Join the Pages of History with Instant Alpha

If given a choice to time travel to a specific point in history, what, who, or where would you choose? Lincoln's Gettysburg Address? Making a call with Alexander Graham Bell? Taking a stroll with Neil Armstrong on the moon? What about going back in time to meet your great great grandparents?

Little Miss with her great great Italian immigrant grandparents.

If you look carefully, you can see that Little Miss is actually "sitting" on top of her great great aunt in both of these pictures!

A creative way to do some time traveling with students is to use a green screen and the instant alpha feature on Pages or Keynote.  When Little Miss was over recently, I had her pose so I could try this out. She was super cooperative (turns 3 in June) and very photogenic! Using some paper for the green screen, I took a number of pictures of her as well as the basic background I wanted to use.

After erasing the green with the instant alpha feature, I layered her pictures onto several different background choices. I found that it can be a bit tricky to erase all the green without erasing part of what I wanted to keep. Enlarging the picture helped some.

This is such an interesting way to get students engaged in history! You will definitely want to consider having your students jump into the pages of history by adding this creative layer to their studies. 

My 4th grade class used our annual trip to the school forest and the focus on Wisconsin lumbering history to create some pretty cool illustrations for our fictional narratives.

Students gained background knowledge from the various activities at the school forest such as using a crosscut saw and visiting the logging museum that showcases a plethora of lumbering tools and vintage pictures of Wisconsin Jacks using them back in the day. Students learned about the many jobs that fall under the umbrella of a Lumberjack...cruiser (walks the forest to find good trees), teamster (works with the oxen), crackerjack (uses dynamite to break up log jams), skybird (loads the sleigh with logs), Hayman (spreads hay to slow sleigh on the icy tracks), chickadee (you don't really want to know), and many others.

Along with this new learning, students participated in a lumberjack meal that includes oatmeal, flapjacks/stovelids, squealers (sausage), sinkers (donuts), cluckers (eggs), and spuds. Lumberjack relay races are played in the snow with the bragging rights going to the winning team. It's a big day with lots of learning, lots of memories, and yes, lots of fun too!

After our school forest experience, students wrote a fictional narrative that features themselves as the main character. This narrative is based on having students choose a Lumberjack or Lumberjill job and to write a descriptive piece about their first day on that job. Within this writing they included tools they would use, some lumberjack words, and a lumberjack nickname they give themselves, along with the beginning, middle, and end of their first day.

To go along with this piece of writing students made a Lumberjack/Lumberjill in their authentic mackinaw jacket, boots, and hat.

Then we added the creative layer to this project using Pages and the instant alpha feature with the green screen to place their figure in the pages of history. I took lots of pictures during our field trip as well as found some vintage lumberjack pictures for students to use as background. 

An example of a student narrative accompanied by a vintage picture of what could've been some "River Pigs", the name given to the of dangerous job of those riding the logs down the river.

A narrative with a Lumberjill hanging out at the school forest and looking forward to a breakfast of "cluckers" and "sinkers".

Doing some crosscut sawing with a Lumberjill buddy.

Now here's a bright spot in this vintage lumberjack camp!

This Lumberjack and his big smile are ready to saw in his
bright red-checked mackinaw jacket.

Students could also use the instant alpha feature to have pictures taken of themself to be placed in any vintage setting. Imagine having your students standing next to Martin Luther King, Jr during his famous I Have a Dream speech, in flight with the Wright brothers, or sitting next FDR during his fireside chats. The possibilities are endless!

Rebus Writing

Anyone else remember reading rebus stories as a kid? Or what about writing them??

Rebus Examples

I remember loving the challenge of figuring out the story within the interesting puzzle-like way that a rebus is written. 

Here is a quick idea to get your students excited to write as well as using the opportunity to teach nouns and verbs in a visual way. 

Rebus writing is a mixture of words and little picture icons. The pictures take the place of some of the nouns and verbs in the story. The challenge of reading a rebus is exciting for kids to figure out and definitely works on comprehension skills! 

Introduce this mini project by reading an example of a rebus story to students, stopping at the pictures to have them name the noun/verb throughout the story. Next, they are given the winter themed grid sheet of mini illustrations to use as they write their story. There are a few empty boxes for them to create their own noun and verb icons too.

They write a draft in their notebook first. Whenever they get to an illustrated word, they write the word and draw a box around it so they remember to actually cut and use the picture when they come to it in their final copy. 

Every other line is skipped on the tablet paper to allow enough room for the icons.

