...as an Instructional Technologist
Promoting STEM Through Literature
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Together with Judy Bowling (Wayne RESA), we created the project, Promoting STEM Through Literature. " It has been one of the most rewarding projects I've worked on to-date. "Use literature to get your students excited about science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) by actively involving them in the design thinking process. Develop their inquiry and problem-solving skills, while helping them see that with perseverance, anyone can be innovative and invent new things! We will walk you through a lesson that begins with a reading activity and moves into the design thinking process, focusing on one of the Maker Kit items available for free checkout through your local REMC in Michigan. All of our lessons are available for free, as well."
Promoting STEM Through Literature Resources |
Monroe Co. EdTech Leaders
One of my goals this year was to create a network of educators throughout Monroe County who contribute to the greater good of their buildings and districts in the area of Educational Technology. We have over 55 members (since September, 2016) and are growing every month! We meet monthly on the the 3rd Thursday of the month from 4:00 - 5:30 and talk about what's happening in the state in regard to EdTech. It's enabled me to build personal relationships with many educators around the county and promote networking and collaboration among our group, as well. I also have contacts in almost every building in the county, which has helped us immensely!
Running Agendas: 2016-2017 | 2017-2018 | 2018-2019
Running Agendas: 2016-2017 | 2017-2018 | 2018-2019
The METS Group
I held the Communications Chair in the METS Group, the Michigan Education Technology Specialists Group, from 2016 - 2018. We work to support education professionals in Michigan whose role focuses on the effective integration of education technology through professional development, consultation, and classroom modeling. The METS network facilitates communication and collaboration among peers virtually and face-to-face.
Our group is growing more and more every day as we begin to offer dedicated professional development and networking events for METS members. It is free to join and we are proud to have a positive impact on school climate in Michigan.
Check out our Bring-a-Buddy Scholarship fund and Idea Slam, two programs we run to bring money to promote change in the state of Michigan. We are sponsored by The REMC Association of Michigan.
Our group is growing more and more every day as we begin to offer dedicated professional development and networking events for METS members. It is free to join and we are proud to have a positive impact on school climate in Michigan.
Check out our Bring-a-Buddy Scholarship fund and Idea Slam, two programs we run to bring money to promote change in the state of Michigan. We are sponsored by The REMC Association of Michigan.
Geek in the House
We are constantly reflecting on how we can have a greater impact on teaching and learning in Monroe County. As the new professional development plans rolled out at the state level, eliminating much of the need for PD SCECH hours, we realized we had to change our practice of PD offerings, as well. We implemented a job-embedded PD program called Geek in the House to adapt to the new climate in educational PD offerings. We are in a building once a month and teachers drop in on their prep or lunch, eliminating the need to come to the ISD for professional development. We've had great success with our pilot programs this year and are hoping to add more schools to our Geek in the House program next year.
...Current and Past Collaborative Coaching Projects
"The Constitution in my Everyday Life"
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I had the opportunity to work with the 5th grade teachers at MacArthur K-8 to help develop and integrate a new capstone project for their 5th grade students titled, "The Constitution in my Everyday Life". I worked with the teachers over four weeks to develop and plan an innovative project for their students. I was able to coach the teachers to increase their confidence in using Google Drive and their GAFE accounts. It was a great experience and the kids really enjoyed it!
Video 1 Video 2 Video 3 Video 4 Video 5 Video Rubric Intro Lesson Plan Parent Letter Presentation to Students |
Google "Everything"
I've been focusing on a very systemic integration of Google Apps for Education in select buildings this year as a pilot training for the staff. It has been very successful! Subjects we have covered are: Google Drive Nuts & Bolts, Gmail, Chrome, Calendar, Classroom, YouTube, Forms, Chromebooks & Google + iPads. There are many more sessions to come, but so far I've received great feedback from teachers with Google implementation in the schools that I've been in.
Google Wordmark. Digital image. N.p., n.d. Web. <http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Google_wordmark.gif>.
Google Wordmark. Digital image. N.p., n.d. Web. <http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Google_wordmark.gif>.
Science Videos with YouTube Capture
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Students were asked to create a video to show their learning of the first chapter of their science books. They were given the option to pick a question to go into more in-depth. Students used the iPads and the YouTube Capture app to create these videos. Over the course of a month, students were guided with storyboarding, scripting and creating their videos. We focused on the NETS-S & NGSS when developing this project. Students filmed and edited the videos themselves. Here are a few videos!
