The Innovator's Mindset: Digital Citizenship Revisited

This morning I revisited our digital citizenship lessons with the agents. I was working on a project for NEU in a group (got to love group projects in a doctoral program) on the Google Drive (which makes group projects easier when you are all over the country). One of my group mates completed two slides and copied word for word a section of the book. It was not cited or quoted. I worked very hard to communicate with this classmate about how I was uncomfortable with the slides in our presentation, and I suggested we craft a summary and put the link to the author’s blog that shares the same information. He felt the information in the slide explained the process of the author and was crucial to leave in. I sought out some experts I know (my professor and a dean of a respectable university) and both said my approach was correct. I suggested it again, and my classmate felt it was too much work and wanted to delete the slide. I felt deleting the slide was the easy way out, so I crafted the summary the put the link in. I shared this story with the agents because it shows how I practiced digital citizenship skills, advocated for myself, and took the high road rather than the easy way out. The presentation came out pretty good. The book it was on, The Innovator’s Mindset, was a great read. It affirmed a lot of how I teach. You are welcome to view it here: 

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1c2IFUaP94bABUcb-RcYp40n1Rqw_pUb8h_fl20jAkOc/edit?usp=sharing

Today we are modeling addition and subtraction of mixed numbers. In this lesson, students use models to add and subtract mixed numbers with like denominators. Using models helps students focus on the meaning of all the digits that make up a mixed number. As they combine the fractional parts to add, they can easily see when regrouping is possible. In order to add mixed numbers with fluency, students must add the fractional parts, regrouping where possible so that the solution is in the simplest form. Then they add the whole number parts to find the solution. In order to subtract mixed numbers with fluency, students must determine when they need to regroup one whole into an equivalent fraction in order to subtract. Elicit adding and subtracting mixed numbers combine what students have already learned; adding and subtracting fractions, regrouping with fractions, and adding and subtracting whole numbers. Students are coming home with fraction strips to help with their homework.

During writing we continued working on our magical stories. In reading we started Weslandia about a boy who is unique and uses his imagination to create his own world.  Students will be creating newsletters in the Google Drive to share with us about the story. We will be drawing conclusions, and each group also has to decide the components of the newsletter. Students should be working on their final copies of their scrapbooks. The ones that have already entered the classroom look fantastic!