Garlic Necklace, Not a Silver Bullet

It's now been two months since my attendance at ASCD's Annual Conference in Houston.  Upon reflection, what I learned there is still permeating and percolating in my consciousness, and has already lead to some transformative action.  (To take one example, I incorporated what I learned from Aaron Sams and Jon Bergmann and changed my Flipping and Blending PD.)

One of the perks of ASCD membership is access to a wealth of resources, such as their monthly magazine Education Leadership.  In this month's May 2015 issue, a title of an article jumped out to me: "A Vision for Mobile Learning: More Verbs, Fewer Nouns," by Julie Evans.  As our district is waist-deep in charting our digital conversion course for next year and beyond, Ms. Evans reminded me that our concentration should NOT be on "the features of specific devices, concerns about infrastructure, and debates on policies to support (or limit) usage."  Rather, "educators need to pay much more attention to the learning goals associated with mobile initiatives" if they want to "transform teaching and learning."  As the title suggests, "the primary emphasis in many schools continues to be on the nouns of delivery mechanisms, rather than on the verbs that demonstrate the impact these devices have on learning efficacy and reaching important goals" (author's emphasis).

In my journey this year with our district, I have learned to juggle many nouns. Let's just examine Internet-capable devices I've found in our schools. Nearly every classroom has a Smart Board.  As the beginning of our digital conversion plan (and parallel with the creation of my position last summer),  teachers received either a MacBook Air or a Lenovo Yoga Win8 hybrid touchscreen laptop, a choice based on each individual school's decision.  Beyond that, devices for student use at each school include carts of iPads, laptops, Surfaces....and let's not forget labs full of desktop computers.  Looking ahead, we are currently neck-deep in discussion to determine what the student device of our 1:1 will be.

There is pressure to make the right choice, from within and without.  We want to spend money and time wisely, and make choices that will ultimately improve the learning of our students.  And like so many districts,  we eagerly wish for a silver bullet.  Can we find one clear tool -- for example, a student device -- that meets all of our needs simultaneously?

It then occurred to me, right in the middle of Evans's article, that the solution is not trying to answer that question but to question the question itself; in other words, to question the very premise of the metaphor "silver bullet."  Perhaps such narrow thinking in single-item solutions reveal bigger drawbacks.  We don't need a silver bullet that at best can kill a single werewolf; we need a garlic necklace that can affect multiple vampires, and all at once.  We need to change the paradigm and the metaphorical thinking.

Before you think I've gone looney (see what I did there with the moon reference?), remember I am a former classroom English teacher, and let me unpack my metaphors.

Why is a garlic necklace approach better?

• More cost and time effective.  You just need garlic cloves and some string.  Silver bullets require...well, silver that's pricey, along with the time to smelt and shape the calibre bullet.  Before you pay considerable money on one tool, see if a choice can blend well with your existing materials people are already familiar with and meet your needs in an acceptable period of time.
• Better longevity.  Garlic necklaces may do their job for days if not weeks.  Silver bullet is a "one and done." Will your choice of tools only meet one need and/or just fulfill one short term goal?  Sometimes that's necessary, but tools that can meet multiple needs of your visionary "big rocks" are usually better.
• More user and environmentally friendly.  When it comes to tech, you need things that work well right out of the box with low learning curves whenever possible.  It should also play nice with what you have.  All you have to do with a garlic necklace is put it on and you're thwarting vampires.  Now consider all the ways a silver bullet can go wrong. It's useless without a firearm; if made even slightly wrong it won't fit the chamber; if you have bad aim, you won't have a chance to kill that werewolf.  How well does your edtech work on its own?  How easy is it to learn how to use it?  How well does it work inside your existing infrastructure?
• Opportunity for personalization.  By the nature of what it takes to make a garlic necklace, yours will undoubtedly look a little different than mine, even if we are borrowing from the same bushel of cloves.  (Heck, you might even add a little flair.)   In the same way, even if utilizing the same cornucopia of digital tools or devices, a school or teacher might still customize how those tools will work together to serve unique needs.  On the other hand, from the very start of making a silver bullet, you are forced to consider the delivery system it is going in and make sure it fits.  We as educators often do the same thing with our digital materials: we force a tool to fit a prescribed perspective, without even questioning if the perspective itself is best for the "verbs" our students need.
• Accepting messy reality instead of fruitless quests for purity.  Garlic cloves are less than perfect; they crumble and smell.  Silver bullets tantalize in their purity and tempt us to seek them out.  But be wary. I love Voltaire's saying that "Perfect is the enemy of good."  There may be times that a single tool as is meets all demands in its pure form.  More often than not, we must realize that a tool (or combination of tools) may meet many of our needs but hardly any one tool solves all of them.  Their are LMS's, for example, that do more or less than others and have varying prices. But it's possible you may have to pair a LMS with, say, an adaptive learning system that meet some of your other specific needs.  The key is, don't let the chase for "the" solution make you refrain from choosing any solution, even ones that are less than perfect.  You'll be fine as long as you always keep your objectives in mind.

