So many times I'm thankful for the learning that goes on at a conference. I enjoy seeing all the amazing people from my PLN and meeting new people to expand my PLN. I love the energy that surrounds learning and education conversations. Often, prior to a conference, we will share about sessions we may be considering, make dinner plans, talk about what we hope to get out of or add to the conference, but for ISTE the conversation shifted to "What is it that we feel we can give to the city and the people of Philadelphia?”

The idea of giving back is nothing original, but it is so extremely valuable. While listening to one of the best young educators Sara Boucher (@missgeekyteach) as she shared a story about how one restaurant in Philadelphia that was giving to the homeless, I caught her enthusiasm. She was hoping to get a group of us to visit that pizza place while at ISTE.  Her excitement for the story spawned the start of something that we are hoping expands and catches fire among attendees and those #NotAtISTE alike.

Rosa's Fresh Pizza in Philadelphia has had some recent press coverage including being on the Ellen Show for their efforts to give slices of pizza to the homeless of the local community. The hopes are to have ISTE attendees flood this local business with free slices of pizza which would be used to serve any homeless who may be in need of a meal. As the discussion continued, it blossomed beyond just a small group of friends headed over for a slice, into a planning session for ways we could help the community of Philadelphia in many ways thanks to Tracy Clark.

So join this simple movement in giving back to the city we have the opportunity to travel to for education conferences. Buy a slice of pizza for a homeless person at Rosa's or find another way to contribute to the local community. Join Tracy Clark, Scott Bedley, Karl Lindgren-Streicher, Victoria Olson, Sara and I by looking for ways to give as we all travel to Philadelphia and share about your plans for giving using #SliceOfISTE on Twitter or Instagram.

Not going to ISTE? You can still give or plan similar type activities at the next conference you attend. Thanks for reading. Be sure to follow @SliceOfISTE for updates and info on opportunities to give back during ISTE 2015.


If this post looks familiar, it is copied and pasted from Scott's blog. We encourage you to do the same. Copy and paste this entire post, publish it on your blog, and get the word out. Thank you.

Happy "Lending A Helping Hand" Fishing

Yep, I said it, and I mean it. I've blogged about homework from a student perspective, tried to defend my own distribution of homework, but now it's different. It's different because I have a 4 year-old who's about to enter the public education system and I am afraid of what he will be assigned. 

Will it be a packet of doom that will lead him to despise school? Will it be projects so insurmountable that his parents need to help him? Will it be nightly? Weekly? Will he thrive with it? Fail miserably? 

In conversation with Rachel, Karl, Matt, and Victoria, 4 of the people who make me think the hardest about a lot of topics surrounding education, the concept of homework became a chat that sparked this post.

I'll say this: I want my kids to have homework. In fact, I hope that you, my sons' future teachers, assign them homework - as long as it looks like this:

This was a sample shared with us as we toured the school he will attend this fall. In February of this year, my soon-to-be 5 year-old would've had homework every single school day of the month and I love it. Ones in particular that I can't wait to help him with:

"Roll 2 dice and add them up. Repeat several times."
"Write an addition problem with a picture"
"Watch a show with your family and talk about it."

Edutopia recently posted a blog that argued Homework vs. No Homework is the Wrong Question and I couldn't agree more. The month of February at my son's future elementary school is rich with developmentally-appropriate practice, very little rigor, and a lot of parent involvement encouraged throughout. As Rachel pointed out, "maybe it's more parenting practice than skill practice". Earlier in the year, there is another sample of homework that asks parents to read a book to their child and talk about it, among other great "assignments". 

YES!

Now, the challenge. Once he's done with Kindergarten and makes the leap to first grade, what will that look like? 

How might we as educators intertwine parenting practice into the homework routine? 

Rather than pulling my kids away from me so they can complete their work, this sheet is pulling me into what he, and eventually both of my boys, will be learning and supporting them along the way.

To me, it's apparent that we need to reach out to our local Kinder teachers to learn ways of making parents feel responsible in supporting the learning of their children and providing support to them as the content become more challenging. Yes, content at the secondary level is out of reach for many parents; still, we can find ways to involve them.

*Homework doesn't have to be evil. Homework can be fun. Homework can have meaning. Homework can get the whole home involved. I want my children to have that kind of homework.

Happy Homework Fishing