Twitter & Anxiety

Networking

As an introvert, the word "networking" used to terrify me. It all seemed so disingenuous. Since I began using Twitter, I have become a lot more confident in my networking abilities. I have been able to find common interests with people, and make genuine connections. I love being part of a community that shares what they are learning. Plus, Twitter connections give you something to laugh about during your first face-to-face meeting, so it has made conferences much easier for me.

Intensity

Through Twitter, I have found resources that have shed light on my own experiences. One such example happened last night, when I found a TED talk through this tweet:

For kids with anxiety, it's NOT going to be fine unless WE AT SCHOOL are going to do something different. @HHG http://t.co/Ioqzrt9jsY
— Iram Khan (@teachermrskhan) March 11, 2015

I was able to connect with the speaker via Twitter, and let her know how her talk had impacted me:

@HHG I just watched your #TedxLangleyED talk, and it shed some light on my experiences. Thank you for sharing!
— Britney Allen (@MlleBallen) March 11, 2015

@MlleBallen I'm glad it resonated! Helps to know it's not just you, doesn't it?
— Heidi Hass Gable (@HHG) March 11, 2015

@HHG Absolutely! This has given me a lot to reflect on as a student-teacher, too: supporting intense learners, self-care, etc.
— Britney Allen (@MlleBallen) March 11, 2015

@MlleBallen Fantastic! Some of our most vulnerable learners are these intense, sensitive kids. Such potential, but need support!
— Heidi Hass Gable (@HHG) March 11, 2015

@MlleBallen Seeing more research confirming similarities/crossover btwn gifted & autism. Sensitivities, behaviour, overwhelm and meltdowns.
— Heidi Hass Gable (@HHG) March 11, 2015

@HHG Glad to hear that this is being researched - hopefully future Ss will benefit from these findings!

— Britney Allen (@MlleBallen) March 11, 2015

Anxiety has been part of my education experience for as long as I can remember. It became particularly challenging when I was in grade 8, and the idea of going to school became too much for me. In grade 9, I began the 4C Challenge Program, and that helped immensely. However, I had very mixed feeling about my designation... @HHG's TED Talk has led me to reflect on why I felt that way, and how to support intense learners. (There are some great ideas in my post about the UDL workshop I attended recently.)

What I have learned through my PLN has been helping me to unpack my own experiences and grow as a person. I look forward to seeing where this connected learning journey takes me!

Tech suggestions from #kinderchat/#tiegrad

During #kinderchat on February 23rd, I asked some of the participants from #tiegrad what their favourite tech tool was. Here were their suggestions:

• Kidblog - From an initial look at the website, it seems like a great way to get kids reflecting online. I love the idea of student blogs!
• FreshGrade - One of my colleagues, @TeachInSunshine, wrote this blog post about it. I love the idea of it!
• Explain Everything - I have heard amazing things about this app, and I will get it as soon as I get an iPad!

#edci336chat: tweetiquette & Twitter in Education

Yesterday I moderated a Twitter chat for the first time. It was a lot easier than I thought it would be! I used Hootsuite to schedule the questions. It worked quite well, but I think I will try TweetDeck next time, because a few of the experienced participants suggested it. Here is the storify for the #edci336chat about tweetiquette and Twitter in education.

#edci336chat

On Monday, March 2nd, at 11:30am (PST) I will be facilitating the first #edci336chat. The topic will be tweetiquette and Twitter in education. I created the image above to advertise the chat. I used this image, which I found throuh CC Search, as my starting point.

Yesterday evening I participated in the #BCEdChat about world events in the classroom. Through participating in Twitter chats, I have seen the following things that I would like to use for #edci336chat:

• Q1/A1 format,
• Tweetiquette tips, and
• Storify to curate the chat.

Today I tweeted to a few individuals who I have seen moderate on the #BCStuTeach and #BCEdChat Twitter chats to ask them for some tips.

Do you have any tips on tweetiquette or moderating Twitter chats?

UDL: Universal Design for Learning

Yesterday morning I attended a Universal Design for Learning (UDL) workshop arranged by @UVicEdSA. I created this infographic about the workshop, and further details can be found within this post.

The workshop started with this video that explains UDL:

 

UDL is about facilitating multiple means of representation, engagement, and expression for learners.

