A special thank you to Cathy Mere of Reflect and Refine, Michelle Nero of Literacy Learning Zone, and Laura Komos for hosting #cyberPD 2015. Click here to learn more about #cyberPD.
#cyberPD 2015
So let’s take a quick & snappy look at chapters 3-5 from Digital Reading What’s Essential in Grades 3-8.
#cyberPD 2015
Three…Check it Out! – 3 digital resources that have piqued my curiosity
There are so many excellent resources in chapters 3-5 that I found myself a bit overwhelmed. But that’s okay! I was able to slim it down to three resources that I feel would be worthwhile for my classroom of learners.
- Padlet (padlet.com): This is a digital bulletin board that allows students to collect and share their thinking. I feel Padlet will promote individual thinking and broaden the understanding of the text as learners share their thoughts.
- Kidsreads (www.kidsreads.com) & PebbleGo (www.pebblego.com): I love the ability of always having fresh and new reading material for my learners. Kidsreads allows students to read book reviews and review reading lists. PebbleGo, on the other hand, has a vast selection on nonfiction reading with videos to engage the reader. I also feel these would be excellent sites to refer to parents who are seeking reading material for their child.
- Student Blogging: The concept of student blogging keeps popping up everywhere I turn! I just need to take the plunge and get my learners online. There were several platforms mentioned throughout chapters 3-5, but I feel that Kidblog (www.kidblog.com) is the platform that I would like to use.
Two…Take It Away! – 2 ways I would like to connect my classroom to the outside digital world
- Global Read Aloud (theglobalreadaloud.com): Since I do not have a self-contained classroom I would love to collaborate with several classroom teachers in my building and experience the connection of one book to the world. The Global Read Aloud site is already up and running and the timing of the event is perfect. There is plenty of time to prepare and plan for the event and it does not interfere with state testing. 🙂
Save the date: October 5, 2015-November 13, 2015
- World Read Aloud Day (litworld.org): This may be perfect for my learners since I do not have a self-contained classroom or for a teacher who wants to connect to the world but does not want to participate in an event that lasts several weeks.
Save the date: February 24, 2016
One…Quote It! – 1 quote, big meaning
Sometimes the best strategies for a teacher is to simply get out of the way and let students make some of the decisions that might traditionally be made by their teacher. (p.63)
- The vignette on page 75 between Mr. Jones and Colin made me chuckle! And, it made me realize that our learners want to take ownership in their education. As the teacher, I need to be willing to relinquish that ownership to them.
Runner, Reader, & Rockin' Mom 
There is not that much variation in the content of everyone’s responses, but I am having fun noticing all the different ways people STRUCTURE their responses — your 3,2,1 might take the cake for most creative!
Thank you! I greatly appreciate your kind words! 😊
Amy- I just learned about Padlet this past Spring and I use it frequently to checking with students during lessons or as a place for them to respond to a reading. I’m considering how I can turn over the responsibility of updating the Announcement section of the class page to the students which I usually write as a summary of class. I also want to get more involved in creating community around reading aloud. I will have to think more about how to use his with pre-service teachers. Thanks for sharing your thoughts. Suz
I think you are a Padlet expert! Thank you for sharing the various ways you use it. It has given me more food for thought!
Thank you for the idea about the Global Read Aloud! I work with teachers as a professor/coach and thought this was a great idea, but knew I could not actually try it as I did not have a classroom. You inspired me to think about how I could connect with classrooms instead and join them together, something I could do with my graduate students and the teachers I coach with. Thank you!
You are welcome! Happy Reading!
You are welcome! I am hoping to try it out this fall and hope you do too!
I LOVE your organization. There is so much information, this is a smart way to organize it. I’ve never done Global Read Aloud, that’s a goal for me!
Thanks, Michele! I think what I am loving most about #cyberPD is all the ideas and inspiration I am finding from others in the group.
Amy,
I loved your “quick and snappy” look at the chapters. As for blogging, I think it is the best thing I ever did in my classroom. Not only did it give my students space for a lot of digital learning, but I learned so much about each of them as they shared their world from their perspectives.
Cathy
Thank for sharing your personal experience with blogging. I think if I start with my 6th grade students the transition will be smoother for me.
Love the 3-2-1 way of responding. And I loved the Colin story too. I always learn so much from honest classroom stories!