ISTE 2015 at a Glace

Sunday: Arrived in Philadelphia, attended Ignite Session 1, Opening Keynote with Soledad O'Brian, presented Teaching Above the Line at Gripcase Booth, and networked at the ADE Meet Up

Monday: Attended Create and Innovate with iTunes U w/ +Jenny Grabiec
& +Rebecca Wildman, The Changing Role of the Chief Technology Officer w/ +Susan Bearden, Alice Keeler, David Maline, Matthew Miller, +Brad Waid
& +Kevin Honeycutt, Developing the Innovator's Mindset w/ +George Couros, Technology Coach Therapy w/ +Ramona Towner, and helped host the +Otus & +Tweetwood Mac Party

Tuesday: Attended Opening Keynote w/ Jack Gallagher, presented Successful Parent/Educator Partnerships in the Inclusive Classroom w/ +Luis Perez, Jack Gallagher, & +Christine Southard, attended iPad: An Out-of-the-Box Look with +Cathy Yenca & +Tim Yenca, presented 1:1 Wireless Device Program: A Journey with myON at the myON Booth, presented Teaching Above the Line at Gripcase Booth, went on a tour of String Theory Charter Schools led by +Christine DiPaulo, and networked at the EdTech Karaoke

Wednesday: Presented Becoming an Apple Distinguished Program, attended ISTE 1-in-3 Sessions w/ +Jordan Garrett, and Closing Keynote w/ +Josh Stumpenhorst

Here is a Storify Summary to get a visual of my ISTE 2015 experience on Twitter!

Above the Line Wedding

When you receive an invitation in the mail, what do you do with it? I typically hang it on the fridge, but not before I type in all the details into my calendar, including registry and RSVP info. I'm very organized digitally, folders, flags, tags, alerts, and reminders for everything. Paper mail, bills, laundry... that's another story. The thought of receiving 200 RSVP cards in the mail and then typing the information into a spreadsheet sounded plain awful to me. Luckily my husband agreed to digital invitations...

Substitution: Digital Invitations
I spent quite some time researching the best wedding website that also had an iPhone app and a way to RSVP. I spent $30 on an Appy Couple account so I could have all these features. I posted wedding information and shared pictures and stories from the proposal, engagement pictures, and our wedding party. Our guests received an email inviting them to our wedding. Guests simply RSVP'd for themselves and/or +1's and family members. Guests were also able to select Chicken or Steak for dinner. They could RSVP (and get info) via our website OR the Mobile App.

Augmentation: How did I get everyone's email address?
I created a Google Form that asked for names, addresses, guest information, and a place for comments (ie We are moving, please note an address change.)  I created a bit.ly url to share the Google Form with friends via text, FaceBook Messenger, or email. I compared the Google Form results with our wedding guest list (Google Spreadsheet shared with husband and immediate family) and highlighted the names of guests who completed the form. Finally, I uploaded the Google Form results into the Appy Couple spreadsheet template. I clicked "Invite all" and off the invites went. Within 5 minutes guests had already started to RSVP to our wedding. I knew this because I received pop-up alerts on my phone each time.

Modification: DIY PhotoBooth- An App and a Double Robot
I set up a Photo Booth using the Simple Booth App and a stationary Double Robot. We purchased props at the $1 store and raided the closets for random sunglasses, hats, etc. Guests walked over to the Photo Booth (aka Robot), tapped the camera and 4 pictures, back to back were taken. Next, guests shared their picture right to their Facebook account or they could email it to themselves. Each picture was also set to save to the camera roll, so we could share all pictures at a later time.

Redefinition: Wedding Mass Time
Exactly one week before our wedding we were at an Easter Mass chatting with friends. Someone asked what time our wedding was. "3:00 I responded." She replied, that's weird because the church bulletin says your wedding is at 1:00. No, I affirmed, our wedding is at 3. Another lady chimed in, why don't we just check with the priest. Father walks over with his binder, and sure enough the book says 1:00. I started to panic. The photographer, the bus, hair and makeup... EVERYTHING was planned for a 3:00 start time. Also, how am I going to let everyone know about the time change?

