Cautious Optimism

For the first time in a long, long while, I have a group of students in an Elementary Algebra course that are really doing well. Our department changed the cut scores on our assessment test starting this semester, and students seem to be getting placed a little bit more accurately.

Two things made this something to notice. On the first exam, over 25% of the class earned an A! This just never happens, even though the material on the first exam is supposed to be review. Then in class yesterday, we were on one of those class days that historically is really a time crunch. The warmup is one that students tend to struggle over (word problems) and then the topics are not difficult, but jam-packed with ideas. For the first time ever, students finished the warmup within the 20 minutes I was hoping for, I was able to give a break, and we finished 5 minutes early. What the heck?!?!?

I'm hoping that this is truly a sign that I have a group of students who are actually prepared. Hopefully it is not just that I had them so lost that they just didn't say anything in class.

I really am optimistic that things are going well in this class this semester...

Dual Monitor Heaven

Image by OwenBlacker via Flickr

So I have joined the world of people with 2 monitors. I don't think I can ever go back to just 1! I am one of those multitaskers who has so many windows open in the task bar that I drive some people crazy. Of course, I never asked them to look over my shoulder, so oh well. :)

Today, I bought myself an external monitor to attach to my laptop when working at my desk at home. I am in LOVE! I have so much more space to keep track of the things I am working on. If only I'd waited to grade some of the assignments for my hybrid class till now, except that would mean I would have to grade now. Well, it would have made the grading go so much quicker and easier. Instead of switching back and forth from one window to another, I could just look to the side at my new monitor and then back to the laptop screen. This is gonna be cool!


I am also looking into a small USB touchscreen monitor to use in the classroom. My plan is to mirror what I see on the laptop screen to the projector, but extend the desktop to the small screen. There have been quite a few times just over the last two weeks that I wished I had another computer right at my fingertips to allow me to do something that the students couldn't see on the screen. I'm hoping that this setup would allow me to do just that, and not have to change what the students are seeing on the screen. I think I want the touchscreen model so I would not have to have a mouse to navigate on the other screen, but I'm still debating with that idea in my head.

Stay tuned for an update on whether or not that works the way I am hoping.

How I Setup My Toolbars in OneNote

Whenever I work on a new computer, there are a few things I like to customize in the OneNote Toolbars to make it easier to work in the program. Check out the video to see what customizations I like to make.

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I like to change the 4 thin pens at the top of My Pens Toolbar to be 4 more thick pens in different colors, and I like to change the color of some of the highlighter pens. Watch the next video to see how.



Are there any other things you like to add to or customize on the toolbars? Share in the comments.

My Favorite OneNote Wonders

I first found Microsoft OneNote on the first laptop I bought, just about 10 years ago. I used it a bit then, but truly fell in love with the program when I started using it with my Tablet PC. One of my most favorite things about OneNote is that it autosaves while you are working. This has been a lifesaving feature in the classroom. At least 3 times last semester, I accidentally hit the power button on my tablet, and restarted the computer in the middle of teaching a class. Now I did have to stall a bit while waiting for the computer to restart, but when I opened OneNote back up, I had only lost maybe the last 60 seconds of my work. Now that is cool!

I also love that I can copy information from anywhere and store it in OneNote. When you copy and paste into OneNote, you will also get a link showing where that information was copied from. This is great if you are researching and collecting ideas from the web, but forgot where you found that awesome thought in your surfing. I like to be able to go back to a website and see if they have any other ideas I might like. It can also be great when you need to cite your references. The paste function puts it right there with the stuff you copied.


You also have an option to print documents to OneNote. This is how I get my "handouts" into OneNote before presenting a lesson in class. I then write all over that document in OneNote just like my students are writing on their copies.

OneNote functions like a 3-ring-binder, but you don't have to have paper or worry about hole punching. This image shows the logic in how OneNote is setup:

I store EVERYTHING in OneNote. Okay, maybe I'm exaggerating, but I do have loads of information in my OneNote notebooks.

• For school, I have a separate notebook for each class section.
  
• I transfer past semesters from their notebook into my Past Semesters notebook, so I can always look back a what was done in class.
  
• I put receipts in another notebook. Remember, you can print to OneNote? Anytime I make an online purchase, I print the receipt to this notebook. I have a copy that can be printed out on paper if needed, and if not I haven't wasted any paper.
• I have another notebook where I take notes in various meeting at school (department, division, committee, etc...)
• There is another notebook for conferences. I take my tablet with me to conferences now and take my notes on the tablet in OneNote.
  

With so much information in my notebooks, sometimes I forget where I put something. No need to fear, there is a wonderful search function. Search for a word and it will look in every notebook, not just in the typed text! It can search for text in images, in your inked work, in audio files that you have recorded in OneNote, basically everywhere!

