This blog addresses the following: classroom management, working with exceptionalities, and technology in middle schools.
(Know that people will be responding to your posts and offering their insights and advice.)
I am in a session that talks about publishing. It is giving advice and sharing opportunities for editors to share their work. Some of the journals relate specifically to research. Many of the articles are open source, meaning the articles do not require a password or a requirement of membership. Some of the advice is to use:
Clarity: use the APA manual... chapters 2 and 3 will give you good advice.
Significance: how your manuscript relates to current research. Include references to existing field work, and
Integrity: internal consistency, support your arguments with evidence and explain the significance as it relates to current work. Explain how your work fills the missing pieces. What is the significance of your work?
They are sharing information about the power of research and the need for teachers to share their work. North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee all have Middle Level journals and Middle Level conferences. I would recommend
Middle Grades Review is a journal out of Vermont. Two areas of interest.
Technology for Learning, January, 15, 2018
LGBTQ Youth in the middle Grades, September 15, 2018
Saturday, December 30, 2017
Time to refocus
In a few weeks I will be giving presentations on Mindfulness in the middle school classroom. And while my content focus will be on mathematics, the strategies and theory base are generic. The following is part of the idea that when we focus on kindness, gratitude, and awe, we are happier; and when we are happier we have the potential to learn more.
Over the past several years I have noticed more evidence of anxiety and stress in young people. Principals in our region are concerned with the number of students experiencing trauma, incidences of depression, and concern for the emotional well-being of their students. We teach them, thinking content is all they need to be successful. As middle grade teachers and leaders, we have known for a long time that learning is cognitive and affective. We have also known that we need to take care of our students. A way to do that is to integrate more activities that take care of our students' social and emotional needs in our classes. One way to do this is to integrate strategies associated with contemplative or mindful practice: kindness, gratitude, and awe.
On kindness. I took a MOOC called, 'The Science of Happiness.' This eight week course, run by UC Berkeley, examined features of kindness, gratitude, and mindfulness. In each of these topics, research and activities were shared. In a video on 'kindness-happiness loop", the instructor shares, ' that kindness, caring, volunteering, assisting others, is good for your life expectancy. So what are some other advantages or benefits to kindness? ... the more I practice kinndness, the more I'm enhancing the welfare of others, I tend to be less lonely on a regular basis, I show stronger immune profiles, I have better health symptoms, sort of less pain and the like, I have fewer bodily aches, [and]. I am working with a middle school that has implemented 'mindfulness' twice a week. This school is using advisory time to do this. I am also working with an after school enrichment class, in the same school, where I am implementing these practices. I report lower levels of depression. There are studies that show that volunteerism and helping others is twice as protective for your cardiovascular profile as taking aspirin.'
On Gratitude. One resource I have used to combine math and mindfulness is from mindfulschools.org. This organization offers courses in mindful fundamentals and activities for younger and middle/secondary children. In a personal reflection, Orin Sofer (2017) talks about the power of gratitude, 'Gratitude is, by definition, deeply connected with a sense of presence and contentment.’ The following link takes you to a gratitude exercise which includes steps for processing Gratitude..http://www.mindfulschools.org/personal-practice/nourished-by-gratitude/
A second resource I have used is the characterlab.org. This organization suggests there are six characteristics of successful adults. The characteristics are grit, curiosity, growth mindset, zest, and gratitude. On their website, under gratitude they share, 'When we express gratitude—especially when it’s heartfelt rather than a reflexive throw-away—we strengthen our relationships with other people.' for each of the characteristics, there are suggested activities for students to participate in to develop these six traits.
On awe. A third concept to consider while teaching math is 'awe.' Awe was a topic in the MOOC course that took me back to my first experiences with mindfulness. In 2013, I participated in the European League of Middle Schools conference (ELMLE.org). We participated in a mindful walk, quietly wandering in a beautiful area of Rome, Italy to take in sights, sounds, and smells. In our own region of the world, we have the chance to 'notice,' to 'reflect,' and to 'appreciate,' our surroundings through the mathematics and art that is in our everyday life.
So if gratitude, kindness and awe make a difference in our lives, a way to consider these is to integrate them in our schools and in our classes something to consider is to make these elements part of normal interdisciplinary experiences for your students.
We can use additional time in our teams to implement projects related to our students' interests and needs. My recommendation is to consider one of these to focus on: kindness, gratitude, or awe for a month and check in with your students. Mindfulness can take as little time as a minute, a deep breath, an openness to work together to appreciate and love your subject.
Where to start. We must get to know our students. We must help them get along with one another. Start with a Gratitude Journal. As we study and learn about math in our world, consider how math is part of our world. Suppose we ask our students what they love to do. What do you love to do?
