The Global Read Aloud - One Book to Connect the World

By Brenda Maurao, Assistant Principal at Miller Elementary School

This fall, Miller students and staff had the opportunity to participate in a global program that brings students around the globe together to discuss a common book. During a six week period, from October 3 through November 11,  classroom teachers read aloud to students and engaged in discussions through a variety of online platforms about a common book.  

Teachers selected between two books to read to students during the Global Read Aloud:  Pax by Sara Pennypacker or The BFG by Roald Dahl.

The idea of the Global Read Aloud is for students to make connections with people around the world based on the shared love of reading. During and after reading the book together in class, students  engaged in online discussions with other students using a platform such as Edmodo, Google Hangouts, Twitter or Skype. Pinterest and Facebook were great resources for teachers, too.   Each teacher participated at a pace and format that meshed with regular classroom activities.  

Fifth graders who read Pax ended the Global Read Aloud with a SKYPE presentation and question/answer session (highlighted in the tweet below)!

Informal discussions have begun as Miller teachers begin reflecting on this year’s experience with the Global Read Aloud.  We look forward to submitting possible book titles for next year, along with having school-wide discussions to plan the event next year.  Here are the reflections of fifth grade teachers Ashley DeRoy and Sara Peters: Video Interview with Ashley DeRoy and Sara Peters

For more information on The Global Read Aloud, please click on the presentation below!  

Global Read Aloud Overview Presentation

Technology Is Helping to Meet the Needs of All Students at RAMS

The one to one Chromebook program at Adams Middle School has enabled students to customize their device to meet their own needs. In some cases, this is directed toward personal preferences, but students also frequently install apps and extensions that allow the Chromebook to more closely match up with their learning needs. Mrs. Ondrasek's students recently explored three of these apps Read & Write for Google, Google Docs voice typing, and Readability.

Read & Write for Google is a Chrome text to speech extension that allows a student to quickly have documents and websites read to them using a customizable voice. A premium version of the extension, which is free for teachers, also produces picture and visual dictionaries and highlighting tools.

Google Docs voice typing is a built-in speech to text capability in Google Docs. Because the school Chromebooks have a built-in microphone, students are able to type using their own voice. This is an excellent choice for students who are struggling with typing or prefer to compose aloud.

Finally, the Readability extension removes all the clutter from web pages, which tends to be an issue in particular when visit news websites such as CNN. The extension also enlarges and brightens text for easier reading.

Mme Picard's students explored Massachusetts with Buncee

Mme. Picard’s students recently used an online presentation tool called Buncee to organize and present information about a Massachusetts city or town. Buncee is similar to Powerpoint, but has animation capability so that objects and text can move around each slide. Students chose a person who lives in Massachusetts (but not Holliston) and wrote that person a letter asking them to share a postcard from his/her city or town. The students then used the website - http://fr.city-usa.net/ to find information about their town (county, area, population, year of origin, famous people from the town and interesting facts) and record it on a Google Drive chart.

Finally, the students used their information to produce the Buncee presentation. Students chose fitting images and added animation to bring their presentation to life.

The Year Ahead -- A Preview!

It’s an exciting start to the 2016-2017 school year! We are off and running with innovative and modern instructional strategies within classrooms as we work towards developing Digital Learners!

Today’s Digital Learners need to be:

• Empowered learners
• Digital citizens
• Knowledge constructors
• Innovative designers
• Computational thinkers
• Creative communicators
• Global collaborators

Does this sound familiar?  Well, these are the new, 2016 ISTE Standards for Students, released this summer. In Holliston, we have been using the previous standards to guide our work. We are excited about the new focus areas including global education, computational thinking, and design. We are working toward incorporating the 2016 standards in our curriculum, which is connected to one of our 2016-2017 district goals.

This year, Placentino and Miller students are experiencing further technology integration of the Nexus 7 and Google Chromebooks within their classrooms. Teachers are actively incorporating these devices into whole class and small group instruction.

On the tablets, apps such as The Foos, Kids Math Place Value, and Prodigy allow students to experience learning in a personalized way. The environment is very game-like, but one that is designed to help students learn!  The tactile experience for our youngest children is perfect developmentally! Older students are using the Chromebooks and are exploring Google Apps for Education and using the platform for communicating and collaborating, including through research projects. Through classroom use and computer class, students are also developing important skills for digital citizenship; students also experience typing instruction.

