Assemblies be Trippin'

    Okay, so the title isn't really proper.  But my attitude towards the assemblies today is best reflected by a direct quote from one of my students - "the assemblies be trippin' today."  They ran over by more than one hour, resulting in a 15-minute first period and a 25-minute third period.  At some point I hope to do some teaching this year.  But, it's the first week of school.  I can't expect too much.  So, after 2 hours in homeroom, here's the day.

First Period - AP Calculus AB

    I promised my first period that we would actually get to talk about calculus at some point this year.  All we had time to do today was discuss the format of the flipped classroom, a full day later than I had wanted.  They got the syllabus and the parent letter.  Some kids have already joined the Edmodo group, which is promising.  I've noticed two distinct groups arising in both calculus classes.  Some are very excited to see the change, others are more reluctant.  I think these calculus students have become very proficient at playing our traditional "education game" that, with responsibility for learning being shared more equally, flipping is a little scary for them.  But no one is hesitant to try - we'll have a great year.

    I am still on pace to do our opening local linearity activity tomorrow and model the WSQ on Friday.  The first WSQ discussion will happen on Monday.  As long as I get the amount of time the schedule allows, we'll be alright pacing-wise.  If not, we adapt and overcome - just another day as a teacher.

Third Period - AP Statistics

    My activity-based, traditional AP Statistics class met for the first time today.  Instead of 75 minutes, we only had 25.  We got through attendance, the 3x5 card (see yesterday's post), and the syllabus/expectations.  I managed to give them an article about an experiment to read and answer a couple questions before they left.  We're a day behind, but nothing we can't make up.

Fifth Period - Algebra 2

    My final class, Algebra 2, met during fifth period.  This class, like the sixth period algebra 2, has a lot of students who have not experienced a lot of success in math classes before.  We did the same activities as sixth period yesterday, but had more time for practice at the end.  The reaction to the flipped classroom seemed positive, with a couple of students seemingly neutral about the idea, just like sixth period.  But where students yesterday couldn't get enough information about the flip and the WSQ, these students were considerably less enthusiastic.  I'll chalk it up to the fact that students were in homeroom for two hours and have had teacher after teacher talk at them for the past two days.  I'd probably be overwhelmed too.

    On a less positive note, I was not happy with the questions I received today from this class.  When yesterday's students asked questions about learning and procedures, today's questions were:

• "Do I really need to pass this class to graduate?" 
• "Do I need to take or pass the state standardized exam for algebra 2?"
• "How many math credits do you need to have to graduate?  Do I already have enough?"

I indicated that their guidance counselors would be better able to answer the questions, but it highlights a major potential issue - will I need to deal with a segment of the class who will choose to fail so that they don't have to do any work?  To be completely honest, this is the most disheartening part of the past month for me.  I suppose that I'll just need to see how the class dynamics evolve and stay energized and enthusiastic.

The Videos are IN!

    They're nothing special, and I'm not extremely happy with them yet, but I've gotten my parent video and first two videos ready for viewing and upload.  The technology and broadcast teams have done an AMAZING job with both the video and sound quality.  I was extremely impressed.  I uploaded the parent video to YouTube and to Edmodo using SchoolTube.  I'm encouraged by the fact that two parents have already subscribed to my video channel.  That's an awesome sign.

    I'm hoping to create a few more videos tomorrow during my planning period.  I plan on modeling the WSQ for second (calc) and sixth (alg 2) tomorrow - we'll get the WSQ checklist, watch the first video together in class, take notes together using the document camera, and begin discussing what to include in our WSQ.  I'll do the same thing on Friday for first (calc) and fifth (alg 2).  I'm anxious to find out how many students haven't signed into Edmodo or given me their parent letter (which tells me if they have a computer or internet at home).  We'll just wait and see.  I'm not great at this patience thing sometimes....