I'm not going to lie, back when I we started this summer camp (you know, like activities 1-4), I found myself with a serious amount of tech confidence. I'm not bragging, just being honest… I felt like the rest of the course was going to be smooth sailing. As the course went on, however, I found that there was so much more to learn and grow and my false confidence quickly gave way to hard-core learning!
Every time I explore new technology I am amazed at all of the tools out there that are designed to make technology use in classrooms more efficient and effective! I was not let down this time! The summer camp was great because it encompassed some tools that I had already used and others that I had never heard before. I appreciated this fact because I was able to lend advice on some other campers' blogs for certain activities while learning from other campers in others. I was impressed by the many different ways teachers used the same tool and am planning to revisit these sites as the year goes by to remind myself of the many different options out there. One of the things I was really please with is the fact that so many people from my school worked through this camp this summer. While I know I can communicate with anyone across the district who completed this class, it is really helpful to just run upstairs or down the hall to check in with my colleagues who are working with the same types of technology that I am.
Success and frustration definitely come hand in hand when exploring technology and I had my fair share of both throughout this summer. While my frustration usually worked itself out, there are certainly tools that I don't see myself using all that much. That being said, there are so many more tools that I had never heard of that I can't wait to try. Specifically I can't wait to try more of Socrative and Google Classroom.
My whole goal this school year is going to be consistency. I am so looking forward to having a class set of computers in my classroom and can't wait to find ways to enrich my teaching through the use of this resource, but I am not going to forego consistency just because of my excitement over a certain tool. I will be utilizing PLC accountability in order to make sure that I am using technology in an effective and meaningful way in my classroom and teaching.
I have learned so much and have so much to learn!
Until next time!
Thursday, August 6, 2015
Activity #10: The End is Near
Here it is, the final tech camp collaborative assignment for this summer!!!
Woot!!! Woot!!!
Activity #9: We the People...
I am not a parent.
I am, however, a teacher.
What I see, daily, as my students get sucked further and further into the ever-expanding and rapidly changing world of technology makes me want to move to some cave in the middle of nowhere so that I when I someday have children of my own, they don't have to face the consequences that technology forces on today's youth (very Mr. Kirk in scenario 2).
Am I a Debbie Downer?.... Sometimes?!?!?!
Would I really move to a cave?.... I couldn't possibly live that far away from a Target store! :)
But seriously, the consequences of technology seem incredibly weighty. Watching middle-schoolers struggle through online bullying, sharing of private information, and so much more is gut-wrenching and it makes the importance of digital citizenship that much greater.
After reading through the scenarios and resources provided, here are my thoughts:
- Discuss the possible ethical issues involved in two of the scenarios.
- Ethically, technology provides us with many issues. Inherently, it is not wrong to move forward in your classroom with a teaching practice you feel is sound. However, when your practice is not quite so sound and the principal is fielding angry phone calls from parents, you have an issue. I do my best to inform my principal when I begin something new that I haven't tried out before, this would include technology. The temptation to have your kids create accounts on websites when they are not yet 13 is high. Even more than that, the temptation not to check those age requirements is even higher. When trying out a new form of technology it is absolutely necessary to be aware of all age restrictions and requirements for parent permission.
- Determine if the safety or well-being of anyone is in jeopardy.
- I think absolutely the safety and well-being of several people are in jeopardy in a few of these situations. Obviously, in the scenario where students are posting pictures with full names you have a straightforward safety issue. In addition, you have a well-being issue anytime students use technology to bully or make fun of others.
- What advice, strategy, or policy would you recommend to individuals or schools based on this scenario?
- In the scenario where the teacher neglected to teach students how to turn on the privacy setting for YouTube videos, I would suggest modeling the process several times. While it is unfortunate, there is any easy fix in order to move forward. In the instance where the students are using google docs or other forums to bully one another, I would have a very serious conversation with the students and enforce the consequences outlined in the Mounds View Technology Policy, which is very clear about school technology being used for academic purposes only. I see consistency as the absolute greatest and most imperative strategy in keeping technology under control and academically useful.
- Share any real-life incidents or personal connections related to the scenario.
- Honestly, I haven't dealt with an academic issue related to any of these scenarios. But I did have a conversation with a very distraught student who told me about pictures of her that had been taken and then put out on Instagram. The way that technology can quickly turn something personal into something public, is mind-boggling. It heightens the need for education and vigilance when it comes to technology in our classrooms and schools.
- How can the Mounds View Resources help to implement high quality instructional practices with with technology?
- The Mounds View district does a lot to encourage the use of technology in classrooms and certainly supports it with money and resources. To be honest, I think the ways that Mounds View can continue to support this is by offering courses like this, placing technology people in each school, and investing in new technology. One of the things the district needs to be wary about, however, is the over-saturation of technology in classrooms. Technology has a time and place to be effective. Not enough and you have technologically illiterate students, too much and you have students who do not have a multi-faceted view of and experience with learning.
- What is 1 procedure that you can implement in your class and what is one that you would like to implement in your whole PLC or whole building?
- I am really excited to implement a procedure related to "modes" of Chromebook use. Last year a teacher in our school had a poster where the Chromebook was featured fully open (work-mode), partially open (courtesy-mode), and closed (off). This was a great and visual way to remind students what their Chromebooks should look like during full-class instruction and short quick bits of instruction. Google Classroom is something my PLC is going to be implementing throughout the school year. Tara and I are both very excited to use it on a regular basis!
Activity #8: What Kind of Shoe Are You?
It all started back in middle school when I get my hands on the quizzes in my Brio Magazine: What Kind of Friend Are You? Take this Quiz to Find Out!!! Do You Hold Grudges? Take this Quiz to Find Out!!!
My BFF Kayla and I would sit around, read the questions, and figure out who we were based on the questions in a magazine.
Today, instead of magazine questionaires we have BuzzFeed and Facebook. The quiz format is different but the experience is the same:
What Decade Should You Have Been Born In? - 1950s
What Disney Princess Are You? - Belle
What Shoe Fits Your Personality? - Heels
The list goes on and on!! I see Google Forms as a way to use BuzzFeed in school! The draw is similar, the results are much more educationally significant than learning that my personality color is yellow.
The first form I created followed the directions in the "beginner" section of our assignment. The form I created could be used near the beginning of the school year to get some more information from students as well as introduce them into the world of Google Forms.
The second form I created related to Minnesota and World War 2. This quiz is pretty basic and just uses the questions from our unit assessment. I like the idea of using Flubaroo to grade Google Form assignments and also really appreciate that you can add weight to certain questions. I also totally love that Flubaroo creates a new page in your spreadsheet when it grades the form. I think that the process is really simple and user friendly.
Holy Moly! Creating a branching form is TIME CONSUMING!!! In Social Studies the way I see this type of form being most successful is if I were to use it with Geography Skills. Last year we did a stations activity where students took pre-test and then we assigned them skill stations based on deficits shown in the pre-test. It was fun and worked well but ultimately required a ton of grading and work! This type of form would be able to replace all of that. The form I created gives and example of something that could done, but is definitely a rough example without high questions! :)
Whew!! 3 forms created and embedded! Now, I am headed back to BuzzFeed, I just can't resist finding out what pattern I am!! :)
My BFF Kayla and I would sit around, read the questions, and figure out who we were based on the questions in a magazine.
Today, instead of magazine questionaires we have BuzzFeed and Facebook. The quiz format is different but the experience is the same:
What Decade Should You Have Been Born In? - 1950s
What Disney Princess Are You? - Belle
What Shoe Fits Your Personality? - Heels
The list goes on and on!! I see Google Forms as a way to use BuzzFeed in school! The draw is similar, the results are much more educationally significant than learning that my personality color is yellow.
The first form I created followed the directions in the "beginner" section of our assignment. The form I created could be used near the beginning of the school year to get some more information from students as well as introduce them into the world of Google Forms.
The second form I created related to Minnesota and World War 2. This quiz is pretty basic and just uses the questions from our unit assessment. I like the idea of using Flubaroo to grade Google Form assignments and also really appreciate that you can add weight to certain questions. I also totally love that Flubaroo creates a new page in your spreadsheet when it grades the form. I think that the process is really simple and user friendly.
Holy Moly! Creating a branching form is TIME CONSUMING!!! In Social Studies the way I see this type of form being most successful is if I were to use it with Geography Skills. Last year we did a stations activity where students took pre-test and then we assigned them skill stations based on deficits shown in the pre-test. It was fun and worked well but ultimately required a ton of grading and work! This type of form would be able to replace all of that. The form I created gives and example of something that could done, but is definitely a rough example without high questions! :)
Whew!! 3 forms created and embedded! Now, I am headed back to BuzzFeed, I just can't resist finding out what pattern I am!! :)
Activity #7: Why I Have a Kahoot Chip On My Shoulder
It's confession time, I harbor a massive grudge against Kahoot.
