The Great NaNoRiMo Adventure

Have you ever dreamed of writing your own novel? For a creative group of seventh graders, their dream may become a reality. Ten students from Mrs. Lambert's ELA classes will meet in the LMC every Tuesday to participate in NaNoRiMo. During the month of November, these students have set goals to write a specific amount of words with the hope of finishing a novel by the end of the month.

To kick off NaNoRiMo, and to help our students think critically about their writing, we Skyped with author Margo Sorenson. Margo began by sharing various tips for our writers. She especially focused on how to create strong characters, the planning process, and the elements of an engaging story. She even shared some of her first and final drafts to remind students about the importance of revision.

Students had many questions to ask afterward. This was a great opportunity to learn some trade secrets from a professional writer! Students wanted to know things such as how to come up with names for characters, where to find story ideas, and Margo's biggest struggles as a writer. After our call ended, students were buzzing with excitement about what they learned and about finally diving into NaNoRiMo.

Stay tuned for updates from our NaNoRiMo group during the month of November. I look forward to seeing what these exceptional students create.

Around the US (and Canada) with Mystery Skype

During the past couple of weeks, seventh graders in Mrs. Krebsbach's and Mrs. Allen's Social Studies classes traveled to different parts of the US and Canada by connecting with other classrooms through Mystery Skypes. Once the game was over, and when time remained, it was fun to ask getting-to-know you questions such as "How many students are in your school?" and "What is the weather like in your city?" We had a GREAT time meeting students from different locations!

DPMS Kicks Off GRA!

Today we kicked off our celebration of the Global Read Aloud by meeting one of our partner schools via a Mystery Skype. Eighth graders in Mrs. Meyer's and Mrs. O'Hearn's classes used their geography skills to correctly identify our partner school's location. It was certainly fun learning more about the differences between the "big" city of De Pere and the "small" city of Campbellsburg, Indiana (population 573)! We look forward to connecting with them during GRA to discuss Orbiting Jupiter.

Google Hangout with Monterrey, Mexico Provides Authentic Learning Experience

Who is your favorite teacher?
What is your favorite color?
What type of music do you like?
Do you like hamburgers?
Do you know the movie Frozen?

The above questions may seem simple, but translating these questions into Spanish and then carrying on a conversation surrounding the topic with native speakers challenged our 8th grade beginning Spanish speakers to test their skills in an authentic way.

Using Google Hangouts, we met with a class of teens from Monterrey, Mexico. Each of our students had the chance to sit in our "hotseat," ask questions in Spanish, and then carry on a conversation based on the response. In turn, students in Monterrey also asked us questions in English.

While the conversations related mostly to "favorites," they also turned philosophical and funny at points. One Monterrey student wondered how we would define success. At a different time, our students wanted to know if Monterrey students were familiar with the dance move "the dab." Laughter broke out on both sides when Monterrey students sang Frozen's "Let it Go" in Spanish and when we accidentally mistook their question about the Japanese comic form Anime for favorite animal.

Overall, it was amazing to see how easily kids from different parts of the world connected with one another. Their likes tended to be more similar than different, and it was most impressive how well all students could carry on a conversation and read between the lines despite the language barrier.

De Pere Middle School students had a fantastic time getting to know the students from Monterrey! Muchos gracias to Patricia Gonzalez and all of your fabulous students!

3 Amazing Authors, 1 Inspiring Day

We had one great welcome back from Thanksgiving break on Monday, November 30.  Our 8th grade ELA classes had the opportunity to Skype with three exceptional young adult authors throughout the day.  Authors Rachel Vail, Stacey Lee, and Danette Vigilante volunteered to talk with our students about their work and the writing process while at the same time answering all of our students' burning questions.

Our morning began with the very entertaining Rachel Vail, author of over 30 books for children and young adults and the most recently published book Unfriended.  Funny and warm, Rachel was ready for our five classes of students to jump right in with questions.  

Our very curious students wanted to learn more about how long it takes to write a book, where she finds ideas for her writing, and even the age of her children.  Rachel's humor and enthusiasm certainly kept our students engaged and entertained during our 45 minutes together.  

