Unlocking Students' Superpowers

What stories are being told? Whose voices are being included?
Being an educator in the classroom is the most fulfilling experience as you succeed and fail with your community of learners and together you unlearn and relearn for growth. How does learning takes place and becomes so eventful, from block times to individual learning styles and many emotional peaks from students? The classroom is the living lab that co-exists by decentralizing the learning and building a community of learning and leaders.  I have been blessed and continue to work in schools with very supportive leaders to experiment with my learning.

Learning is about sparking creativity through communication and collaboration. Building a culture of thinking by allowing students take the responsibility for their learning process. Students can unlock their superpowers when they are given the chance to experience them.

These are important reflections that as educators we need to be sharing:

• How am I giving opportunities for my students to communicate and to learn from each other?
• How am I creating opportunities for students to collaborate and take ownership of their process?
• How am I leveraging digital for thinking?
• How am I allowing students to build their confidence for risk-taking, failing and reflecting?
• What opportunities am I giving to students to create knowledge together?
• How are students reflecting and dealing with the discomfort of their social-emotional learning?
• How are students building the trust to be community members?

I am going to keep this blog post short as I am behind in telling the stories of learning from the students. My stories are always based on students evidence. I am going to present two stories one from Geography and One from French on Sustainable Development Global Goals.

Why not unpack the curriculum?

The Grade 7 students took the leadership and ownership of unpacking the curriculum and creating criteria of the process.



Can students co-construct criteria independently?

The students teamed up to plan how to explore the physical pattern of a changing world by focusing on the Canadian physical regions.



Why not design compasses using Micro:bit?

Please click on the link to watch the video The students applied the math and geography by programming a compass for an amazing race of team members across Canada.



How can students connect causes and factors of Canadian physical regions?

Through the causal model, students applied their thinking and developed their competencies by finding causes and factors of natural events and human activities that apply on the physical regions. They also analyzed challenges and opportunities presented by the physical regions.




Can students reflect on Collaboration, Communication and Critical Thinking while thinking the causal model?



Can students research and develop perspectives on natural resources?

The grade 7 students analyzed aspects of extractions/harvesting of natural resources in different regions in the world and assessed ways of persevering these resources.



Can students analyze and interpret data of natural resources between Canada and the world?






Can students learn from experts online?

The Geography Grade 7 students spoke with Doctor Rich Petrone Professor of Geography & Environments Management at Waterloo University, online. Students also had a webinar with Dr. Jennifer McKellar from Partners In Research Video recording.

Sustainable Global Goals 

Can students choose and unpack the causes and complexity of each of the Sustainable Global Goals?




Can students interpret and analyze data about the Sustainable Global Goals?



How do students consult with experts on world equity problems?

A hangout with Dr. Annemieke Farenhorst about First Nations Quality of Water Video Link. In addition, they spoke with Sarah Begum, explorer and journalist with Royal Geographical, investigating the impacts of oil exploitation and deforestation on Huaorani tribe land in the Amazone Rainforest.




Meeting with Midia Hassan a biochemist and a Chemical Engineer who makes change locally and globally through many innovation hubs. Midia is also a recipient of the Queens Young Leaders award for 2018.




Can students reflect throughout the process?



Some Reflections just specific to the causal model


 Can students unpack the 6c's while explicitly unpacking their thinking?



There are many layers throughout the process from analyzing reading, researching skills, consolidations and co-constructing criteria by students as needed.

The Flow Theory is when students are engaged in meaningful tasks, take ownership, make choices and build positive relationships. The learning goals are clear; the learning is attainable and achievable by students focusing on their thinking, connecting learning and mastering their skills. The Students scaffold their own learning taking leadership by pausing and reflecting, searching and critically solving and connecting their experiences and new experiences. The students are completely taken by their concentration and focus.  This is the focus in the classroom when students are engaged, being agents and owning their process of learning.