The speaker shared these 3 things that specialists from her district would like student-teachers to consider:

1. Visuals,
2. Sensory needs (sensory tools, movement, environment), and
3. Clear, positive communication.

 

Visuals

These are some of the reasons visuals are important:

• Provide consistent cues about students' daily activities and routines,
• Reduce anxiety,
• Help students with language processing difficulties,
• Provide a permanent reminder, and
• Build independence.

Many of us visuals every day. As I mentioned in a previous post, I use Google Keep and my Bullet Journal to keep myself organized. These are some classroom visuals that were suggested:

• Visual schedule,
• Checklists,
• Volume meter,
• Word wall, and
• Time timer.

 Some benefits of the time timer include:

• Promotes ability to judge how much time is left,
• Makes transitions smoother, and
• Builds independence.

As with most strategies, it is best used as often as possible, and not just when a student 'needs' it. 

Some resources to consult include:

• Special Education Technology British Columbia (SET BC) website, and
• Boardmaker for symbol-based learning materials.

Sensory Needs

We each have a unique "sensory diet" that dictates what we need to make sure we're calm, alert, and ready to learn. I have seen some educators tweeting this quote that expresses this:

"In teaching, you can't do the Bloom stuff until you take care of the Maslow stuff." -Alan E. Beck

The importance of movement breaks was emphasized, and we got to share and try out a bunch of strategies. Having movement breaks built in really helped me to keep focused and learning throughout the three-hour workshop! Here are some reasons why movement breaks are important:

• They increase alertness and decrease anxiety,
• Kids get stressed when they don't move enough,
• Movement and sensory experience is necessary to strengthen connections between neurons,
• Promote self-regulation, and
• Help students stay on task.

Sensory tools:

• Keep fingers and feet busy, minds focused, and bodies relaxed,
• Work for some students some students and not for others,
• Work on some days and not others,
• Should be demonstrated and practiced.
• Should be discussed as being tools, not toys.

 Some examples of sensory tools include:

• Fidget tools,
• Stress ball,
• Velcro strips,
• Thinking putty,
• Yarn sections,
• Tension elastics on chairs,
• Juggling balls,
• Pencil grips,
• Resistance bands, and
• Foot rests.

 

Mindfulness

Mindfulness has become a very trendy topic in education lately. It is about paying attention to the present moment without judgement. The speaker said that it means "paying kind and curious attention to how you're feeling, and then making a kind choice."

These books on mindfulness were suggested:

• Mindful Monkey, Happy Panda,
• MindUP,
• 10 Mindful Minutes,
• Focus,
• Whole Brain Child,
• Take the Time: Mindfulness for Kids,
• Still Quiet Place, and
• My Gratitude Jar.

Since the speaker wrote My Gratitude Jar, she read it to us, and I was able to buy a copy right after. It is a wonderful book, and I highly recommend it! I look forward to learning more about mindfulness, through the other books on this list. Check out the video below for an in-depth look at My Gratitude Jar:

Here are some gentle brain breaks that were suggested:

• Take 5,
• Hoberman sphere breathing,
• Tone bar, and
• Mindful eating (have students try paying special attention to their first bite of snack/lunch - how does it feel/taste?).

When doing breathing exercises, instead of saying "deep breaths" try "long, slow breaths". For those interested in learning more about this, Royal Roads University offers an Applied Mindfulness Meditation Certificate program.

 

Clear, Positive Communication

We were advised to reduce language and increase wait time. On average, we give children 1-2 seconds to respond to instructions. For all learners, it is important to chunk information (break it into smaller pieces) appropriately.
 
Peter Johnson has written two books on empowering language: Choice Words and Opening Minds. Those books contain these phrases that could be used by teachers:

• Yet,
• We readers like too...,
• I bet you're proud of yourself,
• Thanks for coming today,
• What if...?, and
• That's not like you...

I started using "I bet you're proud of yourself" yesterday with my grade 1/2 Science Club students when they were coding on studio.code.org. One student answered: "I am! I didn't know how to code before, and now I am doing it!"

Sam Horn wrote Tongue Fu!, a book about verbal conflict. One take-away from this book is that replacing "but" with "and" allows for constructive feedback to be given without taking away the compliment.

Dianne Gossen's Restitution suggests these phrases:

• What's your job now?,
• What can I do to help you so you can...?, and
• When will you be ready to start?

Carol Dweck's Growth Mindset implores educations to ask "I wonder how he or she will learn this..." rather than "I wonder if he or she will learn this..."