Sing, dance, knit, sew, paint, surf, take photographs, draw, skateboard, play an instrument, play sports, act, cook, read. Did you know, that when you engage in these activities, they make you happier? So we are going to do a study.
A gratitude Journal. One activity that can impact you and your students is to consider what gratitude is in light of mathematics. An example is to take specific math concepts and consider either images or graphs to appreciate the value and visuals associated with mathematics.
In your math gratitude journal write the following. These are taken from the greater good website.
What we notice in our lives for which we can be grateful
How we think about why we have been given those things
How we feel about the things we have been given
Using web resources and focusing on Mindfulness can improve classroom management and enhance students' own knowledge of using technology to take care of themselves.
Over the past several years I have noticed more evidence of anxiety and stress in young people. Principals in our region are concerned with the number of students experiencing trauma, incidences of depression, and concern for the emotional well-being of their students. We teach them, thinking content is all they need to be successful. As middle grade teachers and leaders, we have known for a long time that learning is cognitive and affective. We have also known that we need to take care of our students. A way to do that is to integrate more activities that take care of our students' social and emotional needs in our classes. One way to do this is to integrate strategies associated with contemplative or mindful practice: kindness, gratitude, and awe.
On kindness. I took a MOOC called, 'The Science of Happiness.' This eight week course, run by UC Berkeley, examined features of kindness, gratitude, and mindfulness. In each of these topics, research and activities were shared. In a video on 'kindness-happiness loop", the instructor shares, ' that kindness, caring, volunteering, assisting others, is good for your life expectancy. So what are some other advantages or benefits to kindness? ... the more I practice kinndness, the more I'm enhancing the welfare of others, I tend to be less lonely on a regular basis, I show stronger immune profiles, I have better health symptoms, sort of less pain and the like, I have fewer bodily aches, [and]. I am working with a middle school that has implemented 'mindfulness' twice a week. This school is using advisory time to do this. I am also working with an after school enrichment class, in the same school, where I am implementing these practices. I report lower levels of depression. There are studies that show that volunteerism and helping others is twice as protective for your cardiovascular profile as taking aspirin.'
On Gratitude. One resource I have used to combine math and mindfulness is from mindfulschools.org. This organization offers courses in mindful fundamentals and activities for younger and middle/secondary children. In a personal reflection, Orin Sofer (2017) talks about the power of gratitude, 'Gratitude is, by definition, deeply connected with a sense of presence and contentment.’ The following link takes you to a gratitude exercise which includes steps for processing Gratitude..http://www.mindfulschools.org/personal-practice/nourished-by-gratitude/
A second resource I have used is the characterlab.org. This organization suggests there are six characteristics of successful adults. The characteristics are grit, curiosity, growth mindset, zest, and gratitude. On their website, under gratitude they share, 'When we express gratitude—especially when it’s heartfelt rather than a reflexive throw-away—we strengthen our relationships with other people.' for each of the characteristics, there are suggested activities for students to participate in to develop these six traits.
On awe. A third concept to consider while teaching math is 'awe.' Awe was a topic in the MOOC course that took me back to my first experiences with mindfulness. In 2013, I participated in the European League of Middle Schools conference (ELMLE.org). We participated in a mindful walk, quietly wandering in a beautiful area of Rome, Italy to take in sights, sounds, and smells. In our own region of the world, we have the chance to 'notice,' to 'reflect,' and to 'appreciate,' our surroundings through the mathematics and art that is in our everyday life.
So if gratitude, kindness and awe make a difference in our lives, a way to consider these is to integrate them in our schools and in our classes something to consider is to make these elements part of normal interdisciplinary experiences for your students.
We can use additional time in our teams to implement projects related to our students' interests and needs. My recommendation is to consider one of these to focus on: kindness, gratitude, or awe for a month and check in with your students. Mindfulness can take as little time as a minute, a deep breath, an openness to work together to appreciate and love your subject.
Where to start. We must get to know our students. We must help them get along with one another. Start with a Gratitude Journal. As we study and learn about math in our world, consider how math is part of our world. Suppose we ask our students what they love to do. What do you love to do?
Sing, dance, knit, sew, paint, surf, take photographs, draw, skateboard, play an instrument, play sports, act, cook, read. Did you know, that when you engage in these activities, they make you happier? So we are going to do a study.
A gratitude Journal. One activity that can impact you and your students is to consider what gratitude is in light of mathematics. An example is to take specific math concepts and consider either images or graphs to appreciate the value and visuals associated with mathematics.
In your math gratitude journal write the following. These are taken from the greater good website.
What we notice in our lives for which we can be grateful
How we think about why we have been given those things
How we feel about the things we have been given
Using web resources and focusing on Mindfulness can improve classroom management and enhance students' own knowledge of using technology to take care of themselves.
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