Staff members have been saying "cheese" for photographers this year, and those stunning portraits help to increase security in all of our buildings. Photos have been taken by school photographers or district staff and attached to the staff person's Infinite Campus record for use in printing the official Barrington 220 staff ID card. Beginning January 7, 2015, all district staff are asked to wear the official Barrington 220 lanyard and staff ID. Staff IDs are here to stay and we want to take this opportunity to provide helpful tips on what to do in case of loss or breakage of the ID card.
In the event a Staff ID is lost, it is important to notify the tech department by entering a tech ticket for the Infinite Campus Team and note that the ID is LOST. The tech team will immediately notify the Buildings and Grounds Department regarding the loss, and Buildings and Grounds will deactivate the key code. The IC team will then print a new Staff ID for the staff member. New Staff IDs may take up to 72 hours for full key functionality to be restored. Staff members have the option of stopping by the Administration Office (James Street) to pick up the new ID or having the ID sent to your school through interoffice mail.
Broken Staff ID cards will also be replaced upon request. Staff members may retain the broken card for use as a key and identification until the new ID card is received. To request a new card due to breakage, please submit a tech ticket with notes to indicate that the card is broken, but still in your possession.
Friday, December 19, 2014
Taking a Hammer to SAMR: The SAMR Activity Scale
An earlier article defined Dr. Ruben Puentedura's SAMR model as a tool teachers can use to measure the opportunities afforded to students by technology integration. In this second article of the "Taking a Hammer to SAMR" series, we learn about the SAMR Activity Scale, designed to help teachers apply the SAMR Model to different classroom activities.
The SAMR Activity Scale:
The SAMR Activity Scale outlines how technology use affords students opportunities to learn and demonstrate learning. The second row of the scale defines each step of SAMR and offers a reason for why each example activity on the scale lands in its appropriate column. The dotted line separating the Substitution and Augmentation levels from the Modification and Redefinition levels designates the difference between Enhancement from Transformation in regard to technology integration.
Moving horizontally along the activities listed provides examples of technology-infused lessons aligned with the proper SAMR level. The scale demonstrates the opportunities afforded students through technology at each level of SAMR. For example, a writing activity that uses technology can range from Augmentation, students using technology to write with the benefit of spell check, copy and paste, online submission, etc., to Redefinition, students "writing" using visual literacies and posting online to an authentic audience where students can receive peer feedback.
The SAMR Activity Scale is designed to help teachers apply the SAMR Model to different classroom activities. Each of the following posts will outline more specific examples of lessons that match the listed activities at each SAMR level. In the next issue, the "Taking a Hammer to SAMR" series will focus on Substitution.
Use the Comments section below to share your initial reflections about the SAMR Activity Scale.
The SAMR Activity Scale:
The SAMR Activity Scale outlines how technology use affords students opportunities to learn and demonstrate learning. The second row of the scale defines each step of SAMR and offers a reason for why each example activity on the scale lands in its appropriate column. The dotted line separating the Substitution and Augmentation levels from the Modification and Redefinition levels designates the difference between Enhancement from Transformation in regard to technology integration.
Moving horizontally along the activities listed provides examples of technology-infused lessons aligned with the proper SAMR level. The scale demonstrates the opportunities afforded students through technology at each level of SAMR. For example, a writing activity that uses technology can range from Augmentation, students using technology to write with the benefit of spell check, copy and paste, online submission, etc., to Redefinition, students "writing" using visual literacies and posting online to an authentic audience where students can receive peer feedback.
The SAMR Activity Scale is designed to help teachers apply the SAMR Model to different classroom activities. Each of the following posts will outline more specific examples of lessons that match the listed activities at each SAMR level. In the next issue, the "Taking a Hammer to SAMR" series will focus on Substitution.
Use the Comments section below to share your initial reflections about the SAMR Activity Scale.
Barrington 220 Students Participate in Hour of Code
During the week of December 8–14, 2014, all elementary schools in Barrington 220 participated in the annual "Hour of Code" event (hourofcode.com/us) organized by code.org. According to the website, the Hour of Code is a "one-hour introduction to computer science, designed to demystify code and show that anybody can learn the basics."
The video below, created by Barrington 220 Communications Director Morgan Delack, features Hough School students participating in the Hour of Code. Even the youngest students found that coding is fun through code.org's creative way of teaching. Puzzles, mazes, Angry Birds, and Frozen-themed games are all a part of the code.org curriculum.
Did you know that Barrington High School has more AP Computer Science students enrolled this fall than any other school in the Midwest? Nearly 10 percent of the BHS population is taking some sort of "coding" class this semester.
The video below, created by Barrington 220 Communications Director Morgan Delack, features Hough School students participating in the Hour of Code. Even the youngest students found that coding is fun through code.org's creative way of teaching. Puzzles, mazes, Angry Birds, and Frozen-themed games are all a part of the code.org curriculum.
Did you know that Barrington High School has more AP Computer Science students enrolled this fall than any other school in the Midwest? Nearly 10 percent of the BHS population is taking some sort of "coding" class this semester.
Using iPads at BMS Station in Grade 6
I recently visited three Grade 6 classes using iPads at Barrington Middle School Station Campus and found students engaged in a variety of learning activities in language arts, science, and social studies. The language arts students of Mary Palarz were working on writing with language variety. Students had recently begun using the app Notability for writing and were both typing writing examples and then using Notability’s highlighting features to label parts of speech. Adam Musolf’s science students began the class period by consulting online graphs and charts and then made inferences based upon the data. Students then used iPads in small groups to discuss a lesson on the thermal properties of a liquid and they reported their findings to the class. Finally, social studies teacher Nita Hunter began her class by showing an original instructional video that she created to explain to her students how to label various map features of ancient Egypt using Notability. Throughout the mapping lesson, students also used the online tool, TodaysMeet (todaysmeet.com) to discuss why the various geographical features may have led to the settlements depicted on the map.
Wednesday, December 3, 2014
Dr. Harris Visits The White House for #FutureReady Summit
Dr. Brian Harris attended a Superintendent Summit at The White House in Washington, DC, on November 19, 2014, that was attended by school leaders who were invited from districts engaged in exemplary technology-based learning initiatives. Dr. Harris was among around 100 superintendents nationwide who attended the summit.
In a speech during the event, President Obama said:
Superintendents in attendance were asked to sign a #FutureReady Pledge to commit to work with “students, educators, families, and members of our community to become Future Ready by engaging in a wide range of activities,” including the following:
Read more about the #FutureReady pledge at tech.ed.gov/futurereadypledge.
Check out the ConnectEd resources for teachers at tech.ed.gov/teachers.
In a speech during the event, President Obama said:
"In a country where we expect free Wi-Fi with our coffee, the least we can do is expect that our schools are properly wired...We’ve got to bring the world to every child’s fingertips."Watch the full speech:
Superintendents in attendance were asked to sign a #FutureReady Pledge to commit to work with “students, educators, families, and members of our community to become Future Ready by engaging in a wide range of activities,” including the following:
- Fostering and Leading a Culture of Digital Learning Within Our Schools.
- Helping Schools and Families Transition to High-speed Connectivity.
- Empowering Educators through Professional Learning Opportunities.
- Accelerating Progress Toward Universal Access for All Students to Quality Devices.
- Providing Access to Quality Digital Content.
- Offering Digital Tools to Help Students And Families #ReachHigher.
- Mentoring Other Districts and Helping Them Transition to Digital Learning.
Read more about the #FutureReady pledge at tech.ed.gov/futurereadypledge.
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| Dr. Brian Harris at The White House. |
Check out the ConnectEd resources for teachers at tech.ed.gov/teachers.
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