Dr. Tom Grissom on The Every Classroom Matters Show Whether it is digital notetaking or notetaking, many of us agree that most students are not effectively using this technique to remember, retain, and process new information. Dr. Tom Grissom is a pioneer in the effective use of digital notes, pushing us to redefine what notes can be. Listen to Show #145 Subscribe on iTunes Tom’s big point about notetaking is that if we follow the SAMR model, we must redefine what notetaking can be. Here are just a few points he shares in the show. Using electronic tools, you can redefine digital notes by: Writing Recording Audio Collaboratively Writing with Others Snipping Copies of the Screen Recording Video Recording Movements on the Screen (Screencasting) Students Can Share and See Each Other’s Notes Teachers Can Share Their Notes Teachers Can See Notes as a Formative Assessment Tool Tom and I also have a discussion about the vital difference between taking notes by hand and typing the notes (which leads to transcription.) Not surprisingly, transcription doesn’t require much processing and not as much value seems to be happening in the mind of the student as in taking the notes by hand. Using One Note Classroom, Tom is a pioneer in the use of digital notes to teach, learn, and enrich our lives. Here are 4 big takeaways from the show: See Dr. Grissom’s notes from the show (In his One Note notebook) Visit His Website and Podcast One Note Classroom  One Note for Teachers Tutorials The purpose of Every Classroom Matters is to bring practical teaching ideas and strategies from every type of classroom to inspire excellence in yours. You can subscribe to the show on iTunes or listen to it on BAM Radio. (I have a list of past episodes as well.) If you find the show useful, ratings and reviews on iTunes help others find the show. The post Episode 145: 5 Essential Digital Notetaking Methods appeared first on Cool Cat Teacher Blog.

Sir John Hargrave on the Every Classroom Matters Show Sir John Hargrave has taken the research on the mind and related it to current self-help practices to help us learn what works. In today’s episode, we learn about essential thought patterns we should understand to be successful educators.  Metacognition is an essential skill of the most successful students. I also share how I overcame my own negative thought loops caused by four years of bullying. Listen to Episode #146 Online Listen on iTunes Some of the fascinating takeaways from this show are: Concentration as a missing skill in the classroom How to Overcome Negative Thought Loops that Keep Us From Being Our Best The Important Metacognitive Skills We Should Teach Students Steve Job’s "Reality Distortion Field" Technique Sir John Hargrave’s book Mindhacking is FREE (at least through Fall 2015) at http://www.mindhacki.ng/ "We believe everything our mind tells us and get stuck in these thought loops." @sirjohnhargravePowered By the Tweet This PluginTweet This Metacognition and a growth mindset are essential areas for every educator to understand. Listen to the show and dig into the research of mind hacking and metacognition.   The post Episode 146: Mind Hacking: Missing Skills We’re Not Teaching Students appeared first on Cool Cat Teacher Blog.

Sail Through the Stress of the Storm If I look through a window pane and see teaching as weather, teaching would be the thunderstorm. And as we sail our classroom ship on this maelstrom of hormones, stress, conflicting priorities, and distractions, it takes rock-solid habits of mind and life to be the kind of self-assured captain who can weather the storm. "I feel thin, sort of stretched, like butter scraped over too much bread." JRR Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring Health professionals believe that 80-90% of all disease is stress related. Gallup’s 2014 State of American Schools reports half of teachers claim they have significant daily stress. (The highest of all careers polled.) This month’s Global Search on Education question is "What are the quick ways to combat teacher’s stress in a classroom? " You’ll see all of the answers collected here. Here are some time-tested research-proven ways to be that Teacher-Captain with nerves of steel. Stress Busting Secret #1: [MENTAL] Kill Worry By Accepting the Worst and Working to Improve It "Worry is a cycle of inefficient thoughts whirling around a center of fear." Corrie ten Boom Many teachers house an internal storm between their ears. Worry rips through peace and electrocutes purpose. The best technique for dealing with anxiety comes from Dale Carnegie’s How to Stop Worrying and Start Living. Carnegie interviewed Willis H. Carrier the engineer and founder of the Carrier Corporation, the company many of us use for our air conditioning system. Early in his career, Carrier had made a mistake and installed a massive air handling system that didn’t work. After nights of not sleeping, Carrier adopted three