Applying tech tools to meet classroom needs.
There are often times when we find a website with information on it that we want to share with others. Instead of just giving them the website to look at, we now have tools that allow us to annotate that page and use highlighting or notes to add our own content to that site. Scribe…
Often times in class there will be a point where the class is having a discussion and there needs to be a record of the ideas and thoughts/conclusions being created. Typically the teacher will write these on the board and then students will copy them down. There is a big disruption in the thinking process…
Google just released the Google Earth Tour Builder tool to allow you to create your own tours in Google Earth. As a science teacher I have used Google Earth in many ways, sometimes just to show students where something is and how it really looks, but this new tool opens it up to even more…
Conducting a Google Hangout with students is one way we can extend the class day beyond the 45 minutes we are given. Teachers have had review sessions at night or have even had online meetings with students who may be working on an assignment or project and need some help. This is not something that…
Evernote is a tool that has a lot of potential to do a lot of different things in the classroom. It can be as basic as a sharing spot for articles and other resources for your students, a place to put all of your lesson plans so you can access them at any time from…
While many classrooms are getting sets of iPads, we have even more teachers that are getting iPads to use in their classrooms and for their personal use. There is a learning curve to using an iPad or any tablet, but that is quickly overcome by playing around and using it. I have had an iPad…
One of the greatest advantages to being a 1:1 is the chance for increased communication between teachers and students as well as parents. Through the use of websites, blogs, Infinite Campus and email we can keep everyone in the loop as to what is going on in the classroom. You can even use Twitter to…
MOVE! – Move around and interact with your students. Do not sit in the corner while they work, you should be able to see their screens and be able to interact with them while they are working. Rethink your classroom setup – Rows of students facing forward does not allow for you to easily know…
One of the things I disliked the most about teaching, was the constant collections I seemed to acquire throughout the school year. Students would turn in things and many would get handed back, but some would just collect dust. I remember during my first year of teaching buying a box with a handle so I…
A few years back, at my previous school when we started the 1 to 1 initiative there, I was posed with the problem of outdated texts. Our Earth Science texts were old and had either missing or incorrect information. Not to mention the fact that I am not a big fan of textbooks to begin…
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