We waited until Monday to officially receive confirmation that there was another wedding at 3:00 and we HAD to switch to 1:00. So, Monday afternoon 5 days before our wedding our guests received a pop up on their phones (or inbox), the wedding time has been changed to 1:00. Please RSVP so that we know you received this message. Again, several RSVP's came pouring in within minutes. Technology truly helped redefine, or change the "outcome" (not learning outcome) of our wedding day. Our church was filled with friends and family, and commuters were able to alter their plans right away. There was simply no way we could contact all guests and begin getting responses within minutes without technology.

Integrating technology into our lives beyond the school day, enables us to continue teaching and to encourage others, no matter age or skills, to keep learning. Our wedding day was the happiest day of our lives, and I'm proud to say that we couldn't have planned everything without our devices! 

EdCamp, Apple, Brenthaven, Oh My!

Have you ever had one of those weeks where there are SO many exciting things to blog about, yet before you can even start to blog something else amazing happens that you want to blog about? ... And then it happens again... all in the same week?

Tuesday, November 4: iLearn EdCamp Institute Day

The heading says it all, right? South Berwyn School District 100 has come so far over the past 5 years. We're transforming the way we teach and the way we learn, and I believe Professional Development has almost everything to do with the change. (Thank you +Marilyn McManus/@D100PD Director of Professional Development and your PD team.)

Marilyn meets with a ruthless team (we all have our own ideas!) to plan & coordinate our Institute Days. We literally sit around the new learning space at Pershing and brainstorm ideas. We focus on what our teachers' needs are and then how we can meet those needs. "What if we hosted our own version of an "EdCamp?" Teachers can choose their own pathways of what they want to learn about on that day. This is exactly what we did, with some slight modifications. +Jonathan Palles is our EdCamp expert in D100, so we had him introduce the day and explain to staff what an EdCamp was and what was expected of them. Check out #ilearnbsd100 for tweets about the day and our Professional Development webpage for more info.

Wednesday, November 5: Innovative Classrooms: An exclusive event for Apple Distinguished Schools and Apple Distinguished Programs 

Apple hosted an event downtown Chicago for Apple Distinguished Schools and Programs to connect, collaborate, and learn from one another. We had the absolute privilege of listening to Dr. William Rankin, probably one of the smartest educators I have heard speak.

@rankinw & @ShannonSoger

Have you ever heard the phrase, "What happened to the traditional way of teaching? I turned out just fine and I didn't have a laptop or iPad in school." Well, Dr. Rankin says if we want to go back to "traditional times," then we'd actually have no books (as he showed an image during the medieval times). He shared that everyday kids are carrying around production studios (ie iPhones) in their pockets. However, we are teaching kids content they need to memorize or comprehend for the "test". It takes 10 years of constant repetition in order to remember something forever. These facts students are memorizing are most likely being forgotten  So, why are we teaching facts that kids can just Google? He talked about using devices at higher levels. These included experiences where students will remember what they learned because the lessons had value to them and because students had to create something. Dr. Rankin sparked our minds and encouraged educators to transform the future of learning.

D100 ALT, iCoaches, & Admins

The remainder of the day consisted of breakout sessions and small group content creation. I led a session on The Impact of SAMR in an Apple Distinguished Program with ALT teacher +Kristin Richey. (Prior to the event +Jordan Garrett +Mary Havis +Michelle Thorne, +Christina Betz, +Sarah Larson, +Todd Bittorf +Ramona Towner +Sue Butler and +Lindsey Lahr created the Keynote together in iCloud.) 
Apple connected everyone along with resources from the day by sharing a private iTunes U Course. At the end of my session I challenged attendees to get our group of Distinguished Schools and Programs to continue to collaborate, but at the Redefinition level by walking the objective up a Blender Ladder. We concluded with continuing the collaboration with a broader audience to connect, share and reflect on... Twitter!

Wednesday, November 5: Brenthaven Education Webinars: Above the Line Teaching and Learning 

Being a presenter for a webinar is not an easy task! I'm constantly talking in front of groups of people, I enjoy presenting, and I get nervous each time I present. BUT, speaking to a laptop and not seeing your audience was quite the challenge! During the Webinar I talk about the transformation of teaching and learning that I've seen throughout District 100. Examples are shared from each category of the Apple Education Recognition Program: Visionary Leadership, Innovative Learning and Teaching, Flexible Learning Environment, Compelling Evidence of Success, and Ongoing Professional Learning. The overall message is that 1:1 is a journey and SAMR is a journey, but it's important to constantly be pushing students, staff, and administrators above the line.  If you're interested in hearing specific examples, please watch the Webinar hosted by Brenthaven.

