PPS Instructional Technology

The 2020-2021 school year has presented us with many challenges and opportunities. By necessity we have become experts on pandemic teaching. We have learned how to embrace and connect with our students no matter where they may be physically. We have caught glimpses into the lives of our students that we may not have had before this year. We have helped our students process intense issues from isolation, illness and death to protest and civil unrest, all while trying to maintain our own social-emotional and physical health and wellbeing. As we approach the half-way mark and continue to persevere in this unique and challenging school year, the words of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. loom large in my mind. Education must enable one to sift and weigh evidence, to discern the true from the false, the real from the unreal, and the facts from the fiction. The function of education, therefore, is to teach one to think intensively and to think critically...We must remember that intelligence is not...

There are certain historical figures who have, through their own actions and feats, earned a place in history which warrants annual recognition so that their deeds and works won't be forgotten.  Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. is one of those people.  This year MLK day falls on January 16, 2017.  Many educators like to take an opportunity to honor Dr. King with their students.  I have shared numerous teaching resources in the past , but have found a few more treasures to help us celebrate and remember. Scholastic has created a collection of resources specifically for MLK day including lesson plans, and videos, focussed around the theme: The Spirit of Service .  They have broken the lesson plans down by grade level for 3-5, 6-8 and 9-12.  They also have classroom resources for MLK day and Black History Month. Tynker is also helping students remember the life of Dr. King.  They have created a A Coding Project to Honor MLK Day  in which students ca...

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/ba/USMC-09611.jpg I always value the opportunity, as a teacher, to be able to teach my students about Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.  He was an inspiration who stood up for what is right, even though it wasn't popular.  In the classroom, we would do many activities involving Revered King in order to help my young students begin to understand how pivotal he was in our history.  We would watch the speech, read illustrated books on MLK, discuss what parts of Dr. King's dream have come true and what areas we are still working on as a society.  My kids would write their own speeches and present them to their classmates.  These would them be talking points that we could return through the rest of the year. In honor of Dr. King, here are some great ideas for sharing King's legacy with your students. 10 Inspirational Quotes fro Teachers from Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. - Have students pick one of these quotes and a...