Our last session of TLP-C will be this week on Thursday, June 12th from 4-5pm EST. This will be a very special meeting since we will be joined by Dr. Elizabeth Hoover, Chief Technology Officer for ACPS. She will share a few words about technology education. We will then have a lightning round of digital tool sharing!

Everyone who is able will share a tool they love and brag about why it is so much fun to use and the impact it has on student learning. We will have one slide per tool with the title and a URL with more information. It will be super fun to hear about more digital tools and to get some great ideas to investigate over the summer!

We hope you can join us!

Link to TLP-C June Session – Technology Round-up!

We were very lucky to have guest presenters Brandy Scott and Rachel Lorintz with us last week sharing what they knew about Doceri, a digital whiteboard that allows students to record their voices along with images and drawings. Brandy and Rachel are first grade teachers who have been using Doceri during math time as a formative assessment. Students record what they know about the current math topic. The best way to get a sense of how Doceri works, is to watch one of the videos their students have made!

Click here to see Addition and Subtraction Number Stories

Click here to see a student describing Shapes

Click here to see a student explaining Place Value

Aren’t these wonderful? What a great way to hear how students are thinking about math concepts and to understand where their thinking is accurate and what might be a little off.

Rachel and Brandy shared a lot of tips and tricks about what worked best with Doceri. Here’s a quick summary:

• Do it more than once! As students get used to using the app, their stories become clearer and easier to analyze.
• Model! Show the students what you want.
• Get another adult to help out. Ask your TIS, co-teacher or a parent if they can be there when students are recording. This will help, especially with saving
• Get headphones. If all 20 students are recording at the same time in the classroom, there will be background noice. Headphones for iPads will cut down on this.
• Set up a Dropbox account. One of the ways to get the videos from the iPads to your computer is to save to Dropbox. This will allow you to watch all videos from your computer instead of on each individual iPad.

Brandy and Rachel shared some great insights about the power of this app as well. One thing they both noticed was that students that rarely spoke in class did phenomenal whiteboard videos. Doceri became a bit of an equalizer, allowing all students’ voices to be heard. Doceri was also empowering for many students. First graders found tools in the app that the teachers didn’t even know about and improved their videos all on their own. What a great lesson for a seven-year-old. Finally, for young children that have a hard time expressing themselves through writing, Doceri gave them an opportunity to explain their thinking in another way. And for English Language Learners, this was a great way for them to practice their spoken language skills.

If you missed our session but want to know more about Doceri, check out the recording. Let us know what you think about Doceri in the comments below!

Recording – Show What You Know with Doceri – May 15, 2014

Let us know if you start using Doceri or how you think it compares to similar apps, Educreations or ShowMe. Similar things can also be done with the Recorder in SMART Notebook. Try letting your kids show you what they know!

A HUGE thank you to James Draper, GW Middle School Technology Integration Specialist for stepping up to present to us last week. Jim did a fantastic job introducing us to the many, many features of Google Drive and getting us excited about how we can use it with students. If you missed our session last week, please take a moment to listen to our recording. As with all things technical, we had a few glitches, so if you are watching the recording, please know that at three separate times the facilitators were all knocked out of Blackboard Collaborate briefly. *blush* Technology happens.

Click here to listen to Jim’s session: Recording of TLP-C Google Drive April 24th

If you were at the session and are interested in clicking on some of the links that Jim shared but didn’t get a chance in the session itself, here is a link to his presentation in…. wait for it…. Google Drive. As Jim shared last week, one of the awesome features of Google Drive is that you can publish your documents (or in this case presentation) to the web so that anyone with the link can see your work but can’t edit it. So, here is Jim’s presentation in slide only form: Google Presentation on Google Drive.

To review some other highlights of the session, we learned that in Google Drive you can:

• Create documents, presentations, surveys, and drawings that will be accessible on any device with the Internet
• Share your files with others for viewing or collaboration
• Review the revision history of a document to see who has edited it or what kind of editing can be done
• Comment on a document – great for editing and giving feedback to students
• Organize files into folders and use similar formatting devices as in Microsoft Office

In addition to having us do some “hands-on” activities in Google Drive, Jim shared lots of good links and ideas with us. One that everyone will want to check out is called Flubaroo and it allows you to set up Google Drive forms that will self-grade. Lots of teachers have been using this and found it invaluable!

Finally, you’ll want to check out “100 Ways to Use Google Drive in the Classroom” by te@chthought. In addition to reviewing the features Jim went over, it will give you even more thoughts about how this tool can transform teaching and learning in your classroom.

