As educators, we seek innovative ways to engage students across various disciplines, and the integration of technology emerges as a key strategy. Technology is a helpful tool that can make learning more interesting and fun.
In this blog post, we'll explore seven effective ways to seamlessly infuse technology across all subject areas, fostering a collaborative, interactive, and forward-thinking educational environment. From science to literature, mathematics to the arts, discover how embracing the power of technology can elevate the learning experience and prepare students for the challenges of a digitally-driven world.
In the field of elementary math education, the concept of abstract mathematical ideas can be challenging for young learners to grasp. However, with virtual math manipulatives, educators now have a powerful tool to bridge this gap and facilitate a deeper understanding of mathematical concepts. In this blog post, we will explore the benefits of virtual math manipulatives and how they can be seamlessly integrated into math lessons for elementary students.
We want our students to return back to school refreshed and ready to learn. But, we also don't want them to fall behind. Summer is a great time for students to continue working on important skills. With all the activities going on this summer, it's really easy to create opportunities for kids to write. There are no due dates, no grading, and students can select their own writing formats. In this post, I have a 6 tips to promote writing through the summer. And, guess what! I've included ideas with technology!
Using comics or graphic novels in your teaching is a fun way to keep your students motivated. Reluctant readers and writers tend to get excited over using comics because comic writing is less intensive. Students can be imaginative in their writing and creative in their choice of characters and props. Using comics can even increase a student's vocabulary. Jennifer Haines wrote an excellent article about Teaching With Comics. In this post, I've provided ideas for Using Digital Comics to Motivate Reluctant Readers and Writers.
Fall is my favorite time of the year. I love the colors, the crispness in the air, and all of the fun activities. In this post, I'm sharing 5 easy tech activities so your students will have a Chilling Halloween.
With the upcoming election, this is the perfect time to teach our students about our government and the election process. Whether this is a presidential election year or not, it's important for our students to realize that citizens' voices count in electing our local, state, and national officials.
The presidential election is right around the corner and there are so many skills that can be taught around the election process. Even though there's so much trash talk from both sides, there are ways to teach the political process in electing the president. And, there are some excellent websites and lessons that are available. I've come across several websites that have excellent online activities and ideas for teaching your students about the upcoming presidential election. Take advantage of these teachable moments surrounding the election.
Do you write daily assignments and homework on a dry erase board or on your Smartboard each day? Do your students overlook important due dates or upcoming events? In this post I'm going to share benefits of Using Google Slides for Morning Messages and I'll show you how to create your own. I've also included free templates that are easy to use.
I'm a huge fan of Patricia Polacco. There are so many skills and life lessons that can be taught through reading her wonderful books. One of my favorites is The Butterfly. It's a story about two courageous young girls during World War II. In this post, I'm going to share with you How to Teach Characterization With Technology and The Butterfly. Make sure to download your free resources.
When designing Digital Escape Rooms, my goal is to present information in a creative and engaging way. Digital Escape Rooms involve collaboration and enable students to think critically and problem-solve as they solve puzzles and clues. I'm always looking for new apps and ideas to incorporated into the escapes. I recently used Powtoon With Digital Escape Rooms.
When students begin the new year, they are anxious about meeting their new teachers, moving up to a new grade, the classroom expectations, and fitting in with their new classmates. Most teachers begin the new year by explaining all the rules and expectations. This can be so overwhelming. And, to tell you the truth, students won't remember what you've told them. Their minds are elsewhere! I have 5 Getting to Know You Activities to Begin the Year that will help your students relax and enjoy the beginning of the new school year. It will also help lay the foundation for a positive and safe environment.
Every year, Shark Week brings awareness to our sharks and their importance to our ecosystem. Discovery Channel presents amazing stories about these mysterious creatures. In this post, I'm sharing a fun way students can learn about sharks through cartoons. Take a Bite Out of Learning During Shark Week with this FREEBIE.
According to the Buck Institute for Education, providing students with Voice and Choice is an essential element in implementing true project based learning. During a PBL unit, teachers want their students to feel engaged and empowered throughout the whole project. It's also important for teachers to not only give students opportunities for choice, but still have control of the academic content and learning experience. In this post, I'll give you helpful ideas in Giving Students Voice and Choice During Project Based Learning.
As teachers we want to ensure that our students continue learning through the summer. Did you know students lose at least two to three months in reading and most students lose two months of math skills in the summer? It's important for us to make sure that all of our children are stimulated. For those who have access to technology, I have a some ideas in using technology to promote summer reading.
With budget cuts and other restrictions preventing classes from going on field trips and gaining real-world experiences, I have the next best idea for you. Students can visit places all over the world and gain first hand knowledge by going on a virtual tour. Students and teachers can create their own VR Field Trips with Google's Tour Creator.
Are you new to project based learning? Do you need a better way to plan your PBL unit? Are you having difficulty staying organized during your PBL unit? Is it impossible to find time to collaborate with teachers? Let me help you Get Organized with your Project Based Learning unit with a Digital Planner.
In today's world, with so much information coming from the Internet, it's crucial to check the validity of websites. Students need to make sure that they are getting accurate and reliable information when conducting research and for expository writing. Checking information retrieved from the Internet also helps students search better and strengthen arguments about a subject. In this post, I'm going to use the book, But I Read it on the Internet!, to Build expository writers with mentor texts.