Students complete their good copy on a large tablet sheet of paper using marker. If a mistake is made, they simply cut a piece of white paper and glue it over the mistake and they're ready to keep going. #OldSchoolWhiteOut

A simple scoring guide is used to assess final projects. This is shown to students prior to beginning their writing.

When the project is completed, students are excited to read their story to the class. If there is a place to hang them in the hallway, the rebus-writing authors love to see students in other grades stop and read their stories! Thus giving others a chance to read authentic student writing and providing a way for the 4th grade authors to take pride in what they accomplished.

Summer Landmark Workshops-NEH

Welcome back and Happy New Year 2020! In this part of the country we are facing one or two or five more months of winter but it's been fun to view the season through the eyes of the Littles. One Little prefers to make snow angels and see if the stuff tastes any good, and the other looks a bit grumpy and doesn't know what to make of it at the moment. We choose our attitude, do we not?!

The joys of winter with the Littles

During winter break it's become a habit of mine to trade in the snow and Christmas tree for palm trees, sun, sand, and all things warm, FUN, and beachy in South Florida. I also love including historic stops when they are not too far off the route.

After my class and I recently read and studied the book, "Delivering Justice: W.W. Law and the Fight for Civil Rights" a nonfiction narrative by James Haskins, I knew I had to stop in Savannah, GA. The book tells the tale of a mail carrier who helped establish voter schools, joined the NAACP and trained protesters in nonviolent civil disobedience. He led the famous Great Savannah Boycott in 1961. During this boycott, blacks refused to shop at Levy's Department Store as well as other shops in downtown Savannah. "Broughten Street" is specifically mentioned in the book and that many of its shops had to go out of business due to this boycott.

The building where Levy's Department Store used to be is now a local college arts and design library but there is a plaque that hangs on the outside of the building that commemorates the events that took place.

Savannah was the first city in the south to end legalized racial discrimination. W.W. Law is a little known activist who peacefully campaigned for equality between black and white people in Savannah, GA. As I looked down Broughton Street, I tried to imagine the now energy-filled historic district and bustling shops once full of "going out of business" signs posted in their windows and reflect on how W.W. Law and others brought about change for this city. I am excited to share my historic stop with students and connect it to their learning!

So all this traveling, sunshine, and history has me thinking about plans for more sunshine and traveling over the summer of 2020. A year ago, I sent out this post to make you aware of the upcoming summer opportunity of National Endowment for the Humanities educator workshops. If you enjoy learning about history much like the scenario above, you need to check out these summer workshops!

The NEH website now has their summer 2020 programs listed. You will definitely want to check them out! If you missed seeing this post last year or if you can't remember what NEH is all about, keep reading!

You do not want to miss out on this! The National Endowment for the Humanities has this summer's workshops now listed and available to apply for! Each year, NEH offers tuition-free opportunities for school educators to study a variety of humanities topics. Stipends of $1,200-$3,300 help cover expenses for these one- to four-week programs. NEH Summer Programs in the Humanities for School Teachers use historic sites to address central themes and issues in American history, government, literature, art, music, and related subjects in the humanities. Take a peek at the website below, keeping in mind the application deadline is March 1st.

Summer Landmark Workshops-NEH

I have experienced this amazing opportunity two different summers by participating in two different weeklong workshops. Each was packed full of historical sites and learning from experts! If you are someone who loves history and learning new things about other parts of the country, this is definitely for you! Any K-12 specialist or classroom teacher may apply. 

I became interested in NEH after hearing about it through one of my district colleagues who has participated in several. Here's what she has to say about the NEH program.

I have participated in many NEH workshops and seminars throughout the country.  Each NEH program has been outstanding.  The programs are well designed, providing a balance of visits to historic sites and presentations from expert professors.  You have unique experiences that you couldn't have on a personal vacation, like a hard-hat tour of the stabilized but not yet preserved hospital on Ellis Island and conducting research using Winston Churchill's actual papers from World War II.  In addition, it is great to spend time with other dedicated teachers from around the country.  I encourage all teachers to apply.  First-time applicants are given priority.  In the past, it was beneficial to be a teacher from the Midwest because fewer teachers from our region apply.  NEH programs are looking for diversity, including elementary school teachers, who apply less frequently. 

Christine Kadonsky

Wausau West H.S., WI

During each workshop I met teachers I have kept in contact with...even exchanging pen pal letters between our students.