Through Integrative Thinking, the students are immersed in conditions that allow the 6c's - collaboration, communication, critical thinking, creativity, character, and citizenship - to be explored and immersed throughout the process. When students are thinking through the causal model, Pro Pro model or the ladder of inferences, all competencies are enabled. No skills are separated when the students are collaborating, they are communicating and critically analyzing each others thinking, valuing ideas, connecting them and creating knowledge as a team. They are persevering to problem solve and are in the state of the Flow. They are very focused to connect thinking, values, benefits, and interpreting data. It is the equity of learning where all voices are accountable and all perspectives are valued. The students are agents of their own learning with perspectives shared and leveraged with the whole team and equitably achieved.

The students enable their own conversations and scaffold their own inquiries when it is needed to research and persevere to apply their thinking through the models. All voices are heard, all perspectives are accountable it becomes a collective responsibility. Learning is very dynamic and their thinking becomes very explicit and builds their confidence. The students ignite their own fire and develop a culture of learning. Where discomforted learning becomes enjoyable learning, the students are in the state of hyperfocus connecting their thinking and willing to critically think, collaborate and communicate to persevere in making thinking explicit.

As William Butler Yeats is quoted as saying, “Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire.”

Learning experiences happen when students are immersed in tackling problems relevant to their real-life experiences. Building relationships while managing social-emotional learning creates a sense of belonging to the community of learning. The students feel they are important to the space of learning. They are compassionate, making differences to their own experiences and knowing that learning is reachable within themselves as experts and with an online community of experts.

How are we impacting and empowering students in deep learning?

• Who is setting the goals for learning?
• How is learning equitable?
• How are students taking full ownership and responsibility to keep interested in owning their learning?
• How to grow in experiences of valuing and trusting their learning?
• How are they developing self-trust in thinking and risk-taking?
• How are they building compassion to their learning?
• How are they reflecting on their learning?
• How are they aware of competencies and being enabled during the process of learning?
• How are students feeling accepted and their ideas are validated?
• How does their perspective matter and is understood by others? 

Looking forward to telling more stories about Grade 7 sustainable actions in their community and how their learning will make a difference and contribute to change. 

The Theory of flow from the master himself, Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi A short video on Flow  Another short video on Flow by John Spencer Video

Divergent Interactions!

I owe this blog post to my Grade 6 learners, after going through their electronic folders of evidence, reflecting and capturing the learning. As They are owners of all of their creations I wanted to save evidence of learning for future references.

Throughout the year, all learning is focused on how the learners develop their thinking of the learning process. As educators, we are focused on shifting our learning with our “students” learning. It is about meeting our learners where they are, believing in them as they believe in themselves for the potential of achieving.

As educators, we get attached to control and it becomes hard to accept letting go of students' ownership and responsibilities. It is finding ways to have our learners take full ownership, reflect and capture their process of learning. I find that when teachers feel they lose control they become more controlling. I always hear that “students” do not have enough experience to develop empathy. How do students grapple with issues and getting students to create while others are in mind?

The Grade 6 learners explored water as a local, national and global focus during Water Week February 17th. We focused on interdisciplinary learning and problem solving throughout the year about UN Sustainable Global Goals and Canada's interactions with the goals.

The Grade 6 learners were provoked through online discussions: Dr. Fox about Environmental Threat to Canadian Waterways, CBC documentary on FNMI communities and water pollution, read texts about Muskrat falls (Les Chutes de Muskrat), Is Water  Safe To Drink In Canada? (Est-ce que l'eau est potable au Canada?) La crise de l'eau, UN articles about water pollution at FNMI communities and Danielle Taillon an engineer from the University of Ottawa who shared her experiences with FNMI youth and provoking students with Engineering Discussions on a sustainable solution for water from Water Wind Design. Through their curiosities, some learners found the corruption over the history of unsustainable infrastructure of water plants.

All learners documented their research on water and the process of designing the water filters. It goes beyond the creation of the water filters. It is about the collaboration, critical thinking, developing character, citizenship and communicating the process of being innovators and creators.

