Blog Post 12

“…never get too comfortable, change is good and ultimately it makes us better teachers.” I absolutely love the way that Mr. McClung has once again risen to the occasion. He sees the need, makes the necessary adjustments and continues to excel. I believe that flexibility is definitely a required attribute for personal success. As a future educator, I appreciate Mr. McClung’s transparency. He shares his educational journey as a teacher and is not afraid to share his mistakes and/or accomplishments. Below you will find the following nuggets of information that I have taken from Mr. McClung’s second year reflection. I definitely believe that his second year blog post has a great amount of depth. Through his experiences, Mr. McClung continues to excel as an educator. To read more about his journey, click on the following link: Mr. McClung's Second Year Experience

Notable Nuggets For Future Educators:
1. Teach students to be independent thinkers
2. Find a school mom (develop a relationship with someone who knows the school
routine and allow them to mentor you)
3. A teacher is essentially a salesman who has to sell what their teaching to
the students; do whatever it takes to teach the curriculum
4. Don’t be a control freak, allow students to take ownership for their own
classroom experience
5. Bring your BEST effort to your students, in spite of workplace adversity

M-Cubed: ISTE Presentation Video Responses



I really enjoyed learning about digital fabrication through the eyes of these young students. Digital fabrication enables student to create and design images through the use of 2-D and 3-D fabricators. Studies show that many students suffer greatly in the areas of math and science. However, through the development of fabrication laboratories in schools across the country, students are now able to construct and design 2-D and 3-D manipulatives, both a science and math concept.

This technological advancement allows students to become comfortable building upon their background knowledge of math and science in an enjoyable environment. In a previous post, I quoted Paush as saying, “the best way to teach someone something is to have them think they’re learning something else.” These children are learning incredibly complex mathematical concepts and taking risks that they wouldn’t ordinarily take in a “traditional” classroom. The look of anticipation and excitement on the face of these students is timeless. How often do you see children actively engaged in learning and largely in control of their own learning experience?

I would love to use these fabricators in my classroom, but I would definitely need to explore the process. I think for me, I’ve taken away from these videos that children love to be in control of their own learning, and given the opportunity, they will excel our expectations. Therefore, set reasonable boundaries and allow students the freedom they need to learn and develop. I definitely see engineers in the making!

Links to Explore
The Classroom Fabrication Laboratory (FabLab)
The Principle of Least Change
Digital Fabrication: Through the Eyes of a Five-Year-Old Boy