Laker Innovators

Here at Glen Lake, when we have conversations about using technology to support learning, our teachers use a rubric (the SAMR rubric) to evaluate where the technology usage falls on the scale. It boils down to if the tech is being used to do old things in old ways, old things in new ways, or new things in new ways. Projects will fall all along this continuum and that is okay. Even when students are using technology to do basic word processing or drill and practice problems, the functional benefits are apparent through either efficiency, practice targeted to student needs or increased engagement. Our goal is to have continuous improvement and push further up the scale each year. Our teachers are constantly learning, trying and sharing new ways to integrate technology to increase student achievement. The project we are highlighting in this week's blog post is definitely an example of doing new things in new ways . It comes from Karen Richard's biology students. It is a semeste...

The concept of "Genius Hour" has been taking off in schools with a movement back towards creating, making, creativity, student-centered learning and student-choice. At the heart of the genius hour concept is that students are exploring their passions and curiosities during a specific period of time carved out each week. Students learn to be more self-directed learners and develop a love for life-long learning. The students choose their topic, their points of research and plan how they will create artifacts to demonstrate their learning to share with a larger audience. The teacher facilitates the process through questioning, guiding and providing structures to help students stay on task. Many of our Glen Lake Elementary teachers have embraced the genius hour concept and have been incorporated it into their classrooms over last two years. Engagement runs high as students are researching, learning, creating and presenting. Their pride in their work is evident as they present t...

For the May teacher spotlight we are celebrating the first grade team - Ms. Kinder, Mrs. Budd and Mrs. Schichtel! These teachers have been working on integrating STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) skills with literacy in their STEM fairy tale projects. In the project highlighted below, the classes first read and discussed the fairy tale "Billy Goats Gruff". Then the students were tasked with working in teams to design and build a bridge that could carry the weight of a toy goat attached to a magnet. The students worked in teams to first design a plan for their bridge. They then built their bridges using mini-marshmallows and toothpicks. The students had to work together, listen to each other, test their theories, tweak their designs and document the process with their iPads. The students then put the videos and photos together in iMovie and added text and music. These presentations were shared with the class so the students could see each others designs. In wat...

IXL is an online tool used to support students with math and language arts instruction and practice in grades K-12. Glen Lake Community Schools pays an annual subscription fee for this program. It allows teachers to monitor student achievement based on the standards in these subjects and target individual student needs by assigning practice within a specific standard. Teachers are able to generate a variety of progress reports and students earn "medals" as they progress through the program. Both students and teachers have provided positive feedback on the program and we are excited to watch the usage grow each year. IXL is web-based so it can be accessed on any device from both school and home via the Internet. There is also an app available for the program. To date, through this current school year, Glen Lake students have attempted 743,791 problems and spent 4,746 hours working within the IXL program! Specifically in the middle school grades, IXL is used for remediation o...