steps that changed his life. Analyze the situation fearlessly and honestly and figure out the worst that can happen as a result. Accept the worst outcome Calmly devote time and energy to improve upon the worst which has already been accepted mentally. When I’m worried, I grab pen and paper and start by listing the worst thing that can happen. I go ahead and accept the worst, and then, I start improving it. As it says in Luke 12:22, "Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?" Secret #2: [MENTAL] Interrupt Negative Thought Loops and Replace Them With Positive Ones Your thoughts can swirl into a tornado — taking you to places of purpose or pathetic places of self-induced agony. Your thoughts create a mental momentum that spills over into your physical world. On a recent episode of Every Classroom Matters, Sir John Hargrave, author of Mindhacking, talked about "thought loops." Thought loops are those repeated loops of things we say to ourselves. Part of self-awareness and metacognition is the ability to pull back and observe your thoughts from a distance. For example, early in my career I was struggling with classroom management. I found myself thinking "I can’t manage my classroom." The more I said this, the more helpless I became. I quickly switched this stinkin’ thinkin’ to "I will learn how to better manage my classroom and become a better teacher." I did. Gandhi said, "I will not let anyone walk through my mind with his dirty feet." Sometimes our thoughts come from things people have said to us. We can master our thoughts and redirect our abilities. Secret #3: [MENTAL] Keep a Joy Journal The captain’s log of ancient yore tell stories of events but also serve as part-confidante and self-reflection for those lonely sea captains. Teacher-Captains are lonely too. You can see remarkable benefits from logging your thoughts. Research has shown that keeping a joy journal will improve your "long term well being" more than winning a million dollars in the lottery. Looking for joy is like looking for a color. If I ask you to look for the color blue - you see it everywhere. Now, I ask you to look for red - there it is. Most of us are naturally tuned to notice certain things. Some people always see the negative, like old Eeyore in Winnie the Pooh. Winnie the Pooh: Lovely day, isn’t it? Eeyore: Wish I could say yes, but I can’t. You can start saying yes when you notice the blessings in the storm. The kind word, the fun time you had playing with the dog, the romantic dinner you had last night, the surprise phone call from an old friend. We all have moments of joy if we start noticing them instead of feeling blue. Secret #4: [PHYSICAL] Make Sleep a Priority A tired teacher is a powderkeg looking for a match. When I enter the most stressful times of the year, I set an evening alarm in my bedroom to remind me it is time to go to bed. Sleep loss makes it harder to think, harms your health and worsens your mood. Women who sleep less than seven hours a night are more likely to be obese. Norbert Schwarz says, "Making $60,000 more in annual income has less of an effect on your daily happiness than getting one extra hour of sleep a night." Brooks and Lack found that a ten-minute nap was ideal, but that even a five-minute snooze was better than nothing. Secret #5: [PHYSICAL] Drink Enough Water What a tragedy to die of thirst in a sea of salt! Yet, even in a country where water is not scarce such as the US, 75% of Americans suffer from chronic dehydration. (I would imagine many other countries are astounding as well.) We thirst for self-discipline. We suffer not from lack of water, but an inability to take time to drink it. The effects of dehydration are real and especially detrimental to teachers who must stay positive and think clearly. Dehydration is shown to impact your mood and cognitive processes negatively. I apply the "mud puddle principle" and put a glass by each sink in my home. I also drink a whole glass of water at the beginning of break and lunch. Drinking water must become part of your habits, so you do it automatically. Secret #6: [PHYSICAL] Exercise (preferably outside) Sitting is the new cigarette. Every 90 minutes you need to MOVE. We’re not stuck on a ship, after all, we can walk around the building or visit a friend across campus. Some of us can even walk to work. You can have a positive mood-enhancing impact after just five minutes of exercise. If you want even more of a boost, exercising outdoors will increase your positive mood further. Secret #7: [SPIRITUAL] Make Time for Faith "If patience is worth anything, it must endure to the end of time. And a living faith will last in the midst of the blackest storm." Mahatma Gandhi There is a strong correlation between religion and positive mental health. For many of us, research-proven ways of handling stress including meditation, deep breathing, aromatherapy, listening to music, visualization and prayer as part