Next, we met with new YA author Stacey Lee.  Stacey's debut novel Under a Painted Sky is a unique piece of historical fiction that tells the story of two girls who head West in the year 1849 to escape from two difficult situations.  Stacey was eager to tell students more about her background and her road to publishing.  After many failed guesses, students were not able to come close to figuring out that she revised her book over 600 times before it was finally published.  Stacey also wowed our students by showing us an edited page from her original manuscript; this page was almost completely covered in red penned comments and edits.  Even professional writers have to revise constantly.

Monday's Skype visits ended with author Danette Vigilante, writer of The Trouble with Half a Moon and Saving Baby Doe.  After sharing a bit about herself, Danette read aloud the first chapter of The Trouble with Half a Moon.  Students learned about how Danette went from being labeled a poor reader as a child to a professional writer.  They also heard more about how Danette's past inspired some of the story that eventually became The Trouble with Half a Moon.  

I am always in awe of authors who will take time out of their busy schedules to meet with kids, share their stories, and ultimately inspire them to grow as readers and writers.  DPMS is especially lucky that all 8th grade students had the opportunity to make such meaningful connections.  A special thank you goes out to Melinda at Penguin Publishing who worked her magic to match all of our students up with these fantastic authors.  Thank you especially to Rachel, Stacey, and Danette for sharing your important stories and showing our young readers that their voices are important and do matter.

Skype with Lynda Mullaly Hunt

Today our 8th grade DPMS students had the opportunity to meet an author for the very first time. As an extra bonus, we were so lucky that this author happened to be Lynda Mullaly Hunt.  After sharing her inspirations for both of her books One for the Murphys and Fish in a Tree, our students had the opportunity to ask her questions.  Excited about speaking with a professional author for the very first time, our students were especially interested in learning more about Lynda's writing process.  Our students wanted to know everything about how to overcome writer's block, avoiding writing a "bad ending," and where she finds her writing ideas.

After saying goodbye, the library was abuzz with "That was so cool!" and "She was so good!"  Thank you Lynda Mullaly Hunt for inspiring our young writers and giving your time to speak with our students.  Writers who take time for their young readers show kids that their voices matter.

Packers and Patriots Fans Unite for One Huddle

Today Integrated Technology students participated in a very fun Mystery Skype.  After guessing one another's respective locations, each school took time to share some information about their state's NFL team.  On our end we shared information about the Green Bay Packers, including the team's history, record, and famous players. 

Once our Mystery Skype revealed that we were speaking with students from Foxborough, MA, we discovered that they were New England Patriots fans.  This Skype was set-up as part of their One Huddle program.  One Huddle was designed to connect young Patriots fans with students living near where the Patriots' opposing teams play.  This gives students an opportunity to learn more about different US regions and the NFL teams in that area.  Despite the fact that football fans can be very passionate about their teams, through our conversation today, we learned that we actually have much in common.  (Our teams even currently have the same record right now!) 

Thanks to Mrs. Clements' fourth graders for doing such a great job today!  We are hoping for a potential Packers-Patriots Superbowl match-up so that we have the chance to meet with one another again.

Learning About a Career in Computer Programming

I am so excited about Skype in the Classroom's Hour of Code speaker series!  They have put together an excellent group of talented technology professionals who are willing to speak with classrooms to share their experiences and advice for students dreaming of a related career.  Yesterday, fifth graders in Integrated Technology listened to our special guest speaker, Sanjay Raghani, Software Development Engineer at Skype, share his advice for success in a computer programming career.  His biggest advice? Work hard in your math and science classes, and find any opportunity that you can to reinforce your skills.  He suggested that students join school math and science competitions and robotics teams.  He also explained the tasks that he must complete everyday at his job and shared some of the skills that were essential to success in his career.  The students were especially entertained when he gave them a problem to solve: what if a money broke into the room where the server that hosts their school district's website is housed?  Students had to share some different solutions that would help solve this problem.  He stressed that at his job this is how his team needs to think; they need to always figure out multiple solutions to a problem before they even happen to be prepared for any situation that may occur.

