Listen Now

We had the chance to sit down and chat with three amazing educators at Southeast Junior High in the Iowa City Community School District. Scott Stimmel, Michele Kopecky and Mike Keller-Wilson are three teachers pioneering a new program called CASL which stands for Cross-Curricular Approach to Student-Driven Learning. Michele teaches global studies, Scott teaches science and Mike teaches language arts. This new program is currently offered to 7th graders, but Southeast Junior High is looking to expand it to 8th grade at the start of the 2018-2019 school year.

During this episode we had a chance to catch up with Melanie Hester who teaches 5th grade at Alexander Elementary in the Iowa City Community School District. Melanie shared the strategies she uses to incorporate song and dance into her instruction to celebrate cultural diversity.

SHOW NOTES During Episode 10, we got the chance to interview Lisa Hildebrand. She is the PE teacher at Van Allen Elementary in North Liberty, IA. During our conversation she shares some of the innovative ways she has infused tech into PE.  KEY POINTS Twitter Provides a peak into everyone's classroom Sworkit: ​ Kids do an exercise for a certain amount of time, then rest and move onto the next exercise. Many kids were even doing this at home. ​​Tabata Apps:  Can be projected Keeps kids moving Projector/Apple TV:   Provides a great way to project activit

SHOW NOTES Episode 9 was recorded live at ITEC in Des Moines, Iowa. Guests Laura Burchett and Kourtney Janss share about kid centered learning environments.  KEY POINTS Makerspace Challenges ​Morning choice times Some short and some long Thematic mobile cart with resources for rotating through classes makerspace kits--teachers can check out from library Intentional planning as well as open ended exploration fun, collaborative, excitement, healthy competition Flexible Seating Pinterest for ideas Sitting and standing options Sensory options Consider including some traditional seating for those kids that need more structure Doesn't have to be expensive Independent Work time Teachers not wanting to teach students to do something is differe

SHOW NOTES During Episode 08, we had the pleasure of chatting with Travis Henderson at Iowa City West High School in Iowa City, IA. Travis teaches AP Psychology and also teaches American Studies to language learners. This is his fourth year at West High. Iowa City West has gone 1:1 with Chromebooks and Travis shares some of his insights on this transition.  KEY POINTS Blended Learning takeaways for Travis: 1) Allowing kids more autonomy in class 2) Less demands of homework outside of class 3) More respectful tasks for students 4) Made class time more engaging 5) Gives students more ownership in their learning 6) Pacing is improved 7) Students more prepared for discussions within class Experiences:  How might we create experiences for our students that are immediately necessary and relevant for their learning? Canvas and Chromebooks provided reso

SHOW NOTES We had the opportunity to chat with Jen Giffen. Jen is a friend from Canada that shared some great tips and tricks on leveling up your game with Google Drive. Jen is a Digital Literacy Resource Teacher for the York Region District School Board. In addition, she is a Google Certified Innovator, Trainer and Flipgrid Ambassador. Check her out on Twitteror her blog.  KEY POINTS Les McBeth: She is the director of PD at Future Design Schools in Toronto and helped facilitate Design Thinking with the #WDC17cohort in D.C. Google Teacher Tribe: Podcast that is hosted by 

SHOW NOTES We had the chance to chat with Nick Proud, principal at Garner Elementary, and Eric Ewald, principal at Van Allen Elementary. During our conversation, we had a chance to chat about a recent change that was sparked by the National Principals Conference. In addition, we were able to discuss some of the amazing changes that are currently taking place in the Iowa City School District.  KEY POINTS Relationships: Conversations and connections that are made at conferences can trump the content.  Dads as Principals: We’re Dads. And as Dads we wear lots of different hats. We are educators, we are Principals, we are…a lot of things, but we are Dad’s first! Nothing else is more important than our role as a Dad. 

SHOW NOTES Our two guests are Melissa Nies and Jon Bach. When this episode was recorded, Melissa and Jon both worked at West High School in Iowa City. They reflect on their experience of shadowing students for a day.      Key Points Relationships: Developing and fostering relationships with our students are critical to ensuring learning experiences that meet the needs and styles of the diverse learners we interact with on a daily basis.  Effective/Efficient Instruction: It is important that we utilize formative assessments to continually refine and adapt instruction to the needs of our students.  Feedback: Student voice is essential for educators to gain insights into the needs of students. Not all students love being "students". Getting feedback from students can help us differentiate the experiences in our classrooms so that we can begin to engage all our students.  Takeaways

SHOW NOTES Mary Morrison is a personal development teacher at Southeast Junior High for 7th and 8th grade students. Southeast Junior High is part of the Iowa City Community School District in Iowa City, Iowa.      DEPOSITS IN THE BANK Making connections and building relationships with students is a critical component of teaching. As George Corous stated in the Innovator's Mindset, "Innovation will never happen in education if we do not first focus on relationships." Deposits in the Bank Positive interactions with students Allow for withdrawals Hard to withdrawal if no "money" in the bank Tips for adding Deposits Lunch Bunch: lunch with students Greeting at the Door: greet students at the door when they come to

Michelle Cook who is the principal at Southeast Junior High in Iowa City, IA shared her experience of shadowing a student for a day.      3 QUESTIONS TO ASK Many teachers don't have the luxury of time to shadow a student for a day. However, there are many ways to solicit feedback from students to get a perspective of their learning. Whether using a Google Form or sticky notes, try asking these three questions:  1) What should I stop doing?  2) What should I keep doing? 3) What should I start doing?      KEY POINTS Inspiration: Shadow a student challenge on Twitter.  Perspective: Important to keep perspective for

Eric Ewald who is a principal at Van Allen Elementary in North Liberty, IA, shared his experience of shadowing a student for a day.  Alice Keeler Quote "If your complaining about your students, change your lesson plans."  Eric's Top 3 Twitter Recommendations Adam Welcome Pernille Ripp George Couros Eric's Top 3ish Book Recommendations Hacking Leadership by

With teachers wearing so many hats, it can be easy to lose sight of what life might be like as a student. Spending the day as a student is a great way to provide authentic insight into what elements bring joy to learning and which might provide some challenges. We were able to catch up with Patrick Snyder at Garner Elementary in North Liberty, IA. Patrick serves as an Instructional Design Strategist for Garner, but had the opportunity to become a first grade student for a day.      NEXT EPISODE: Episode 02 will feature Eric Ewald who is a principal at Van Allen Elementary in North Liberty, IA. Eric also had the chance to become a student for the day. We will hear his reflection on the experience.      <