of our faith practice. Mother Teresa worked in the harshest of situations with the poor in Calcutta. If there has ever been a person sailing a ship on the red blood of despair, death, and poverty, it is this precious woman. She said, "The simplicity of our life of contemplation makes us see the face of God in everything, everyone, and everywhere, all the time." Secret #8: [RELATIONAL] Develop deep relationships Every captain needs a comrade. Take the time to have deep relationships with others. As humans, we need intimacy. When you’re with these people, don’t always talk about your stressful career, however. While journaling your problems is shown to reduce stress, just talking about them with another person is not. And cynical gossip has an intensely negative impact on your life. Build healthy relationships of mutual respect and common interests. Secret #9: [RELATIONAL] Make Physical Affection Part of Your Day "Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around." Leo Buscaglia, Author Kissing, hugging, sex, and even massages are proven ways to reduce stress. Even a simple, appropriate hug or pat on the back can help. Secret #10: [TECHNOLOGY] Unplug, Recharge, and Focus A distracted captain can run his ship aground. A distracted person is a danger to himself and those he cares for most. The constant interruptions of your  phone and notifications can make us feel like a human doing and not a human being. Three essential technology practices will help all of us live richer less stressful lives. UNPLUG: Stop Using Technology One Hour Before Bedtime First, we need at least an hour before bed when we are not looking at or around our brightly lit devices. Technology devices wake us up an interrupt our circadian rhythms, making it difficult to sleep. RECHARGE: No Phones in the Bedroom Second, we need to charge our phones outside of the bedroom. Even in airplane mode and do not disturb, some of our apps can interrupt us and wake us up. FOCUS: Have Do Not Disturb Time Finally, we need uninterrupted moments I call this DND (Do Not Disturb) time. For example, I use an app on my iPad to read my Bible in church. However, I put the iPad in airplane mode and "Do Not Disturb" so that nothing else will interrupt me. For the most part, it works. Any time you’re at an event and want to focus on the event, set your phone to DND, particularly if using your phone as the camera. This way, you won’t be interrupted with an "urgent" email when you go to snap a picture of a never-to-be-repeated moment.  You will also be more productive at work. Teachers who mess around with computer instead of focusing on students, make a mess of great teaching opportunities. In Conclusion: Sailing Our Ship It would be nice to calm the storm and sail quiet seas all the time. But some of the most hated weather by sailors is dead calm. You have nothing to propel you forward — no wind. When you teach, you have to accept the weather we navigate. What you do not have to accept is that you have to stress out about it and have no quality of life. For, when I read Walt Whitman’s words, I always think of a teacher. Oh Captain! my Captain! our fearful trip is done, The ship has weather’d every rack, the prize we sought is won, Here’s to you, teacher. May you weather the storm and laugh in the rain. This profession may be stressful but is is never boring. Our destination is purposeful. We captain a great ship on an epic quest to educate the minds of men and women. We sail towards tomorrow. The post 10 Stress-Busting Secrets of Great Teachers appeared first on Cool Cat Teacher Blog.

From the Cool Cat Teacher YouTube Channel Looking for new ideas for using technology in the classroom? Trying to figure out what’s next? Well, recently I had to record a video just in case the weather wasn’t so great in Pittsburg, Kansas for my virtual keynote. I thought that some of you might be looking for a little summer PD and would take the 45 minutes or so to learn something new. I also share my simple 2-step strategy of innovation. If you can’t see this video in your RSS reader or email, then click here. If you want the links to be clickable from the presentation, you can use the 50+ Ways to Use Technology in the Classroom Slides from Slideshare below. If you can’t see this slideshow in your RSS reader or email, then click here. I think that the most critical take-away is the strategy of innovation that works for anyone. Let’s also dispel the myth about age and innovation in education by talking about one of my heroes! You can use technology in the classroom. Take time for some personal PD today by watching this or the countless tutorials you can find on YouTube and throughout the web. Level up a little every day! QUESTION:What are some new technologies that excite you? Please share! You can leave a comment by clicking here. The post 50+ Ways to Use Technology in the Classroom [Video] appeared first on Cool Cat Teacher Blog.

