Symbaloo

This is just a small mention for a BIG site- Symbaloo.  I am constantly changing/rearranging/adding to my Symbaloo page.  Basically it's a huge bookmark bar for some really amazing sites.  Here is just a small bit of my finds so far.

My Symbaloo page so far. Many of the icons come already set on the page- I've deleted several to make room for some of the programs I use in my classroom.  Like I said, it's a work in progress...but I have come across this GREAT resource...

This is NatGeo Kids- all these books right in one place for the kids to use for research, reading practice, or just simple learning and entertainment!  These books are amazing, and with Common Core requiring more and more non-fiction text, this resource is absolutely perfect for my 1st graders.

One example page...the site will read the text to them and highlight the words as they go, so students can follow along.

I was only introduced to Symbaloo this year, and I am still exploring the thousands of resources it has.  It's a great one to centralize all the sites we as teachers consistently visit.

Plickers

One of my favorite tech elements to use in my classroom is Plickers.  It is a surprisingly simple program that has saved me so much time--not to mention PAPER--and has fascinated my students.  Plickers is pretty simple- you just create a free account and print the Plicker cards.  Each student gets a card (I gave them to the student with the corresponding number).  The direction the student holds the card up will send the chosen answer to the computer/tablet/phone for recording.  Here's a basic outline of how it works:

First, visit www.plickers.com and create a FREE account.  Make sure you download the app onto your mobile device.

Next, download a set of Plicker Cards for your class.  **Helpful hint: I glued mine onto cardstock and laminated them.  I also wrote the letters on the back of the cards, so students could see what letter they are holding up to answer.  

Create your questions in the "library" section of the Plickers home page.  Using your camera, open the Plickers app and capture all the signs the students hold up.  Plickers will tell you when it has captured each card.  The blue box indicates the response has been recorded.

Responses are recorded and "graded", and put into a super handy graph for you!

Plickers has been so amazing for my class.  We are limited in our paper resources, and this has been a tremendous help!  It is especially useful for exit tickets.

It's a great program for tech-shy teachers or beginners.  Give it a try!

Accountability to the Student

I have been at my school for 6 months now, and it has been such a change from my previous school/district.  The tangible technology students have regular access to here is somewhat limited.  Not having a SmartBoard has challenged my teaching for sure, as well as having to get out of the habit of saying "grab an iPad" to my class (my previous school provided iPads for every classroom for student use.)  I have 2 desktop computers in my room, as well as my teacher computer, which I let students use on occasion.  1st grade has 10 iPads that rotate through our rooms, so we have them once every 6 days, and the students love them.  I bring my personal iPad and allow my students to work on it daily.  I also use it for as much interactive tech as possible, such a Plickers.

I spent 3 years helping teachers implement a new, technology-heavy math curriculum into their classrooms, and I loved my role as a "go-to" tech person in my school.  I was recently reminded that, as teachers in 2015, our job is to prepare students for this ever-changing world that is largely driven by data.  We must prepare them for jobs that don't yet exist- that will use technology that hasn't been invented yet- to solve problems that we don't yet know are problems.  This is only part of what has sparked my interest in becoming a technology coach.  I know I'm not the only teacher who feels this obligation to my students, so I'm setting up this site to document my successes and failures as I try to incorporate as much technology for my students as possible in a technology-limited space.  With any luck there will be more successes than failures!