The learners always take notes and document their own learning. When listening to English Hangouts with experts they type in French their new learning.  It is amazing how they take full accountability and responsibility at developing their thinking when listening to experts. Below is a sample of students documentation of her learning.

A Padlet of curation about the water crisis in Canada and the government's' investments over the years

Two samples of their researching in teams on FlipGrid, They all had a chance to respond and learn from each other I closed the others due to privacy

Please view the slides of Grade 6 Learners designs, documentations, feedbacks from experts engineers. Iterations, prototyping, testing, and reflections focusing on the competencies throughout the process.

Experiential learning of collaborative innovation has been the foundation throughout the year for the learners by interacting with several problem-solving projects during the year.

The learners persevered with their own challenges and inquiries to seek solutions. They have proven the mindsets to take risks, to be innovative by reflecting on the collaborative ideas and valuing each other's thinking during the process. They combined their thoughts and added values to each other's discoveries and learning.

The major inspiration is about the social and emotional development of skills, accepting feedback, determining next steps and understanding the ‘how’ of learning. The Grade 6 learners developed a sense of meaning and a purpose to persevere. It is about the equity in thinking and how they collaborated, encouraged each other, challenged the assumptions, encouraged ideas generations and group discussions. Learning is about the human divergent interactions and the emotional level to inspire momentum and qualities of building the confidence to problem solve as students invest in the process of learning. They built the trust and commitment to innovation, creativity, critical thinking and communication.

The learners grew empathetic as they became explorers & innovators by creating and always ready to take creative risks. They became divergent thinkers, respecting each other's thinking by embracing challenges and accepting failures. It is letting the students bring their ideas to life based on real applications, real feelings and building a culture to understand and experience others' feeling. It is abandoning their ego (Post on the Unlearning), having genuine concerns and the sense for building to nurture and help by being proactive and reactive.

Everything that we do in the classroom or learning environment has an impact on students' life not only in the classroom, also to their future. It is not only a shift of mindset of the students, also a shift of mindset for us as educators to take risks and accept failure as part of the process. (Blog Post on End of Year reflections)

What could we do to facilitate the human aspect to learning? Is to give every learner a voice, a choice, respect to them and to each other, valuing all contributions for a communal process of learning.

Are we allowing learners to question things why they as they are? How are we impacting learners’/students' learning journey and how are we impacted by them?

Is It purposeful Thinking For Learning?

I always get asked how do you get students thinking? If students are analyzing through reflections and feedback then they are thinking. The process of analyzing begins at the start of the year by allowing time for students to continuously reflect by breaking down information into parts and reasons.  Also allowing time and tools for students to speak and document what they have learned, how they have learned through self and peer assessment.

It involves many layers of co-constructed criteria starting with comparing and contrasting from background information or new learning. Students also immediately reflect on their learning and thinking. Analyzing through reflections allows students to become focused thinkers.

I will speak to the process from recent examples that we completed in June on Social Studies. Social studies is as engaging as Science or any other content. The Grade six students unpacked the curriculum through issues between Canada and international communities.The Grade 5 students were investigating issues with all three levels of governments from federal, provincial and municipal.

Of course having access to all Google apps (video notes, Snagit, Screencastify, Kaizena, CleanSave, Text Help Study Skills) and IOS apps (audioboom, Explain Everything) does affect the ability for students to analyze and express their thinking through tech tools. At the beginning of the year through various tasks students unpacked the purpose of technology for their learning. In my previous blogs I have shared many examples on analyzing.

Analyzing information online by using extensions and Add on like CleanSave and Text Help Study Skills.

Using Kaizena for peer feedback.

Students also shared their learning by using Green Screen and iMovie.  

Co-constructed criteria for the argument

Co-constructed criteria when analyzing classmates argument 

Students self assessment using screencastify for the choices of text and images representing his argument through Meme visual on Google Drawing . 

Videos demonstrating the process.

