#RuralEdChat is a chat that focuses on the needs of the rural educator. This chat has been revised by Tammy Neil (@MathNeil), John Martin (@edventures) and Natalee Stotz (@nataleestotz).
In Mississippi, we have Attendance centers, meaning students in grade K-12 are all on one campus. I’m the Principal of all grade levels; we have approximately 500 students. #RuralEdChat
As we chat tonight, don't forget to add #RuralEdChat to your tweet so we can all share your brilliance. We will use the Q1/A1 format unless a conversation breaks out.
I am currently listening to the Moana soundtrack. I'm not sure how Lin Manuel-Miranda does it, but his songs just get stuck in your head. Love Hamilton! #RuralEdChat
A1. Students always surprise me with their creativity. I remember, as a history teacher, I gave Ss the taking of creating a wanted poster for the infamous boll weevil. One student drew a boll weevil on a motercycle and called it “Weevil Knievel”. Very creative. #ruraledchat
A1: many places, but I've noticed that the bigger the project, and more importantly, the more freedom they have, the more creativity they display. And the more engaged they are. #RuralEdChat
A1. Students always surprise me with their creativity. I remember, as a history teacher, I gave Ss the task of creating a wanted poster for the infamous boll weevil. One student drew a boll weevil on a motercycle and called it “Weevil Knievel”. Very creative. #ruraledchat
I'm actually pretty stressed with a busy week at school and my grad classes and just having to be an adult. #RuralEdChat How're you this week? #RuralEdChat
A1: I enjoy seeing S creativity on the computers. All of a sudden a pie chart will have an orange background or a coding activity will turn into a chicken head. We had fun making our visions of the eclipse on Google Slides in August. #ruraledchat
A1: I also enjoy those moments when I ask a question as a prompt for work & the response is SO not what I was intending to elicit, but it does actually answer the prompt, the S just saw it in an whole 'nother way. Fun moments. #ruraledchat
A2. With the rise in popularity of “Escape Rooms”, I have seen my math teachers engage students by having them “escape the room” by discovering a code only found by solving algebraic problems. Students were engaged bell to bell; they loved it. #ruraledchat
A2: Grade 2, research, design and create pop-up books about their favorite local animals. Grade 8: design and build a catapult to launch marshmallows the furthest down the hallway.. :) #ruraledchat
Again, I'm so totally techie. But I had fun showing the Ss virtual instruments online & then telling them 2 make their own class composition. Then I gave 1 of the students my phone to use as a roving video-recorder. Cacophony ensued, but so did total joy and fun. #ruraledchat
A2: I'm lucky I have a good subject to leverage. Writing code inherently involves creation. "Make a game where you have to avoid obstacles" lets students write their own heroes and villains. #RuralEdChat
A3. District personnel began noticing an increase in tardiness to first period, especially among high school Ss. After investigation, Ss were staying out too late. The town of Houlka created a curfew for school aged Ss; Ss younger than 18 can’t be in town past ten. #ruraledchat
A3: Good gravy. This is so topical. We're in the midst of an ongoing community Strategic Planning program in our district... & budget cuts. Monthly meetings. SWOT analyses, surveys, flip charting, walking around putting colored dots on priorities, brainstorming, etc. #ruraledchat
It's like the Spielberg Jaws story - an old chestnut I love - the expensive fake shark didn't work so he had to get creative and create all the tensions & scares another way. Hence lots of water, boats, buoys, drums, and dun-duns. #ruraledchat
I'm working on putting together a #makerspace and doing more intentional creativity. As my friend @WickedDecent says, no more dumpster projects! #RuralEdChat
Another one I like is Tom Hanks' Apollo 13 movie. "Houston we have a problem." The rest is an hour of creative problem-solving & American ingenuity that leaves me in patriotic-pride tears every time I watch it. I know, I'm an old softie. #ruraledchat
A4: creativity is an emotional connection. learning with an emotional connection makes a stronger connection -> deeper learning. I means more. #ruraledchat
A4. Many times we must be creative to find a solution that works. We want our students to be problem solvers and critical thinkers. Therefore, creativity should be encouraged. #ruraledchat
