Tech For Your Class

Cool Tools Reflection Cool Tools is a wonderful resource and professional development. https://cooltoolsforschool.wordpress.com/ I use many of these tools in my work with Instructional Technology but always find a different use, application or lense for the tool through the Cool Tools PD.  I have worked this year to include more video connections between classrooms using a Cisco system, Facetime and Google Hangouts.  It was helpful to see how  Hangouts on Air to create videos for students along with documentation about Hangouts.  My challenge is not the research but the follow through to write a blog post on my work.  It is always helpful to send a link or to reference work through my blog. I plan to continue to work with video connections, project based learning and use with iPads, and chromebook integration.  I will keep these projects going and check back with the Cool Tools site for additional resources.  I like the App challenges as a cr...

Book of the Month Videos This year, I have worked with James PB Duffy School 12 administrators to create a Book of the Month video to be used as part of the character development.  The Book of the Month is tied in with a character trait of the month along with websites and lessons for teachers to use with students. Below is the June Book of the Month. I have found that using a mix of video of the reading of the book using the camera,  the reader as an avatar using the Tellagami app and just pictures from the book with the readers voice provides enough of a change to keep the video interesting.  I use the ipad to capture all the video and images of the book and put it together using iMovie on the iPad.  I have found that the iRig microphone is a must have!  Love this microphone and it makes a huge difference in recording.

Connecting Classrooms though Video  You have a great connection through the community, a person that can connect or come in an talk with your students.  What a great way to also connect with other classrooms in the school or district! Below are steps to set up a connection through Google Hangouts. One way that we found to help the speaker and viewers, is set up the Google Hangout on the teacher's computer that is hooked up to the smartboard and mute the computer.  Then to log into a chrome book and join the Google Hangout, the speaker can look at the students in front of them and also at the chrome book, this way they see what the other classrooms are seeing. In case the speaker would like to share a presentation, they can do this on the computer hooked up with the smartboard and share their screen.  The viewers can then click on either the presentation or the view of the speaker for their classroom. If you are one of the other classroom. Here are ...

Digital Citizenship Digital citizenship is one of our most important areas of focus as we move into our district's digital transformation.  It is an area that we need to educate our teachers and students. Our instructional technology department plans to include elements of digital citizenship in all our professional development as a support to teachers to see how they can include elements in their daily teaching.  We have begun to pull some of the wonderful resources from Common Sense. org and NetSmartz an include lessons with our curriculum for teachers. I see the need to really emphasize the important of digital citizenship through Digital Citizenship week in October.  This coming year, I hope to promote this week and the lessons provide by grade level through Common Sense Media.  This would be a great kickoff in the beginning of the year to get exposure and to get the message out.   I would also like to tie in an incentive for teachers to become a...