At the end of the presentation, students had a chance to ask their questions.  They were curious about college classes that prepared him, whether or not he liked using computers and electronics when he was younger (He did!), and what were some of his job perks (no set schedule!).  Before we said goodbye, we posed for a group photo.

Thanks to Sanjay Raghani for a great learning opportunity.  Thanks also to Skype in the Classroom for putting together such a great group of speakers.

A Peek Inside a Career at Xbox

This summer I had the chance to speak one-on-one with a few people responsible for the awesome space that is Skype in the Classroom about a new computer science related speaker series.  I was very excited about the potential to have these speakers talk with my students and open them up to careers that they may have never considered possible.  I was pleasantly surprised this month when I visited Skype in the Classroom's website to find a section entitled "Hour of Code," featuring technology professionals volunteering to speak with students about their careers.  I jumped on this opportunity and sent messages to several speakers who I thought would be of interest to 5th graders in Integrated Technology.

John Solaro, Principal Design Manager for Xbox, graciously volunteered to be our first guest.

 
Prior to our session, students worked to brainstorm questions that would help them learn more about John's career.  Questions ranged from "What college classes did you take?" to "What are some of the perks of your job?"  Throughout the Skype session, students also learned more about the process involved in making an actual Xbox system and the tremendous amount of time and people it takes to create one gaming system.  John also stressed the importance of collaboration and taking classes in a variety of subjects.  Although we were not able to touch the surface of the 33 questions students had prepared, we were able to learn a lot about the skills and education necessary to work in a similar career.

After the presentation, students shared some of their favorite highlights.  Among them included:
"I can't believe that he gets free Xboxes and games!"
"That's so cool that real kids test out the games before they are made."
"I never knew that it takes years to actually make an Xbox."
"You need a lot of people to make an Xbox.  I was surprised that there are so many people working on it."
"He played a lot of video games too when he was a kid!"

Skype in the Classroom has organized an amazing opportunity for students.  Not only do students get to meet some very cool people, but now they have a chance to ask pertinent questions of the people who work in a career that may have seemed out of reach for some students.  This program is going to open up doors.  Take a look at what Skype has to offer by visiting their site and then clicking on the "Hour of Code" section. 

We look forward to our next speaker, Sanjay Raghani, Software Development Engineer at Skype on December 4.

Around the World in One Day

It still amazes me sometimes how easy it is to connect with other classrooms as far away as the opposite end of the Earth with simply a click of a button.  On Tuesday, our students had the chance to travel the world using Skype.  Within hours Mrs. Berglund's students connected with schools in France and Spain.  Fifth grade Integrated Technology students also did a Mystery Skype with a class from St. Angela School in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.

Our day began with a planned Mystery Skype with students located in Lyon, France.  Technical difficulties in France forced us change our plan to a simple question-and-answer session.  This turned out to be even more exciting for students in both locations as they were very anxious to learn more about one another and their respective cultures.  The students in France were especially surprised to learn that students here were allowed to chew gum at school and carry cell phones.

Our next stop took us to Cuenca, Spain.  This time Mrs. Berglund's 7th graders engaged in a traditional Mystery Skype.  It took us awhile to figure out the other class's location, but our students' diligence using Google Maps paid off with a successful ending.

Our final tour took my 5th grade Integrated Technology class to Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.  My students quickly guessed our partner's location, but the extra time allowed for us to ask Mr. Wasik's class questions about what life was like there.  The -5 below zero temperature and the snow piled up on the ground did not slow this class down! (Thanks, Mr. Wasik for a peek outside of your window).

In today's world students can do more than just read about other cultures.  Skype, and Skype in the Classroom in particular, has made it possible for students to easily virtually connect with someone living in a different country.  The connections that we experienced on this day gave all students a peek into daily life that no textbook could give.

