I teach 5th and 6th grade STEM in the lovely Pacific Northwest in a small, rural town called Chimacum. My goal is to help students discover that all learning is life-long and that 21st century tools can be used for work as well as fun.
Nov 27
Another great activity I started this year with only requires beakers, crayons, water, and salt! Spoons help, too. If you Google Floating Crayons you’ll find more ideas, resources, and even YouTube videos. For this activity, Crayola crayons are the best. I don’t normally endorse products but cheaper crayon brands float in fresh water and that …
Permanent link to this article: https://educatoral.com/wordpress/2022/11/27/do-crayons-float/
Nov 26
In 2004 I was part of the North Cascades and Olympic Science Partnership (NCOSP). Of all the amazing activities we did in the years that I participated in NCOSP there is one activity that I am still doing with students 18 years later. The activity, also known as inference cubes, is a fantastic way to …
Permanent link to this article: https://educatoral.com/wordpress/2022/11/26/observation-or-inference/
Nov 22
We always start school with students on the day after Labor Day so this year our first day with students was Tuesday, September, 6. I wanted to start with a bang on the first day so I decided to have students experiment with making slime! It was a hit! Day 1 Students started by all …
Permanent link to this article: https://educatoral.com/wordpress/2022/11/22/great-day-1-activity/
Aug 05
I am honored to have been chosen as the 2022 award recipient for the Northwest, Region 10, of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Presidential Innovation Award for Environmental Educators or PIAEE! The award winners were mentioned on the EPA’s websites and social media on July 1 and the awards ceremony happened in Washington DC on …
Permanent link to this article: https://educatoral.com/wordpress/2022/08/05/the-epas-presidential-award-for-environmental-educators/
Aug 01
I wrote about struggles I’ve always had with reading before, but I’ve never really reflected on my struggles with Math. Reading is more prevalent so I face my struggles on a daily basis. My struggles with Math are not as obvious, especially because the types of Math I use daily are Maths I can do …
Permanent link to this article: https://educatoral.com/wordpress/2022/08/01/best-math-combo-ever/
Jul 24
I was very fortunate to have been invited to speak in an esports panel for this year’s Serious Play 2022 Conference by Educational Consultant and Games in Learning Adviser Bron Stuckey (@BronSt). Luckily, I had to pre-recorded my intro and my responses to some questions and send them to Bron because now I have those …
Permanent link to this article: https://educatoral.com/wordpress/2022/07/24/chimacum-esports-program-explained/
Jul 11
As part of our Ocean Guardian School’s Environmental Stewardship Project, I give students a pre and post project survey. In addition to questions about their perceived understanding of the topics we cover before and after the project, I also ask questions about the project and what they liked best and least. It helps inform any …
Permanent link to this article: https://educatoral.com/wordpress/2022/07/11/reflecting-on-21-22/
Jul 05
I thought it was just me. Just my students. Then I read this EdSurge article, Students Got a Crash Course in Tech During the Pandemic. Now Some Want a Break. I had been experiencing a bit of cognitive dissonance because I envisioned more and more teachers and students using tech in school because they experienced …
Permanent link to this article: https://educatoral.com/wordpress/2022/07/05/do-your-students-have-tech-fatigue/
Jul 03
I have been learning about gamification for years. I’ve helped create a few courses to give teachers ideas on how to gamify their classes to engage their students, motivate their students, and bring some fun and joy into their classrooms. I love playing video games so gamification works for me to the point that I …
Permanent link to this article: https://educatoral.com/wordpress/2022/07/03/gamification-in-edtech-conferences-istelive-nccechat/
Jul 01
This was my setup for this year’s ISTE (International Society for Technology in Education) conference. Due to circumstances, one of them being available funds from my school district – we get about $275/yr to spend on any PD that we want and we can bank our funds for a few years – I was able …
Permanent link to this article: https://educatoral.com/wordpress/2022/07/01/is-live-better-than-virtual-istelive-nccechat/
I'm a Curipod Ambassador! :)
I've presented at NCCE
2016, 2017, 2019, 2022,
2023, 2024, and 2025!
I presented at WSTA 2015!
