Friday, December 20, 2019

Waukee APEX Students Create Content for Middle School Students in the Student Personalized Learning System



Today we have a group of student bloggers sharing the content they have created in the Student Personalized Learning System:

Four students enrolled in the Waukee Aspiring Professional Experience (APEX) program, specifically the Exploration of Health Sciences and Medicine team have created a curriculum centered around chronic traumatic encephalopathy, entitled Traumatic Brain Injury: CTE. These students all attend Waukee High School and are: Waukee senior, Evan Tigges and Waukee juniors, Alex Linquist, Alizabeth Quass, and Ellie Casler. 
It was designed for middle schoolers in grades 6-8, with a goal of helping students understand multiple objectives including:
What is CTE?~Alex Linquist (Junior)
The Anatomy of the Brain~Alizabeth Quass (Junior)
Prevention~Evan Tigges (Senior)
Careers relating to the Brain~Ellie Casler (Junior)

Our group chose this topic because many of us are athletes, and care about keeping players safe while they are participating. Additionally, most of us are interested in pursuing a career in the medical field, and we enjoy learning more about the jobs that are available along with the anatomy of the human body.

This module was added to the Student Personalized Learning System, and can be found on the AEA website. There are also many other modules available for use in the classroom, including Phonics, math, and career modules. Take a look!
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AEA Learning Online thanks these students and their teacher Anne Boesen for their hard work on this module. To learn more about these modules and others, you can visit http://learning.aeak12online.org/ click on catalog then Health and Physical Education and the tab Statewide or enter the criteria in the search.

You can also have your students create content in our system. If you are interested in having students create content, teachers create content or using the system please contact Denise Krefting, Melissa Wicklund or Craig Mohr.

Friday, December 13, 2019

Waukee APEX Students Create Content for Peers in the Student Personalized Learning System

Today we have a groups of student bloggers sharing the content they have created in the Student Personalized Learning System:

Four students from the Waukee APEX, Aspiring Professional Experience, program have created an informational curriculum for 3rd-5th graders to improve their dental hygiene. These students all attend Waukee High School and are a part of the Exploration of Health Sciences and Medicine course at APEX. The writers and creators of this informational page are: Waukee seniors, Abdel Homedan and David Ghaly and juniors, Mia Stevenson and Elly Bates.

This curriculum will give young kids an opportunity to learn about why it is important to have good dental hygiene and how to achieve that through interactives and fun videos. Some of the main objectives that are emphasized are the following…
  • Why it is important to brush your teeth. 
  • What happens when you do not brush your teeth properly. 
  • How to clean your teeth. 
  • How to floss your teeth properly. 
  • What a dentist does for your and your teeth! 
We chose to design this course to inform young student about the importance of dental health, but in a fun way where they can play games and watch videos. Our hope is that by creating this, kids can see brushing their teeth in a different light and hopefully have fun learning about it as well.

This module was added to the Student Personalized Learning System, and can be found on the AEA website. There are also many other lessons available to look at, so feel free to browse and maybe learn a thing or two in the process.

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AEA Learning Online thanks these students and their teacher Anne Boesen for their hard work on this module. To learn more about these modules and others, you can visit http://learning.aeak12online.org/ click on catalog then Health and Physical Education and the tab Statewide or enter the criteria in the search.

You can also have your students create content in our system. If you are interested in having students create content, teachers creating content or using the system please contact Denise Krefting, Melissa Wicklund or Craig Mohr.

Tuesday, November 5, 2019

Iowa Story: Van Buren Agriculture Teacher Blends her classroom

Hear from Van Buren High School Ag Teacher, Samantha Godwin, as she shares her Blended Learning Journey. Samantha teaches dual enrollment AG classes with their community college, Introduction to Ag, Plant Science, Animal Science, 7th and 8th grade Ag, Ag Business, Ag Leadership, Vet Science, and Soil Science. She has found that blended learning helps her and her students keep all of the course work together.  Samantha will share why she went this route, what the benefits for students were, her expectations and future changes to her classroom.



We would LOVE to share your story. If you would like to be interviewed for the Iowa Story of Online, Blended or Flipped Classrooms please contact us- Denise Krefting or Melissa Wicklund.


