English 9 Students Blogging About Literature Circle Books

Blogging is going to be our "go to" tool for students to express a number of aspects of the book they are reading from literature circles.  While blogging can be done on an iPad through Safari, images are a challenge to insert.  We will be using computers or Chromebooks located in various learning areas for our students to incorporate images.

We explained the "set up" process for students in Large Group Instruction.

Ms. Alger-Feser, Ms. Kennen, and Ms. Kohls did a great job of creating blog post entries.

CMS 4 Schools Profile Update For pulaskischools.org

To update your profile on our Pulaski Schools website, follow the directions below.  If you want to watch how to do it, the video tutorial is below as well.

Thank you for doing this!

• Log Into CMS4Schools
• Log In With Username
• Log In With Password 
• Click on "Edit My Profile"
• Change Title
• Change Phone Number
• Change Profile Picture
• Change Bio
• Add Links To Other Digital Documents
• If you have a CMS4Schools Website
• Click "My Navigation Builder Home"
• Edit Webpages

Video Link

YouTube Sharing To Blogger

Different Uses For Blogs By Different Teachers

Blogs or interactive writing can be used in so many ways.  Classroom blogs, weekly book talks, and student learning logs are all methods for having a digital content presence.

Mrs. Berling is making an initial step into blogging and using it for providing students 24/7 access to Learning Target Problems for math.

Hear her story:

In-Service Shareshop

We are always expressing how as teachers we would like to see more time to work on projects or plan with our fellow teachers. A brilliant move by our Technology Instructor Director was to make time for a Shareshop.

Shareshop: an amount of time devoted for teachers creating or completing a
technology project that was learned about through an in-service
session.

Over fifty staff members joined us in the Library, worked on tech projects, listened to music, and had fun doing it!

ePortfolios and Professional Digital Presence Teachers & Students

Different methods can accomplish the same objective.

Objective:  Develop a digital, professional presence for students on the web.  Created by teacher or created by student.
Takes on two forms:

• Running record of student's educational journey  
• "All the Best" of the student's work from the year

Method:
Two different types: 

• Created by teachers 
• Created by students

Students Created:

Evernote (Playlist of all videos):

• Pictures, Videos, Audio, Text
• iPad app
• Android app 
• Web based
• Options for sharing

Blogger (Playlist of all videos):

• Pictures & Text
• Audio & video using other apps or tech tools
• iPad app: Blogger, BlogPress, Blogsy 
• Android app: Blogger
• Web based
• Examples 2011-2012

Teacher Created:

Three Ring (Playlist of all videos):

• Pictures, Audio, Text
• Capture using mobile device
• View using web
• iPad app
• Android app
• Web based
• Options for sharing     

Google Drive (Playlist of all videos):

• Pictures, Video, Audio, Text
• Capture using camera or audio app
• View using web
• iPad app
• Android app 
• Web based

Blogger Changing Labels

Changing labels on a blog is not easy, but if a teacher is just starting out, some simple steps can set things straight.

How I'm In More Than One Classroom At A Time

I am one technology integration teacher. There are over 100 teachers in two buildings that I want to help. 

How.Do.I.Do.It?

I create 2-3 minute videos for teachers to show to their classroom.

What.Does.This.Do?

It creates a library for teachers to access on tech tool tips for integration into their classroom. They can access this any time, and they can refer to it multiple times throughout the year. In addition, they don't have to spend a ton of time learning the "tricks" of the tech tool. However, as they watch it, they learn the "tricks" of the tech tool. It really is a win-win-win for teachers, students, and me! Present in multiple classrooms at one time.

See one that a teacher is using on Friday.

How did I create it?
I do not have Camtasia Studio at the present time due to reconfiguring of our computer work stations. Because of this, I use Screencast-o-matic for computer instruction or Reflection for iPad instruction for the actual recording.  Whichever the tool used, I upload it to YouTube and then use the Tubebox app to download it from YouTube to my iPad.  After using the Skitch app to create a bumper page, I add the video, bumper page, and some copyright free music to the iMovie instruction.  Finally, I upload the video to YouTube and email the link to the teacher.