(Yes, I noticed the irony of using a bulleted list to describe the benefits of a garlic necklace approach!)

It should be noted that there are times when one uniform tool might make sense.  For example, to make it easier on students going class to class, a school might benefit from choosing one LMS instead of using half a dozen.  But like anything, you have to weigh the pros and cons of conformity with the more essential needs for the school or district.

It is this type of open, honest reflection that goes straight to the heart of determining district and school level needs and the specific solutions that address them; for example, choosing a student device to purchase for a 1:1.  At first, it seems to make sense to seek the "silver bullet" -- something that does everything and does it with a twinkling flash.  After all, aren't the students worth a little silver?  But it would be better to determine your needs first, and see what resources you already have.  Maybe the correct answer to the wrongly worded question of "Do students need a tablet or a laptop?" is "Yes."  That's not to suggest that you have to have a budget-busting 2:1 or 3:1 or 5:1 initiative.  When considering a student device, if your main daily needs are accessing formative tools, playing streaming videos, sending emails, etc. and you only occasionally need a high-end video editing software suite or take pictures or run AutoCAD software for the entire student body (as opposed to, say, engineering students), do you have other resources to fulfill those short-term projects?   If you are like Shelby, the answer is absolutely yes -- see the third paragraph of this entry!  Indeed, it solves another hairy issue of what happens to all of your existing tech when you go 1:1.  It is not thrown away or sitting unused; the money spent on them has not been wasted. While your 1:1 device may be one kind of device, you still have access to laptop carts, iPads,  and computer labs (with large desktop hard drives and powerful processors) for specialized work.  And speaking of devices that do specialized work, let's not forget that many students already carry one in their pocket: a smartphone.*

All of this ties back into the article by Evans. Twenty-first century learners need that garlic necklace of options:

Students acknowledge that working with a smartphone or tablet can raise their engagement in class, but the stated reasons they value such machines have more to do with efficacy and the effectiveness of the learning process than with the compelling nature of the devices.  In addition, if we accept that most students' vision for learning places a high premium on social, untethered, digitally rich experiences, their optimum learning environment would have to include access to a wide range of mobile devices with differentiated functions that support many ways of learning and many kinds of final products.  One size does not fit all in students' prescription for effective mobile learning.

We must realize that "one size" -- one silver bullet device or tool, be it analog or digital -- does NOT fit all learners and modes of learning at all times.

As future-ready educators, our job is to not only be the "guide on the side" to facilitate their learning, but to also be the "dean of the screen"** that leverages the power of multiple mobile devices to meet students' needs.  On the way in that journey, we should not get hung up on operating systems or brand names or educational acronym fads. As always, the tools are merely methods to get students to communicate, collaborate, and critically think.  In the wonderful words of wisdom I will openly steal from Ross Vittore (Director of Innovative Learning at CCSD59), "We are not teaching students to Toyota or Honda.  We are teaching them to drive."


* I realized after originally publishing this entry that I had not even mentioned the power of personally owned smartphones or BYOD programs as part of a student's "garlic necklace."  I rectified that with a short mention here.

**After using this term, I Googled and found an obscure reference from the past.  Although used originally as a reference to cinema, I must give a nod of the head to J. Stuart Blackton for originally coining this phrase.

As a side note, the Evans article also has some great data on the results of Speak Up surveys from 2014 that include student voices on how they want to learn.  I was particularly interested in Project Tomorrow's recent white paper findings on "Digital Learning 24/7." The infographic "Ten Things Everyone Should Know about K-12 Students' Digital Learning," gathered from over 400,000 Speak Up participants, is highly recommended.