If you are interested in learning more about professional development for blended learning, here is the information on AEA Online's Blended Learning Cohort- https://instructor20.wixsite.com/aealearningonlinebf

Thursday, September 26, 2019

Digital Citizenship Week is Coming...Are you Ready?

October 14th kicks of Digital Citizenship Week...Are you ready?

Digital Citizenship is an important tool that we as teachers can give our students that will last them their entire life. AEA Learning Online is here to help teachers make that a little bit easier. We have created modules for different grade spans, K-2, 3-5, 6-8, and 9-12.  The Kindergarten through eighth-grade modules are based on Common Sense Media's Digital Citizenship lessons.  They are enhanced with videos, audio, and various interactive activities that make the learning fun!  The ninth through twelve grade modules are based on Mike Ribble's "Nine Themes of Digital Citizenship".  These modules are also enhanced with video, audio, and interactives.

Use these modules to help students understand screen time, the risks of sharing too much information, the benefits of using online resources, and to think critically about the choices they are making as digital citizens.





These modules are FREE for you to use a teacher with your students. To check out these modules, go to learning.aeak12online.org click log in and use the AEA Login credentials that you use for the Teacher Training system (Bloodborne Pathogens training, Mandatory Reporter training, etc). Next, click on the Catalog button at the top of the screen and finally find Technology Literacy listed on the left side of your screen.  Here you will discover all the Digital Citizenship modules that AEA Learning Online has to offer you and your students. 

If you want to get started using the Student Personalized Learning System for your classroom, please reach out to Denise KreftingMelissa Wicklund, or Craig Mohr and we would be happy to help you move forward with the system.

Together we can make a difference in the lives of students as Digital Citizens!

Monday, September 23, 2019

Indianola Teacher: Softchalk Lesson of the week

Congratulations to Wendy Arch from Indianola High School.  Her Softchalk lesson, Poetic Word & Image  was selected by Softchalk as a lesson of the week.


The objectives of this lesson are being able to analyze the use of figurative language, identify and analyze the use of rhetorical devices and to identify and analyze the use of various literary devices.

Each week Softchalk selects a stand out, top notch, lesson from SoftChalk Share and features it across their social media platforms. SoftChalk Share is an Open Education Resource (OER), learning object repository with thousands of free learning materials (used in blended learning environments, online learning environments, flipped classrooms and more...) created by educators just like the ones in Iowa.
 
These lessons are interactive, engaging and cover a wide variety of subjects. Through these, you can see the endless possibilities SoftChalk has to offer and learn something new in the process. 

Educators in Iowa are able to obtain Softchalk from AEA Learning Online at no additional cost. If you are interested please contact us Denise Krefting, Evan Abbey or Melissa Wicklund.  You can learn more about best practices of using this tool in our Blending Flipping Cohort course 3.  Learn more.

Thursday, August 8, 2019

Earth Science Content added to SPLS

Thanks to two Newton teachers Chris Forsyth and Judy Nissly, we have some additional Earth Science content in the Student Personalized Learning System. Judy and Chris developed the following modules to be shared with all teachers in Iowa using resources in CK-12.
  • Introduction to Earth Science
  • Earth Science: Universe Formation
  • Earth Science: Motion of Objects in the Solar System 
  • Earth Science: Life Cycle of Stars
  • Earth Science: Introduction to the Changing Earth
  • Earth Science: Formation of the Earth
If you are interested in looking at this content. log into the Student Personalized Learning System  and either click on Science and scroll to find the content or use the search bar.

You too can create content in the Student Personalized Learning System and either use it in your district OR like Chris and Judy,  create and share it Statewide. If you are interested contact Denise Krefting or Melissa Wicklund.

Thursday, June 13, 2019

Iowa Story: Waverly- Shellrock Teacher Blends His Classroom

Hear from Paul Mugan, High School science teacher at Waverly-Shellrock High School in Waverly, Iowa as he talks about his journey into blending his science classroom.  He explains how he uses his online instruction to help students be successful self learners and connects any adult in his classroom to help his kids. He will share some ideas for teachers trying out blended learning and share what this does for his students and their futures.



