Tag: Education

Open Educational Resources for Educators and More

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“Education is inherently an enterprise of openness and sharing and generosity.”

– David Wiley

Sarah Weston – Director of Instruction & Technology – Mountain Heights Academy

sweston@mountainheightsacademy.org

License: Mountain Heights Academy: Sarah Weston Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International  Adapted by Susan Spellman Cann @sspellman cann

Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International

OER Basics just for you Cue 16 OER for Teachers

Counselling

OER Resources

  • Curriki includes thousands of OER materials vetted by educators and searchable by subject, grade level, and learning standard.
  • EDSITEment features OER materials for the humanities.
  • Edmodo.com use the spotlight feature
  • Gooru.org lesson plans and more. You can find full courses that can be downloaded.
  • OER Commons includes a vast collection of OER materials searchable by subject, grade level, and learning standard.
  • ShareMyLesson includes a host of “open” lesson plans.
  • Smithsonian Learning Lab features more than a million images, recordings, and texts that can be reused, shared, or adapted.

Teaching

Open Educational Resources publishing an open textbook

OER Passport

OER How To Courses

OER Content Resources

OER Building Resources

Other OER Resources

Math

  • Algebrahelp.com is a collection of lessons, calculators, and worksheets created to assist students and teachers of algebra. Algebra Help – Calculators, Lessons, and Worksheets
  • BrainNook is a new online game that helps kids develop Math and English skills while exploring the Earth and playing safely with others. brain nook
  • Calculus: A Comedy, is an awesome post from a great teacher and blogger, Shawn Cornally.Shawn Cornally
  • Construction of a Golden Rectangle using SketchUp digital photography
  • Digital Photography Resource Digital photography 
  • Estimation 180 daily estimation challenges
  • GeoGebra  is a resource for teachers GeoGebra has loads of lessons and sample videos using GeoGebra.
  • Glean search for quality math and science videos on this site.
  • Graphing Calculator Desmos graphing calculator
  • Illuminations is designed to provide standards-based resources that improve the teaching and learning of mathematics NCTM illuminations
  • Math games, lessons, practice, puzzles, books (Geometry, algebra, pre-calculus) Cool Math
  • Math nrich Lots and lots of math resources from this publisher’s site (many middle and elementary resources as well)
  • Math Munch an amazing blog with new math connections, ideas, and activities daily. Inspiring love of math.
  • MPCC: Math   Open Minnesota Math Course Collection
  • Mathematics Vision Project (MVP) Mathematics Vision Project
  • NLVM The National Library of Virtual Manipulatives (NLVM) is an NSF supported project with web-based virtual manipulatives or concept tutorials, mostly in the form of Java applets, for mathematics instruction (K-12 emphasis).
  • SketchUp Sketchup
  • The Federal Government produces an immeasurable amount of data each day. DataMasher helps citizens have a little fun with that data by creating mashups to visualize them in different ways and see how states compare on important issues. Agen SBOBET
  • Visual Patterns What is the next step? Here’s step 43…what is the equation?
  • Would You Rather? “Would you Rather?” daily math challenges…usually money related.

Language Arts

  • A teacher’s guide to genius This educator version of an otherwise possibly inappropriate site may be more higher-ed appropriate…but the ability to annotate texts digitally, including already hyper annotated texts like Shakespeare’s plays and The Great Gatsby are worth checking out, if only as a teacher resource!  
  • Become a writer with Storybird Storybird Example: the power of friendship
  • Breaking News English is a free current events based lesson builder. New lesson every three days. All lessons are based on stories currently in the news – as the world’s news breaks, teach it.Breaking News English
  • Book track classroom listen to or create the soundtrack for your favorite books!
  • Create tag clouds Word Art Tagul
  • Dictionary, word of the day, etc .Merriam Webster
  • eeiioo Very highly rated grammar app with a modern diagramming feel. 
  • Fluency Tutor many leveled passages, students record and download. Teachers can then complete running records from recordings. Free for basic functions. Premium includes online analytics and online running record support.
  • Get a single word and 59 seconds to free write...quick and creative? http://oneword.com/
  • Google trips Literature resource using Google Maps:  google trips 
  • Great site for emphasizing detail and complex sentences. Create expanding sentences: http://www.telescopictext.org/write/ and see a sample of a finished product here:Telescopic Text
  • Hemingway Editor Amazing writing review program…have students review their work here first?
  • Level It Books scans a book’s ISBN number and gets the reading/lexile level.
  • Loyal Books makes the world’s public domain audiobooks available for browsing in a visual and entertaining way./Loyal Books
  • Multi Language dictionary Elovivo
  • Primary Source Sets | DPLA Primary source sets from the Digital Public Library of America. Super resources curated by literary work, date, topic, and more.
  • The Poetry Foundation, publisher of Poetry magazine, is an independent literary organization committed to a vigorous presence for poetry in our culture. It exists to discover and celebrate the best poetry and to place it before the largest possible audience.Poetry Foundation  
  • VoiceThread Voice Thread