The process does become easier as it is practiced.

Embed YouTube Videos Into Blog Post

Professional Development - Choose Your Own Adventure

See how I carried out this concept.  Slide 98 starts the choose your own adventure.



Overall, I really liked:

• Teacher initiative to move forward on their own using the tutorials that I set up prior to the PD session
• The ability to learn from the participants items that they discovered on their own
• The opportunity to help those participants who needed more help
• The fact that participants did not need to wait for another participant who may slightly fall behind during the creation steps

I will continue to develop this concept when it comes to professional development sessions.

Blog Set Up For Teacher and Classroom Digital Presence

To create a blog from scratch, I walked two teachers through a short step by step process.

1. Log Into Google Account
2. Create new tab in Google Chrome browser
3. Type in blogger.com in the URL area (this will automatically have you logged into your Google account)
4. Click "New Blog" on left hand side of screen
5. Type in the title of your blog...this can be changed later
6. Type in address of your blog.  This will be the EXACT web address you provide to your students.  Take into consideration that you may create a new one of these each year.  Suggestion:  use the year in your web address.  Example: teacher1213
7. Choose a template (this can be changed later)  don't spend too much time at this point deciding.  Start with SIMPLE.  The dynamic gets slightly complicated.
8. Click Create
9. You may be asked to create a profile.  Just choose the left "limited blogger" profile.
10. The title of your blog will be in the middle of the screen.  Click on it.
11. On the left side, will be a list of nine words.
12. Click on Layout
13. Numerous sections will be in your blog.  You can decide which sections you want.  The main section "Blog Posts" is a section you will want to keep.  This will be where you make the content of each day known.
14. This section will allow you to add or delete any gadget that you want.  Gadgets are tools that can be added. 
15. If  you are unsure of choosing GADGETS, now will be a great time to contact me for additional help.  

IMPORTANT: a navigation bar always exists in a Google Blog.  Use the following code to remove the navigation bar so students cannot advanced to a random blog.  The complete directions are here.

         

#navbar-iframe {display: none !important;}

Blog vs. Site For Digital Teacher Presence

Teachers are starting to inquire about which tech tool may be better for their classroom presence.  After a thirty minute session with two outstanding teachers, I decided that a blog post detailing blogs and sites would be appropriate!

Two happy clients on their way to having a classroom digital presence.

• If you don't have time to read the entire post, take this:  blogs are updated always, and sites are static.  You may also need to create a new blog each year!

Google Blog Positives

• Updated information always at the top of the website.
• Labeling as a use of categorizing
• Embed YouTube videos
• Embed Google calendars
• Embed Gadgets
• Embed Pictures
• Links to anywhere on the web
• Create pages
• Multiple layouts, designs, templates 
• Shorter URLs (web addresses-your address(.)blogspot.com
• Searchable by Google 
• Can leave comments to blog posts
• Archiving of blog entries
• Can create pages, but cannot have blog posts on these pages
• Multiple authors (great for collaborating with other teachers)

Google Site Positives

• Static
• Insert a wide variety of tools (see below)

• Create pages
• Updated announcements (similar to blog posts) can be placed on a page, but cannot be organized or labeled
• Pages can have an area for comments to be placed, usually on the bottom
• Can upload files in numerous formats (could be useful for previously created documents in Word)
• Protect certain pages for viewing by a select group
• Templates available, but not as many as blogger
• Multiple authors (great for collaborating with other teachers)

Articles from other sources that may help you decide.

• Google Sites - in depth professional development site I created in 2011 for our school district. View It
• Fantastic article outlining the differences: Blog vs. Site
• Blogs vs. Sites What's the difference?
• Should I start a blog or a site? Good Question
• Blog vs. Site Where should I start?

Bottom Line:
Both are great!  You decide!  Either way, your students and parents will be provided with great resources from your classroom!

