Mindful Ed

I am so excited to share the process of our Prism Puzzler challenge. It was one of those learning tasks that just kept rolling. Each stage increasing in complexity and depth of thinking. Students were engaged, motivated, and demonstrating deep learning competencies throughout. The learning just made sense to students. They could visualize their learning and make connections during each stage. An educational WIN! When utilizing unconventional teaching strategies and methods, this does not always happen (refer to my first posts this year on failure ) but it such a joy when thinks unfold as this did. Specific Curriculum Expectations: – solve problems that involve the surface area and volume of right prisms and that require conversion between metric measures of capacity and volume – estimate and calculate the area of composite two-dimensional shapes by decomposing into shapes with known area relationships – sketch different polygonal prisms that share the same volume – determine, t...

At her session called  The Right Question  at the Ontario GAFE summit,   Holly Clark  spoke of those 'fall to your knees' moments  as educators when something goes so absolutely right, when the learning is so tangible, that you feel like falling to your knees in pure bliss and gratitude for what you are a part of. I have learned through my experimentation with varied pedagogical approaches and adoption of new technologies, that these moments are to be treasured and are what fuels passionate educators to continue with their pursuits to innovate and inspire. For each 'fall to your knees' moment there are also moments of failure that serve to 'reflect and refine' practice. Both moments equally as important and rich with learning for students and educators. I had a 'fall to my knees' moment witnessing my Grade 7 students so enthralled with their heat design projects that time stood still and it seemed as though I was in some amazing innovation incubator ...

“Joseph-Nicholas Delisle and his nephew by marriage, Philippe Buache, were obsessed by the idea of a vast sea, connected to the Pacific in northwestern North America. Beginning in 1752, Delisle and Buache published a series of maps and memoirs describing this mythical 'Mer de 1'ouest'; some of their maps appeared as late as 1779 in Diderot's Encyclopédie. The 'Mer de l'ouest' had been a strong motive for exploration but as early as the 1740s few others dared place it on a map”.  (Library and Archives Canada) Image and except retrieved from  the Historical Atlas of Canada During our second day of Innovation Stations  a rather interesting metaphor struck me. We were discussing how as early users of this educational technology, we have a responsibility to document our learning journey, successes and failures, so that others might learn from us and to provide documentation of our thinking processes for our own reflection. Maybe this is a little like ...

The topic of geometric properties has become the focus of our latest mathematics spiral. The possible connections with spatial reasoning and 3D printing have become quite obvious as we have worked our way through various explorations. Specific Curriculum Expectations: - Sort and classify triangles and quadrilaterals by geometric properties related to symmetry, angles, and sides, through investigation using a variety of tools and strategies - Identify, through investigation, the minimum side and angle information needed to describe a unique triangle - Determine, through investigation using a variety of tools relationships among area, perimeter, corresponding side lengths, and corresponding angles of congruent shapes - Demonstrate an understanding that enlarging or reducing two-dimensional shapes creates similar shapes Exploration 1: Student Guessing Game Students worked with a partner to classify polygons according to geometric properties. One partner selected a plastic polygo...

Just over a week ago, my classroom's 3D printer arrived. It was a Friday, and as eager as I was to check it out myself, I wanted to share the experience with my students. So there, on a large rectangular table, sat the box ... I took a picture of it and posted it to our instagram feed (@weberswonders7) to instill a little curiosity.  On Monday morning, the classroom was a buzz of excitement. We had a class discussion about what we believed to be in the box and what might be possible with this new learning tool. Students recorded their thinking on sticky notes and attached them to the (still closed) box. We have been talking about the design process and students made connections with the importance of getting inspiration from the world around them.  This sticky notes was my favourite!  The following day we opened the box and created a list of questions and wonderings about the M3D printer. Initial Questions: How do we take care of it? ...