Class Full of Technology For Cheap

Twelve years ago I started on a quest to use technology to improve language arts instruction. I had one computer that worked a little bit, a little bit of the time. Fast forward to today, with a little investment each year by supportive administration, a good district Technology Coordinator, and we have a class where technology is fully integrated into the classroom.

Each student has one of a total of 24 Dell OptiPlexes at their desk. These refurbished machines were purchased for about $100 each. These are networked into our LAN, with internet access and a storage server. A networked HP4240 laser printer provides economical printing. These PC's are loaded with all free software. They use the Ubuntu operating system. This Linux based program eliminates the problems of spyware and adware that caused so many issues when we used Windows. For word processing, we use Open Office 3.0. This newest version works seemlessly, and will read and save .doc files from Microsoft Office. For internet access we use Firefox, the Mozilla based browser.

For instructional purposes, I have an Optima DLP projector. This is used for whole-class instruction so students can easily see what is being taught. I can project the computer's image onto the wall, making a six by six image. An Avermedia doc camera is hooked to the projector. The doc camera takes a picture and feeds it into the projector. I use this to show examples of students' work. I also have a digital camera that is used to, among other things, take pictures for the blog.

I have a desktop computer that I use to keep grades, write lesson plans, write the blog, and email/message parents and students. I use a laptop to bring work back and forth between school and home.

When you walk in the classroom, the use of technology is everywhere. Teachers often marvel at all of the equipment. The most amazing fact though, is the cost, or lack of. At the most, there is $5,000 invested. So for much less than $1,000/year, students can have computers to use as a tool, every day in language arts. I average about 60 students total each year in sixth grade. This means this technology-based classroom costs about $16/student/year.

I have to ask, why doesn't every language arts teacher have a class equipped with technology? This journey we started twelve years ago has sure paid off for the students of Laurelville.

Read at Home Change

Title ________________________________________
Start Time ___________  Page ________________
End Time ____________  Page ________________

On each day in their assignment book, students will put a label with this on it.  Instead of logging on their reading log, they will be posting it in their assignment book.  

This will eliminate the need to carry and keep track of an extra sheet of paper.  Also, students already have to take their agenda book  home anyway, so they will have it when they need it.  It will also keep an ongoing record of books they read, how long they read, and how many pages they read.  Students will be keeping an on-line comprehensive reading log on their book journal page.

The requirements are still the same:

A = 180 + Minutes
B = 120 - 179 Minutes
C = 60 - 119 Minutes
F = 0 - 59 Minutes

Students must read at least 4 times/week for 15 minutes each day.


For more information see the Read at Home homework post.

I Miss Are Blonde Times

My daughter, Heather got this message from a friend she hadn't seen in a while. She was glad to hear from her, and is going to make plans to see her soon. Heather, and her friend are both brunettes, but capable of blonde moments.

However, as told by Heather:

I might miss our blonde times, but I sure don't miss are blonde times together.

Now hair color has absolutely no bearing on the ability to write a sensible message, and the girl that wrote this is not a blonde, but she sure made her point. Hopefully they can get together soon and there fun times will continue! :)

Oh, So Slow To Grow Up

C'mon boys, you can do it. All you have to do is just grow up a little. The girls are waiting. The teachers are waiting. I am sure your parents, and brothers and sisters are waiting.

We have high hopes for you. We all want you to do well. We believe in your ability to act age appropriate. The rest of the class has done it, so you can too. And your life will be sooooo much better.

The sixth grade class this year has been amazing. Their behavior has been exemplary. They do their work, to the best of their ability. Assignments get done, and students give their best. The teachers have all commented on what a great class we have this year.

But there is a group of boys that stick out from the rest. They laugh at all of the wrong times. They act so goofy that the girls just look at them and shake their heads. The other boys just ignore them. No one seems to know what to do with them. Usually when sixth grade boys come back to school in the fall, the fifth grade behavior is long gone. They grow up over the summer. But this small group of students just doesn't get it.

In the race to maturity, they are hopping along on one leg. Their car seems to have a flat tire. Will they come out of it? Will they grow up, and become students that care about their grades? And their reputation? Only time will tell, but I hope they grow up this year, just for their own sake.

C'mon boys, you can do it. You may not win this race, but at least join in with the rest of the sixth grade.

Word Substitution in Fiction

We showered outside when it rained. What a great substitution for we played in the rain. This excerpt from the book, Mountain Magic, written by Alice Boggs Lentz showed how word substitution is used in fiction. I discovered this during Mrs. Wolfe's read aloud in a fourth grade-six grade co-writing project.

