Favorite Finds from TCEA

Guest Post by Caitlin Frank, Carroll Senior High Economics Teacher

After attending TCEA in Austin this month, I went through my materials and want to share a few of my favorite discoveries. One of the classes I attended and enjoyed was the Apps class where a group of teachers shared their favorite apps that they could use for various teacher activities. Several of the most useful apps included Quizlet, Landtech Esign, Post-it-Plus, Evernote, and Scannable. All of these apps were focused on making the educational experience more digital for students and teachers.

Quizlet is an online quiz system that takes topics from every subject and turns them into notecards that students can study on their phone. My students started using this app years ago for economic vocabulary and they swear by the accessibility of a phone with the benefits of studying notecards. Quizlet is available for iOS and Android devices.

Landtech Esign is a very convenient app for teachers who need to submit an electronic signature. By inputting your signature one time it can save and duplicate it onto any document you need a signature for.

Post-It-Plus is a way for students and teachers to take their important post it notes and scan them into their computer or tablet. It actually scans them in as a post it note and can be used/organized just like an electronic post it note. Post-It Plus is only available for iOS devices.

Evernote Scannable is an app that is a scanner without having to buy an actual scanner. It can scan any document directly onto your phone and enables you to save/share these scanned documents easily. Evernote Scannable is only available for iOS devices.

All of these apps take what teachers are doing everyday but makes the process more accessible and simple. Plus they are all free, which can save teachers time and money when trying to organize their materials. However, the way the teachers organized the class was what made it my favorite class. They used a “Top Chef” theme and incorporated their favorite food/drink apps just to keep the audience involved and entertained. Also they showed each of these apps on their own devices to the class to illustrate how each one looked/worked. This interactive teaching style would also be a beneficial tool for teachers who are trying to share their technology discoveries to their fellow educators.

10 Quick Ways to Use Mobile Phones in the Classroom

In today's society a large majority of students own smartphones. Why not implement those devices in the classroom? While reading Edumedic, I can across an article on how to use mobile phones in the classroom.
The following tips are from that article written by Katie Lepi. I've included the 10 ways I feel are the easiest to implement with the greatest educational value. Each use listed is linked to an article, lesson plan, or source that will detail implementation of the mobile device. To see the list of 40 ways, click here.

1. Scavenger hunts:
   Smartphone scavenger hunts have proven a popular pastime for technophiles, and teachers have been known to use them to provide interactive lessons about everything from natural history to nature. It’s an easy concept to adapt!
2. Send reminders:
   Whether through text or apps like Remind 101, smartphones offer greater connectivity so teachers ensure students know when assignments are due, what materials to bring, test schedules, and more.
3. Clickers:
   Instructors who love punctuating lectures with visuals like slideshows can convert their smartphones into tools for scrolling through materials. Socrative Quick Guide.
4. Memorization skills:
   Create and distribute digital flash cards so students can stay on top of what they need to know – or, better yet, make them write and trade their own! Research suggests that fusing technology with traditional methods helps nurture memorization skills, despite stereotypes of smartphone owners as forgetful types.
5. Polling:
   Take quick surveys of what students think and want by asking them to respond via smartphone apps designed specifically for realtime feedback.
6. QR codes:
   Create QR codes and let students scan them for quick access to class materials, supplements, and anything else they might need to earn the best grades possible.
7. Storyboarding:
   Have students draw or shoot photos of sequential images and challenge them to draw up their own stories or storyboards involving both text and visuals.
8. Blogging:
   Blogging provides a wonderfully diverse tool for establishing a digital classroom, and it’s easy for teachers and students alike to post, comment, read, and follow analytics.
9. Remembering notes:
   Some teachers allow their students to snap photos of the chalkboard or whiteboard as class wraps up in case they couldn’t finish taking their notes fast enough.
10. Use educational apps:
    One of the simplest strategies for engaging students using smartphones involves taking advantage of the thousands of educational apps as supplements.
• TCEA iPad Apps - click here
• TCEA iPod Apps - click here
• Top 100 Apps of 2012 by David Kapuler - click here
• 60 Apps in 60 Minutes - click here