TUIT: Traci Georges, Simpsonville

I have struggled throughout this school year to find a good video editing tool to share.  It's certainly not from a lack of choices!  I have played with iMovie on an iPad as well as my MacBook Air; in the past, I have had my own students use Windows MovieMaker for projects; I've edited personal films at home with Adobe Premiere.  There are things about each of these I enjoyed, but for practical classroom use they have limitations.  iMovie and especially Adobe Premiere are costly, and the learning curve can be steep.  All are limited to a certain OS and can only edit video stored on the local hard drive of that particular computer/device.

I had heard of WeVideo before (and had known some Shelby teachers who used it), but I haven't had the time to check it out.  When I discovered Simpsonville's National Board Certified art teacher Traci Georges was using it with her elementary students, I was finally motivated to try it, and what I found inspired me to give her a #ShelbyTUITshoutout!

The advantages of WeVideo are quickly apparent:

• It's free, although there are some limitations, such as 5 minutes a month of publishing time.*
• It's cloud-based editing and storage, so you can access your projects anywhere you can get to the Internet, on any device or OS.
• Besides the website, you can access your projects via an Android or iOS app, and it can be integrated into your Google Drive.
• The URLs of finished videos can be shared and played straight from WeVideo.
• It's easy to use, yet adaptable to your learning curve.  You can start with a Storyboard mode (which reminds me of MovieMaker) and move up to Timeline mode for a more professional, Premiere-like experience.

*An annual $249 K-12 account gives you 50 student accounts with 10 GB of cloud storage and one  hour a month of publishing time per account.

Here's a short video that shows the Storyboard interface, but also serves as a good introduction to WeVideo:

Back to Ms. Georges!  She has had multiple roles in her 25 years in education.  Traci spent 13 years at Southside Elementary as a Hearing Impaired Teacher, then 12 years at Simpsonville teaching many different grade levels.  This year is her first as an art teacher, although she has always been an artist.

WeVideo is not the first video editing program she has tried to use with students. "I have used MovieMaker and had lots of trouble," Ms. Georges explained. "We tried xtranormal in 4^th grade several years ago.  The students had fun, but our computers were too slow to handle the site. WeVideo is so much faster. Very student friendly."   Her students have edited several projects with the tool, including a "virtual museum" of Ft. Harrod with fourth graders, and a reoccurring school news show (WSES) focused on the Seven Habits.

We are thankful for Traci's years of experience and her willingness to challenge our younger students with technology integration!  Congrats to Ms. Georges for earning a #ShelbyTUITshoutout.

Do you use WeVideo?  Have another favorite video editing tool?  Share your thoughts in the Comments below.

TUIT: Nicholas Edwards, Painted Stone Elementary

I'm about to finish my first week at Simpsonville Elementary, my last embedded school of the year.  But let me do a quick flashback to my previous school, Painted Stone, in order to give a #ShelbyTUITshoutout to Nicholas Edwards!

Nick is a 5th grade teacher who heard of EDpuzzle from one of my PD presentations.  (If you're unfamiliar with the tool, read more in my previous blog entry.)   Mr. Edwards decided to try it as part of his sub plans over multiple day with different substitutes, which caught my attention and I therefore reached out to see how it went.

How easy was it to make the EDpuzzle video?

Extremely easy, I just had to watch the video and add captions.

You had explained to me earlier that the students didn't have an account to answer questions individually, so you used EDpuzzle in a more presentational way.  How did that work? How easy was it for a substitute to follow your plans?

The subs really seemed to like it, and I just had to leave them the video and the link and say play the video. I told them the video explained the information, so they led the discussion as the questions came up.

Any last thoughts or reflection on EDpuzzle that you want to share?

It was extremely easy to create, and easy to use. It makes videos more interactive for the kids as I had them reflect about the video and the questions.

Congrats to Nick for earning a well deserved shoutout!

Rose/Bud/Thorn and Design Thinking

Ever feel like Acronym Based Education (ABE) is taking over?   It can lead you to trouble.  Especially when they can mean two different things, like saying LMS.  Do you mean a Learning Management System or a Library Media Specialist? Oy vey.

ABE aside, be patient in today's entry, as we'll end with a great feedback technique called Rose/Bud/Thorn.  But first, some context.

Project Based Learning (PBL) is something I've always wanted to explore and learn more about, so I was excited when our district announced some PD opportunities through the Buck Institute this summer.   Like many things in education, PBL often blends and overlaps with other strategies and modes of learning.  For example, personalization pairs nicely with PBL, as does another: Design Thinking (DT).

