Blog Post #13

Brian Crosby-Back to the Future

This is a great video that addresses what I call integration of subject matter.  Mr. Crosby has students for three years for fourth, fifth, and sixth grades.  They are considered at risk, low income, and second language learners.  The survey statistics he gave about how many students do and do not know simple things like what city they live in, their addresses, and phone numbers were very disheartening.  This survey seems to be a spring board for Mr. Crosby's philosophy, "You don't know what could be if you don't know what is."

The presentation is about how a lesson on hot air balloons encompasses so many content areas:  science, writing, collaboration, exploration, and blogging.  The students have Skyped with students in New Zealand about what they have learned and how to do the same activities.  Mr. Crosby said that this is active learning which empowers kids to want to learn on their own.  "We can't keep racing kids through schools."  The student, Celeste, with leukemia participating with the class via Skype is priceless. 

I really like that Mr. Crosby has about thirty years of teaching experience.  He is not a recent college graduate who is new to teaching in the digital age.  Mr. Crosby has grown in his career to come to this style of teaching, which shows he greatly loves what he does and that meeting the needs of his students is what is truly important.

Blended Learning Cycle

Paul Anderson has developed what he calls the blended learning cycle.  He created an acronym from the word quivers.  The letters stand for question, investigate, video, elaboration, review, and summary quiz.  As a science teacher, Mr. Anderson has a very good system of beginning with a question.  Science is all about figuring out why things are they way they are and why they do what they do.  Then students are to investigate and inquire about the question presented.  The students watch a video on the subject that Mr. Anderson has already made.  This step seems very elaborate but the beauty of a video is once it is made, it can be used over and over.  During elaboration, the student delve deeper into the subject.  Mr. Anderson then talks with each student during the review stage to determine if the students really understand the material before they can move on to the summary quiz.

I like Mr. Anderson's statement, "I don't think you've really learned something unless you can explain it to someone else."  This is his perspective on the review so the students will be successful on the summary quiz.  This is a very good strategy.