After visiting with each of the teachers whose classes I visited, I came away from those meetings with a great feeling. Each conversation was very organic in how it started, and each one took on a life of its own, no teacher said the same thing, and each one had tried something different. Each teacher was very open-minded to the idea of innovating their classes, both with and without technology, because to be innovative, one doesn't necessarily need to use technology, but it can be a useful tool.
I have asked a few teachers to write up their lesson plans from what they feel is their most innovative class, so that I can keep an archive of what we believe innovation to be according to the SAMR model. Moving into the modification and redefinition realm as much as possible. I'll post about SAMR in the future.
We are in exam week, and I am looking forward to what the spring semester holds in store for us!
Wednesday, December 17, 2014
Friday, December 12, 2014
Nutrition Bite of the Week: My Paleo Chili
My wife and I follow a paleo diet lifestyle, and for those not sure about what the paleo diet is, please see http://thepaleodiet.com/. It is a website by Dr. Loren Cordain and has great information about the paleo diet, what it is, what the principles of it are, etc. If you are inclined, his book, The Paleo Diet is also a great read (I get no monetary compensation for any of this, I am just a believer and follower of the diet). Onto the chili.....
First, the ingredients:
14 small cans 'no salt added' tomato sauce (I use Kroger store brand)
4 large cans 'no salt added' diced tomatoes (I use Kroger store brand)
3 lbs lean ground grass fed beef
5 medium sweet vidalia onions
6 green bell peppers
2 red bell peppers
2 orange bell peppers
2 yellow bell peppers
1 large carton baby portobella mushrooms
1 tbsp minced garlic
4 tbsp avocado oil
As far as my spicing goes, well, that's a family secret! I will say, I use Penzey's spices and their Medium Hot Chili Powder (it's salt free which is a plus!) in my chili. I don't add extra sodium to the chili either.
I should note, that originally being from Wisconsin, I get all of my spices from Penzey's. Love their products. (Again, I'm not monetarily compensated for this, I just really like their products, high quality)
You'll need a very large pot to put everything into. I start my base using 14 small cans of 'no salt added' tomato sauce. I then add in 4 large cans (15 oz) of 'no salt added' diced tomatoes. I then add my spice mix to this base.
I then dice the onions, cut up the mushrooms, and put them in the with ground beef and brown it. Once this is cooked, I place it in the pot with the base.
I then cut up the bell peppers and place them in a large pan and sauté them in avocado oil with the minced garlic. Once ssautéed, I place them into the large pot with everything else.
I then bring the whole thing to a boil for 5 mins and then reduce heat and simmer for at least an hour to let those spices meld together with everything.
That's my recipe for a low sodium, low fat, paleo chili!
("Pot-o-chili" by FiveRings (talk) - Own work. Licensed under CC BY 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons - http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Pot-o-chili.jpg#mediaviewer/File:Pot-o-chili.jpg)
First, the ingredients:
14 small cans 'no salt added' tomato sauce (I use Kroger store brand)
4 large cans 'no salt added' diced tomatoes (I use Kroger store brand)
3 lbs lean ground grass fed beef
5 medium sweet vidalia onions
6 green bell peppers
2 red bell peppers
2 orange bell peppers
2 yellow bell peppers
1 large carton baby portobella mushrooms
1 tbsp minced garlic
4 tbsp avocado oil
As far as my spicing goes, well, that's a family secret! I will say, I use Penzey's spices and their Medium Hot Chili Powder (it's salt free which is a plus!) in my chili. I don't add extra sodium to the chili either.
I should note, that originally being from Wisconsin, I get all of my spices from Penzey's. Love their products. (Again, I'm not monetarily compensated for this, I just really like their products, high quality)
You'll need a very large pot to put everything into. I start my base using 14 small cans of 'no salt added' tomato sauce. I then add in 4 large cans (15 oz) of 'no salt added' diced tomatoes. I then add my spice mix to this base.
I then dice the onions, cut up the mushrooms, and put them in the with ground beef and brown it. Once this is cooked, I place it in the pot with the base.
I then cut up the bell peppers and place them in a large pan and sauté them in avocado oil with the minced garlic. Once ssautéed, I place them into the large pot with everything else.
I then bring the whole thing to a boil for 5 mins and then reduce heat and simmer for at least an hour to let those spices meld together with everything.
That's my recipe for a low sodium, low fat, paleo chili!
Friday, December 5, 2014
A Day In The Life Visits
Before the Thanksgiving break, I had a great opportunity to go and spend an entire day in the life of a senior at The Oakridge School. I went from class to class just like they did. I visited 7 classes throughout the day, and let me tell you, by day's end, I was spent. It's tough being a high school student!
I learned a lot while visiting the classes. I got to see the teachers at The Oakridge School doing what they do best, teach our young men and women. It was extremely helpful to see what they were doing in each classroom, how they were conducting the lesson plan, how they were using technology, and how innovative they were.
As the Technology Integrationist, I simply went to each class and was an observer, I made no attempt to judge, or evaluate, and I wanted all of my teachers to know that. I was not there to evaluate them in any way, that's not my job! It was a great experience for me, because it gave me an understanding of what they do on a daily basis. I saw some great things happening in the classrooms.
For example, the AP Biology teacher was conducting a review session with her students, and was having them create a living review document using Google Docs! Each student logged in to their Google account and then followed the link to the page. The teacher had prompts up on the page, and each student added their own take on the prompt in the document.
I will be meeting with the teachers of the classes I observed this week, to discuss and reflect on the lesson that I saw. I am looking forward to these meetings, and will write about what I learned from the teachers!
I learned a lot while visiting the classes. I got to see the teachers at The Oakridge School doing what they do best, teach our young men and women. It was extremely helpful to see what they were doing in each classroom, how they were conducting the lesson plan, how they were using technology, and how innovative they were.
As the Technology Integrationist, I simply went to each class and was an observer, I made no attempt to judge, or evaluate, and I wanted all of my teachers to know that. I was not there to evaluate them in any way, that's not my job! It was a great experience for me, because it gave me an understanding of what they do on a daily basis. I saw some great things happening in the classrooms.
For example, the AP Biology teacher was conducting a review session with her students, and was having them create a living review document using Google Docs! Each student logged in to their Google account and then followed the link to the page. The teacher had prompts up on the page, and each student added their own take on the prompt in the document.
I will be meeting with the teachers of the classes I observed this week, to discuss and reflect on the lesson that I saw. I am looking forward to these meetings, and will write about what I learned from the teachers!
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