What will we take with us?

Last night, I watched a video exploring what technology tools we might still want to use when we are in person in the fall.  Screencastify shared this blog post ( 10 Ways to use Video for In-Person Learning).  Definitely, something to think about for next year.

Maybe a Google Slide will work

In her blog post, Alice Keeler suggests using Slides (instead of Docs) for the ability to add multimedia sources. She will help you convert the slides to portrait view.

Forms Shortcuts

Once you have master forms basic, perhaps you would like to explore adding sections (to break up the questions) as well as moving questions within a form.  Please see this blog post from Alice Keeler for keyboard shortcuts and form suggestions.

If you close a tab

But you really didn’t mean to close it!  Watch this brief video from 

Meagan RAMIREZ for the keyboard shortcuts to open it back up!

Edu Protocols (The Fast and the Curious)

When is a good time to try something new?  Some might argue never (or seldom) but I would argue this is the perfect time of the year to try something new.  Not only do students (and teachers) need a break from the routine but September is almost around the corner.  I would rather try something new now while there is still time to tweak it to meet my students' needs.

With that in mind, I’m re-reading a book I purchased last summer ( EduProtocol - Field Guide Book 1).  Don’t let the word protocol scare you.  Protocols are lessons or frames (processes, let’s say) that once you and your students learn the process (or protocol), you can substitute content to create another experience.  Think of protocols as frames- you don’t need to purchase a new frame every time you want to change the picture.

I bet there are already protocols you use in your class today. I know there were in my class- but these protocols didn’t always have the 4 Cs in mind ( Communication, Collaboration, Critical Thinking, and Creativity).

So are you ready to try an EduProtocol?  The one that caught my eye is the Fast and the Curious. This is a fast-paced method to help students learn vocabulary words. Here is an overview in slide format.  Every day the students play an online quiz ( I would suggest Quizizz) and you review and track their overall progress. Would you rather have a video description? Here are more Wakelet resources (EduProtocols Wakelet,  Fast and Curious Wakelet )

I would love to try this with you and your students- just reach out to me.

Brain Dumps

In a recent blog post from the Infused Classroom, Holly Clark mentioned BrainDumps as a formative assessment.  So how does it work? Here are the basic steps:

1. Give students 5 minutes to write down (either on paper or online) everything they know about a specific topic.

2. Students then partner for 5 minutes to review/share lists and add material.

3. Students then have 5 minutes to research (books, Google, class notes) to add to their list.

4. Students (now without their notes) make a two-minute recording sharing what they know. (In Holly’s post, she suggested FlipGrid- I would suggest Screencastify Submit).

5. Students watch other videos and the teacher used the videos as a formative assessment to identify areas for growth.

Here is another example of Brain Dumps as a prior knowledge activity. In the blog post DOING A STUDENT BRAIN DUMP SCOOT, Lori Gracey outlines using paper and student movement (aka scoot) to have students add information to lists.

Looking to use Comics in your classroom?

Here is a blog post from TeachersFrist and student voice and comics. Written by Dr. Ruth Okoye, it contains several suggestions to incorporate cartoons/comics into your classroom.

Editorial cartoons for today

Cartoons in the Classroom provides weekly lessons geared to current events.  This site would be best for older (grades 6-12) students.  From lessons to blank cartoons,  this site also includes previous lessons.  It was recently reviewed by Teachers First here.

Geology goes to the comics

At  One Geology Kids (ideal for grades 1-5), students can select a character to learn all about the earth.  Please see the recent review in TeachersFirst here.

Making economics FUN (grades 6-12)

Image from https://www.newyorkfed.org/outreach-and-education/comic-books

The Federal Reserve Bank of NY has shared a series of comics (and related activities) to help students with the finance basics.  There is a recorded webinar on the site as well. You can find a review of the site here on TeachersFirst.

Becoming a Master

Slide Master that is!  This series of short videos from Sarah Kiefer will walk you through the basics. I included the introduction one above to get you started.

End of the year activities from PBS

This link from PBS includes a wide variety of end-of-the-year activities.  The first few pages are geared to young learners but keep scrolling for secondary resources. Download your kit now!

Pile of Words

In a webinar this morning, the presenter shared this strategy for engaging students in vocabulary building.  Students (working in groups) identify unknown words from an upcoming lesson, find definitions and then sort the words.  The last step is predictive- what is the topic of the lesson?  While you could do this in Kami, Jamboard - the sample here is done in slides. Please watch the video for the directions.

