Students Leading the Way: Sharing Apps

Today, I had the opportunity to catch a Periscope live broadcast of a group of students in Endwell, New York sharing out their favorite apps. The students gather information about their apps first in a Google Slide presentation, and then each student presented their rationale for the app they chose.

Without further ado, here is a link to tweet with the Periscope video available to view there.

LIVE on #Periscope: #Digcit App Smackdown https://t.co/ItQfBuSRPK

— Rachel Murat (@MrsMurat) November 10, 2016

You can also get an idea of the apps the students featured by looking through this Google Slide deck the teacher, Rachel Murat, shared: App Smashing


Here are three screen captures from the slide deck:

Here is a sample of the Google Form (survey) that was filled out to evaluate each of the apps presented. Students later created a blog post to support their top choice.

Overall, I was fortunate to watch the live presentation via Periscope to see the class in action and was impressed by the way the students took control of the learning, sharing their favorite apps with others and defending their choices as well as explaining how the app worked and its benefits.

Go Noodle: A Site Teachers Are Raving About

Just today, I came across blog posts from two teachers who praised GoNoodle.

https://www.gonoodle.com/

This is not a site I know, but it is one I plan to explore.

For now, I offer links to the posts where the teachers explain how they use the site.

In this post, kindergarten teacher, Matt Gomez, gives an excellent overview of the site. Click on the image to learn what Matt has to say about the site. You can see his students' enthusiasm in the picture.

http://bit.ly/1gQiOgH

In this post, another teacher of young children, Nikki Vrandenburg, recommends the site in her list of sites she uses with her students.  GoNoodle comes up first in her post: "My New Favorite Web Tools."

And just an hour after I originally wrote this post, I found on my Twitter feed this picture posted by a former graduate student who teaches 2nd grade, whose students judging from the picture are excited to use GoNoodle:

So I got back in touch with the teacher on Twitter to ask her how her second graders liked GoNoodle, and here's her reply.

@JudyArzt @GoNoodle They love it! They get so excited to complete the levels and watch their mascot grow! They're always adding new videos!
— Nada Noujaim (@MissNoujaim) May 31, 2014

Do these teachers' endorsements convince you to check out the site? Had you heard of the site before? Based on what you learned about the site, would you consider exploring it for use in your classroom?

Impressed by How These Elementary Students Are Using Digital Tools Like iMovie

I was on Lisa Dabbs' blog and reading a post,

Five Free Web 2.0 Tools to Support Lesson Planning

It was coincidental that she mentioned both Storybird and VoiceThread in this post. Then I came across a link she had under the category

Finding Your Comfort Zone

From there, I found this video, in which students speak about using iMovie. It occurred to me that if these young elementary students use iMovie with fluency as part of their composing, it was worth sharing their story with others, so here is the video:

I found what the students had to say inspiring.

While we're at it and looking for digital tools to support literacy, check Lisa Dabbs' original post where I found this video:

Five Free Web 2.0 Tools to Support Lesson Planning

What ideas did you get from Lisa's post or the video of the students speaking about using iMovie?

Who Could Ask for Anything More: A Kid Reviewing Kid Books

This Kid Reviews Books is a site maintained by a kid who as the title implies reviews books.

If you're looking for books to recommend to kids, which I hope you are, what better way than to find another kid who recommends them. Plus, this is a site worth having your students, especially if you teach elementary or middle school, check out.

I first found out about the site from some tweets. Here they are.

So naturally, I headed over to the site to start exploring, and encourage you to do the same. Please visit. Just click on the image below, and once you're at the site, scroll through the blog, but also check the pages, "About 'This Kid' -- Erik!" and "Books I Read This Year." This kid is a prolific reader, but also a prolific writer. Think of all the time he spends not only reading the books, but also taking the time to write these reviews.

So now that you've visited Erik's site, let me know what you think. Would you recommend the site to students and to librarians, or use the site yourself? How could  you get your own students blogging about books?

This kid has also written a book and has a Twitter account.

You can find him here on Twitter:

Here is some info about his book:

http://thiskidreviewsbooks.com/check-out-my-book/

Would love to find out more about Erik, for instance, how he got motivated to start the blog and what recommendations he has for other kids to get them also interested in reading and discussing books. 

Visual Dictionaries for Students

Are you using visual dictionaries with students? Find visual dictionaries to consider from this blog post, on the Free Teachnology For Teachers Blog post: "Five Free Visual Dictionaries and Thesauri for Students." Let us know if you plan to use any of the resources Richard lists in his blog post.