OneNote notebooks can be shared on multiple computers. The way I use this mostly is that I store my notebooks on a USB flash drive. Once I have opened a notebook from the thumb drive, OneNote creates a backup copy on that computer. Any changes made will be synced back to the original the next time I plug in my USB flash drive. I make sure to do this after I leave school and then when I want to work on my personal Tablet PC, I plug in the USB flash drive. The school changes are then synced to my personal copy at home. Any changes I make here are synced to the drive and back at school once I plug it in there. There are ways to do this online as well, though I haven't tried them out yet.

There is a built in screen-clipping function that comes with OneNote. Just press the Windows key and S and it activates it. Clip what you want and use it, not only in OneNote, but anywhere you can paste an image. I've made some nice training materials using this feature as well as used it to answer student questions. Anything you can view on the computer screen can be clipped and pasted to use elsewhere.

Do you have any other favorite OneNote wonders? Share them in the commments, please!

What I Learned About Learning

I spent last week with some really amazing math teachers in Muskegon, Michigan for the 2009 MCC Math and Technology Workshop. During some of the sessions, I found myself reflecting on how I learn, being aware of what works for me and what doesn't. For 8+ hours on each of 5 days, I was in the student role. I think all teachers need to be reminded of what it is like to be a student if they really want their students to have the best experience possible in class. Here are some of my thoughts from that week:

• If you just talk at me and don't answer my questions, I will ignore you and do something else, which may or may not be related to what you are trying to teach.
  
• I learn from doing, even if it means copying what you just did. If I never get a chance to try what you are teaching, I will not retain it. I will not see the possibilities, and I will problably not care to figure them out.
  
• Webinars can be interesting, but if I don't have a microphone or I am not required to communicate with the instructor/presenter, I will tend to float to the background and get easily distracted. Hold me accountable for speaking and participating, and I'll be forced to pay attention (this can be good or bad).
• I learned that I knew a lot more than I had previously given myself credit for. Since I was more advanced than many participants, it was fun to be helping them when I was finished with my work (that's the teacher in me). When I was sitting next to someone who didn't need help, I again found it too easy to float to the background and get distracted.
• I read the article "Teaching that Sticks," by the authors of "Made to Stick." I was struck by their idea of the Curse of Knowledge.
  

  "Once we know something, we find it hard to imagine what it was like not to know it. Our knowledge has “cursed” us. And it becomes difficult for us to share our knowledge with others, because we can’t readily re-create the state of mind of our listeners."
  

• Administrators who no longer teach, forget what it's like to teach. Just as teachers who haven't been students in a long time, forget what it's like to be students.

Why don't we put ourselves back into the shoes we stepped out of on a more regular basis? I am so grateful for the chance to experience, once again, the role of student for a whole week. I know I will be a better teacher having been reminded of life on the other side of the desks.

OneNote Wonders

At the MCC Math and Technology Workshop this afternoon, I helped to introduce Wacom tablet and PC tablet users to Microsoft OneNote 2007. There was so much information to share that I just couldn't overwhelm everyone with everything. This made up my mind that I need to blog about my experiences using OneNote in my teaching. Keep an eye out for this series to start over the next few days. But now, I really need to get to sleep so I'll be rested for Day 3 of the workshop tomorrow.

:)

Links to Explore (6/16/09)

LectureTools Could be interesting for students to use their own computer to interact in class. Need to see just how this works to decide if it is worth trying. Looks like you might be able to use as a free LMS?

LectureTools is designed to provide a class experience by:

1. Enabling note-taking synchronized to lecture slides,
2. Providing opportunities to pose questions electronically during lecture,
3. Including a complete personal responder system to participate actively in class activities and
4. Tools for self-assessment of confidence of understanding

Dimdim Free - Dimdim: Web conferencing that just works. I had used Zoho Meetings for this once before, but they now have limited you to just one other person in the meeting. Still useful for computer troubleshooting. This might be more usable for some training sessions for my department.

Dimdim Free. The world’s easiest web conference. With Dimdim Free, people and organizations around the world can now meet freely. And since everyone will spend less time traveling and more time collaborating, this free product can actually help you make money. Take that, economy! Now the world can meet freely with up to 20 people, absolutely free.

OurStory.com - Capture your stories, save them permanently. Not really related to my classrooms (at least not right now), but something I might use for my own personal story. I had started a timeline of my life with another program, that has since disappeared from the net...maybe I'll get one done and archived here?

1. Make your timeline about anything
2. Collaborate with family and friends
3. Share it with whomever you want
4. Add your timeline to MySpace or your blog