Toddlers and Tweets? One Story of a Remarkable Educator

May 15, 2015 Teacher Learns to Code early childhood education, infants and toddlers, social media, teacher education early childhood education, edtech, education innovation, teacher education, teaching, techonology

This post is part of a promotion of Alter Your World, an Alt Summit project aimed at celebrating actions, big or small, that focus on good in the community.

We live in a world that reminds us of technology’s presence every day. We find ourselves continually wading through screens full of texts, tweets, emails, and moving pictures. At times overwhelming, it can be easy start to wonder if we should eject ourselves and our children from technology altogether.

I am more prone to wonder:

What if we pull back from the debate about “whether or not” to expose children to media, and alternatively investigate “how” we can incorporate technology into meaningful learning experiences?

Danielle Charron is an extraordinary teacher who embraces this question in big ways. She is working on earning her Masters Degree and Early Childhood Teaching License through the Boulder Journey School Teacher Education Program. As part of this year-long program, Masters candidates spend a week studying world-renowned educational practices in Reggio Emilia, Italy. As Danielle prepared for this trip in March of 2015, she began to consider ways to stay connected to her class of toddlers.

A child offered one way:

This child reminded Danielle of the natural empathy and keen awareness young children possess. Since the children were interested in her journey, Danielle wondered if she could use Twitter to invite them along and continue to engage as their teacher.

What she did next was simple, yet remarkable:

Danielle invited her class to follow her journey on Twitter, which offered:

A way for Danielle to bring the classroom with her.
A way for parents and children to share excitement and curiosity about their teacher’s adventure.
A way for the children to engage with technology as a tool.

Last but not least:

A way for the children, families, and co-teachers to travel along, asking new questions, engaging in new conversations, learning new things, and building deeper relationships along the way!

T’s Mom shared: “T loved this and was excited to have me read your notes and talk about how they corresponded to the pictures. He especially loved seeing Crocodile (his imaginary friend). There was also one photo that showed a window shot of another building. This started a conversation about what we see out of windows and what you were seeing out the window on your trip. Thanks for allowing us all to follow along!”

When M gave Danielle the rock that sparked this story, he told her it was “for your trip”. When she returned to her physical classroom to share her stories in person, she showed M that his gift was still with her.

“It went to Italy and all the way back here!”

Indeed, didn’t they all? I am in awe of Danielle for her willingness to embrace the possibilities that technology and social media offer!

When we spend time debating “whether or not” to accept technology into our lives with young children, we might just miss extraordinary learning opportunities like this.

Disequilibrium: Learning Theory and Personal Practice

March 31, 2015March 31, 2015 Teacher Learns to Code learning theory, programming, teacher education, ways to learn accomodation, assimilation, Chihuly, coding, discovery, disequilibrium, Education, learning theory, Piaget, programming, schemas, yoga

Notable Swiss child development theorist, Jean Piaget, explained learning as a continual process of achieving equilibrium, or balance, in our state of “knowing”…Then that balance is challenged when we encounter new stimuli, resulting in disequilibrium. When this happens, we try to apply our existing schemas (knowledge or ways of knowing) to the new stimuli (assimilation). We also seek and adopt entirely new schemas (accommodation). We tinker with all of this until we achieve that state of balance, or equilibrium once again. (Until the next time we encounter new stimuli…)

Disequilibrium, also known as cognitive dissonance, is not a very comfortable state to be in. It can feel frustrating, and challenging. It can cause fear, anxiety, and even panic. It is, however, necessary for true learning to take place. If we never encounter anything that challenges our current ways of thinking or knowing, then we never move forward. We never get smarter, more adept, more diverse, more eclectic, and that seems like such a dull place to be!

Since I started learning how to code, I’ve been thinking a lot about disequilibrium. Continue reading →

Universal Children’s Day: Do Children Have the Right to Learn How to Code?

November 19, 2014November 19, 2014 Teacher Learns to Code early childhood education, Insipration, learning to code, teacher education, why coding accomodation, childrenhavetherightto, early childhood education, learning to code, learning to program, rights, UNCRC, Universal Children's Day, young children

Tomorrow is Universal Children’s Day, a celebration of the day 25 years ago when the United Nations adopted the “Convention on the Rights of the Child”.

Did you know that the United States is one of only 3 UN countries that has not ratified this?

