
Management Team. Other groups on the campus have started simply doing a “book club” type exercise
utilizing chapters of Dave’s book as a starter for deeper discussion and exploration on how to develop
levels of trust in their areas of leadership.
Through a special invitation and scholarship provided
by David Horsager, two of our AAI administrators
(myself pictured here receiving certification from
Dave Horsager) and our Early Childhood Coordinator,
Mrs. Bethany Meekins-Coloma), attended and
completed the Horsager Leadership’s “Trust Edge
Summit: Training and Facilitator Certification” in
early November of 2014.
We are now poised to further embed the results of the
research, the principles, and the strategies of trust development here in Quito, as well as to assist other
schools in the region. If this training is of interest to your school, please do not hesitate to contact myself
or Horsager Leadership directly. Their organization has established some greatly discounted fees for
their training and material resources for international schools so that schools may benefit from the same
training that is being received and implemented by Fortune 100 companies around the world.
Other resources from Horsager Leadership that we will be utilizing and implementing here at AAI in the
coming year include: The Trust Edge 360 Assessment which provides a base-line on trust levels for
those in leadership, as well as a 90-Day plan for immediate implementation of strategies to increase trust
levels; and The Trust Edge University, which provides a flexible online learning experience which we
will be using as part of our orientation of new administrators and department leaders.
53
Redefining Professional Development at CIPLC:
Ed Camp, Play Dates, and Twitter
By: Bonnie McAuley
Colegio Internacional Puerto la Cruz
Professional development is taking an interesting turn for educators in the 21st century and we are
embracing it at Colegio Internacional Puerto la Cruz (CIPLC). With an increased focus on technology
and digital literacy for students, we are redefining the content and format of professional development
for our staff. EdCamp, PlayDates, and Twitter chats are some of the models we have been exploring
here at CIPLC.
I experienced EdCamp for the first time last year at our annual EVAC conference at CIPLC in
Venezuela. EdCamp is a professional developmental model that is basically the opposite of a typical
conference, which is planned and organized months in advance. EdCamp is often called the
“unconference”. On the day of EdCamp educators gather together and make notes of topics that they
would like to either “teach” to someone else or “learn” about from someone else. A few leaders
organize the notes into categories, assign spaces and individuals select a topic and move to the area. At
that point the magic begins. Educators begin to collaborate and teach and learn from one another. They
define their agendas and make the content relevant. Once you are in a group, you can decide if the topic
is what you’d like to learn. If the conversation or discussion is not meeting your needs, you are free to
move to another area to discuss a different topic.
The application of the EdCamp model for professional development has significant implications on
teachers and on student learning. Educators are self-directing their professional development and
allowing “choice” is creating a commitment and “buy-in” that is not always possible with traditional
models. When teachers commit to their learning they are more likely to follow through and apply their
learning to increase student achievement. The EdCamp model is providing opportunities for teacher to
share their expertise too. The model is indirectly fostering teacher leaders to emerge and share their own
expertise. It affords teachers the opportunity to experience the power of self-directed learning,
especially in relation to applying learning to new contexts. Now teachers are utilizing EdCamps with
their students. I recently implemented an EdCamp with my 3rd grade students at CIPLC and the results
were incredible. Students emerged as presenters and teachers. Student groups gathered together to
share in relevant learning experiences that were meaningful for them.
Another trend in educator professional development is the emergence of the “playdate”. Our
inspirational Technology Coach, Yau-Jau Ku, recently organized a playdate for our staff at CIPLC. The
Playdate model was developed as a result of not having time to fully explore the new technology that
we’re introduced to at conferences. Oftentimes, we leave a conference full of new knowledge and a list
overflowing with new apps, programs and skills to try out. However, once we return to the “real world”
many of us lack the time and support to actually try out all of these new tools. A playdate brings
educators together to “play” with new technology tools.
54
Playdates are impacting student learning in myriad ways. Educators are receiving time to explore in
order to confidently transform their lessons and provide students with the most cutting-edge strategies
for learning. Playdates provide educators with time in a low-risk atmosphere to build their
confidence. Technology experts and novices alike all need time for exploration. Playdates are basically
cost-free and enjoyable because you’re challenging yourself with new learning. Even more, they are
impacting students learning because teachers are feeling confident in introducing new applications that
they have experienced during their playdate.
Twitter is another powerful professional development tool that we are utilizing at CIPLC. It is a tool
that I have been using for the past several years and it has revolutionized my teaching. For those who
have not been introduced to the twittersphere, I’ll take a moment to explain. In the simplest terms,
Twitter is a social-networking tool that connects you to others. Educators on twitter are connecting
with other educators to share new learning ideas, advice, best practices, and support one another. Many
educators will post tweets with links to articles, photographs, websites, or videos on educational
topics. Many teachers are engaging in chats on twitter that are organized around specific topics and set
for specific times. One of the most amazing parts of Twitter is that now most attendees and presenters at
educational conferences are tweeting and sharing all the resources from the conferences. You don’t
even need to attend a conference to gather resources because they are all being tweeted out by the
attendees.
We know that to properly prepare our students for the future we must begin to look at our teaching and
instruction in new ways. At CIPLC our teachers are learners engaged in ongoing professional
development. Edcamps, Twitter, and Playdates are just a few examples of those on-demand and
relevant professional development models for teachers in the 21st century. Collaborate, tweet, and play.
55
You'll Never Believe What This Science Teacher Has to Say about
the Internet! It May Shock You.
I really wanted to title my article, "The need for teaching healthy skepticism in a world of diminishing
internet credibility," but I want people to actually read the article.
First, let's start with a Facebook chat that I had years ago. I am paraphrasing because Hondo McMurphy
(not his real name) apparently deleted the post.
Figure 1: Simulated Facebook conversation constructed from memory. Images used with permission
courtesy of Jerry Stone and Mike Yen.
So I looked it up on Google. If you searched the quote in 2011, the first 10 Google results listed Thomas
Jefferson in the snippet. (Thankfully, a current Google search displays the quote as an obvious fraud.) I
dug deeper. Monticello.org had the quote listed under their 'spurious quotations' with a reference to the
1986 book where the quote was first found in print. What did I do with my knowledge? I decided not to
respond to Mr. McMurphy. Trying to convince others to change an opinion in a social media setting is
like trying to teach a horse addition.
But my world exists beyond social media; I get to teach science. I help students make sense of the world
around them. What should goals be in a science classroom? Maybe during the Cold War and the race to
the moon, the goal of science education was to create engineers. But now? How should K-12 science
courses be structured if fewer than 5 percent of the US Labor Force are comprised by scientists and
engineers.
The answer is scientific literacy.
56
Science literacy means different things to scientists:
To Neil de Grasse Tyson, an astrophysicist and proponent of science: "I see science literacy as kind of a
vaccine against charlatans who would try to exploit your ignorance."
To John Dewey, a philosopher and educational reformer, his five scientific habits of mind were the goals
of science education:
1.
Logical Thinking
2.
Quantitative analysis
3.
Deductive reasoning
4.
Proper questioning
5.
Reliance on sound evidence
Carl Sagan, astrophysicist and science popularizer, offers his idea of science literacy
from an excerpt from Demon-Haunted World: "In the course of their training, scientists are
equipped with a baloney detection kit," [italics mine].
The common theme, confirming my own bias, is skepticism. I contend that healthy skepticism is the
most important goal of science education and the molding force behind proper inquiry. Teaching the
facts of science without looking at the evidence, the epistemology, the history of experimentation that
led to the ideas, pushes children down the road of merely accepting authority on word alone. Faith built
on authority can be abused. I'm sure you could provide your own examples.
Onto the sector of the world confided to globally accessible and collaborative 1s and 0s. I'm talking
about the internet. In a sea of information, there's tons of garbage. Now more than ever, proper science
education requires a focus on skepticism.
I contacted Kevin Slane, a staff writer for BDCwire.
Mr. Slane's work makes him an ideal representative of the changing digital journalism. His eclectic
compilation of stories brings the reader to the world of unautotuned T-Pain, mute street performers,
Daniel Radcliffe's rap skills, and running Apps and America's Fastest runners, all published in the span
of two days; he has his finger on the pulse of the internet.
I asked Slane about the changes in online journalism. "Anyone is a potential storyteller," Slane notes; I
didn't probe further into the connotations of this ambiguous remark. Any random person can put a story
online or A great story can come from anyone. The meaning is clear though: the digital age is
bittersweet.
Slane then discusses the prevalence of digital news. "Social media's near-ubiquity means that stories are
broken, developed, and reported 100% digitally," and the time that news travels from the journalist to
the consumer has rapidly decreased. "Just as 24-hour cable networks turned the newspaper into
yesterday's news, Twitter turned the 24-hour cable network into five minute ago's news," explains Slane
and as a corollary, the time allotted for even basic fact-checking is diminishing.
57
But with this digitization, news outlets are better able to pinpoint the desire of the consumers. Instead of
carpet bombing and blitzkrieg advertising, "Facebook use big data to allow news outlets to run microtargeted ads in the hopes that data gleaned from willfully given personal information data offers insights
into what a specific person will want to read," explains Slane. Site visits equal money, so understanding
what could persuade an average internet user to click a link is crucial knowledge. "The rise of big data
and extremely precise analytics software with A/B testing capability has led to careful optimization of
every part of the story package." By every part, Slane literally means every part; "the default header
image, SEO search terms, social media teaser text, even single words in headlines."
For some news outlets, the truth of a story matters less than traffic. Slane has tweeted an example from
mashable.com. Even more reputable news outlets are not immune to clickbaiting tactics.
Slane offers advice to young digital news consumers. "Readers should always be skeptical of anything
they read, regardless of the source. If you're reading something about an ongoing story that that was
published ten minutes ago, assume the story is incomplete." We even have to be weary of ourselves
when we judge news sources because "we often succumb to confirmation bias when choosing a news
source, so don't automatically pick sites you typically agree with, or whose tone of voice appeals to you
if they're delivering consistently wrong or exaggerated information."
So how do we gift students with the desire to learn Sagan's "baloney detection tool kit" so that they can
combat the plethora of unreliable sources?
Lie to them. Confront students with an example where their unfiltered belief in authority leads them
astray. When students recognize the lie they’ll learn a valuable lesson. Everyone is capable of lying, so
be on your toes. This fostered skepticism is a skill not only for the developing scientist, but also a skill
increasingly necessary for the digital consumer.
Kevin Slane is a staff writer for BDCwire, a sister site of Boston.com devoted to what’s trending in
Boston and beyond, which is a nice way of saying he spends all day on Twitter. You can find the full
interview here.
Joe St. Peter teaches MS science and HS biology at Colegio Internacional Puerto La Cruz in Venezuela.
He enjoys pursuit.
58
Threering - P.E. e-Portfolio
By Flavia Mizukawa & Leandro Poersch
International School of Curitiba, Brazil
Education in the 21st century is changing
rapidly and students must be actively
involved in their learning process.
One way to do this is to create an eportfolio – an online version of the
traditional portfolio which can be easily
accessed and updated anywhere. With the
help of this technology, students can verify
their progress during the year, making the
assessment an evaluation for learning and
not just an assessment of learning.
By creating their e-portfolio, students add pictures, reports, videos and reflections that show not only
their performance but also their development in Physical Education classes - building a story of their
individual learning process.
At ISC, after piloting the Physical Education e-portfolio for one year was observed that portfolios on
their own development can help students to acquire skills like critical thinking, creativity, and selfreflection and also provides practice in writing as well as time and effort management.
Due to the positive outcome of the method, ISC has now being implementing a curriculum-appropriate
P.E. e-Portfolio for ECC, Elementary and Middle School students.
IPads and specific web based, user-friendly and
safe platforms are used by ISC students and
teachers to gather, share and analyze evidence
from students’ work.
In summary, a portfolio goes beyond the simple
process of showing evidence of work. It is a
process that engages students to be active
participants in their learning. Its purpose is to
have the student as the main character in his/her
learning process and share the responsibility in
accomplishing their learning goals with the teacher.
59
Actions Speak Louder Than Words: A TETO Experience
by Isabel Brito
Escola Americana do Rio de Janeiro
We are told throughout our lives that underprivileged communities, in Brazil called favelas, are terribly
dangerous places that people should avoid at all costs. However, I feel like we never really do anything
about this situation; in these communities, there are kids who are just like us – they have their own
friendships, dreams, and hopes for a better future - yet they are forced to live in dire conditions. What
about them?
It was six months ago when I first discovered a nonprofit organization called TETO. I heard that they were
working with many high schools to build emergency
housing for families living in precarious conditions in a
number of destitute communities all over Brazil and
South America. At first, part of me felt uneasy about the
idea; although it was something I would love to do, I
felt like it was way out of my comfort zone.
But, honestly, what is one weekend spent building a
house in comparison to living your whole life without adequate shelter? Although it involved taking a
lot of risks and putting ourselves in a completely new situation, it allowed the people we helped to attain
a level of comfort we had always been granted. I knew we had to at least try to work with TETO.
After researching their work, meeting with the school administration, and sending letters to parents, we
had an organized group of students, two chaperones, and R$5,500 raised in donations through the
generosity of parents and students in our school. All volunteers needed to procure a hammer and tape
measure, find sturdy boots and gloves. We packed our sleeping bag and a toothbrush but left most of our
electronic devices at home.
When we arrived at the public school on Friday night everyone felt, for the first time, that it was finally
happening. All of our time and effort had been effective, and we were excited to start the construction.
We woke up on Saturday at 5AM, quickly ate breakfast, and headed to the building site. The veteran
volunteers cheered us up with songs and stories of their past builds.
When we got to the building site, we were all shocked for a moment. Studying in a school that is right
next to Rocinha, one of the biggest favelas in South America, I felt like I had seen almost everything. I
felt like I knew what poverty was. I thought I knew what “living in bad conditions” meant – but, as it
turned out, I didn’t.
60
We met Sr. João, the cheerful man whose house we were going to build, and he showed us around the
community. Jardim Gramacho was not like Rocinha, where the houses are built of bricks and actually
have a roof. Here a typical house was more like a shack, a patchwork of wooden rectangles, all glued
together under broken aluminum panels - although it was made of wood, it seemed as fragile as a house
of cards.
We started building. First, we had to lay the
foundation for the house, which was actually
the hardest part of the process. That is so
because the community of Jardim Gramacho
was originally built around one of the biggest
landfills in South America, with the purpose of
housing the trash-pickers who lived off of
collecting and selling whatever they found.
Despite the fact that the landfill itself was
closed down in 2012, the scars from its past
remain in the area; the soil is ingrained with
layers of the trash accumulated through the years. Digging in the land was so difficult that we needed
extra help from other volunteers, who stood with us through many consecutive hours of pulling out old
clothes, backpacks, flip flops, phones, calculators, and even bike fenders from the terrain. The waste of
the rich had become, once again, an obstacle for the poor. It took us a day and a half to dig the future
foundation of the house, and by Sunday midday we were apprehensive that we might not be able to
finish on time.
After lunch on Sunday, with the foundation ready, we began securing the floor and putting up the walls.
More volunteers from TETO came over to help us, each one working on something different. Some of
us were nailing the floor while others were setting up the hinges on the doors and windows. Everyone
was doing the most they could so we would be able to deliver the house by the end of the day.
It was now late afternoon on Sunday. The sun had set, and rain had started to fall. In the open space
where there was once nothing, now stood a small, one-room house. While most of the surrounding
shacks lacked a roof or even a door, our house had both.
Handing in the finished house to Sr. João was one of the most memorable moments of my life.
Witnessing his huge smile at the end of the day, as he saw his home, made it all more than worthwhile.
I am proud of what we have done as students, as citizens. I am proud of what TETO does as an
organization. Taking that step out of your comfort zone is never easy, but it’s always worth it. The
process involved hardships, many of them, but in the end, they were nothing compared to what was
gained from the experience. This project not only provided Sr. João and his family a roof, a door, a
window, a place to call home, but it showed me that complaining about the government or lamenting
about social inequality does not construct anything. Each one of us has the power to do change the
61
situation around. This experience made me conscious of how each one of us has the choice to make a
difference.
When I arrived home on Sunday night, I felt happy to
lie on my own bed, and I was content that Sr. João
could do the same in his home. I felt satisfied that we
had been able to provide his family with a feeling that I
have had ever since I have been young, that feeling of
comfort and of belonging. For this reason, as he said so
himself, “There are other families out there that need
our help. With the TETO team, I believe we will be
able to overcome all of the obstacles that lay before us
and we will mobilize more families and more citizens to
do the same.” (João Leocadio)
Isabel Brito is a Junior at Escola Americana Do Rio de Janeiro and in the NHS
Alex Partos- Upper School Principal, EARJ
62
My Story
by Elsa Khayat
American International School of Kingston, Jamaica
I cannot speak on behalf of others because different people went through different things, learned to
cope differently. I can simply tell you my story, which is only one experience out of thousands of others,
and hope that it is enough.
It all happened gradually.
Frankly, I do not remember the day it all began. I didn’t realize that that day was so important that I’d
have to remember it. I didn’t know that from that day on, my world would slowly start to break into
pieces, pieces that would end up scattered all around the world, leaving me incomplete.
Ever since I was a child, my whole future seemed to be figured out. It was simple. I was supposed to live
in Aleppo and go to school at IISA until I graduated, along with all the classmates who over the years
had made my days at school bearable, sharing crayons and lice, gossiping and hugging when tears would
win, and learning by heart the sounds of each other’s laughter, almost as if they were lyrics to a song.
Subsequently, I would go study abroad and then bring my knowledge back home. It never occurred to
me for even a second that I’d ever have to leave my home before.
With time, we learned to adapt. We went out less often because it was too risky, and we went to sleep
earlier, in the hope that we’d be profoundly asleep when the bombings began. We left home every
morning to go to school as usual and in a way it became our salvation: it was our second home and the
teachers and students were our second family. Walking through the school gates felt like entering a
separate world. A world where harm did not exist and kind words were all that escaped a person’s
mouth. A world where differences were set aside, where no one was left behind. That is why, when the
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number of people showing up to school every morning started to decrease, we started to feel lost and
forlorn. When a family member leaves, it takes you a few months to adapt-to alter your habits- yet years
later, even in spite of everything, you find yourself walking around the house aimlessly, trying to find
something to fill up the empty space they unintentionally left behind.
There is nothing good about goodbyes. Nowadays, I am as familiar with the word goodbye as I am with
my own name. It started off in January 2012- this I cannot forget. We had just returned from Winter
break and already, 2 people in my class were missing. As February came, it grew to 4 and then 6. March
came along and then it all sped up: 8, 10, 12, 14, and 16. Considering we were only a class of 32
students, by the end of March, only half remained. By then, goodbyes had become a component of our
daily lives; it began to feel like a routine. With every coming day, one person left. It was as if our school
was a bush and every person who left was a flower. Once a flourishing and luxuriant plant, the bush had
begun to lose all its beauty and instead looked empty, abandoned.
Bombs and gunshots were things I only witnessed in movies; things I didn’t think truly existed- things I
sincerely hoped didn’t exist. Nevertheless, no matter how much I yearned for their absence, I couldn’t
deny their existence. I couldn’t turn weapons that were responsible for millions of deaths over the years
into nothingness. They went from being a figment of my imagination, to being a feature of my daily life.
At first, every bomb we would hear would make us jolt. We’d hold on to each other, praying there were
no more. Many nights were spent sleepless and our hearts raced faster and faster after every bomb that
was heard. But eventually, with time, it started to feel like a routine. Instead of running inside and
cuddling all together under the bed covers, we sat outside trying to keep count of them. It was as if we
were sitting beside the microwave as it popped our popcorn except that with every pop, either a human
life was taken, someone was severely injured, a building had collapsed, or worst of all, all three. I never
thought I’d ever feel like I was in danger in my own home. I never thought I’d hear my first gunshot or
my first bomb, let alone get so used to it that when I heard one, I wouldn’t even twitch. However, with
time, we realized that all we could really do was patiently wait for it all to come to an end.
As school came to an early end on April the 5th 2012, summer break began. Students were ecstatic. Five
months of summer sounded like a dream come true. Excitement was dancing in the air as hugs were
exchanged and yearbooks were signed. As the buses were making their way out the gates one last time,
the teachers all stood in a unified line, waving cheerfully, their proud smiles furtively accompanied by
tears that were secretly dominating their eyes, as they desperately tried to hold them back. At that brief
moment, a rare bond was shared between us all. We were all holding on with all our might to Hope,
because although we were not all willing to admit it, the excitement we were displaying was a façade
masking the fact that we were all feeling heavy, carrying around the pain and knowledge that we may
never see each other again.
Consequently, the following weeks of summer were spent in Aleppo. It was an ordinary summer;
mornings were spent at the pool, roasting in the sun, and afternoons were spent out with our remaining
friends. In June, schools everywhere else around the world had finally come to an end and so we eagerly
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packed our suitcases and just like every typical summer, we headed off to Turkey for two months. My
parents had carefully planned out our summer, as they always do. We were supposed to spend two
months in Turkey and then head back in time for school to begin: August the 19 th. What we didn’t
realize then was that very often, things don’t work out the way you want them to.
The shocking news had made its way to us like a slithering snake by the beginning of July. IISA was not
going to open. Panic had taken over; everyone was hysterical. We were devastated. Confusion, anger
and tears tainted our faces as we all tried to comprehend this horrifying news. When you are young,
there are many things that you get mad at: your mom who won’t let you go out because you have to
study, or your teacher who gives you too much homework. There’s always someone to blame, someone
to aim all that anger at. Sadly, we didn’t know who to accuse or who to take to take our anger out on.
That day was the day the invisible bonds we shared appeared. Teachers, students and parents were
selflessly worrying about each other, rather than themselves. By then, the dominating question floating
around was, “What are we going to do?” What do you do when everything you have worked for,
everything you have carefully planned suddenly seems like it has evaporated? What do you do when the
future you had always imagined and strived to make come true vanishes into nothingness? Our thoughts
were too crowded and we couldn’t form any more words. Our vision had been shattered into a million
pieces and no matter how hard we tried, we just couldn’t put it back together.
People spend their whole lives searching for something to make them feel complete, whole. I was born
whole; I was born fortunate. I grew up oblivious to what worries were, oblivious to their existence.
Unfortunately, the day I found out that I was not going back home was the day my whole world fell
apart. From that day on, I thought that I would never feel complete again. It made no sense to me, what
had I ever done to deserve this? How was I going to cope? I woke up to a damp pillow, and I fell asleep
tightly holding on to my teddy bear, almost as if I were still five. I spent days baffled and lost, trapped
between walls of frustration and devastation. As the dreadful days crept by, the fogginess of the situation
began to clear up. Unfortunately, the more it cleared up, the worse it looked. At that moment, I began to
make realizations. No matter how hard I pinched myself, I would not wake up from this nightmare.
Thoughts flooded my brain and at times, I found myself drowning, desperately gasping for air. When
was I going to return? When was I going to see my friends and family? When was I going to set foot in
my own home again? And yet the thought that haunted me the most was the fact that I was fortunate
compared to others. What about the people who did not have a plan B? I walked around insensitive to
my surroundings while the sorrow was growing within me, causing me to wither away.
Time crept by and summer came to an end. Along with it came more goodbyes, ripping me further apart.
As much as being reunited with loved ones after a while is enchanting and delightful, parting is always
the most difficult part, it almost feels like you’re being torn into pieces. We got into a plane; unaware of
where we might end up, where our final destination might be. We transported with us all the memories
we could hold on to, some that would trigger the nostalgia, and others that we wish we could forget.
Home had become a foreign word, a distant dream that we longed for and a question mark: When were
we going to return?
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Aleppo’s a city in Syria, a city many people had never heard of
before it all began. On account of the media, an abundance of
people finally knew where Aleppo was. What they grasped
though was what the media portrayed. They made our beautiful
city look like ruins. They buried a heritage that took more than
5,000 years to build, under rubble. They hid its splendor and
instead showed the world its flaws. They silenced the crowded
streets that used to come to life every day, tinted by hundreds of
people. They replaced the sounds of friendly chatter and
contagious laughter by those of bombs and gunfire. They made the people look like savages when
really; the people in Aleppo were identified as some of the kindest people you would have ever had the
fortune to meet. They were the kind of people who when asked for directions, gladly dropped everything
they were doing, got into their cars, and directed you safely to your destination. They were the kind of
people who even when they only had one loaf of bread left, they would still decide to share it with stray
cats. They were the kind of people who in the morning, kindly smiled at you when you walked by,
revealing a ray of sunshine on a rainy day. Aleppo was no ordinary city. It was absolutely exquisite. The
lovely people living in it were the main reason behind its mysterious beauty. They strived all their lives
to try to make their city even more picturesque, spending years building and investing, oblivious to the
fact that the years of building, could all be destroyed in a matter of seconds.
Nowadays, I impatiently wait the summer holidays. To see people reunited never ceases to amaze me.
The way they run to each other, almost as if they’d had a rush of adrenaline, the long tight hugs that they
have craved for so long, bringing them back together, creating one entity; the embracing that then
triggers the tears, each drop carrying the pain of each other’s absence. Later comes the impatience, the
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stories that the mouth can’t seem to tell fast enough, the ears that aren’t big enough, the eyes that can’t
take in all of the change and the hands that can’t seem to stop moving, unable to hide the eagerness and
the thrill of finally being able to take a break from missing that someone. No matter how tight we hug or
how many words we whisper, we cannot seem to have enough of each other. Unfortunately, the
knowledge that goodbyes are unavoidable hangs thickly in the air, making it harder for us to breath.
To this day, the aching in my heart remains. I get asked dozens of questions, we all do. Everybody is
constantly trying to put themselves in our shoes, always failing. Turns out, we were barefoot instead, we
were completely vulnerable to the blind rage around us and no matter how innocent we were, we had all
been dragged into the same misery. And unless it is experienced firsthand, the horrifying recollections
that reside in my mind could never be envisioned. We try to put what we feel and what we have felt into
words but our thoughts are a painful mess, they are too muddled. How do you explain something that
you can’t even seem to understand yourself?
My friends and family were dispersed around the world, each one of them blossoming into a remarkable
flower, sharing their strength and knowledge with the rest of the world. Miles lay between us and
barriers divided us up, and yet we have never felt closer. We had been intertwined and woven togetherour bonds stronger than ever- creating a dazzling quilt. Together, we untangled the situation, attempting
to make sense of it. We alternated roles: offering a shoulder to cry on or being the one who needed a
shoulder to cry on. In the end we discovered that it was like everything… eventually it started to feel
normal. We figured out the right words to say to other people and we adapted.
Sometimes, the best way to think about the worst situations is to perceive them as fate. Maybe bad
things happen because it’s the only way we can keep remembering what good is supposed to look like.
Time has a funny way of showing us what truly matters. When the fog cleared up and we had each
settled in our own corner of the world, we realized that for every little thing that was taken from us, we
had gained something else. We grew as a population in an unimaginable way. One of the most difficult
realizations we made was that we should never take anything for granted. In the blink of an eye, your
whole world can be altered, changed into something unrecognizable. I now take a moment every
morning and just look around, feeling grateful for the simplest things such as being surrounded by a
loving family, a group of outstanding friends and under a sturdy roof. I now carry around the knowledge
that “home” is people, not a place. If you go back there when all the people are gone, then all you see is
what is not there anymore. Furthermore, I learned that memories, although often painful circulate in
your blood. They are reminders that you are alive and that although life is sometimes a struggle, you
should eternally hold on to the remnants of hope. Whenever we began missing someone again, we
started to feel privileged because we had the fortune to have such special people in our lives, people
worth missing. Finally, we learned that we all have blemishes and we all carry around scars. We are
tarnished, tainted and sullied; but under all that dust and dirt, we all have sparkling stars.
I now realize, however, that the day all of this began was a day worth remembering, a day I should not
have taken for granted, a day only made special by what was going to come after it.
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What’s the Affordable Health Care Act Mean to Me?
By Robert Deuel
Are you an overseas US taxpayer confused by new requirements of the Affordable Health Care Act?
You’re not alone. Everyone overseas has new requirements when filing 2014 tax returns. Here are the
basic rules.
For educators overseas generally there is an exemption from having compliant health insurance. To
qualify for the exemption you must qualify to exclude your foreign earned income from US tax, either
using the physical presence test or the bona fide resident test. Even if you elect not to exclude your
foreign earned income form US tax because you have a low income or because you claim a foreign tax
credit, if you would have qualified for the exclusion you still qualify for the overseas exemption. You
have to submit an additional form with your 2014 tax return to claim the exemption (IRS Form 8965,
Health Coverage Exemptions).
If this is your first year overseas the exemption begins in the month you arrive overseas. If you didn’t
have compliant health insurance for the first part of 2014 you may be subject to a shared responsibility
payment, which looks a lot like a tax and is computed and paid with your 2014 tax return.
If you had employer provided insurance for the first part of 2014 you had qualified insurance and are not
subject to a penalty. If you purchased insurance on your own, either directly through an insurer or
through the federal or a state exchange you are considered to have had qualifying insurance. Otherwise
you are subject to the shared responsibility payment. In any of the cases above you still must submit
IRS Form 8965 with your 2014 tax return, showing the months you had qualified coverage and the
months you were exempt.
If you purchased health insurance through a government exchange and received a subsidy because your
estimated income fell within the levels qualifying you for a subsidy you should receive a form showing
the cost of the insurance for each month covered and the amount of the subsidy (IRS Form 1095-A). In
that case you will have to file both IRS Form 8965 and IRS Form 8962, Premium Tax Credit. The IRS
Form 8962 is used to determine if you have to pay back some of the advance payment credit or if you
have an additional amount owed to you.
If you were in the US for the first part of the year, and if you didn’t have qualifying health insurance you
will need to file both IRS Form 8965 and IRS Form 8962 to calculate the shared responsibility payment,
which you pay when you file your tax return (or by April 15th if filing later, to avoid penalty).
Still confused? Feel free to contact robert.deuel@globaltaxonline.net with your questions.
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The Path to Knowledge
By Suzanne Molina
Grade 6 English Teacher
Escola Americana do Rio de Janeiro
Via Sapientia means “The Path to Knowledge” and to middle schoolers at Escola Americana do Rio de
Janeiro it also means a wonderful week of a school without walls where students study in a more
interactive way outside of the classroom. In the month of November, the entire Middle School takes
their respective Via Sapientia trips during the same week.
The 6th grade trip is always a memorable one for
students because of the rich experiences they have
while in Paraty.
There, students study the
preservation of culture and the environment. The 7th
grade students visit the cities of Mariana, Ouro Preto
and Tiradentes in Minas Gerais. The state is an
exemplary region to study geology and the historical
events of the Brazilian gold rush. The 8th grade
travels to Vassouras in the state of Rio de Janeiro to
learn about slavery and coffee plantations during colonial times.
These kinds of experiences foster lifelong learning as students consider many facets of life. Students
gather information about each area helping them develop a greater awareness of Brazil’s history and its
rich cultural diversity. In addition, it is an opportunity for students to make new friends and build
relationships with teachers in a completely different setting.
A Trip to Colonial Brazil
By Jose Villasmil
Taking students outdoors helps them learn in an easier way which impacts their knowledge. All the
Middle School grades went to different places for the Via Sapientia trip. The purpose of the trip is for
students to study in a different environment, as if it was a school without walls. The 6th grade went to
Paraty to study about preservation of culture and the environment. The 7th grade went to Minas Gerais,
and their main focus was the Gold Rush. And finally, the 8th grade went to Vassouras and studied about
Ecology and Colonial Brazil.
The 8th grade class went to a hotel in Vassouras called Vassouras Eco Resort, where they spent five
days. During the time spent there, they got to know the hotel and during their free time they could do
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things such as going to the pool, playing soccer, basketball, and volleyball. Compared to the other
grades’ hotels, the 8th grade students thought that this was the best one they ever had on the Via
Sapientia trips.
During the trip the students had to do a lot of activities
related to history and science. Most of the activities were
done in the hotel, but there were two activities where they
had to go out. In one of the activities they went to the city
Vassouras to learn about its history, and they also went to
Fazenda Florença to learn about slavery and coffee
plantations. In the hotel, students learned about water
treatment, organic farming and they went to a waterfall to
collect information and take pictures for their documentary.
The school is doing a program called Character Counts with
the purpose of making the students become morefair,
respectful, responsible, trustworthy, caring and better
citizens. In the 8th grade trip, the students were expected to find a quote related to the six different
pillars of Character Counts and then they had to take a picture illustrating it.
The trip was a good way for the students to interact more with each other, with the teachers and to do
some hands on activities. Learning outside of school in a different environment is a great experience for
the students. And it was also a better way for them to understand the importance of Character Counts
and be able to apply it into their lives.
Discovering the Gold Rush
By Pedro Barreto
‘‘The only path to knowledge is activity” - George Bernard
Shaw
“The Path of Knowledge” is a sentence that is used a lot here at
Escola Americana do Rio de Janeiro, but we have a different
name for it. We call it Via Sapientia. Via Sapientia is a
program that EARJ offers the Middle School students to learn
about Brazilian history and culture in the place where it all happened. The 6th graders travel to Paraty to
learn about the preservation of culture and the environment, the 7th graders go to Minas Gerais to learn
about slavery and the gold rush, and the 8th graders traveled to Vassouras to learn about colonial times
and what happened with slavery and the plantation of coffee.
The gold rush was a big part of colonial Brazil. Can you imagine learning all about it while you are in
the place it all happened? Well, the 7th graders from EARJ got the chance to visit the cities of
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Tiradentes, Mariana, and Ouro Preto in Minas Gerais, one of the most important places of Brazilian
history.
The first two nights we slept in Tiradentes. On the first day we arrived in Tiradentes at 15:30 and we
visited the first part of downtown Tiradentes which included two churches, one of the them being the
Matriz de Santo Antonio. The second day we visited the church called Nossa Senhora do Rosario and
the second part of downtown Tiradentes.
