A common problem for many teachers (especially special education teachers) is finding a way to be in two places at once. Especially when it comes to students with testing modifications especially those students who need to have tests read out loud to them. Several years ago; with the help of a special ed teacher Jenny Beyer; we started a project to help other teachers in the school record their test questions for students to play back on a district owned iPod nano. Here was our rationale: To provide students with an audio file of each test question in order to make customized testing accommodations for each individual student. Teachers will record an audio file of the individual test questions and these questions will then be loaded onto an iPod for student use during the test.   This will allow each student an opportunity to take the test at their own pace while still having the test read to him/her.   Frequently students feel anxiety when having a test read to the

     (Originally posted 9/13/09 on my previous classroom blog)      This week we went outside into the area where the homecoming bonfire is usually held. This is an area of annual renewal. The plants present there today will be buried by a large pile of wooden pallets and will be burnt to the ground. The area will then begin to reestablish themselves and their population. So we spent one class period identifying the plants present and counting the number of individuals in that population. We studied many areas the size of a hula hoop. We did find some new species that we have not seen before and a very large spider which we are trying to identify. It was really nice to get out of the classroom and spend time studying our surrounding that we frequently overlook and ignore.      Later in the year we will refer back to the bonfire pit area  because it shows ecological succession because the environment is going to start over again with bare soil, then weeds and small plants, eventuall

     I'm a celebrity. Yeah, well, not really but now you can learn more about me and what I do in the classroom. Andrew Wheelock was kind enough to interview me for his new iTunes series called " Coffee with a Geek ." Check it out here and subscribe: Coffee with a Geek You can watch the episodes on an iPod an iPad an iPhone or your computer Originally posted on ballinwithballing.blogspot.com

Yay! We are getting a mini grant!      My school district is very fortunate to have an amazing alumni foundation: Lancaster Education and Alumni Foundation (LEAF).  Here is a link to their Facebook page: LEAF . This year they were offering several mini-grants that teachers in our district could apply for if they have a new idea to use in the classroom.  My proposal involved the use of two iPad mini's, and several apps to help students work together to develop higher level thinking skills and to address some common social concerns such as bullying. Although it would have been ideal to have two iPad mini's  which are each slightly cheaper but it looks like we are instead getting one iPad 2. Hey, it isn't too often that a teacher is able to get supplies for her classroom without spending some of her hard earned money every bit helps and I guess I'll just apply again next year. I'll keep trying. An iPad like the one above will be a welcome addition to our classroo

I'm so excited! Here is a link to my presentation: (I apologize about the title. It should read: Dip Your Toes into Online Teaching but the font didn't transfer well to Slide share) Online learning presentation for nyscate from Amy Balling

     Last year I was introduced to a fantastic web-based software known as eDoctrina .       If you're a data junkie like me, this program will fill your life with not only hours but days of enjoyment. Since I teach a New York State Regents-level biology class (The Living Environment) I have analyzed the BOCES statistics about every single question on every single exam but I was looking for a way to analyze the different components of the curriculum and my in class assessments. I am also an avid user of technology in my classroom and I want to be able to help every student in my class be the best they can be in the class...so this is how I got hooked on eDoctrina . They like to call people like me "Super-Users" but really I see myself as a "Heavy-User" it is actually more of an addiction than something I am forced to use. It is important for you to know that my district is supporting eDoctrina but is in no way forcing me to use it.       The program is an

     Previously I posted about how I use "Fast Fives" to help my students review previous Regents Exams.  I needed a way to keep all of my students engaged and participating so did a little "research" on Pinterest (this is my way to justify all of the time I spend on that website). If you don't know what Pinterest is...I give you permission to go check it out...as long as you come back to my blog. Keep in mind that Pinterest will suck you into a time-warp and 3 hours later you will come out with millions of ideas and even less time to accomplish them.      So here's what I did and my students LOVE it. I bought a big box of colored popsicle sticks like these:      I was looking for 4 different colors...one for each of my classes. As the kids came into class I had them each pick up a "Fast Five" and a popsicle stick. My first class of the day got red popsicle sticks, 2nd class: yellow, third: green, and my last class got blue

     Often teachers find everyday materials and find a new way to use them in the classroom. It's a part of the job that sticks with you and even in the summer I see items in a new way and try to find new ways to help my students learn difficult concepts.  I have noticed that even retired teachers can't turn their brains off and even though they may not have a class anymore they still continue to look for new materials for the classroom. Here is one of my examples from my classroom: skein of yarn (AKA: Chromosome) it might look like a skein of yarn to you...but to a biology teacher (like myself) and to my students it represents a chromosome. Because it is just like DNA that has been all coiled up and packaged so that it is easy to move in the cell.      Could you imagine if they sold yarn uncoiled in the store like this? Uncoiled yarn (AKA: DNA in the cell in Interphase) Yarn uncolied and in a skein (AKA: DNA in Interphase and Prophase) t

     The class I teach is a New York State Biology course called "The Living Environment." At the end of the year all students need to pass the New York State exam known as the "Regents Exam". In order to get my students ready for the exam it is imperitive that they become accustomed to the types of questions that they will see on that exam. Often the Regents Exam questions are at a higher level in Bloom's Taxonomy than just simple knowledge. Often the students will be expected to apply their knowledge to articles, experiments, diagrams, etc.      I find that if I do too many practice questions with them they don't try very hard and it takes a large chunk of time. So I've started creating what I call "Fast Fives." At least once a week my students will see a Fast Five on the table when they come into class. They will start working on the questions immediately. The students who get to class earlier have a little more time for the fast

Tonight was Angry Birds pizza night...Post by Andrew Balling (5 years old) I typed for him although he might be a faster typist than I. " I made the dough. Then we put sauce on it. We put cheese on it. We put pepperonis on it. We put cheddar cheese for the beak. We used 2 slices of mushroom for the eyes. We made the eyes and the eyebrows with the olives. Then we put it in the oven. It was delicious. It was good. We will make it again." if you make pizza at home the only MUST is a pizza stone for your oven. You'll get a much better crust! originally posted on http://www.ballinwithballing.blogspot.com

     I started by putting the main topic that we have been studying in class (in this case it was Transport) and  the main categories to get them started. put the main ideas of the concept map on the board Up at the board I placed 6 black expo dry erase markers like these:      I wanted everyone to have the same color so the focus was on the content, not how pretty it looked. My students use the computers almost everyday so I told them that while their computer was starting up  I wanted them to work together and build a "Silent Mind Map" for the unit. They were not allowed to talk.  All of the communication must happen in the writing on the board.  the beginning      Even after they started working online they would look up and still come up to the board and add something, or erase and change something. It was really amazing to see them all work together.      In my larger classes it was actually pretty funny that even though there were