Please describe how your current or past teaching assignments have included Minnesota History.
If one is a teacher in Minnesota, all of our teaching assignments have included Minnesota History. From the decisions of exactly what curriculum we teach to the systems we teach in, Minnesota History has impacted our schools as a system and as individuals. In response to this question, I cannot help but think of my experience at a ‘Beyond Diversity’ from Pacific Education Group training session many years ago. Their question was, “How much of your life is impacted by race?” I remember filling out a series of questions and getting a certain percentage of impact. The impact of race, class and culture and history are at many levels of complexity and their influences affect us all.
Specific curricular units I have taught that are directly related to Minnesota History are:
2nd Grade Communities in Minnesota
4th Grade State Studies on Minnesota
6th Grade Minnesota History (Northern Lights)
A recent event of Minnesota History we have studied is the 150th anniversary of the Dakota War. Our English Language Arts department is responsible for reading across the content areas and integrating the social studies common core state standards. First, in anticipation of the unit of study, we built curiosity and background knowledge with a series of short video clips. Then, we applied our non-fiction (informational text) reading strategies to read an article from the newspaper, compared and contrasted with our social studies text, and responded to our reading in a poetry free verse writing assignment. In addition, students could also extend their learning by completing a ‘Prezi’ to summarize what was learned. And, we invited a guest speaker in to talk about issues of authenticity of modern American Indian experiences and customs. In English Language Arts, we integrate content area information with our literacy instruction and reading skills and strategies.
Please describe the curriculum writing you have done and the extent to which that curriculum is used by you and others.
I am a member of the Language Arts Curriculum Improvement Committee which was responsible for evaluating best practices in English Language Arts literacy instruction and creating a district wide literacy model. The committee presented a three day training session this summer to the entire staff of teachers. All teachers (K-6) are following the new model of language arts instruction with a differentiated tiered system and social studies integration component.
Please see the Newsletters link for 4th, 5th and 6th grades for detailed newsletter descriptions of curriculum. For another a writing sample, please read the newsletters, I authored of all published newsletters detailing the curriculum.
The following Prezi explains a bit about our program. http://prezi.com/x1j7smbkljd9/english-language-arts-overview/
We have developed and adapted all elements of the curriculum to meet state standards and our students’ particular needs. This curriculum is under constant refinement and use by the English Language Arts department.
Please describe which aspect of teaching Minnesota History most interests you.
I am most excited to create and write and teach Minnesota History with culturally relevant teaching and learning in mind. The National Urban Alliance approach “is guided by The Pedagogy of Confidence, the fearless expectation and support for the high intellectual performance of all students, especially those who are dependent on the school and community for the skills and support needed to attain high achievement. We uncover strengths of students and teachers and then build on those strengths.” I would hope to integrate content with the strategies from NUA that will engage all learners.
And, when teaching and writing any curriculum, I would like to move students beyond traditional understanding to deeper levels of critical comprehension. If we can learn to understand from a critical stance, when students can see beyond the text and question the author’s intent, we can learn to evaluate and assess the accuracy and perspective of the author. Never before has critical literacy and thinking become more important than in our digital world of infinite sources of text and information presented to us.
Please describe your level of comfort with technology and any specific technology you have already used in your instruction.
Every piece of our current curriculum is digitally enhanced. In the year 2000, I wrote my Master’s thesis on ‘Literacy and Technology’ about how technology can be used for literacy learning in the classroom. Things have changed exponentially since then. I am highly comfortable with technology and embrace new technologies as they become available in my teaching and learning. We have evolved from a project based computer lab delivery model to Web 2.0 technologies to teaching and learning with a 21st Century classroom and personalized learning utilizing technology infusion and curriculum created to complement this model. The collaboration among colleagues and professionals with technology enables us to refine, enhance and reflect synergistically. Please visit http://mnhistorywritingproject.pbworks.com/ for a mockup of a site for the writing project collaboration.
Specific projects to demonstrate my infusion of technology into teaching and learning:
Created a blog to document implementing a digital curriculum:
Created a wiki to facilitate school wide volunteer coordination:
Created a blog for student writing:
Please describe your reasons for being interested in working as part of this writing team.
I wish to be a part of this kinetic energy, the push for the implementation of some of the most cutting edge technology along with the professional development and coaching of educators to move learning forward into the digital age of 21st Century Learning.
Concepts of learning and teaching have changed drastically over the past decade. We are no longer the sole providers of “knowledge” because “information” is easily accessible. As a result, all those connected to learning and teaching must renew their vision to establish learning environments that focus on the thinking and the inquiry. We need to be able to connect to our students’ digital worlds to engage and motivate a new and very different type of learner.
Students’ worlds are wired for action 24/7; they communicate, collaborate, create and learn on demand. They use digital tools and thrive with digital learning. Thus more and more schools are providing digitally rich learning opportunities in which students, teachers and administrators have access to technology when and where they need it. Schools are trending to anytime, anywhere access and collaboration.
A digital curriculum provides the opportunity for creating the optimal conditions for an intersection of rigor, relevance, relationships and realness for students and creating an equitable individualized and personal learning experience for success in a diverse and changing world. By creating the materials that provide a framework and the access to tools and training for all of our students and staff will yield a dynamic 21st Century learning environment that will allow for increased student achievement in a systemic manner.