When students are analyzing:

• They break down information into parts and reasons
• They are problem solving by self questioning, which could further present with more inquiry and critical thinking. This process of questioning begins developing from the beginning of the year
• The students are also thinking about their content and the main idea
• All assumption could be confirmed or revised to explain
• The students are thinking when self reflecting or self-analyzing
• The students also understand their point of view of their reasoning and learning by explaining
•  They are assessing colleagues work they are also knowledge building. they are comparing and contrasting against their own thinking
• Learning is exciting and engaging and purposeful 
• They are building empathy and understanding of a classmate's thinking
• They are documenting and making learning visible
• They are building confidence through the metacognitive loops of reflecting and giving feedback

When planning, I question what authentic purposeful learning should my students experience? It is important to give students choices of tasks based on the big ideas with clear co-constructed expectations. A daily ritual to keep in mind: Am I giving students time to reflect, consolidate as a team and give peer feedback? 

Are Students Communicating?

There is always a great value of strong practices with the students by always unpacking the skills. The students have co-constructed criteria of many skills from collaboration, self-regulation, responsibility, organization, initiative to independent work.  The achievement chart from the Growing Success Document  is to be used by all Ontario teachers as a framework within which to assess and evaluate student achievement of the expectations in the particular subject or discipline.

The Grade 5 and 6 students have been unpacking skills The 6 C's of NPDL by Micheal Fullan. Thanks to Karen McEvoy who is the consultant leading New Pedagogies For Deep Learning and  many school teams have been introduced to the process.

I have recently built and continue to build with my students the awareness of , what is communication? How can a students communicate effectively in a variety of styles, modes and tools could be outlined for different audiences and purposes?

 Through many opportunities students explored, recognized  and reflected about the dimensions of learning progressions on Communication skills from New Pedagogies for Deep Learning. During learning tasks, as a facilitator I have to be careful not to over scaffold the thinking.  I have to give students room for ownership for processing and responding. The communication skills are in real time through co-constructive ideas in which students continually in a conversation are: examining, inferring, predicting, analyzing patterns and relationships, solving problems, allowing students to own their ideas. The partnership in conversations become interesting and valuing each others ideas. The key is to reflect on the progressions throughout the learning tasks and giving students a chance to value their learning through the skills. Below are some examples of learning tasks that guided their progressions. 

The studentsè began with  powerful conversations by unpacking the science concepts of Grades 5 and 6 curriculum on electricity and matter by using MindMup Google App.

The Grade 5 and 6 students consolidated about the team conversations. The students identified that during their conversations they were analyzing the information by using mind mapping as the tool and producing communication of connected ideas from the team members. They also identified that communication is a design of many modes from oral, visual to written.  The majority of the self reflections were at emerging as students were starting to establish and follow communication protocols of working together. As students progressed through reflections on communication the following designs were identified: 

• Making sense of the communication, elaborating, clarifying, questioning, building on, challenging aprtnerès ideas, roles for groups member for an effective communication 
• Producing many modes through many tools of communicating,
• Communicating to evidence that connects to audiences and concepts (Multidisciplinary), staying relevant
• Monitoring, managing reflecting by improving the challenges (behaviors, attitudes)

The students began reflecting by using Google forms. They were given time in class to reflect on the communication skills and continue reviewing the developments of the progression to learn the process and to improve communication. I tried to videotape students during the process and reflect on how to improve. I have combined several videos below of the process through many learning activities from exploring the Arctic Giant map in relation to Science and Social Studies and everyday learning experiences and opportunities at school. 

The following videos describe the tasks:

Looking at students self -reflections summaries off the forms this is what students said:

• Listening more and asking more questions
• Communication better with my peers and sharing more in class
• listening and giving chance for others to speak. 
• By sharing more of my evidence 
• Making connections when communicating for understanding.
• Express my learning in many choices
• To always think about the audience
• Respect the others by having roles, note taking, questioning, valuing each others' thinking, interpreting 
• Building vocabulary 
• Improving my French
• I changed to improve by speaking more during class and getting included/participating with activities
• They've made an impact on my learning in french,because I have gotten better at my Grammar
• I have improved on listening more and asking questions that I need to. It has helped me share ideas or questions.
• 
  

  I improved my oral french by focusing on the dimensions of communication, I engaged in conversations and practiced it. I also improved my writing by focusing on the dimensions of communication, by writing on task of the subject and by listening and learning to improve. And finally, I improved my listening by focusing on the dimensions of communication, by looking at the person who is talking and asking questions to clarify the question.