In celebration of the 25th anniversary of Universal Children’s Day, my school created this video. Please feel free to share it with your communities:

https://www.facebook.com/BoulderJourneySchool

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZOxodRT3Uf0

I’ve argued on this blog that children can all benefit from learning to code, but I wonder at what point this will be considered a right. Should it be?

“It’s Never Too Early to Develop”…Is this Brilliant, or Simply Novel?

November 7, 2014 Teacher Learns to Code early childhood education, HTML, infants and toddlers, learning to code, product review, programming, teacher education, ways to learn babies, brain development, codebabies, coding, cognitive development, culture, early childhood education, HTML, infants, infants and toddlers, language development, learning theory, learning to code, learning to program, literacy development, overthinking, parenting, preschool, STEM, teaching, toddlers

CLAY85941-1024x648 — Photo Source: Codebabies.com

(from website) It’s never too early to be standards compliant! Show your little ones HTML markup code along with letter forms to get them started on the visual patterns and symbols that make up the essential building blocks of the Web. The first in a three-volume set, originally designed by a NYC Web Designer for his baby, this beautiful book is a fun and colorful introduction to the world of web design for babies.

I’m not too sure how I feel about this!

On the one hand:

I mean…I know that giving any book to a baby is better than giving no book to a baby.

Exposure to print is great (and necessary) for babies’ pre-literacy development.

I also know that exposure to simple, clean designs with high contrast is naturally interesting and engaging for them, while also supporting their ocular development.

I also know babies have an incredible capacity for learning language before the age of 3. The more language exposure babies get results in more foundational neurochemistry being established for learning languages later in life.

I also know that part of the barrier to learning to code is just being exposed to it, and NOT thinking that it looks and sounds alien. (I know this from experience…I can say that now!) Thus, this simple exposure could provide some foundations for code being accepted as a cultural reality in one’s world.

I also think this is clever! I mean…”It’s never too early to develop”…that is fantastic! Continue reading →

A Disequilibrium Reprieve and a History Lesson: Logo

November 4, 2014November 4, 2014 Teacher Learns to Code early childhood education, languages, learning theory, Logo, programming, teacher education, ways to learn coding, computers, discovery, early childhood education, edtech, Education, education trends, infants and toddlers, Logo, math, Mathematics, Piaget, programming

I have been focusing pretty singularly on learning Ruby, but have noticed that the tutorials are getting harder for me to work through. Of course this is expected, but I find that when my brain gets overloaded, it’s helpful to take breaks. I try to keep my breaks productive by and working on something easier, totally different, but still coding: Logo.

I’ve worked through the Logo lessons on Turtle Academy, and think it’s fun to go back to the Logo play ground and draw pictures. This gives me a chance to give my memory a workout, do something I love (draw), and feel successful.

A friend who knows I’ve been playing with Logo lent me a great book called Mindstorms: Children, Computers, and Powerful Ideas, by Seymour Papert, one of the inventors of the Logo programming language. I started reading it today, and was blown away by the relevance of the ideas, even though the book was written in 1980. Continue reading →

“How can we educate children for a future we cannot yet imagine?”

October 31, 2014October 31, 2014 Teacher Learns to Code early childhood education, Insipration, teacher education Carlina Rinaldi, early childhood education, Education, Reggio Emilia, teacher education

These words were offered last night by Carlina Rinaldi and Ellen Hall. I have been thinking about this question since then and will continue to consider…

What do you think?

Should Everyone Learn to Code?

October 28, 2014November 7, 2014 Teacher Learns to Code background, learning theory, programming, teacher education, why coding 21st century skills, brain development, edtech, education trends, hour of code, learning to code, learning to program, programming, programming languages, scratch, Should everyone learn to code?, STEM, teacher education, teaching, techonology

Should everyone learn to code? Maybe, maybe not…but that is not exactly what I aim to debate on this blog (although I welcome the debate if it happens!)

I do, however, believe that every child should have a shot at understanding and learning about coding. Because of that, I’ve come to believe that in the not-too-distant future, teachers will need to know something about computer programming. We should know what code is, know how to write some of it, and know about the types of thinking it takes to successfully write code.

Why?

