Edgaged

I have always loved the concept of Socrative.com . Web-based tools that work across platforms are great for technology coaches like myself because no matter what school I visit, it will work. It is a great way to assess students as you can quickly gather data and either have a feel for what they need to know or have already learned. Socrative has recently have changed things up a bit and the environment of Socrative may look new to you the next time you stop in to create a few activities. Here is a quick preview: What I'm excited about is the Youtube channel they have created with video tutorials. This will save me a lot of time as I'm accustomed to making my own. I also plan on using this channel for an upcoming online training course I'm building for my staff. It is still developing, but I plan to launch it soon. Check out the Socrative Youtube Channel yourself!  

Brew Your Own Personalized PD, an EdSurge Guide http://t.co/Q7cHfKqLi9 — Michelle R. Green (@mrg_3) April 22, 2014 Every student has different needs. They come in with different abilities, interests, backgrounds, and learning styles. Every teacher understands this, right? So if that is the case, are teachers any different?  Now that I have finished my year of coaching elementary teachers how to utilize/integrate technology, I think pretty deeply about how I provide professional development opportunities. Teachers have various ability levels, interests, and learning styles. I understand this and feel it is time I explain my "method to the madness" so that teachers better understand what I'm attempting to accomplish and how it is of use to them.  Traditional - Looking at the "infographic" above, I still provide opportunities from time to time in this manner. Doing a whole group session on a topic and discussing it as a group is how most mater...

Teaching in the elementary classroom is already tough enough to organize. Throw in a class set of iPods or iPads and now things get really interesting. What do you do to help get things organized? How in the world do you keep students on the app you want them to use? What can students really accomplish on iOS devices?   At ISTE, I want to collaborate with teachers on how to build a positive digital culture. A portion of that culture is the organization of the devices and materials. A portion is also having set expectations for device treatment and use. However, the greatest impact on developing a strong digital culture within a classroom is how the students are using the devices. Without that sense of purpose and accomplishment, the device becomes a toy in the mind of a student. Four “must-haves” in a 1:1 elementary technology classroom: 1. Set expectations for how devices should be treated and utilized. “Tool, not a Toy.” 2. Teach students at an early age about d...

Remind101 is a messaging tool that teachers can use to send one way text messages to parents. There are couple things great about it: 1. Most parents have a cellphone regardless of being a "smartphone." Text messages will work no matter what kind of cell phone a parent has. 2. People check their text messages more frequently than email or websites. It is great for those last minute reminders that parents need to know quickly. Blogger is a great website for parents to keep up with their child's class. This is especially applicable to elementary teachers as parents really want to have a sneak-peek as to what the students are learning. Teachers are essentially keeping an online journal of the year's events, and this becomes a great asset to you as the teacher because parents will reinforce the learning at home just by asking simple questions. It is hard for parents to ask those simple questions without having a little clue as to what is happening because s...

Next week is East Noble School Corporation's technology conference. If you want to participate, there is still time to register! Jump in by visiting ktt.eastnoble.net ! Above is a "Thinglink" interactive picture that has some bits of information. (To be honest, I was more just having fun with it! Thinglinks are a little bit addicting.)  For those already attending, the schedule is posted at ktt2014.sched.org . If you access it on a mobile device, you can actually turn it into an app so that it stays on your device. If you log into the app, you can save which sessions you want to attend so that you don't have to continually scroll. If you have a few sessions you want to attend within a time-slot, go ahead and mark all that spark your interest so that it is easier to remember them for later. Directions for placing the mobile app on your device and logging are posted:  For those of you that have participated in Knight Time Technology in the past, we have a...

  Now that East Noble is reaching the final homestretch in the year, I've had several teachers ask me about creating a slideshow. I used to do the same thing and spent a long time putting pictures together, setting the transitions, and trying to host it on my website. However, having a Google account can really simplify your life!!! You can use your Youtube account to put pictures into a slideshow, add royalty free music, and then when you go to Blogger it is there in your Youtube video collection. It really is fast and easy. So easy, I wish this would have been around when I was teaching. It would have saved me hours! (As a side note, I used PicShare to email myself more than five pictures at a time from my iPad.) Here is how you take advantage of it: