Stacey J. Flannery

21st Century Skills Learning in Today’s Classroom Stacey J. Flannery

Solution Fluency “Whole-brain thinking, creativity & problem solving applied in real time” This is problem solving based thinking in which students need to actively create a solution. • Define the Problem • Create an appropriate solution • Apply the Solution • Evaluate and Reflect on the process & outcome (Jukes, Page 65)

Real Life Living Students are given a real job, real families, real bills, and real life situations. They need to plan for the month and determine how they will spend their monthly income while being prepared for unexpected situations that may arise. They will be given possible solutions, but in the end they need to choose the one they think is best for their personal situation. If they go spend more than their given income they fail. They will then need to go back and reflect on what decisions they would change and why. We will do this real life project three times so they are given different situations they may find themselves in later in their own life.

Information Fluency • Access digital information by using a variety of sources and know when to use each one. • Cell phones, iPads, computers, etc. 2. Effectively assess the information. Students not only need to be able to get the information, but be able to use it. The information students retrieve needs to verify and support the specific information they needed. (Jukes, Page 65)

President Project Students are introduced to all of the presidents with just a couple fun facts about each. Students then need to choose a president they would like to research for this project. They will need to write a paragraph in their journal about why they chose the president they did. Students are required to use at least 3 different types of resources to find their information. They may use dictionaries, books, the internet, movies, biographies, etc. They must have at least 15 details about their president of choice. They are also required to have at least 3 images that reflect their president. After a few days of researching time, students will then put together their research in one of the following presentation methods: Power Point, Voice Thread, or create a book online or on paper. They will then present their president to the class. After all presentations students will be asked to write 1 fact about each president.

Collaboration Fluency Students work together face to face and digitally to create original works in an online environment. Collaboration is a virtual interaction that has meant the “death of distance”. This may be done with the use of social networks and gaming domains. (Jukes, Page 66)

Book Reviews Students will use our class blog site to do book reviews on novels they have read outside of class. This is a great place for them to collaborate and discuss books. Students are required to make a blog post after every novel they complete. They are also required to read at least three classmates posts and comment on each. I am using this blog to help my kids find a pleasure in reading and sharing about what they are reading, and so they will also see that there are others who enjoy the same books as them, and it may not be their best friends. As the teacher, I too participate in this and share books I am reading or have read that I feel my students may relate to.

Creativity Fluency Students apply Creativity Fluency through: *Design *Art *Story Telling *Imagination (Jukes, Page 66)

Imagination Students are given a day to find a picture and song/sound that they feel they can write an imagination story about. Students can get the pictures from the internet, magazines, postcards, posters, etc. They may get their sounds from the internet, cd’s/tapes they own, or they can create the song/music themselves. Students will write a story using their imagination. The only criteria for the story is that it needs to include at least two characters, have a setting, plot, problem, and solution, as well as incorporate the image and sound of their choice. I chose to only have these few guidelines so that students are using their creativity, imagination, and digital resources. They may choose to tell the story in three ways; speech, video, or sound track. I will introduce video-makers, Voice Thread, as well as other tools that they may want to use for this project (Power Point, slideshow, etc.) Presentations will be done in class and then all students will be required to comment or reflect on their own presentation, as well as on 5 other students.

Media Fluency Students read information and interpret the meaning of the text, the influence the text may have on the reader, and determine how the information should be applied. Using the appropriate media for their audiences, students can create and publish their self works digitally. (Jukes, Page 66-67)

Blogging Students were asked to create a blog. I introduced blogger.com, kidblog.org, and presented my blogs to the class. I explained to students that our blog would be used to share journaling experiences and personal writings during this school year. Students were also informed that I too will blog about my life as well. Sometimes I post about my weekends, vacations, life experiences, or just writings I have done. I asked students to use their blog as a communication connection with their classmates and myself. I give them time to visit our classroom blog and personal blogs at least twice a week. Students love visiting their friends blogs and commenting on them. I ask that students also blog about things they have seen on the news, in papers, magazines, or just heard. It gives us great discussion topics for current events.

Digital Citizen A digital citizen uses the following guiding principles of: Leadership Ethics Accountability Fiscal Responsibility Environmental Awareness Global Citizenship Personal Responsibility Students portray themselves to others in a truthful way that reflects their true personality. Students are aware of others who may not be truthful and understand the safety concerns. (Jukes, Page 67)

Personal Biography Students were taught about biographies and the details needed to write one. In this lesson students were to journal about themselves and write a personal biography. We used these biography’s for our online blogs. Students gained a greater comprehension of the importance of truthfulness and how to share personal information in a safe way. Students then wrote biographies about a fellow classmate, it was amazing to see the facts and details they learned about one another. It was also nice to see/hear them show their understanding of what information does not need to be shared with others in cyber-world. Many students decided to use their personal biography on their Facebook, blogs, and other websites. At the end of the year I am having them write another biography, we will then compare any changes they’ve made personally in their lives.

Works Cited 1. Jukes, Ian, Ted D. E. McCain, and Lee Crockett. "A Shift to Whole-Mind Instruction." Understanding the digital generation: teaching and learning in the new digital landscape. Kelowna, BC: 21st Century Fluency Project ;, 2010. 56-78. Print. 2. Google Images

Stacey J. Flannery