Social Studies

  • Atlapedia Online contains full color physical maps, political maps as well as key facts and statistics on countries of the world. Atlapedia Online
  • American Battlefield Trust from a rather generic looking opening page, dig deeper to find free BattleApps for your iphone or android device, 4 minute videos on specific topics (in4), animated maps and more.
  • Ancient Egypt reference from The British Museum Ancient Egypt
  • Awesome Stories is a gathering place of primary-source information. Its purpose is to help educators and individuals find original sources, located at national archives, libraries, universities, museums, historical societies and government-created web sites. Awesome Stories
  • Bomb Sight an amazing view of the Blitzkrieg in London.
  • Digital Vaults Create a movie or poster using the National Archives Digital Vaults. 
  • DPLA Primary Source Sets | DPLA Primary source sets from the Digital Public Library of America. Super resources curated by date, topic, and more.
  • Earth Cam provides webcam content, technology and services EarthCam
  • Games, videos, animals & pets, photos, countriesNational Geographic Kids
  • Google Arts & Culture The Google Cultural Institute includes amazing exhibits from museums re: history, art, and world wonders. Teacher tools are available.
  • Hip Hughes History includes brief, fun, explanatory vids re: government, us history, world history, civics and more. Hughes History Youtube Check the 30 second bill of rights here: The Bill of Rights — How to Remember the Amendments in 30 Seconds 
  • History Animated History Animated: excellent narrated, animated maps and vids.
  • Ken Burns (PBS) Ken Burns PBS
  • Measuring Worth lots of economic tools and resources on comparing the worth of a dollar or pound (or a few other currencies) over extended periods of time, as well as many other tools and data sets.
  • Mission US Mission US…a story-based interactive game about various aspects of US history.
  • Overlap Maps overlay a country, state, or body of water over another to compare sizes.
  • OER Project
  • PBS Teachers PBS learning media
  • The Library of Congress American Memory
  • The Library of Congress Library of Congress
  • The National Archives – DocsTeach DocsTeach

Science

  • An online, interactive Periodic Table of Elements Chemical Elements
  • Another Periodic Table Ptable
  • Biology Pop amazing resources for biology teachers.
  • ClassroomEarth is an online resource designed to help high school teachers include environmental content in their daily lesson plans.Classroom Earth
  • Computer animations of physical processes Physics Animations
  • CyberSurgeons simulation provides an authentic way for high school and college students to apply science knowledge and skills.Cyber Surgeons
  • EarthSky has science interviews and other audio and video content available via both broadcast and Internet outlets.EarthSky
  • Edufy provides a free platform to find, share, and edit high quality learning activities shared by other teachers with a focus on STEM education.Edufy
  • eSkeletons Department of Anthropology at the University of Texas at Austin.
  • Glean search for quality math and science videos on this site.
  • Human Biodigital interactive, 3D anatomy tool with great graphics
  • JVSC  Japanese Science and Technology Center includes some incredible video lessons in several areas, including the “Mind Lab” on perception, the “Earth Guide” regarding planetary science and geography, and “The Human Genome.”
  • Knotebooks provides users with the tools to create, collaborate on and share customized, self-guided physics lessons. Knotebooks
  • MIT A Slower Speed of Light – MIT Game Lab MIT online physics game which illustrates conceptually challenging physics and math concepts.
  • Nanospace Molecularium The Molecularium: view, learn, and play with many different activities, molecular explorations, and more.
  • NASA Kids Club NASA kids club games
  • Nature Lab Conservation game and many other resources from the Nature Conservancy
  • Rocket Science 101 (also apple and android apps available) NASA external flash 
  • Scientific Research Publishing Scientific Research: amazing resource for vetted research and access to many journals. Robust Android and Apple apps are also available.
  • Shatters The free space simulation that lets you explore our universe in three dimensions. Celestia runs on Windows, Linux, and Mac OS X. Shatters
  • Smithsonian Science Education Center | Smithsonian Science Education Center (great interactivities and more!)
  • Stellarium Full-featured astronomy application for all platforms – MacOS, Windows, Linus, plus mobile devices
  • What is fat? – George Zaidan | TED-Ed Ted Ed lesson: What is Fat?
  • Who Pooped Funny but surprisingly informational game about scat…”On the Farm”, or “In Africa.”
  • Youtube The Periodic Table of Videos Periodic Videos provides amazing slow motion science videos, and many other unique YouTube located chemistry resources.

ELL and World Languages

Music and Art

CTE

Multiple Subjects

High School and College level

  • Book on pressbooks Teaching In A Digital World 3rd edition
  • CosmoLearning has tons of courses, vids, images, units and more, all available online for free Cosmo Learning
  • Connexions open source content chunks for HS and college courses.CNX 
  • Merlot, open source content resources, geared to university level courses. Could easily be used by higher level HS courses. MERLOT
  • MIT Open Courseware for High School MIT high school
  • MOOCS Coursera: Coursera , edX: EDX moocs Udacity: Udacity, Udemy: Udemy
  • Open Courseware Consortium. Another open source course resource. Again geared to College/upper high school.OCW
  • OpenLearn is the Open University…free college level courses Open Learning
  • Open Learning Initiative at Carnegie Mellon University: Independent Learning  Course
  • Open Source College Textbooks.Open textbooks
  • OpenStax resource for open source college level textbooks
  • Open Yale courses Open Yale Courses
  • P2PU College level course content P2PU
  • Saylor Academy has free and open college level courses.
  • Tufts Open Courseware Tufts

Middle /High School

  • CK-12 CK-12 Foundation: Exceptionally well organized and usable. Free standards-aligned and customizable educational resources. This non-profit foundation is an amazing place to start your search for open source content.
  • Curriki has f2f and online lessons and lesson plans for k-12 Curriki
  • Debategraph: visual maps on nearly any debate topic. Public, constantly growing perspectives on hundreds of topics.Debate Graph
  • Discovery Streaming: Discovery Channel content available online.Discovery ed
  • Khan Academy has a VAST collection of video lessons, practice sessions, and review activities covering math from basic addition to advanced calculus. Also includes some additional subjects.Khan Academy
  • Open Culture has just a ton of material (courses, books, movies, lessons) that is freely available for educators 1700 free online courses
  • Opened IO catalog of educational videos, games, and assessments that you can browse by topic, grade level, or Common Core standard. 
  • Pennsylvania Department of Education Standards Aligned System Portal: Karpeles documents with e-reader, lessons, PhET simulations, and much more, aligned to the PA Common Core standardsStandards Aligned System

Elementary Level

  • ABCYa.com Educational Computer Games for kids. Amazing volume of resources for each grade level, in multiple subjects. Don’t miss the animation program!ABC ya
  • Audio and video storybooks, activities, karaoke, and much, much more for elementary students.   Learn with Homer
  • Curriki has f2f and online lesson plans for k-12 Curriki
  • FluencyTutor many leveled passages, students record and download. Teachers can then complete running records from recordings. Free for basic functions. Premium includes online analytics and online running record support.
  • K-2 Student Interactives – UEN and 3-6 interactives Utah Education Network: lots and lots of resources and interactives.
  • Kinetic City from the American Association for the Advancement of Science provides games, activities, challenges geared to elementary students.Kinetic City
  • Opened IO catalog of educational videos, games, and assessments that you can browse by topic, grade level, or Common Core standard. 
  • Planet Nutshell Short video resources in Math, Science, Net Safety, and more. For Teachers – Planet Nutshell 
  • Teacher LED Whiteboard/ipad resources for elementary and middle school. Mostly math. Some primary letter/number material.Teacher led

200 Educational Resources

Research

Determining if a Resource is OER, Creative Commons Licensed, or Public Domain

  1. Look for the Creative Commons button somewhere on the page,
  2. Look for a link to the Creative Commons website in the page’s source code (in Firefox do CTRL-U to show the source code and CTRL-F to bring up the “find” dialog – you’re looking for a link that includes the creative commons  domain and the phrase ‘rel=”license”‘), or
  3. Look around the website for the copyright or terms of use statement (hopefully this will include Creative Commons or the public domain), or
  4. If worst comes to worst, find contact info for the author and email them to ask about how the content is licensed
  5. Use the Public Domain Calculator to determine if a piece of work is in the Public Domain

Please be aware that if no copyright information is given on a resource, it is still copyrighted.  You cannot cut/paste/copy material from websites and use it on our courses unless it is OER, Creative Commons licensed, Public Domain.  If a resource is copyrighted, you can always link to it.  Linking externally to materials does not violate copyright.

Attributing Resources

All current CC licenses require that you attribute the original author(s). If the copyright holder has not specified any particular way to attribute them, this does not mean that you do not have to give attribution. It simply means that you will have to give attribution to the best of your ability with the information you do have. Generally speaking, this implies five things:

  • If the work itself contains any copyright notices placed there by the copyright holder, you must leave those notices intact, or reproduce them in a way that is reasonable to the medium in which you are re-publishing the work.
  • Cite the author’s name, screen name, user identification, etc. If you are publishing on the Internet, it is nice to link that name to the person’s profile page, if such a page exists.
  • Cite the work’s title or name, if such a thing exists. If you are publishing on the Internet, it is nice to link the name or title directly to the original work.
  • Cite the specific CC license the work is under. If you are publishing on the Internet, it is nice if the license citation links to the license on the CC website.
  • If you are making a derivative word or adaptation, in addition to the above, you need to identify that your work is a derivative work i.e., “This is a Finnish translation of the [original work] by [author].” or “Screenplay based on [original work] by [author].”

In the case where a copyright holder does choose to specify the manner of attribution, in addition to the requirement of leaving intact existing copyright notices, they are only able to require certain things. Namely:

  • They may require that you attribute the work to a certain name, pseudonym or even an organization of some sort.
  • They may require you to associate/provide a certain URL (web address) for the work.

If the resource is in the public domain, please include at attribution at the bottom of the page that specifies the URL the item was pulled from and “Public Domain”

Examples of Attributions

Example 1

Attribution: Egyptian Architecture Egyptian Architecture – Karen’s Whimsy in the Public Domain

Example 2

Saint Marie-Bernarde Soubirous (born Maria-Bernada Sobirós; 7 January 1844 – 16 April 1879), was a miller’s daughter born in Lourdes. From 11 February to 16 July 1858, she reported 18 apparitions of “a small young lady.” Despite initial skepticism from the Catholic Church, these claims were eventually declared to be worthy of belief after a canonical investigation, and the apparition is known as Our Lady of Lourdes. 

Attribution:  Bernadette Soubirous – Wikipedia.  Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License; additional terms may apply. See Terms of Use for details.

Example 3

The Big Idea

The universe has many remarkable qualities, among them a rather beautiful symmetry: the total amount of motion in the universe is constant. This law only makes sense if we measure “motion” in a specific way: as the product of mass and velocity. This product, called momentum, can be transferred from one object to another in a collision. The rapidity with which momentum is exchanged over time is determined by the forces involved in the collision. This is the second of the five fundamental conservation laws in physics. The other four are conservation of energy, angular momentum, charge and CPT. (See Feynman’s Diagrams for an explanation of CPT.)

Key Equations and Definitions

Attribution:  ck12 People’s Physics Book, James H. Dahn CC-BY-SA 3.0

A Gift For Teachers

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Photo by u0158aj Vaishnaw on Pexels.com

Teachers deserve so much more than this for all they do day in and day out. This is my little treat for them as we enter World Teachers’ Day on Monday. It’s my small way to say thanks for who you are and what you do. Click here for a little gift.

Re -Entry from a School Counsellor Lens

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“We must be willing to let go of the life we have planned so as to have the life that is waiting for us” Joseph Campbell

In 2013 I wrote about what I thought my ideal school would look like. Never did I or anyone else who was considering what the future of education would look like imagine what would happen in 2020. As I look forward I continue to believe we must educate the mind and the heart while having an extra dose of empathy this year as for some this has been a year of traumatic experiences.

