The Possibilities of the Elementary Classroom

I love teaching elementary. Keep in mind, I may be biased since that is all I know.  What other teaching position gives you the freedom to integrate content areas and real-world experiences for a richer experience for students? The beauty of teaching engineering to elementary students for the last six years allowed me to do much the same just through the engineering lens.  As the engineering teacher, a specialist, I did miss the opportunity general classroom educators have to take a lesson a little longer if needed. The rewards of teaching elementary engineering far outweighed the challenges of being a specialist.

Each week, I saw 22 classes which was approximately 570 students, depending on current enrollment.  While this was a challenge for learning names and managing materials, it allowed me to build relationships and learning with students over the course of six years, kindergarten through fifth grade.  I knew exactly what students were learning in the earlier grades of engineering and could build upon that in subsequent years, developing a scope and sequence that was fairly extensive for the short time I had them each week.

My first year teaching engineering had little resemblance to what my sixth year teaching engineering looked like.  As with any teaching position, it takes time to find what works for the students and what the teacher can manage.  I loved the freedom I had in my classroom.  Not all educators can say that.  However, with good administrators, I had freedom in the general classroom but even more so in the engineering classroom.  The freedom created a sense of empowerment that allowed me to try things I hadn't tried before, especially with class sizes as large as 32 students.

My instruction had definitely morphed into facilitation.  My goal was to have students constructing their own knowledge through individual and collaborative challenges.  As students developed their skills in building from instructions, designing 3D prints, using robotics, programming on Raspberry Pi and more, I wanted them to attempt to combine some of these skills for open-ended projects. I wanted students to learn to identify problems, rather than me giving them a problem, and then develop a solution based on their accumulated skills.  Did this always work out?  No, but when it did the results were powerful.

I still feel as though I have many practices and projects I would like to try in the elementary classroom.  I would love to hear about some of the practices and projects you have tried as well.  There just seems to be a limitless amount of possibilities for the elementary classroom.

Scratch Lesson and 3D Printing

The Scratch lesson Coding with Primary Sources is available at the TPS (Teaching with Primary Sources) Network. https://tpsteachersnetwork.org/album/46060-coding-with-primary-sources-scratch-30  The lesson includes student-facing instructions and the primary sources used for the sample Scratch program.  I would love feedback on the lesson and to hear about ways you may have adapted it for your classroom.

I have another project I have fallen in love with, kites.  It sounds so simple and yet the historical uses of kites and the advances they have facilitated are intriguing.  The project involves designing kites from measured drawings by Alexander Graham Bell's notebooks and more.  Designs could be made from recyclables, balsa wood and paper, and even 3D printed.  I'm having a great time developing this project.

I love the resources available at the Library of Congress!

Resources Abound at the Library of Congress for Educators

Educators, if you have not looked into the resources available at the Library of Congress, it's time to check it out.  I have to admit the searches can be overwhelming.  I had a couple of weeks at the start of my fellowship to browse and search.  There were so many relevant resources but at times I couldn't find specific items for topics.  It took me a couple of months to learn some of the techniques from my colleagues in the Learning and Innovation Office.  The exploration was well worth the effort.  Elementary educators cover all the content areas except for a few specials. As educators that cover so many subjects, the Library of Congress digital resources is perfect for making great connections for your students.  

The primary and secondary resources available at the Library of Congress come in a rich variety.  There are audio files, webcasts, YouTube videos, hand-written notebooks, pictures, newspapers, books, and more.  Not only can you use these resources to enhance your instruction, but students can also use them to make connections between their learning and historical context.  Imagine students creating their own products with Library sources and learning to cite them appropriately.  For younger students, I might create a folder of possible resources for them to use in a shared Microsoft or Google folder.  

Searches can be made easier by creating a list of potential search terms.  Terms are used differently throughout the year.  It's important to understand that a refrigerator used to be an icebox and light bulbs were incandescent lamps.  This is where an internet search can help to identify additional terms to search under. Below are some easily accessible resources ready for educators.  Primary Source Sets include groups of various primary sources that address particular subjects.  Another great resource is using the Ask a Librarian feature available on the Library of Congress website.

Teacher Resource Page - http://www.loc.gov/teachers/

Blog - http://blogs.loc.gov/teachers/

Classroom Materials - http://www.loc.gov/teachers/classroommaterials/

Primary Sources Sets - http://www.loc.gov/teachers/classroommaterials/primarysourcesets/

Historic American Buildings Survey/Historic American Engineering Record/Historic American Landscapes Survey - https://www.loc.gov/collections/historic-american-buildings-landscapes-and-engineering-records/about-this-collection/

Alexander Graham Bell Family Papers at the Library of Congress - https://www.loc.gov/collections/alexander-graham-bell-papers/about-this-collection/

Resources from the Science Reference Division (research guides, everyday mysteries, etc.) - http://www.loc.gov/rr/scitech/

Teaching with Primary Sources Network has a STEM Group - https://tpsteachersnetwork.org//

Congressional information https://www.congress.gov/

Congressional Research Services has some reports that are also available to the public https://crsreports.congress.gov/

Remember each item you find in the Library's resources has a citation tool towards the bottom of the page.