I have found that the NEH Landmarks Workshops provide me with background knowledge and experiences that make my instruction have more impact. Through learning from experts on specific topics and participating in the "lived" experiences of places where the workshops are held, I have gained professional development unlike anything I have ever experienced.

Dr. Rose Bulau, NBCT

4/5th grade looping specialist, GA

At NEH workshops and seminars, I get to recharge my soul in anticipation of the new school year. Studying and learning and having fun with colleagues from around the country reignites my passion that originally drew me to education.

Shannon Rozewski

High School English, OR

Philadelphia was the site of my first workshop in 2015 and it was Ah-May-Zing! Our group was given a special tour of Independence Hall bell tower. You know...where Nicholas Cage filmed National Treasure? I really got a feel for how old the building was when I walked the same stairway that was there in the 1700's! The National Constitution Center was an incredible place as well as all of Ben Franklin's sites, and of course the Liberty Bell!

Staircase from the 1700's leading to the Bell Tower

Ben Franklin and I posing in the Constitution Center (2015)

Independence Hall

Liberty Bell

Philly Cheesesteak!! A yummy cultural experience!

My second workshop took place in 2017 in Eatonville, Florida, the first entirely African American city to be established in 1887 after being settled by former slaves two decades after the Civil War ended. It was hometown to not only former Green Bay Packer player Ha Ha Clinton Dix, but Zora Neale Hurston who is considered one of the best writers of Twentieth-century African-American literature. It was her literature and folk tales that I studied during this workshop and her formative years in Eatonville that influenced her writing. As a result of this workshop literature study, I developed a lesson plan based on using hyperbole that fits perfectly into my Tall Tale study for 4th graders. 

Among many of her great pieces of literature,
this novel is one of Zora's most well known books.
I definitely recommend this as a good read for yourself.

Our Zora group with the fabulous Zora 

impersonator front row second from the left.

Boat tour at Rollins College, Winter Park, FL 

where Zora taught for awhile.

Zora spent her final decade in Fort Pierce, FL.

We all became ZoraHeads that week!

If you are anything like me, I want to know exactly what I'm getting into before I commit to something such as this. Here are some basics you can expect from any of the workshops. You will be with approximately 35 other educators from across the U.S. and you will take part in workshops from authors and those who specialize on the theme of the workshop. Tours also link to the theme. 

You will be sent a list of readings prior to the workshop to help you get versed in the topic. Some of them will be sent electronically and others can be purchased secondhand via Amazon. Do as much as your time allows, but I found the more reading I did, the better understanding I had during the presentations. Walking to see the sites, getting to know other educators from across the country, and learning about a new area are all part of the experience. Most of the workshops ask you to create a lesson plan based on what you learned, to share with others, and use in your classroom.

Hopefully by now you are ready to check out the website. But if you still need another reason, a great plus about going on an NEH adventure is that you can use it in the following ways to support your Effective Educator plan for those that teach in Wisconsin:

Domain 1-Through the creating of a lesson plan based on new learning.
1a Demonstrating Knowledge of Content and Pedagogy
1c Setting Instructional Outcomes
1d Demonstrating Knowledge of Resources
1e Designing Coherent Instruction
1f Designing Student Assessments

Domain 4-Through attending and participating in a weeklong workshop with other educators from around the U.S.
4a Reflecting on Teaching
4d Participating in a Professional Community
4e Growing and Developing Professionally
4f Showing Professionalism

Here is the link to check out all the fun places to apply for: 

https://www.neh.gov/divisions/education/summer-programs

Be sure to look over the sites, lodging, and expectations. Lodgings vary by site. They usually suggest a specific place to stay such as hotel or a dorm if the presentations are on a campus. I have done both. However, you are free to stay elsewhere and make your own arrangements. You can email specific directors with any questions and in my experience they are very good about responding.

To apply, you will need to send an updated resume and answer short essay questions. You can apply for up to two different workshops but may only accept one. You will be notified the same day from both sites either way. The stipend will help cover costs of travel, lodging, and food. Consider making it a family vacation if lodging is at a hotel (however your family will not be able to attend any of the daytime tours or evening activities with you). If my kids had been grade school age, we would have traveled to the destination as a family and my hubby would have taken the kids all over the Philly area as well as Disney in Orlando. Something to consider.

If any of you have gone on an NEH adventure, please let us know about it in the comments. And I am happy to help guide with the essay aspect or any questions you might have. 

Happy summer planning!