At the middle school, students are continuing to experience learning in the 1:1 Chromebook environment. Learning in a digital environment is becoming integral to how they learn -- from where they gather information (online resources and digital texts) to how they convey their learning (through creative projects). Some examples include:

• Google Classroom for collaboration, formative assessment, and organization of student work
• Kahoot -- a game show-like platform to gauge student understanding
• WeVideo -- creation of student videos

1:1 Chromebooks has launched for grades 9 and 10 at Holliston High School.  Early feedback has been very positive. With students on the same platform, teachers can reliably use technology to enhance their lessons and students can use it to demonstrate their understanding. Also this year at the high school, the PIT crew (Panthers Instructional Technology) is in full swing. This student group provides technical support to students and teachers through a technology Help Desk located in the library. Additionally, they provide support to the high school’s Makerspace…drumroll please...

Makerspaces are here! A Makerspace has been installed in the Holliston High School library. This expands upon opportunities students have to engage in “the making movement” at Miller and Adams. Students are exploring elements of design-thinking through the use of tools such as vinyl cutters and 3-D printers. These are exciting opportunities for students to tinker and stretch their creative side to design and create!

Stay tuned to our blog to learn of many more examples of digital learning in Holliston throughout the year.

Digital Portfolios in the Elementary Classroom - Seesaw

Elementary school teachers are very excited about the new learning journal app: Seesaw.   Seesaw helps teachers and parents connect with students and keep track of their school work.   Think of Seesaw as a journal for what students learn at school: stories they wrote, math problems they solved or art projects they made.  It is a simple way for young students to independently document what they are learning at school.  It empowers students to take more ownership of their learning.  

Using the Nexus 7 tablet, students scan a QR code, created by Seesaw, to access their class.    Once they are in their class they use the tablet to draw, write and record videos or take pictures of their handwritten work.  Teachers can access Seesaw on a tablet or on their computers to view all of the work the students have created independently. 

Kindergarten teacher Nen Locke has this to say about Seesaw: “The biggest way Seesaw has helped my classroom is with parent communication. Prior to Seesaw, I was writing emails and sending individual pictures to parents.  I would also update my webpage weekly. However parents weren’t getting information in a timely manner.  Now that I use Seesaw, parents have loved getting real-time updates on what their children are working on in class and how they are making progress."  Jennifer Rosenfeld, a parent in Mrs. Locke's  class is impressed with the weekly video newsletter the students create themselves.  The children report on their weekly successes and upload the videos to Seesaw on their own.

Mrs. Locke's students are engaged and invested.  Student involvement means success all around! 

Come to the Colonies with Mrs. Vittoria

Over the past two weeks, Mrs. Vittoria's 5th grade class has completed their "RAFT" project, which traditionally has asked groups of students to prepare a class presentation on the American colony the group was assigned. However, this year, students had the option to create a recorded digital presentation rather than a face to face presentation.

After researching the colony, the students had a few options for demonstrating their knowledge. They could create an audio-only podcast, an animated presentation using voki.com, or a green-screen video newscast or infomercial. Students found this much more engaging and interesting than a traditional presentation - and by providing a recorded option we enabled students who are not comfortable with in-class presentations to have an opportunity to demonstrate learning in a way that worked for them.

HHS PIT Crew: A Student Tech Support Team

In April 2016, HHS  launched a pilot program of a student tech support team. The team, called the "PIT Crew" (for Panthers Instructional Technology) is comprised of boys and girls, grades 9-12, who have an interest in technology and tech support.

The team meets four days a week, during the Directed Study Block period, to assist students and teachers with tech support issues, such as issues with printers, projectors, and document cameras, help using laptops and student devices, maintenance of computer labs, and repair of desktop PC computers.

The team has also been trained in Chromebook repair, and is working on refurbishing non-functioning Chromebooks from the middle school.

In May, the team will be opening a Help Desk that students can visit, for help with their BYOD technology. This Help Desk will allow HHS students to get peer-to-peer assistance with their computer and smartphone tech.

PIT Crew students receiving training in Chromebook repair

PIT Crew students re-wiring the HHS Library PC Lab

PIT Crew students re-wiring the HHS Library PC Lab