Back in December, I applied for a Lytle Education Foundation grant.  The grant addressed the need to raise awareness among Lytle Junior High students on digital citizenship.  In the grant, I budgeted for a green screen kit, studio lighting, camera and tripod, as well as video and photo editing software.  The idea is that the 6th graders will take what they have learned about digital citizenship and use our audio/video equipment to create different forms of media to spread the message around campus.  The four pillars of digital citizenship which will be addressed are: cyberbullying, safety/privacy, digital footprint, and copyright.  Students will create PSAs, flyers, and handouts to be distributed and viewed by our entire student body.  Everything that students create will be judged and voted on, and this is how we will decide what will be mass produced for distribution among our student body.  We started working on this project on Monday, and by Friday of this week, students should have a rough draft for their 90-second long PSA.  As we continue moving through this project, I will be blogging along the way and posting pictures of our progress.  I hope we can turn this into a yearly event, so I really would like to keep track of what works and what doesn't so that we can adjust for the coming years!

New beginnings

While I am not new to the idea of blogging, I am new to the role of the blogger.  As a self-proclaimed technology "geek" and technology teacher, I felt it was time that I played the role and practice what I preach.  After all, I will be asking my students this year to utilize blogging as a way to communicate beyond the walls of the classroom.  We will be moving into our brand new computer lab in our brand new school within the next few weeks, and should be up and running upon our return from the holiday break.  This will be a welcome change from what our classroom has come to be as a result of the delayed construction and our temporary housing.  While I love to read, and the kids have adapted well, it will be nice to put the paper, pencil, and books away and power up the computers, iPads, and iPods.  Some of the things I have planned for my classes are way beyond what any of them might have imagined doing in the 6th grade, but I feel that kids will always rise to the expectations we set for them.  So, I look forward to the transition and until then I will continue to find ways to engage these kids with the resources I have!