La Grande JAM

FINAL VISION PROJECT PART 1 For my final vision project for LIBE477C, I have decided to focus on the importance of inquiry based learning for the 21st century learner.  I have always been interested in this topic and this year, I implemented for the first time a year long inquiry using the Genius Hour framework in a Sciences humaines 11 (SS11) class.  The experience was challenging yet rewarding in the end for both my students and for me.  For this reason, and in the spirit of sharing (Richardson, 2012), I have decided to apply to be a workshop presenter at this year's BCSSTA PSA Conference.  I would like to share my experience and expertise (albeit minimal) with other social studies teachers and in particular, help out other French Immersion teachers who struggle to access resources and/or workshops in French. (NB. Applications are due July 15, 2018 and presenters will be selected shortly after this date!) I have divided the post in two sections.  The f...

(Source:  françaispourl'avenir.org 2014) Let's make something very clear:  it is very unlikely that as a French Immersion teacher, I will foster an intrinsic joy of reading in French in my students.  My best hope is that I can get them reading and not complaining too much about it.  Let me explain... (Source:  Journal Le Reflet Témiscamien ) I am a native French Canadian from northern Ontario.  I spoke only French until I was 5 and once I started watching Sesame Street, Polka Dot Door & Mr. Dressup , as well as playing with the kids on my street, I learned to speak English.  I attended a francophone school my whole life and even attended a French language university where I studied in both languages.  I am fluently bilingual.  In my teens, I started learning Spanish and continued to learn my third language in university and also did an intensive study abroad program in Mexico.  I have a very functional Spanish.  I als...

Learning is messy... Last week, I identified some areas of interest for my independent study for LIBE477.  I had way too many ideas and needed more time to focus my topic.  After much reflection on what would be the most relevant, practical and engaging topic/issue, I have decided to focus my research on the following question: "How can I engage students in powerful learning  that is also fun and interesting?" This overarching question then led to the following secondary questions: How can I effectively engage students with inquiry based learning (IBL) through the Genius Hour project in Social Studies? What technologies would facilitate this kind of learning? What is useful? How can IBL/Genius Hour help connect learners with other learners & experts? How can I deepen student learning through questioning?  How manageable is IBL in today's context? With these questions guiding me, I am better able to organize my thoughts and research, so here we ...