Yesterday, February 28th, was cold and snowy. Many schools in Connecticut where I live had a two-hour delay. And while we at Wheeler did not, I always appreciate the late start time for others, making my commute that much smoother and less congested. The roads were very clear with the exception of some city streets so my drive was uneventful for our first all snow event of the winter. The Library Learning Commons was a bit chilly but soon the heat kicked on and the warmth started to permeate the room. Part of my morning opening routine is turning on the monitors, all connected wirelessly through casting devices and on a school-wide network. As one and then the next clicked on, the message, "connection failed, no networks available" colorfully leaped on to the screens. Thinking, at first that this might just be the wireless hub in the Learning Commons I checked in with a few folks and learned that the entire wireless network was down. The Tech Department was in full troubleshooting and repair mode. Our students with 1:1 devices, work routinely in Gsuite and utilize other apps for specialized learning.
How, then was I going to move from an online lesson to a real-life workspace in anticipation of 6th graders arriving for Information Skills? They were expecting to work on an online challenge about civic action. Admittedly, my first thought was, "this is surprisingly calm," even with classes on their way and no real plan. Not feeling the constant pull of checking emails gave me time to focus on re-working the lesson. My second thought was, "what am I going to do?" Much of our own collection has moved to a digital platform so unless I could find hard copies of books and magazines to support this dive into civic action and service learning we were likely going to have free reading time. This is always a fine option and with the Quahog Cup Challenges a little over a month away, I'm sure the students would have made the most of the time. One of the sections though will be heading to the farm quarter soon so we needed to keep moving forward with the scaffolding for civic action research. Digging back through my own files I stumbled on some lessons and articles I had printed out about social action, civil action, and service learning. While we as educators often use the terms interchangeably they are not the same. They do however require the same three steps once an issue or topic is chosen, be informed, speak up and take action!
Even with our digital collections, we still receive some print magazines. Yesterday, I was very grateful for our small but exciting collection. In the magazine, New Moon for Girls, there was an article called "Clean Water Fighters," highlighting the work of girls ages 10-12 who are actively seeking to change this environmental health issue that is urgent. Not only does the article showcase their passion and fearlessness, but it also provides specific action steps, "we talk to reporters, we go door to door, we support people and organizations working for the people of Flint." The girls' advice; to do simple things routinely to bring about change. This issue of the magazine included additional stories of civic action by school-aged girls ranging from neighborhood and community to global concerns.
After making a few copies of each article, setting out pieces of chart paper on tables along with new markers (other than new crayons is there anything better?) and a set of simple directions, I was ready for the 6th graders! Much to my surprise, many came in and were excited to see the paper and markers! They were equally happy to realize we wouldn't be using Chromebooks for this class. The three simple directions were 1-along with your table mates choose one of the articles and read together, mark it up, write in the margins, write two questions you have about the topic/issue and about the challenges faced by the students. Brainstorm possible issues of interest that require action, 2-identify and organize the issues by communities of concern; your school or neighborhood, the nation, or the world, 3-identify two topics with which you might engage and learn more and possibly be inspired to act.
Each piece of chart paper collected the visual thinking of the table groups. Some were color-coded, others collected and organized their thoughts in various geometric shapes. others made long lists of ideas and actions. All were engaged with each other and their work. Those who finished the first three steps were asked to brainstorm some actions 6th graders could take. Table groups shared their ideas and every student had a chance to see that people in middle school make a difference and take action every day. As the class ended, there was an excited buzz about civic action!
Later in the day, the network came back up (thank you Tech Department). It was a little bittersweet. Clearly, whatever upset the network didn't take into account that today from sundown until tomorrow at sundown is actually the National Day of Unplugging! I think I may just try that.
How, then was I going to move from an online lesson to a real-life workspace in anticipation of 6th graders arriving for Information Skills? They were expecting to work on an online challenge about civic action. Admittedly, my first thought was, "this is surprisingly calm," even with classes on their way and no real plan. Not feeling the constant pull of checking emails gave me time to focus on re-working the lesson. My second thought was, "what am I going to do?" Much of our own collection has moved to a digital platform so unless I could find hard copies of books and magazines to support this dive into civic action and service learning we were likely going to have free reading time. This is always a fine option and with the Quahog Cup Challenges a little over a month away, I'm sure the students would have made the most of the time. One of the sections though will be heading to the farm quarter soon so we needed to keep moving forward with the scaffolding for civic action research. Digging back through my own files I stumbled on some lessons and articles I had printed out about social action, civil action, and service learning. While we as educators often use the terms interchangeably they are not the same. They do however require the same three steps once an issue or topic is chosen, be informed, speak up and take action!
Even with our digital collections, we still receive some print magazines. Yesterday, I was very grateful for our small but exciting collection. In the magazine, New Moon for Girls, there was an article called "Clean Water Fighters," highlighting the work of girls ages 10-12 who are actively seeking to change this environmental health issue that is urgent. Not only does the article showcase their passion and fearlessness, but it also provides specific action steps, "we talk to reporters, we go door to door, we support people and organizations working for the people of Flint." The girls' advice; to do simple things routinely to bring about change. This issue of the magazine included additional stories of civic action by school-aged girls ranging from neighborhood and community to global concerns.
After making a few copies of each article, setting out pieces of chart paper on tables along with new markers (other than new crayons is there anything better?) and a set of simple directions, I was ready for the 6th graders! Much to my surprise, many came in and were excited to see the paper and markers! They were equally happy to realize we wouldn't be using Chromebooks for this class. The three simple directions were 1-along with your table mates choose one of the articles and read together, mark it up, write in the margins, write two questions you have about the topic/issue and about the challenges faced by the students. Brainstorm possible issues of interest that require action, 2-identify and organize the issues by communities of concern; your school or neighborhood, the nation, or the world, 3-identify two topics with which you might engage and learn more and possibly be inspired to act.
Each piece of chart paper collected the visual thinking of the table groups. Some were color-coded, others collected and organized their thoughts in various geometric shapes. others made long lists of ideas and actions. All were engaged with each other and their work. Those who finished the first three steps were asked to brainstorm some actions 6th graders could take. Table groups shared their ideas and every student had a chance to see that people in middle school make a difference and take action every day. As the class ended, there was an excited buzz about civic action!
Later in the day, the network came back up (thank you Tech Department). It was a little bittersweet. Clearly, whatever upset the network didn't take into account that today from sundown until tomorrow at sundown is actually the National Day of Unplugging! I think I may just try that.