Re -entry will not be a simple process. This year unlike any other year there is so much to consider. The Alberta Government has some ideas here for their school re entry plan.  Emotional wellbeing must be at the forefront if we want to ensure our students and staff’s needs are met. Physical and psychological safety are essential for learning. So how are we going to make that happen for our youth as they re enter school? Individual students and staff may experience stressors that the rest of the school and staff are unaware of, so empathy will be essential in any re-entry plan. How do schools ensure supports are available to both staff and students as they make plans to re engage in learning at school however that may look? 

I know there are many who have excellent ideas, my ideas are from the lens of School Counsellor and are not meant to be comprehensive, but some things to consider. Strategies will be needed to identify and assist students who may have been more impacted by covid than other students . For some the impacts could be long lasting, for others the impact may be that they are more resilient than ever.

How can schools and especially School Counsellors support all students, making sure to address the social and emotional needs of those who are particularly vulnerable? We need to look at risk factors as well as protective factors in identifying those in most need of supports.

Identify those students who:

  • Have a history of trauma and chronic stress or other pre existing medical problems.
  • Have experienced stigma and racism that may occur as a result of COVID-19.Have experienced a loss/death during this time.
  • Have been exposed to abuse/neglect.
  • Have parents who have lost jobs and still may be out of work. ( Food insecurity/financial insecurity can vary significantly. Those who were once secure may no longer be.)
  • Are ELL learners / students with disabilities physical or intellectual.
  • Develop attendance concerns: Attendance may drop due to higher rates of school refusal or  attendance may become optional due to students being medically fragile. A system should be in place for school counsellors to check in with students and families during the time frame COVID-19 may still be a threat.
  • Have had a more difficult time because of parental substance use and abuse.
  • Have been exposed to domestic violence. 
  • Became sick or tested positive for COVID-19 , those who have a family member who became sick or tested positive for COVID-19, those with allergies or respiratory illnesses that may result in coughing or sneezing.
  • Have equity and access concerns.
  • Had a difficult time over shut down.

Acknowledge the need to connect on a regular basis with both students and staff, Find creative ways to engage students in the process of returning to school whatever it may look like . Coming back to school will be easy for some and challenging for others. Ask for their input throughout. Acknowledge and validate student and staff concerns.

Identify the protective factors that students may have:

  • Ask students what it would take for them to feel psychologically and emotionally safe during this time.
  • Connections : Has the student maintained positive connections, Have them identify who they are.
  • Coping Skills: Identify what worked for them during covid 19 and ask them what they believe will assist them in coping as they return to school.
  • Engagement: Have students identify how they will engage in their school community either virtually or in person with all health factors considered. 
  • Supports: Have students identify their supports and community resources.

Anticipate

  • For some significant academic, emotional and social regression.
  • For some significant fatigue and sleepiness, particularly among adolescents who have been sleeping in since March and may have irregular sleep patterns.
  • Challenges and opportunities.
  • Missteps.
  • Successes and the ability to learn from things that don’t work.
  • The unexpected.

Avoid 

  • Using language like anxiety when you mean upset, worried, fearful. This pandemic affected us all ,but it does not mean youth have an anxiety disorder or are depressed because of the pandemic. Let’s not pathologize , but have a wait and see attitude as to the long term impacts of covid19. Frequency, duration and intensity matter when it comes to mental health. School Counsellors will know how to access and when referrals are necessary. Ask yourself Is this normal?
  • Punitive approaches when managing physical distancing requirements when possible. 
  • Entering into conflict with anyone who is not on the same page as you. Everyone has a story.
  • Being overly concerned with attendance and more concerned with finding ways to connect with the student.
  • Getting run down yourself because you are trying to do it all.
  • Avoid people who bring you down or have unrealistic expectations. . Find people who lift you up and support you. Surround yourself ( at a physical distance of course ) with those people.

Collaborate with colleagues. Using email/ google meet to connect and provide resources that can assist students. Collaborate, collaborate, collaborate. It can never be understated.

Consider

  • Embedding social and emotional learning into all core subjects.
  • Reading How to Be Antiracist by Ibram X. Kendi over the summer.
  • Using Race and Equity resources
  • Connecting students with a virtual calm space . You can find one here and here.
  • Providing students with opportunities to discuss any concerns or challenges they are experiencing or needs they may have given Covid19’s impact.
  • Focusing on social and emotional skill building, mental and behavioral health, personal safety and self-regulatory capacity, which likely regressed with a lack of social interactions.
  • Finding opportunities for students to work cooperatively, feel empowered and able to help others.
  • Finding ways to build on some of the unique experiences students have had at home.

Continue:

  • To find ways to connect and empower students.
  • To involve and support families (we are in this together).
  • To use trauma informed resources and trauma informed practices
  • Informal virtual check ins. Use a google forms such as this. 
  • To support students in finding ways to engage in their learning. 
  • To develop ways to build upon relationships.
  • Understand how grief has impacted us and our students. 
  • To use developmental assets as a guide.
  • To connect with other School Counsellors who have found ways to connect virtually. Check out #scchat on Twitter.

Think about your own well being and how to address compassion fatigue and self care . Find ways to live each and every day to the best of your ability. Life will undoubtedly be very unpredictable in the fall using and sharing just for todays can be helpful.

Here are some excellent Just for Today’s from some of the youth I have worked with this year.

Just for Today I will be as happy as I can.

Just for Today I will find some fun.

Just for Today I will try and stay out of my head.

Just for Today I will make sure I get some rest!.

Just for Today I will try not to should.

Just for Today I will give myself a ‘Just for Today’ every day when I get up.

Just for Today I am living in the moment rather than thinking about what I have to do tomorrow. 

Just for Today I will prioritize doing things that make me smile.