  The communication competencies have made an impact on my learning. For example, it has improved my oral french. Secondly, it has improved my writing. And lastly, it has improved my listening.
• I have changed by being more interactive with my group members while discussions and by talking and putting my ideas out there. I am comfortable because my group members agree with my ideas and because  I am usually familiar with the topic.
  
• The communication competencies have made an impact on my learning because, I will have background knowledge before conquering a individual/independent project. It also made me understand more french in a way, and it gives me the initiative to do something by myself.
  
• 
  

  It has helped me realize what I do in class and why I do well in school, and continue to do well. It is because I have been being more respectful, and helping. You have been guiding most of this way. You have showed my many cool things that I probably would not have known about without you. 
• I have reflected on what in my group works and what does not,to improve my communication with my team, audience and more.For example with my group we all,including me choose the roles which would match each of our particular communication skills we are good at.If at the start we just choose random roles we liked,but as we got to know each other we changed the roles accordingly to improve.
• It has helped me improve my communication as a team player,explain or give a message and more.They have helped the receiver of my message to understand and have connection with the message I have gave to "stick" in there mind.

The students will continue reflecting and building on communication progressions. I will continue to reflect on How am I engaging and motivating students to foster communication skills?

Youtube For Visible Thinking

The Ottawa Catholic School Board provides all students with Google accounts. Grade 5 and Grade 6 students have amplified their learning by using YouTube for explaining science inquiries.In a previous post A Collage Of Learning students integrated the arts as well to explain their learning.

The focus of this blog post is to share the process of using YouTube for visible learning and thinking.
After researching, reading, analyzing the text and determining important facts in relation to their inquiry of  the science expectations, the students organized their information in a graphic organizer focusing on synthesizing the information.

1. Uploading images on Google Photo Slides.

2. Students could choose slide duration, slide effect, and transition.

3.  Video is uploaded to Youtube to add annotation from the reading organizer.

4. Enhancing video for slow motion for reading annotations.

5. The students also added a video from Youtube for further discussions by using Spotlight. More  focusing is needed  to make sure the spotlight is visible and to add a comment where to click and when to start the video link as well  opening  in a new window.

6. A screencastify of a student's collection of evidence on the eportfolio.

7. The students also used video notes to reflect on their drama video  presentations while focusing on the criteria. I was able to add comments as notes as well.

Grade 6 students used YouTube video slides and annotation to explain the biodiversity of Canadian animals and to analyse the positive and negative human impacts.  The extra step that the Grade 6 students added was using the Snagit images about the classification of the animal in their photo slides.

 

Technology has amplified students' voices by emphasizing on the evidence of their learning in line with the co-constructed criteria, curriculum expectations through video slides and annotations on YouTube. The students' voice was also evident by reflecting through video notes about their drama presentations. We will be posting all of the cross-curricular evidence on a Thinglink for access to all about the visual art, drama and explaining human systems for Grade 5 and biodiversity for Grade 6. Technology is important for students' voice to strengthen their learning experiences and their importance of being at the centre of learning. Through technology the process of learning becomes visible to capture students' experiences. I continue to reflect: how can students' voices and thinking be evident for all?

A Collage Of Learning!

Learning is a day of collage!  We always hear learning is messy what about an interactive messy collage of innovators with many ideas!

Earlier in the year I captured the learning by vlogging about our day and producing videos of the learning process. I get carried away now with students' process and giving feedback that I forget to capture the learning. 

 This post focuses on. how does learning roll out and how do students make learning last?

We start our day by looking at the daily reflections from the students eportfolios. Yesterday one of the students reflected on the step by step of how to create a photo slide show on youtube. Her reflection became the criteria of the day for the students who are using youtube to create a photo slide of the functions of the human systems.  The students also had a great question that we will pursue tomorrow. 