100 Top Tools for Learning

This slide presentation in a few slides tells what are the top 100 tools for learning. It is worth going through the slides. Interestingly, Twitter is in the number one spot this year. Other popular tools at the top of the list include YouTube and Google Doc. Check the presentation, and leave a comment about which tools you find helpful for learning and which you want to explore in the future. If you prefer, you can view the slides in full screen. Remember to use the arrows to advance through the 14 slides.

Top 100 Tools for Learning 2013 from Jane Hart

News, Book Reviews, and More for Kids

I've heard numerous teachers extol the value of using the DoGo website with students. Here students can find current events to read about and then have writing projects in their class based on what they read. They can also read book reviews written by kids, and better yet contribute their own reviews to the site. Check out the book review section. Click on the image below.

Explore this part of the site to see the reviews students have written. After you have explored around, then check the Dogo News for Kids section, by clicking on the link image below. Notice news is listed in categories. Also, notice the tabs: Teachers and Kids.

After browsing around the site, let us know if you would recommend this site to teachers or if you would consider using with your students?

Cranes for Peace: A Global Project

Once we introduce technology in our classrooms and schools, we open up opportunities for students to collaborate in ways unfathomable before. One excellent example is a quad blogging. The Cranes 4 Peace Blog, a collaborative project, follows this format, with students from countries around the world contributing to a common blog. Here is an image from just one of the posts on the blog,

http://cranes4peace.wordpress.com/2013/09/04/st-thomas-more-cps-peace-cranes/

Check the About page for the project, and then go to the blog itself, The Cranes 4 Peace, to see what the children in this collaborative blog are posting.

http://cranes4peace.wordpress.com/about/

Take some time to look. Don't rush. Leave your comments on this post after you've looked around. Have you gotten any inspiration from The Cranes 4 Peace blog? Would you consider implementing a similar project in your school?

See this website to learn more about the Peace Crane Project. The site will offer ideas for ways you can celebrate in your own schools and bring awareness to world peace.

Here is a video about the project:





For more information about the International Day of Peace, celebrated, Sept. 21, 2013, also  check this website: International Day of Peace, Education for Peace.

Great Apps for Classroom Use

I found this excellent post at the TUAW website and had to share it verbatim. Full credit goes to the site as indicated by this direct link there.  If you click on the image below, you will go directly to the source. Of the Apps noted in this review, some of my favorites are Explain Everything, Weebly, the Camera (so obvious but not used enough and will have a separate blog post about it coming up shortly), iMovie, Dropbox (though am using Google Drive often for cloud storage as well), Puppet Pals (especially for younger students, but fun for all), and Popplet (a graphic organizer, web generating tool). These apps are ordinarily used on iPads, but some are available for any device or other devices (such as iMovie on a Mac) and Dropbox for any device. Weebly is a web-based tool that can be used on any device. It is an excellent tool for easily creating a website. Let us know which of the teacher recommended apps interest you or you use.

Apps teachers use to tame the classroom and teach their students

by Kelly HodgkinsSep 6th 2013 at 4:00PM

It's the start of a new school year, which means you've probably got a stack of new books on your desk, a drawer full of new pencils and an iPad that desperately needs some new apps. TUAW is here to help you build a new app list, and we did so with the help of some friends.

We consulted with students, teachers and some of the top tech and educational bloggers to generate this list. In this article, we highlight the teachers who lead the classroom. Here are the apps that they use:

Kelly Tenkely of Anastasis Academy in Centennial, CO.

What makes Anastasis unique is our approach to learning. We are an inquiry based school that believes students must be involved in their own learning. We have a 1:1 iPad program that is a BYOD (bring your own device), and the iPad is the only supply on our supply list.

I chose the iPad as our common learning device because it is so incredibly intuitive. Preschool through ninth grade can pick it up and immediately put it to use for a wide variety of learning activities without being taught how to use it first. We are paperless in that all student work gets digitized. Even building projects get captured digitally. We purchase the educational apps that the students need as a school. Below is a list of our favorite titles.

Meraki This is Cisco's free device management platform. We use it to manage devices (including restrictions) while students are on campus. Meraki lets us purchase apps through the Volume Purchase Program and push them to student devices as needed. There is also a virtual backpack that lets us share files and documents with teachers and students. Fantastic tool and free cannot be beat!

Evernote We use Evernote as a complete ePortfolio solution. All student work is documented in Evernote. Evernote is a great ePortfolio because parents can access it easily, it is easily searched, and students can record learning that is both natively digital as well as not. If students create a physical model or project in our prototype lab, they can easily take a picture directly in Evernote. We also love the sheer number of apps that integrate seamlessly in Evernote. If students complete a project in iMovie, Keynote, Pages, etc. that does not seamlessly integrate, students create a note with the title of the project and list where the project can be found on their device. This makes it easy to keep track of all learning. Teachers and students have shared notebooks to share work.

Camera This is an obvious app but one not to be overlooked! This is probably our most used app. Students are constantly documenting their learning with the camera. Whether it is field work on a field trip, a project that they are documenting steps of, or a presentation they are giving, our students have a HUGE collection of evidence collected with the camera.

iMotion HD This has become one of our students absolute FAVORITE ways to document learning or progress. Students use iMotion HD to reflect on learning, tell a story, document scientific process, and as a creative outlet. Kids of all ages really love this app! http://ilearntechnology.com/?p=4257

Koostik Because we use the camera so often, our students discovered that they need a way to prop their iPad up for recording. While many cases have this ability built in, they leave a lot to be desired. One of the great field trips we took was to the Koostik headquarters where our students saw how iPad and iPhone sound could be amplified without power. While we were there, our students commented on how cool it would be to have a Koostik that they could use for recording. Koostik created special stands for our students that are perfect for keeping the iPad propped and stable during recording (we used to use stacks of books!) (Technically, this isn't an app, but it's used with an app, so it's cool!)

Voice2Note Lets students turn their Evernote voice notes into text. This is a fantastic app for students who struggle to get their ideas out in writing (often a problem with Dysgraphia). Also wonderful for emerging writers who have a great vocabulary but struggle with spelling and limit their writing as a result.

Postach.io This is an app that works with Evernote to turn notes into blog posts. This is the way that students "publish" their finished work to share with others publicly. We use the #comments4kids hashtag on Twitter to help our students get feedback from other educators and students. Our kids love getting comments on their hard work from around the world.

Dragon Box This is the most amazing math app I've ever seen. It is the perfect complement to our program because it lets students (as young as 5) play with and discover algebra without knowing that they are actually doing it! It is a little bit of a virtual card game that helps students recognize patterns and rules found in Algebra. Brilliant! Number Pieces- This is another math app that helps students develop a deeper understanding of place value. We love the hands on discover approach that it offers!

SketchNation Lets students create their own app. They can use Sketch Nation to prototype ideas or creatively reflect on learning by creating a game.

Weebly Lets students easily create their own website. Our students created http://LSGWfoundation.weebly.com to raise awareness about social justice issues during one of our inquiry blocks.

Paper A beautiful way to sketch out/share ideas. Students use this app for ideation when they are working on design thinking.

Skitch Skitch is another ideation app we love...integrates seamlessly with Evernote!

Composer Pro students can create their own interactive ebooks without knowing a lot of coding.

Tapose Students can do research and take notes side by side in this app. Very useful for new learning!

FactorSamurai a fun way to practice math facts :)

Explain Everything a recordable whiteboard where students can record their thought process. This helps them break down learning and allows teachers to go back through their thinking one step at a time.

Rover Let's students access flash content from their iPads. We only wish it was a little more reliable!

Other common Apps that we use regularly: Pages, Keynote, iMovie,iBooks, Kindle, MobiCip (filtered web browser), Dropbox.

Glen & Monique Storey, husband and wife teachers from New Zealand

Glen & Monique Storey are teachers in New Zealand. They're lucky enough that each child in their classroom has a MacBook and access to iPads. They're passionate about using apps that engage and motivate learners in the classroom. As developers they bring their experience as teachers and their love of technology to create great apps such as Silent Light and BookBot.

OS X Apps

Skitch (OS X) A free, easy way to annotate and modify pictures, pdfs and websites.

Wunderlist (OS X) A really easy and simple way to be organised. Great design and support.

Mindnode (OS X) A really simple and elegant way to create and manage thinking.

Pixelmator A great way to edit and create more complex pieces of art.

And, of course, the obvious OS X apps that everyone probably knows about: iMovie, iPhoto, GarageBand.

iOS Apps

Explain Everything If I was only allowed to have one app on my classroom iPads, it would be Explain Everything. An absolutely fantastic way to create and share evidence of learning. We use this every day, with every student in our math program and it shows real evidence in developing student learning. (We have examples of kids' work if you need them).

Puppet Pals 2 A really fun and creative way to create narratives or share writing. Kids love Puppet Pals and can quickly and easily create great content.

Silent Light We have a large, open-plan classroom, and Silent Light is one of our essential tools at helping kids manage their own learning and noise level.

100s Board, Rubber Chicken Apps Although a simple app, 100s board is a fantastic tool to use with kids when teaching them about numbers, addition or place value.

Type Drawing A fantastic way to merge writing and art in a creative and unique way. (We have examples of kids' work if you need them).