The third day we visited Ouro Preto and there we visited the Sao Francisco de Assis church, the mineral
museum and the museum of the Inconfidencia Mineira and that night we slept in Mariana. On the fourth
day we went to Congonhas to visit the six chapels and Aleijadinho's church called Igreja dos Profetas.
“What a great first Via Sapientia! I can’t wait for next year,” I thought to myself as we arrived in Rio.
It really is a great experience that I think every school should have something similar to in their
curriculum.
Cultural and Environmental Preservation
By Diana Lorch
Via Sapientia means road of knowledge, and to middle schoolers at Escola Americana do Rio de
Janeiro, it also means a wonderful class trip. EARJ has Via Sapientia so that students can learn about
science and social studies by doing hands-on activities making it more fun to learn. Kids on the trip also
learn about character as well as having a good time with friends. 6th grade students went to Paraty, 7th
grade to Minas Gerais, and 8th grade to Vassouras. It is a trip that happens every year. EARJ students
love the trips and get to enjoy going to a new place with their friends for three years.
Paraty is the perfect place for a school trip because lots of students have never been there and the ones
who have will always enjoy going a second time. This year everyone in 6th grade went on the trip and it
was wonderful! Students and teachers stayed in the hotel Villa Del Sol, a great hotel with good rooms, a
pool and great food. Most 6th graders on the trip roomed with two other kids of the same gender. The
day that the 6th graders arrived in Paraty they went on a walk to learn about how life was like when the
city was first built.
For the first two full days, students were divided into two large groups. The students went to Picinguaba
State Park while the other group went to Quilombo do Campinho and Forte Defensor Perpétuo. At the
park students went on a nature hike to a muddy mangrove with lots of crabs and then swam around to a
beach. Students learned how quicksand felt by stepping in some themselves. At the Quilombo children
learned how to do the Jongo dance and about basket-weaving, as well as the story of the people who
started the Quilombo.
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The next full day was boat day. Students got to swim around, study about marine life and go on a
treasure hunt. On the last day students went shopping for souvenirs and had lunch. Then, students got
on the bus to go home and see their family members. The trip to Paraty was a good balance of
educational learning and fun with friends and nature.
Paraty is a wonderful place that is perfect for a school trip. A week of fun, friendship, and learning was
what the trip was for many 6th graders from Escola Americana do Rio de Janeiro. 6th graders loved
learning about the preservation of culture and the environment, which was the topic of the 6th grade trip.
Students loved going to Paraty and overall it was a wonderful experience for all 6th graders.
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Google Summit at Lincoln School
By Phil Giansante
High School Technology Teacher
Asociación Escuelas Lincoln
Buenos Aires, Argentina
On February 27 and 28, Asociación Escuelas Lincoln
in Buenos Aires, Argentina hosted a Google Apps for
Education (GAFE) Summit. Google Summits are
focused professional development opportunities
targeted for Google Apps for Education. The "high
intensity two day event focuses on deploying,
integrating, and using Google Apps for Education and
other Google Tools to promote student learning in K12 and higher education. The program features Google
Certified Teachers, Google Apps for Education
Certified Trainers, practicing administrators,
solution providers, and representatives from the
Google education teams."
The summit offered three keynote speeches and
numerous breakout sessions for all levels. Four
trainers from EdTechTeam flew in from the United
States for the event.
Due to a strong commitment from the school's administration, almost 100% of Lincoln's teaching and
support staff were able to attend. In addition, many teachers from local and other international schools
took part.
Want more information?
Check out the
website and twitter hashtags below.
http://ar.gafesummit.com
#gafesummit
#aeltech
Email: phil.giansante@lincoln.edu.ar
Twitter: @PGiansante
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74
Junior Achievement:
Tradiludis- Latin American Traditional Games
by Rebeca Lopez,
International Academy located in Quito Ecuador
Have you ever asked yourself, why do young people prefer technology rather than quality time with
family and friends? We are at an age where technology is considered the greatest discovery of the
millennium, but also the most influential distractor in children and youth. Today, generations have lost
the knowledge of the meaning of what traditional games really are. Tradiludis JA is a company whose
main objective is to rescue Latin American culture through the development of traditional games with a
purpose to spread to children and youth recreation and cultural traditions.
Tradiludis JA was created by 20 teenagers between 15 to 16 years old who we have a vision of knowing
that anything we do, it has to help the world develop but never forgetting who we are and where we
come from. It everything started with the proposal of the Foundation Junior Achievement’s invitation to
be part of a competition called “My Company”. Our school has been part of this competition for 7 years,
and we have always won the first places. This is why is now a challenge for us not to be left behind by
proposing a good quality and innovative product.
This program has the main purpose to prepare and show young people the importance of knowing how
is the real world of business and how it actually works. We started from zero. We had to first establish
our company and its members. Tradiludis JA consists of a directory which has the general manager, area
managers, internal and external advisers. The departments are divided in 7 managers: general
management, finance, marketing, production, human talent, technology, and social responsibility. All of
us come together as a team, with one vision and with one purpose.
After conducting a market analysis at our school, ISM International Academy located in Quito-Ecuador,
we proposed the product that is “Latin American traditional games” taking into account the importance
of recreation in the new generations, since currently children and youth make a use of technology in an
average of 8 hours a day. It’s terrifying to think about this fact being real. This is why the staff
investigated which were the traditional games of interest of most of the countries in Latin America. The
results were putted together in a total of 12 games, divided in two different presentations:
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We believe that the respect for the environment is essential for the social development of a company,
which is why our raw material passes through cleaner production processes. As part of Social
Responsibility, we generate jobs to different artisans of our country, we support the Centro Integral
Lucha de los Pobres by providing children from 0 to 3 an especial room for the development of their
body expressions. We also work with Fundacion Paraiso for the rescue and adoption of dogs. And our
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last project, which is reforestation, with the Department of Environment of the Municipal District of
Calderón, which consist in planting 1 tree for every TRADI or LUDIS presentation we sell.
Inspiration and creativity has been one of the main factors for our company to come together. This is
why we project ourselves to sell approximately 600 units minimum, not only for our benefit, but rather
for the social impact Tradiludis JA is going to make. We hope that our objective stops being a dream,
and starts being a reality.
Tradiludis Facebook Page
“BRING BACK THE JOY, WITH THE GAMES YOU ENJOY”
Prepare Students
For Online Study
The University of Nebraska High
School (UNHS) works with students
around the world through its online
program, which offers more than 100
core, elective and Advanced
Placement® courses online.
Read UNHS’ recent series,
“Characteristics of Successful Online
Students” to find out the qualities
students should gain to be successful
in both high school and college
online courses.
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Two Big Takeaways from Innovate 2015 Conference
by Joe Koss
Montevideo, Uruguay
I just got back from attending and presenting at Innovate 2015: Re-imagining School. The Innovate
conference is a bi-annual event hosted by Graded School in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Innovate celebrates
Graded’s “commitment to re-imagine the school that best serves and inspires students for tomorrow.”
For four days teachers, students, educators, and experts participated in seminars, workshops, and round
table discussions, all designed to inspire and re-imagine schools.
I attended workshops by featured speakers Suzie Boss, Scott McLeod, Joey Lee, Ewan McIntosh, and
Mike Anderson. I also attended workshops and connected with educators from the International School
of Brussels, the American School of Brasilia, Lincoln School in Buenos Aires, the American School of
Lima, among various others. An incredible amount of energy and passion was present. After getting a
chance to think and reflect, I had two big takeaways about conceptual shifts I saw, one concerning
space, the other concerning structure.
Take Away #1: Space—the most innovative schools are re-imagining their learning environments
The “best schools” are re-imagining and re-defining their learning spaces to meet the needs of 21st
century learning objectives. These schools are not building more walls and halls, and are not thinking in
terms of cells and bells. Traditional, 20th century, factory model schooling is based on this model. These
spaces are closed and walled, and the furniture inside them is uniform and standardized.
The best schools are looking at the learning environment—the physical architecture—and seeing it as an
integral and necessary component in 21st century teaching and learning. They start with the idea that
their new spaces should support their learning goals. When they figure out that the old school
architecture of opaque walls, hallways, and learning silos do not support where they wanted to go, they
begin re-imagining their spaces. These innovative schools are creating collaborative, flexible, adaptable,
movable, visible, and multi-use spaces for students and teachers.
The two best examples of this at Innovate 2015 were the International School of Brussels, who designed
a brand new high school building and learning environment, and the American School of Brasilia, who
redesigned old learning spaces to meet new realities. Both began with the question of what does a 21st
century learning environment look like, and what does current learning research support?
Felim Bolster described ISB’s thinking in a recent interview:
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There were several requirements of the design outlined at the beginning of the process: Community,
making learning visible, collaboration and flexibility to teach to a variety of group sizes. I think that in
most cases the newly renovated building has enabled us to achieve these requirements.
The American School of Brasilia re-designed and re-imagined their current spaces with the same goals.
A short video of their successes can be found here. They re-imagined their library environment and
created three separate age-group specific iCommons spaces. They also re-designed their elementary
classrooms and their secondary science classrooms by incorporating new flexible, movable, multifunctional furniture and learning space elements.
These examples highlight some of the successes the most innovative schools are having by re-imagining
their learning spaces.
Take Away #2: Structure—the most innovative schools are structuring the school day to facilitate
student innovation, creation, and exploration
From creating MakerSpaces to emphasizing project-based learning, from dedicating flex time within the
school day to creating new schools within schools, the best schools are re-imagining and re-designing
their school structure to meet the needs of tomorrow’s innovators, creators, and explorers. They are
moving from didactic models of pedagogy to authentic and transformative models.
Creating MakerSpaces within schools is becoming the new big thing. With a little bit of funding and
planning these spaces are opening up possibilities for students to create and explore on their own. Other
schools are offering new classes on coding, programming, start-ups…the list goes on. They have
technology and curriculum coordinators who are brining new ideas, training, and professional
development opportunities to their staffs.
The most innovative schools are pushing for a more project-based learning approach, from kindergarten
up through high school. With PBL, students try to find real answers to real problems, adding meaning
and value to their learning and possibly society at large. Suzie Boss and the Buck Institute for
Education have great resources on how and where to get started.
Schools are also finding ways re-design the structure of the school day. The International School of
Brussels incorporates a 45 minute flex period into their block schedule, allowing students to pursue
independent and collaborative projects outside of their normal classes. Colegio Franklin Delano
Roosevelt went one step further and developed the Roosevelt Innovation Academy, a quasi school
within a school model for students not being served by the IB Diploma track. Their re-designed
interdisciplinary, project-based learning academy is an exciting example of innovating school learning
structures.
____________________________
Re-imagining school is a daunting title for any conference. However, there are schools who are doing
better than others. We can learn a few things from the most innovative ones; the best ones are reimagining and re-designing learning spaces, and re-imagining and re-designing learning structures. The
possibilities are numerous and the hard work is in the implementation, but the successes will be real and
long-lasting.
also see Joe’s blog post 5 Great Resources from #InnovateGraded 2015
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Innovate2015: Developing Sustainable Change at School
by Jeff Lippman
Graded School
This year Graded hosted its second Innovate Conference and welcomed over 400 participants from all
over the world to its campus. The idea of the conference was to “reimagine school” and create spaces
where children own the learning process and are engaged in an education that is authentic, connected,
and has the possibility of positively impacting our world. We were fortunate to have tremendous
presenters such as Suzie Boss, Ewan McIntosh, Scott McLeod, Mike Anderson, and Joey Lee who
all ran in-depth workshops that gave educators the tools to make change now in their schools.
