Thanks to additional release time funding from the TLLP, this morning I had the opportunity to interview Michael Wendler and Jason Rodger, two junior teachers from Ottawa-Carlton District School Board who have been early adopters of IWBs in the Math Classroom.

Jason and Michael teach in a fairly large, K-6 school in Ottawa, with a mainly middle-class, culturally diverse population.  Their school has two laptop carts and a class set of iPads which teachers can sign out.  Thanks to the efforts of a small but dedicated group of teachers, several classrooms also have Smart Boards in them now.

After reflecting in some detail about the challenges and opportunities that technology presents to teachers at different places along the continuum of tech-comfort, we spoke about how teachers use technology to integrate social justice into their programs, and make learning “real” for students.  We also addressed student vs. teacher use of the IWB as an instructional/learning tool in the classroom, and the boys shared some of the different apps and programs they have found useful in their journey with students.  It was really encouraging to see two teachers at different stages of SAMR being so comfortable learning from and sharing with one another, and it made me feel more optimistic about my own abilities as a teacher who still uses technology primarily to substitute and augment, rather than to modify and redefine!

After a brief earthquake (no, I’m not kidding; we all felt the tremor, on both sides of the Skype!),  we chatted briefly about some more philosophical things, like how some students with an LD can really focus when it comes to video games, and how we can harness that interest and ability with technology, and we also discussed the more pressing matter of TIME, which seems to be in ever-short supply for teachers across this province.  (How do you build in the time necessary to be a learner of the “new” tools, for example, and develop a basic comfort and confidence with them, so you can use them effectively in your classroom?)

Before we knew it, our time was up, and we were wrapping up our discussions and trying to figure out the logistics of how to get over an hour of Skype footage edited and up onto the Internet so that others could listen in on our conversation.

It was good to hear from two such engaged educators, and see how colleagues from other parts of the province are using technology to develop mathematical understanding with their students.  As Michael noted near the beginning of our Skype session, and Jason concluded towards the end, technology needn’t be overwhelming.  Beginning with one small step can open the door to unlimited possibilities not just for students, but for us, the teachers who teach them.

Thanks, Jason and Michael, for your enthusiasm, and for your willingness to share with this new-to-technology teacher!

Lately, I’ve been thinking about the “Smart” part of our “Smart Bansho” project…

At a reading conference I attended last week, I was reminded by one of the presenters of a now so new yet rather timely quote by Howard Gardner and  Shirley Veenema, who wrote about the fact that technology does not necessarily improve education.

So I’ve been asking myself, is the IWB in my classroom a piece of furniture that I use, but that could easily be replaced with a chalkboard or chart paper?  Or is it indeed a support for an active, collaborative, creative and challenging learning environment for my students?

With such a steep learning curve on both the technology aspect and my "new" instructional approach to math this year, I’m not sure I’ve done such a great job with either.

True, I am not poking out students’ eyes with our IWB, but I’m also not sure I am writing any superlative essays with it.

At the very least, I’m going to read this article, and think about how I can make the board more of a student-user support.

A few little tricks of the trade I've picked up these past few months... and a rant:

Useful Tricks:
1. If you want to group a bunch of items from the computer, select and press "Ctrl G".
2. Selecting dual screen view helps you to see more stuff -- previous slide and current work, so all the work and vocab from the warm-up doesn't disappear when you go to the main problem.  (Only thing is it becomes kind of small... we really do need a wider smart board, lol!)
3. That darned pen is so thick... you can make it skinnier, to record more ideas -- click on the lines, when you have the pen, and choose a thinner line to write with!

My Rant:  Most supply teachers aren't familiar with the IWB technology, so leaving supply plans is a bit tricky, and requires a return to pencil and paper.  :(

Dale and I took the morning to finish a math lesson from our Geometry Strand, then it was off to Joyce P.S., where every  classroom has a Smart Board, and where many teachers are using a problem-based approach to teach mathematics.

We began by having lunch with the Teacher Librarian (who had set up the meeting for us) and four colleagues.  Although we had never met one another in person, we quickly launched into our shared teaching interests and experiences over sandwiches and juice, and the teachers told us a little more about the many grants they had rec'd to outfit the school with so much technology.

One thing that really interested us about Joyce was that the student population was very similar to ours, so that what we were about to see could not be attributed to different socio-economic fatros, for instance.  (One thing we noted though, was that many of their ELLs were Canadian-born, and thus more likely to be Stage 3 or 4 ELLs, as opposed to our many students who had only just arrived in Canada over the past 2-3 years, and were still -- in essence -- very new to English.)

After lunch, we observed in a Grade 5/6 class, followed by a 4/5 class.  Then, after recess, we visited a Grade 3 teacher.