Just for Today I will trust the process and live in the momen.

Just for Today I’ m going to take some time for self care, go for a walk with my dog and breathe in the sunshine 🙂

Just for Today I am going to express my gratitude for those I love while I have the chance.

Just for Today  I’ll take the happy with the hard and let them just happen… 🙂

Just for Today I will not overthink the future and just enjoy the present moment.

Just for Today I will let go of my worries and what this pandemic might bring to all of us, and just focus on the great things it has brought to all of us.

If you want to use some Just For Today’s with your students check out 101 ways to kickstart your day .

What will school reentry be like ? I can imagine that all educators including  School Counsellors will have skills that they did not have before and each will work together to provide the best education possible for their students. My wish for all is to stay connected,  stay healthy and safe physically , emotionally and spiritually and have an abundance of love, joy and hope . 

Just for today I have a lot of hope for the future of education if we all work together to make our places and spaces a learning opportunity by helping each other along the way. School Counsellors are an essential piece of doing that in every school.

A special thanks to Bryan Sanders @nayrbgo  for encouraging me to put some thoughts to paper and for all who I have connected with as we all are #learning2pivot in 2020. What do you think re-entry should look like from your lens?

Reference: School Reentry Considerations National Association of School Psychologists and the American School Counselor Association

25 Ways Of Making The Best Of Each Day : Just For Today For Educators During Covid19

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Choose ONE of the following tips. You may want to post it on your mirror at home or pin it to your desktop and remind yourself of what you need during this time.

  1. Just for Today I will acknowledge that we are all grieving the world as we once knew it. I will be compassionate with myself and my students.
  1. Just for Today I will take the necessary actions so that I don’t burn out during Covid 19. I will take breaks and put things on pause when I need to.
  1. Just for Today I will be grateful I am an educator who loves and cares for youth.
  1. Just for Today I will remember that relationships are a key factor for academics to occur especially as I move online. 
  1. Just for Today I will trust the process . If I don’t get exactly how to use the tech at this time that is more than OK.
  1. Just for Today I will acknowledge that I need time and space for myself and my family,  I will take time to care for my own well being and theirs.
  1. Just for Today I will share a just for today , a positive quote or thought with my students.
  1. Just for Today I will not speak negatively about myself, treating myself empathically focusing on what I do know, not on what I don’t. 
  1. Just for Today I will focus on doing my best and let go of the rest, acknowledging that I care about all of my students.
  1. Just for Today I will make sure that I take time to have a proper lunch and take breaks.
  1. Just for Today I will find ways to decrease my workload.
  1. Just for Today I will connect with a colleague and  collaborate knowing this will lighten some of my load. 
  1. Just for Today I will focus on my strengths and not fall into the trap of comparing myself to others .

14. Just for Today I will not put 20 things on my to do list. I will tackle one concern at a time.

  1. Just for Today I will centre myself while helping students find ways to centre themselves.
  1. Just for Today I choose the path of being there for a child.
  1. Just for Today I will acknowledge that I cannot be everything to everyone.
  1. Just for Today I will accept support from others.
  1. Just for Today I will find a way to celebrate student success.
  1. Just for Today I will film a short message to check in with my students.
  1. Just for today I will avoid overthinking by attempting to stay in the moment.
  1. Just for Today I will remember that it’s okay not to feel okay.
  1. Just for Today I will collaborate with my team to share resources.
  1. Just for Today I will send a message of thanks to a member of my school community.
  1. Just for Today I will turn my computer off at the end of office hours. 

Want to check out previous posts for students. You can find them here.

What is your Just for Today Tip? Please share in the comments. Erin and I would love to hear your ideas.

10 Tips for Reducing Anxiety

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Copy of 10 Tips for reducing anxiety by Susan Spellman Cann

Anxiety is a topic we all want our students to have ideas and resources for.  I made an infographic for you to use and if you click on the link 10 Tips for reducing anxiety by Susan Spellman Cann . You  can open it and download for your use.

Put A Positive Spin On Your Day

Just in case you want an easier download for the link Put A Positive Spin On Your Day Click here.

Have any infographics or tips related to School Counselling please share!

What Do You Think School Is For?

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As I reflect on Seth Godin’s blog today I am thinking about all the educators and what they are doing each and every day as they start a new school year.

Seth reminds us

  1. that digital learning is a revolution that can transform people faster and with more impact
  2. to play as if it matters
  3. that dreams are difficult to build and easy to destroy

Check the rest of his talk out  here.

What do you think school is for and how will you make it better for students?

Ken Robinson always makes us think and I hope he does you too. Both Seth and Ken challenge us to move away from compliance and conforming to celebrating students learning. No learning … no education going on says Ken Robinson. So how do educators best go about helping students learn?

Ken reminds us

  1. that human beings are naturally different and diverse
  2. to light the spark of curiosity
  3. to awaken and empower a culture of creativity
  4. to individualize teaching and learning

Listen to the rest of his talk here:

What do you think school is for?

Lessons for A New School Counsellor

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What do I believe are some important lessons for a new School Counsellor to be aware of ? These lessons will not be in order of importance, but are all lessons I feel are worthwhile for you .

Lesson #1: We can’t help everyone, but we can sure try to help the ones that come to us or are referred to us (and yes sometimes we need to go to them).

Students will often disclose very serious issues that you as School Counsellors need to address. Sometimes when you disclose to parents that their son or daughter is thinking of suicide or some other life threatening concern (the end result might be the student may never return to see you). Hopefully you have connected the student and their family to resources that can improve and indeed in some cases save their lives.

