3rd Week of February

DOK - From Student Involvement to Student Commitment

I found this quote a few weeks ago and pondered this thought, "How much does involvement play in the arduous task we call learning.  If you think about it, involvement is a pretty big deal.  When kids or even adults don't feel included in any initiative or task, there is a strong chance that they will not choose to take ownership or even an active role in the task.

So how can we involve kids in our learning tasks in a way that will entice them to commit to the learning?

Source:  "Motivational Quotes"
Compiled by Mac Anderson

1. Leadership - When kids have the opportunity to help you lead the learning, participation grows,
2. Examples - When examples of student work are used as teaching tools or exemplars of great work, student motivation increases.
3. Advancement - If students can see how learning tasks advance their abilities and their knowledge, they choose to get involved.
4. Real-world - When learning is tied to the real-world that students either live in or can relate to, involvement grows.
5. N-It-4-Me - Every successful lesson answers this ever-present student question, "What's in it for me?"  If you can sell your content to your client, the student, chances are they will not only buy your teaching but sell it to their peers on your behalf.  That's the ultimate form of student commitment to learning.

Learning can't occur at high levels unless there is commitment.  The manner in which we intentionally involve kids in class everyday plays a huge role in determining whether or not kids will choose get involved and ultimately commit to their learning.

STAAR Vocabulary Challenge - How many words do your kids know? 
(Click here for Dynamo.Dictionary.com)

College & Career

•  The oil and gas business is booming (if you didn't already know that), and there is a huge demand for skilled workers in the areas of welding technology, industrial maintenance, petroleum technology and corrosion technology.  Did you know that in these 4 areas, students enrolled in associate degree programs at Kilgore College are getting hired before they graduate.  In addition these jobs have entry-level salaries that start as low as $40,000 per year and can go as high as $70,000.  
• College and career isn't just about courses that lead to 4 year degrees.  It is about preparing all kids for a career that will sustain them.  To the right you see the projects that our agriculture mechanics students are doing in preparation for shows this spring.  While these tasks prepare them for competition, students are also being prepared for careers with huge earning potential.
• This week, take time to share with your students the fact that college isn't just about 4 year degrees.  There are lots of careers that only require a 1 year college certificate or a 2 year associate's degree.

TIP (Tech Integration Pic) of the Week

By Veronica Wilkerson

Kindergarten students are

 using the Dr. Bones App to

 learn about the bones in the human body

 in the Discovery lab.

By Cristi Whiddon
TMS math students use Kahoot! to help reinforce
math facts in support of learning new concepts.

This Week's WebFinds

Great piece on the effects divorce has on learning  -  The Grip of Abandonment by @techninjatodd

Will you join 300,000 kids in the The Global Read Aloud by @pernilleripp

Educator Learning Series - A blog designed to engage educators in tasks that help them be more effective in the classroom.