Spring is here! We know this from the wacky weather we are having. The buds are growing and colours are popping everywhere and it’s a timely reminder of transitions even in education technologies. There are apps (applications) and then there are “apps”. While all apps are meant to do something, it is not until you…
Category: Innovative Teaching & Learning
Set up Green Screen Portable Kit
Here are instructions to set up your Green Screen kit. (Video is also in Burnaby Learning Community Team – Tips, Tutorials, ProD > Files)
Building Community and Hour of Code
Hi everyone! Michelle here, I’ve taken over the Learning Tech blog for a moment to share with you all some exciting resources for Hour of Code and Comp Sci Education Week. I will also be introducing the new Burnaby Learning Community in MS Teams! Read on to learn more. December is creeping up quickly and…
Reimagining Learning Spaces
Learning spaces are created anywhere we find opportunity to engage students and staff in possibilities. They may be in a forest, on a walk (eg. “Walking Curriculum”), in a classroom or hallway. Human nature seeks out difference and expect continuity at the same time. It could be anything from looking at a situation in a…
A Culture of Curiosity and Creative Thinking
There’s something quite wonderful about April. You know Spring (March 20th to be precise) has sprung bringing with it warmer, sunnier days. April is National Poetry Month. With that in mind, there are many ways to approach this. Here is an opportunity to consider ‘spoken word poetry’ or ‘poetry slams’. This is a combination of…
Winter Ponderings
It is the middle of winter and the anticipated snow advisory came but not really. Over the weekend, EdCampBC – Core Competencies organized by Janice Novokowski and Carrie Antoniazzi moved online and this effort was not lost on the participants who attended. It really showed that there are significant positives as more people from all…
January Starts a New Year
Welcome 2021! We’re looking forward to the longer days of sunlight from January onwards. 2020 saw the transition back to the classroom as well as a mixed form of hybrid learning. O365 Teams and blogs continued to be the backbone of communication and storytelling. As well, the Canvas platform served to provide another alternative to…
It’s November – Leveling Up Feedback
Feedback could be considered the basis to all learning in whatever capacity. Consider a golf swing – you gain immediate feedback when that tiny ball doesn’t quite get into that tiny tiny hole. Or perhaps it’s the cake that doesn’t quite poof up as shown in the picture of that recipe especially when they say…
It’s October – What’s Happening?
The weather is certainly autumnal. Leaves are changing and there’s a nip in the air. We have had quite a start to the year in our journey to support schools in the new environment we find ourselves. As a recap: Teams have been created for every class across K-12 with imported courses ready for use,…
Remote, Online, Blended?
We have had quite a journey these last few months and we continue to take heart that we are not alone but working side-by-side to figure out approaches that work for staff and students. What is very clear is the bravery it takes to learn new processes and procedures with calmness and kindness. I am…
Be Kind Be Calm Be Safe
Hi Everyone, I would say we are in uncharted territory these days. While there are a significant number of resources out there as well as tons of tools being shared, sometimes the abundance is overwhelming. Taking a step back to take a breath may allow a clearer picture of where we might be headed with…
On the Horizon – Learning
Hi Everyone, As you’re all finalizing learning during the week prior to Spring Break, I thought I would drop a tiny spark regarding what is coming up. These are currently in the Staff Development calendar: https://learn.burnabyschools.ca/ All sessions are at Canada Way Learning Centre – Room 8 Office 365 – Getting Started (Start with the…
Winter Happenings – M365 Tidbits
Well winter has certainly provided some excitement – shoveling walkways and driveways, negotiating hills, scientific discoveries of snow and storytelling. All of this culminates into tidbits of possibilities. How is your comfort in O365? – Whether it’s organization of OneDrive or Teams or Forms (for assessment or gathering data), we continue to offer insights in…
On the Educational Technologies front…
The streets are lined with golden leaves and the air is crisp and clear. It must be November. Hard to believe that we’re well into the middle of term. Quite a few of our Learning Teams and workshop series have started up and I think I’ve visited almost every school site. A short synopsis (especially…
Happy September – Welcome back!
Happy September Everyone. Hope you all had a great summer with time to connect with family and friends. This year we have quite a few new things to share, including our new home base at Canada Way Education Centre (tucked in between Canada Way and Woodsworth). Pop by and say hello in Room 3 >…
Learning Walks
We are fortunate to live in an area that is surrounded with nature right outside our doorstep. The popularity of using “learning walks” add new elements to our day. I can think of the power of this opportunity in every one of the curricular areas. “What if” we placed devices in the hands of students and…
Catalyst of Curiosity
Ever wonder how ideas move from a tiny germ to something purposefully actionable? It starts with curiosity, or maybe perhaps a niggle or a conversation walking down a hallway. The trick is to balance what we’ve come to understand through experience and the notion of “what if…”. One needs curiosity to activate our “what if…”…
September – A New Year
Welcome back! It’s great to still have summer weather around as we ease into another year of discovery, exploration and thinking deeply. You’ll notice that we have a PROJECTS IDEA button on the sidebar. This takes you to the Projects page where we’ve listed stories to spark ideas and opportunities to learn from your colleagues….
Authors & Voice – Using Google Classroom/GAFE
Storytelling is about discovery; discovery of oneself, discovery of our relationship with the world, discovery of questions within ourselves. Purposefully and intentionally immersing technologies that are simple to grasp, amplifies the discovery allowing the power of voice to lift off. This year’s joint project between Learning Technologies and Literacy accessed the collaborative nature of Google…
It’s 2018 – Moving Forward
It’s already 22 days into the new year! Recently we moved all classroom blogs and student BlogFolios to a new service allowing for growth over time. It’s been exciting to connect with people from all the team initiatives and be a part of their learning stories. LOOKING AHEAD: As I’ve said before, change is the…