DFI- Week 3

This was another week of learning new skills and ways to improve our digital fluency.
One application that I was really excited that we talked about today was Google Draw. Google Draw is a platform that a lot of my colleagues talk about but I was yet to use. I feel like I will use this tool when making buttons for my class site which I am very excited about.
It was cool to talk with other facilitators such as Cheryl and Gerhard.  With Gerhard we talked through Google Draw. I was excited to see how this could be used in the classroom and I know that a lot of my students will enjoy some art based activities using this application. I liked the idea of using Google Draw to create self portraits and I think this is an art idea that I will use in the classroom.
Cheryl taught us about making a slideshow representing a song which I have embedded below. I feel a lot more confident embedding slideshows into the blog now which will help myself and my class.
I'm looking forward to week four of the DFI.

Tools that I think I will use:

• Word Art 
• Londrina Font
• Google Draw 
• Searching for images using png. 

DFI- Week 2

This week was our second week in the DFI programme. The theme for this week was Workflow.
We learned about several different programmes that could help with our workflow.
I'm really enjoying the way that the DFI programme is set up where we click another link to join a smaller group of people. I wish that I had thought of this at the start of lock down because I feel as though this could have been a great way to set up group work.

Programmes that I enjoyed:

There were several programmes that I enjoyed learning about and believe will improve my workflow. One of those was One Tab. I often leave too many tabs open that I don't need, One Tab allows you to organise your tabs and come back to them later.

I also enjoyed Mark's rundown of Hapara in our group as I realised there were other capabilities of the site that I wasn't accessing. I think that I will find the 'Unshared' folder particularly useful when finding student work.

Google keep was also a very useful tool. Especially if i'm taking photos in class for blogs. I know that they will go straight to my laptop. The Grab Image text tool is so valuable as well and something that I wish I had known about at University!


To work on for next time: 
There are still some skills I need to work on such as creating an email signature.

Connecting:
It was really nice to connect with Katie a new entrant teacher at St Francis of Assisi school. Together we discussed blogging and how we have been teaching during lockdown. I have included a screenshot of our learning together.

DFI -Week 1

Today marked the first day of professional development with DFI. New Learnings: On this first day of the program I learnt a lot of new skills that I believe will benefit my learners as we work together online.After learning about the history of Manaiakalani we explored different online tools, with a particular emphasis on Google Docs. Something that might be quite basic to some but that I really needed to improve was the way that I create tables on a Google Doc.I think that I will use the tool of voice typing in the classroom to help with children's punctuation. The fact that you have to actively state what punctuation you want to use, I believe, will benefit children in my class. I used my new found skills and knowledge to create this P.E challenge for my learners next week.

There are still some skills I need to master but that is all part of the learning journey. I'm looking forward to see where the next phase of the DFI journey takes me.

Learning Online

New Zealand was placed into Level four lockdown in late March. This event would have seemed completely unprecedented at the the beginning of the year. But as is the job of a teacher it was a time in which we had to be adaptable.

What we had
We were in a fortunate position to already have a class site. As a beginning teacher I felt fortunate to have this prior to lockdown. The first few weeks of Term One were spent learning how to make the site accessible to the students and how I could use it in day to day classroom life. This time has proven to be vital as the site is now our gateway to learning and part of every day classroom life. Having anticipated the possibility of online learning our students had been talked through the sites that they would need to access. This included our classroom site, the blog as well as additional online learning sites.

What we created
We were fortunate to have a great base to begin online learning and one that the students were familiar with. We became Youtubers within our own homes creating videos and Screencastifys to teach our children virtually. We adapted our practice to create online lessons that our students could access through the class site. Google Meet became our new way to touch base with students daily and the amount of professional learning that occurred in this time was immense. It was a time in which I gained a variety of skills that I believe will benefit my class in the future.

What we learnt
Never before has learning drastically shifted to an online format in this way. The first week was a time to establish what worked for our students and what did not. I was also able to establish the expectations that I had for my students and myself. I think that what I learnt was the importance of being realistic. The happiness of my students is the main priority and sometimes a bike ride and some baking will impact them more positively. Some students found the routine of online learning stimulating and familiar. I found myself receiving work left, right and centre. This was where the blog was highly beneficial. I was able to direct my students to one place where all of their learning would go. In a time where we might feel distant, it was also a wonderful way to share our learning together. Students have the opportunity to comment on each others work as well as whanau and support staff. The format for commenting of positive, thoughtful and helpful has meant that i'm able to give students next steps for their work. The blog has been a significant and highly useful tool as we learn online.


How we will move forward

People are life long learners and lockdown level four has been a true testament to that. As we continue online learning and as we progress down the levels it is undeniable that further learning curves will occur. I am feeling positive about the learning journey so far and looking forward to seeing the growth in my students and my professional learning over the coming months.