We would LOVE to share your story. If you would like to be interviewed for the Iowa Story of Online, Blended or Flipped Classrooms please contact us- Denise Krefting or Melissa Wicklund.

If you are interested in learning more about professional development for blended learning, here is the information on AEA Online's Blended Learning Cohort- https://instructor20.wixsite.com/aealearningonlinebf

Monday, June 10, 2019

Iowa Story: Clear Creek Amana Math Teacher Blends/Flips His Classroom


Hear from Josh Oberg, High School Mathematics teacher at Clear Lake Amana High School in Tiffin, Iowa as he talks about how he blends and personalizes his math classroom.  He explains how he uses his online instruction to help students be successful self learners using the concepts of the Iowa Core and 21st Century Skills.


We would LOVE to share your story. If you would like to be interviewed for the Iowa Story of Online, Blended or Flipped Classrooms please contact us- Denise Krefting or Melissa Wicklund.

If you are interested in learning more about professional development for blended learning, here is the information on AEA Online's Blended Learning Cohort- https://instructor20.wixsite.com/aealearningonlinebf

Monday, June 3, 2019

Iowa Story: Indianola Special Education Teacher Blends/Flips Her Classroom

Hear from Jessica Hazelton, High School Special Education teacher at Indianola High School in Indianola, Iowa as she talks about how she blends and flips her special education classroom. She explains how she uses her online instruction to help her students and other teachers who are teaching similar content. She also creates content in AEA Learning Online's Student Personalized Learning Center to support students in credit recovery and anytime/anywhere self paced learning.


We would LOVE to share your story. If you would like to be interviewed for the Iowa Story of Online, Blended or Flipped Classrooms please contact us- Denise Krefting or Melissa Wicklund.

If you are interested in learning more about professional development for blended learning, here is the information on AEA Online's Blended Learning Cohort- https://instructor20.wixsite.com/aealearningonlinebf

Monday, May 27, 2019

Iowa Story: Indianola Math Teacher Flips Her Algebra Classroom

Hear from Mindy Percy,  a high school math teacher at Indianola High School in Indianola Iowa. She will talk about how she flipped her math class to increase collaboration and math conversations.  Student are able to learn at their pace in her classroom.  Flipping has given the responsibility back to the student.


We would LOVE to share your story. If you would like to be interviewed for the Iowa Story of Online, Blended or Flipped Classrooms please contact us- Denise Krefting or Melissa Wicklund.

If you are interested in learning more about professional development for blended learning, here is the information on AEA Online's Blended Learning Cohort- https://instructor20.wixsite.com/aealearningonlinebf

Tuesday, May 14, 2019

Waukee APEX Students Create Content for Peers in the Student Personalized Learning System

Today we have student bloggers sharing the content they have created in the Student Personalized Learning System:

The Exploration of Health Sciences and Medicine students through the APEX, Aspiring Professional Experience, program have created a curriculum for 3-5th graders about how to make your brain healthy. The creators are: Safire Harter, a senior at Waukee High School, Janjay Peters, a senior at Waukee High School, and Chloe Anderson, a junior at Waukee High School.

APEX is a program through Waukee High School, where students have the opportunity to work with outside companies, and gain experience in the business world.

This course was designed to help students learn about a specific career or field that they might want to pursue later on in life and is intended for elementary age kids. The content is meant to teach these young students about:
  • Why the brain is important 
  • What the brain does 
  • How to make your brain healthy 
  • Careers in health 

The reason we chose the topic brain health was because we wanted to do something that we were all interested in. We all like children, and are also fascinated by the brain. In this project we decided to incorporate both of those aspects into the final product.

This module was added to the Student Personalized Learning System, and can be found on the AEA website. There are also many other lessons available to look at, so feel free to browse and maybe learn a thing or two in the process.

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AEA Learning Online thanks these students and their teacher Anne Boesen for their hard work on this module. To learn more about these modules and others, you can visit http://learning.aeak12online.org/ click on catalog then Health and Physical Education and the tab Statewide or enter the criteria in the search.