We actually ran out of time at the end of the webinar for questions, so Brenthaven send me the list of the questions. Rather then emailing the answers back I recorded myself in GarageBand answering the questions and Brenthaven sent them to all registered attendees.  #abovetheline

It's exciting to think about my broad range of influence from our District 100 staff, to educational leaders from Apple Distinguished Schools and Programs across Chicagoland, to educators on the webinar from 15 states that I will likely never meet.

Take your PLN Above the Line w/ a Twitter Chat!

I reluctantly joined Twitter in November 2011, which thank you +Raul Babolea for pushing me to get on! Similar to the typical tweeter just starting out, I didn't know what I was doing nor did I understand the "point" of writing a tweet. "What's with all the hashtags? My "Timeline" sure looks different than Facebook." I thought the myself.

I started following educators (or every tweeter my colleagues followed), sifting though tweets and composing some of my own tweets. I was using twitter as a Substitution to reading online articles or emails. My first tweet was when I was in Portland ME at Leveraging Leaning: The iPad in Primary Grades event where I first met Dr. Ruben Puentedura.  I don't know who my audience was as I didn't include a hashtag or an @. The only people that probably saw the tweet were my few followers & colleagues I was with at the time. However, it was a start and thankfully twitter allows you to go back and see your #firsttweet!

About a year later, I started using images in my tweets, after Scott Meech requested to see a t-shirt I was tweeting about. Oddly enough the tweet referenced #SAMR. I had taken twitter from the Substitution level up to the Augmentation level by adding pictures, links, and reaching out to educators (still mostly I had met) on Twitter. 

@smeech pic.twitter.com/Vzce03nH

— Shannon Soger (@ShannonSoger) November 5, 2012

My learning went above the line when I started using twitter at educational conferences like #iste2013 #ice14 #iplza14 #iste2014 & #ettsummit14. I used twitter to connect with educators that were going to the same conferences, attended their sessions, connected with them in person at the conference, encouraged others to follow them, and continued to connect with these tweeters after the conference. +Sue Gorman and I met at Apple Academy, I attended one of her #iste2013 sessions, and the following summer we were presenting together at #iplza14.

@SouthBerwyn100 Add these ISTE ignite presenters to your PLN! #iste2013 pic.twitter.com/5aCftMNBEi

— Shannon Soger (@ShannonSoger) June 23, 2013

It was such an honor to present w you @sjgorman! Hands on, Pedagogy, & Classroom Examples in 1 PD! #iplza14 pic.twitter.com/lUwLsmdUP6

— Shannon Soger (@ShannonSoger) June 19, 2014

The above experiences brought my twitter presence to Modification.  My teaching and learning was significantly redesigned. On twitter, I was reaching out to educators, staying connected, planning conference proposals, and learning about other conferences from my followers. I would not have attended #iplza14 (let alone presented) if it weren't for +Sue Gorman & my PLN.

How did I bring my twitter usage to redefinition? Last night, I co-moderated my first twitter chat, #cmsk12chat with +Ashley Hurley on the topic-  Best Practices with #SAMR & #TPACK. Why is a twitter chat redefinition? First of all I met Ashley at #iste14 in the break room preparing for my poster session, "Above the Line Teaching & Learning." We were both trying to finish our presentations, but quickly distracted each other by "teacher talking" and sharing a few resources. #SAMR caught her eye, and I was talking about the Blended Ladder. We stayed in touch after ISTE, shared a few tweets, and #FF. Thanks Ashley! About a month ago Ashley DM'd me asking to co-moderate a twitter chat. I told her I had never even participated in a twitter chat from start to finish, but I wanted to give it a try! Ashley shared a Google Doc to familiarize myself how to be a moderator, line up the questions, etc.

