writing

Nurturing Non-STEM Gifted Kids and Meeting Their Needs — from raisinglifelonglearners.com by Colleen Kessler

Excerpt:

But what about that kid who doesn’t want a new chemistry set or microscope for Christmas? What about the gifted kid who doesn’t really get your science puns? What about the brilliant child who isn’t into STEM at all?

They’re rare, but they’re out there. Artists, chefs, readers, writers, dancers, musicians, linguists, all of the above. Kids who like space just fine, but like nature even more. Gifted kids who can crush their math work but would rather crush pigments. Gifted kids who can learn to code, but whose heart swells when guitar strings strum. Brilliant babes who appreciate the arts, the stories, or are just filled with curiosity that isn’t subject-specific. You see, intelligence isn’t a stereotype. An IQ score isn’t like a horoscope. Scoring a few standard deviations above the norm doesn’t dictate your personality, your likes, dislikes, talents, passions, or hobbies. It means your brain processes information differently than the majority of the population. That’s really it. Intelligence and brilliance are as likely to be found on a stage as they are in a lab. For every Einstein there is a Beethoven, for every Musk there’s a Spielberg.

What Can You Recommend For Students Who Finish Their Work Early? — from teachthought.com

Excerpt:

How to respond when students finish their work early is a classic teacher challenge.

Most of it boils down to lesson design–creating learning opportunities where students are naturally funneled toward extending, improving, and sharing their work so that ‘stopping points’ are more of a matter of scheduling than learning itself.

Motivating your child with ADHD: 7 tips for your homeschool — from raisinglifelonglearners.com by Colleen Kessler

Excerpt:

This series is all about homeschooling a child with ADHD. Today, we are discussing 7 of our best tips for motivating a child with ADHD.

Preparing Kids With Real-World Skills via Ed-Tech — from emergingedtech.com by Kelly Walsh

Excerpt:

Educational technologies enable children to learn things on a whole new level, broadening their minds and their capabilities. The practical applications alone make ed-tech a highly valuable tool in the classroom setting, but these technologies also can enhance kids’ skills as well as their emotional and cultural awareness and intelligence, which can better prepare them for real-world situations and scenarios.

Edumilestones Has Launched Career Lab™ For Progressive Schools — from edtechreview.in

Excerpt:

Edumilestones, a pioneer in career guidance platform has now launched a next-generation Career Lab™ for schools. Based on 11 years of experience in career counselling industry, this technology is set to help students to identify and execute their career goals with clarity and confidence.

An Incomplete List of Women Writers Who Inspire [O’Leary]

On 03/11/2022, in reading, writing, by Daniel Christian

An Incomplete List of Women Writers Who Inspire — from blog.edmentum.com by Winnie O’Leary

Excerpt:

I don’t know about you, but I have been to dinner parties where we talk about creating a “desert island booklist,” but we never get to a consensus on how many should be on that list. I am pretty sure it would be my fault that if the boat sinks and we are forced onto that desert island, it would be because I brought too many books.

To avoid this scenario, and in recognition of National Reading Month and National Women’s History Month (both in March), I thought I would make a list. I am limiting it to female writers or strong female characters.

When looking at the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, the National Book Awards, and the Booker Prize, you will notice that the female winners are densely packed into the last 30 years. This is a very incomplete list, but a carefully selected collection.

You Sleuth is a family-friendly outdoor game that requires a moderate amount of walking. You can play by yourself or with a group of friends or family. If you are looking for something new that will stimulate your mind while sneaking in a little exercise and fresh air then register today. Read the rest of the FAQ for more details about how You Sleuth works.

From DSC:
What might this look/work like for learning-related applications? Also, if you are studying to be an actor or actress, might there be some new opportunities for you here!? If you are a writer, might there be some new sorts of collaborations opening up here? As the next version of the internet is developed, what new affordances/opportunities might exist in this area?