Tech-ing In

PDPPPosseRC

Today I published these posts on the PDPPPosseRC blog:

• Mmm, Cookies! by Robert Munsch,
• Science Verse by Jon Scieszka and Lane Smith, and
• Books by Mo Willems.

 

STEM Puns

Visual Journal comparing my STEM Puns cartoons to mentor artist Natalie Dee

I have been having fun with my STEM Puns passion project. I created a visual journal entry comparing my cartoons to online cartoonist Natalie Dee. Through that process, I realized that I would like to try adding texture to my work. 

Twitter Chats 

On February 10th I took part in a #TwitterChatMarathon. I took part in an #EdChat about eliminating "us vs. them" dynamics in education, a #BCStuTeach chat about brain breaks, and a #TeacherFriends chat about diversity. As an added bonus, I won a resource prize from one of the #TeacherFriends moderators, @fuzzlady77.

Last night I participated in a #BCEdChat about social media in schools.

By participating in Twitter chats, I have grown my PLN significantly. I am now connected with experienced and pre-service teachers from a number of countries, including the United States and France.   

Today I found out about Nurph, a Twitter chat platform, which might make this process easier. Currently I used Hootsuite.

#Actua2015

During the final week of January, I attended Actua's national conference in Ottawa. I tweeted about it on the #Actua2015 hashtag. 

Learning with Communities

I helped facilitate a session called "Learning with Communities." During this session, I had the chance to share teachings that I have received from some of the amazing people who have shaped my ways of knowing and being. I am so grateful to the communities that I have had the opportunity to learn with during my time delivering STEM Outreach within this incredible network. Before our session, we got some exciting news: Science Venture won the 2014 National Aboriginal Outreach Award!

Steven Woods, Google

Steven Woods (@sgwoods), Senior Engineering Director at Google Canada, delivered an inspiring keynote on computer science (CS) education and the Codemakers initiative. Here are some of the key messages:

• CS offers new ways to think and make things come to life.
• Educators need to change the way they thing about computer science: "You have the best mission ever. How can you beat conveying magic to children?"
• Diverse teams produce better.
• CS is empowering. Learners can take action, and something is going to happen. 
• We need to change our view of failure: "There is a critical role of failure in innovation."
• "Give learners a goal, but don't tell them how to get there." 
• "Computer science is a theme, rather than a thing." 
• CS is incredibly social and collaborative.

UOttawa Makerspace 

At the UOttawa Makerspace we were encouraged to engage in hands-on, play-based learning. "Find your 7-year old self. Failure and mistakes are awesome." It was absolutely wonderful!

We played with littleBits and Snap Circuits, which is are fun tools for exploring ideas around electricity and circuits. Makey Makey is another great tool for inventing games, instruments, and more! I have used all three of these with kids during various STEM outreach activities, and kids love using them for inquiry-based activities. This exploratory process helped me regain my own sense of wonder.

Something new to me was seeing a Kinect camera hooked up to a MakerBot. This setup allowed people to print 3D images of themselves!

Bottawa: 3-D printing at the UOttawa Makerspace

UOttawa Makerspace

 

Pat Yongpradit, Code.org

Pat Yongpradit (@MrYongpradit), Director of Education at code.org (@codeorg) delivered a stellar keynote about his organization and the resources they have created. Their vision is that every school and every student will have access to high quality computer science education. Here are some of the main points from Mr. Yongpradit's presentation:

• CS education is about equipping kids with the ability to help society. It's not just about creating cool stuff.
• Typically, women can connect with CS more when it is put taught within the greater social context.
• It's not just about using technology, it's about creating technology.
• This is a basic literacy, not just a course.
• Code.org has resources for ages 4 and up. There is CS curriculum for elementary, middle years (science and math), and high school educators to use. K-8 courses 1-4 have a blend of online puzzle tutorials and "unplugged" activities (which do not require computer access). Each course is ~20 hours. They range from early readers to 5th grade reading level.
• There are motivational/educational videos about CS that can be used as a hook/introduction.
• Looking to learn about CS yourself? studio.code.org has all-ages 20-hour courses for beginners.

Here are some corrections to misconceptions that were covered during this presentation:

1. CS > coding
2. CS is foundational
3. CS is changing the world
4. CS is for everyone
5. Don't reinvent the wheel, adapt it!