I won't presume to lay out the intricacies of Design Thinking in a short blog entry; I'm very much an early novice in learning it myself.  (This Design Thinking toolkit might be a good place to start.)  A few months ago, our Curriculum Assessment Coordinator Susan Dugle and the Southside Elementary Instructional Coach Robyn Marcum went to a PD on Design Thinking, based on a framework created by Stanford University's d.school. Here's a basic overview they learned from the PD and shared on how DT approaches a problem that needs a solution:

1. Gaining Empathy.  Research the topic, and if possible, interview the person who has a need.  Dig deeper by asking clarifying questions to gain a deeper understanding.
2. Reframe the problem.  Determine the true needs of the person/problematical situation, and develop insights from what you've experienced in your research, interview, or brainstorming. Define a problem statement: "______ (Name) needs a way to ______ (user's need).  Unexpectedly, __________ (insight)."
3. Ideate.  Create solutions to test.  Don't be afraid to think outside the box. Go wild. Reflect.
4. Iterate Based on Feedback. After reflecting, try to determine the most viable solution to prototype.
5. Build and Test.  Make the "final" product and apply it. At the end of the process, reflect what worked and what could be improved, based on the user feedback.

It is the necessary context of DT that leads to the heart of today's entry: the Rose/Bud/Thorn strategy. (RBT), attributed to Dr. Lisa Palmieri. Although it pairs nicely with DT and PBL, it is a great way to get/give feedback that would be helpful in any context.  Here's a video from the Consortium for Public Education that gives an excellent overview (6:44):

As Dr. Palmieri has said elsewhere, RBT can take about 10 minutes of class time and is more about "gut reactions" to how things went; it is NOT meant to be a time for finding solutions. (In the Design Thinking overview above, RBT might fit best either in step 4 (as you are trying to determine which ideas might end up being prototyped) or in step 5 (as you gather the user feedback as either roses, thorns, or buds).

The great thing about Rose/Bud/Thorn is that it is just fine in an analog environment.  All you need is three different colored Post-Its and a surface to stick them to.  However, if you want to consider digital alternatives that might be more permanent, interactive, and/or engaging, here are some ideas:

• Use three different PollEverywhere polls (one Rose, one Bud, one Thorn) where students can respond via texting or the web. As an added bonus, create a word cloud with each poll (for example, a Wordle) to see if there are any commonly occurring words or phrases.  You can easily do a word cloud within PollEverywhere; here are some directions how.
• Use Padlet to post responses.  This is probably the closest digital equivalent to the analog version of Post-Its on a wall. You may make three clear sections on the "board" and make sure to follow a consistent color scheme for each post.  The URLs to Padlets can easily be shared to others, and can stay put to look at later.
• Do Post-Its the old fashioned way, but you or a student can capture the data with an iPad or iPhone with the Post-It Plus app.  You can take a picture of up to 50 Post-Its (works best if they are square), digitally group them in "boards" as you see fit, and share.  You can even export the finished boards in several formats, such as PPT or PDF. 

Good luck on improving feedback!

Special thanks to Mary Cantwell for writing the article on RBT that inspired this blog entry,  and the 1/7/15 tweet by Wicked Decent Learning (Dan Ryder, Jeff Bailey) that brought my attention to Ms. Cantwell's text.

Note 4/29/15:  After publishing this entry, I got the name of the people behind Susan and Robyn's Design Thinking PD discussed above: d.school at Stanford University.  The link is now inserted above.

Note 10/17/22:  I am thankful and surprised that this still shows up consistently in the weekly top ten of most popular viewed entries for my blog.  (As of this edit, it has well over 1700 views total!)  I noticed that the original video with Dr. Palmieri was no longer working and a few other links needed fixing, so I have shared a new video that I think is at least as useful as the original and did some minor updates, including some text clarity.  

  

TUIT: Melissa Young, Wright Elementary

One more full week at Painted Stone Elementary!  Time truly does fly after spring break.  As I near the end of my embedded tours -- my last three week stint will be at Simpsonville Elementary starting on May 4 -- I realize that the hardest thing is often finding time to loop back and check how things are going at schools I have previously visited.

It had been several weeks since I had visited Wright Elementary, so I recently emailed out to Wright staff to see how edtech integration is going.  One of the responses led to the Q & A below, and a well-deserved #ShelbyTUITshoutout for Melissa Young, a fourth grade teacher who specializes in math and word work.  In particular, her discussion of using edtech to differentiate led to some interesting anecdotes and insights.