Did you gasp? Choke on your water? Question if you even want to continue reading?
Well, I urge you to continue, because there is some Kahoot redemption further down the page.
Here's the deal, basically I suffer from "fun class jealousy." Not sure if you have heard of it, but basically I turn into an attention seeking middle-schooler every time I enter my classroom. Honestly, it's an ugly character trait, but one I believe ultimately aids me in my teaching. My desire to have the "fun class that still learns tons" basically pushes me to extremes. Last year we blocked our ELA and Math classes at Highview. This meant, I was always sending my students to math or from math.
You know how kids talk? Well, this is what I would hear:
"Ughh... I can't wait to go to math, we're playing Kahoot!!!"
"Ms. O, can we have fun in class today and play Kahoot?"
"Why don't we do Kahoot more?"
Any normal teacher would have had some wise words about a time and place for everything (thanks Byrds for this song); I however, am not just any teacher. So I would take that "fun class jealousy" character trait/flaw and work extra hard at showing my students we could have fun WITHOUT Kahoot!
Successful? TBD
This year, I plan to work hard on getting rid of my "fun class jealousy" character issue and just simply take these interactive data collection tools for what they are.
The Kahoot that I have created is all about me! No joke, it is the ONLY Kahoot I did in Social Studies last year (and you thought I was being dramatic). To access it go to kahoot.it and enter the code: 524859.
In 6th grade social studies this year Tara and I are planning to make use of Socrative on a regular basis with our daily access to computers. This activity really helped me learn more about Socrative and I am excited to use it!
I created a basic quiz about the Dakota and Ojibwe as a way to play around with the program and discovered a feature that I actually really appreciate based on an issue another teacher had at Highview last year. Without divulging deep dark secrets we had a teacher who was a technology guru and basically ran her class online. When one of her students ran into repeated computer trouble (think, not using it for its intended purposes), her privileges were removed. This presented itself to be a big problem for the teacher and student. What I discovered (quite accidentally actually) is that you can download a pdf version of your Socrative quizzes. I see this as being helpful in times when you need to send advanced homework for a kid going on vacation, when you have students without computer access, etc. It may not be used often, but it is actually a really nice additional tool. You can see a pdf version of the quiz I created here.
Now, on to the ways I appreciate the technology of Socrative:
1. I like the "explanation" section of the quiz so that students can see additional information about the correct answer.
2. I love the easy export of data.
3. I like the space race game, particularly when you can hide the teams so students don't know who they are playing for.
4. I like the formal format - this is big for me. I want my data collection to feel formal and I appreciate the fact that Socrative feels like a serious activity, unlike some other tools... cough, cough, kahoot, cough.
Truly, the world of data collection that feels like more of a game than a test is a great way of engaging students through all aspects of their learning. I appreciate the tools like Kahoot, Socrative, and Poll Everywhere for this reason!
Did you gasp? Choke on your water? Question if you even want to continue reading?
Well, I urge you to continue, because there is some Kahoot redemption further down the page.
Here's the deal, basically I suffer from "fun class jealousy." Not sure if you have heard of it, but basically I turn into an attention seeking middle-schooler every time I enter my classroom. Honestly, it's an ugly character trait, but one I believe ultimately aids me in my teaching. My desire to have the "fun class that still learns tons" basically pushes me to extremes. Last year we blocked our ELA and Math classes at Highview. This meant, I was always sending my students to math or from math.
You know how kids talk? Well, this is what I would hear:
"Ughh... I can't wait to go to math, we're playing Kahoot!!!"
"Ms. O, can we have fun in class today and play Kahoot?"
"Why don't we do Kahoot more?"
Any normal teacher would have had some wise words about a time and place for everything (thanks Byrds for this song); I however, am not just any teacher. So I would take that "fun class jealousy" character trait/flaw and work extra hard at showing my students we could have fun WITHOUT Kahoot!
Successful? TBD
This year, I plan to work hard on getting rid of my "fun class jealousy" character issue and just simply take these interactive data collection tools for what they are.
The Kahoot that I have created is all about me! No joke, it is the ONLY Kahoot I did in Social Studies last year (and you thought I was being dramatic). To access it go to kahoot.it and enter the code: 524859.
In 6th grade social studies this year Tara and I are planning to make use of Socrative on a regular basis with our daily access to computers. This activity really helped me learn more about Socrative and I am excited to use it!
I created a basic quiz about the Dakota and Ojibwe as a way to play around with the program and discovered a feature that I actually really appreciate based on an issue another teacher had at Highview last year. Without divulging deep dark secrets we had a teacher who was a technology guru and basically ran her class online. When one of her students ran into repeated computer trouble (think, not using it for its intended purposes), her privileges were removed. This presented itself to be a big problem for the teacher and student. What I discovered (quite accidentally actually) is that you can download a pdf version of your Socrative quizzes. I see this as being helpful in times when you need to send advanced homework for a kid going on vacation, when you have students without computer access, etc. It may not be used often, but it is actually a really nice additional tool. You can see a pdf version of the quiz I created here.
Now, on to the ways I appreciate the technology of Socrative:
1. I like the "explanation" section of the quiz so that students can see additional information about the correct answer.
2. I love the easy export of data.
3. I like the space race game, particularly when you can hide the teams so students don't know who they are playing for.
4. I like the formal format - this is big for me. I want my data collection to feel formal and I appreciate the fact that Socrative feels like a serious activity, unlike some other tools... cough, cough, kahoot, cough.
Truly, the world of data collection that feels like more of a game than a test is a great way of engaging students through all aspects of their learning. I appreciate the tools like Kahoot, Socrative, and Poll Everywhere for this reason!
Activity #6: Jack of All Trades and Master of None
Wikipedia tells me that: "Jack of all trades, master of none" is a figure of speech used in reference to a person that is competent with many skills, but is not necessarily outstanding in any particular one.
In my educational career I have become competent at many things while mastering very few! :)
For example:
Maintaining and organized desk - competent
Google Docs - competent
Arriving to work on time for 7:15 meetings - competent
Drinking coffee while teaching - master
Google Classroom definitely belongs in the "competent" category.
I think that the basic portions of Google Classroom are pretty straightforward and easy. This means that while I learn the intricacies of this program I will still be able to do some of the basics right from the start. I really appreciate this feature! I don't have to master it all in order to use it! This is key for me because I am all gung-ho in the summer about new technology and as the year begins, I am overwhelmed with the time commitment it takes to implement a new technology. Plus, who wants to try and fail with new technology in front of kids who have many more technological skills and understanding than I ever will?!?! Part of the genius of Google is that most of their tools have layers (like onions and ogres); basically, I can start with the most basic and user-friendly layer and put it to use in my classroom right away. From there, I can start peeling back the layers of the technology and learn more. Google allows me to be a technology jack of all trades without having to master any of them!
I played around, minimally, with Google Classroom last year and found it to be a great tool when I had access to computers. This year, I anticipate using it on a much more regular basis because I will have computers in my classroom.
I created a class and invited a few people to join, if you have FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out) and would like to see what all I included in my classroom, feel free to join using the code: OFKCAX. Otherwise, just know that my current Google Classroom is basically the Beanie Babies of Google Classrooms: a lot of hype, very little payout! (Check out this book!)
Anyway, I like Google Classroom and still have plenty of room for improvement and growth, but for now stick it in the competent category and move on!
In my educational career I have become competent at many things while mastering very few! :)
For example:
Maintaining and organized desk - competent
Google Docs - competent
Arriving to work on time for 7:15 meetings - competent
Drinking coffee while teaching - master
Google Classroom definitely belongs in the "competent" category.
I think that the basic portions of Google Classroom are pretty straightforward and easy. This means that while I learn the intricacies of this program I will still be able to do some of the basics right from the start. I really appreciate this feature! I don't have to master it all in order to use it! This is key for me because I am all gung-ho in the summer about new technology and as the year begins, I am overwhelmed with the time commitment it takes to implement a new technology. Plus, who wants to try and fail with new technology in front of kids who have many more technological skills and understanding than I ever will?!?! Part of the genius of Google is that most of their tools have layers (like onions and ogres); basically, I can start with the most basic and user-friendly layer and put it to use in my classroom right away. From there, I can start peeling back the layers of the technology and learn more. Google allows me to be a technology jack of all trades without having to master any of them!
I played around, minimally, with Google Classroom last year and found it to be a great tool when I had access to computers. This year, I anticipate using it on a much more regular basis because I will have computers in my classroom.
I created a class and invited a few people to join, if you have FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out) and would like to see what all I included in my classroom, feel free to join using the code: OFKCAX. Otherwise, just know that my current Google Classroom is basically the Beanie Babies of Google Classrooms: a lot of hype, very little payout! (Check out this book!)
 |
| Do we all remember the mania? |
Activity #5: Spending Money to Make Money
You know the old adage, you have to spend money to make money?
Well I have taken this particular saying and adjusted it for our current tech camp activity: It takes time to save time.
That's how I felt about all of the ad-ons, apps, and extensions that I looked through this week. The purpose, as I see it, of all of these great tools is to save time, make things easier, more streamlined, and smooth. While my final results seem to concur with this purpose, the process of getting there is time-consuming and slow.
My patience was tried and tested as I looked through the many different ways Google is trying to save me time! As it is with so much technology, there is a lot of muck out there to dig through. It's kind of a go through the storm to see the rainbow situation. But if you persevere and really take time to look through it all, to the victor goes the spoils.
I've listed some of my "spoils" below:
Lucidpress App - I need to play around with it some more, but so far I am happy. I have a mac, an iPad, an iPhone, and Chromebook and yet my heart lies in PC land. So, I have downloaded the mac version of Microsoft Word, asked to get the updated Microsoft Office on my school computer, and basically act like a toddler refusing broccoli when people ask me to create documents in Google Docs. Lucidpress helps ease my transition to Google a bit by acting just like Microsoft Publisher with the added benefit of sharing an online link. I haven't created anything yet, but I am looking forward to playing around with it.
Gmail Checker - You know those people who have like 1,456 unread emails in their inbox??? Well, they basically drive me crazy!! :) I admit it, I am compulsive about checking my email. Adding the Google Mail Checker extension to my Chromebook seemed like a no-brainer. It lists the number of unread emails I currently have, and takes me directly there when I can't keep myself away any longer! One word: LOVE
Gliffy - Honestly, I played around with titling today's post as Nifty Gliffy but the rhyme just wasn't quite there! :) I am already a fan of Gliffy, a diagram creating add-on for Google Docs. I think my feelings about google docs have been made very clear throughout this post, and Gliffy helps ease my pain (insert poignant thoughts of Field of Dreams here). I created a rough, emphasis on the rough, example of how Gliffy works. Basically you create a diagram in the add-on and then it inserts into your Google Doc as an image. Here is an example of something it can do.
So that's that, taking time to save time. It's totally worth it!
Well I have taken this particular saying and adjusted it for our current tech camp activity: It takes time to save time.
That's how I felt about all of the ad-ons, apps, and extensions that I looked through this week. The purpose, as I see it, of all of these great tools is to save time, make things easier, more streamlined, and smooth. While my final results seem to concur with this purpose, the process of getting there is time-consuming and slow.
My patience was tried and tested as I looked through the many different ways Google is trying to save me time! As it is with so much technology, there is a lot of muck out there to dig through. It's kind of a go through the storm to see the rainbow situation. But if you persevere and really take time to look through it all, to the victor goes the spoils.
I've listed some of my "spoils" below:
Lucidpress App - I need to play around with it some more, but so far I am happy. I have a mac, an iPad, an iPhone, and Chromebook and yet my heart lies in PC land. So, I have downloaded the mac version of Microsoft Word, asked to get the updated Microsoft Office on my school computer, and basically act like a toddler refusing broccoli when people ask me to create documents in Google Docs. Lucidpress helps ease my transition to Google a bit by acting just like Microsoft Publisher with the added benefit of sharing an online link. I haven't created anything yet, but I am looking forward to playing around with it.
Gmail Checker - You know those people who have like 1,456 unread emails in their inbox??? Well, they basically drive me crazy!! :) I admit it, I am compulsive about checking my email. Adding the Google Mail Checker extension to my Chromebook seemed like a no-brainer. It lists the number of unread emails I currently have, and takes me directly there when I can't keep myself away any longer! One word: LOVE
 |
| Seriously, this is like my kryptonite |
Gliffy - Honestly, I played around with titling today's post as Nifty Gliffy but the rhyme just wasn't quite there! :) I am already a fan of Gliffy, a diagram creating add-on for Google Docs. I think my feelings about google docs have been made very clear throughout this post, and Gliffy helps ease my pain (insert poignant thoughts of Field of Dreams here). I created a rough, emphasis on the rough, example of how Gliffy works. Basically you create a diagram in the add-on and then it inserts into your Google Doc as an image. Here is an example of something it can do.
So that's that, taking time to save time. It's totally worth it!
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