You can also have your students create content in our system. If you are interested in having students create content, teachers creating content or using the system please contact Denise Krefting, Melissa Wicklund or Craig Mohr.

Monday, May 13, 2019

Iowa Story: Johnston Teacher Blends her Science Classroom

Hear from Kyla Burns, a high school AP Environmental, Zoology, and Biology teacher at Johnston High School in Johnston, Iowa as she shares how she is blending her classroom.  She explains how she uses her online instruction helps her students when they need help they have a place they can go for support, it frees up student and teacher time and assists those that are absent. Johnston uses Virtual Sub time when teachers are absent and Kyla talks about how learning more about how to blend her classroom supported her work for students when she is gone using the Virtual Sub.

We would LOVE to share your story. If you would like to be interviewed for the Iowa Story of Online, Blended or Flipped Classrooms please contact us- Denise Krefting or Melissa Wicklund.

If you are interested in learning more about professional development for blended learning, here is the information on AEA Online's Blended Learning Cohort- https://instructor20.wixsite.com/aealearningonlinebf

Wednesday, May 8, 2019

Iowa Story: Indianola Math Teacher Blends Her Classroom with Station Rotation

Hear from Jill Oliver, a high school math teacher at Indianola School in Indianola, IA. She will share how she uses station rotation to put the learning back in the hands of the students.  She has students self-assessing their learning all the time to determine what they know, what they don't know and what to do about it. Jill will talk about how she created a more student engaged and empowered classroom.


We would LOVE to share your story. If you would like to be interviewed for the Iowa Story of Online, Blended or Flipped Classrooms please contact us- Denise Krefting or Melissa Wicklund.

If you are interested in learning more about professional development for blended learning, here is the information on AEA Online's Blended Learning Cohort- https://instructor20.wixsite.com/aealearningonlinebf

Wednesday, May 1, 2019

Iowa Story: Johnston Social Studies Teacher Blends Her Classroom

Hear from Jessica Dowell, a high school Social Studies teacher at Johnston Schools in Johnston, IA. She will share why she went this route as well as the benefits for students and teachers.  Jessica will talk about how this allowed her to differentiate for her students. At the end of the video there is a student examples of work. 

 

We would LOVE to share your story. If you would like to be interviewed for the Iowa Story of Online, Blended or Flipped Classrooms please contact us- Denise Krefting or Melissa Wicklund.

If you are interested in learning more about professional development for blended learning, here is the information on AEA Online's Blended Learning Cohort- https://instructor20.wixsite.com/aealearningonlinebf

Monday, April 8, 2019

Blending Flipping Cohort To Begin: Sign up Now

Blending Flipping Your Classroom cohorts series is available for teachers this summer at Heartland AEA and Green Hills AEA.  Course 1 "Blending/ Flipping Your Classroom 1: Introduction" the start of the four course series will begin June 17-19 offered at Heartland in Adel, Iowa and  June 11- 13, offered at Green Hills AEA in Avoca. 

The Blend Flip cohorts consist of 4 courses that teachers and administrators can take throughout a 1 1/2 year period.   Credit is available at a significantly reduced rate.

  • The first course (Blending/ Flipping Your Classroom 1- Introduction is a three day  face-to-face training on "Blending/Flipping your classroom 1" for one license renewal credit.  There is a secondary and an elementary version
  • The second course is a fully online course "Blending/Flipping 2- Blended Instruction" as well as an elementary option for two credits (license renewal and graduate) which is available to those who have completed the first course.
  • The third in the series is "Blending/Flipping Your Classroom 3: Designing Online Lessons" which will take place as a blended model with two days face-to-face and the rest online for those who have completed the first two courses. This course is also two credits (license renewal and graduate).  
  •  Finally the fourth in this series is "Blending/Flipping 4: Activities and Assessment "which will take place as a blended model with two days face-to-face and the rest online and is also 2 credits (license renewal and graduate) for those who have taken the three other courses.  

The last three courses in the series (six credits) can also be applied to the Drake Online Teacher certification for those that are interested.  Learn more about the cohort here.