There is no doubt that we are now in the middle of a huge transformation in the realm of education. The
disruptive nature of technology has unseated the teacher as the “owner” of knowledge in the classroom
and opened the possibility for global collaboration that is unprecedented. In addition we now have tools
that have the potential to destroy grade level paradigms and create the possibility for personalized
educational experiences anytime, anywhere. This conference was not organized to convince people of
the changing landscape; rather, is was designed to give educators the tools to fully take advantage of
these changes. It was truly a “now what” conference.
In one of the sessions by Ewan McIntosh, called
‘Building Better Ideas through Creative Conflict’, he
took participants through a fantastic protocol that helped
them anticipate resistance to innovative ideas and plan
for how to negotiate in order to develop sustainable
changes at schools without falling into the trap of
compromise. In the session there were about 30 teachers
working in groups of 5 or 6. The room was buzzing with
intensity as everyone tried to finish the task in the
allotted time.
At the end of the session, Ewan pointed out the power of being next to so many other educators who
were committed to the task at hand. By witnessing each other’s energy, everyone was stimulated to
match that energy with their own… and this was the story of our conference. The collective focus on
learning and the constant sharing through Twitter created a momentum that was palpable for all
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participants. Inside each session, in the hallways, at the cocktail or coffee break, people were engaged.
Joey Lee commented on the conference in his blog by saying: “I’ve never seen a group of educators so
engaged and passionate about designing learning experiences through innovative approaches.”
We shouldn’t forget the importance of the social construction of knowledge. As much as online learning
has allowed us to break down barriers and create the possibility for asynchronous learning
environments, it cannot replace the power of face-to-face collaboration. Bill Rankin, Director of
Education at Apple, also presented at the conference. He cited Vygotsky who once stated that “All the
higher [mental] functions originate as actual relations between human individuals.” What we saw at
Innovate 2015 was the power of these relations and how they can create synergy towards the
accomplishment of goals.
We hope to see many more international educators at Innovate 2017!
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Take a Stand as a School on Climate Change!
No Planeta B, in conjunction with the Global Issues Network (GIN), the Climate Reality Project and
other organizations request that schools sign the Schools Act-On-Climate Declaration by choosing 5
actions–some of which they may be doing already–that will implement sustainability on their schools.
There are no hidden fees or contracts to sign, just a Declaration of intent from the schools to send a
message to others they are leading to mitigate what has been called the biggest threat to children’s
future, Climate Change.
We will acknowledge all signatory schools on our website, on social media and at special side event in
Paris where we will present them to the UN’s Executive together with our Act On Climate petition for
world leaders.
This campaign was launched for EARTH Day in hopes of having as many schools as possible sign. It is
also a great activity to involve the community as we have included a PARENTS DECLARATION in
hope to get them engaged as well.
If you need more information, please visit the website: www.CutTheREDTapeProject.org
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Journeys in Podcasting
By: Natalia Leon, Diego Lopez, & Chris Davis
Every classroom comes full of minds, some ready to follow and engage, some so full of spontaneous
learning that connecting and engaging with the day’s trajectory can shade in comparison to what they
have going on internally, what they experience beyond the walls of the classroom. Our job is to connect
the two, to bring the child experience into the curriculum. As Freire reminds us, schools are not banks
dishing out the next salary payment of knowledge, children’s minds are not empty vessels. And neither
are teachers.
Every year schools have initiatives that stem from the philosophical structure of the institution, but
between the pillars, in the interstices, teachers design and weave the living fabric of the learning
community. That is where our project for Journeys in Podcasting began, in the spaces of spandrels
where teachers work from their creative strengths. The first step of our goal is to document the creative
teaching practices among our community. Our second goal is to research within our community,
pooling knowledge from all heads on a topic or practice. Then through a series of readings and video
conferences we research beyond with experts at the university level, with fellow practitioners, or the
professional world.
Our strategies stem from educational theory we regularly apply to student experience, but often neglect
for the “teaching brain”. In Drive, Daniel Pink explains that having autonomy, space for mastery, and
a purpose to work propels our motivation. At Stanford, Carol Dweck studies growth versus fixed
mindsets in students. We apply the concept to teachers and our own learning trajectories. Dewey
defined knowledge as action upon one’s environment. Vygotsky stressed the learning community itself
as a catalyst for knowledge. The d.School’s design thinking mindsets include radical collaboration in
which every idea gets validated and the more diverse set of heads on a topic the better. This body of
thought drove our own project design as we embarked on our journey to build from teacher strength and
teacher interest.
Our topics have included collaborative learning spaces, student created tutorials, socratic circles,
student driven inquiry, student critiques, and mindfulness. Our researching beyond guests have
included representatives from Steelcase, Dr. Reshan Richards, Dr. Aaron Kuntz, John Larmer, Paul
Curtis, Dr. Lisa Palmieri, and Tim Burns. Each session stems from a set practice or pilot initiative
within our campus. Our core team of three often bubbles out to include whoever is interested in a
topic. We document through photo and video, interview, and record group discussion wherever gaps in
our day permit, often hosting video conference sessions during our lunch hours.
The original intent of the project was to create an active research method centered around case studies,
capturing teachers at their best and getting a diverse set of heads in the room talking on topics they may
not ever get a chance to discuss. What we have learned is even more surprising gem, the focus on
positivity. Something about being in the act of recording empties of the room of whines and
complaints. Our discussions have been borderline rowdy and rambunctious. Teaching is an incredible
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job, having to articulate it for an audience, even if that audience is only ourselves, makes it a kind of
celebration.
At AASSA Curacao we will walk through the steps of creating a podcast, from brainstorming with
Google Docs, to curating photos and videos, to a list of the most basic tech tool starter kit. We’ll create
a segment of a podcast in live time and discuss networking for resources. And we’ll talk about
branding, defining an audience, and publishing.
We are constantly planning new sessions. If you or anyone at your school or network would like to join
us, we are currently working on sessions for iPads and literacy, design thinking case studies, maker
spaces, commonalities in project design between disciplines, Minecraft as design learning tool, visible
thinking habits of mind, and sketch notes as literacy tool.
Our mission is to thread the learning community within and beyond. Come join the weave!
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Reflections on Make A Change:
Projects versus Project-Based Learning through the Peace on
EarthBench Movement
By Christine Hodges, Fourth Grade Teacher, Colegio
International Puerto La Cruz, Venezuela
In the continual race to hone best practices in education, the impact of amalgamating Project Based
Learning (PBL) and 21st Century Skills becomes glaringly apparent. PBLs alone lead to amplified
relevance in learning, assessment authenticity, promotion of lifelong learning, and accommodation of
students with various learning styles (George Lucas Educational Foundation, 2015). Because they
incorporate 21st Century Skills, PBLs pose real-world problems that are not meant to have one solution,
and as new information is gathered throughout the learning process, the perception of the problem
changes. Students rise to the challenge to find realistic solutions using innovation skills, information,
media and technology skills, and life and career skills (Partnership for 21st Century Learning, 2015).
PBLs were a new concept to me this year, and integrating them into my fourth grade classroom has been
a valuable experience. Specifically, grappling with the difference between projects versus PBLs finally
painted a clear picture of what PBLs really are.
The Peace on Earthbench Movement: Bottle-Bricks, Peace on Earthbenches, and How Our
Students Can Get Involved
Every year, Colegio Internacional Puerto La Cruz (CIPLC) participates in a Make A Change
Symposium, during which classrooms showcase any sort of project that they have completed throughout
the year to better our local or global community in one way or another. I began contemplating what to
do with my class at the beginning of March.
The class had just engaged in an anticipatory set, Steve Spangler Atomic Insta-Worms (Spangler, 2013),
and were embarking on creating both ThingLinks (ThingLink 2015) and informational posters to
demonstrate what polymers are and to evaluate whether or not their choice of specific household items
were, in fact, polymers (thanks to Mr. Yau-Jau Ku, our fabulous technology coach, for the ThingLink
suggestion).
This activity hooked the students, and I was pleased with their learning. However, I wasn’t sure how to
tie it in with Make A Change. How could the fourth graders use their newly acquired information about
polymers to truly make a difference in our world or community? Recycling and reusing concepts
seemed like old hats, and we needed something fresh.
Thanks to colleague and friend Joe Spolar, I came across The Peace on Earthbench just in the nick of
time. Upon musing over CIPLC’s Make A Change Symposium together, Joe suggested the “Earthbench
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Movement” as a creative twist on the “reduce, reuse, recycle” regime. This included students building
“bottle-bricks,” which are plastic bottles compacted with other non-biodegradable waste. The bottles
are then stacked and bound together to create a frame for a bench, on which a type of clay called “cob”
is placed to create the outer surface. Here was the solution I’d been looking for! (For more information,
please visit www.earthbench.org).
The fourth graders were keen on the idea when introduced to the concept, and started planning our
bench right away. Here’s the low-down of the project and how the Geckos have been carrying it out:
1: After securing approval from administration and determining a spot on campus for our bench, the
students created posters to spread the word to the community about helping us collect plastic bottles and
non-biodegradable trash. They hung both Spanish and English versions around the school and
community areas such as their churches or parents’ businesses, and placed collection bins nearby for
others to place their contributions.
2: I immediately contacted Ms. Bryce Joslin about assisting the class with designing the benches in art.
She engaged the fourth graders in constructing potential designs for the bench, and then deciding as a
class upon a practical and creative design to embrace the feel of our CIPLC community:
3: Meanwhile, I contacted Mr. Ku about the availability of his high school class to help in the
construction process. My teaching assistant, Ms. Jezabel Lezama, contacted both maintenance team
member Mr. Oswaldo, maintenance member Mr. Nelson Velasquez, and parent Mr. Salomon Trias
about collecting materials such as straw and sand, and about assisting the students with the bench
construction.
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4: Once donations starting streaming in, students took the bottles and trash from our collection bins and
began the construction of bottle-bricks. At the time of drafting this article, this is the point we are still
at: First, the fourth graders rinse all of the bottles out. Then, one at a time, they stuff them full with
non-biodegradable trash until the bottles are as compact as a brick.
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4: Our next steps in the project will take place within the following days and weeks, and will be
completed before the last week of school. First, the fourth graders will construct the framework of the
bench from their bottle-bricks. Mr. Oswaldo and Mr. Ku’s class will assist them in the process.
5: Once the framework is complete, the students will mix sand, water, and straw to create the cob clay
and model it into the selected design.
6: When the cob dries, the fourth grade will paint and decorate their bench.
7: Upon completion, the class will host a grand opening and create an informative presentation on the
project to encourage others to join them in the Peace on Earthbench Movement. Watch for it on our
classroom blog, http://vidadegradocuarta.blogspot.com/, at the end of the month!
Bottle-Brick Transformation: From Project to PBL
The fourth-grade Geckos have whole-heartedly delved into an ambitious project that represents the
warmth of our CIPLC community and will serve as a place for sharing and storytelling. Although the
bench is not yet completed, I am pleased with their progress. I have also already begun to reflect and
pinpoint how to improve the project in the future.
Most importantly, this project would be more powerful as a PBL. As an anticipatory set, the educator
should first showcase a few examples of Peace on Earthbenches in order to raise students’ curiosity
about what the benches are and how they are made. Then, rather than engaging in the ThingLink
activity, he or she would pose a driving question for a PBL: “How do we create a Peace on Earthbench
to promote awareness of reusing polymers?”