Pushing the Limits of Education Technology- Greg Kulowiec App smashing is when you use two or more apps on a device to do something which one could not do alone. App Smashing inventor, Greg Kulowiec shares many examples on today’s show. Listen on iTunes Listen online If you have iPads or other devices in your classroom and you limit students to only one app, you and your students may be missing out. There’s an excitement that comes from pushing limits and inventing. Perhaps no better easier means of invention exists than that of app smashing. The process of figuring out ways to combine new tools is as valuable as the final product. @gregkulowiecPowered By the Tweet This PluginTweet This While researching this phenomenon, I traced the origin of the term back to Greg Kulowiec’s 2013 blog post. Don’t be afraid, though. App smashing can be as simple as snapping a picture, editing the pic in an app, and saving to your camera roll so you can edit in another app. If you’ve already done this — you’re already an app smasher. Todays’ show is chock full of exciting ideas for you to try. You can make a cheap green screen. You can have a year long video project. You can share film. These are just a few things we discuss! App smashing is so easy that any beginner can do it. Resources from Today’s Show AppSmashing original post Feb 18, 2013 http://kulowiectech.blogspot.com/2013/02/app-smashing-part-i.html The Green Screen post Nov 2, 2013 http://kulowiectech.blogspot.com/2013/11/green-screen-appsmashing.html Collaborative Mashup Video X Ipads: http://kulowiectech.blogspot.com/2014/02/collaborative-mashup-video-x-ipads.html BookCreator - https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/book-creator-for-ipad-create/id442378070?mt=8 Air Drop -> https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT203106  Google Drive -> https://www.google.com/drive/  Cloud Conduit -> http://www.conduit.com/ iMovie ->  http://www.apple.com/mac/imovie/ Mix Light -> https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/mix-by-camera360-design-your/id913947918?mt=8 Elektor -> https://itunes.apple.com/en/app/elektor-electronic-toolbox/id339158729?mt=8 Telegami Video Capture https://tellagami.com/ Question: What is one way that you smash apps together? You can leave a comment by clicking here. The post ECM 147: App Smashing Definition and Examples appeared first on Cool Cat Teacher Blog.

Live a Better Life It seems that there is a pivotal way that the uber-productive should travel: through time. What about holding still in one place and letting time travel through you? What about letting your body stay still and letting your mind wander? A marvelous verse in the Bible says "Be still and know that I am God." Be still. Who can do it? It is harder than you might think. I once learned a strategy for falling asleep - focus on your breath. When I take the early flight, I never sleep. Getting up at 3am so worries me - the perpetual hard sleeper - that I often find myself cat napping (pun intended). The other night as I focused on the movement of my breath to attempt sleep, I realized what a gift a breath is. Then, I thought of a what Pico Iyer says in his TED Talk on Stillness, I was in a taxi driving through Times Square, and I suddenly realized that I was racing around so much I could never catch up with my life. Sometimes we need to be still and let time travel through us. #stillsummerPowered By the Tweet This PluginTweet This But how do you know it is time to be still? Listen to Yourself Talk Exceptional people tune into self-talk. You are the only one who hears the voice in your head. You are the only one who can interrupt your internal dialog and say, "This isn’t the way I need to be, so I’m going to do something about it." When I reviewed my journal entries for this past school year, I realized my self-talk points to my personal need for time travel instead of geographic travel. There are many of you  who are pushed beyond the regular wear and tear of a hard year. It is no accident that you’re reading this post at this moment. There are no coincidences. The Fellowship of the Ring 8 Questions to Ask Yourself Before You Plan Your Summer Calendar Reflect on the past. In the last few summers, do you remember an extended period where you didn’t have anything to work-related to do or anywhere work-related to go? Anticipate your ability to last. Do you find yourself wondering how you can sustain this level of work intensity for much longer? (We talk about the sustainability of this planet, when we ignore the sustainability of our own pace.) Your desire to quit. Have you thought about quitting as a way out of the workload because of the pressure? (As opposed to because you are planning an intentional career move.) Listen to your words. Are frustrated words and behaviors creeping into your emails and interpersonal reactions? Do you find yourself much more abrasive than you know how to be? (My friends and I call this a need for "crab rehab.") Your ability to "turn it off." When you are with your family, do you find yourself unable to relax or stop talking about work? Do they say that they "miss you" even when your body is physically present with them? Your desire to continue. Do you keep asking yourself questions like: "How can I go back to school in the fall?" "How am I going to make it?" or "I am so exhausted, I just don’t know how I can do this anymore." Your role in the world. Do you feel more like a human doing than a human being? How you feel about what others expect. Do you feel like everybody just wants something from you? How many "yes" answers do you have? I answered "yes" for every single one of these during my reflection. So, I realized it was time to plan a summer sabbatical. More on that in my next post. Question: Reflect upon stillness as opposed to laziness. Consider the place of stillness in your life. Do you know how to be still? You can leave a comment by clicking here. The post 8 Questions to Ask Yourself BEFORE You Plan Your Summer Calendar appeared first on Cool Cat Teacher Blog.