Thank you again to Jim and we look forward to seeing you all on May 15th from 4-5pm EST. Two amazing 1st grade teachers will be sharing how their students “Show What They Know with Doceri.” We think you will all love learning about Doceri and will see lots of applications for your own students.

This month our TLP-C session is on Google Drive. ACPS has begun introducing this amazing digital tool over the last two years and it has proven to be incredibly useful and dynamic.

Jim Draper, Technology Integration Specialist at George Washington Middle School will be sharing with us exactly what makes Google Drive so great. You will learn how to:

• Organize your digital files
• Collaborate with others on documents and presentations
• Create forms that self-grade
• Create lessons that make sharing, collaboration and revision worlds easier.

Join us this Thursday, April 24th from 4 to 5pm EST (Click here to find out when the event is in your timezone!). Use this link to participate. We welcome everyone!

Click here – TLP-C #8 – Google Drive

If you have already been using Google Drive as a professional or with students, please join us and share your tips and tricks. Hearing how other teachers are using Google Drive in the classroom will add so much to the conversation. And, if you have only a vague sense of what Google Drive is, this is a great chance to learn more.

What an informative and useful presentation this week on Digital Citizenship by Jacki Mechanic and Melissa King. Jacki and Melissa put together an impressive collection of resources for us and gave us lots of time to explore resources and consider the importance of Digital Citizenship.

To listen to the recording, click below:

Recording of TLP-C session Digital Citizenship March 20th

Melissa and Jacki began by outlining the different aspects of Digital Citizenship and then lead us in a discussion about some the reasons is it so important to teach Digital Citizenship. They also shared the relevant National Educational Technology Standards for Teachers that address digital literacy, cyberbullying and copyright information. We also discussed how important it is to model the same behavior we are expecting from our students.

Some of the most popular resources that were shared were:

Commonsense Media – has a K12 curriculum with lessons on information literacy, creative commons, cyberbullying, and social media safety. Also has great parent resources (including movie and video game reviews).

Professor Garfield – In addition to this website, there are four iPad apps that deal with Digital Citizenship

Netsmartz – sponsored by the National Center for Exploited and Missing Children, this site has a number of activities that students can complete as well as a wealth of resources for teaching about Digital Citizenship

EverFi Ignition – a series of online modules that walk students through several aspects of Digital Citizenship designed for grades 6-10. See Heath Brown (heath.brown@acps.k12.va.us) to create accounts for your students.

The other fun things that Jacki and Melissa tried out had to do with Blackboard Collaborate itself. They used the web camera for their presentation which was super fun – nice to be able to see the people presenting. We also tried out the web tour with mixed results. Was nice to be able to start the videos all together but for some reason, it didn’t seem to work for everyone. We’ll keep experimenting with these tools to see which we like using and the best way to incorporate them into our presentation.

While we were a small group for this presentation, I think we all appreciated the chance to learn more about Digital Citizenship, to share ideas about how we teach these topics to our students and to explore the great resources that are out there.

Last week we had a great time sharing and learning about Mystery Calls or Mystery Skype as it is more commonly known.  If you are not already familiar with Mystery Skype, it is when two schools connect via video conferencing software (Skype, FaceTime, Google Hangouts, Blackboard Collaborate) and ask each other questions trying to determine the location of the other class. In addition to being great for map and geography skills and developing higher order thinking skills and 21st century communication and collaboration abilities, Mystery Calls are SO MUCH FUN!

If you missed our live session, we hope you take the time to listen to the recording. We start off with our usual review of Blackboard Collaborate, the goals of TLP-C and how to post a comment in this blog (ACPS teachers: remember that we ask that you post at least 3 comments on the blog at some point throughout the year). If you just want to get to the stuff about Mystery Calls, skip ahead to minute 12.

Recording of TLP-C Mystery Calls February 20th

We started off talking about logistics. You’ll need access to video conferencing software of some kind (Skype, FaceTime, Google Hangouts, Blackboard Collaborate), a computer with Internet access, speakers, microphone and a webcam. It is especially nice to have a LCD projector so kids can see the other class well. In addition, you will want access to student computers or tablets, atlases or write-on maps, and paper to record questions and answers.

