Where to being?

After teaching for 11 years, one usually know just how they want to do their job day in and day out. After getting an iPad to use in class, I am now questioning that mantra. My district, like most, is facing financial concerns, and as a result PD is not normally approved, so I took to the social media airways to get some ideas. I joined twitter (@sadkinsump) and have started blogging.

My school uses Schoology as its LMS. I fiddled with it in the summer, but thought nothing about it. At our school PD day, we had a short presentation on Schoology, and I realized how that could be beneficial in the Foreign Language classroom. I started my Spanish II's using Schoology for discussion posts, so they could improve their writing and could see how others were doing too.

I have increased my use of Schoology and now have all my students in Spanish I and II using it. I have also started posting notes from class, worksheets, vocabulary lists and links to quizlet. I realize the more that students have access to things at home and on their own time the more beneficial it is to them.

Sorry for digressing. After getting my iPad, I have been looking at different ways to enhance my class. I have began using the educreations app and love it. I like the idea of posting the notes with my voice, so students can hear and see what the notes are. This offers so much more than just copying the notes from a friend.

After starting this, I found the #edchat group on Twitter and learned about this idea of flipping the classroom. I read some blog links from Daniel Edwards (@syded06) and I have been sold on the idea of flipping the classroom.

The chemistry teacher and I have talked off and on for a week or so about flipping the classroom and what that means. I really believe in the flipped mastery model, but I am now in the area of how to go about doing it all. I have a few students who normally do not do their homework, so I am trying to figure out how that will play out if they do not listen to the notes and then be ready for the days activities. I also question how to handle students who say they have no access to the computer at home, even though, they already have told me they do.

I think the benefits of the flipped classroom fits the Foreign Language classroom really well. The goal of the class is for students to communicate in the Target Language not just do the grammar concepts really well. The flipped classroom allows students to spend less time on the grammar and more time working on the communicating.

I am on information overload right now. I see so many new ideas and want to run with them all. I know I need to choose only a few and do those well and then implement the others after I get up and going.

I am open to any and all suggestions as well as encouragement in this process.

I will keep you all posted on how things start off.