Slides, Drawings, or Jamboard?

Jen Hall recently presented at a Google Educator Group and shared this presentation on slides, drawings, or Jamboard.  As she says, it depends on the goal- what do you want students to do?  This blog post includes an informative video as well as an infographic to help you make your choice.

Canva and Online Whiteboards

If you are looking for a background for Kami or Jamboard, consider the Online Whiteboard templates in Canva.  You can search for Online Whiteboards and see a variety of premade samples.  Simply download the template and open in Kami or add it as an image in Jamboard.

It's all in the numbers (and bullet points)

Alice Keeler shared this video all about numbered lists and bullets.  (Just a hint- the Tab and SHIFT key are important).  Please see her post here.

Pushing slides to students.

If you have used digital notebooks, you know how trying it can be to have your students add new slides.  It is also frustrating to have to complete the entire notebook before you share it.  Please see this video from CottenTechCoach with her suggestion of linked slides.

If you are interested in choice boards…

TeachersFirst is sharing their archived (aka recorded) session on choice boards and differentiation.  It is reviewed here.  You will need to register.  You will get an email link to watch the session.  TeachersFirst does not provide certificates for recorded sessions. I have attended several of their live sessions (and recently completed an online book club).  Their sessions are high quality and provide hands-on practice.

Jamboard Overview

If you haven’t used Jamboard yet, this brief overview of the top five features would get you started.  Please see the blog post by Alice Keeler here.

Math Reps

You might know this practice as spiral or distributed learning.  It offers additional practice to help students strengthen core skills. Think of it as an entrance ticket. While researching Edu Protocols (more on that in a future post), I came across this brief video from Stephanie Howell as well as Wakelet of resources.  There is also a Facebook group.

Writing objectives

The Differentiator was recently reviewed by TeachersFirst.  It might help stretch your ideas when writing objectives.  Please see the review here.

Memorial Day

Looking for Memorial Day resources?  Check out this special topics page from TeachersFirst.

A Wakelet for all shortcuts

Somewhere in my travels, I came across this Chrome Shortcut collection from Sarah Kiefer.  My goal is to learn one new one each week- maybe this is something that would work for your students.  Think how much time it could save!

The best math whiteboard ever!

 Math Whiteboard is a free collaborative whiteboard. Graphing will never be the same!  You can even embed videos on the page- and I love that everything (the math, drawing, text, and the graph) is all on one screen. There are even sliders where you can change the values and watch the graph change.

 

While you cannot assign them to students, like slides, you can have multiple pages and have each student work on their own page (and the teacher can see all the work).  There is no turn-in function. 

 

I watched the recording from Eric Curts recently. While the demo is done with a touch screen, you can also type (see the onscreen keyboard at about 41 mins).

 

Here were my highlights:

• creates graphs and then provides a slider to change the values. (8 mins)  

• creates animations (related rates problem at 11 mins.)

• equivalent features would help students in solving problems (things that are equivalent appear in the same color- from fractions to steps in solving an equation. I think this could be a great homework tool). (25 min)

 

I’m sure those with math talents will see many more applications. Special thanks to Lauren Buonpane and Mary Kruh for test driving this site and sharing their feedback.

Creating Badges in Google Drawings

Alice Keeler recently shared straightforward step-by-step directions to create badges in Google Drawings.  Even if you are not gaming in your classes, personal images would be great for student awards and feedback.  Please see her post here.

The People Behind the Science

In the Franklin Institute's Case Files, your students can explore the people behind many scientific advances.  Click on your favorite for biographic information.  This site was recently reviewed by TeachersFirst here.

Looking for STEAM Resources?

 If you are looking for STEAM resources, check out this MIT site recently reviewed in TeachersFirst.    The weekly package has a series of lessons- I really liked how they are broken down by grade level.

What high school students want

Based on a recent survey, here’s what high school students are looking for during this pandemic.

Teaching a life skill

How about learning a shortcut a week?  Alice Keeler has some great suggestions for getting started in her blog post here.

Games versus Gamification

Two terms that I hear tossed about- but are they really different?  Check out this article by Hubert Ham to help identify these concepts.  There are also links to resources.

Formative Assessment Ideas

In this article by Catlin Tucker, she shares a variety of strategies for formative assessment.  It is not just a paper (or online) test but activities to help you gauge the student's learning and understanding.