Poplet The best brainstorming tool that we've ever come across. Simple and adaptable to whatever you might need. Brainstorms can be emailed, saved to camera roll etc.

Math Slide (a series of apps) Great motivational and multiplayer apps to help kids learn their basic facts.

Action Movie Action Movie is great at providing a bit of incentive when writing as a class, especially for boys.

Thank you again to this specific web page for this information which is acknowledged accordingly, and as noted the information has been copied and credited. For those who want the URL as well, here it is, long as it is:
http://www.tuaw.com/2013/09/06/apps-teachers-use-to-tame-the-classrom-and-teach-their-students/

Who Will Be My Hero?

This video was produced by students from Waxahachie Independent School District, TX, and the questions it asks are ones for teachers to consider. Thought I would share it with you for reactions.




The video was released just 4 days ago on YouTube and has had over 4,700 views as of today.

What Students Want Schools to Be

This video was made by high school students describing what schools should be like. It was posted by Amy Burvall in a Google Community to which I belong: The Educational Technology MOOC. Take a look at the video. Would you consider making a video such as this one with students you know? Why not try it? Based on grade level, how do you think the responses would vary? What might elementary school students say? What about middle school students? These are high school students in this video. What about college students? Undergraduates? Graduate students? You, in this course? In fact, what do you think graduate school should be? Should we record your responses? Do we listen to our students enough about what schools should be like?

Watch This 2nd Grader Demo Evernote

Teachers have been using Evernote to record students at work, but in this video, a 2nd grader explains how she is using Evernote to improve fluency and other skills. She also gives a quick overview of the use of Evernote for recording and storing purposes. Take a look, and tell us what you think. Do you know of classrooms where Evernote is being used in this way?



The teacher is Mrs. Gleason, who has other classroom videos on YouTube. Check Mrs. Nicole Gleason's Feed on YouTube to learn more about what is happening in her classroom.

I recently heard from Mrs. Gleason and she sent me to another video from her class on students developing fluency. Here it is.

7th Grader's Personal Learning Environment

In case you have not caught this video of a 7th grader explaining her personal learning environment (PLE), I am posting it now to open up discussion about how students can and will learn using digital tools. Incidentally, this videos was posted to YouTube in 2009.


 

Crash Course: YouTube Channel--How Students Study Today

Yes, students use YouTube to help them study for school. CrashCourse offers some excellent and entertaining videos for students to brush up on what they're studying in English, social studies, and science classes. Check this list below of subject areas and the number of videos presently in each category.

Even if you don't teach high school, you should be aware that high school and even middle school students are going to sites such as CrashCourse and other sites to review for school.

I am posting three examples from CrashCourse to give you an idea of how the videos work and their quality. I have sent some high school students to CrashCourse, and they reported the site was helpful.

Here are two for English classes: one on Emily Dickinson and one on Catcher in the Rye:

Here's one for social studies:

Check CrashCourse to see the collections of videos available. How do you feel about students using sites such as CrashCourse? Would you send your students to such a site? Should you as a teacher be aware of the kinds of videos available online to help students study? Do you provide a list of videos for your students to review at home?

The Voice of the Active Learner

Scott, Boylen, the teacher whom two of the sections of Integrating Technology and Literacy hooked up with for the KidBlog exchange, posted this video on Twitter. Thought I would share it with you. Am interested in your reaction to it. The connections with Scott's classes will continue, but now the Manchester Cohort will also (maybe?) set up their own KidBlogs for the students in Iowa to write responses.

Okay, those in the cohorts, what do you think would make a good topic to use for the Manchester Cohort students to use for their first post on KidBlog?

So, here's the video Scott shared. How do you think his 7th and 8th graders will react?

Down and Up the Slope of Challenges

Keeping up with technology and the new tools can be a challenge. But watch how this 4th grader dealt with the challenge of ski slope. Plus, tech challenges have no broken bones.


Okay, now you should be ready for the challenges of using tech tools and integrating them into your teaching, right?

The New Digital Divide

In this recent feature article (Dec. 2012), "Bridging the New Digital Divide," from District Administration Magazine, we hear advice for school superintendents to take the lead in integrating technology into the schools. Some key points addressed include:

• Teach students with the tools they are already use
• Students in the most poverty-stricken schools need even more so to be introduced to the technology early on to level the playing field
• Teachers need more guidance in the successful use of technology tools
• Principals as well need to take on leadership roles in pushing for technology integration
• The digital divide separates the world of education from the world of business, with the world of education behind the times

One image in the article speaks to the very last bullet point:

Read the article in full. What is your response to the assertions found in the article? With which to you agree? Which do you believe need further analysis? Where do school systems with which you are familiar fall in terms of the "new digital divide"?