C4T #1

For my first C4T assignment, I was assigned to Nicholas Provenzano otherwise known as the The Nerdy Teacher. His blog is full of his thoughts on what is like to be a teacher and how he aims to improve his classroom. He gives helpful advice to new, present, and veteran teachers. The first post I commented on was First Day Reflections. In this post, Provenzano summarizes how his first day went from the perspective of the teacher. He sets it up as a pro vs con and elaborates on what he says. One of my favorite parts of his post was reading about the Marshmallow challenge. He had his students construct shapes and objects out of marshmallows. You can see pictures by searching the hashtags #MRPAL and #MRPFROSH. My comment I left on his post addressed how I enjoyed the way he utilized pro vs con and complimented him on the Marshmallow challenge. I thought that was a innovative ice breaker that not only broke the ice, but was a fun way to start the year off.

The second post I commented on was #NerdySpaces Reflections #EdChat #Learning Spaces."I'm constantly thinking about my learning environment right now," Provenzano writes. In this post, Provenzano writes about the setup of his classroom. He shares that his students, however, have mixed feelings towards the new setup. Some say they feel as if they're at a conference meeting and others don't like the fact they aren't facing the front of the classroom. He mentions wanted to get away from the concept of "the front of the room" by rearranging the desk. He gives a shout out to a group called VS. They sent him this awesome chair named Hokki and at first glance it looks like a funky stool. If you want to find out more you can either visit Provenzano's post or check out VS's website VS | School Furniture and Office Furniture. In my comment, I agreed with Provenzano about how the set up of a classroom can really affect the learning environment. I highly suggest checking out Provenzano's NerdyCast on Youtube.

For more information about Nicholas Provenzano, check out these following links:
Blog: The Nerdy Teacher
Twitter: @mrprovenzano or @thenerdyteacher
Facebook: One Nerdy Teacher
Youtube: NerdyCast
Email: onenerdyteacher@gmail.com