We also discussed how to organize your class for the call. Most classes assign roles to different students like Mapper, Communicator, Logical Reasoner and Question Keeper. This link gives a description for each role (good for printing out so students can have their role right in front of them). If possible, organizing a practice call will really prepare your students well. It will also let them learn their roles better. Also, try to establish the procedure with the other class so that you both agree about Yes/No questions and if more than one guess is allowed.

There are many great sites and blog posts out there with more ideas about how to conduct a Mystery Skype/Call so definitely check these out below. Twitter is also a great way to find other classes. #mysteryskype #GeoDetectives #5thchat And listen to the recording for more tips and ideas!

http://mysteryskypes1213.weebly.com/index.html

http://globalclassroom2013-14.wikispaces.com/Mystery+Location

http://mysterystate.wikispaces.com/

One of the best parts about the call was the sharing of ideas that happened in the chat. Teachers commented how they might use Mystery Calls for writing celebrations or to interview a field expert like a historian. And a few folks jumped on the mike to share their own experiences. Listen to former ACPS teacher Gretchen Malik describe her Technology Club’s Mystery Call with Alaska.

Thanks to everyone who joined us for the live session. Whether you were there live or just listened to the recording, leave us a comment below about Mystery Calls. Our next TLP-C session is on Thursday, March 20th. We will be discussing the importance of Digital Citizenship and sharing some awesome resources for tackling this topic with your students.

Our next live session of TLP-C is this Thursday, January 23rd from 4-5pm EST (Click here to find out when the event is in your timezone!) on using Digital Storytelling with English Language Learners. Anyone is welcome to join the session. Just click on this link to join us:

Click Here: TLP-C Sessions #5 – Digital Storytelling with ELL

Sandra Rojas is a English Language Learner teacher who works in a juvenile detention facility. She has had great success with using digital stories to get her students practicing their English language skills while gaining valuable technology skills. While her experience is primarily with English Language Learners, her ideas and experience translate well to work with all students.

In this session we will:

•  learn how to help students generate ideas for writing.
•  discuss the writing process for digital stories.
•  learn about the available tools that can be used for digital storytelling.
•  get helpful tips for increasing student enthusiasm for writing.

Digital storytelling opens a whole new world on how your students write.

If you have already done some digital storytelling in your classes, please join us and share your experiences! Digital stories can be so rich and diverse, everyone’s ideas make the conversation stronger!

http://www.flipsnack.com/7EBCDD97C6F/fdp5echz

Huge thank yous to LaGina Gross for her fantastic presentation about Skyping with Authors. LaGina gave us so many good ideas about ways educators can connect with authors and bring authors into their classrooms.

We are very sorry to report that we did not record the session. We would like to blame this on our worries about getting everyone in the session with recent Java updates but it was just a huge mistake on our part. We are so disappointed we don’t have the recording to capture the enthusiasm that LaGina brought to her presentation or all the great questions that were asked by participants or the wonderful student that came and shared his perspective on skyping with authors (the BEST part!).

What we do have is this. First, a link to LaGina’s presentation in Google Drive. This will give you access to her slides and all the great links she supplied.  Here is the link: https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1iX4GMXUFxtgTYL1Coykjg_3Qpvead_nA0j_21qcH7w8/edit?usp=sharing

We also have embedded the presentation as a slide show, so if you are just interested in getting a feeling for what LaGina presented on, use this slideshow below to check out all the great tips and ideas she shared.

One of the best things LaGina shared were links to resources for connecting with authors. She highly recommended Kate Messner’s Authors Who Skype with Classes and Book Clubs for Free!, Skype in Educations Book Clubs site, and a LiveBinder hosted by Kate Messner and Marjorie Light called Author Skype Tour.

In addition, if you are a teacher in Northern Virginia, LaGina highly recommended connecting with local resources including Hooray for Books Children’s bookstore, the Alexandria City Public Library and the children’s literacy organization Wright to Read. LaGina also suggested that you contact authors and publishers directly either by emailing them or using social media to contact them. Having students write letters is also an excellent strategy.

You will definitely also want to check out her tips for preparing for a Skype session and ideas for how to make sure it goes smoothly. Just like any good lesson, skyping with authors takes time to prepare students by helping them become familiar with the author and craft questions that will be meaningful for all.

This was a really inspiring session that gave everyone a ton of ideas about how to bring authors and other experts into our classes. We hope that if you didn’t make the live session that you’ll check out the links and LaGina’s slides.

Our next TLP-C Live session will be on Thursday, January 23rd with a presentation by Sandra Rojas about Digital Storytelling with English Language Learners.