Weird Holidays and Explanatory Writing

It's that time of year when many of us celebrate the holidays. Old traditions are revisited and perhaps introduced to the newest generation and new traditions and celebrations are started.

I remember drinking from this fountain as a kid, my kids do too.
Now my grandblessings are getting their opportunity.
Maybe this is a new tradition...

These cousins are enjoying holiday celebrations together.

Adding some snow makes celebrating the holidays REALLY fun.

The Littles are enjoying finding all the Santas on their great-grandparent's tree.

Although the traditional holidays are now upon us, have you ever considered celebrating such holidays as Pickle Day, National Mutt Day, Waffle Day, or Lima Bean Respect Day? This link shares Weird Holidays for most every day of the year with many dates having multiple unique celebrations. 

As a tie-in to the holidays, I went through the links on this site and found a number of weird celebrations that would grab students' interest and be appropriate for them to explore. Using the Pages app where I had placed some of these descriptive links, students selected one, read through it and began an explanatory/summarizing writing activity. 

Here is the link to the template I used for this assignment. Weird Holidays Pages Template. 

I starred the articles that were a bit lengthier with their shared facts.

Students were tasked to address the following items within their writing.

*Introduce and explain what your holiday selection was about.
*Explain the history of this weird holiday.
*In your own words, tell some interesting facts about the holiday.
*In the conclusion tell how someone can celebrate this holiday.

To help students understand how to go about this assignment I modeled what I wanted them to do by  choosing the "America Recycles Day" link and read the article aloud while students followed along. Next, I demonstrated my thinking as I went item by item above, found the info in the article, and reworded it while typing it on the Smartboard.

Aluminum cans can go from the recycle bin back to the store shelves in two months!
Who knew?

This is the written example I modeled for students as we thought through the article together.

One of our technology specialists helping us use the Schoolwork app.

During the next session one of our district's technology specialists came into my classroom to guide students to use the Schoolwork app. Schoolwork is a way to share and collaborate with students. It gives me access to everyone's writing in real time so I can see what progress students are making. This app allows me to offer support and give direct student feedback immediately.

Students discovered a few things to make this writing activity flow a bit better.

Students were shown how to use a split screen to go
 back and forth between the article and their writing with ease.

The divider between the split screens can be adjusted accordingly.
Can we celebrate National S'mores Day every day?

Not sure what a word means? One student shared how she discovered that by tapping and highlighting a word, a dictionary definition of that words pops up to help with comprehension.

Another student found that an arrow on the top lefthand side of the keyboard has a formatting feature. When the "tab" option is clicked it formats the writing to automatically indent paragraphs.

As I popped in and out of various student screens to see how their writing was going via my iPad, I was super excited to try out giving immediate feedback. I first tried it out by recording a quick encouragement using the audio feature and discovered that the recording indicator pops up on the student's screen. Since the student wasn't expecting it, he viewed it as a "pop-up" distraction and deleted it right away. 

Next I sent a line of feedback text and found that a writing bubble comes up on the student's screen. The written line then pops up in the middle of their writing. Prior to starting a project on Schoolwork, it's a great idea to let students know how these feedback communications will look when they receive them.

I found this student was really interested in French fry Day! 
He shared that Americans eat over 30 pounds of French fries per person a year!

As a way for students to begin their editing process, they were introduced to the accessibility tools on the iPad, specifically focusing on text to speech. On the iPad it's called Speak Screen and Speak Selection. Since the Weird Holiday template had a lot of verbiage on it, students were shown how to navigate Speak Selection to listen to their writing. They utilized the CUPS strategy of Capitals, Usage/Understanding, Punctuation, and Spelling. Students are being taught to use these tools for learning.

The highlighted portion is what the text to speech voice reads.
Students are able to hear their mistakes and address them.

When asked if the text to speech tool was helpful, every student raised their hand. Students commented that they were able to hear when they had missed a word. Misused words also popped out. For example, a student could hear when they had spelled "they" instead of "the" because it didn't make sense. Someone said the voice paused in a place that didn't make sense so she knew she had placed the comma in the wrong spot. One girl commented that she "kept expecting the voice to pause and take a breath but it wouldn't stop, it just kept going like the Energizer Bunny!" She realized she needed to go back and figure out where to place punctuation marks.

Students were excited to read about the Weird Holidays that people actually celebrate. One student loved bacon so much, not only did he choose National Bacon Day but also just happened to wear the perfect shirt that day!

By the way, today is National Roof Over Your Head Day! 

Be sure to celebrate that roof!