On the day of the #cmsk12chat we collaborated via Google Messenger, assigned roles, and were ready to get started! During the chat we met teachers, technology integrationists, professors, researchers, and administrators from all parts of IL & NC, as well as someone from Oregon. We also connected with educators from TX, WI, and Canada whom I had met at previous conferences. Even #TPACK researcher +Matthew Koehler popped in and retweeted some tweets. Without the technology, we could not have had this amazing 1 hour discussion with educators from across the midwest. We learned from each other, shared experiences, and are now following each other through other social medias. On top of all that, it was FUN! I was beaming with energy when the chat ended, and I look forward to participating in more chats in the future. #abovetheline #twitterchats

@rr7lv @MathNeil @ashleyhhurley @CateTolnai I've learned more from these chats that any school-based PD. #cmsk12chat
— Megan Mehta (@megan_mehta) September 11, 2014

Please read the Storify from the #SAMR & #TPACK chat on 9/10/14 if you're interested!

iPadpalooza Austin, TX!

My #iplza14 Story, via iMovie Trailer

Team Apptivators was ready for the Appmazing Race Challenge at +iPadpalooza! Our team included +Sue Gorman +Jenny Grabiec +Kyle Pearce & +Shannon Soger. (We met virtually before the conference, divided up tasks when we arrived, and worked as a team to submit the final video by Noon the last day.) Apptivators ended in 4th place, but the overall experience was incredible! 

Here's a link to the Connect Challenge: New friend Thinglink, +Kasey Bell and the Share Challenge: Our final video on YouTube.

+Sue Gorman & I did a hands-on session "Aurasma is the New QR Code." Over 100 people joined the session, including +Kevin Honeycutt, +Meghan Zigmond, @SAtechnoChic, and @mathycathy! 

Please check out our presentation slides at http://bit.ly/ARiplza14

Finally, here is my first attempt at a Storify! I hope you enjoy my reflection!

If you've read this far, I'd like to conclude with calling iPadpalooza and above the line event. I'm referring to it as an event because it didn't resemble the look or the feel of a conference. iPadpalooza brought significant task redesign (redefinition). Yes, the conference couldn't not have taken place without iPads, but to me it was so much more. Since my experience, I've continued to collaborate with educators I've met via social media. Further, many hours and a few states away, @mrhooker and I met via Google Hangout to brainstorm ideas for a similar event in @SouthBerwyn100.

That being said, save the date for another one-of-a-kind conference with the South Berwyn spin on it... May 8 & May 9, 2015... iEngage: Syncing our Learning! #redefinition

Blendspace & Math in a 1:1 Classroom

I observed an above the line math lesson with Ms. F, 5th grade teacher, this morning. I WISH every student in the world could experience this learning environment. Engagement was 100%, technology was being used to ENHANCE the learning, and the teacher was acting as a facilitator or a coach guiding students through the learning.

I walked in the room with students working quietly at their tables, eying up and down between the laptop screen and a dry erase board or spiral notebook. During the observation I noticed the following resources in use: Envision Math Quizes, Keynote, Photo Booth, iMovie, Khan Academy, IXL, and Blendspace. Students were learning about Order of Operations. The goals of the lesson were to understand how to use a variable in an equation and to solve an equation using order of operations.

Blendspace is a website where the teacher posts all his/her resources into one place with directions included as they move about at their own pace. Students login with their student Google Apps account. As the 5th graders watched the Order of Operations Khan Academy video, they were commenting within Blendspace. (All comments were MATH related, see picture.)

There were 15 activities included in the Blendspace. One of the activities included students working through practice problems in a Keynote Ms. F created (goal 2). Students worked a problem on their dry erase board or notebook, took a picture of their work using Photo Booth, and added the picture into the Keynote. A student told me they will turn in the Keynote (via eChalk) to their teacher when their done, and Ms. F will correct it/provide feedback.

Another activity within the Blendspace was for students to record themselves in iMovie walking through a problem with variables. Students had to explain their steps in answering the problem using Order of Operations. This explaining piece demonstrates the student's work flow and forces them to talk though the problem. 

Ms F. spent a lot of time curating all her resources in Blendspace, but as the students work at their own pace, she is using her time to help her students. She's not taking ANY time to talk about the directions, how or where to turn something in, etc. She's not explaining Order of Operations again and again to the whole class. Students have taken learning into their own hands in 5F. They are being accountable for their work, and they LOVE learning math this way. I'd like to close by saying Ms. F is in her 1st year teaching; she is AMAZING and as her mentor, I'm so proud of her. Oh, and one more thing. Ms. F learned about Blendspace from a D100 4th grade teacher, Mrs. S on our iLearn Institute Day 2 weeks ago! 