Have a good fictional word substitution? Please share it.

Blogging Genius

I was thinking about the role of this blog in my class. I was trying to decide if it was valuable, and if I needed to make changes or adjust my goals to better meet the educational needs of the students. Once I read this comic strip though, it all became clear. I am a blogging genius. As long as I just keep hacking away at the keyboard, I will achieve my goals, and the blog will be a success!

Seriously though, thank you for taking the time to read this blog!

Spelling Does Matter

I was driving yesterday morning, about a mile from the school and saw this sign. At first it caught my eye, because I have beagles. I am not sure if a beagle is the same thing as a begal, but I think it might be, at least at one house.

Now maybe you aren't the best speller. In fact, maybe you can't spell very well at all. Maybe you count on spell check, and the computer's dictionary for everything you write. Maybe you use Answers.com like a peanut butter sandwich uses jelly.

Here is the problem. What if some day you have a begal puppy for sale? Will you have drivers running in the ditch, laughing and shaking their heads, while they point at your sign? Here are your choices, either learn to spell or just buy this product.

Inclusion That Works

I like Dylan, Mr. McGuire.  I like him and he likes me.  He's my friend, Mr. McGuire.

Laurelville has inclusion of handicapped students.  In other words, students with disabilities on an IEP (Individualized Educational Program) are mainstreamed into the regular classroom to the greatest extent possible.  I am a strong advocate of inclusion, both for the benefits of student on IEP's, and those in the regular classroom.

This year, there are two students included, with significant special needs.  They join us in homeroom, special classes like art, music, and P.E., and for part of Reading Workshop.  At the end of the first nine weeks, these students have made tremendous progress.  Part of this is due to a teacher's aide, C. Conrad that is motivated to help them to the greatest extent possible.

The real success story here though, is my homeroom.  I have never seen a group of students act so kindly towards classmates in need.  And all of the credit is theirs.  I have never had to tell them to be nice, or to be helpful.  They have just consistently made decisions that demonstrate caring and helpfulness.  I can't even describe how proud I am to be part of their success.

Standing out as a leader is Dylan.  He has a buddy at his side nonstop.  In class, when we come to the circle, at lunch, in the hallway, it doesn't matter.  And, he offers his friendship, keeps him out of trouble, gets him where he needs to go, tries to keep him quiet when he should be, and does it all in the kindest manner possible.  And his only reward, at least 3 or 4 times a day we hear:

I like Dylan Mr. McGuire, and he likes me.  I'm his friend, and he my friend, Mr. McGuire.  He's my buddy, Mr. McGuire.  I like Dylan, and he likes me.

I like Dylan, too!

Keitha Lane, Super Hero

I saw my hero yesterday. She came over from her new job as the Jr. High principal to see the Halloween parade. I had been thinking about her lately as I read aloud to my classes, A Boy in the Girls' Bathroom written by Louis Sachar. This is the story of Bradley Chalkers, a student who makes a disaster out of everything. He meets Carla, the school counselor and with her support, turns his life around. I feel like Keitha Lane was the Carla of Laurelville and for me as a teacher.

It seems funny to think of this short little woman as a super hero, but her impact on the teachers and students at Laurelville during her eight years as principal was amazing. Now, in all honesty, I had never met a boss that I liked too much, before she took on our school. And our start together was rockier than the Rocky Mountains. However, she pushed, pulled, prodded, encouraged and demanded, all while being a friend, and supporting me in my growth as a teacher.

During her time as principal, whenever I had an idea that I wanted to try in the classroom, she would say, "give it a try and we will see how it works." She found funding to go from four computers in my language arts class to twenty-four. She purchased an LCD projector and Doc camera, to use to show students' work. When I first found out about Study Island, the on-line learning program, she said, "let's give it a try." Now it is used throughout the district. It didn't seem to matter what the situation was, she was always about finding new ways to help the students.

As I look back on our time together, I could never thank her enough for the impact she had on my life. And, as I look at my students each day when we come to the circle to talk at the start of each class, my hope is that in some way, I can make a student feel the way she made me feel. I guess, as far as I am concerned, she is the superest of the super heroes.

C'mon Parents, I Need Your Help

I have been pleased with the participation of students this year on The Reading Workshop blog. Their comments have been well-written, with their thoughts, ideas, and opinions shared for all to read. They have posted comments openly and honestly.

I have tried to write regularly, sharing events from the class and our school. I have also tried to share some of the interactions with students that make teaching interesting and challenging. I have tried to respond to some comments, with answers to questions, and discussion of opinions.

