MEME-ORIZING VOCABULARY VIA VISUAL LITERACY, VIRAL MEDIA, AND TECH INTEGRATION BY TROY WHITE 

This presentation explores teaching with a blended learning methodology: the different methods of implementation, improving teacher workflow efficiency, and promoting student differentiation.

Reading Contracts - #AISGreads 2015

Sometimes make a declarative promise about our goals helps us to realize them. The reading contract equally allows for an opportunity of self-reflection. 

21st Century Learning Teachmeet November

As always, this is fantastic event. And yes, I travel all the way from China to attend this. Me giving my nano presentation of "Cross-Curricular Literacy Initiative - Interdisciplinary and Differentiated". 
Just saying this title can take two minutes. 

21st Century Learning - Hong Kong TeachMeet – November 2015

Who would not want to attend this event? Look at the poster boy for this!

Wednesday, 18 November 2015 at Cocoon. 

I'll be giving a nano-presentation on...

"Division-wide Literacy Initiative - Interdisciplinary and Differentiated"

EdTechGZ 2015

Last weekend I was able to participate in this year's EdTechGZ. In it's second year, the event has nearly doubled from 2014! Lot's of strong presentations covering all sorts of interest; gamification, 1:1, makers, and my "0365 and Formative Assessment"

The online version of the presentation of my session: http://tinyurl.com/gztwhite

Step Into Our Classroom Live - Every lesson recorded for the year!

This year I have finally formalized my live-streaming of my lessons. With the summer purchase of a Logitech C920 wide-angle webcam permanently fixed in the back of the room and our Samson C01U hanging from the ceiling, we are good to go. Step Into Our Classroom Live is an separate Youtube channel from our Step Into Our Classroom. I felt as though I wanted to keep the daily recordings separate from the student resources and work.

I'm not sure how many students have gone back and actually watched a lesson after being absent... BUT, I have personally been able to get a lot out the reflective nature of viewing my lessons. It is great PD. Additionally, having a virtual eye watching adds some strange sense of always being in a teacher evaluation scenario - of which, I kind of enjoy. 

Using a Youtube channel and the Google Hangouts function within allows for the lessons to be both streamed live and automatically recorded and published via Youtube- easy and awesome!

My Alarm Clock App - 7 Minute Warning

My Alarm Clock
By Apalon Apps

Love this app! I've been trying to sort out a proper app/alarm clock for some time. 

Like most of us, I appreciate some "winding" down of the lesson- reflect on/recap what we have done and to review homework etc. 

This app not only allows me to set multiple alarms (for all my class periods, and all the alternative periods when we have community events - which is quite a lot), BUT I get to use my own audio for the alarm itself. 

So, as long as it can be put in a playlist in iTunes, it works. So, I get to create my own audio tracks!

Creepy attention getting guy... 7 minute warning

Roger W (one of our Year II students) Death Metal...

7 minute warning

21st Century Learning Teachmeet - May, Hong Kong

Although it makes for a very rough day, I wasn't about to miss out on the opportunity of presenting at the May 21st Century Learning Teachmeet in Hong Kong. My micro-presentation went over well and as always, one gets to "talk about school stuff" with a lot of very smart and proactive educators. 

The Slides version of my presentation-

Have to sum up an author's work in 25 words? Part Deux

What are the quintessential words necessary for an academic critical response? Tagxedo and a potentially smart background shape... voilà Angela Carter Word Cloud!

 

21st Century Learning TeachMeet

I had the opportunity this week to pop down to Hong Kong in order to participate in one of 21st Century Learning's TeachMeet. Most in the region are familiar with the organization and their massive annual conference, but they do a number of smaller events throughout the year. The location, Cocoon in North Point, was fantastic and there were a number of informative micro and nano presentations.

I was able to present one of my standards, "Putting the form in formative - Using Google Forms & Spreadsheets creatively in the formative assessment process". 

All is all, I was able to meet some fantastic like-minded teachers and I'll be looking to participate again in future events. 

 

Here is the Google Slides version of my physical presentation.

EARCOS 2015!!!

Yes, I will be giving a Teacher Workshop at this year's EARCOS conference at Kota Kinabalu in March.

"CONGRATULATIONS to Troy White who was chosen to present at ETC 2015 under Literacy strand."

