Service Learning - A Gift

For the past eight years or so, I've tried to involve my students in some form of student learning. When I was an L.A. teacher, we had a whole project that culminated in students doing service in the community and getting at least one other person to join them in doing that service. A wonderful project that bubbled with the excitement of students working in a multitude of self-selected ways in our community.

Now that I'm a S.S. teacher, it continues to be essential (perhaps more essential) that I continue this legacy.

Well, today, we were able to engage in our first service learning of the year at Northern Illinois Food Bank. The students really stepped up to the challenge and embraced the work we did along with the brain work that followed as we considered our places in the world and how helping others remains the right, essential thing to do.

But, the real gift continues to be the momentum of doing good and doing right.  This carries students through to the next time and the next.  While volunteering can be a gift to those in need, the emotional depth of an experience like this carries many students to a new level of understanding of themselves and the world.

So, thank you, Northern Illinois Food Bank, for opportunity.  The rest of us need to get out there and keep trying to do more and do better.

Learning from Students

I have a confession to make.  I learn from my students many, many times a day.  And, because of that, I have a feeling I'll be writing some version of this particular blog many more times during my blogging lifetime.

What's amazing to me remains that surprise and excitement seems to always accompany my learning from them.  Last week (and this week) finds students focused on finding the NEXT Blue Zone (@BlueZones).  It's a fun project that allows students to examine what makes a happy, healthy life.  Along the way, they learn a lot about healthy diets, healthy lifestyles, geography, how to research, etc.

So, as usual, I'm walking (or sometimes rolling now that I've got some pretty nifty chairs in my class) from student to student checking in with progress and sharing in their highs and lows.  I come to this student who has this map up on his computer with these black background.  He found a map site that shows everything you'd ever want to know about our populations around the world (birth/death rates, cancer rates, etc.) and was using it as his guide to show life expectancy.  Such a great way of looking for the "right" place.

Of course, he got his chance to share the maps he discovered with other students and that reinforced not only his thinking but also the fact that sharing is good (or, as I often quote Barney as saying, "Sharing is caring!").

I want to grow old with these kinds of people in the world.  And, part of the way I'm going to assure that happening is by making sure my students understand how important thinking and sharing are.

Every day I'm hoping for more from me and from my students.  This just goes to show that my hope isn't far from reality.  Thanks for reading!

Striving for More

Hey gang!
It's been too long.  I haven't been a good, faithful blogger.  I wasn't sure who was out there reading, but once I got thinking about it, I thought, "Well, who are you doing this for?"  I guess I'm doing it for whomever wants to go on this journey with me.

What's "This Journey"?  Well, for me, it's the new, invigorated feeling I have about teaching and my students.  I'm not sure where it came from, but I'm going to take a leap and go with it.

When I started this year, I knew there was a LOT to learn and even more to try and do.  Now that I'm IN the year, I realize there's time to learn and do even more than I might've imagined.

This year, I've implemented the AMAZING Sara Ball's Board of Directors in my classroom.  And, it just so happens that my team is doing the same.  This system allows students to have more voice and choice in the classroom.  But, I'm not completely satisfied with the way it's running ... yet.  I've got some students who are really taking the reigns (planning events, helping other students out, etc.), but I sometimes feel like I am in the way ... and, the curriculum is in the way.  So, I've got to keep experimenting to get the balance just right.

I've also tried our first Google Expeditions this year.  Holy COW!  It was a great experienced all around,  There's something unnameable about standing in a place (virtually) that you've never stood before and looking around at a world you may never see in person.

Now, I'm trying to head into more unknown territory by being more faithful to my blog (hello, blog!) and being a better part of the TwitterVerse. :-)

All of these things are changes I embrace.  I can't tell you where these things will take me, but I can tell you I'll never be the same ... and, neither will my classroom.

Join me on the journey?  Come follow me on Twitter @tsamorian and let me know what you think and share any ideas you've got.

Learning Studio 206 -- The best room for learning ... EVER!

Years ago, I was working with students on a unit concerning utopias.  One of the questions I asked them (and they wrote about) involved what their utopian classroom was.  This started us on a journey I never planned.

Seeing what my students wrote inspired me to ask them to actually put their ideas into action.

So began the longest, most exciting action research project ever. :-)

Students split up into groups (finance, bouncy balls, room design) and researched other spaces (from schools to businesses to anywhere in between).  They discovered a lot about how to organize a space taking into account color, comfort, efficiency, etc.

They conducted research by calling (e-mail was just beginning to be available to younger kids) and interviewing people from all over the world (Skype was a lifesaver).  Their research involved people in multiple industries and occupations.

Finally, they went to our PTSO to ask for money to fund their vision, and the PTSO graciously said yes!

Today, I have many of the elements they created and have added some of my own.  Today, it's a room where students can learn, think, and dream.  It's allowed me to give more ownership to students intellectually, also, and inspired me to create personalized learning options for my students.

It's helped by allowing me flexibility in teaching and grouping.  Having the bouncy balls also helps students who are a bit fidgety.  They can bounce and get rid of that energy.  Also, if a student needs to get up and move around the room, s/he won't distract other students because there's always movement in class.  And, for those quieter students who need alone time, the different parts of the room allow them to work on their own.

I've also adopted not turning on the lights to add to my room ambiance.  The fluorescent lights are just too glaring, and the natural light is calming and gives a real sense of being part of a larger world.  Students love the natural light and often comment on how it helps them relax and focus.

And finally, as part of recent changes, I've gotten rid of my desk.  Not only did it help me get rid of all the things I didn't need, it also helps me interact with students more.  I bring my laptop to a group and can more easily, naturally interact with them.  It's a great thing to be able to share space.

Thank you, students, for the inspiration!

Another year ... another way to Change the World!

Here we are again a year later.  I'm continually inspired by the service learning my students engage in (and get others to engage in).  This year, we've reached out to many other communities and continue to do so until the world changes.  One person at a time through the great students in my classroom.  Won't you join us ... ?

Changing the world... one project at a time...

Our Change the World project (also known as Scrapbook) continues with examples of how students are going to involve others in their lives in changing the multitudes of problems in our society. The changes we begin today will transform our tomorrows.