Teachers and other visitors jump in and comment occasionally. Nothing makes me happier than to see a teacher share her thoughts and opinions about issues and education in Laurelville.

Now, I need parents to jump in and comment. The purpose of the blog is a three-way conversation between teachers, students, and parents. This is the only format I know of where we can have an open dialogue about school, our class, and issues in education. BUT, for this to happen, we need parents to join us. Please help make this a valuable learning tool for your child. I would be thrilled to read comments from parents on every post. If you are reading, and have a thought, idea, question, comment, or concern, please post it. Let your child, and all of the students from Laurelville know that you are reading, and that their comments have an audience.

I Wanna Quit School

I had a conversation with a student this week about why she wasn't getting her work done. I started out with my usual conversation about getting smarter. I asked her if she wanted to learn and get smarter.

She replied, you just don't get it Mr. McGuire. I wanna quit school. Everyone in my family has quit school. They all dropped out. None of us ever graduate. I just wanna quit and get a job. Besides, I'm not smart anyway. And I'll never be smart. All I ever want to do is get out of school. I couldn't graduate anyway. I'm not smart enough. No one in my family cares either. I am just going to quit school as soon as I can.

Somehow, this made me think (maybe too much time reading about the election) about our country. Here was my speech.

Our country was founded on the belief of everyone's rights for freedom, and opportunity. We have compulsory education so that every kid in America can go to school. No matter where you come from, no matter what your family is like, no matter where you live, you have the right to an education. Our country is set up so you can become anything you want to become. And the first step to a great life is to use this education to better yourself.

Her reply, I don't want to get better. I just want to quit school.

My speech continued:

You must want to learn and to grow and to get smarter. You must want success for yourself. That is what living in the United States is all about. No matter what your life has been so far, you must get smarter and work harder. Use your rights for a free education. Use your rights for freedom of speech. Be the best you can be for yourself.

I can only hope that some how, some way, she will decide to become the first high school graduate in her family, and take advantage of the opportunity we have as citizens of the United States of America.

Word Substitution

We worked collectively to figure out the meaning of a phrase from Coach John Wooden's Pyramid of Success. You can view the entire excerpt here.

This is the phrase we were working on:

I believe the players collectively looked for whoever was able to help the team most on any given night

We discussed that collectively was an adverb which may or may not be needed to understand the essay. I asked two questions:

1. What is the purpose of collectively in the sentence?
2. What word does collectively describe?

We looked at the root word, collect and talked about its meaning. According to Ask.com

1. To bring together in a group or mass; gather.
2. To accumulate as a hobby or for study.
3. To call for and obtain payment of: collect taxes

We decided that collectively tells how the players looked. The challenge when students left class, was to find a word to substitute that was easier to understand, but had the same meaning.

Highlighting is Like Wearing a Bikini

One of the biggest problems when students read nonfiction is deciding what is important. Today's lesson focused on determining what is important and what is not, to understand an essay. Writers add a lot of detail that is not necessary to understand the gist. They use variety in their language through word choice, and sentence structure. Often times they put in entertaining stories or share their opinions to generate reader interest. The challenge with difficult text is to cut through the fluff, or extra details to understand the main points.

OK, by now I am sure you are wondering, what does this have to do with bikinis? When you highlight, you should only cover the essentials. A one piece suit covers things that don't neccessarily matter. A cover-up covers even more, a lot of which is not needed. A big beach towel can be wrapped around and covers everything.

This is just like highlighting. Students' papers usually look like yellow coloring pages when they first learn to highlight. They need to throw away the beach towel, and only highlight the essential information. Think about minimal coverage for maximum effect. Then what is highlighted will help understand what is important.

Talking to Teachers

Student: I have all A's & B's with just one C. I sure wish I could get on the Honor Roll.
Me: What is your C in?
Student: Social Studies
Me: Have you talked to Mrs. Griffey?
Student: No, why?
Me: How do you know what to do to bring up your grade?
Student: I don't. Do you think I should talk to her?
Me: Yes
Student: What do I say?

This conversation today with a student caused me to think about what students don't know about school. Some students know what to say to their teacher, but most will never ask to talk about their grades, or the class. They don't even realize that most teachers welcome a question or concern, if it is done in the right way at the right time. So when? And where?

Guide to Talking to a Teacher

1. Always be respectful and ask for help.

2. Know the problem, and have your questions ready before you talk to the teacher. Write them down.

3. Write a note to the teacher and ask him/her for a meeting to discuss your grades or concerns.

4. Ask the teacher at a time that does not interfere with class, like when you first come in before class starts, or during quiet work time.