Melissa, introduce yourself to our readers.  How long have you taught at Wright? Where did your learning of integrating edtech begin?

I have taught at Wright since 1998 after graduating from the University of Kentucky. I think my initial integration of edtech began when I applied for the Intelligent Classroom. I do recall not having to order Vis a Vis Markers and transparencies and being elated that I could show student thinking and work under the document camera. I was one of the first recipients or first group of teachers to receive the equipment and really just began to implement and use whatever I could get my hands on from additional PDs, blogs, and peers. I am also following your blog!

Tell us about some of the ways you are integrating technology this year.

One of the things that I have done is create the “Menu” of Activities to differentiate instruction from your training on ELL and Differentiation.  To be more specific, I created a Fraction/Decimal Centers Menu based upon students who had and had not mastered the standards from our fraction unit. There were several students who needed to work towards mastery of three different fraction standards. As well, we were in the middle of our decimal unit. Therefore, the centers that I created focused on the following by trying to incorporate the usage of the MacBook Airs, iPads, and digital cameras. Students were given the opportunity to play two games focused on comparing decimals and fraction/decimal equivalencies. Since I didn’t have enough iPads, I recorded the instructions and modeled how to play the game on my RCA SmallWonder cameras. Then, when or if students had questions or needed to see the game modeled, they could watch the short video clip. I wanted to put the video clips on the iPads but I couldn’t guarantee that I would have the same iPads checked out each day.

For two additional  centers, using the MacBooks, I created a template in which students watched video clips on the standards. One standard focused on students being able to multiply fractions, and I had them watch a short “music” video on the procedures for multiplying fractions. It had a very catchy melody that several were singing. (I was trying to hit those auditory and kinesthetic learners.) There were several links and websites that the students could access like mathplayground.com to complete the paper practice in their notebook, type in the answer, and receive immediate feedback. I used several different websites like Khan Academy to help provide the additional instruction and practice. The students enjoyed the centers and having the option to go to a variety of different stations based upon their needs. 

I had one student that went to one of the centers who had met mastery so I was a bit confused on why she was there. However, after conferring with her (mastery was set as 8 out of 10 questions correct) she stated that she felt that because she only met mastery by answering 8/10 instead of 9/10 or 10/10, she needed to practice that standard some more to make sure she had it. It was eye opening to me because had I assigned students to go to particular centers based on simply meeting mastery, I wouldn’t have had her rotate to that station. It was an “aha” moment for me that if I give the responsibility of learning to the students (and don’t carry all of the workload) that they will make those decisions to ensure that they understand the content. 

Glad to hear how edtech is making differentiation easier!  In what ways did you try differentiation before technology?

To differentiate before integrating technology, I still used the workshop model and attempted to address as many multiple intelligences and trying to accommodate every subgroup or population in my classroom. However, I would go through and explain each center or activity in depth and model which took a great deal of time when not all students would rotate to that station. However, I think when that aha moment hit was when I could use just one device for a group to view or browse websites such as Math Playground or Khan Academy that would provide students with sample problems that they could work out in their notebook that I could check when monitoring. The students liked the immediate feedback of the websites and the “hint” buttons to get them started. In addition, when introducing games focused on helping students develop their understanding of the content or to practice in a “fun” way, I would have to review the instructions or intervene and model again. However, by creating videos, students could watch the game being modeled without me being pulled to that group. You really hooked me in with the endless possibilities of how I can incorporate the few devices we have without having that desired one to one ratio of each student having a device. Therefore, when you focused on "these are the things that you can do with just one device," you encouraged me to think outside the box of how I could use one device per group or center/station activity. I really felt like there were several of "me” in the room and that students were engaged in learning. 

I'm flattered and happy that I could help. What edtech tools are you looking forward to using in the near future?

I am really looking forward to those edtech tools that are going to allow me to formatively assess students, collect data, and make those instructional decisions during instruction instead of assessing at the end of the lesson, etc. I use a great deal of student self-assessments during the lesson; however, my students and I don’t always agree on whether or not they “have mastered the standard." I think something like using Plickers embedded into the lesson is going to help improve instruction and monitor student understanding. 

Thank you, Melissa, and congratulations!

EDpuzzle

In Shelby County, we are eager to begin a digital conversion of our classrooms. What will our brick-and-mortar schools look like in the future, and in what ways will our students critically interact with media different than the passive modes of the past?