Episode 19 Blogger Tutorial and SITA

This will be the last tech tool tip of 2011-2012.  As many of you integrate technology into more and more lessons, you may consider creating a digital hub for your classroom.  A digital hub (see my classroom blog) can be a place for your students to easily access links that you want them to use and YouTube videos that can introduce or supplement your lessons.  It can also be a great place to showcase student work.

The video provides an unbelievable list of blogger tutorial.

Also, Amy U. sent out an email about a great, FREE technology educational opportunity this summer.  I have created a video tutorial that explains and provides visual links.  Consider attending, it will be a great learning opportunity.

APOLOGY:  The links don't actually work in the video, they are all found below the video.

This will be the last tech tool tip of 2011-2012.  Hopefully, they have been helpful.  Look for more in 2012-2013!

Blogger Tutorial Playlist
SITA
SITA Registration
SITA Session Lineup
SITA Individual Session Registration
edCampGB (Thursday, August 2)

Blogging With Writing Prompt

Student Blogging Preview of Chapter

I have actually never thought of it until today!  We never blogged a preview of what we were GOING to study.  Today, we Googled the one word that was written very large across the first page of our chapter in math.

"Inequalities"

Students found as much as they can about everything on this subject and placed a chosen amount into a blog post.

iPad Apps Review & Leads Into Today's Lesson

Students provided a list of apps that could be great for quick creation on the iPad.

Their list included:

• Whiteboard 
• Noterize (Notes)(PaperPort Notes) All the same
• Tactilis
• Skitch

Having the students review the formula for Simple and Compound Interest revealed that while the students knew the formula through their findings in yesterday's lesson, they did not know what each variable stood for.  For example, r = rate, t = time, P = principle.

I would not have known this had we not reflected by creating something and posting it to their blog.

Introduction To Concept - Students Doing Work

I believe this lesson typifies how my classroom instruction has changed in the last year.  Our scope and sequence called for an introduction to parabolas.  If an iPad with searchability features and creation apps didn't exist, our students would have been stuck with their textbook and me for information about this topic.

Instead, multiple tools were used to obtain detailed questions on parabolas.  This provided students a great opportunity to become self directed learners, questioners, and creators all in a 45 minute class period.

My role revolved around questioning students so that they discovered the answer on their own, they discovered what tech tool would be the best to use to find the information, and they decided how they wanted to create a product that proved they knew the information.

The multiple videos are below in sequential order.



Graphing Calculator App


Pic Collage and Whiteboard App



Dictionary App (with audio) & Searching for features of parabola


What student knows...


Picture of vertex after search


Notes and Skitch App


Phoster App


Photo Mess Whiteboard


Creating


Summarizing through blogging and labeling

Video Uploaded To Blog via Dropbox

Today students will be completing an Explain Everything creation.  Students will upload the movie to a public Dropbox folder.  Then, students will use the Dropbox app to obtain the public folder link of their creation and paste it into their blog.

For the first time, we will be able to upload a video to their blog.  (We will be doing this with 1 minute videos that students will upload to the public folder in Dropbox in the near future)

Note*** Once the link is uploaded in blogger, it needs to be copied from the blog (it is not a clickable link) and placed into the URL address bar in the ROVER app.  Additional Rover Post

Not easy, but it works!

Proportions and Blogging

Today, students applied concepts of black ink on white paper (some drill and practice problems) to pictures of real people.

We followed up the four problems with students reflecting on the day's work.  We placed emphasis on adding pictures to enhance our blog post and labeling the post with math concept words.

Blog Comments Google Spreadsheet and Apps Tie Lessons Together

Day 2 of 3 days...See first day

Leaving blog comments on student posts was a beneficial activity to tie one day's lesson to another.



A Google Shared Spreadsheet was an easy way to gather data from all students.



Once the relationship between Circumference and the Diameter was made students were introduced to the concept of Pi.  A lesson is not complete if students don't try to memorize Pi.  Two apps helped in this process:  Pi Day and Pi Brain