Wednesday, November 18, 2009

Cornell Notes Revisited

I wanted to share a powerpoint resource that was shared with me recently. It is a great discussion of Cornell notes and took my understanding to a higher level re: how we might use them more effectively as thinking tool as well as an organizational tool. This "expanded view" could facilitate the use of higher level thinking, higher level questioning, thinking maps, diagrams and other visual resources in addtion to the text we typically incorporate in note taking.



Take a moment and look at the powerpoint attached below. I would be interested in any thoughts, comments etc. that you have.



http://www.sdcoe.k12.ca.us/lret/avid/resources/Cornell_Notes-presentation.ppt


Thanks!
Becky

Monday, November 9, 2009

So much information, so little time..

Every time I go to a workshop or conference, I can pretty much count on the presenter or others at the event commenting "Have you read... ? or "In _____'s book _______ there's a great discussion of _________. or "_______ is a great resource for______." - not to mention the everpresent - "In my new book ________, coming out in ________..."

... and as much as I would like to read each and every one of those books ( I currently have post-its in at least 3 or 4) , who's got the time? or for that matter the money to purchase all of them?



The following may be a partial solution:

On the BOCES website (http://www.ocmboces.org/) Click on Instructional Support Services and you will find information on how to access the ASCD Collection of books.

(http://www.ocmboces.org/teacherpage.cfm?teacher=987) Once on this page it is worth it to listen to the 2 minutes of instruction ( Just Click! )to understand how to access either entire books or only topic related resources.

I find the topic related resources invaluable as they allow me to access what I want to know without having to read or skim through multiple texts. I can find out what several researchers have to say about a topic without having to read the whole book. Topics such as formative assessment, differentiating instruction, classroom management and curriculum design are addressed by researchers that include Carol Tomlinson, Robert Marzano, Grant Wiggins, Jay McTighe and Doug Reeves among others. These resources are up to date, and by best practice authors, so I know that what I am reading will be consistent with our goals as a district.

The list of books available is by no means exhaustive, but certainly represents a good cross section of what's current and available.

Check out http://www.gale.cengage.com/pdf/facts/GML13209GVRL_ASCD_Bundle.pdf for a quick description of the books available.

A final note - ASCD is a great organization with a focus on programs and literature for professional development. We do have a local chapter here and all are encouraged to join and participate. Our next event will be a "Technology Fair" where participating districts will show off what teachers are doing with technology. At this time this event is scheduled for January 20, 2010 at West Genessee High School. If you would like more information, please let me know.



Happy reading.
Becky