Memes......Heck Ya!

This week you will begin your first PARCC testing sessions.  Listen to this message from Kid President.  I know you will all come in and do your best, using your Effective Effort strategies.  Although we are in the middle of doing research for our Genius Hour Projects, I am having you take a pause this week, and next week.  I have created a lesson for you which is not quite as taxing on your brains, I hope.  This week you will be working on your iPads creating "MEMES."  I have put this assignment in your Google Classroom which means you should have received an email (hope you're checking!!!!!)

This Meme lesson is intended to be "fun," but also a way for me to see what you are learning and remembering about website evaluation.  We will start off class with this short video activator, "Evaluating Websites."

So have some fun and see if you can create a "winning" meme.  The best memes will be copied and put up in the lab and perhaps elsewhere!!!

Have a great week!   ~Mrs. White :)

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Jump Starting Genius Hour

I am keeping my fingers crossed for a complete week of school with out any scheduling changes.  I think it has been two months since we have been in attendance for five straight days without interruptions in class time.  Only time will tell.  I don't  know about you, but I LOVE how late the sun  stays out.  It is so nice to get out of school and have the sun shining.

Let's get jump started with our Genius Hour Projects.  We'll start with a video of some students sharing their projects:  Pewamo-Westphalia Genius Hour Projects 2014.   Afterward we will do a quick review of website evaluation.  You will be given a QR code which will lead you to Moonbeam Enterprises.  You will use your Website Evaluation Checklist to determine whether this site should receive a "thumbs up" or a "thumbs down."  You will then continue searching for websites to help you with the research for your own GHP.  Be sure to check out those sites before you start collecting data.  You may record this data in any manner, using any tool or device (workstation, iPad, or good old fashioned paper and pencil.)  Be sure to save your sites as bookmarks in your Diigo account.  Label these resources "GHP."

During class two you will complete a Website Evaluation Assessment in Google Classroom.   Don't worry, you will be prepared for it.  Pretend you are doing a project on "critters" and you found the following site in your Google search.  Please evaluate this site:  Tardigrades.

Have a super week!!
  ~Mrs. White :)

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Spring Cleaning and Feedback

Today you will be taking a pause to clean up your digital lives.  Please use this "Spring Cleaning Checklist" making sure to follow all of the steps carefully and do them completely.

Once you have finished cleaning up, please go to Google Classroom and find the assignment I have returned to you.  Take a moment to read my feedback, and then go in to your blog and make the corrections I have suggested.  You will be working on your blog design.  If you need help, use your resources and one another.

After you have made these adjustments, you will head back to your Google docs and create a new blog post.  Please think about any comments I shared with you and take a look at your Blogging and Commenting Guidelines before you start.  Be sure to have a reliable classmate edit you post.  Then make any last minute adjustments, copy and paste (upload and download) to Blogger and publish.

If there should be any time left in class (which is doubtful) you may explore the creativity apps listed on the front board.  **If you don't see them on your home screen go to the purchased section of the App Store.

~Mrs. White

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Reflecting and "Springing" Ahead

As I sit working in the dark as the sun has not come up yet, I am taking a moment to reflect upon some of the amazing things students have accomplished so far this year.  I have seen so much improvement in my seventh graders. Last week they were the hardest workers I've seen yet. Generally speaking, they are taking more responsibility for their learning. In addition this past week Natasha took the initiative to find a way to quickly bookmark using our Diigo accounts on our iPads.  She discovered  "Diigo annotator for Safari" and shared her discovery with me which I am sharing with the rest of my students.  Thanks Natasha!  This is only one example of what my students have "taught" me this year!! Our Genius Hour Project progress has seemed slow and painful due to all of the interruptions Mother Nature has thrown our way.  I hope my students will pick up steam and really get moving with their projects.

We begin our final trimester of the school year this week. Student will not only continue working on their GHP's, but they will also take a pause to organize their digital lives by doing a little bit of "Spring Cleaning."  Speaking of spring, Friday it will make it's arrival.  There will most definitely be some cheering.  Unfortunately as we have seen, this is not guarantee our white and cold weather will come to an end, but we can most certainly hope so.  Saturday also marks an important day.  Twitter will turn 9, though there is some controversy as to it's true birthday.  Last year they launched a new tool on their birthday.  Who knows what this year will bring?!

Have a great week!  Think Spring!
   ~Mrs. White :)

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Let's Give It a Whirl

Let's see if we can make it through a week without a snow day or snow delay!  Unfortunately we do have a half day on Friday.  Teachers will be getting together to do some work.  I actually got together with some teachers on Saturday.  Many teachers from BIS attended the 6th Annual Homegrown Technology Conference.  It was a super day.  We investigated Google Docs and Google Classroom in our lab.  I learned a lot and had a great time doing it!  Maybe next year I will ask some of my students to help out!
This week you will turn in your Blog Design Assessment Part 1 assignment in Google Classroom if you did not get to it last week.  I will be grading and returning these to you over the next week.  Once you have completed this assignment, we will take a look at Diigo.  This is a super bookmarking tool.  You will be able to use it on your iPads and your workstations.  It is cloud based, so you can find your bookmarks anywhere.  You will create a school Diigo account.  This will come in very useful when you are doing your research.
Once you have created this account, you will finally begin your research.  Start looking for website, evaluate the sites, and then begin collecting data from the reliable ones.
Have a super week!
                          ~Mrs. White :)

Reviewing Web Evaluation

Before leaving for break we took a look at three different website evaluation tools.  After that activity, I told you I would create a more simplistic checklist for you to use.  Last week I shared this checklist  and an infographic I created as another resource.  I will be giving you a Web Evaluation Assessment during class two.  Today's class will be a review to help you get ready for this assessment.  Please be sure to do this activity completely.  If you take your time, you will be totally prepared for the assessment.  I will not be with you for this class, but Mr. Persico will be  able to help you.  If you have any questions he cannot answer, we will have time at the start of class two before the assessment. We will do a quick review as an activator before your assessment, so no worries.  Your review today will use a Brain Pop.  I have created a doc outlining the steps you will need to follow to be successful. Please read the entire doc before clicking on the Brain Pop link to begin. We will review this activity as part of our activator review next class.  Before clicking on the Brain Pop link, take a look at this short screencast I created to show you how to navigate the Brain Pop lesson.  *Please note-you cannot do this lesson on your iPads as you will need to print and cannot print from your iPads.
Please go to the "Review of Internet Searching" and begin your work for today.

**If you should finish these activities and had an opportunity to "game up" I would like you to go the Genius Hour page of your blog and be sure you have finished your first post on that page.

Have a super day and I'll see you for class two!