Day 60 – Ben and the Bear

November 11, 2014 / HSE_21

Today’s highlight occurred at Fall Creek Intermediate School, where students received a much anticipated visit from young adult author Ben Mikaelsen! Mikaelsen traveled from his home in Bozeman, Montana, to spend a day at FCI. Teachers and media specialists know Mikaelsen as a popular and successful writer; to students, Ben is most notable for his famous family member, a 750 lb. black bear named Buffy.

In addition to sharing tales of Buffy, who lived with the Mikaelsens from the time he was a cub until he passed away at the age of 26 (in 2010), Mikaelsen shared stories from his life as well as his books. He spoke to the FCI students about bullying and his own experiences with bullies. He also encouraged students to follow their dreams, again by sharing his own experiences. Both were very strong messages that connected mightily with the preteen audience.

-Submitted by Teri Zabonick, FCI Media Specialist

Day 59 – The Construction of Millerville

November 11, 2014 / HSE_21 / 2 Comments

Students in Holly Miller’s third grade class at Sand Creek Elementary recently got to experience how a real city or town operates. As part of their academic standards, the class studied the wide of variety roles that a community must fill in order to function as a town/city. Then the student-driven portion of the project began! With additional instruction and resources from media specialist Laura Collier, each class member filled out a job application for a role that interested him or her. Available roles included the mayor, city council member, employee of the public works or parks and recreation departments, a career with the fire or police department, and more!

After a city mayor was elected and other roles assigned by interest, students practiced their research skills in the library, looking for reliable information about their chosen job. Students used that knowledge to build a 3-D representation of the town of “Millerville.” In addition to the content learned, the Millerville project gave students practice in collaboration and team-building, a visual representation of the necessities of a town, and even included a math lesson on scale! Mrs. Miller and Mrs. Collier both declared this cross-curricular, collaborative unit to be a huge success–the students agreed!

Day 58 – The 2014 World’s Fair, HSE Style

November 6, 2014 / HSE_21

Who invented the traffic light? And…how do today’s high-tech traffic systems differ from those first simple signals? When did household mechanical appliances appear on the domestic scene? How did they become mainstream, and how have they changed with the times? The Gilded Age saw the patenting of many new products and the birth of corporations. But how did Americans and consumers worldwide find out about the newest and grandest innovations? One way was through World’s Fairs.

Especially between the 1870s and 1930s, multiple World’s Fairs and Expositions showcased inventions of the modern world, both useful and trendy, and predicted innovations of the future (not always very accurately!). At Hamilton Southeastern High School, Mrs. Gelhar-Bruce’s U.S. History classes recently recreated a World’s Fair as part of their study of this historical era. Students, working individually or in pairs, investigated the birth and development of an innovation that was meaningful to them. During the project culmination, the Gelhar-Bruce World Exposition, students presented their products and inventions to classmates. Each student or group chose their topic and presentation mode, keys to fostering student engagement. The Gelhar-Bruce World’s Fair saw ‘in person’ marketing plugs, commercials, graphic representations, and even 3-D then-and-now recreations of inventions. Active, personalized learning that connects the past with students’ present experience. That’s HSE21 learning!

Day 57 – A Student’s Story, Then & Now

November 4, 2014 / HSE_21

As of yesterday, the HSE School Corporation student count stood at 20,701. That’s 20,701 unique young people, each who comes to school with his or her own personal story–of culture, of experiences, of family. Think of the thousands of families whose stories intersect here–in Fishers, Indiana–and the thousands of stories we represent.

Today, HSE21 Shorts offers you one such story. Thank you, Luka, for being brave enough to revisit your sixth grade self and for sharing your story with us. All the best as you finish your senior year and follow your dreams.

Day 56 – 131st Street Connections: FHS & SCE Read Together

November 3, 2014 / HSE_21

One of the advantages to having several school buildings in close proximity is the potential for ongoing connections between our youngest and oldest learners! These important connections happen twice weekly on 131st Street, when the Fishers Reading Tigers walk across the road to meet their reading buddies at Sand Creek Elementary.

The FHS Reading Tigers program, now in its second year, pairs young readers with high school students who serve as peer tutors. This year, before reading buddy matches were made, Media Specialist Renee Isom and senior Alicia Macchione, club president, educated potential peer tutors on the basics of young children’s literature and literacy instruction in order to prepare students for their role.

FHSReadingTigers3 Walk into Sand Creek during the last half hour of the elementary school day on a Monday or Wednesday, and you’ll be sure to see reading partners throughout the halls, engrossed in stories and conversation. Each FHS teen reader connects weekly with his or her very own reading buddy. New friends are reading and learning together. Connections within a learning community. Part of the HSE21 educational experience.