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This is where the critical difference lies between the completion of the Peace on Earthbench as a project
versus as a PBL: Rather than using what they had already learned through the ThingLink activity to
extend into the Peace on Earthbench project and then following my suggestions of how to complete the
bench, students would need to gain knowledge about polymers in order to answer the driving question
and to decide for themselves how to create the final product (Miller, 2011). Specifically, they would
decide how to research what polymers and Peace on Earthbenches are, conduct the research on the
topics, assess how they could recycle polymers for the bench, conclude what materials are needed and
how to gather them within a set budget, determine ratios and measurements for bench construction, and
determine how to spread their message to the greater community in order to collaborate with and engage
them in building of a bench.
At its core, the project would engage students in in-depth inquiry while focusing on significant content,
developing 21st Century Skills, and encouraging student voice and choice. Rather than simply
completing the project as an extension of what they have already learned, students would organize tasks
around the driving question and develop 21st Century competencies as they constructed, revised, and
reflected upon how to create the bench while engaging a public audience.
Our Challenge to You
The Peace on Earthbench has challenged my thinking as an educator, and has encouraged CIPLC’s
fourth grade students to use their knowledge of polymers in the real world. The Geckos now officially
challenge you, dear teachers, to promote the movement: Please join us in building a Peace on Earth
Bench for your school community, and consider other ways of how you can use PBLs to not only
integrate 21st century skills into curriculum, but to engage students in service learning. We challenge
you and your students to Make A Change!
References
Bird, B. B. (2013). Peace on earthbench movement. Retrieved from www.earthbench.org
George Lucas Educational Foundation. (2015.) Why is project-based learning important? Retrieved
from http://www.edutopia.org/project-based-learning-guide-importance
Miller, A. (2011). How to refine driving questions. Retrieved from http://www.edutopia.org/blog/pblhow-to-refine-driving-questions-andrew-miller
Partnership for 21st Century Learning (2015) Partnership for 21st century learning. Retrieved from
http://www.p21.org/index.php
Spangler, S. (2013). Atomic insta-worms: Make a batch of eerie, glowing “atomic” insta-worms.
Retrieved from http://www.stevespanglerscience.com/atomic-instant-worms.html
ThingLink. (2015). Thinglink: Make media come alive. Retrieved at https://www.thinglink.com/
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Strategies for Improving Oral Fluency in ELLs
by Laura Rock and Naomi Barbour
Asociacion Escuelas Lincoln, Buenos Aires
English Language Learners in high school are often shy about sharing their ideas in class and/or giving
presentations because of their oral fluency skills. While class participation is not the only channel for
demonstrating knowledge, in the high school setting it is imperative that ELL students gain confidence
to express their ideas so they can fully engage in class activities such as Socratic Seminars, debates and
presentations. Engaging through oral discourse not only gives teachers feedback on understanding, but
can at times significantly improve a student’s grade. Extensive research in the field clearly shows that as
oral fluency improves, reading comprehension improves. For reading comprehension to occur, it is not
only necessary for students to understand the words, but it is also vital for them to possess the skills
needed to read with proper tone and volume, emphasize particular phrases, and pause in the correct
places. Because it is our desire for students to grasp these vital skills, the Fundamentals of English 9
class at Lincoln School in Buenos Aires, together with the ELL Support class, has employed varying
classroom techniques over the year to assist students with improving oral fluency skills in nonthreatening and diverse ways. We will detail a few specific and purposeful methods used that have
helped students to not only meet this goal, but have also boosted their confidence in oral discourse in
English.
Prior to beginning the unit on To Kill A Mockingbird in their Fundamentals of English class, students
worked on a presentation about a topic of their choice. They learned stage presence and the effective use
of visuals. Students gave their presentations in their ELL Support class and their grade was not based on
content, per se, but rather on their presentation skills. Detailed feedback was given to each student. Once
we began work on To Kill A Mockingbird, students were well-positioned to give a more formal
presentation to parents, teachers and fellow students finding connections between the novel and a
current human rights violation. Time was made in their ELL Support class for students to practice their
presentations, receiving useful feedback from both the teacher and classmates. For the language aspect
of the assignment, students practiced the use of connector words and were guided on the use of vivid
adjectives.
Following on from this presentation, we wanted to find further ways for students to develop their oral
fluency that were different from the standard presentation format. During a unit on Lord of the Flies,
students were asked to record a video diary as one of the main characters. When they started reading the
novel, they were each assigned an ‘alter ego’ and made detailed notes on the development of that
character throughout their reading. We put a poster up in the classroom showing everyone’s alter egos
with illustrations of the characters. Once we had read over half of the novel, they recorded their video
diaries. The assignment was specifically designed for the students to spend plenty of time engaged in
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oral activities without the added stress of having to speak in front of others. Without this pressure that
can raise their affective filters, they were able to relax and really inhabit their alter ego.
For the language aspect of the assignment, students had done preparatory work in their ELL Support
class on indirect questions, vocabulary of emotions and related idiomatic expressions. They were asked
to include all these elements in their video. Even though students were only required to include two
indirect questions, they often included more and they were all correctly formatted. The provision of a
context in which to practice the format proved very useful. Again, they used plenty of synonyms for
their standard vocabulary of emotions (happy, sad, worried, etc.), for example, joyful, bewildered, whilst
incorporating new idiomatic expressions, for example, down in the dumps and on cloud nine.
In preparation for a unit on Romeo and Juliet, students were asked to create the slides for a presentation
providing background information on Shakespeare, the time period and the Globe Theatre. The final
part of the assignment was to make a screencast, recording a voiceover to their slides. Students were
directly instructed on how to make a screencast through a screencasted presentation and were guided
step by step through the project. Students worked with the Media Center on research skills and were
given sources that were suitable for their level of English. Extensive time was allowed in ELL Support
class for the design and script of their project. The purpose of this project was to give students yet
another opportunity to practice oral discourse away from a live audience. This allowed for direct
instruction and practice on the part of students with their teacher on pronunciation of words, correct
discourse and making interesting commentary. It also allowed them to use technology to hone their
skills in this area as video and voice recording is a growing part of assignments given.
This is just a window onto some of the varying techniques we have used throughout the year in
collaboration between Fundamentals of English 9 and ELL Support classes. For us as teachers it has
been a positive experience to collaborate on activities that have been purposely designed and scaffolded
to provide students with opportunities to improve academic oral fluency and discourse. This
collaboration was highly beneficial in two ways: the activities provided have been more educationally
stimulating and enriching for our students; and the experience for us as their teachers has been much
richer, leading us in directions that we perhaps would not have gone in had we been working alone.
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Buenos Escritores, Mejores Lectores
La modalidad del taller en la clase de literatura.
by María José Schamun
Asociacion Escuelas Lincoln, Buenos Aires
“El arte de contar historias (`contar' en el sentido de `dar cuenta de', más bien que en el estricto sentido de `narrar')
es un constructo cultural de gran rendimiento didáctico, en especial en los años de iniciación al mundo de los
adultos. Una historia bien contada es un potente instrumento de comprensión y de interpretación del mundo (...).
Cuando reflexionamos -y hacemos reflexionar a nuestros alumnos y nuestras alumnas- sobre los modos de contar
historias, estamos reflexionando sobre nuestro modo de entender el mundo, y estamos también aprendiendo algo
sobre nosotros mismos y sobre nuestra relación con la realidad"
"La construcción de la trama: modelos para armar" de Elías García Domínguez
En la actualidad, la enseñanza de la literatura en la escuela media se desarrolla a partir de la “concepción
de la literatura como un conjunto de textos, acrisolados por la tradición, con marcas formales bien
definidas, [lo cual] impide su contemplación –más allá del formalismo- como un uso determinado de
cualquier tipo de discurso en circunstancias de comunicación específicas” (B. D. Coto, 1994). Si
pensamos como Bruner que “la educación es la principal encarnación del modo de vida de una cultura y
no simplemente una preparación para ella” (J. Brunner 1997: 31) podemos plantear prácticas en la
escuela que estén alineadas con las prácticas sociales.
Con el objetivo de lograr que los estudiantes comprendieran la literatura en diálogo con el momento
histórico en el que surge y valoraran de manera más personal y eficaz los procedimientos de los
escritores y que hacen de esos textos, elementos valiosos de la cultura, desarrollé un proyecto en el cual
los estudiantes pudieran experimentar la literatura desde su creación hasta su apreciación estética e
ideológica. Este proyecto se basa en la creencia de la creatividad es “un logro basado en las habilidades
ordinarias que todos comparten, y que se alcanza gradualmente mediante adquisición de un nivel cada
vez mayor de experticia por medio de la práctica” (O. Klimenko, 2008: 196).
Por este motivo y con todas estas ideas en mente, me acerqué a mi clase de noveno año (estudiantes
entre 14 y 15 años) con la firme intención de saber qué pensaban ellos del mundo que los rodeaba. Para
eso, les di una pluma y un papel (o, su émulo: un documento de Google).
El proyecto constó de dos fases: la primera se abocó a familiarizar a los chicos con las distintas tramas
textuales (descripción, narración, explicación, exposición, argumentación y diálogo). Para eso, los
estudiantes desarrollaron actividades de reconocimiento y de producción que incluyeron la lectura de
entradas de enciclopedia, de diccionario, de cuentos cortos, de ensayos y de entrevistas. En cada uno de
estos textos, los chicos reconocían las características de las diversas tramas textuales y su función
primordial relacionándola con el objetivo del texto mismo. Las tareas de producción incluyeron la
transformación de un texto en otro con distinto objetivo, la creación de exposiciones sobre animales
irreales, la descripción de objetos cotidianos como si fueran desconocidos, entrevistas a personajes
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famosos, la creación de noticias periodísticas, etc. En una segunda parte de esta fase, los chicos
abordaron la lectura de una novela y pudieron identificar ciertas tramas textuales reconociendo la
función que cumplían en la narración (introducción y caracterización de personajes, identificación de
espacios, creación de suspenso o tensión, etc.).
La segunda fase del proyecto se dedicó a la utilización de esas tramas en la creación de un texto
colectivo donde los estudiantes pudieran plasmar sus propias ideas sobre el mundo. Las clases de
Español se dividieron en grupos de dos y tres estudiantes que debían escribir cada uno, un capítulo de la
novela. Debido a que el texto tenía que poseer cierta coherencia se les entregó en un documento de
Google Drive el marco (el momento, el lugar y los personajes), el conflicto y hacia dónde debía
orientarse la resolución del conflicto. En base a estos parámetros, los estudiantes escribieron en un
documento de Google, los capítulos de la primera parte de la novela. A este primer bosquejo tuvieron
acceso sus compañeros con el fin de comentar sobre las estrategias que se habían puesto en práctica en
la narración. Los comentarios pusieron el énfasis en la efectividad con que fueron usadas las tramas
textuales para generar cierto ritmo narrativo, para presentar a los personajes y para generar tensiones o
suspenso que mantuviera al lector interesado en la lectura; así como en la lógica del uso de los tiempos
verbales. De este modo, los estudiantes pasaron de ser escritores a lectores y otra vez escritores cuando,
al volver a sus capítulos, tomaron los comentarios de sus compañeros y los interpretaron para poder
pulir su propia escritura.
