Some of the wonderful ideas  for podcasting include:

• Book Talk – students summarize, critique, recommend, etc. novels read.
• Poetry – students share poetry.
• School News – students research and report events happening in classrooms and the school.
• Creative Writing – students read writing assignments.
• Web Review – students search out, summarize, rate and recommend kid oriented web sites.
• World News Summary – students read and summarize articles from on or off line periodicals.

An excellent podcast for students to listen to so that they will have a clear view of the purpose of a podcast, as well as getting them thinking about what they would like to do for their own podcast, is “The Downs FM”.  This project is run by a group of 5^th graders at The Downs CE Primary School in Walmer, Kent,
England.  Their team produces a regular podcast, which is broadcast to other children at school, and to others around the world.  The podcast contains  a mix of music, news, chat, messages, competitions and much more.

Their teacher discusses how the children learn literacy skills, speaking and listening skills, proficiency at using equipment and software, teamwork skills, and confidence and dedication.

Regarding the technical aspects of podcasting, the “Podcasting in Education” site covers the hardware needed to create a podcast.  They also suggest a free, easy to use, software-based audio recorder and editor to download called Audacity.  Finally, they offer step by step instructions on downloading a feature that lets Audacity make MP3 Files called Lame MP3 Encoder.

After reading and learning all about podcasting this afternoon, I have had one of  those wonderful, insightful “Aha!” moments – the things that Peggie discussed in class suddenly became crystal clear!

Aware of the following truths about teaching and schools –

1. Students respond to warmth and kindness.
2. Students are more open to learning if they know that you genuinely care about them, and that you genuinely want them to learn.
3. Excitement about learning is contagious; if I am excited about a subject, most students will be too.
4. Staff and resources at most schools are limited.
5. Schools have the most poorly “maintained” copiers.  I have two words for the school administrators:  Maintenance Contracts!
6. Xerox/copier paper is guarded by teachers better than the gold at Fort Knox.
7. Teaching, to me, is not a job, it is a JOY!
8. When you see that “gotcha” look on a student’s face when they finally grasp what you have been trying to get across – that look, that moment is priceless.
9. To want to be able to inspire students is not optional, it should be imperative.
10. Teachers who “phone it in” do not belong in the classroom.
11. Teachers as friends are the BEST!
12. Keep parents in the loop; keep them informed.
13. If the school’s cooks are great, let them know!  If they’re not, pray for them.
14. Kids, for the most part, look at a 3 or 5 day suspension from school as a vacation.
15. The acerbic comedian Dennis Miller said, “Teachers should be paid the salaries of lawyers, and lawyers should be paid the salaries of teachers.”

• Homework assignments
• Project descriptions and assessment rubrics
• Reflective articles on the importance of topics being studied in class
• Reports of current events related to topics being studied in class
• Selected student writings
• Events in the classroom (avoid naming names)
• Descriptions of upcoming units with lists of supplies that students will need.

I think the students will be as excited about blogging as I am!

“A teacher never sees failure in their students; they only see what they have taught them.”  Discuss a teacher who taught you to succeed or fail.  How did that teacher impact your educational life.

This prompt immediately brought to mind my high school Latin teacher, Miss Rita Hunt.  Miss Hunt taught me to succeed in Latin.  She was the teacher’s “ideal”, a standard of  excellence some teachers aspire to but rarely achieve.  (Although, since meeting the teachers associated with the Coalfield Writers Summer Institute, I have expanded my list of “ideal” teachers to include them.)  Miss Hunt inspired me to want to be the best Latin student in her class, and ultimately, I became just that.  After taking Latin I and Latin II my freshman and sophomore years, respectively, Miss Hunt persuaded the school administrators to allow her to create Latin III and Latin IV for me to take my junior and senior years.  I am the only student in the history of Belfry High School to take four years of Latin, and, I owe that honor and distinction to Miss Rita Hunt.      

All of our children deserve teachers who believe they can learn and who will not be satisfied until they do. – Joe Nathan.  Do you believe all of your students can learn?

In an article titled, “All Children Can Learn: Facts and Fallacies”, by M. Donald Thomas and William L. Bainbridge, the authors address the following learning fallacy.  “The fallacy that all children can learn: at the same level and in the same amount of time.  All children can learn, at some level, and most children, as Ronald Edmonds stated, can learn the basic curriculum if sufficient resources are provided.   The fallacy, however, is the belief that all children can learn the same curriculum, in the same amount of time, and at the same level.”   

Yes, I believe that all my students can learn, but, each child must be treated as an  individual; an individual who will achieve according to his or her own unique abilities and limitations.       

Admiral Arleigh Burke said, “What’s the difference between a good naval officer and a great one?  Answer:  About six seconds.”  What’s the difference between a good teacher and a great one?  What do they do that makes them so effective?  Also, what does it mean to teach really well?

A good teacher teaches with her brain, a great teacher teaches with her brain and her heart!  Students instinctively know when a teacher is passionate about teaching, and they,  in turn, respond by becoming passionate about learning.

In “Writing Alone and With Others”, Pat Schneider discusses “Finding a Good Teacher”, in doing so, I felt that she defined what ‘to teach really well’ means.  She asks, “Are you energized and sent back to your pad of paper or your computer?  Are you more excited and hopeful about your work?”  She points out that, “The issue is not whether the teacher is tough or gentle, cruel or kind; the issue is the effect on you, on your work.”  A teacher who teaches really well will have a positive, inspiring, lasting effect on you and your work.

It was not really a notion that I had, but more of a discovery that I made:  for me to find that people like the ones in the Summer Institute 2007 classroom at Logan High School actually exist!  They actually write!  They not only write, but they write exceptionally well!  On top of that, they clearly love doing it!

Another discovery that I made is that everyone truly is an author.  I am so looking forward to sharing that fact with my students.  I want the things I have learned here, the ideas I have gotten here, to enable me to inspire my students to write, to want to write, to be challenged to write.

I truly did not have a preconceived notion about Summer Institute, what it was about.  I literally walked thru that classroom door a blank slate, or, more aptly, a blank sponge, wanting to soak up all the knowledge flowing around that room.

I think of the individuals in that room as a Brain Trust, a Brain Treasure, that God saw fit to allow me to be a part of, not just for the summer, but for always.

When I think of my classroom this fall, the first students to come to mind are “my boys”:  Zach, Jamie, and D.J., who will be 6^th graders this fall.  They are the three that I know with absolute certainty I can inspire to write.  These boys are so eager to learn!

This past year I worked with them on Reading, Spelling, and Grammar.  No matter which subject we were working on, they always approached the assignment with unbridled enthusiasm.  These three young men will approach writing and poetry with the same wonderful attitude.

I’m especially looking forward to introducing them to Tracy and Tia’s “Poetry Poker”, the comic strip activity that Debra demonstrated, and, Andie’s writing marathon that we did on the last day of Summer Institute.

I’m excited about sharing all the activities we learned here, not only with my students, but with my fellow teachers as well.  My goal is to get my fellow teachers to put pen to paper and write, and hopefully, use their writing as a springboard to inspire their students to want to write.

The possibilities are endless!

• Wrote more,
• Wrote in greater detail,
•  Took greater care with grammar, punctuation, and spelling.

The wide variety of media available definitely empowers students.  But, as the author notes, our students will need to know how to use images, sound, video, animation, and links to related and supporting content in order to fully benefit from publishing their work on the Web.