Power Lesson: Poetry Gallery Walk [Luther]

On 03/02/2022, in creativity, education, Emotion, experimentation, ideas, instructional design, K-12 related, learning, Learning Experience Design, liberal arts, participation, passions, reading, relationships, student-related, teachers, teaching & learning, writing, youth, by Daniel Christian

Power Lesson: Poetry Gallery Walk — from cultofpedagogy.com by Marcus Luther

Excerpt:

So three months into the school year, it was time to “pay the piper” in our AP Literature classroom in a major way. This meant veering away from normal processes of literary analysis and having students not only write their own reflective narrative poems, but spend time in an incredible, silent space moving around the library and writing notes of affirmation on each other’s writing.

Here is “how” we made it happen, then, as well as “why.”

Universal Dyslexia Screening: What You Need to Know [Ofgang]

On 02/27/2022, in accessibility / UDL, neurodivergent/special needs, reading, writing, by Daniel Christian

Universal Dyslexia Screening: What You Need to Know — from techlearning.com by Erik Ofgang
Universal dyslexia screening can help school districts identify students who are at risk and provide additional support, even though it is not required in every state.

Excerpt:

Dyslexia affects approximately 20 percent of the population and accounts for 80 to 90 percent of learning disabilities, according to the Yale Center for Dyslexia & Creativity. Early recognition of the risk for dyslexia and other word-level disabilities through universal screening in kindergarten, and then providing those students with intensive intervention, is a key early literacy strategy, says the National Center on Improving Literacy in a white paper.

Rethinking the Faculty Role in Students’ Career Readiness — from insidehighered.com by Rachel Toor; with thanks to Ryan Craig for this solid, well-written resource
It’s time for all of us on campuses, not just the people in career services, to step up and help offer the competencies employers say they’re looking for, Rachel Toor writes.

Excerpts:

Career centers on campuses can offer students coaching, resources and connections. But, as Angle points out, they tend to be a just-in-time service. They are also, he says, “scary places for a lot of students.” Many young people don’t want to face the reality of life after graduation. Often, it’s a case of too little, too late.

Instead, they come to people they know—professors like me—for help with cover letters and résumés. And while I can comment on language, until recently I had no idea about how most résumés are read first by a version of R2-D2 and his little robot friends who make up automated tracking systems. If an applicant doesn’t include the right keywords in a résumé or cover letter, into the trash bin they go.

The truth is, I have not applied for a job in 15 years; for many of my colleagues it’s been even longer, and some of them have never worked outside academe. It’s not surprising that employers are seeing recent college grads—smart students, hard workers—who don’t know how to present themselves as potential employees.

From DSC:
I can relate to that part about R2-D2 reading the resumes first (i.e., trying to get by the Applicant Tracking Systems before one’s resume ever makes it in front of the eyes of a fellow human being). Many faculty/staff members and members of administrations haven’t been out interviewing in a long while. So it can be a rude awakening when they/we need to do that.

Also, I wanted to say that it’s not fair to assess the learners coming out of higher education using a different set of learning objectives:

That is, faculty members within higher ed have one set of learning objectives and their students work hard to learn and meet those learning objectives. Unfortunately, those students did what was asked of them, and then they…
…come to find out that the corporate/business/legal/etc. worlds have different ideas about what they should know and be able to do. That is, these other organizations and communities of practice are assessing them on different sets of learning objectives that these same students didn’t cover. Some (many?) of these graduates leave their interviews discouraged and think, “Well, it must be me.” Or they can leave frustrated and angry at their former institutions who didn’t prepare them for this new assessment.

As I’ve said on this blog before, this disconnect is not fair to the students/graduates. We need more mechanisms by which faculty and staff members within higher ed can work more collaboratively with those within the corporate world to better align the learning objectives and the curriculum being covered. If this doesn’t occur more frequently, the constant appearance and growth of new alternatives will likely continue to build further momentum (as they should, given the incredibly steep price of obtaining a degree these days!).

