The Unexpected

WOW! I am overwhelmed with how easily and enthusiastically these learners have taken to digital learning. The things I have been amazed with the most are not the things that I planned or expected (although these things have gone well also). The things that have given me the "wow" moments are the things that my learners have done on their own accord as a result of having ongoing access to their iPad device.

• Timers - simple but so useful.  Reading for 20minutes has never been so accurate.  Seeing this tool spread throughout the class with no input from me has made we really believe that these learners can manage their own learning if they just have the tools to do so.  No more reading reminders! They simply see they need to read and before I know it, its done.

• Before School Learning.  Gone are the days where my learners arrive at 8.30 and head straight out to play.  I now have a classroom full of learners who check their emails, read the notices, check what their Must Do learning tasks are for the day and get started with their learning.  Yes thats right - GET STARTED - BEFORE THE BELL.  The flipped classroom approach has helped immensely here as learners can learn without the need for the teacher telling them where to start.

• Wanting to Write - no this is not a typo!   Our first blog posts were written in record time and I struggled to get children to head out for lunch as they wanted to keep writing!  Yes we still use our books just not all of the time.  These are becoming more of a planning and note space so we can have them on hold when we type. This week many learners discovered how to share a google doc with a buddy so they could both work on it from opposite sides of the classroom.  They are still working together but have time to both contribute before they discuss their ideas in person.  Text to Speak and spell check are allowing children to have full control over their writing while the comment feature in docs and teacher dashboard allows me to quickly leave feedback and next learning steps.

There have been far more WOW moments than this!  More in time, off to plan some more learning as they are getting through it so fast. In the meantime these are some shots from before the morning bell.