Many people began the school year hopeful that their special ideas for the classroom were going to be funded by grants through Donors Choose and Chevron. There are a large number of classrooms that benefited tremendously from this grant. The Canyons Education Foundation also has generously supported many teacher-driven innovations as well. Due to funding limitations, there are also some grants that have not received the support teachers were hoping to have. We want to let teachers and schools know that hope is not lost . There are still ways to apply for funding. Check out this video podcast that discusses some things you can do! Find out more on our Grants page. Thanks to Katie Dewey, Danae Reff, and Jared Ward for the creation of this video podcast! |
Apple makes the best presentation software for the computer called Keynote. It is like PowerPoint but better. Keynote is PowerPoint on drugs. It has better animations then PPT. Better transition also. Now Apple has taken their premier software and made it for the iPad. Keynote is available for the iPad for only $9.99 and is cheaper is the school buys more than 20 copies. Keynote on the iPad is so easy to use because everything is just a tap away from creation. Just add slides from the plus sign in the navigation column. There a several different types of slides to choose from. Then start adding your content. Pictures are easy to add to slides just by tapping on the placeholder or by tapping on the insert button. You can also add charts, tables and shapes. Transitions and animations are as simple as selecting the object you want to animate or the slide. Apple even created a Keynote presentation showing you how to do everything in the iPad version of Keynote. It is the first Keynote that is there when you open the app. There is so much more that you can do with Keynote that you will want to make an appointment with your Ed Tech to teach you more about it. Ross UEA weekend: Imagine camping off the beaten path at the rustic (no showers) and very beautiful Rio Mesa Center created by the University of Utah - near Moab, Utah. Rio Mesa is dedicated to enhancing the teaching experience of K-12 educators. (The new center facilities - with showers - should be open next year.) The weather was clear and cold and warm. It was 30 degrees at night and 85 in the day! Educators from across the state met here to study ants! We learned how to integrate GPS devices, data collection in Excel spreadsheets, pictures in drop box and bring it all together on one map in ArcGIS online. Sweet! The project was lead by Pat Lambrose and more information can be found online at the Cmapk12.wikispace. Check out our finished product! Click on the interactive map below to see the detailed data and even find pictures of individual ant colonies. So this brings me to the second part of what I learned. I took my iPad and gave a quick explanation using Explain Everything. This app is an easy-to-use design tool that lets you annotate, animate, and narrate explanations. What I love about it is this: you could hand your iPad to a student and ask them to explain a math problem, a language arts concept, a science theory or experiment. You name it, kids can demonstrate their mastery beautifully and creatively. You can share it in so many ways. Project it to the class on your Apple TV or share it on YouTube, in an e-mail, in dropbox, or Evernote. Is there a better way to demonstrate mastery than teaching someone else all about it? Try it with your students! Colleen Bliss I have recently been asked by teachers how to integrate Reading Street into their iPads. I have explored all sorts of tools that allow flash content, but have selected the Photon app for most of them. It seems to work well with the Reading Street videos. Photon is a browser app, much like safari. It streams flash content, and so far, I've been pleased with the speed at which it downloads to the iPad. The teachers have expressed many positive comments about it, too. That's the real test, isn't it? To get the photon app, go to https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/photon-flash-video-player/id430200224?mt=8. Post published by Sallie Warnecke My teammate Camille and I were recently invited to present to a group of American History teachers in the Alpine School District. We were asked to share with them ways in which social media can enhance their history curriculum. We were excited for the opportunity to share some social media tools with them, and I am excited to now be able to share our ideas with you! Social media includes web- and mobile-based technologies to support interactive dialogue and communication between organizations, communities, and individuals. (Wikipedia) The ways in which students communicate and learn are changing because of social media tools. The classroom is no longer limited by four walls. Social media expands possibilities for teaching and learning. What is social media? This movie by Common Craft gives a great analogy that explains social media and its benefits: Following are some ideas for using social media tools like Twitter, Facebook, Weebly, and Blogs to bring your Social Studies classroom to life! Poll Everywhere Poll everywhere is a website that allows teachers to create instant polls that their students may respond to via text or via the web. This is a great way for teachers to check for understanding. Polls on Poll Everywhere also make great exit tickets. My favorite part of the site is that the results are shown in a live feed that you can display for your class to see.
What is Facebook? Watch the follow Common Craft videos to find out:
What is Twitter? Watch the following Common Craft movie to find out: There are a lot of ways Twitter can be used in the Classroom:
Twhistory is a site that helps teachers create a Twitter feed recreation of an historical event. Students can research events using primary sources, then Tweet about the event as if they were a person experiencing the event first-hand. Click on the links below for more information and to see examples of Twhistory recreations:
Blogs What are blogs? Watch the following Common Craft movie to find out: Using blogs in the classroom can engage students in writing, analysis, and discussion in any subject area. Some blogging sites teachers can use with their students include:
Weebly What is Weebly? Weebly is an online WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) website creation site. Visit the following links to learn more: Weebly is a great way for teachers and students to build educational websites.
