Jigsaw Badge Assignment 104

For the final badge I used all 4 panes to create an overview of a potential lesson.  Regarding pane 1, I have learned that using the webcam isn't really as big of a privacy or even teaching challenge as I thought it would be.  I still do feel a little bit awkward with hearing my voice and I have noticed that I tend to look away from the camera a lot (I think this is because I am looking at my own face for re-enforcement not the camera); however, both awareness will help me to modify this behavior.

For pane 2 I am a bit overwhelmed on which method would be the best; teaching by screen sharing is the technique that I am the most used to; however, I can see the advantages to presentations and documents.  Especially, in that they tend to ground the presentation and provide less room for the "train going off the tracks."  Yet letting the train go off the tracks sometimes does lend itself to some interesting discoveries and I think mirrors how students use their technology in that a lot of their searches are freeform and they end up in places that they didn't expect to go.  Perhaps balance is in order here.  For this lesson I used the screenshare feature to retrieve the sample AP prompts from the College Board, and the document feature to show students sample AP Essays.

For pane 3 I am completely sold and inspired by the note feature.  I think that taking notes in pane 3 can be an acceptable method for taming the adventure of my screen sharing in pane 2.  Also I really enjoy working out analysis in real time with students and this pane will help me do this.  For this lesson, I demonstrated a technique of addressing three AP English literature prompts at once so that the students will start to see the exam as a holistic performance rather than individual questions (do remember that the students are simply awarded a number score of 1-5 and they will never know how they did on any one particular question).

For pane 4 I am still getting comfortable with the cut/pasting and using the whiteboard; however, I do like the annotation features and how these can be applied to the writing process.  For this lesson I cut/pasted a poetry prompt from the 2017 AP English Literature Exam and demonstrated how it would connect with Panes 2 and 3.

I do like to think of instruction and assessment as holistic, and I am trying to explore how all of the panes can be used to create a holistic effect upon students.  I don't want to rely on any one pane for too long, but I also don't want to run the risk of fragmented lessons.  Pane 1 is easily solved with turning the webcam on, but it's the other three that need to work in unison.

Screencast Link: https://screencast-o-matic.com/watch/cFfFh0bnKA

Jigsaw Badge Assignment 103

These two panes have been the greater mystery to me as I have worked through jigsaw for the last year, so I am eager to learn about how to use them.  Typically with pane 3, I've noticed the map of my location and one student in Savannah always seems to show up; however, I did not see much more application.  And Pane 4 was one that I merely ignored.  This lesson has changed my negligence of these two panes.

First, for pane 3 I really enjoy the note feature.  I tend to be a screen sharing teacher, and often I will type up notes in Word and just share them with my students.  However, the process of doing this tends to blur screens as I go back and forth between the jigsaw screen and my Word document.  Obviously, I am not 100% in the courseroom with this strategy and hadn't learned a way around this problem.  Now, I can work with the note feature to type and present notes and templates for assignments in real time without having to learn the jigsaw classroom.  With my video presentation I have given the framework to a possible introductory or pre-AP Exam lesson on how AP essays are built with some quantifiable measures for each level.

Second, for pane 4 I plan on using the whiteboard feature and as an ELA teacher this seems really applicable for writing instruction.  For the video presentation I have cut/pasted a PDF of sample essays published by the College Board and have taken the introductory paragraph and have demonstrated how I could not only use this document as a reference, but also how I could highlight and annotate this PDF in real time for the students.  I think that the visual element and interactive feature has much potential with writing instruction, and plan on exploring and even sharing this with my students in future sessions.

Screencast Link: https://screencast-o-matic.com/watch/cFfFf1bnHF

Jigsaw Badge Assignment 102

The top two panes, especially pane 2, are the ones that I have been using the most since I have started with jigsaw.  For the purposes of this badge I experimented with the webcam, and will probably use this feature more in the future.  Generally, I am a fairly private person, so for the last three years I have just been a voice without a face, but I think that might change next week.  Personalizing the experience can only help the students feel more connected and what better way to do this than with a webcam.  So . . . this will be something outside of my comfort zone, but a necessary part of growth; it's sort of funny that as a teacher of 22 years in front of students that I am having a difficult time getting myself in front of a web cam.

Pane 2 is what I naturally have used, especially the screen share.  Typically, I tend to teach this way in my face-to-face setting and it comes naturally to me to log into a computer and then present.  Generally, I know what I want to share with students, and go quickly from document to powerpoint to webpage to video and then back again.  I've found that students seem to be comfortable with this approach and it tends to mirror their own web browsing habits.  I do appreciate the tips for size and resolution that were presented in the video and this is an area of growth for me; I do tend to use a lot of "old school" AP English prompts, which tend to be from the days of typewriters.  Therefore, I will be mindful of this for future presentations.

P.S. I like the features about removing students, and having attendance checks for them--good simple classroom management techniques.

Screencast: https://screencast-o-matic.com/watch/cFfFeabnGR

Jigsaw Badge Assignment 101

After finishing the training video, I now have a better understanding of how to use assets, and where each type can go.  I tend to prefer more minimal presentation modes so I was happy to see that the panes can be changed from two to four; this tends to fit my presentation style more than having four open at once, especially when I can generally only use one at a time.  I also like the feature that allows me to upload documents, links, etc in both the panes as well as the sidebar.  I have been using the course room to upload these documents, but now I can have one more area for student convenience.  Also the fact that these can be available here will help students to not need to log out of the presentation to gain access to whatever document I am discussing.  Generally, I prefer to discuss as I am presenting, and with a course like AP English this is of paramount importance.  Likewise, I also use word / google doc templates for writing instruction, so this feature will help me to provide immediate access to whatever I am discussing with my students.

In with the video I have show the viewer the five assets that I created and provided tags for (I have tagged them by the unit with which they correspond).  I have demonstrated the use of a weblink to the College Board's AP English Literature Web page--at this time of the year (i.e. AP Exam prep time) I find this a useful place for students who are in need of preparing for the AP final exam in May.

Screencast for Assignment 101: https://screencast-o-matic.com/watch/cFfbYGbnqF