Scratch and Paper Circuits with Primary Sources

The breadth of primary sources available from the Library of Congress present an excellent opportunity for elementary educators to connect and integrate content areas through historical context.  As an Einstein Fellow, I am identifying ways to make STEM connections through primary sources.  A couple of recent projects include using Scratch (scratch.mit.edu) to create programs using primary sources and creating paper circuits with primary sources.

Instructions for the Civil War Bugle Calls Scratch project are still in development https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/268767799/. The instructions include information on original sheet music and how to use the original bugle calls to code the music using Scratch 2.0.  Students could do a variety of project using Scratch and primary sources. This is just one example.

Lighting the first National Christmas tree with paper circuits allows students to understand the importance of early electricity and the history of some of our holiday traditions.  The 1923 National Christmas tree was the first and lit with electric lights.  A card can be created with any primary source and then used to light up with a paper circuit on the inside.  Additional uses could be examining electrical circuits, incandescent lamps, and more.

 

Any feedback you might have on these types of projects would be greatly appreciated.  If you are local in the DC area, I would love the opportunity to visit your classroom and work on some of these projects with you if we can find times in both of our schedules to connect.  

So Much Fun Creating Lessons!

I have spent several weeks now exploring, or should I say scratching the surface, of interesting and engaging primary sources at the Library of Congress.  There is something for everyone in the digitized resources, not to mention the vast materials housed by this amazing institution.  I am finally at the point where I can bring in my own classroom experiences and connect them to the primary sources for use in the classroom or a makerspace.  It's been interesting and frustrating that it took me three months to get my feet under me, but my excitement as I developed two new lessons this week, one connecting iceboxes from the 1800-1900s and insulation boxes and another using Scratch (scratch.mit.edu) to code Civil War bugle calls, brings back memories of collaborating at my school.  The Scratch lesson was even more fun to develop because I was able to collaborate with our Teacher-in-Residence to share with her the possibilities of Scratch with music.  It never ceases to amaze me how fun it can be to collaborate with other educators on projects.  Lessons also come out so much better when they build off of each other's strengths.  These lessons are still being developed, but keep an eye on the Library of Congress, Learning and Innovation, Teacher's Blog for these and other lessons https://blogs.loc.gov/teachers/.

What Do Educators Do?

Early in my education career there was a movement to help the public understand what educators do. While I have to admit that I did not actively pick up and participate in this campaign, I now understand the importance of it. As I visit with a variety of organizations about my role as an educator, I realize many people really don't understand the complexity and challenges of the classroom. Even my husband, who patiently listens to me share my experiences, really has difficulty comprehending the highs, lows, ins, and outs of teaching.

 

Perhaps the challenge comes from the variety of school cultures that exist, especially from coast to coast. Perhaps it's the fact that each teacher brings their individual passions and personalities to the classroom. Perhaps it's that each school has flexibility in how they structure their school day. Perhaps the challenge is that many people, except for their own school years, have spent little if no extended time in classrooms.  Is spending time in a classroom enough though? How can educators help someone outside the classroom understand all the time and energy that goes in to developing lessons that meet individual students needs, meet standards, and engage students?  I think it is difficult to understand and until you live it.

I can only speak for myself, my experiences, and the educators I know. We all work and plan with the best intention for each student. This includes examining their interests and comparing it with the content we need to cover to be able to determine how to connect the two.  We also sacrifice personal time and money to create the best learning experiences for our students.  Being in an office environment with my fellowship has really made me clearly realize the freedoms and constraints I personally have in the classroom.  I hope all educators have the opportunity to use our passions and professional knowledge to create meaningful learning for students.



In general, it is difficult to understand what other people do in their day to day careers. However, careers such as teaching, have challenges that few professionals have to conquer. My husband will often mention that he could never be a teacher. It's not because he couldn't work with kids, or deal with the stress of meeting the needs of all the stakeholders. It is simply that he could never wait to use the restroom as long as I do.  While there can be a lot of freedoms for teaching in the classroom, it is physically very constraining.  Since we cannot leave students unsupervised, our schedules for anything outside the classroom, hopefully, become trained to work on a bell system.  It really is an odd part of the profession.

All careers have challenges and rewards. I do believe that the rewards outweigh the challenges in education. Nevertheless, it is a difficult profession to walk a mile in someone else's shoes when you don't understand all the hazards, challenges, along that mile. Somehow, educators need to help others who have not worked long term in a classroom understand our mile, understand the challenges.  In developing this understanding, we can work together to promote better outcomes for students, teacher retention, and the high quality education that we all want to see.

Smithsonian Learning Lab

As Einstein Fellows, not only does each fellow have an opportunity to create a professional development plan, but we also participate in program-developed each month. In October, we visited Smithsonian Learning Labs.

During our day at Smithsonian Learning Labs, we explored activities that are available for educators to download and use in their classrooms.  Have you ever thought about what makes an item innovative? What if you had to rank items based on their level of innovation? Where would you place an arrowhead in the ranking? What about a clock?  It's not as easy as it might seem.

After explorations and discussions, we visited the rooftop for some awesome photos!

We also learned about some simulations that are available.  The fellows had a lot of fun with the Wright Flyer simulation.  Just have to say, I landed it without crashing. 

One of the features I liked best was being able to collect and house online resources under my own free account.  Resources could be 2D images of objects, lesson plans, secondary sources, and more. We were barely able to scratch the surface of the available resources, but I plan to continue to explore and collect resources.