For years, every October my school has set aside 10 hours over the course of two days for parent conferences. If I'm being candid, it's usually been a frustrating experience for parents. No appointments are made; the experience is first come, first served. Often, parents show up to classrooms and wait outside for an opportunity to talk with teachers. If each conference takes somewhere between 5 and 10 minutes, some parents can end up waiting for upwards of 40 minutes. 

This year, my team partner and I decided to try student-led conferences as a way to alleviate the congestion, empower our kiddos to take ownership over their academics, and promote personal reflection. This type of conferencing has never been part of our school culture, and we're sort of swimming against the grain by changing up our procedures. However, after experiencing student-led conferences today, I am confident that we made the right decision! 

To prepare for student-led conferences, students reflected on their performance in the four core subject areas. The reflection document was pushed out to students via Google Classroom and included questions about grades, positive behaviors, areas that might need work, and goals for the rest of the trimester. 

We realized that students would need to be explicitly taught how to conduct a conference with their parents.  I created a Google Slide with procedures in English and Spanish, and for the two days preceding conferences, we went over the sharing sequence. Students identified work samples they were proud to share with their parents.  I was thrilled that many students chose to include the digital stories they made about hunter-gatherers. 

Because student-led conferences are new to parents, I recorded a short video to play on a loop right outside the classroom door.  My team partner made a sign in sheet so we could follow up with parents who attended, and some signage completed the set up. 

Now, as we sit here at the end of Day 1 of conferences, I am so happy to have been brave enough to try something new. I had some really incredible conversations with parents, but this time they didn't revolve around grades. Today, our conversations focused on celebrating growth, positive changes parents saw in some of their kiddos, and updates on former students. One of the families I visited with proudly showed me a copy of their oldest daughter's progress report. She is in high school now, but I had her as a student for three years in middle school. Her progress report showed that she is academically ranked #3 out of 491 students in her grade level! Mom was so proud and teared up a little when she showed me the paper. I'm so glad to have this former student's little sister in my class this year; I love that this family and I can continue to grow our connection. 

One of the most interesting effects of student-led conferences is that some families didn't even need to speak with me, because their student did such a great job covering the bases. Beyond a greeting and a "thank you" as they left, many parents and kids were happy to have had dedicated time to talk together about how things are going at school. The kids were shining because I told them to remember to brag about themselves and the awesome job they're doing. 

Have you ever held student-led conferences? How was your experience? What resources did you find helpful? 

A new venture is on the horizon!  I have long been a podcast fan, given that I have a 25 minute commute to and from work.  Audiobooks and podcasts are the stuff of long drives, so when the opportunity to record a podcast presented itself - of course I signed on! 

Georgia Terlaje, who will henceforth be known as my partner in crime, has been a teacher for 31 years. We not only work together in Palm Springs Unified, but we also are fellow teacher consultants at the nonprofit organization, DIGICOM Learning. We've been promoting and supporting digital storytelling in the classroom for years, and now we get to do it together on air! Georgia is one of the most entertaining people I know. She's also multi-talented, as evidenced by her ability to author and record our podcast theme song. We recorded our first episode yesterday, and I'm so happy to share it here. 

Our podcast is called "Digital Storytelling Saves the World" and we've got a whole slew of incredible guests lined up for future episodes. In this first episode, we simply introduce ourselves to listeners, as well as talk about our digital storytelling journeys and where we hope to go with the show. 

As teachers, we can be islands unto ourselves and I think it's so important to connect with one another.  The support piece of digital storytelling often isn't available to teachers outside of our DIGICOM community, so we are hoping to provide that for teachers everywhere. I hope you enjoy our first episode! 

Together, we all say, "Digital Storytelling is important for our kids, so it's important to us."For the past 13 years, I've been providing professional development to teachers in the area of digital storytelling. The non-profit for which I am a teacher consultant is called DIGICOM Learning.  They focus on promoting and supporting the integration of digital storytelling in classrooms and schools.  I feel fortunate to be associated with them, continuing to work toward new opportunities for students.

Every summer, I love teaching weeklong classes to teachers in Palm Springs Unified School District and Desert Sands Unified School District. It's always fun to watch classroom teachers from a wide range of grade levels and subject areas come together as a community.  

Having such a unified understanding of how essential media literacy is to our kiddos is unique. For myself, digital storytelling has been a pillar of my instructional practice for the last 14 years. Why has this strategy stuck, when others have fallen by the wayside? I think it's because digital storytelling is student-centered. It doesn't depend on me to deliver; rather, I merely structure learning so that the door is open, and kids are the ones who walk right on through to tell their stories. ​

Tonight, many of my students were honored at the 2019 DIGICOM Film Festival, a regional festival designed to celebrate the work of students across the Coachella Valley. Sponsored by DIGICOM Learning, this festival has become somewhat of a right of passage for my students.  Having entered it's 12th year, my kiddos walk into my classroom with the idea that they will have opportunities to tell their stories, and part of that opportunity is the film festival.  I think it's important that my student don't necessarily create with the festival in mind, however. Rather, they see it as a platform from which they can share their reality.