I used text2mindmap.com to make this mindmap of the principles of CS discussed by
code.org's Pat Yongpradit in his presentation "Beyond an Hour of Code"

I first heard about studio.code.org through @abnorr on Twitter, when I asked him what his favourite #edtech resource was. Since then, I have been recommending it to everyone who asks about coding resources. After learning more about it, I will continue to sing its praises. It's absolutely terrific, and so much fun!

Mr. Yongpradit also mentioned these other free resources for teaching CS:

• Google CS First
• Scratch Creative Computing Guide
• Scratch Jr. (for ages 4-7)

Veritasium: An Element of Truth

Derek Muller (@Veritasium) makes Veritasium videos on YouTube. "Can You Solve This?" is in an interesting one with ideas around the nature of science, particularly falsifiability, and confirmation bias.

He spoke about his thesis on teaching physics through film, and these were some of the main points: 

• When doing a science demo, the prediction step is key to long-term learning. The emotional attachment to a hypothesis helps learners to remember the results and explanations. 
• The best way to engage people is to pose a challenge. Don't give away the answer. Not giving the answer is a powerful thing. 
• Exposing cognitive bias is key to learning. The process of learning is often a process of unlearning.

Here are some other YouTube science educators: 

• Minute Physics,
• Smarter Every Day, and
• AsapSCIENCE.

I am interested in learning more about using YouTube for education, and building in interactivity.

Nicole Belanger, Professional Soul-Barer

Nicole Belanger (@nskbelanger) spoke about the importance of slowing down and reflecting:

We trap ourselves in grinds and fill our lives to the brim. This leaves no room to maneuver and think. You never stop to think if you're moving fast in the right direction.

She shared this quote from Irv Grousbeck that really resonated with me: "It's our vulnerability, not our wisdom, that makes us authentic as teachers and leaders."

EverFi Digital Literacy  

EverFi (@EverFi) has an online course on Digital Literacy and Responsibility. I tried it out, and it's a really engaging, game-based program that would be great for middle years students. EverFi is also launching Future Goals, an online program to engage youth in STEM through hockey. I have connected with @FelishaEverFi about how getting a workshop to come to UVic.

Other Resources

• Natural Curiosity environmental inquiry handbook
• I'm an Engineer series by Aboriginal Access to Engineering
• TouchCounts app by Prof. Nathalie Sinclair of SFU Education
• Math Catcher: Mathematics Through Aboriginal Storytelling
• TeachEngineering.org
• Engineering, Go For It!
• Programme for International Student Assessment 

@STEM_puns

At the conference, I was inspired and encouraged to start a new online project about STEM puns. I love making puns, and I have been dabbling in cartooning with my Bamboo tablet (by Wacom). I am combining these passions in a way that I hope will make STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) terminology more engaging and accessible to a wider audience. I have created pages on Instagram, Twitter, Tumblr, and Facebook. Let's see what stems from this!

Monday Update

Oops!/Aha!
This weekend I worked on an assignment for Math that I would really like to try with future students. It could be used in any subject, and it would be great for fostering metacognition. Indeed, I think it's a great reflective exercise for learners of all ages.

Conferences
Tomorrow night I will be heading to Ottawa for a conference. In addition to getting my assignments done early, and trying to make a winter wardrobe from my coastal temperate rainforest attire, I have been reading some blogs about conferences, including Introvert's Guide to Conferences by @sarahdateechur.

Twitter Chats
 On Sunday night I took part in #BCEdChat, #fslchat, and #1stchat. I was inspired, and connected with some really interesting educators.

#PDPPPosseRC
Here is my blog entry about Project Superhero, and here's one about Stuart Goes to School.

Bonjour les amis!

Practicum News

On Tuesday I found out that my first practicum will be with a K/1 Immersion class!
#kinderchat #1stchat and #frimmchat will be a few of the communities that I look to for support.

#BCStuTeach

On Tuesday evening I took part in the #BCStuTeach chat on bullying, hosted by the founder of the #IAmAntiBully campaign.

#yyjignite

I was very much looking forward to attending the #yyjignite event in person. Unfortunately I was not feeling healthy enough to attend. (In the end, I still participated a little bit via Twitter, and ended up in the Storify about the event.)

My FOMO (Fear of Missing Out) did not win, though. My feelings around missing this event prompted me to do a bit of reading about burnout, including this article with 7 Strategies to Prevent Burnout.