Day 55 – Learning About Authors Using QR Codes

November 1, 2014 / HSE_21

In the library media center, the numbers we used to focus on were ones like 551.5 or 796.32 – the Dewey Decimal System numbers! Today we’re thinking a bit more outside the box! During the fall of 2014 we focused on these numbers: 1 goal; 2 grades; 3 months; 4 C’s; 5 W’s and a partridge in a pear tree. OK…no partridge, but QR codes and authors in the LRES LMC!

At Lantern Road Elementary School I have one goal for my students when they come to the library each week – learn something new! It might be a new story, a new fact or how to use a new piece of technology. Two grades, third and fourth grades, collaborated on a special project this fall to help students quickly reach that goal. It took us the better part of three months, but our goal was reached! We incorporated the four C’s, communication, collaboration, critical thinking and creativity, to introduce 560+ students and parents to some of our favorite authors and their websites. Once they were able to visit author websites via the iPad and QR codes, students were able to gain knowledge of the five W’s – who, what, when, where, and why!

Benjamin Franklin said, “Tell me and I forget, teach me and I may remember, involve me and I learn.” I wanted the students to learn about authors and QR codes so they created and used them. Knowing very little about QR codes (Quick Response codes) myself, in August I took an online webinar through www.simplek12.com about QR codes and differentiating instruction using them. That’s all it took – I was excited to create with my students. In September the third grade students learned how to create QR codes using www.qrstuff.com. They created signs for the library media center that included an author’s name, a picture of the author, and a QR code linked to the author’s website. During October, fourth grade students used iPads and the QR Reader app to go on a scavenger hunt to find interesting information about authors and their books. Hopefully now when parents come in on our Family Reading Nights, they can use their devices to scan the signs for information also!

The numbers certainly add up to learning at Lantern Road Elementary School!!

-Submitted by Lori Silbert, Library Media Specialist, Lantern Road Elementary School

Day 54 – First Grade Inquiry Impacts Families

October 31, 2014 / HSE_21

Students in Mrs. Beck’s first grade class at Geist Elementary recently completed personal inquiry projects around the topic of fire safety. With help from experts at the Fishers Fire Department, the students first learned important lessons about what to do in the event of a fire. With this base knowledge, inquiry and application of learning began! The first-graders went home to survey their own homes and develop fire escape plans with their families.

The plans shown here (graphics on the left and a short film below, are prime examples of 21st century learning at its finest, where learning is personal, connected to the real world, and internalized so that it can be transferred to new situations. Through inquiry projects like this, students (even our youngest students) can take ownership of their learning to explore real issues.

Day 53 – Goodbye Book Report, Hello Blog

October 30, 2014 / HSE_21

In many HSE classrooms, traditional written book reports have evolved into 21st-century literacy experiences. Reading self-selected books and sharing reading experiences is still essential in literacy instruction–but today’s students have new avenues and methods through which to communicate about their reading. One such avenue is the blog.

Blogging, whether to reflect on a book or for another educational purpose, offers a published venue through which students can express their unique voices as writers. Blogs provide a forum for open reflection and collaborative communication; blog posts become part of each student’s digital portfolio/archive of learning, as well as a beneficial addition to their individual digital footprints.

Students of all ages and in a variety of subject areas are experienced bloggers. Today’s blog examples come from ninth-graders at Hamilton Southeastern High School. Click on the image to be directed to Blogger, where you can read about the project and get new ideas for your reading pleasure!

Day 52 – It May Be Cliche, But It Does Take a Village

October 29, 2014 / HSE_21

The videos linked in today’s post were created by Bryan Alig, Assistant Principal of Sand Creek Intermediate School, to showcase the essential contributions to learning made by HSE staff that work outside the classroom. These short films are reminders that each member of the HSE staff plays and vital role within the sphere of learning. We are truly a community–and the students are our inspiration. It may be cliche, but it does take a village. Please click on the images to be taken to the videos housed in YouTube.

Day 51 – Junior High Faculty Ramps Up to Roll Out

October 28, 2014 / HSE_21

When all junior high students (grades 7-8) walk through school doors carrying iPads next August (2015), teachers want to be prepared. Last Thursday’s professional learning day gave them an opportunity to move in that direction. as all junior high faculty participated in the HSE21 1:1 JH Kick-Off Day. Approximately 175 teachers and administrators met at Riverside Junior High and spent the day listening, assessing, collaborating, and learning.

The day began with speakers from neighboring Noblesville Schools, who discussed their shift in instruction and recent iPad roll out. A panel of HSE pilot teachers and intermediate school faculty, having already experienced 1:1 classrooms, then answered questions about what they’ve learned along the way.All junior high teachers assessed their personal and departmental professional development needs for the coming year, and each department developed a plan to ensure preparedness. In the afternoon, teachers gathered in small groups to learn more about digital tools such as Google Drive and Blackboard, HSE’s learning management system.

HSE21 signifies a major shift in the way teaching and learning happens–from lecture-based, teacher-centric to problem-based inquiry learning that is student-driven. HSE faculty, all life-long learners, are on an inquiry journey to a new era in education. And the primary benefactors, wonderfully, are our students.