​This year, I am particularly proud of a few of my kiddos for talking about tough issues. The topics include open borders, bisexuality, and miscarriage. I'm proud of how much my students have grown and how healing it has been for them to create. If anyone ever doubts whether it's worth it to take time for digital storytelling, I hope they spend some time on my YouTube channel, listening carefully to the years of students who have authored compelling work for everyone to see. Middle school students have important things to say. I hope we're all listening. 

There are so many fantastic educators who give up their time to grow themselves as professionals.  Sometimes, I wonder if the general public is aware of how much dedication and passion that classroom teachers demonstrate every time they give up a Saturday. I am constantly in awe of our professional and feel so grateful to be a part of such an incredible community. This year, I'm honored to present a 3 hour workshop at Fall CUE in Napa Valley. I know it will be a valuable opportunity to connect with others, particular those interested in digital storytelling.  Giving kids the opportunity to tell their stories is essential, especially in today's world which is full of potential platforms students could use to amplify their voices - YouTube, Instagram, Snapchat. What a world today's kids live in. Let's prepare them to use their powers for good, for change, for the distribution of their hopeful stories for the future. 

See you at Fall CUE 19!
​

Last May, at the CUE BOLD Symposium, I was fortunate to meet Shannon and Brenda, who record the My Tech Toolbelt Podcast. They attended one of my hands-on lessons in the WeVideo lab, and graciously asked me to be a guest on their podcast. Of course, I was excited to say "yes!" 

I love talking about student movie-making and I also love talking about how much WeVideo has helped me transform my classroom. Before Chromebooks and browser-based editing software, getting equipment could sometimes be challenging. As any teacher will tell you, there is a necessary critical mass for any type of technology project, and movie-making is no exception. I used to crowd fund iPads for my classroom, and apply for any possible grant that came my way. DIGICOM Learning was especially supportive of my equipment needs, but it's true to say that I am able to integrate movie-making so much more effectively now that every single kiddo has access to editing software. 

So, here's the episode I had so much fun participating in, and hopefully by the end, you'll be a WeVideo fan, too. 

Digital storytelling is one of my passions, and WeVideo has given me an incredible opportunity to be a teacher facilitator in their lesson lab at CUE BOLD this year. One of the lessons I'll be sharing (and having participants create an abbreviated version of) is called the "I Am Poem."  Since the dawn of time, teachers have used BioPoems and I Am Poems to get to know students at the beginning of the year, during the first few weeks when building culture and climate is so important. I've taken the I Am Poem format and made it content-based for Language Arts and Social Studies. 

In their book, The Eduprotocol Field Guide, Jon Corippo and Marlene Hebern talk about providing multiple opportunities for students to tackle tasks; as in, giving "reps" (repeated attempts at learning) when it comes to certain assignment types. The content varies, but the general task remains the same.  That's been the guiding philosophy behind my I Am Poem lesson.  At the close of a novel or unit, I ask students to select a character, a historical figure, or a people group. Then, they write the I Am Poem from that point of view. (Feel free to use my template.) Students self-assess using a rubric as they create, and we conference 1:1 to determine the final grade, which is a combination of my feedback and their own reflection. Throughout the year, we'll repeat the task, and students get faster and more creative with each iteration. 

Here are a few sample student-created I Am Poems to get you started on your own project: 

Well, it's official.  The first trimester of the academic year is over, and I'm going to count my foray into Minecraft: Education Edition as a success.  It's remarkable to me how much work it was to design a fully gamified classroom experience.  Not that the work didn't pay off - it absolutely did!  Perhaps the greatest indicator of success is the fact that my students covered even more content than usual for this time of year, and achieved more in terms of their Social Studies grades.  I believe in maintaining consistently high expectations for my students, for my kids in Honors and for my students in grade level or strategic classes.  So imagine my surprise when I realized that most of my students earned A's for the trimester - seriously. Eight of my seventy-five students received anything less than an A, and all students passed the course. 

​Every. Single. One.

Was this massive boost in achievement due to my transition to quest-based learning in Social Studies? Was it due to the motivation they experienced in response to the gamified elements of the 3D Game Lab MLS I switched to for content delivery, or the epic meaning of the narrative adventure I wrote? Or, was it the introduction of Minecraft: Education Edition that made them so excited to come to class each day?  

I don't know. 