Students following Angelika's reflection as a criteria for creating the photo slide at completing the Gr5 Science about the human body.

 Some students are persevering with the art of an organ from the system and building a model of the system with plasticine.

Liam is preparing the prop for the drama to explain the urinary system.

I even captured a video of it!

Learning is always fun and lasting and there are always ways to have students invest in their activities.

How can we always create an interactive environment of connecting students experiences? How can we always grab student's' heart and minds for learning?  What will the collage of learning be like tomorrow?

Why are we doing this?

Today I was inspired by this tweet and had me reflect about students interactions from the classroom to real life connections andexperiences.

Why are we doing this? @DanielPink #TLDSBleads #edchat pic.twitter.com/3ihIPc4vFb
— David Sornberger (@davidsornberger) January 30, 2015

Gr 6 students are applying their learning from the Science curriculum about the human impact on biodiversity.

On Friday, after analyzing a French text about pesticides and its impact on plants, animals and humans, students were  able to apply the French and science context to a relevant experience about the use of salt in the winter. The students thinking was provoked by watching  Road Salt and its impact on the environment.  Today we also looked at the news on how the National Capital Commission report will not be replacing the diseased ash trees until 2018 .

The students also analyzed this video in French and made connections to the parks in their neighbourhoods and the Beaver Pond near the school.

Students curiosity lead them to the City of Ottawa bilingual site to further learn about the disease and its treatment. 

The tweet had me reflect on the importance of making learning relevant and how learning is important to the students. How can learning become relevant enabling students to think differently?

Thoughts on perseverance!

This year I wanted to take risks with the students by implementing tinkering and making. We have made the Scribble Bot (Blog) and now the automata by focusing on the learning skills and analyzing students choice of design to represent the main idea of the Grade 5 and 6 Social Studies.

 During the making process students are enthusiastic, persistent, engaged and articulate their creative thinking process. The positive mentality of perseverance and persistence depended on each others learning and thinking of the how and why of the function of the automata mechanics. Students stayed engaged and pursued learning together. Students became resourceful and imaginative in building a learning community valuing each others' thinking outcomes.

By taking risks with the students and developing our learning together, we gather resourceful thinking environments in which failing has a purpose for achieving.

Through many learning tasks students are engaged and motivated. Through the making with materials from scratch and designing, autonomy and ownership seem to prevail and be captured by a culture of cultivation by the students who are the makers, who are being meaningful and challenging their thinking with the making. The progression of thinking skills of self-regulation, problem solving. designing and retrying flow and flourish.

By observing and coaching through feedback, I made time for consolidations and reflections which provoked creative thinking skills that students unpacked allowing life long skills of getting through tough obstacles for creating.

The assessment is very rich since it is the actual process of making and documenting the learning. What counts is being able to analyze, pursue their own designing and naturally share, question and learn from each other. Students were constantly analyzing, synthesizing and evaluating, creating and recreating to achieve the automata function. The process is about the learning: How was the student thriving? Did the student have a sense of meaning in what he/she was doing? What role did they play in sharing? The students were thriving: by wondering, challenging their thinking and reflecting on the co-constructed criteria that explained the automata making process.

My learning thrived as well just as the students, I persevered the challenges of opening the maker education with my students. Like any tasks in class, reading, writing, blogging, Math, we need to give the opportunity for open discussions, inviting peer feedback, reflecting and transforming thinking for students to become resourceful, imaginative and creative.

My Self reflective questions during learning tasks:

How am I inviting the students to take risks?
How am I inviting curiosity?
How am I building a community for persistence and resourceful learning?

Evidence of the process: 

Padlet with the criteria and samples from Tinkering and Makers Ed sites:

Created with Padlet

Reflections

An audio reflection

Videos of explaining the process using Explain Everything App.

I would like to thank @maker_junior Alison Adnani for always inspiring me, for the Makerspace G+ Community and The Tinkering Studio Team for learning from them too,