How do scientists investigate? What do scientists do? What is science? |
Adler Learning Buddies
I worked with two teachers at Adler Elementary School to build videos of fifth grade student book introductions for the kindergarten students. Students answer pre-reading questions verbally, watch the book videos together, and then move on to using the iPad and Padlet to post their small group answers to the post-reading questions.
This project was selected to present at the Student Technology Showcase at MACUL in Spring, 2015. The students were very excited and it brought a positive image to Southfield Public Schools. Adler Elementary did a great job representing their community at MACUL. The two teachers I worked with were fantastic! They had a great outcome in their classrooms with a lot of positive feedback from their students. I appreciate their willingness to try new things!
This project was selected to present at the Student Technology Showcase at MACUL in Spring, 2015. The students were very excited and it brought a positive image to Southfield Public Schools. Adler Elementary did a great job representing their community at MACUL. The two teachers I worked with were fantastic! They had a great outcome in their classrooms with a lot of positive feedback from their students. I appreciate their willingness to try new things!
Flat Rock iPad: Ten Things
I created this website and content as a landing page for Flat Rock Community Schools' teachers. I was in charge of this project as a teacher at Flat Rock.
"Flat Rock has continuously found ways to "up the anty" for our students, including allowing our teachers to take iPads home for the summer. We have provided a list of 10 things we would like teachers to learn to do with the iPad. We feel this will drastically increase iPad engagement and student achievement in the classroom, and since the implementation, teachers have felt more comfortable with the iPads in their classroom. "
"Flat Rock has continuously found ways to "up the anty" for our students, including allowing our teachers to take iPads home for the summer. We have provided a list of 10 things we would like teachers to learn to do with the iPad. We feel this will drastically increase iPad engagement and student achievement in the classroom, and since the implementation, teachers have felt more comfortable with the iPads in their classroom. "
...as an Educator
Flat Rock HS Web Design
Students used this website to track projects, submit assignments, and contact me for support in the classroom.
(Note: I have given the new web design teacher at Flat Rock editing rights to this website so he can use it in his classroom. I did not see a reason for him to "recreate the wheel" when it came to my online content - that would be silly and a waste of his time. So, while I created the original version of this website, he has edited it to fit his students' needs as well as his own.)
(Note: I have given the new web design teacher at Flat Rock editing rights to this website so he can use it in his classroom. I did not see a reason for him to "recreate the wheel" when it came to my online content - that would be silly and a waste of his time. So, while I created the original version of this website, he has edited it to fit his students' needs as well as his own.)
Barnes Elementary School Tech Program
This website was originally created to provide a landing page for students in my grade 3 - 5 technology courses. I edited each page monthly to provide the particular content of the current project. While you will see some content, most has been replaced with the most recent projects we created while I was still teaching in Flat Rock. My last year there was 2013.
You can find a lot of great information on the TechatBarnes Website. There is helpful Tech sites for both students and parents, including developing typing skill development, which is very important.
You can find a lot of great information on the TechatBarnes Website. There is helpful Tech sites for both students and parents, including developing typing skill development, which is very important.
...as a Learner
MSU MAET Portfolio: Solving Problems of Practices with Technology
I attended Michigan State University from Fall 2009 - Spring 2011, during which time I completed my Master of Arts in Educational Technology. What a beautiful experience it was for me - it made me stretch my thinking and knowledge-base beyond what I could've ever imagined beforehand. Although I learned a lot of new technologies, what I really took away from the program was a new understanding of how to discover and think for myself when it came to educational technologies, along with the understanding of the TPACK model. The TPACK model took my understanding of EdTech to the next level - it was exactly what I was searching for in my teaching and learning.
You can view my MAET portfolio here. (Please note: I do not maintain an updated resume on the portfolio.)
You can view my MAET portfolio here. (Please note: I do not maintain an updated resume on the portfolio.)
Oakland University: Action Research Project
I attended Oakland University from January 2017 - August 2018, during which time I completed my Education Specialist in Leadership. One of my key projects at Oakland University was studying a problem of practice, and creating an action research project to evaluate and change. My action research project, "An evaluation of job-embedded professional development programs across Monroe County, Michigan", focused on evaluating two job-embedded professional development programs in Monroe County, Michigan. This study aimed to answer whether teacher participation in a job-embedded professional development model hosted by the ISD increased participation and relationship building for ISD teacher technology coaches? As an ISD employee, I saw how the new Michigan teacher professional development requirements negatively impacted teacher attendance/participation in ISD professional development. While the study will run until Spring 2019, the initial evaluation of job-embedded program implementation has proved successful and appropriate through evaluating teacher pre-survey work, ISD professional development attendance trends, and teacher technology coach reflections.