Secrets from a Top Title I School in Indiana with Principal Jayson Snyder How does an improving Title I school do it? What are the improvement secrets? Jayson Snyder, principal of Meadows Edge Elementary in Indiana, shares the secrets: formative assessment, intentional intervention, and how data-driven instruction should look. They work hard to train teachers and have a "yet" mindset. Listen to the Show Listen on iTunes Jayson’s emphasis on "the power of Yet" is transformational. Before the school started, the teachers learned about the growth mindset and Carol Dweck’s research. They listed areas that they hadn’t mastered "yet." The year started with teachers sharing their "not yet" items and then students set "not yet" goals. Improvement has become part of their culture with this shift. Jayson Snyder is principal at a top 3 Title 1 improving school in Indiana. Featured in ECM Show #148. There are so many things happening in Jayson’s school, but I love how he still has the heart of a teacher. Take a listen to the show and spend time on the takeaways from the show. I’ve embedded Carol Dweck’s Power of Yet TED Talk at the bottom. Top Takeaways from this Show @jaysonsnyder13  Meadow’s Edge Elementary Acuity - formative assessment used in the Indiana schools Exit Slips explained on ReadWriteThink Socrative - one of Vicki’s favorite 3 formative assessment tools Plickers - one of Vicki’s favorite 3 formative assessment tools Kahoot - one of Vicki’s favorite 3 formative assessment tools MUST READ BOOK for Every Parent and Educator: Mindset: The New Psychology of Success by Carol Dweck Power of Yet [TED Video with Carol Dweck]  5 Fantastic, Fast, Formative Assessment Tools [Edutopia Blog Post by Vicki Davis] If you can’t see this video in your RSS reader or email, then click here. Thanks for listening to Every Classroom Matters. I appreciate your tweets, remarks, and comments on Facebook. Know other amazing educators who you think would make a great show? Please email my production coordinator, Lisa Durff at lisa@coolcatteacher.com. Keep students first. Level up a little every day. - Vicki The post ECM 148: What Every Teacher Can Learn from a Title I School appeared first on Cool Cat Teacher Blog.

Secrets to Living an Excellent Life In the end, you are not a renewable resource. You can burn yourself so far down, you have nothing left to burn. Do things that will renew you. Take a day. Take a week. But take a sabbatical. Everyone you know will thank you. Sabbatical comes from the term "sabbath." The Israelites were told in the fourth commandment: "Remember the Sabbath day and keep it holy." On the seventh day of the week, they were to restrain from work of any kind. They were to stop their labor. Be still. Worship. Reflect. The Sabbath is becoming popular again. Many productive people in Silicon Valley are adopting the Internet Sabbath. (Some call it a digital sabbath.) "Black hole" resorts are becoming a fad. When you check into the hotel, you check your smartphone at the desk.  (Some even block all Internet signals) The dictionary defines sabbatical as: "A period of paid leave granted to a college teacher for study or travel, traditionally every seventh year."   