La última etapa del proyecto comprendió un trabajo intensivo de escritura: los estudiantes pensaron en
conjunto de qué manera debían resolverse los conflictos planteados por la trama hasta la mitad de la
novela. Se creó un documento compartido en el cual se fueron volcando las ideas sobre los procesos que
pasarían los personajes e ideas sobre la resolución final. En base a este documento se les asignó a los
grupos una parte de la trama y ellos escribieron el capítulo (esta vez, sin la guía escrita que les había
dado al comienzo sino con las ideas de sus propios compañeros al respecto).
Para la corrección de esta segunda parte, les asigné un grupo “veedor” a cada capítulo, así que sólo dos o
tres estudiantes verificaron la efectividad de la escritura de sus compañeros. En este momento del
proyecto, la actividad de los alumnos se desarrolló en varios aspectos de la lengua al mismo tiempo: la
efectividad del uso de los recursos lingüísticos, la interacción entre las tramas textuales y su capacidad
de crear un ritmo, la coherencia en el desarrollo de los personajes y también la correcta aplicación de la
gramática y la ortografía. Es así como al finalizar esta etapa, estaba también terminada la segunda fase
del proyecto.
El producto final fue una novela de ciencia ficción donde los estudiantes pudieron plasmar sus ideas
sobre la relación de los adolescentes con las generaciones mayores (ya que así comenzaba la trama que
yo había planteado) y sus miedos y esperanzas sobre la capacidad de los seres humanos de cuidar y
preservar el planeta.
Los contenidos que se trabajaron fueron conceptuales y sociales así como también se trabajó el
desarrollo de valores morales.
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Los contenidos conceptuales fueron: las tramas textuales, el uso de las tramas en la generación de una
narración atractiva, la coherencia de los tiempos verbales en la narración, las características de la ciencia
ficción.
Los contenidos sociales fueron: la relación de la literatura, como campo del quehacer humano, con la
sociedad en la cual surge; la escuela como lugar de inclusión en las prácticas sociales (y no como
introducción a las mismas), el conocimiento como construcción y elaboración permanente.
Los valores puestos en práctica fueron: el respeto por las ideas ajenas, la búsqueda de un punto de
coincidencia entre el otro y yo, la noción de que aún con nuestras diferencias formamos un todo
heterogéneo, la idea de que nuestras diferencias nos hacen más fuertes si ponemos en práctica la
tolerancia, la comprensión y la inclusión de esas diferencias.
Conclusiones
A lo largo del proyecto los estudiantes fueron manifestando diferentes actitudes respecto de la labor
literaria que les permitió apreciar las dificultades y las ventajas de la creación literaria. Al acercarse a
textos que debían desarrollar ellos mismos, se logró que los estudiantes valoraran de manera más
personal y eficaz los procedimientos que los escritores utilizan y que hacen de esos textos, elementos
valiosos de la cultura.
Bibliografía:
Coto, B. D. (1994): “Creatividad distribuida y otros apoyos para la educación”. Signos. Teoría y
práctica de la educación, nº 11, editada por el Centro de Profesores de Gijón, enero-marzo de 1994.
Disponible en http://www.revista-abaco.es/content/149-que-es-un-taller-literario
Bruner, J. (1997): La educación, puerta de la cultura. Madrid: Visor.
Klimenko, O. (2008): “La creatividad como un desafío para la educación del siglo XXI”. Educación y
Educadores, Vol. 11, Nº 2, 191-210.
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100
A PRIMER TO IMPLEMENTING BLENDED LEARNING
Blending learning gives schools opportunities to expand the variety of courses offered and provides
students with choices, opportunities to expand their own interests and varied pacing. Students become
engaged in technology; their preferred way to learn. Students are supported by your classroom
facilitators and for instance our K12 Keystone or K12 International Academy online content expert
teachers. Our teachers score all submitted assignments, answer emails and Skype calls clarifying and
answering questions, send bimonthly progress reports, while the facilitators creates a supportive
managed learning environment, asking higher level thinking, guiding self-responsibility, and developing
the sense of community through discussion and activities . The facilitator has an important role, which is
why training is necessary; we offer this training for free.
There are several options your school should consider when thinking about how to include blended
learning opportunities for your students:
Idea # 1 – Individual students — meeting individual needs and interests: offer courses as an option
to students (for instance Chinese or Forensic Science) that your school is not offering.
Idea # 2 – All grade levels — one subject area: Offer a particular subject area to all students (for
instance your Math program or foreign language program)
Idea # 3 - Expanding the school — the online blended program can be implemented easily to expand
grade levels at your school. Add a middle school and or a high school program easily and cost
effectively.
Idea #4 - Graduation requirement —Require that all students take at least one online course prior to
graduation.
How are schools actually scheduling and implementing blended learning?
There are several proven successful ways to implement: - customizable to your location .
All blended learning students are in the same classroom at one time taking the same or different
courses, guided and supported by the facilitator - using a rotation method within the classroom.
All blended learning students are scheduled individually and go to a specific classroom to take their
online courses with the other blended learners, with a facilitator to supervise and support the
students; Typically using a rotation model within the classroom.
Students sit in the back of their traditional class and work online in their online course, utilizing this
teacher as a facilitator, when needed.
Blended learning students attend an after school program, that is supported by a facilitator.
Author: Dr. Donna J. Skinner, K12, Inc. Sales and Education Consultant. dskinner@k12.com
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GOOOOOOAL!
By Alex Partos
American School of Rio
We here at EARJ recently celebrated the accomplishments of our athletic teams in this year’s sports
tournament by having a banquet to which all athletes and parents were invited. This banquet is meant to
highlight the events of the tournament and distribute special awards to our athletes to recognize their
efforts.
As part of this ceremony, the coaches say a few words about each athlete as well as the team in general.
I found those comments to be very revealing as to the values our coaches consider important in the
formation of their athletes.
Most often I heard the descriptors; dedicated, selfless, caring, respectful, responsible, committed, team
player, trustworthy, and fair to describe the athlete they were talking about. While athletic skill is
important, the focus was on these character traits.
EARJ has recently implemented the Character Counts program. This program is meant to highlight the
importance of character in the everyday decisions of our students. All of our stakeholders are involved
in this initiative.
We began by bringing in a speaker to run a three day workshop with our parent, teacher, administrative
and student stakeholders. It was important to identify and plan a logical progression of the program and
to have everyone working towards the same goals. Our counselors played a major role planning
activities to raise awareness of each of the pillars of character and guide faculty and students forward,
through discussions, focusing on each pillar.
Our major goal was to make the discussion of character and its’ components part of our everyday
thinking and behavior which would ultimately lead to practice in everything we do.
Our Sports Awards ceremony is an indication that we are on the right track. As a special feature of this
year’s awards, the coaches decided to highlight the pillars of character by giving a special award to
athletes who exemplified all of the traits the most. These awards were voted on by the players
themselves. The process of having teammates choose the recipients of these awards reinforces their
thinking about the various pillars of character.
As our Athletic Director put it: “We
and encourage the growth of good
students and helps them cope with
interaction with other students and
process”.
want our students to elevate the standards of good sportsmanship
citizenship. The experience of competition in sports challenges
success and failure. It also provides students opportunities for
adults, which help in character development and the learning
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The recipients of this award were:
CHARACTER COUNTS SPORTS AWARD
BIG 4 GIRLS FUTSAL: Martina Beda
BIG 4 BOYS FUTSAL: Syddarta Joshua Booke
BIG 4 GIRLS VOLLEYBALL: Aimee Katherine Watts
BIG 4 BOYS VOLLEYBALL: Henrique Krupp Bulus
BIG 4 GIRLS SOFTBALL: Gabriela Munoz Arenas
BIG 4 BOYS SOFTBALL: Selorm Delali Tagbor Morales
We are all winners when our community has strong values based on character. At EARJ we are on the
way to scoring this goal!
Henrique Bulus, Martina Beda, Aimee Watts, Gabriela Munoz Arenas, Selorm Tagbor Morales, (Syddarta Booke-missing)
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Escola Americana do Recife Cooperates!
By Luke Walbridge and Sara Wicht
Escola Americana do Recife started the second semester this year with a three-day workshop on
cooperative learning. The director and school board had the wisdom to create three consecutive days of
in-service time for faculty at the end of the holiday break and before classes recommenced as a means
for further equipping EAR’s teachers with the best tools for student learning. The school contacted Sara
Wicht, formerly an English teacher at another American school in Brazil, who had shown outstanding
results with her students that she largely attributed to her use of cooperative learning techniques in her
teaching practice, to share her tried and true practices with the faculty in Recife.
Initially impressed by anecdotal evidence of her credentials, she rapidly won the faculty’s hearts and
minds as she weaved the techniques she was teaching into the training, literally practicing what she was
preaching. First tackling the rationale for using cooperative learning techniques then moving on to
specific examples of techniques for class building, team building, developing social skills, decision
making, knowledge building, processing information and extending thinking skills.
It was clear throughout the three-day training that teachers were steadily connecting Wicht’s strategies
and tools to their students, lessons plans and instructional practice. This continued to be apparent after
the three-day event as well.
In classroom visitations following the January 2015 training with Wicht, a change in teaching practice
has been evident at every grade level and in every subject area. Desks arranged in rows, formerly the
standard model, are now a rare configuration across campus. Students have daily opportunities to share
and reflect in small groups, participate in content rich conversations and regularly practice higher level
thinking skills. Student engagement and academic rigor is on the rise at EAR!
Ms. Martha Viegas, high school English teacher and a senior member of the faculty with more than
thirty years teaching experience at EAR reported the following about the impact of January’s training:
Implementing cooperative learning strategies in my English 12 class has made a world of
difference. Using traditional methods first semester had turned me into a policewoman taking off points
for infractions, and unlike my work with any senior class of the past, my efforts to help unite the group
fell flat. It seemed like magic to watch “shoulder and face partners” in heterogeneous groups discover
common ground in “We Like” activity. Team building through seemingly silly TPR mix pair share with
104
gestures helped everyone understand our goals of positive interdependence, individual accountability,
equal participation and simultaneous interaction.
It is usually hard for seniors, who for the most part have already been accepted at universities, to
remain motivated during the last semester of high school. Thank goodness strategies have boosted
morale and re-energized the group. Only time will tell whether increased learning results from our new
attitudes and activities, but the fact that a previously cliquish class collaboratively wrote, practiced and
presented a play proves to me that cooperative learning strategies are worth the effort. An A student
commented, “I am learning as much as I did before, only now I can share with my classmates and get a
wider view of the subjects.” A very bright auditory learner shared that “… activities [make] all of us
interact, even with people we don’t like” and that “The team effort has definitely opened the minds of
me and many others to respect others with their opinions and come to an agreement.” I am thankful
that cooperative learning attitudes and strategies help the Class of 2015 end the school year in a
learner-friendly, happier, more united way.
Another note of evidence, this one from kindergarten teacher, Ms. Maciel:
I have been teaching for almost 12 years and that cooperative learning professional development with
Sara was, doubtless, the best I attended. Currently, I teach 5/6 year-old-kids in my Kindergarten group.
So, I had to adapt some cooperative structures once my students are still learning how to read and
write. But you know what? The structures I have been using so far have worked SO very nicely. The
strategies work as a warm-up exercise, to develop social skills and class spirit building and as oral
language practice.
As a self-described “control freak,” Ms. Maciel shared that letting [my] students play the active part of
the activity has been the one challenge. Sometimes I caught myself interrupting or making some points
in the middle of the activity with no need.
The best of CL is exactly making the students independent in their learning process. Once they realize
they are an active part in the process, they get more engaged and interested. As a familiar saying goes,
"Tell me and I forget, teach me and I may remember, involve me and I learn".