Course 1: Blend/Flip Introduction Heartland AEA: 3 days face to face June 17, 18, and 19. 1 LR credit available

Course 1: Blend/Flip Introduction Green Hills AEA: 3 days face to face June 11, 12 and 13.  1 LR credit available

Here is the website for all the information on the Blend Flip Cohort for those that are interested. https://instructor20.wixsite.com/aealearningonlinebf

If you have any questions please contact Denise Krefting or Melissa Wicklund.

Friday, April 5, 2019

Iowa Story: Johnston Social Studies Teacher Blends His Classroom

Hear from Thomas Giffin, a high school Instructional Coach and Social Studies teacher at Johnston Schools in Johnston, IA. Thomas has blended his classroom for several years. At Johnston juniors and seniors have open campus and the blended classroom makes use of this by having days where students are not in the classroom with the teacher, but doing their work in the online portal. He will share why he went this route, the benefits for students, how he scaffolds his students to learn this way, what parents and students are saying and where his students go when they are not in the classroom.




We would LOVE to share your story. If you would like to be interviewed for the Iowa Story of Online, Blended or Flipped Classrooms please contact us- Denise Krefting or Melissa Wicklund.

If you are interested in learning more about professional development for blended learning, here is the information on AEA Online's Blended Learning Cohort- https://instructor20.wixsite.com/aealearningonlinebf

Wednesday, April 3, 2019

Teacher uses Student Personalized Learning System to teach Digital Citizenship

Hear from North Polk Elementary Technology Coordinator and Teacher Ann Howe from North Polk, Iowa as she shares how she uses the Digital Citizenship content in AEA Learning Online's Student Personalized Learning System with her 2nd and 3rd graders.



If you are a teacher in the State of Iowa, you too can use content in the SPLS with your students. Check it out: http://learning.aeak12online.org/

For more information contact Denise Krefting, Melissa Wicklund or Craig Mohr

Friday, March 29, 2019

Iowa Teachers Create Content for the Student Personalized Learning System

While much of the content available for students in the Student Personalized Learning System was create by AEA Learning Online instructional designers, we are fortunate to also have teachers creating content for students. It is our pleasure to share work done by Indianola Instructional Coach Kim Grissom and Newton high school Science teachers Christine Forsyth and Judy Nissley that you can also use with your students.

Kim has developed content for 9th grade English Language Arts and has shared it with Iowa teachers statewide. Look for this content:

E9 Short Stories Unit: Literary Devices #1 (SW)
E9 Short Stories: What is Analysis? #2 ( SW )
E9 Short Stories: More Practice #3 (SW )
E9 Essay Unit: Expos Getting Started #1 ( SW )
E9 Essay Unit: ExposStructure #2 (SW )
E9 Essay Unit: ExposWriting #3 (SW)
E9 Essay Unit: ExposFinish #4 (SW)

Christine Forsyth and Judy Nissley have developed this Earth Science content for their students at West Academy and have shared it with Iowa teachers statewide. Look for this content:

  • Introduction to Earth Science 
  • Earth Science: Universe Formation

Our thanks go out to Kim, Christine and Judy for their willingness to create content and share it with all Iowa students and teachers.

Other teachers at Indianola are also creating content that are used with their students.  This content was developed to be district only content.

You can also create content in the Student Personalized Learning System to be shared Statewide or used within your district.  Contact Denise Krefting or Melissa Wicklund and we will help you through the process. 

Thursday, March 21, 2019

Iowa Story: Indianola Social Studies Teacher Blends His Classroom

Hear from Zack Kaczmarek, high school social studies and Sociology teacher at Indianola Schools in Indianola, IA as he talks about his blended learning classrooms. Zack will share why he went this route, what the benefits for students were, his expectations and future changes to his classroom.


We would LOVE to share your story. If you would like to be interviewed for the Iowa Story of Online, Blended or Flipped Classrooms please contact us- Denise Krefting or Melissa Wicklund.