P.S. This disconnect of learning objectives can also be found in what happens with legal education — including having to pass today’s Bar Exams — and then these graduates get out into the real world to find employers who are frustrated that these graduates don’t have the “right”/necessary skills.

“The incentive structure is for law schools to teach students how to pass the bar exam, not necessarily to do the things that employers expect,” Gallini said.

A quote from this article, which I also
want to thank Ryan Craig for.

6 Ed Tech Tools to Try in 2022 — from cultofpedagogy.com by Jennifer Gonzalez

Excerpts:

This year, for the very first time, I hired a team of ed tech experts to help me with the update. The task was becoming overwhelming and I knew if I was going to keep it up, I had to have some help. Here they are below: Marnie Diem, Brandie Wright, Lucia Hassell, and Kim Darche.
…

5. EVERFI
everfi.com/k-12

Originally a site that offered free financial literacy courses to students, EVERFI has expanded its course offerings to include career exploration (including one specific to STEM careers), social and emotional learning, diversity and inclusion, and health and wellness. Their newest additions are courses in healthcare literacy, data science and banking fraud, and compassion and empathy.

Reflections on “The Humanities May Be Declining at Universities — But They’re Thriving on Zoom” [Koenig]

On 12/13/2021, in 21st century, 24x7x365 access, A/V -- audio/visual, art, colleges, community colleges, content development, aggregation, repositories, culture, Daniel S. Christian, digital audio, digital learning, digital video, drama/theater, education technology, engagement / engaging students, experimentation, higher education, history, ideas, instructional design, languages and translation, learning, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, learning hubs & pods & microschooling, learning preferences, learning spaces, liberal arts, library / librarians, lifelong learning, love of learning, MOOCs -- Massive Open Online Courses, music, New "Amazon.com" of Higher Education, new business models, online learning, participation, platforms, religion, society, United States, universities, user experience (UX), vendors, videoconferencing, vision/possibilities, web-based collaboration, webinars, writing, by Daniel Christian

The Humanities May Be Declining at Universities — But They’re Thriving on Zoom — from edsurge.com by Rebecca Koenig

Excerpt:

Throughout the pandemic, versions of this close-reading conversation have taken place week after week. Organized through new nonprofits and small startups including the Catherine Project, Night School Bar and Premise, they bring together adults who want to spend their free time talking to strangers about literature and philosophy.

It sounds at first like an ambitious book club—except for the fact that many of these seminars are organized and led by college professors, some so eager to participate that they do it for free.

“Mostly it’s a way for them to do a kind of teaching they can’t do at their regular jobs,” explains Zena Hitz, founder of the Catherine Project and a tutor (faculty member) at St. John’s College in Annapolis, Maryland.

From DSC:
I’ve often thought that online-based learning may be the thing that saves the liberal arts (i.e., available throughout one’s lifetime and would be far less expensive). It would be ironic though, as many liberal arts institutions have not been proponents of online-based learning.

All you need to know about Microsoft Immersive Reader [Khan]

On 11/24/2021, in 24x7x365 access, accessibility / UDL, adjunct faculty, assistive technologies, Canvas - and other Instructure-related items, CMS/LMS, colleges, communications, communities of practice, community colleges, content development, aggregation, repositories, digital audio, digital learning, education technology, faculty, higher education, homeschooling/homeschoolers, human-computer interaction (HCI), instructional design, IT in HE, K-12 related, law schools, learning, learning ecosystem, Microsoft, multimedia, Natural Language Processing (NLP), neurodivergent/special needs, online learning, online media, personalized/customized learning, platforms, productivity / tips and tricks, professional development, reading, remote teaching and learning, student teaching/teacher education, student-related, teachers, teaching & learning, vendors, voice recognition / voice enabled interfaces, writing, by Daniel Christian

All you need to know about Microsoft Immersive Reader — from edtechreview.in by Saniya Khan

Excerpt:

Microsoft Immersive Reader is a highly interactive reading tool specifically designed to help students improve their reading, understanding and grammar skills. It also makes the texts more accessible to students of all levels.

Inspire, Create & Celebrate: 6 Steps to turn your Library Learning Commons (LLC) into a place where students want to be! [Campbell]

On 11/10/2021, in animation, art, assessment, collaboration, communications, content development, aggregation, repositories, creativity, digital audio, digital learning, digital photography, digital storytelling, digital textbooks, digital video, drama/theater, education technology, homeschooling/homeschoolers, instructional design, K-12 related, learning, learning ecosystem, learning preferences, library / librarians, mathematics, metacognition / metacognitive skills, more voice more choice more control, multimedia, music, presentations, reading, science, story, storytelling, vendors, writing, youth, by Daniel Christian

Inspire, Create & Celebrate: 6 Steps to turn your Library Learning Commons (LLC) into a place where students want to be! — by Mira Campbell

Also see/get:

What is NaNoWriMo and How Can It Be Used to Teach Writing? [Ofgang]

On 11/01/2021, in adult learning, communities of practice, creativity, higher education, K-12 related, teachers, teaching & learning, tools, United States, web-based collaboration, writing, by Daniel Christian

What is NaNoWriMo and How Can It Be Used to Teach Writing? — from techlearning.com by Erik Ofgang
November is National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) and there are plenty of ways to have your class participate and learn in the process.

Excerpt:

National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) aims to help aspiring writers of all ages and levels, including students, get their novels written. Every year, tens of thousands of participating writers commit to writing a first draft of their novel within the month of November.

The NaNoWriMo program is designed to help writers silence their inner critic and get their thoughts down on the page, which it accomplishes by encouraging participants to wait until the end of the month to go back and edit, by helping them establish a deadline, and by using technology to help them connect and inspire one another.

Educators can facilitate their students’ participation in NaNoWrMo in order to teach storytelling, grammar, written communication, creativity, and more, all while helping encourage young novelists.

50 Sites & Apps for K-12 Education Games [Restifo & Kapuler]

On 10/20/2021, in active learning, Adobe, attention, biology, chemistry, creativity, design, digital audio, digital learning, digital storytelling, digital textbooks, digital video, education, education technology, educational games / serious games, Emotion, engagement / engaging students, health, homeschooling/homeschoolers, ideas, instructional design, K-12 related, languages and translation, learning, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, Learning from the Living [Class] Room, learning preferences, mathematics, multimedia, new media literacies, participation, passions, play, reading, science, STEAM-related, student-related, tools, vendors, writing, youth, by Daniel Christian

50 Sites & Apps for K-12 Education Games — from techlearning.com by Diana Restifo and David Kapuler
Game-based learning is a great way to integrate technology into the classroom while engaging kids with real learning.

Excerpt:

Game-based learning turns potentially tedious study time into an adventurous knowledge quest, complete with catchy soundtracks and digital rewards. It helps keep kids engaged with the subject matter and motivated to pursue greater expertise. Best of all, web- or app-based gameplay integrates easily into both online and in-person classes.

With the demise of Flash at the end of 2020, many favorite educational game sites went under. That’s why we decided to update our popular list below to include the latest and best sites and apps for K-12 education games. Many are free (or offer free basic accounts) and some provide progress tracking and analysis tools for teachers. All will help kids enjoy learning.

Also relevant/see the following resource and excerpt from Goldie Blumenstyk’s The Edge (from the Chronicle of Higher Education)

Creative Acts for Curious People: How to Think, Create, and Lead in Unconventional Ways — by Sarah Stein Greenberg

Excerpt:

Greenberg also makes a compelling case for the “playful and joyous” approaches the d.school has been championing, like the secret handshake or building several prototypes of an ideal chair using tools like cardboard, pipe cleaners, and chewing gum and toothpicks. After so many months of loss and social deprivation, she told me last week, “those elements are more important than ever.”