But, I am awfully happy to see my students so happy.  At some point in public education, the system tends to kill the joy of learning.  At a time when sixth graders generally start settling into the middle school shuffle, deciding to be a little too cool and to hide their smarts, my kiddos are still joyfully bounding into the room in the morning, twenty or thirty minutes before the bell, just so they can finish their Minecraft build, or knock out one more quest.  I think that says a lot about student morale, and I can't tell you how much my heart has responded to their positive attitudes. 

By far, the most labor intensive task I had this trimester was the intentional planning and structuring of Minecraft quests.  Because I believe in the power of sharing, and because there might be another 6th or 7th grade Social Studies teacher out there wanting to dive in, but afraid of the waters... here is my entire Trimester 1 Unit Plan for Ancient Civilizations.  If you use it, let me know.  Maybe we can compare notes and strengthen any weaknesses.  I'd love to collaborate!

The Agricultural Revolution can be a sticky subject for students.  In the past, my students have understood the concept of hunting and gathering, and they have understood the concept of farming.  However, it was difficult for them to see how the development of agriculture could have led to a better, more efficient lifestyle for migrating peoples.  In a modern world where the grocery store is just down the block and Amazon ships everywhere, it's always been tough for students to relate to the continual daily struggles of a hunting and gathering society.  So, to shore up this conceptual weakness, enter Minecraft: Education Edition. 

My thinking is that students first need to experience hunter-gatherer life on their own.  The struggle to survive environmental risks, coupled with the need to hunt food and gather supplies is intensified by the fact that they are working alone.  This could be parlayed into a group hunter-gatherer simulation to reveal the benefits of living in a tribe or group.  Students could also begin to explore some limited labor distribution.  As they hunt and gather in groups, they will discover that it can be easier to survive threats, but that many environment challenges remain constant - such as exhausting the supply of animals or plant resources. 

Finally, students could experience the benefits of agriculture by growing crops and domesticating animals instead of chasing them all over the virtual world. They could develop more sophisticated tools and establish permanent settlements. 

Last week, my students completed the solo survival portion of this instructional sequence, and today they engaged in a group survival simulation.  Here's how that looked in my classroom:

As before, I created Google Docs to structure student gameplay.  These docs act as the deliverables for the Minecraft quests I designed, which are posted in our 3D Game Lab (MLS).  There is a Solo Survival document and a Group Survival Document.  Feel free to use either with your students, and let me know how it goes!  Here are some screen captures from docs my students completed:

One of the best perks about being a teacher is having FUN at work, and today was one of those days.  I will admit that I was somewhat nervous to rollout Minecraft: Education Edition with my students. I've never used a commercial game for instruction before, let alone a virtual world.  However, I've experienced the incredible potential for learning through interacting in a creative sandbox through my graduate students, and I am determined to let my students feel the same joy as they build understanding of content.  The first step in that journey toward implementation was introducing kids to  Tutorial World II.

Perhaps the most valuable lesson I've learned when it comes to quest-based learning is that every quest needs to require a deliverable.  The deliverable gives teachers a way to assess the student's learning and provides a jumping off point for the type of feedback that can hone understanding and/or confirm the concept connections that are made.  So, I am applying this thinking to Minecraft as well by requiring a deliverable as a result of gameplay.  Today, students logged on to their Minecraft-ready devices and generated a new Tutorial World II.  Then, they logged on to Google Classroom to pick up their copy of the Google Doc deliverable.  In the Google Doc, they documented their gameplay by taking screen captures of specific places, people, or accomplishments.  

The pairing of Minecraft and Google Docs worked well for the class, but most especially for the students who have little gaming experience.  Though the Tutorial World II has many visual cues, including posters, signs, and boards with instructions, students still benefitted from the cues they received from the Doc.  For example, students were able to anticipate what they should be looking to do or see next in the game, and that helped them stay on track.  For the most experienced Minecrafters - and I discovered that I have some real MC rockstars  in my classes - the Doc helped them to stay focused, too.  There was a lot of temptation for experienced gamers to move off course, so having the task of screen capturing certain things was beneficial.  The MC rockstars finished the Tutorial World first, as expected, but that actually led to a pretty cool development.  The early-finishers just sort of naturally started mentoring the kids who were the newest to gaming.  Watching the numerous helpful exchanges going on around the room, I issued a general invitation to wander the room the lend assistance as needed.  The net effect was decreased anxiety in a few of the newbies and an overall collaborative spirit.  

Here's a clip of how gameplay went today:

If you're a teacher looking to use Tutorial World II with your students, I'm happy to share the Google Doc deliverable I designed for my students.  One of the challenges of implementing Minecraft is the fact that my students need to put aside their usual Chromebooks and utilize a roving cart of Minecraft-ready devices (laptops that run Windows 10).  At the top of the document, there are instructions for how to take screen captures, because my students ordinarily use Chrome.  So, other teachers could simply substitute their own screen capture instructions or remove them entirely.