If you are interested in learning more about professional development for blended learning, here is the information on AEA Online's Blended Learning Cohort- https://instructor20.wixsite.com/aealearningonlinebf

Monday, March 4, 2019

Iowa Story: Indianola Elementary TAG Teachers Flip their Classroom

Hear from Shari Shaw and Brian Baker, Gifted and Talented teachers at Indianola's four Elementary Schools as they talk about how they use flipped learning to extend their time with their gifted and talented students.

Quotes from 5th grade TAG math students:
  • “I understand the concepts easier as the learning is much clearer, and I’m developing math concepts quicker.”
  • “I can check my own work instantly and on Ed Puzzle there are questions during the video to see if I am understanding the concept as I watch the video.” 
  • “I really like watching the videos as I can rewatch them until I have a clear understanding of the concepts. All of this saves me time as I am able to get more of the work completed in the classroom and get help from the teacher if I need it.” 
  • “It is fun as I am able to learn at my own pace.” 
  • “Blended and flipped learning helps me understand the concepts, it is less time consuming and makes math easier.” 
  • “We watch the video to learn the concept then talk about what we don’t understand.”
We would

We would LOVE to share your story. If you would like to be interviewed for the Iowa Story of Online, Blended or Flipped Classrooms please contact us- Denise Krefting or Melissa Wicklund.   We have several other teacher video of those who have volunteered to contribute. They can be found on in our Google Community with the filter "Blended Videos from Iowa Teachers.

If you are interested in learning more about professional development for blended learning, here is the information on AEA Online's Blended Learning Cohort (video listings are also here under the tab Iowa Teachers Blending/Flipping)

Tuesday, February 5, 2019

Virtual Snow Days


With weather issues causing schools to cancel school due to snow and extreme cold this article from the Des Moines Register is very timely. Estherville Lincoln Central schools in northern Iowa is handling snow and extreme cold school days virtually so they don't have to make them up.  Something for other schools to consider.

Read Des Moines Register article.

The Blend Flip Cohort professional development  from AEA Learning Online can help by training teachers to do this effectively.  Learn more about this
 professional development here or contact AEA Learning Online at support@aealearningonline.org.

Wednesday, January 2, 2019

Blending Flipping Course 1 to begin- Sign Up Now

Blending Flipping Your Classroom cohorts series is  available for teachers this winter at Heartland AEA annd Keystone AEA.  Course 1 "Blending/ Flipping Your Classroom 1: Introduction" the start of the four course series will begin January 23rd offered at Heartland in Johnston and  January 24, offered at Keystone AEA. 

These cohorts consist of 4 courses that teachers and administrators can take through out a 1 1/2 year period.   Credit is available at a significantly reduced rate.
 
The first course (Blending/ Flipping Your Classroom 1- Introduction is a three day face-to-face training on "Blending/Flipping your classroom 1" for one license renewal credit.  There is a secondary and an elementary version

The second course is a fully online course "Blending/Flipping 2- Blended Instruction" as well as an elementary option for two credits (license renewal and graduate) which is available to those who have completed the first course.

The third in the series is "Blending/Flipping Your Classroom 3: Designing Online Lessons" which will take place as a blended model with two days face-to-face and the rest online for those who have completed the first two courses. This course is also two credits (license renewal and graduate).  

 Finally the fourth in this series is "Blending/Flipping 4: Activities and Assessment "which will take place as a blended model with two days face-to-face and the rest online and is also 2 credits (license renewal and graduate) for those who have taken the three other courses.  

The last three courses in the series (six credits) can also be applied to the Drake Online Teacher certification for those that are interested.  Learn more about the cohort here.

If you are interested in signing up or finding out more about the first course in the series offered at Heartland.  This course is also offered in June in Green Hills AEA. Sign up coming soon!

Heartland AEA: Blending/Flipping Your Classroom Course 1: Introduction- face to face 1/23/19, 2/6/19 and 2/21/19  1 credit LR online  More information and Signup:  https://prodev.aeapdonline.org/4DCGI/22044292111901INV&True*
Keystone AEA:  Blending/Flipping Your Classroom Course 1: Introduction- face to face 1/24/19, 2/7/19 and 2/21/19  1 credit LR online  More information and Signup:  http://bit.ly/2EZtx9W

Please share this with anyone who may be interested: