Great to have the fourth grade distance learning students in the building to make pillows. Although this is a third grade tradition at Gomm, they missed it last spring because of Covid. So we spent the morning offline, in person, to make pillows and reacquaint ourselves with the playground.
Author: Aaron Grossman
I am a 5th grade teacher at Roy Gomm Elementary in Reno, Nevada. I started working with elementary students as part of the Montana Reads program and AmeriCorps. In 2001, after graduating from the University of Montana and moving to Reno, Nevada, I student taught at Rita Cannan Elementary before receiving a 6th grade position at Veterans Elementary. I moved out of the classroom to be a Literacy Coordinator, then an Instructional Coach, and finally a School Improvement Program Coordinator. In 2011, I began working on the Nevada Academic Content Standards in the district’s Curriculum & Instruction Department. I returned to the classroom for the 2015-2016 school year to teach 4th grade at Huffaker Elementary.
Before returning to the classroom, I helped develop the Core Task Project that has been featured by National Public Radio, the Gates Foundation, American Radio Works, Eduwonk, the Fordham Institute, Vox, and the Center for American Progress. In 2014, I received the Leader to Learn From Award for my teacher-centered initiative and work to bring college, career, and civics ready outcomes into Northern Nevada classrooms (here).
In 2015, I was appointed by Governor Sandoval serve on the Statewide RPDP Council. The same year, Nevada’s State Superintendent of Public Instruction Steve Canavero placed me on the state’s State Improvement Team. This year I will be part of the National Council on Teacher Quality’s Teacher Advisory Group. I am Google Certified Educator and a Nevada Teacher Ambassador.
I believe strongly that teaching content is teaching reading and I make sure my students have ample opportunities to work with social studies, history, science and art outcomes. I do what I can to blend the learning for my students and this blog is part of that effort. You can contact me at coretaskproject@gmail.com
Art in the Classroom!
A post describing an art lesson shouldn’t be that interesting. Instead, it is. This is because it was the first time, all year, that I have had an opportunity to teach in person to my distance learning students. It was great to see them and their final pieces turned out great.
Our Learning Before Break
It is pretty astonishing what the students can do online. With Zoom’s breakout rooms, Classkick, and the student’s attention to digital citizenship, we are able to create blended experiences that allow for a lot of learning. We even got a visit from Trustee Thigpen and our Area Superintendent, Jeanna Curtis.
Spreading Kindness
Local artist, Emily Reid, visited the classroom today and the led the students in a card making activity. The theme of the activity was kindness and Ms. Reid helped students create cards with their own unique and artistic flare. Thank you Ms. Reid for donating your time and sharing a terrific lesson with the students….
Charging Ahead with DL
Describing what the students are able to do online is difficult, but here is my best shot at it. We have managed to keep or exceed the district pace in ELA and math. This is not insignificant, especially with a lot of the learning being done offline, while I meeting with small groups or conferring….
Engineering Through a Screen
This week we made JetToys. Using materials supplied by Tesla, students constructed vehicles powered by balloons. Over the next couple of weeks, they will use their vehicles to learn more about force and motion.
December Distance Learning
One of the most remarkable pieces our distance learning experience, is that we are keeping pace with our brick-and-mortar peers. This has only been possible because of the hard work of the students. Below, examples of what we have been up to.
Holiday Celebration 2020
Although we had to do it from a distance, the students still got to celebrate. Thanks to our parent volunteers and a middle school sibling, we got to complete a scavenger hunt, make a holiday craft, and share gifts via Secret Santa. Thanks to all those involved in making the day feel special.
Highlights from November 2020
We certainly found a groove with distance learning, with the images below supplying the evidence. We continue to explore what is possible in this format, and I am so appreciative of the students and families for their willingness to be part of this effort.
Halloween, and a Week of Learning
Thank you the parents and siblings who helped put together a pretty terrific Distance Learning Halloween experience. The Halloween celebration came at the end of a unit of learning that had some students moving from multi-digit multiplication to multi-digit division and other students learning to multiply fractions. We continued to write multi-paragraph papers and we…