Storyline Online, iMovie Style!

Accelerated reading teacher, Mrs. P wanted to create her own version of the popular website, Storyline Online using iMovie.  Fifth grade students met once a week after school to work on the project. They were given weekly assignments, so they could learn the next iMovie feature the following week. They started by choosing a book and taking pictures of the illustrations using their teacher's iPad. Pictures were uploaded to the student's laptop and were stored & edited using iPhoto. (Uploading Photos from iPad to Laptop) Next, students practiced their fluency by reading their stories aloud, while recording themselves in iMovie. (They practiced several times before actually recording.) Students focused on using inflection in their voices, and paid close attention to where they were recording.  (What does the background look like? Is there enough light? Will there be unplanned noises while I record?)

Once students had their pictures and their story recording in iMovie, they began putting the movie together. They used the iMovie Picture in Picture Effect, so you could see their face as they read the story, while also being able to see the illustrations. They used photo effects like Ken Burns to zoom in or out of the illustration. Students were taught how to Add a Voice Over in iMovie and how to Add Music for their stories. They used ducking to raise or lower their voice or the music so the listener could hear what the reader intended. Finally, students previewed their movies full screen, exported, and submitted to Mrs. P via Air Drop. 

Mrs. P plans to post all the videos on one website, to share with primary students in the school district. This project is at the Modification stage on the SAMR model, because multiple applications were used to create the movie. This project could not be duplicated without technology. The task (read a book with fluency & inflection) was transformed by having students record themselves reading a story & creating a movie for a bigger audience, primary students. 

Example:

The Night Before Christmas, written by Clement Clarke Moore, illustrated by John Steven Gurney, read by Shannon Soger. 

iLearn PD in D100

Professional Development should be by teachers, for teachers as +Raul Babolea once said. +South Berwyn 100 has done just that.

Today's 1.20 iLearn Institute Day was one of the most rewarding days I've been a part of in my 9 1/2 years in d100. We started the day with a welcome from Dr. Stan Fields, Superintendent of South Berwyn. Next +Jim Calabrese took us back in time to our August Institute Day. We were all reved up and excited for those students who were about to walk into our classroom doors. He reminded us the reason WHY we were here today, for the students.

We then moved on to an incredible set of presentations given by D100 students who are now D100 employees. +Bill Jacklin, +Brittany Baldassano, +Joshua Cole, +Melissa Kwiatkowski, +Michael Belcaster, and +Zach Pros. These teachers shared their stories of what their lives looked like growing up in Berwyn, which school(s) they went to, and how they got here today. Each presenter brought up 1-2 teachers who made a difference in their lives years ago, and who are still working in d100. Tears were shed by all, and I will forever be changed. We never know just what kind of impact we're leaving on students. I hope that one day all teachers will have an experience like I had today.

After eyes dried out, we split our 300 staff members into 2 groups- elementary and middle school. There were 6 Ignite presenters for each group. We originally came up with the Ignite idea from the 2013 ISTE Conference. Watch the Conference Welcome & Opening Ignite Session & you'll want to try this in your district too! The presenters prepared 2 slides via Google Presentation prior to today. They were then each given 3 mintes to share a particular app they were using in hopes of igniting their colleagues. Be sure to view these incredible South Berwyn Ignite Presentations.

One would think that day would be over from here, but the learning just started! Presenters rushed to their assigned classrooms and learners followed. Teachers attended 3 breakout sessions of their choice (everyone signed up for their sessions before Winter Break). If you weren't able to attend a specific breakout session, you had access to ALL the presenter resources. iCoach +Jordan Garrett put together a Presenter Bio Interactive that linked to presenters PLN's and resources.

After the breakout sessions teachers went back to their buildings for lunch, reflection, and other agenda items. At +Freedom Middle School teachers walked a lesson "up the line," and posted that lesson on the District Google + page. Colleagues can now comment on each other's lesson, helping with the reflective assignment.

EVERY aspect of today's Institute Day was by +South Berwyn 100 employees. From the planning, to the logistics, the set up, sign up, evaluation, inspirational speakers, the presenters, the learners, and the photographers/videographers. We are incredible. We are changing lives. We are transforming teaching and learning. We are +South Berwyn 100 and I couldn't be prouder to say I work here.