5. Take ownership. In other words, admit what you could do better, or what you need to do. Do not make excuses. If you screwed up, say so. Even if you think the teacher or the class is to blame, don't say it. If you take the blame for a problem, you will be much more likely to get help.

6. Be positive. Do not complain. Do not whine. Remember, you are looking for solutions.

7. Write down the teacher's suggestions. Even if you don't like what he says, it may make more sense later and it is the key to a better grade.

8. Thank him for his time. And, if he helps you, write a thank you note afterwards.

9. If you make a promise, follow through. Do what you say you will do. Especially make it a point to do anything he suggests and do it now. If you get an opportunity to do extra credit, or make up an assignment, have it done, and have it done right, when you walk into the class the next time.

The most important point is ASK QUESTIONS! If you don't know, or aren't sure about anything, always ASK QUESTIONS!

I Don't Hate Reading

Many of you read the post on October 8 with the note about I Hate Reading. The student who wrote the note, wanted to comment, but I thought it deserved a post. His new note reads:

To those who left a comment on what I typed I hate reading I do not hate reading. I am the person who typed the comment.

This is quite a change of heart in just a couple of weeks. So, why such a change? Part of this is due to one of the best books ever written for adolescent readers. Drive-by written by Lynne Ewing hooks reluctant readers like no other book I have ever read.

From the publisher:

Jimmy always told me there were only two kinds of gangbangers: Those who were dead and those who were going to die. Joining a gang doesn't make sense to Jimmy..." Jimmy is dead now -- gunned down in front of his little sister, Mina, and his brother, Tito. And Tito is left wondering: Was Jimmy in a gang after all?

As with any student that tries to turn things around, there are several factors involved and this book is only part of the story. What is really happening is a student is making a decision to do better. His attitude has improved. He has decided he wants to get smarter. He is working to learn more, get his work completed, and improve his grade. Much like Bradley Chalkers, in A Boy in the Girls' Bathroom, he wants to do well.

Will he succeed? Only time will tell. But, I am sure proud of the effort he is making to do his best.

Election Brings on Togetherness

With the Presidential election being such a hot topic, naturally students at Laurelville are interested in their teachers' opinions. For the most part, I listen rather than share. BUT, enough already. I thought today was a good day to bring both parties together.

As you can see by the picture, my two colleages, C. Griffey, and C. Bower are celebrating the unity with me that is fast approaching our country. It is great to know that friendships endure, even when opinions differ.

How Fast Do You Read?

Are you a fast and fluent reader? Should you be? Today in Reading Workshop we discussed the pace used when reading. Sometimes even the most fluent reader should s l o w d o w n. Sometimes even the slowest reader should speed up and get through the text. The important thing to know is how to pace yourself depending on your purpose.










If you want to be a better reader, first think about your purpose. Then adjust your reading speed to fit your purpose. Most readers do this, at least to a certain extent, without even thinking about it. In fact, as you become a better reader, you will constantly move back and forth on the continuum, without even being aware that you are making adjustments.

However, with difficult text, it is important to consciously take the time to understand what you are reading. Look at key vocabulary, using context clues to figure out words that you don't know. What part of speech is a word? Maybe it is just an adverb that will not keep you from understanding the sentence, so it can be ignored if you don't understand it. Determine whether a point is a major component of an article, or just a supporting detail. Frequently supporting details are not necessary to understand the gist of the writing.

This decision to slow down, and break down an essay for key concepts and ideas (like finding the W's) will help you become a better reader, improve comprehension, and improve your grades.

Gone, Gone, Gone

Between teacher's inservice days and the Pumpkin Show, I am going to be mighty scarce for the next 10 days. This comes at a time when students have been working hard, but are coming up on a break. Want to know more, check out these posts about the Pumpkin Show , and a past Where Am I?

I will be back on October 22. Many thanks to all who have been reading.

I Hate Reading

The assignment was for students to write a note or letter to me about themselves as a reader. The directions were intentionally vague. I really wanted to hear what students felt about reading.

The student that wrote this note has been working fairly hard this year, with a good attitude. He participates in class. He is friendly to me, though not so much so to peers. He wrote this letter honestly, with no intent to be mean--according to him, these are his true feelings.

So, where do we go from here?

Gary Paulsen Interviewed

For all of you Paulsen fans (of which I am one), have a listen to a great interview. My favorite quote from Paulsen is, "kids should read like wolves eat." Enjoy!