It is important for you the new school counsellor to not get discouraged if a student does not return to see you (don’t personalize it). You may have helped the students tremendously and yes indeed you may even save their life,  but they will be unaware of just how at this present time in their life. Know that students have stopped me in stores and other places years later to let me know what a difference I made. So hang in there knowing that you did what you needed to do. It would be great to help all students , but unfortunately even if you do everything correct sometimes we lose a student and this will be absoltely devastating. So make sure you always debrief and get help for yourself.

It is also important to be self-aware, so always run by big concerns with another counsellor and see if indeed there was something else you could have done or ask what if anything could you have done differently. Remind yourself that you are in a process of learning.

Consult… consult… consult… a lifelong lesson for ALL School Counsellors.

It is also OK to recognize that you are NOT a match for every student. Hopefully there are other counsellors in your school or outside agencies that you can refer your student to if this happens. I let students know that they have a choice when it comes to counsellors and they need to see the person they feel most comfortable and safe with. Hopefully, that will be you , but if that is not so that is OK too.

Lesson # 2: We need to base what we do on theoretical perspectives that are useful and helpful. Humanists like Carl Rogers and Victor Frankl have impacted me, but so too have others in the field of psychology like Albert Ellis, Irvin Yalom, Fritz Perls, Ed Jacobs, David Burns, Virginia Satir, Donald Meichenbaum, Claudia Black

and Mary Pipher to name a few. There is no one right approach. You need to discover what you believe and make sure the theories work for you and your students.

Each theorist has impacted the way I interact and help students. Along the way I have also worked with some amazing school counsellors , educators and supervisors who have also influenced me in a positive way. Thanks especially to Ed Jacobs, Diane Williams, Deana Helton , Erin Mason , and Helen MacKinnon.

Lesson #3: Find great mentors and learn from them. One of my all time favorites is Ed Jacobs. Ed is a genuinely helpful man as well as being a great therapist. I love how he interacts and works with young and old people alike and makes a positive difference in the lives of others. Check him out on YouTube here:

 

Lesson #4: There are so many people and resources you can learn from that can impact students in a positive way. I think Leo Buscaglia  has the best lessons that can be used in counselling students. I can honestly say I loved Leo . He was and still is an inspiration to me. Which brings me to an extremely important lesson … lesson #5

Lesson #5: Continually professionally develop yourself. Keep learning and learning and learning. One of my new favorite ways to do this is to connect with other school counsellors worldwide on twitter. See my past post on amazing school counsellors and what they are doing. My twitter handle is @sspellmancann. If you are not on twitter sign up TODAY! Join us in #scchat on the first Wed. of every month at 6:30 MT 8:30 ET. Post to #scchat anytime and there is always great resources there for you to access for free.

Lesson #6: Read great counselling books . A few I really like are : Impact Therapy by Ed. Jacobs, Creative Counselling Techniques by Ed. Jacobs, Group Counseling Strategies and Skills Jacobs, Masson, Harvill, Letters To A Young Therapist Mary Pipher, The Gift of Therapy  Irvin Yalom, and Mans Search for Meaning by Victor Frankl.

As I think about the lessons I believe a new counsellor should be thinking about I realize that there are some practical considerations that a new counsellor might want to implement. Here are a few:

What are some basics that could be helpful to you as a new school counsellor? 

  • Write an introduction letter to parents letting them know who you are and what you do and post it on the school counselling and school website. (If  by chance your school does not have a website design a letter introducing yourself and put it in the school newsletter ( put it in the newsletter anyway.Tweet this out to students on the school twitter account and post it to the school Facebook account.
  • If you engage on social media please remember that NOTHING is PRIVATE ( even if you think it is ).  Digital citizenship is a lesson we all need to learn.
  • Introduce yourself to as many teachers as you possibly can. In a large school, this will take time.
  • Plan to meet with your administration team at THE BEGINNING OF THE YEAR and least once a month. Celebrate what you do and how you are doing. Discuss what the expectations are of a Comprehensive School Counselling Plan and how you can work together to accomplish this.
  • Counsellors and admin should be joint leaders in any school.
  • Show initiative. Everyone in a school will benefit. If you have some great ideas don’t be afraid to share or try out your ideas.
  • Discuss limits of confidentiality with every student. You might want to put a poster of the limits on your office wall.
  • Visually make your office a space students want to be in.
  • Develop a monthly calendar of things to do and check off when you complete them.
  • Have a plan when meeting new students.  It is helpful to get a cell phone number so that you can follow-up.
  • It might be helpful to keep a notebook of all the things you need to know especially if you are in a new school or counselling a new age group.
  • You will want to find a simple and easy way to curate information. I use livebinders and pinterest. They can be extremely helpful tools for new counsellors as well as those that have been around for a while.
  • You need to be a positive PR person for the school counseling program , so find many ways to connect with students. Brainstorm with your colleagues ways to make connections with students so that they know who you are and what you do.
  • Connect with parents. Let them know through parent council or other means what you do.
  • Ask for help. You are not expected to know everything. Utilize the professionals inside and outside of your building for support.
  • Learn as you go about the many community resources that are available and put them in a binder or livebinder.
  • Don’t be afraid to share your innovative or creative ideas with your counselling team ( if you have one). They and you will benefit!
  • BALANCE we all benefit from taking care of ourselves. Don’t burn yourself out in the first year. Practice self-care.
  • You have a big learning curve. BE PATIENT WITH YOURSELF.

I am adding one of my live binders called school counsellor resources. Please as in all my livebinders  take what you like and leave the rest.

For all of you who are new to school counselling have a wonderful experience and know that what you do absolutely matters.

My next Lessons for a new School Counsellor will be posted soon.

Welcome to the best profession in the world School Counselling.

The Heart of A Community

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Our students always inspire me. I am so fortunate to work in a community that encourages creativity in all forms. The people I work with also give their heart and soul to all they do. Thanks to our wonderful Art teacher Sheila Stacey and Counsellor Erin Luong for collaborating on this fun project full of heart.