Having just completed reading Michael B. Horn and Heather Staker's excellent book Blended: Using Disruptive Innovation to Improve Schools, I certainly have flipped and blended learning on the brain. In a previous entry, I offered a checklist for things to consider when pursuing a flipped classroom.  Today, I want to offer a specific tool that would help with any blended digital environment: EDpuzzle.  This website allows a teacher to grab an online video (or upload their own) and add assessment questions and text information at chosen time-stamped moments in the video.  The teacher creates a class which has a unique code (you can have multiple classes).  Students use the class code when registering in order to get to their assigned videos.  You can use your email, Google, or Edmodo credentials to create your EDpuzzle account. The students' answers will be viewable in a teacher dashboard and you can give them feedback; a report can also be run of your class's submissions.

As a short introduction to what EDpuzzle is and how it works, please watch the following video:

How could you use it?  Even just doing a multiple choice assessment will never be the same after doing a "EDpuzzle video quiz." Of course, open response questions enable students to actively use critical and high-order thinking skills.  In a flipped experience, you could use content videos and questions to pre-assess where the students are in order to better work with them when they come to class.  Oh, and no worries about whether the students watched the video.  You'll know because they answered the questions, and since they can't fast forward the first time they watch it, you know they had to see it at least once in real time.  (For reinforcement, students can rewatch a video after answering questions as many times as they like.)

Downsides?   Since the playing of EDpuzzle videos necessitate headphones or an individual space away from others, an in-class use of the tool will either require 1:1 devices or possibly a lab station rotation model.

Have you used EDpuzzle in your classroom?  What did you think?  Have you used similar tools?  How can you envision using it in your classroom?  Leave your Comments below.

TUIT: Julia Lyles, James Morgan, Colby Wilmoth, and an entire high school

Happy April Fool's!  As the days count down to spring break and the end of my embedded tour at Heritage Elementary (Painted Stone, I'll see you Monday the 13th!), I wanted to squeeze out one more Edtech Elixirs entry.

Looking over my latest blog posts, I realized that I haven't given a #ShelbyTUITshoutout recently. Luckily, I have several reasons to do so today.

Julia Lyles is a new 3rd grade teacher here at Heritage. Last week, she asked me to help co-teach her class and we used Nearpod in a work station setting.  (You can read more about Nearpod in a previous entry.)  Ms. Lyles reminded me that even if you have only a few devices, Nearpod can be useful in a rotational station format.  I was glad to see her integrating Nearpod in a lesson with such young students, and happy to help teach in her classroom.

James Ray Morgan is Heritage's music teacher.  He already had an interest in edtech before I arrived, but after our consultation, he is now in the process of creating a YouTube channel of helpful videos for his students.  For example, Mr. Morgan wants to create tutorials for next year's classes to learn to play a recorder (or use the videos for extra practice, support, and enrichment).  In addition, he is creating a website as a launching platform for his class; you can view it here. He's well on his way to flipping and blending his instruction! (Note: if you want help recording directly on YouTube with your webcam, check out one of my how-to videos below.)

Today I observed Colby Wilmoth with her second graders.  What was impressive was not just the edtech tools themselves (a SMART board interactive clock activity, a document camera to demonstrate drawing a clock face, and so on), but how seamlessly she moved from one to another.  In addition, Ms. Wilmoth reminded me of the need for balancing your tools.  Her students drew large clock faces onto their desks with dry-erase markers, then practiced in pairs putting the correct hour and minute hand for a list of times.  Of course, there are digital equivalents you could do for this, but the tactile analog nature of drawing on a desk has its own benefits for engagement and learning.

Last but not least, I have a historic shoutout to give: to an entire school! At Martha Layne Collins High School,  Instructional Coaches Jennifer Cox and Tracy Huelsman (along with the enthusiastic encouragement of principal John Leeper) gave their staff a Twitter challenge this week. Using the hashtag #TitanStrong (created by Mr. Leeper), Ms. Cox and Huelsman have asked teachers to tweet every day, once a day, all week long.

Be sure to follow MLC @MLCTitanNation Ts tweeting with #TitanStrong this week.Goal is 1 tweet per classroom per day! pic.twitter.com/o5kF4iPXi0
— Adam Watson (@watsonedtech) March 30, 2015

The results have been fantastic and it has been very fun to follow the hashtag.   In some cases, teachers are tweeting for the very first time.  Good job, Collins!

A well deserved shoutout to MLC, Ms. Wilmoth, Mr. Morgan, and Ms. Lyles! Enjoy your spring break and the mild weather.