Because it will make us better teachers! As our world becomes more and more computer-driven, there will be more and more conversations about computer programming. More and more children will want to explore and learn coding. Should all those children be encouraged to become professional computer programmers? Not necessarily, but their natural interests and curiosities around coding and computer programming should be encouraged and supported as they figure out whether or not programming is something they’d like to pursue.

Further, How can teachers support the interests and curiosities if they themselves have no idea what coding is or how it can be used? We can sit children in front of computers with Hour of Code, or a Scratch tutorial, but if we ourselves don’t know what they are doing, how can we help and support them? Are we really being good teachers?

I think much of the debate around “should everyone learn to code?” largely misses the point. Continue reading →

Inspiration: Learning By Doing

October 22, 2014November 7, 2014 Teacher Learns to Code Insipration, resources, teacher education, ways to learn 21st century skills, discovery, discovery learning, education trends, learning styles, teacher education, teaching

The article, American Schools Are Training Kids for a World That Doesn’t Exist, by David Edwards, provides some incredibly important perspectives for educators to consider: http://www.wired.com/2014/10/on-learning-by-doing/

Describing current educational trends, the article states: “We ‘learn,’ and after this we ‘do.’ We go to school and then we go to work. This approach does not map very well to personal and professional success in America today. Learning and doing have become inseparable in the face of conditions that invite us to discover.”

The authors go on to describe some important movements bubbling up through the cracks of our institutions: “Discovery has always provoked interest, but how one discovers may today interest us even more. Educators, artists, designers, museum curators, scientists, engineers, entertainment designers and others are creatively responding to this new reality, and, together, they are redefining what it means to learn in America.”

Part of the reason I’m learning to code and writing this blog is because I believe that In order for students to adopt and maintain attitudes of discovery, teachers need to be discoverers too. We must play, design, experiment, and find joy in the process in order to be effective in our jobs and nurture the natural creative genius in our students. I’m not yet sure if I believe that every teacher will need to learn to code, but I do believe that every teacher needs to find and nurture their own creative passions and seek new creative challenges to tackle.

What will it take for our schools to provide professional development that fosters teacher discovery?

What will it take for teacher education programs to nurture discovery mindsets in new generations of teachers?

Inspiration: Dispositional Thinking

October 21, 2014November 7, 2014 Teacher Learns to Code Insipration, learning theory, resources, teacher education, ways to learn 21st century skills, dispositional thinking, interest-based learning, learning styles, learning theory, learning to code, STEM, teacher education

Check out “Dispositional Thinking, Changing the Game”: http://teachingonthewind.wordpress.com/

“Dispositional thinking is about changing the focus from learning being something you are good or bad at, to something that is learnable and changeable, something that you can practice and improve; moving from a fixed mindset to a growth mindset. It’s about developing the skills that support learning and are, at the same time, invaluable in 21st century workplaces.”

This empowers me as I bumble through my personal journey to learn to code, and is something I’d like to think more about. However, I think the ideas presented here are relevant in a much broader sense for all teachers, teacher educators, and beyond!

If you have comments, please post them on the original page.

Fighting Back Against “I’m Terrible at Math”

October 18, 2014November 7, 2014 Teacher Learns to Code background, Math, teacher education coding, David Hawkins, early childhood education, Frances Hawkins, gender issues, interest-based learning, learning to code, learning to program, math, Mathematics, preschool math, psychology, STEM, teacher education, teaching

Many teachers, and many people in general feel terrible at math. In the article, The Myth of “I’m Bad at Math”, by Miles Campbell and Noah Smith analyzes this phenomenon and makes a very compelling case for why this is so dangerous in our society. They say “We hear it all the time. And we’ve had enough. Because we believe that the idea of “math people” is the most self-destructive idea in America today. The truth is, you probably are a math person, and by thinking otherwise, you are possibly hamstringing your own career.”

I grew up thinking I was bad at math. Many of us did! I believe this phenomenon is part of why I’ve never (until now) considered that computer programming was even worth trying to understand. “I’m terrible at math”, is something that many of us feel completely comfortable and even proud saying to pretty much anyone.

When we think about a teacher proudly proclaiming “I’m terrible at reading!”, it does not seem acceptable. We’d all probably think less of this person. So why is it acceptable with math and not acceptable with reading? This is a question all teachers need to examine. There really shouldn’t be a difference between the two.

Continue reading →