Today was a very exciting day as I received my first round of the Pfizer vaccine for the prevention of Covid-19! I was the last adult in our family to receive my dose as everyone else became eligible before me due to their age or status as a first-responder. When I moved into this position I received advice from many long-time administrators & coaches about the importance of being visible and available. “Set up shop for the day in the school library, auditorium, or cafeteria” “Do walking tours of each school regularly” “Participate in school spirit events, attend productions/sporting events/etc”… Read More
Maintaining Tech Routines
As we start a new week Manitobans are in the midst of the third-wave of the Covid-19 pandemic. At the time of writing we have seen schools in multiple communities move to remote learning due to outbreaks and the inability to provide staffing due to isolation requirements. While MVSD has been fortunate to have experienced low levels of cases (13 total cases during the 20/21 school year so far) we are cognizant of the fact that this can change at any time. With the vast majority of our students attending face-to-face classes everyday, some of our familiarity with our digital… Read More
Why “Snow Days” Should Not Be Turned Into Remote Learning Days
At the beginning of November we experienced our first weather-related closure since the onset of remote learning. At that time I shared out the following graphic: The importance of relationship building in education has always been framed as a high priority. When I was in the classroom I found that “snow days” provided an opportunity to get to know my students as people and not just learners. It allowed us to connect, play, and work on important tasks that sometimes get pushed to the back-burner. For those who don’t attend classes during “snow days” they were able to connect with… Read More
WOW Wednesday – MVSD Remote Learning Support Team
Every Wednesday I highlight some of our amazing MVSD staff on our social media pages. Everyday our staff are using tech in new and exciting ways, are learning new skills, and are sharing ways in which ed tech is assisting them in their practice. As is the case the world over, our programming has been constantly evolving in MVSD as we adapt to new health orders and welcome new resources and supports. This week we welcomed two new staff members to MVSD who are working as part of our robust remote learning team. It can be challenging to start a new… Read More
Students Thriving Online
Every Monday I share a different ed tech quote on our Thompson Classroom social media pages for our staff to consider. Here in Manitoba it has been a full week since we welcomed the vast majority of our students back to our buildings following a period of temporary remote learning which ended on January 15th. While we continue to have some of our learners enrolled in remote learning as a result of medical accommodations or logistical constraints, almost all of our learners are now attending in-person. While this has been celebrated by many stakeholders we can’t ignore that, for those with access,… Read More
WOW Wednesday – Whitmore Remote Learning Team
Every Wednesday I highlight some of our amazing MVSD staff on our social media pages. Everyday our staff are using tech in new and exciting ways, are learning new skills, and are sharing ways in which ed tech is assisting them in their practice. This week I would like to highlight the Remote Learning Team from Whitmore Elementary in Dauphin. Whitmore worked diligently to reorganize their staff to best accommodate both their face-to-face learners and their at-home learners. Their staff dedicated time to multiple PD sessions with myself, as a group, and with other divisional supports and were even able to… Read More
Follow Friday – MB Remote Learning Support Centre
Every Friday I share what I believe to be a notable person/organization/school on our social media pages to assist our staff in the development of their online Personal Learning Network. Given that much of the province of MB has started off 2021 in a Remote Learning environment I felt that it was fitting for this week’s Follow Friday post to share more about the MB Remote Learning Support Centre. While it remains a “work-in progress”, with new resources/projects/features added through January, the MB Remote Learning Support Centre has established a presence with a website and social media accounts. They currently offer: Professional… Read More
Assistive & Adaptive Technology
*This post has been written as part of my professional growth plan through my #ISTE20 scholarship. Accessibility Tools Smackdown Presenters: Karyn Fillhart & Kristin Oropeza Overview: “Karyn is a Microsoft Innovative Educator Expert, Google certified, former elementary and special education teacher and current tech trainer. Kristin is a Google certified trainer, Microsoft Innovative Educator Expert, educator and former special education teacher. Together, you get a smackdown of tools broken down by platform and area of need.” Main Takeaways Microsoft information presented by Karyn and Google information presented by Kristin (both use both platforms and will be comparing and contrasting) Enter all programming design… Read More
Laptop Loans in MVSD
In response to the Covid-19 pandemic, and the need for at-home learning, MVSD piloted a laptop loan program in the spring of 2020. Given that MVSD is not a 1:to:1 school division, and we have not explored device loaning before, this was a big undertaking for us. Luckily, there are many great examples across the province from other school divisions who have offered programs like this for many years. Through my contacts at MAETL and ManACE I was able to work with our ICT and Programs & Planning teams to help craft a program that worked for our division. Since… Read More
#WOWWednesday – Wendy Oversby
Every Wednesday I highlight some of our amazing MVSD staff on our social media pages. Everyday our staff are using tech in new and exciting ways, are learning new skills, and are sharing ways in which ed tech is assisting them in their practice. This week I would like to highlight Wendy Oversby from Ochre River School (ORS). Earlier in the fall the staff at ORS began discussing how best to organize and deliver their Remembrance Day Service as the school-provided service is the only one available in the community. Due to Covid restrictions that prevented any type of gathering or… Read More