#PDPPPosseRC
On Thursday morning, I used BlueJeans in the #tielab to connect the #PDPPPosseRC with @h_james for a video conference. Here's my blog post about that meeting. Despite fumbling around with the remote, I got it working, and I'm already looking forward to my next video chat!

-Britney (@MlleBallen)

Tech Notes

These are some of my musings/notes from today's in-person #edci336 session...

Twitter Chats
I took part in #fslchat and #bcedchat on Sunday night. The #bcedchat was about innovation, and it's on Storify here. Engaging in this process helped me to improve my Twitter chat skills, become more comfortable with Hootsuite, and grow my PLN.

Coding & Programming
I want to continue working on Codecademy as part of my work for this course in order to further my learning about coding. When I asked what his favourite Education Technology resource was via Twitter,  @abnorr shared a kid-friendly site for practicing coding: studio.code.org. I'd like to spend some time exploring that as well. Through @DW_Programs on Twitter, I found out about lightbot.com, a program for engaging kids in programming.

Blogger
My upcoming goals for Blogger are adding social media icons to this blog, and learning how to follow blogs via RSS feeds.

Personal Learning Plan
Here is a sample personal learning plan (PLP). I might work on creating a formal PLP for myself, but in the meantime this blog, Twitter, and a plethora of sticky notes will serve that purpose.

Privacy & Copyright
I plan on learning more about privacy and copyright. Here are a few phrases that will help to guide the beginning of my learning journey:

• BC Privacy Act,
• International Standards for Technology in Education,
• Creative Commons, and
• open educational resources.

Miscellany
Here are a few hashtags that I've heard about through this class that I'd like to explore further:

• #remixthediss,
• #geniushour,
• #tiegrad,
• #commentsforkids, and
• #sd61learn.

Here are some other resources that I'd like to explore:

• etmooc,
• LiveBinders,
• LiveBinder re: Genius Hour, and
• diigo.

-Britney (@MlleBallen)

Get Connected

Video Conference Tutorials
I am putting together a couple of video conference tutorials about Blogger and Twitter for my colleagues in #edci336. If you are interested in attending one (or both) of these sessions, what sort of topics/questions would you like to see covered?

I will be using BlueJeans for these video conferences. Tomorrow afternooon I will start learning how to host a session using BlueJeans. On Thursday morning I will be using it to host a meeting between the PDPPPosseRC and a local teacher. Hopefully by the time I host the aforementioned tutorials, I will be able to use BlueJeans without getting David Bowie's song "Blue Jean" stuck in my head!

Twitter
By all accounts - and certainly by my Twitter account - I have been tweeting up a storm lately. I have expanded my PLN, increased my engagement in some great communities, found some terrific resources, and just generally been quite inspired by what I have found.

Today I started using Hootsuite, and I think that I am starting to get the hang of it. It certainly didn't take long for me to tweet a pun about it.

One particularly fruitful connection was with the Royal BC Museum. Because of this connection, I have been given the opportunity to be part of a creative team for an outreach project that combines science and comics. What an incredible combination of Science Education and Art Education! 

Face-to-Face Learning
I am so excited to be taking part in these fabulous opportunities for networking and professional development in the near future:

• #yyjignite on Wednesday,
• A national science outreach conference in Ottawa in 1.5 weeks, where I will be sharing what I have learned both while working as a STEM outreach instructor/coordinator, and while taking last term's courses in Indigenous Education and Education Psychology,
• A public information session at Pacific Institute of Inquiry and Innovation (PSII) on February 7th, and
• #edcampvic on February 28th.

Will I be seeing you at any of these events? Are there any other great events coming up? Let's get connected!

-Britney (@MlleBallen) 

#PDPPPosseRC

I just created a new blog for my cohort, PDPPPosse Resource Club. It's going to be a K-7 resource sharing page. On Twitter we'll be using the hashtag #PDPPPosseRC.
 
-Britney (@MlleBallen)

SMART Term Begins!

This term my classes are SMART: Science, Math, Art, Reading, and Tech. I am so tech-xcited!

As part of my learning journey this term, I get to take part in a personalized course about Education Technology. Here are a few of the things I hope to accomplish as a part of that:

• Enhancing and using this blog,
• Engaging with education communities on Twitter* to expand my PLN (Personal Learning Network), and
• Expanding my repertoire of education technologies by exploring tools such as infographics, coding, and podcasts.

*On Twitter, I can be found at @MlleBallen & the course hashtag is #edci336.

Mlle. Allen