Literacy... me... yep.

No More Boring Old IB Stuff... Cartooned Assessment Doc!

 

 

So I wasn't liking how this self-reflection doc as looking and decided to spruce it up. I have recently added some pretty cool comic-related fonts to my Mac and was looking for an excuse to use them. 

I had originally appropriated some Hobbes (from Calvin &) images, but decided to open up the Photoshop and create something a little more personal. 

If you've ever used the simple Threshold function you've probably struggled with the lack of control- i.e. a section of your image becomes too black or vice versa. 

Solution! 

- Play with the Threshold until you find "sections" of your image you like
- Copy the individual sections and paste them into a new doc
- Then shove them all together!

Easy- this way my eyes are still clear, my hair a different setting- took these two and pasted them on top of the modified body. 

Took 90 seconds maybe... 


 

Dewey Poster of the Week!

EDTech GZ 2014

So, yesterday the American International School of Guangzhou held the inaugural EdTech GZ conference. Turns out, there are a ton of other like-minded teachers in the Peal River/Guangzhou area working at international schools who are equally willing to come out, share and take in some ideas regarding tech integration. 

Creating a local discourse is inherently a great idea, as the theme naturally gravitates towards, "What works for you?" - with the old Great Firewall business. 

So, keeping on the subject, and knowing that a number of the other schools might be moving towards, or having recently adapted, a 1:1 programme, I focused on how to sell the tech:

"Streamlining Your Instruction - Tech can actually SAVE you time! How simple web 2.0 technologies can be implemented in your current learning management system to maximum your time, instruction and efficiency"

My group was very engaged and left with "a new-found vigor" :)

It was a very positive experience and everyone involved was able to make some solid contacts- all in all it was a great event that will hopefully become a regular affair.

Have to sum up an author's work in 25 words.

Tagxedo and a potentially smart background shape... voilà Angela Carter Word Cloud!

 

1:1 - Do our schools physically support 1:1 programmes?

 

Yes, I spelt (that's right I spelled spelled as spelt) program as programme - Anyways, I've recently visited some not-so-shabby international schools, and one of the things I was eyeballing, beyond the commissioned statues and zen gardens, was: 

How conducive are the learning spaces to 1:1 programs? 

Obviously, this something I've been working on with my current classroom. Yes, most our schools have the charging stations, etc. But.. 

- How may outlets available in your classroom and do students have to reconfigure their seating in order to charge their computer? It's easy to mandate, "Make sure your computer is charged when you arrive to class", but if we all say this... 

*** AUDIO!!! This kills me. Visuacy, as the Aussies call it, multimedia, Ted talks, so being able to hear Ted would seem to be of importance... 

- How accessible are is your audio input? 
- Does it force you to leave your laptop in a very confined are of the classroom? - Can students easily access the audio input? 
- Do you have to do the stupid untangling of ow wires and relocation of speakers for student presentations? 
- Do you have surround sound? 
- Do you find that certain videos when streamed are just not loud enough? 
- Do you have a wireless projector? 
- If not, do you have to leave your laptop in a very confined are of the classroom? 
- Do students have ready access to project? 
- Laptops are a misnomer- do students have space to work with the computer, ergonomically, in classrooms and common spaces? 

Everyday I'm hustlin... hustlin.. hustlin...

Screencasting - Lord of the Flies Mask & Monologue - Characterization and Rationale

Nice, multi-component summative dealing with characterization. 

- Analyze for characterization 

- Create a mask that is representative of a principal character 

- Write a rationale justifying artistic and symbolic elements and where in the narrative these characteristics and concepts are derived 

- Write a sixty-second monologue from your character's perspective, 1st person POV 

Pretty cool final products and some of the masks, both three-dimensional and digital were very well done. 

Ah... Good Times..The Case of the Phantom Essay

Love it when former students remind you that they you are not an oblivious lost thought- yeah people might like me..

I got en email from a former student today who, now as an adult, is appreciating quality email banter. 

Vocab Vines...

I like vocabulary... I don't like stuffy vocabulary resources... I've been creating a plethora of vocab activities and methods of delivery which makes me laugh and the kids a bit more interested. Here's one... Vocab Vines. They know vines, they love vines and it supports a ton of learning objectives.