A Slice of Life at NLMSIS and Durfee Technology Magnet School

In today's Integrated Technology class, 5th hour students had a chance to partner with 5th graders from Durfee Technology Magnet School in Decatur, IL to learn more about what life is like for them.  Each school created "slice of life" videos describing our days and our favorite parts.  After viewing the other school's videos, students generated a list of questions that they would like to ask.  Today we were able to Skype with our partner school and get those questions answered.  We each shared a short introduction and then waited to get all of our burning questions answered.

What did we learn?  Here is a little "slice of life" from Durfee Technology Magnet School:

• They are a technology magnet school and each student has his or her own iPad to use throughout the day.
• Students have to apply to go to their school.
• They get out of school in TWO days but begin on August 14.
• They do not have lockers.
• They do not switch teachers for classes.  They have to stay with the same teacher all day.
• They live in a city with a population of about 65,000.
• They use iTunes U to watch videos and listen to class content.
• Their teacher uses an online behavior management system called Class Dojo to reward and monitor student behavior.
• Their daily schedule looks very similar to ours.
• They offer similar extracurriculars except for cheerleading, which is not offered to 5th graders here.

We found it so interesting to hear about their similarities and differences.  This was a great opportunity to hear about what a day is like in another school.

You can learn more about a "slice of life" from New London Middle Intermediate School by watching our video.  Learn what an average day is like from the eyes of our 5th graders.

Mystery Skype with Spain

Today 5th hour Integrated Technology students had a different type of Mystery Skype experience.  They were able to meet a class outside of North America.  These students were from Cuenca, Spain.  Our students were even more shocked to discover that while it was 12:00 here, it was 7:00 in Cuenca, and their students were still in school!

Since this was our first Mystery Skype with anyone outside of North America, it took the students a bit of time before they were able to narrow the location to Europe and then Spain.  Guessing the city was more of a challenge.  Students asked questions such as "Does your city border a major body of water?" or "Is your city south of Madrid?" to ultimately figure out that they lived in Cuenca.  Students in Cuenca were finally able to guess our state after learning that we were east of the Mississippi River and north of Arkansas.

At the end, my students expressed excitement in knowing that they were talking with students from the other side of the world.  Even though I have done countless Skype sessions with other schools and experts, I am still amazed at its power to get kids excited about learning and show them that even though someone else may be living on the other side of the world, ultimately we have more in common than we would initially believe.

Skype with Ice Dogs Author Terry Lynn Johnson

Today 5th graders in my Integrated Technology class had a very special surprise.  We Skyped with Ice Dogs author Terry Lynn Johnson.  Ice Dogs tells the story of teen musher Victoria Secord, who must overcome many obstacles after the death of her father and being stranded with her team of dogs in the wilderness during a snowstorm.

Johnson's presentation today not only got students excited to read Ice Dogs, but it also opened students up to the sport of dog sledding.  She shared with us stories of her past experiences as a musher and some of the equipment and gear mushers use.

Johnson also talked about the writing process, emphasizing the importance of revision.  Here is how her first draft of Ice Dogs looked after it was returned by her editor.

She had to revise six times before her book was completed! 

Then, Johnson read the beginning of Ice Dogs. 

After only a few pages, our students were hooked!  We decided that this would make a great class read-aloud.

Finally, our Skype session ended with a little trivia game and some Q&A.  Students had to guess what the words on the card meant in the sport of dog sledding.

Then, students had time to ask Johnson some questions.  Our students wanted to know what inspired her to be a writer and musher and how she became interested in dog sledding.

 

This was one of the best author Skypes that I have ever had the pleasure to be a part of.  Johnson's presentation was not only informative, but it was exciting, engaging, and got the kids hooked.  I cannot wait to read this book aloud to this group of students.  This was a fantastic way to get kids to learn more about the sport of dog sledding as well as interest them in reading and writing. A special thank you to Johnson for her enthusiasm and sharing her exciting experiences.