There was so much to see and think about -- it was such a delight to observe  in other classrooms where IWBs were being used at the "routine level" by both teachers and students, and where Math was being taught and learned without the crutch of a textbook.  These people were really doing it!!!

Instead of writing a big, long diatribe, I offer the following annotated photos below.  Please click on the first photo in each section to begin a self-navigated slide show of full-sized captioned pics.


Grade 5/6

The teachers at Joyce P.S. were such gracious hosts, and I feel very fortunate for their willingness to having us in to observe and ask questions.  The visit was one from which we will take much away to think about, and to add to our own classroom repertoire as we continue to explore what it means to use IWB as a tool for facilitating problem-based learning in math.

One thing we set out to do with this is project was to combine the "bansho" approach to teaching with the use of an IWB. A third of the way though the project, it is time to pause and take stock: Are we doing this? And more importantly, are we doing it successfully?

There is no question that we are definitely aligning our teaching far more closely to the curriculum than we did in previous years. It is also clear that our students are more engaged, and seem -- for the most part -- to understand more than previous classes did. The approach of presenting a problem, allowing students time to muck about with it in small groups or with a partner, and then orally and visually debriefing the problem with the whole class before sending students off to practice new skills on their own with a similar problem seems to be fostering a deeper understanding of the mathematical skills we intend to teach. (This is evidenced for me by the degree of task-committment during the independent work phase of a lesson, and the level of understanding n the part of most students in my class whom I observe, clipboard in my hand, during this time.)

It is not, strictly speaking, "bansho". And I must confess, I am not al that great at extrapolating the "what we learned" during the debrief of a lesson. However, math is FUN now, not such a chore, and I know that with a little tweaking, I can improve my lousy debrief. (One plan I have is to watch my colleague teach a lesson we have panned together, to see how he handles the debrief. We are also watching some colleagues from a neighbor urging board teach later this month.)

Even if what we are doing is not quite "bansho" after all, it certainly seems smart!

What do you do when a student has made a mistake?  Do we show only the "good" work?  Is there a place for students to learn from their own and each other's errors?

If you have set up a safe and inviting learning environment in your classroom, students should feel free to contribute openly, without fear of "messing up".

Today we were representing numbers in different ways, using base ten blocks.  A student shared all the numbers she had made using only 16 tens and ones blocks.  (rods and units)  As we were debriefing her solutions, another student pointed out an error in her work.  She had used 16 tens rods to make a number, which she had recorded as "700" on her whiteboard. (See black boxes and red arrows in the screen shot below.)

As my colleague and I learn to teach effectively using a problem-based, constructivist approach in math, we want to be cognizant of the many powerful strategies that exist to complement such instructional methodology.  The explicit teaching and use of manipulatives, for example, and the incorporation of graphic organizers into ones’ teaching are two well-documented strategies for effective teaching and learning.

Today was one of those rare days when everything just seemed to click, and every student seemed really engaged with the task, and was easily able to show understanding (or lack thereof) as I wandered around the room with my trusty clipboard…

The task involved students sorting 2D attribute blocks using two or more different attributes.  Using the IWB, we reviewed the concepts of shape, size, colour and thickness.  Students were able to come up and manipulate the “infinite cloners” I had created on the board, and move them into a VENN diagram slide I had prepared in advance.  (During this whole-class time, one boy called exclaimed, “OH!  I get it now!”  It was very exciting for both of us!)

After the introductory review and mini-lesson, students went off to work with either a whiteboard or a prepared VENN, and sorted the blocks into two or three circles.

The fact that I had a special ed. teacher in the room to support some of the needier learners allowed me to gather some formative assessment data. 

As I circulated throughout the room with my clipboard and a class list, I did as I have been told in the GEIM and other resources we’ve been reading, and asked questions to find out more when I wasn’t sure how deep a student’s understanding was.  For example, I asked one boy who had made two circles, “red” and “square”, if there was anything on his mat that could go in the middle, where the circles intersected.  It took him a while, but he eventually realised that the red square he had in his “red” circle could go in the middle.  Another student had piled blue shapes in one circle, red shapes in another, and yellow in the middle.  She clearly did not have the concept of the overlapping attributes.  I asked her to tell me about her sorting rule, and was soon able to glean a deeper understanding of her misconception and guide her to see where she had gone wrong.  She happily resorted her blocks, choosing two attributes (size and colour this time).  Several students challenged themselves to fill in a 3-circle VENN; many of them did it correctly the first time, or after only minimal guidance from me.

Using the IWB to demonstrate the concept at first, and have students model it was definitely a motivating factor for the class, and the use of manipulatives and graphic organizers consolidated their understanding of the concept of attributes and sorting.  Although this lesson was not presented as a “problem” in the true sense, it nevertheless constituted a valuable mathematical experience for all.