A4: when students get to express themselves, and tie the material to something they already know about and care about, the new material becomes theirs as well. Creativity in it leads to ownership of it. #RuralEdChat
A4 Encouraging creativity acknowledges that successful problem-solving happens in different ways. It inspires learners to bring themselves to a challenge. #ruraledchat
OMG! It's so funny you should say that. Superintendent had 4 charts up w/ categories like budget, staffing, children's education, & safety. We were supposed 2 put them in priority order w/our dots. Told her I had a problem w/ the task itself as they were all equal. #ruraledchat
A3: I often have to be creative when it comes to dealing with disruptions. Sending kids on “errands” when they need to walk around, and letting them out their head down when something is off #ruraledchat
I love how @WickedDecent approaches it. Kids can tinker, but when they have a specific project, he spends time talking with them (relationship) and coaching them to be intentional with all their choices. #RuralEdChat
In reply to
@j6panus, @SJ_Grubb, @WickedDecent, @WickedDecent
A4) In an era where Google has all the answers, it’s creativity that sets our students apart. We need fresh, responsive solutions to today’s problems. #RuralEdChat
I also said that once the longer list of priorities had been distilled down to 4 that further prioritization seemed 2 me 2 risk politicization & emotionalization of remaining categories. Which @**hole wants to be the 1 that doesn't prioritize children's education? #ruraledchat
A2: I try to find creative ways to grab attention with hooks and thought provoking warm ups. Good way to pull students into history topics. #ruraledchat
We did wanted posters/presidential campaign posters for Genghis Khan. Tried to teach historical bias and kids definitely got it. Was cool! #ruraledchat
A5: In many ways rural real life is different: more farming, fishing, forestry, etc. So when we work to make learning relevant, those are things we're connecting to and being creative about. Greenspace is different in urban areas. #RuralEdChat
A5 Interesting question...interest areas may be different in addition to lived experiences (ex: kids growing up around farm machinery vs kids growing up around urban transportation systems) inform different approaches to prob-solving or even prob visualization. #ruraledchat
That is part of the process for me. it is planned and integrated into units - time to explore the tools/processes needed to solve the challenge. #ruraledchat#STEM
In reply to
@SJ_Grubb, @nataleestotz, @WickedDecent
So many people almost reject the whole comparison, and then are satisfied with the "compromise" of getting an extra dot to use, as if that makes it any less preposterous. #ruraledchat
A5. I have taught in both arenas. In our rural school, we must be creative in how we teach. Many of my teachers have four or more preps. We must all wear many hats and work together to make a successful school. The sense of community is real. #ruraledchat
A4: See previous comment about Spielberg's Jaws and Hanks' Apollo 13. Houston, we have a problem. Creative thinkers, we have a way to a solution. #ruraledchat
We use a Superman cape to designate our Super Staff Members (see below) Student of the Month certificates, but I would like to do something that means more for my students. #ruraledchat
Ha! I still got the time wrong for #ruraledchat Next week I'll get it right...as long as nothing else interferes... Oh well, prep for a PD session tomorrow with the staff.
At one district where I worked, the administration spent lots of money to teach teachers how to teach...confusing. Later, they required us to use the teaching strategies everyday; the district standardized the instruction, killing creativity. #ruraledchat
A5: Probably not what you R looking 4 at all, but I come from 20+ years in the corporate world & still find it odd that there R not more inspections & annual review mtgs. I love feeling like an autonomous island sometimes, at other times I find the biz of ed weird. #ruraledchat
.@TG_Neil thanks again for a great chat! What would you and @robinhosemann think of "student choices" as a topic? All this talk of creativity has me churning on what else I should let my students be deciding #RuralEdChat
Yes. Autonomy is key and finding some sort of balance between district initiatives and teacher creativity. Things like you mentioned are tough. #RuralEdChat
The direct management interventions we do get R so often the wrong thing at the wrong time for the wrong people & motivated not based on review of teacher performance, but top-down CYA strategies that mean nothing but burden & burnout at local level. So says me. #ruraledchat