3 Tips for Making Passion-Based Learning Work Successfully [Pierce]

On 10/13/2021, in attention, collaboration, communications, creativity, digital audio, digital learning, digital photography, digital storytelling, digital video, drama/theater, education, educational games / serious games, engagement / engaging students, experimentation, homeschooling/homeschoolers, ideas, innovation, instructional design, learning, learning ecosystem, Learning Experience Design, learning preferences, lifelong learning, love of learning, more voice more choice more control, motivation, multimedia, new media literacies, participation, passions, pedagogy, play, podcasting, skills, story, storytelling, student teaching/teacher education, student-related, teachers, teaching & learning, tools, user experience (UX), vendors, vision/possibilities, writing, youth, by Daniel Christian

3 Tips for Making Passion-Based Learning Work Successfully — from thejournal.com by Dennis Pierce

Excerpt:

Passion-based learning, a form of self-directed learning in which students pursue projects of interest to them, is becoming more popular in schools — and for good reason: Educators who have set aside time for passion-based learning have discovered that students become highly engaged and motivated when learning about topics that intrigue them, while taking their learning much deeper than they would in a traditional lesson.

Passion-based learning initiatives include Genius Hour and 20time, both inspired by Google’s program that lets employees spend 20% of their time on projects of their choosing to spark innovation.

Giving all students the option to explore their interests can be challenging on a large scale. To overcome this hurdle and make the process easier for teachers, Sonora Elementary uses a new peer-to-peer learning platform called Tract, which is a collection of video content organized into self-directed learning paths.

From DSC:
I love the type of tool/app like Tract — as students can work on a variety of skills:

multimedia development
music
acting
writing/composing
digital storytelling
…and more

Such projects/tools can unleash a great deal of creativity, engagement, and positive energy. Learning becomes more relevant, enjoyable, and interesting when we can provide more choice and control to our students.

Check this building out! This is quite a way to display a poem!!

On 10/04/2021, in architecture, art, communications, creativity, writing, by Daniel Christian

Es Devlin creates UK Pavilion to represent “culturally diverse Britain” at Dubai Expo — from dezeen.com by Tom Ravenscroft

Speaking of buildings and art, see:

Adele Renault’s Beautiful Murals— from fubiz.net

Five Tips for Launching an Online Writing Group [Rouech, VanDeuesen, Hoffman, & Majorana]

On 10/01/2021, in adjunct faculty, colleges, community colleges, faculty, higher education, Michigan, professional development, teachers, teaching & learning, teaching online, Uncategorized, United States, universities, writing, by Daniel Christian

Five Tips for Launching an Online Writing Group — from scholarlyteacher.com by Kristina Rouech, Betsy VanDeuesen, Holly Hoffman, & Jennifer Majorana — who are all from Central Michigan University

Excerpt:

Making time for writing can be difficult at any stage of your career. Pushing writing aside for grading, lesson planning, meeting with students, and committee work is too easy. However, writing is a necessary part of our careers and has the added benefit of helping us stay current with our practice and knowledge in our field. Lee and Boud (2003) stress that groups should focus on developing peer relationships and writing identity, increasing productivity, and sharing practical writing. Online writing groups can help us accomplish this. With the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, working online has become a necessity, but it can take time to figure out what works best for you and your writing colleagues. We recommend five tips to help you establish an online writing group that is productive and enjoyable for all participants.

Learning Ecosystems

An Incomplete List of Women Writers Who Inspire [O’Leary]

You Sleuth = The game of Clue + Augmented Reality (AR). DC: What might this look/work like for learning-related applications?

Universal Dyslexia Screening: What You Need to Know [Ofgang]

Reflections on “Rethinking the Faculty Role in Students’ Career Readiness” [Toor]

Reflections on “The Humanities May Be Declining at Universities — But They’re Thriving on Zoom” [Koenig]

Check this building out! This is quite a way to display a poem!!

Five Tips for Launching an Online Writing Group [Rouech, VanDeuesen, Hoffman, & Majorana]

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