Finally got my act together and did a semi-proper, 3-part, problem-based learning lesson today in math!

We began with a hundreds chart warm up (the students are becoming increasingly proficient at noticing and describing patterns, using mathematical language), then got them busy with the whiteboards solving the problem.  They could choose to work alone, or with a partner, and could use any strategies they wanted to solve the problem.  (I reminded them of the 4-part problem solving model we had looked at the other day, and also referred them back to the chart we had begun to make listing various strategies.)

It was reaffirming to see how students used a variety of methods to arrive at the same solution (i.e. that each row of tiles in the pattern was shrinking by 2)… some used a table and noticed the pattern, others recreated the pattern with colour tiles, and continued it until they got the answer they needed (one boy did this using the “infinite cloners” I had created on the smart board), still others drew a picture to illustrate the problem, and that seemed to help them figure out the subsequent rows and numbers of tiles.

Interestingly, one student drew a very detailed photo of a bicycle from Friday’s problem, apparently completely missing the point I had made earlier about details being great for Art or Science, but not so necessary in a sketch for math!

At the end of the lesson, a number of students came up and shared their responses using the document camera; I took a photo of their solutions and posted them on the smart board, annotating the solution with a coloured Smart pen as the student(s) spoke. 

After each solution shared, I made it small and moved it off to the side, so that we could still refer back to it as the next student shared his/her solution on the board.


Although I am pleased with the capabilities of the Board for conducting such a lesson, I have ongoing concerns about the students who don’t seem to “get it”.  Some of the children seem so far behind in math – even with 1:1 guidance from our in-school support person, they were struggling to understand the problem, let alone consider how it might be solved… and the debrief part of the lesson, where the “math teaching” comes to the forefront, these same students either struggled to pay attention to the student presenting a solution and barely focused on my “teaching” through the solution, or they simply checked out altogether, and simply played with their colour tiles or drew on their whiteboards while their peers engaged in academic dialogue.

How to draw these learners into the conversation – while still maintaining a pace and interest level appropriate to the learners ready for the next challenge – will be my ongoing experiment this year!

It's all very exciting to suddenly have a large interactive whiteboard (IWB) appear on ones classroom wall, but in truth, if one doesn't know how to use it, such a scenario can also present a challenge.  Our limited interactions with the IWB under the guidance of our trusty Instructional Technology Resource Teacher (ITRT) last spring were nothing compared to suddenly having the thing mounted on the wall, and as a result, no blackboard space -- it has been a "jump right in by necessity" sort of thing!!!  Let me share initial reflections and ramblings below...

First, let me say that bigger is better.  I cannot imagine having had the smaller board.  We absolutely did the right thing by getting the big one!

Happily, my colleague Dale had taken the time to research a few little ditties online like, for example, a balloon pop attendence activity and a flying goose activity.  I have been using the latter almost daily, in order to just get the students used to using the board.  They do seem to enjoy making their geese fly away during attendence each morning, however, with this activity emerges the first challenge: The good people who installed the board installed it way too high, so that the dear children can only reach up to perhaps the middle of the board!!!  (Note to self:  Upon leaving Dixie, reccommend to principal that my room be turned into a Grade 5 room, with taller students, lol!)

I must say I do love how I can just take a document and write all over it as a lesson proceeds (for example, the four corners oral language activity shown in the middle photo).  I also am liking how as a demonstration tool, many things can be first focused on and then stored for later reference -- in the thrid photo above, we did a warm up activity using pattern blocks (from page 10 of the GEIM in patterning K-3).  As we debriefed, I made some notes, including a table.  I then selected, grouped, shrunk and moved this information to make way for the vocab chart we were generating, and the 100s chart we were looking at, but I was still able to leave it on the board, off to the side, for reference as needed.

One thing is that I need to get more proficient at using the tools, shrinking things, enlarging, moving, etc.  I also find that I have been using the board more as a presentation tool, rather than a learning tool for students.  Dale and I are hoping to visit a classroom in the coming weeks that uses the board with students.  Now that we've mucked around with it in a real classroom with it as beginners, we need to see it in action as facilitated by an expert user!

One final complaint is that any leaning on the projector table causes the darned thing to require recalibration.

But, so far so good.

I hope to make the time for a more coherent and focussed blog pos

Behold!  The Smart Boards have arrived!  They are installed and ready to go.  Now, if only we were...

So many grandiose plans to read and blog and prep over the summer... and suddenly the summer is over and I am scrambling to get my classroom set up for Tuesday's arrival of a new group of students!  Wow!

But more will come soon, soon....  or at least, in a while!

At least the Boards are here -- there is no turning back now, lol!