One of the innovative projects I am pleased to work on this year involves a collaboration between myself, another counselling colleague and our art teacher. BCHS Spectrum Club’s mission is to bring people together and spread a message of love and acceptance. Our aim is to educate and bring awareness to students while expanding our […]

via Heart of A Community: BCHS Students Fill Their Hearts — Erin Luong’s Reflections on Counselling, Education, Leadership and Technology

School Counsellor With An Innovator’s Mindset #IMMOOC

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Why do I keep learning? I think this sums it up.
“In the beginner’s mind there are many possibilities; in the expert’s mind there are few.” “When the mind is allowed to relax, inspiration often follows… If your mind is empty, it is always ready for anything; it is open to everything.” Phil Jackson
The Innovator’s Mindset :  Empowering Learning, Unleash Talent, and Lead a Culture of Creativity by George Couros is an excellent book for School Counsellors to begin the dialogue of Innovation. Do you have an innovator’s mindset?

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“When you are networked great ideas find you not the other way around”

George Couros

This quote is so true . I have been so fortunate to have great ideas and great people find me. Thanks to all of you.

So many amazing School Counsellors that I have met on twitter definitely have an Innovator’s mindset. I believe an innovator’s mindset continues to thrive, learn, reflect and seek out ways to make a difference.

As a School Counsellor with an Innovator’s Mindset Do you?

  • Start from The Heart
  • Keep Students At The Centre
  • Make Sure You are Helpful
  • Model What You Hope For
  • Utilize the 5 C’s
  • Build Relationships

START FROM THE HEART

In order for a School Counsellor to have an innovator’s mindset we must always begin to speak and listen from our heart to the heart of a child.img_2791

We want the young people that we serve to have the skills to cope effectively with life. They will know pretty quickly if we are genuine and start from our heart.

Starting from the heart involves active listening, compassion, trusting , caring and so much more. Sometimes our students need help, other times they just need the encouragement or support to find new ways to look at the world. Starting from the heart will make a difference.

When you start from the heart you will ask yourself :

  • What are my students strengths?
  • What are my students passionate about?
  • What can I do to help my students ?
  • Do my students have any projects or ideas they might need help executing?
  • What can I do as a School Counsellor that will help students be more successful?
  • How can I assist students in graduating?
  • What can I do differently today, this week, this month, this year to help the students in our school ?
  • How can I collaborate with others so that it benefits students and assist me to learn and grow?

KEEP STUDENTS AT THE CENTER

Passionate School Counsellors who keep students at the center of all they do can have a huge impact in their school communities.  As School Counsellors you know the reason you work with students is to be their advocate.img_2792 Everything you say or do should always keep this in mind. Whatever you do on-line or off innovative School Counsellors should make sure they remain focused on what is best for their students.

Ask yourself:

  • How can I keep my students needs a priority?
  • What is it I need to do that will make a difference for this students at this moment?
  • How is what I am doing by being innovative going to help students or other School Counsellors ( helping other School Counsellors or educators is helping students)

BE HELPFUL

No matter what school counsellors do with and for students on-line and off they should always remember to be helpful.   Being innovative means school counsellors will be able to not only help the students in their offices , but will find ways to assist all students in their buildings. img_2793

School Counsellors could also impact those beyond the walls of their own schools and potentially see the world as their community.  Helping other school counsellors and educators from across the globe helps students worldwide! How exciting and innovative is that?

Ask yourself?

  • How can I be most helpful for this student today and in the future?
  • How can being innovative help the students and staff in my school?
  • How can I help other school counsellors and educators worldwide?

MODEL WHAT YOU HOPE FOR  digital citizenship

If you want students to be good digital citizens then you too must become excellent role models.img_2794 This is vital if school counselors are to really help students into the future. Being innovative means acting on this today. Everything you post should be helpful, ethical and model what it is you hope students will do.

Ask yourself:

  • How can I become a digital citizen?
  • What skills do I need to assist me on this journey?
  • How do I connect with other school counsellors and leaders who are already great digital citizens?
  • How can I pass on to students what I learn?

The 5 C’s Connect Confidentiality Collaborate Create Celebrate

Connect

As school counsellors you know how important a working alliance is to making a difference. Connecting with students is essential to being and modelling an innovator’s mindset. Connecting with other school counsellors online and off can affect everything you do to develop your Comprehensive School Counselling Program Plan. Connecting allows you to reflect on the work of others as well as reflect on your own practices. There are so many ways to connect.  One of the most innovative people I have connected online with is Erin Mason @ecmmason . Thank you for all you do and if you haven’t connected with her and SCOPE please do. Here are a few examples of other ways to connect :

  • staff meetingsimg_2795
  • district meetings
  • Twitter (#scchat #sccrowd)
  • google hangouts
  • blogs
  • vlogs
  • facebook
  • Blab
  • Voxer
  • local leadership councils
  • writing articles
  • mentorship
  • supervising student counsellors ( a great way to give back )

Ask yourself? What are some innovative ways I can connect with other educators?

Confidentiality is essential for anyone with a school counsellor innovator’s mindset . If you are sharing on-line and want to learn with and from others you must remember to keep this at the forefront of everything you post.

Innovators know that with new technologies developing all the time it is vital to always get permission when sharing all the great things students do. It’s great to share what your prevention teams are doing , but always make sure students have signed their media consent forms. Always keep in mind when posting online that you should never breach confidentiality. When discussing cases (if you do so when connecting with other school counsellors on any social media space) never give out any identifying information in any way.