A Heart Cry for Stillness Last summer was too busy. At the end of last summer, I looked at my son and realized that he had grown, and I hadn’t been there to see it. This summer, I’m taking a different approach. (See 8 Questions to Ask Yourself Before You Plan Your Summer Calendar to see if you need a sabbatical too.) No matter your career, there are times you need to prepare yourself as a person. What if we have our mind, body, soul all healthy and ready to achieve? How Plan for a Sabbatical Sabbaticals don’t have to be a long period, but they can be. Here’s how I’ve approached mine. STEP 1: Plan Your Calendar in Pencil As you plan your summer, put everything on your calendar in pencil. Look at your plans. Notice your physical reaction to your schedule. When I’m upset, I feel it. Dread feels like little bumblebees flying just at the top of my stomach. I can handle the stress. But if I feel those "bumblebees" about mundane things, I scale back. What is your physical reaction to what you’ve planned? What is your physical response to what you’ve planned? STEP 2: Reevaluate, Reschedule, and Remove If you have realized you need sabbatical time, reevaluate everything. What can you reschedule? What can you remove? Can you back away from anything to give yourself some time? Erase and move things around. It is OK. What is not OK is canceling a commitment at the last minute. STEP 3: Plan "SD" Days I put the initials "SD" on my calendar on my "sabbatical days". These are days with no appointments. Nothing to do. These aren’t days that I just sit and watch past episodes of Blue Bloods. On SD’s, I: Read what I want. Write whatever I want. Spend time with family. Spend time thinking with pen in hand. Don’t check email. Get off social media. Put the phone in airplane mode. For me, SD days are not Netflix marathons. I do watch videos sometimes. This summer, I am re-watching a fantastic leadership series by my pastor, Michael Catt. But even just buying a new pen and a blank piece of paper can be restorative to me. I’ll doodle, sketch note, and ponder things. I’ll write about things shooting between my neurons. I’ll sit down at the piano and play music and sing. I might pull out Les Miserables and sing along as I wash dishes. Sabbatical days can look like anything, but they should be restorative. Use SD’s to restore. What things revive you? Reading, exercise, eating healthy foods, stillness, or thinking? Drinking lots of water? Family time? Singing? Working in the garden? Sewing? What heals your soul and helps your heart beat a little stronger the next day? STEP 4: Stop Talking About Work If you go on vacation and take your psycho-baggage with you, you’ve ruined your relaxation. You can’t leave yourself at home, but you can choose to leave behind your negative thoughts. If you go on a guilt trip, you have to pack your own bags. The same is true for ego-trips and stress-trips. Last week after I got out of school, I told my husband, "I just don’t know how I’m going to go back to school in the Fall." And Kip says to me, "Why don’t you wait and see, this is only your third day out! It would help if you would take a break from school in your mind - it is all you talk about." I have periods of time when I ask my family to help me stop talking about school. Now is the time. I do have a budget due next week, but I can handle that Monday. Meanwhile, I’m on a word budget about school. Kip and I agree how much I can bring it up — sometimes not at all. STEP 5: Be There are times to be and not do. Say: "OK, me, no pressure - you are off work today. Just be." Take Time to Be Kind…to Yourself Happy Summer Sabbatical, friends. I will miss you at ISTE and all the events this year, but while I miss you, I won’t miss me. And that, dear friends, is a person none of us can afford to lose. For as it says in the Bible, "What gaineth a man if he gaineth the world and loses his own soul." Question: Have you ever taken a sabbatical? What works for you? You can leave a comment by clicking here.   The post 5 Simple Steps to Plan a Summer Sabbatical appeared first on Cool Cat Teacher Blog.

Award Winning Science Teacher Amy Pace Shares How She Uses OER Textbooks Amy Pace is a Presidential Award winning science teacher. She is using "free" OER textbooks for all her courses. OER stands for Open Education Resources which are often curated by experts via grants and other means. Of course, nothing is free. These textbooks take time, curation, and customization. Visionary states, districts, and schools might find a money-saving resource with OERs. Listen to this show online Listen in iTunes Amy is on the textbook approval committee in Utah. The Utah Open Textbook project  teams up top teachers to curate and create OER textbooks. These textbooks meet state standards. You can print them for $5 a piece. Amy says, "Teachers across the state appreciate the work that was put in by the team of teachers to create a high quality product that is ready for them to use."  There are limitations, however. Those who like a "classroom in a box" or want every single ancillary created and done for them, may not find a good fit in OER. But for those of us who take the teacherpreneurship approach, OER can be perfect. Amy Pace is a nationally recognized science teacher who is getting excellent results from OER textbooks. Revision is the key success factor for standards, textbooks, and practices that will succeed in the 21st century. If you don’t revise, it dies. MY MESSAGE ON STANDARDS & TEXTBOOKS: If you don’t revise, it dies. Vicki DavisPowered By the Tweet This PluginTweet This Notice how the State of Utah had the teachers create the textbook and then revise it just one year later. Teachers give feedback and it is fixed. A five to ten-year textbook revision cycle is no longer acceptable. Today’s show is an incredible collection of best practices and thoughts around Open Education Resources. Using OERs will help many struggling districts if they’ll take the time to understand and use them properly. If students are learning the information they need using OER, there’s no argument about quality. Amy PacePowered By the Tweet This PluginTweet This Take Aways from Today’s Show @apaceMHAcad CK12.org http://www.ck12.org/ - The nonprofit textbook organization that Amy uses to customize her textbooks OER Commons - Index of OER Resources OER Resource Roundup by Edutopia Utah’s Open Textbook Project - for states or district who want to follow this model Thanks for listening to Every Classroom Matters! We’re now running over 50,000 downloads per month! Thank you. You’ll notice a few changes in the next weeks as we’ve got sponsors who will be supporting the show. If you believe in the show and what we’re doing, contact errol@coolcatteacher.com for more information on how you can become a sponsor. Thanks for listening. Remember - level up a little every day! -Vicki The post ECM #149 OER: Teaching Without Traditional Textbooks appeared first on Cool Cat Teacher Blog.

Secrets to Living an Excellent Life I was whirling out of control. Up through the leaves, up towards the clouds, even into space towards the cottage cheese moon. My mind soared as my eyes looked skyward. The creek was bobbing with human flesh. The family lashed together on their rafts in front of me sang a spirited tune in Spanish. The Korean family upstream had two teenage boys sleeping in their daisy chain of plastic tubes. We were in a silent, still pool amidst the noise. My son, John, and I just reclined wordlessly. As I twirled in my tube, I looked up. The blue sky was that glacial blue you see when glacier cracks and the crevasse lets everything escape but THAT one blue. In a mimicry of those glaciers of the north, the white clouds blew overhead like snow drifts. And I wondered. I wondered at the beauty of the blue. I also wondered: how many people look up? I can’t remember the last time that I looked up and watched the cotton balls tumble through the air. I usually just look up when thunderheads loom. But there it was, as pretty a blue sky as you’ll ever see. It went completely unnoticed by almost everyone on that creek, including me. I was almost halfway down before I looked up and gasped at the glory. But that is what we humans do. We notice the thunderheads. We notice the lightning. We look at the rocks in the creek. But we rarely look up. The twenty-something days of the year that are dark and overcast get lots of furtive glances up. But when we have perfect weather, what do we do? We look at everything else. Here we are, celebrating a joy-dance amidst sun showers and everyone on this creek is completely ignoring the masterpiece hovering over our heads. Fair weather doesn’t deserve notice. Or does it? Why do we only notice the foul? We look up only when we have problems? The direction we stare is true on so many levels. For we look up at the sun and the sky to bemoan our troubles. We also look up to God when we have towers falling and cancer calling. Rarely do we lift up our eyes in gratitude for the blue-sky days that tumble through our lives like children down a brand new slide. When I was a child, I would oftentimes lay in the grass and watch the clouds. I saw the birds fly overhead. Sometimes a cricket would jump right over my forehead. As the tall grass blew around me, I’d smell the robust fragrance of the grass, honeysuckle, and sandy south Georgia soil. I might jump up in pain when a red ant meandered over my foot and stopped for a bite beside the freckle on my fourth toe. But, I would look at the clouds. I looked up. Those were happy times. Sure, I had the stress of school. I had the stress of being left out and bullied. But somehow, I had the sky. And if I had the sky and knew that the Creator of that massive sky knew me, then I was OK. And so, today. Life is looking up. I’m not sure why, but I think it has to do with the direction of my eyes. Nature can lift your mood and has a particularly powerful impact on children. Learn how nature can help us. A fantastic read on this topic is Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children From Nature-Deficit Disorder. As humans, getting into nature can help us handle grief, stress, and so much. I hope you’ll take time to get out in nature. While I haven’t cited research, the positive impact of nature is very real. The post Looking Up: How Nature Can Help Us appeared first on Cool Cat Teacher Blog.