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Deeper Thinking and Revised DOK Flowchart

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About a year or two ago, I noticed my DOK Flowchart floating around Pinterest . I didn't think much of it because the thought process behind the flowchart was documented on my post titled, Striving for Higher-Order Thinking and Depth of Knowledge . This flowchart was created to help teachers in my former district categorize their own questions by DOK level, to look for patterns and trends, in order to set goals regarding their quest for deeper thinking. It was a flowchart that worked with many question patterns we commonly saw, but was not intended to be definitive. For example, when it came to a question in math, we knew there was a right and wrong answer -- for example, 3X4=12. However, we considered how there were multiple approaches to get to that correct answer. While, that was a discussion we had face-to-face, my original flowchart did not reflect those conversations. Therefore, I revised the flowchart to help clarify: Click here to download as PDF. Below are
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Summer Reflections

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When I started the, 8 Weeks of Summer Blog Challenge for educators, I found myself continuously thinking of insights and inspirations. As a result, I've condensed my reflections to one post. Week 2 :  Ponder your Professional Past -- What has contributed to the educator you are today? Listening to the students, and trying to meet their needs contributed the most to my being the educator I am today. Each and every student has different motivators and needs. Discover what works best, and continue to evolve. Week 3 : Leader & Follower -- How are you both a leader and a follower in your career? The best leaders are also followers, because we improve by learning from one another. We learn with our students, colleagues, administrators, staff, families, and communities. It reminds me of that quote, "The smartest person in the room, is the room." Week 4 : Lead Learner -- What are optimal conditions in which to learn, for you, and for students? When thinking throug
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8 Weeks of Summer Goals

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“This post is week 1 of 8 in the 8 Weeks of Summer Blog Challenge for educators.” Goal: Reflection through Connection I've spent ample time reflecting, but haven't had the courage to connect and share.  Thus, with the encouragement of Sheri Edwards , I will partake in this summer blogging challenge .  One of the topics I'm passionate about is the importance of media literacy, with a spotlight on discerning valid and reliable sources. Goal: Squashing fake news The investment and value of informational literacy, such as using and teaching about reliable sources , should be prioritized. Strive to educate our students as well as our educators about the use of "educational technologies" as literacy, rather than something optional. In a world of fake news and alternative facts, it is crucial that people learn to use the Internet and other digital media sources effectively and reliably.  -- Julie Coiro Final thoughts While discerning fak
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Empathy is not optional

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I wonder how we might treat others if one of our deep beliefs holds that empathy isn't optional. Be humble and intent on monitoring our judgments We might not know the narrative of others -- strangers, family, friends, colleagues, staff, and students -- and we could miss an opportunity to be kind,  serve , and dignify another human being. Empathy  is not an occasional event like window-shopping, with multiple options to consider.  Empathy  is the marrow of relationships, that comes from humility, encouragement, and taking notice of humanity. Daily challenge Look for inspiration of empathy in action.  Take advantage of opportunities to make a difference. Ask, "Who might I need to be in order to treat others the way I wish to be treated?"  What might the world be like if we didn't approach empathy as an optional practice?  How might a commitment to empathy influence schools and classrooms?
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Amplify Voice through Social Media #CUE18

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Giving students a platform to exercise their voice, and listening to learn and understand, makes an impact on learning, academic discourse, class/school/district culture and climate. Some of the highlights and resources gained from learning with @JoeMarquez70 's at #CUE18 , includes: Digital Citizenship -- address this daily Invite a Guest Moderator to the backchannel  Back Channel Tools Today's Meet ZiteBoard AwwApp Class Hashtag Collaborating, Learning Artifacts, Annotating Tools Google Classroom in conjunction with qbbuzzer Google Sites Flipgrid Perusall Edji YouTube with Vialogues NearPod Connect with the world beyond the four walls: Note: I am sharing some resources and successes from Joe Marquez, and please understand that I have not vetted the privacy policies for AB 1584 compliance   yet .  What are some other success stories of amplifying student voice? How else might we promote academic discourse? 
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Fake News and Visual Literacy #CUE18

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Fake news is not accidental reporting with a few mistakes, it is intentional and designed to look real. According to Dr. Lesley Farmer , of California State University at Long Beach,  the motivation behind creating fake news is often to profit, gain influence, assert power, and sometimes to entertain. As critical consumers and responsible contributors, we should be skilled in  discerning validity and disseminating reliable information. Images, like all text, communicates a message. Hence, we are to "read" the visual and glean meaning grounded in evidence.  However, we might not retain the objectivity to critically evaluate the message when strong emotions skew our perception. When a communication reinforces or challenges our core beliefs, it might blind us from objectively stepping back to ask questions such as, "What's the narrative? Who is communicating it, and why?" California's ELA/ELD Framework explicitly draws attention to the broader topi
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Global Collaboration

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In order to prepare students to apply rigorous learning to new and real-world situations, educators must provide opportunities that foster critical and creative thinking, communication and collaboration. Importance of Global Collaborations Common Core State Standards demand students to collaborate with diverse partners , thereby expanding students' global awareness . Some of the benefits of collaboration might include: Developing interpersonal skills of working together as a team. Fostering critical thinking skills while working towards a collaborative goal. Increasing comprehension while partaking in conversations and exploring ideas from different perspectives. "Collaborative learning promotes communication among students; it is particularly beneficial for English Learners (ELs) because peer interaction contributes to the development of language," ( CA ELA ELD Framework, Chapter 2 ). New 2016 ISTE Standards for Students I recently attended th
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Urgency with Coding Now for the Future

I've heard Anne Jenks share numerous times the importance of teaching coding in school, especially with so many STEM professions available . If computer science careers are the number one source of jobs in the US, then we should have more computer science graduates, and therefore more coding/programming opportunities in K-12 classrooms. Urgency with coding in classrooms now for jobs in the future #cue16 #gccue pic.twitter.com/oDGiOX7M7d — Tracy Watanabe (@tracywatanabe) March 17, 2016 The time is now to start teaching digital fluency and coding as part of literacy. Being literate in today's world, includes computer literacy. Luckily, there are organizations, such as Code.org , dedicated to giving students opportunities to learn computer science. How do you get started? Below are a few places for getting started: Device Elementary Secondary iPad Daisy the Dinosaur Tickle  (older app) Hopscotch Scratch Jr. Cargo-Bot Tickle Laptop/Desktop Scra
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