Class Dojo Will Put the Mojo Back Into Your Class



Behavior Management and Student Engagement Software



Whether it's the third grader that just can't seem to focus or the senior with a bad case of senioritis, Class Dojo is an interactive site that  engages those students in the classroom by recognizing positive behaviors as they happen in a fun and colorful way!  What is really great is the simplicity of the site. Using a computer or a smart phone, the teacher sets up the classes and students and then determines what types of behaviors to reward or the types of behaviors to discourage. Students accumulate points (or have points deducted) based on the parameters set. The class can be setup with reward sounds and the teacher can manipulate the class settings to create a running total or end the points for the day. Additionally. ClassDojo provides behavior-tracking analytics, dashboards and reports for parents and administrators, all at one-click. No extra data entry required! A demo class is set up so you can just copy it and move on if you don't want to personalize your class.  Teachers can get really creative with this and use it as a tool to encourage interaction and participation and make behaving in class FUN! Students could work on accumulating participation points for a grade, extra credit or class reward. It's up to you! 

 Right now it's still free so be sure to sign up today, even if you aren't going to use it until next year! Click here to join: http://bit.ly/HZT8GA

 

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Website of the Week: Niceletter

As the end of the year approaches, many of us are asked to write letters of recommendation or perhaps we need to thank a special parent or co-worker. Niceletter is a super easy site for creating different types of letters. These letters can be cover letters, thank you, or any other type of letter you need to write. Your students could even use this site to create letters of their own.  Simply fill out a template and then download it as a PDF or RTF file. Niceletter is nice and easy and FREE! Hint: Be sure to scroll down to get to the letter generator. You don't need to download anything.

Edmodo: An Interactive Classroom

Edmodo can turn your classroom into a fun, interactive, and engaged environment for students where learning is real and authentic. Watch students flourish in this social environment.

What is Edmodo? (via Thomas Scheeler...follow him on Twitter @tscheeler)

• Edmodo is a FREE, secure, social learning platform for teachers, students, parents, and schools.
• Edmodo provides teachers and students with a secure and easy way to post classroom materials, share links and videos, and access homework, grade and school notices.
• Teachers and students can store and share all forms of digital content - blogs, links, pictures, video, documents, presentations, and more.

What CISD teachers and students using Edmodo have to say:

• 6th grade DIS math teacher Chris Underwood says:
• "Edmodo has been an absolutely amazing extension to my classroom. It allows for additional collaboration between students as well as keeping me in touch with my students when we are not in the same classroom. I have been looking for a platform to extend the learning beyond the time I see my students everyday and Edmodo has been the answer to that dream. This was my first year implementing it and my students have fully embraced it. I look forward to continuing to use this medium to enhance the learning that takes place in my classroom."

• 6th grade math students of Mr. Underwood say:
• "I like Edmodo because I can always get an answer if I have a question and we can talk about things that are happening in our classroom. We can just talk and communicate to grow in our relationships with our classmates. Edmodo rocks!! ~Alyssa M.
• "It has definitely helped me because I can remember a lot of times when I didn't understand our homework and I used Edmodo to contact Mr. Underwood and ask questions. Edmodo really helps me. Hopefully, we'll have a website like this in 7th grade. ~ Trinity B.
• Everyone likes it; Doing your homework with ease; Making helpful comments: Our peers are very nice; Depositing info into reply boxes; Oh my gosh, it's an Acrostic poem. ~Harry P.

• 6th grade EIS math teacher Kim Anderson says:
• Edmodo is a fantastic tool to help students connect after the school day has ended. My students immediately saw the benefit of posting a homework question and then receiving help or helping another student. I would highly recommend Edmodo!"

• 6th grade math students from EIS say:
• "It is much easier to get help and hints, and it is also fun to use.  You don't have to go in early to get help, you can use Edmodo!"  ~Whitney C.
• "It's a great way to get help on homework.  You aren't getting help from a strangers, so you know it's safe." ~Ainsley P.
• "I like the idea that you can ask for help from a teacher or other students from home!" ~Chandler H.
• "I love Edmodo because it really helps me with homework and ever since I starting using it my homework grades have been phenomenal."  ~Annie M.
• "Really simple to use, and it has helped me a lot, just like a teacher being right by my side helping me." ~Gretchen C.

Tip of the Week:

Download the Edmodo App from iTunes or the Android store for FREE. Use your mobile device to send notes, submit assignments, post replies, and check messages while away from the classroom. Click here to download the iOS app.



Website of the week:
Be sure to check out the Edmodo website to sign up for a FREE teacher account. Watch this parent presentation video to learn more about the basics of Edmodo:

Edmodo Parent Presentation

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