7th Grade Skype with Olympic Torch Bearer Jon Tait

Yesterday during Bulldog Time all 7th graders had a Skype visit from a very special speaker,  Jon Tait, a physical education teacher from the United Kingdom and an Olympic torch bearer for his country during the summer 2012 London Olympics.  Jon's presentation about the meaning and history of the Olympic torch and his feelings representing his country as a torch bearer were the focus of his presentation.  Students also had the opportunity to ask questions about his experiences- everything from what he wore as a torch bearer to how he was chosen to represent his country.  This was done using Skype's group call feature, allowing us to connect 6 Skype accounts at once.

Jon's presentation provided a perfect connection to 7th graders' current integrated Language Arts/Social Studies project.  Students are connecting what they are learning about world countries in Social Studies to their Language Arts study of persuasion.  Currently, students are in groups researching details about one country in the world.  Next week, they will take what they learned about that country and create a persuasive video in Language Arts that attempts to persuade the "Olympic Committee" to host the next Olympic games in their country.

You may wonder who are the elite members of the "Olympic Committee" that will be deciding which country is selected for the next games.  The answer is EVERYONE!  As soon as students' videos are complete, we will send out a link asking for you to decide which video is the winner.  Stay tuned for the completed videos at the beginning of March.

A big thank you goes out to Jon Tait for taking his time to share his experiences with our students.  His passion and ability to easily connect with kids really impacted our students.  At the end of the day as I passed students in the hall, I heard so many "thank yous" and "that was awesome." 

To learn more about Jon Tait, visit his Skype in the Classroom page or follow him on Twitter @TeamTait.

Mystery Skype and Guest Storyteller

Today was a fun day in Integrated Technology. Students experienced their first Skypes.  In 5th hour, students had a special surprise guest speaker: Ms. Levinson from Miami, FL.  Ms. Levinson is a library media specialist and a storyteller who Skypes stories with students every Tuesday.  Today she read us

Believe Me, Goldilocks Rocks!: The Story of the Three Bears as Told by Baby Bear (The Other Side of the Story) by Nancy Loewen.  Students were entertained by the fractured fairytale where Goldilocks takes selfies while jumping on Baby Bear's bed and scares the bears when they arrive home and find her sleeping in the bed.  What a great way first Skype this was!

In 6th hour, students experienced their first Mystery Skype.  We used Google Maps to narrow the location of our mystery class.  What did we learn?  We were speaking with a group of fourth graders from Maplewood, MN.  Ms. Joseph's class did an excellent job asking questions and guessing that we were actually in a neighboring state.  At the end we shared a little information about our respective cities and even had some time to share what we were currently reading.

Students did such a great job today.  Stay tuned to find out who we will be Mystery Skyping with tomorrow.

Skype with Author Dori Hillestad Butler

Fifth graders participating in our school book club, Lit Masters, had the special opportunity to Skype with Dori Hillestad Butler, the author of the book that they recently read, The Truth About Truman School.  The Truth About Truman School tells the story of a school that has a problem with cyberbullying.  The book is told through different points of view and ultimately shows how cyberbullying affects multiple characters.  During our Skype visit with Butler, students were able to ask all of their unanswered questions including why she chose to end the story the way that she did and where she got her inspiration for the characters.  Students also were curious about Butler's background, how she felt about writing as a child, and what advice she had for aspiring writers.  It was a special opportunity indeed as these students were able to get inside the mind of the writer of a book that they enjoyed.  View some pictures from our experience below.

A very special thank you goes to Dori Hillestad Butler for taking the time to talk with us and share her passion for writing.

Mystery Skype

Fifth graders in Mrs. Young's Integrated Technology classes practiced their digital communication skills by participating in a Mystery Skype with another classroom located in an unknown place in the world.  Students took turns asking one another "yes" or "no" questions to figure out where the others were located.

Throughout the process, we were hard at work using Google Maps to zoom in on particular areas and formulate new questions based on the previous answers given.

In the end, we learned where are new friends were from; fifth hour students talked with fourth graders from Los Altos, CA, and sixth hour students correctly guessed that our Mystery Skype partners were from Decatur, IL.

We even had time to ask one another questions about our daily lives.  What did we learn?  We are more alike than different (except for the sports teams for which we cheer!)

Thank you to our partner schools for the great experience and for helping us learn more about communication in the 21st century.