Collaborate To come up with some of the best ideas of what works for students collaboration is key.  Together school counsellors are better. Students benefit when we put our minds together to help them. Often when schools work together to assist students they come up with better ways to help them. Thank you Erin Luong  @ehordyskiluong for collaborating with me on this post! You are an amazing school counsellor with an innovator’s mindset.

Create School Counsellors now more than ever are finding ways to create to meet the needs of all the students in their schools. Collaboration assists school counsellors in the creative process. Whether you are creating a YouTube video to introduce yourself to share with your school community or creating something  you can use in classroom lessons. You know school counsellors with an innovative mindset create something that matters.

Celebrate  not only should school counsellors celebrate what is happening within their schools , but should recognize that sharing and celebrating what they do through social media can lead to new ways of practicing . There are many positive , helpful ways to share and celebrate what you do as a school counsellor that will assist others.

Ask yourself: How do I celebrate the work of my students, my colleagues and other school counsellors from across the world?

Build Relationships

  • Are you truly a relationship builder?

RELATIONSHIP Builders who unleash talent= School Counsellors With An Innovator’s Mindset

  • How do you unleash the talent of those around you?
  • How do you create and environment where risks are encouraged ?
  • How do you share the great work and strengths of others?

Twitter allows School Counsellors to share the great things that students and staff in your schools are doing. Twitter is truly an amazing tool to celebrate and highlight the wonderful works and lives of others. Participating in a MOOC can also have that impact.

Innovation … there is so much more to learn. Wish I had the eloquent words to thank you George Couros for  your leadership and your amazing voice. I so appreciate you for writing and sharing The Innovator’s Mindset . It is truly a gift to so many educators from around the world including me. I don’t read many books twice, but yours was worth it to reflect and go deeper.

Thank you George and Katie for creating such a powerful MOOC for not only school counsellors to enjoy , but for so many other inspirational people from across the world to learn from.

Thank you to all those in #IMMOOC you are amazing and so open to sharing and learning along with me.  A special thanks to Emily Clare @eclare_ahs for connecting with me and leading the voxer group. For the fabulous Sheri Edwards who is always inspirational so many thank you’s . To all those who shared their vlogs or blogs or tweets. I am very grateful!

I could not say it any better than Sheila Vick . You should follow her on twitter @sheila_vick. read what she had to say below:

When I reflect on why it has been so great, or what has made it so great, I realize the following:

We have been given a voice in the group.
We have had a lot of choice throughout the mooc.
We have been given autonomy throughout the mooc.
We have networked far and wide and through a variety of platforms.
We have built trust within the group which has provided a sense of psychological safety and has encouraged us to share stories and our beliefs.
We have been encouraged and empowered.
We have taken risks and stepped outside of our comfort zones.
There has been dialogue and competitive collaboration.
There has been so much reflection.
The enthusiasm and energy of the group has been contagious.
We have been encouraged to start where we are at.
We have shared the experience with many learning leaders.
We have been able to feel successful and therefore build confidence and competence.
The group has been full of fountains (no drains).
There has been a sense of empathy within the group.
We have been problem-finders and problem-solvers together.
We have created, created, created!
… and last but not least, like George, we are a group of Educators AND learners by passion.

If we can provide the above for our school counsellors, teachers and students, they can people with an innovative mindset too!

Won’t you join me in becoming a School Counsellor, educator , leader with an Innovator’s Mindset? I look forward to us collaborating. I love having a beginners mind don’t you? Find out more about IMMOOC here.

*Although not ready for this week throughout this MOOC I have been inspired to create a podcast . I will create one …any #IMMOOC ers want to help me?

To end with I’d like to CELEBRATE  a couple of people:

#1 the amazing Erin Mason a true School Counsellor Educator with an Innovator ‘s Mindset … Video #1 below.

#2 My Principal Neil O’Flaherty @neilof12 a true Innovator and the lead learner in the second Video below Bishop Carroll a Self Directed High School In Calgary Alberta. A leader who encourages and supports any and all innovation . I am so fortunate to work alongside you.

#3 Canadian School Counsellors with an Innovator’s Mindset  ( too many to mention ). Although many of you are at the beginning stages of twitter I look forward to reading and celebrating all the amazing work you do every day!

#4 YOU thanks for reading along ( if you have read this far) I appreciate you joining me on this #IMMOOC journey.

Relationships Relationships Relationships … Great Leaders Matter

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Having worked in schools for 36 years I absolutely recognize the importance of a great leader. I am grateful to have worked with so many.

Fortunately for me I get to work with an outstanding leader everyday. He is forward thinking, innovative, positive , intelligent , has great sense of humour , cares deeply about students and staff , is extremely supportive of School Counsellors and most importantly kind. He makes a difference. Thanks @neilof12.

On this Canadian thanksgiving day , I think it is very important to tell the people who you care about and are grateful for that you do. Too often people think it , but don’t say it. I try to say it as often as I can because I recognize life is precious.

I make a point of telling those that have impacted me that they have including my students.

As a leader myself , I make every effort to be the kind of leader I want others to be. I gave my principal  The Innovator’s Mindset when it came out knowing that he was already an innovator, but also knowing like me he too is a lifelong learner.

Today most importantly I am grateful for my husband and children who have had the biggest and most positive impact on my life. Because of them I can be the kind of educator,   leader and person I want to be.

I am so… so…  so grateful for the wonderful friendships that I have in my life. They have and still do enrich and transform my life.

I am grateful for #immooc and @gcouros for having the insights and passion to make a difference in students and educators lives including mine. Thanks to all those in #immooc who have connected and shared with me. I am grateful. I believe very strongly when we are excited about learning we pass that on to all those around us and can make a real difference in the life of a child. Isn’t that why we chose this profession?  Yes, George relationships do matter … they are absolutely everything.