Revolutionizing Industry: Henry Ford's Moving Assembly Line Marching for Civil Rights Weebly Country Reports - Spain
YouTube What is YouTube? "YouTube is a video-sharing website on which users can upload, share, and view videos." (Wikipedia) YouTube is another great classroom resource. Teachers can find video clips that fit their curriculum on YouTube or any number of other video-sharing sites, like YouTube for Schools or Teacher Tube. Some school districts block YouTube, making it difficult for teachers to share content they find. Dowload Helper is a Firefox browser add-on that can help teachers download copies of movies at home to later be played in class. Be careful to follow all copyright laws when using Download Helper. Many YouTube channels have been created specifically for use in the Social Studies classroom. Some of my favorites are re-mixed music videos in which popular songs have been spoofed to include history-themed lyrics. For example: Students can also use YouTube to share movies they create themselves. For example:
There are countless social media tools available to help students create their own music videos, movies, and presentations. For example: I have listed just a handful of social media tools that can be used in the Social Studies classroom. For an even larger list of online tools and articles about using social media in the classroom, visit our "Bringing Social Studies to Life with Social Media" website. I would love to hear ways you are using social media in your classroom, so be sure to comment on this post and share the great things you are doing! Posted by Katie Blunt
Cell Phones in the Classroom? Really? Yes! Today it seems like everyone has a cell phone. Students as young as kindergarten come to school carrying cell phones. So, what is a teacher to do? Tell students to turn off their phones and stow them away in their backpacks? Reprimand students who are using their phones during class? In the book, Toys to Tools, author Liz Kolb says, "Cell phones are not just toys; rather, they're essential tools students use to communicate with the world around them." Cell phones can be used to enhance instruction. Secretary of State, Arne Duncan would like to see cell phones being used as an educational tool. Check out this video where Duncan says "yes" to cell phones in the classroom. Concerns About Using Cell Phones in the Classroom Many teachers, administrators and parents have concerns about cell phone use and believe that cell phones will be a distraction. Questions have been asked such as; “What about students who don’t have cell phones?” “Will students be more inclined to cheat on tests?” Kipp Rogers, principal at Passage Middle School, has changed his AUP (Acceptable Use Policy) to allow cell phone use in classroom learning. He said, "For the most part, the kids respect the rules. I never had any problems with kids using them inappropriately in my class. We spent a lot of time talking about their digital footprint and that what they do can be tracked.” He said he initially worried about "the haves and have nots," but students work in teams for most assignments requiring cell phones, so there is always at least one phone among the group. It is important that if choosing to use cell phones in the classroom that rules and consequences are set up. Like Passage Middle School, create an AUP specifically for cell phone use for students and parents to sign. Set up cell phone procedures in the classroom. For example, where should the phones be when not being used? 5 Tips to Get You Started
Create a social contract for cell phone use with school assignments, and include the students in the process. Have students brainstorm what that rules should be for the class, and narrow their ideas down to 5 rules. Let the students know that you will be adding these rules and consequences to a permission form that will be sent home to have parents and the students sign. Once the rules have been established, ask students what the consequences should be if one of the rules is broken. One consequence should NOT be taking away the tool, but concentrating on the action. 4. Start with OPTIONAL homework/EC projects outside of classroom. As students to complete these types of assignments so you can learn from the experience and make the necessary changes. Get student feedback about the experience. Use that feedback to plan future lessons. 5. Start with what YOU are comfortable with. There is SO much that you can do with cell phones in the classroom, but DON’T overwhelm yourself. As time goes on, you will become more and more comfortable with trying new things with cell phones. Be patient! Links and Lesson Ideas Students can create mobile podcasts using:
QR Codes are bar codes for cell phones. Teachers can create QR codes using websites such as Kaywa and ZxingProject. Once the codes are created students can take a picture of the QR code and receive information on their phone. The information could appear as text, a URL, picture or video. Here are some examples of how teachers have used QR codes in their classrooms:
Mobile Blogging
--Posted by Camille Cole Many teachers in Canyons School District are focusing on flipping their classroom from the traditional educational model to the flipped classroom model. The flipped classroom uses educational technology to influence the students learning environment. The flipped classroom model also provides the opportunity for students to learn through activity, which also influences the learning environment. Teachers are creating 5-7 minute videos for students to view at home, or in school if a student does not have Internet access at home. Class time is spent doing interactive activities to illustrate the concepts learned from watching the video. The ShowMe Interactive Whiteboard app is a great tool to use to create a learning video. Students can also use this app to gather and record data. The app works just like a whiteboard and as a lesson is created, it can be recorded and then posted into a class blog or website. I have been working with a 5th grade teacher at Sandy Elementary who is recording lessons for her students to view in math, which is posted in her classroom blog. The ShowMe video is called: Algebra Variables and Expressions. Tricia Ellison has done a fantastic job of implementing the "flipped classroom" model into her current teaching style. PJG We are learning a lot about the deployment of iOS devices in the district right now. We are learning that it is not a simple process yet. We are using the Apple Configurator tool to set up iPod and iPad labs in many schools. Our experience has not been consistent from school to school and that has added to our learning curve and frustration, but we are still learning. When everything does come together and work, we get to see scenes like these in our buildings. Look at both of these images and look for any off-task behavior. None. The students were working math problems on the devices and totally engrossed in it. Everyone of them worked through at least 20 problems in 25 minutes. They were set at a pretty easy level, so they all did pretty well, but even the ones who were struggling with the math were engrossed in the process on the iPads.
The hardest part was have to have them put them back in the cart so they could be used by other classes. Both classes I worked with today groaned and I took that as a very good sign. What I wouldn't give to be able to put one of these devices in every student's hands everyday!
If you have a dream of having more technology in your classroom this is a great place to start. Donors Choose requires teachers to start with small grants and work up to higher dollar grants. Sign up for an account on Donors Choose TODAY. Think about what you would like to get for your classroom. Teachers earn points and when they sign up on Donors Choose. Initially, teachers get three points. Getting a project funded will earn a teacher more points. As teachers earn more points they can request more expensive items like iPads or computers. Don’t worry if you don’t understand everything. Get an account the School’s Ed Tech can help you from there. Pictured above is a list of companies that are partnered with Donors Choose. You can request items from any of these companies. posted by Bobie Glassett |
What We're LearningThere's a lot going on out there! These posts highlight a few things we're picking up along the way. Archives
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