At EAR, we are involving our students and faculty. The professional development time EAR’s
headmaster and board afforded the faculty before the beginning of the second semester, combined with
an abundance of “use tomorrow” instructional strategies shared by Wicht created a learning environment
that is rigorous, relevant and FUN! We recognize that we are at the beginning stages of a multi-year
process to build the knowledge and understanding of cooperative learning techniques in our faculty, but
what a great start!
105
Luke Walbridge MS Ed is the secondary principal at Escola Americana do Recife in Recife, Brasil. Sara
Wicht, MaEd. is an independent contractor with over 20 years of experience in K-12 education, and she
is currently the senior manager for teaching and learning with Teaching Tolerance, a project of the
Southern Poverty Law Center, headquartered in Montgomery, AL, USA.
106
Lessons from Ghana: For Students of Music and Beyond
By: Katherine Jubert, Music Director
Colegio Internacional Puerto la Cruz
This year at Colegio Internacional Puerto la Cruz, we had the pleasure of welcoming a visiting musician
from Ghana, West Africa. Sowah Mensah, a professional drummer, composer, and teacher of Ghanaian
music, worked with students preschool through twelfth grade, as well as parents and staff. His visit was
important for our students musically but it also helped them in their traditional classrooms. The methods
of teaching music in Ghana can be transferred to any classroom and both teachers and students expanded
their learning from this approach.
Focus
“You have got to watch,” Mr. Mensah would say to every student during every rehearsal. Ghanaian
music is lead by watching the lead player; there is no written music and there is no one telling you what
to do. You simply focus on the leader to find out what you are doing. If students are not watching then
they will get lost or play at the wrong thing.
This is a very important concept in the classroom. Students need to focus on what they are being taught.
It was amazing how simple it was for students to stop, watch, and learn when Mr. Mensah would
remind them. He would tell them to keep their eyes on him and watch his different cues. In an
afterschool workshop with staff, even teachers struggled with this lesson. In today's world we are often
distracted by our phones or our busy lives and sometimes it’s important to remember to “just watch”.
107
Listen
After watching comes listening. Since there is no written music in traditional Ghanaian songs ,we were
told to listen for all our cues from the lead drummer. Mr. Mensah described how each player has a name
on the drum; it’s like a musical sequence that is different for each performer. These names are used to
cue a solo, to get a performer's attention, or to thank someone for playing. There are other musical cues
that are common in Ghana that when played will lead the musicians to a new section or the end of the
song. When my students were practicing with Ms. Mensah, he used these different calls such as the use
of silence, a particular pattern, or even a slight nod of the head to guide the music. If students were not
listening they would miss the cue.
How often do we tell our students to listen? In my class it is a phrase I use all the time. Listening is a
key part of any class and often students struggle to listen to the teacher. Mr. Mensah suggested that if we
used musical cues during class students would hear them clearly because they sound different then the
voice and they refocus faster for the next step. Try adding in a bell for transitions or even a drum cue.
Even at the high school level students enjoy a clap sequence or rap. Recently when I started looking for
ways to help manage and transition my preschool through twelfth grade music class I found a blog on
edutopia titled 30 Techniques to Quiet a Noisy Class. This blog gives great tips on how to refocus
classes at different age levels. There are many ways to ask students to listen and some are more
effective than your voice.
108
Stop and Follow
In Ghanaian music, if players lose focus or stop listening, they will get lost. When this happens it’s the
performer’s job to stop and then follow along with the rest of ensemble. However often young
performers will not stop, they will keep playing not realizing they are wrong, or they think that they are
right and everyone else is wrong.
As a performer it was even hard for me to stop, I didn’t want to show that I was lost. But there is
strength in stopping and figuring it out on your own, and once I learned that, I became more confident in
the music and a better musician. Students struggle with this all the time. They might miss a direction and
then come to ask the teacher, ‘What are we doing?’ If students were taught that when they are confused,
they should stop what they are doing and look at what other students are doing, we might see growth in
them because they would be using their own skills to figure out their problems.
It is always a beautiful thing when different cultures or content areas are able to connect and learn from
each other. We are hoping to have Mr. Mensah come back next school year to continue teaching our
students and staff how to use these simple tools in our own classes or lives. Focus. Listen, Stop and
Follow, so simple yet so hard.
109
Citations:
Finley, Todd. “30 Techniques to Quiet a Noisy Classroom.” Edutopia: What works in education.
October 21st 2014.
110
Believe in the Possibility of Professional Certification
Julie C. Kunselman
TeacherReady
It has been five years since The International Educator reported findings from Gates Foundation
research that the “key to better learning is more effective teaching and better-prepared teachers”
(October 2009). Although a review of research since this time reports inconsistency in the relationship
between teacher education and student achievement, there is “mounting evidence that teachers with
more preparation for teaching have more confidence in their abilities… and show higher levels of
engagement in continuing professional development” (OECD, 2014). Still, only two-thirds of current
international teachers’ surveyed report having specific formal education elements associated with
preparing them to teach (OECD). Some of these educators and many more seeking to teach
internationally have turned to professional teaching certification programs as one option for gaining
such preparation; Ms. Berta Faber, founder and current director of curriculum and instruction at the
International School of Iceland, is one of them.
Ms. Faber attended international schools in both Saudi Arabia and Italy growing up, and after earning a
degree in business administration taught for many years across all levels, from kindergarten to university
preparation. In 2004, she founded the International School of Iceland. In addition to earning a master’s
degree and gaining additional experience teaching and leading a school, Ms. Faber never lost sight of the
benefits of teacher preparation and certification. In 2012, she enrolled in TeacherReady®, the online
alternative teacher certification program of the University of West Florida (UWF) and the stateapproved educator preparation institute of the university’s NCATE accredited Professional Education
Unit. Successful completion of TeacherReady earned Ms. Faber a Florida Professional Teaching
Certificate and an added opportunity to share her experience from the teacher preparation program to
inspire the teachers she works with; she conveys, “When we are inspired, we can inspire others, right?”
Although certification is not a requirement of all international schools, Ms. Faber recognizes the positive
results in student learning and in classrooms associated with applying the theoretical and conceptual
knowledge of teaching gained in TeacherReady’s research-based curriculum. She is one of more than
400 teachers and aspiring teachers placed by TeacherReady in 149 different international, private, and
charter schools. Believe in difference that earning professional certification makes in the lives of your
students. Learn more at TeacherReady.org.
111
Between a Rock and Hard Place
Getting Concrete Thinkers into the Abstract with Kindergarten
And PBL
By: Sarah Diaz
Kindergarten Teacher, Colegio Internacional Puerto la Cruz
After teaching kindergarten for eleven years, I frequently am asked “Have you ever wanted to teach a
different grade level?” I have toyed with the notion; however, there is something delightfully
challenging about educating the youngest among us— the fact that they are inherently incapable of
understanding the abstract concepts we are meant to teach them. Sounds crazy, no?
The brain of a five-year-old is very close to the size and volume as that of an adult. Neural pruning,
which began at around the age of three, has the child remembering and making connections among
concepts that are frequently repeated (rules, routines, language, etc.). These young children are great at
imitating and mimicking, but are, as any early childhood teacher can tell you, shockingly terrible at
impulse control and judgment. They have developed gross motor skills so that they can move within
their space with ease, as well as fine motor skills so that
they can more carefully manipulate and build with
objects within that space. This is the age when students
know what they know and have confidence in this
knowledge.
Many adults fondly remember their kindergarten year as
having copious amounts of play time, play doh, and
playmates. Times have changed and the expectations in
kindergarten have changed with them. This grade level
now more closely resembles that of first grade with
expectations of independent reading, writing sentences, completing mathematic equations, and taking
standardized assessments. The brain of the five-year-old, however, has not
gotten the memo of these changes. It is the task of the early childhood
teacher to work within each student’s zone of proximal development in
order to make the new expectations an achievable goal.
In the winter, my students learned about dinosaurs. At that point in the
school year, they were able to write words, listen and respond to questions
during read alouds, and had mastered the foundational math skills of
numbers through 15. Enter the joy of project-based learning (PBL). The
task was for students to create the best type of dinosaur that they believed
could have lived.
112
Throughout my six week unit, students kept dinosaur journals. I
chose journals because it was easy to see student progression when
all the written work was in one place as a formative assessment and
for student self-assessment. Students could reference what they had
questions about, what information they thought was important to
remember, and would eventually organize their thoughts into a
storyboard for their final presentations. When the questions and
research were student-driven, my
kindergarteners would repeatedly
reread their own work, add details to
previous pieces, and maintained their
curiosity and enthusiasm throughout
the unit. It would also help continue
building their fine motor abilities and literacy skills.
In order to assist students in making connections with what we learned
in class, I contacted different museums in Montana via facebook and
twitter. Mid-way through our dinosaur unit, my kindergartners skyped
with a paleontologist. They saw how fossils are transported, how they
compared to each other in size, the tools used, and could ask her any
question they wanted about dinosaurs at the museum. The weekend after this Skype session, my students
had to chose a dinosaur that they liked and wanted to use in their inspiration of creating a new dinosaur.
With their families, they researched dinosaurs and returned to school with a clear vision of which
dinosaur was their favorite and why. In class they drew sketches and models of what they believed to be
the best type of dinosaur. They frequently met in various groupings to discuss their research and the
dinosaurs that they envisioned to be the best.
For their final presentations, students picked the “best” dinosaur, created a model of this dinosaur using
play doh, and create a dinosaur movie using the Lego Movie app on the class ipads. They had to create
storyboards in small groups a “hook” at the beginning, dinosaur facts, and an outro. See an example of
the final product: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xzqkteGSFMo
113
Aside from the obvious connection building and information learned about
dinosaurs during this unit, my students were also exposed to more subtle
and abstract concepts. While learning about dinosaurs, my students
completed a unit on measurement in mathematics, comparing and
contrasting fiction and nonfiction in reading, and learned how to listen and
ask relevant questions in language arts. In math, they used dinosaur feet
(painted tissue boxes) to measure dimensions of the classroom and school campus. They had to compare
their results to a partner and determine why different measurements were
recorded. They had to compare dinosaur weights, heights, and speeds in
determining which dinosaur was the “best”.
In reading, they read and listened to books about dinosaurs. They had to
analyze and critique fiction and nonfiction books using the knowledge they
had learned in science. Students also had to verbally exchange in
conversations and debates concerning these facts and author/illustrator
intentions. These are not easy feats, especially for five-year-olds. To be able
to process that amount of information, internalize it, and use it in a new
format hit the new kindergarten expectations and kept true to the internal
nature of my students.
Each day in kindergarten brings new opportunities, curiosities, and challenges. It can be a struggle to
develop a program that promotes student growth to the level that is now expected of this age. With PBL,
my students build as they learn, not only with their hands but in their minds. Providing them with new
experiences, opportunities to make connections, and challenges that question what they know, my
kindergarteners are internalizing more and deeper concepts. As their teacher, PBL keeps me on my toes.
Each activity had to be well planned and thought out, but with enough room for student-directed
differentiation. I love how excited my students are about coming to school and how they continue
making connections to dinosaurs, despite the fact that this unit ended in March. Does this sound crazy?
Quite possibly, but — it is kindergarten!
114
Flashback to the 2015 Educators’ Conference
at the International School of Curaçao
Thank you, ISC!
You can view more at https://www.youtube.com/watch?t=10&v=48qpXuN4Cpo
The End! Have a great break…
115

May 2015

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