TCEA has been held in Austin for about 30 years. Believe it or not, I've attended most of them as a speaker or attendee. This conference has grown to gain national attention all over the US. The speakers are excellent and the exhibit hall is filled with vendors. This year, the conference was held in San Antonio. I was FULLY CHARGED when I left the conference. In this post, I'm going to share my BIG takeaways from TCEA.
It's always fun to attend the conference with coworkers or your techie friends. For the past several years, I've met up with my friend Nancy Alvarez (Teaching With Nancy) or she stayed at my home in Austin. This year, we shared a room at the conference hotel, the Grand Hyatt. Nancy presented at the conference on MakerSpaces for younger learners.
My goal in attending TCEA was to gain more knowledge in advances in educational technology and new ideas for digital breakouts, and project based learning. I learned so much from most of the presentations I attended. I can't wait to share what I learned.
My Four Sessions
1. BreakoutEDU With Augmented and Virtual Reality - This session was interactive. We divided into teams to solve the breakout. All of locks were either AR or VR. The activity locks were placed in different parts of the room. Each involved a different App.
- Roundme.com - With RoundMe, you can create 360 VR images. You can create portals, hotspots, maps, and sounds. I love it for for designing tours for pbl and virtual escapes. There are even stock images that you can purchase for your projects. You can create up to 10 free RoundMe projects a month.
- CoSpaces - Students and teachers can build their own 3D creations. There's even a gallery with your curriculum. Students can also use it with the Merge Cube. Here's the example of the lock speaker Jaime Donally used with CoSpace. We were given this CoSpace website and asked the color of the person's shirt who was sitting.
- Merge Cube - We had the designer of Merge Cube to join us! There are over 10 paid and free apps to go with Merge Cube. I hope to post more about Merge Cube soon. The cube is so inexpensive and the apps are educational.
- Quiver vision- 3D/AR coloring pages; Quiver Education focuses on biology, geometry, and the solar system.
2.Gamify Your Formative Assessments - I loved being involved in another interactive session. Have you heard of Goosechase? Goosechase is a virtual scavenger hunt. Frances Karels from West ISD designed a mission just for TCEA participants. Missions can be designed based on the TEKS or other curriculum standards. Goosechase can be used as a BreakoutEDU or a fun way to assess your students during pbl. You can play free with up to 3 teams. Participants can be asked to enter either text, video, photos, or GPS. Stay tuned, I plan to share more about Goosechase.
3. Cracking the Code: Coding Resources for Elementary - John Moran and Matthew Garrett from Northside ISD shared some great coding websites and apps for young learners. Their recommendations were Kodable, Code.org, and CS First. I plan to learn more about CS First because it's a Google application and comes with a curriculum.
4. Explore and More With Google Tour Creator - Kim Murfree from Mansfield ISD was so entertaining! She showed us how to design virtual field trips using Google Tour Creator. I can't wait to use Google Tour Creator with my digital escape rooms.
I'll be integrating my big takeaways from TCEA into my TPT products. Make sure to check in for more ideas for your classroom.
If you're looking for high-interest nonfiction text for your students, I highly recommend the website or app Newsela. Teachers can use Newsela for reading intervention and differentiation with the range of reading levels for each article. So, why waste your time on searching for articles and reading passages when your students can read engaging nonfiction text with Newsela.
Current News
Nonfiction text with Newsela content is updated daily so your students are reading current information. It's cross-curricular content is perfect for learning about all subject areas. You can assign articles to individual students, groups, or to the whole class. Students will no longer feel singled out because you can adjust the reading level while they read the same article. Then, you can assess your students according to their level.
Selecting Articles
Are you looking for articles on endangered animals? Black history? The Winter Games? You can find articles by curriculum headings, featured text, or just through a general search. It's so easy to find articles for your needs. I always recommend using Newsela with project based learning. You can assign timely, high-interest articles about the problem or subject and immediately assess your students. It's also important to teach our students media literacy. Newsela has topics on distinguishing between real and fake news.
Narrow Your Search
To narrow your search, select the grade level, reading skill, language, and special features. Newsela has added Power Words to the selection. When students click on the power word, a kid-friendly definition pops up. If you want to save and article, just bookmark it. Other features are added to help you make the selection.
Logging Into Newsela
Students are given options when logging into Newsela. Newsela integrates with management systems your schools may use. If you have Google Classroom, you import your Google Classrooms into Newsela.
Content Partners
Newsela has teamed up with some amazing organizations for their content. With the emphasis on fake news and media literacy, they are committed to providing up-to-date and accurate information for our students. These are just a few of the contributors.
Learn a little more about reading engaging nonfiction text with Newsela by watching this video.
This year, Chinese New Year begins February 12. It is the Year of the Ox The Oxis the second of the animals which appears in the Chinese zodiac in the Chinese calendar. There are 12 animals that are in the Chinese Zodiac. In this post, your students can celebrate other cultures with Chinese New Year. I've also provided a fun Game board FREEBIE.
Did you know that nine Asian countries celebrate the Lunar New year? About 1/5 of the world's population will be celebrating with their families and preparing their homes for the New Year.It's important for our students to learn about other cultures and appreciate their important holidays and festivals. Here are some websites and activities that you can implement into your curriculum:
* Activity Village - Activity Village is filled with crafts and activities. You do have to be a member to access all the printables.
* Soft Schools - This site lists fun facts about Chinese New Year. "The Chinese New Year is symbolic of letting go of the past and welcoming new beginnings. It's a popular time for spring cleaning."
* Trip Savvy - 10 Facts About Chinese New Year: The largest human migration happens during Chinese New Year. People travel to spend time with their families.
