Hour of Code, Google Home, Google Classroom Notifications - Wk 10

Here are some highlights from this week:

Week 10 (October 22 – October 26, 2018)

Thursday Giggles:    How do you fix a cracked pumpkin?

With a pumpkin patch.

PD Dates to save on your calendar:

       Tuesday, January 15 – Infographics @ The PLC from 4:30 – 6:30

       Wednesday, January 23 – Flipgrid @ Mountain View from 2:30 – 3:30

       Wednesday, February 13 – Google Forms and Sheets @ Mountain View from 2:30 – 3:30
       **There are fewer PD’s this year as I am working with sites on Digital Citizenship requirements (additional trainings/sessions).

Hour of Code. Please consider participating in this global event. If your class participates in this event, let me know HERE. There’s a FREE gift card giveaway. See link for more details.  I’d love to have 75 elementary teachers from the CN area participate this year in Hour of Code.  Need a video to encourage your team to participate?  Try this one: LINK HERE.

Would you be interested in having a FREE coding license if I qualify for grants?  LET ME KNOW HERE.

Image credits: Screen capture from Hour of Code.

Google Home as an interactive story tool.  What if you could write stories that are interactive?  And, your Google Home could read it aloud and be a part of that interactive experience?  You can!  Check out this video to find out more on how to make that happen (LINK HERE).  And, no; you don’t need to write any computer code to make it happen.  Your kids can do this too!!  See where their imaginations take them.  And, you can find the actual tool in the Google Chrome store (for free) HERE.

Please note that our network does not connect with devices like this just yet.  However, if you have a personal hotspot, you can use your own data to connect with a device like this.  Additionally, be sure you have a classroom policy in place to manage questions that are questionable or unsolicited.  Discuss this with your site administrator when in doubt.

Emails from Google Classroom. “Whoooooaaa! So, I keep getting all these emails from Google Classroom every time my students turn something in. That doesn’t work for me. How can I turn those off?”

Here’s a really simple way to turn those off. Head to Google Classroom. Stay at that main menu. Click on the “pancakes.”  That’s what I call the Menu icon. After you click that, you’ll see your list of classes. At the bottom of that list you will find the word Settings.

Click on the word Settings.

Once you are in that next menu, you will notice that the very first option is email notifications. You can either turn off all email notifications. Or, you can specifically choose under which conditions you will receive an email.

Thanks for reading.  Have a great day!

Kindly,

Flipgrid, Prodigy, YouTube, and Hour of Code - Wk 09

Here are a few highlights from this week:

Week 9 (October 15 – October 19, 2018)

Giggles:                              How does a vampire start a letter?
Tomb it may concern…

PD Dates to save on your calendar:
If you are interested in this FREE PD, click the link below to sign up.  Please note the location has changed to Mountain View Elementary.
Optional/FREE PD – Google Drive @ Mountain View on Wednesday, October 24 from 2:30 – 3:30. 

Google Drive: Did you know there’s more to Drive than just a storage, sharing, and folder space? There are actually a host of educational tools in there too. We’ll cover the basics of how Drive works, but I will also show you how to access some of those learning tools as well: geography, art, architectural design and more.
REGISTER HERE – MORE INFORMATION HERE

MORE DATES:

       Wednesday, November 7 – Google Slides @ Riverview from 2:30 – 3:30

       Tuesday, January 15 – Infographics @ The PLC (by In & Out Burger @ Clovis & Herndon) from 4:30 – 6:30

       Wednesday, January 23 – Flipgrid @ Mountain View from 2:30 – 3:30

       Wednesday, February 13 – Google Forms and Sheets @ Mountain View from 2:30 – 3:30

Hour of Code. Please consider participating in this global event. If your class participates in this event, let me know HERE. There’s a FREE gift card giveaway. See link for more details.  I’d love to have 82 elementary teachers from the CN area participate this year in Hour of Code.  Need a video to encourage your team to participate?  Try this one: LINK HERE.  Need a resource to code with?  Try this one: code.org/learn

Would you be interested in having a FREE coding license if I qualify for some grants?  LET ME KNOW HERE.

Image credits: Screen capture from Hour of Code.

YouTube Channel. Did you know I have a YouTube channel?  There you can find a host of training videos, and tools to use in the classroom.  Lately, I’ve been adding a new video almost every week.  I even have a few tools that help parents.  Head over to this LINK HERE to find out more.

Prodigy. Speaking of videos.  I updated the Prodigy video on my YouTube channel.  It showcases a few new things: logging in with Clever, using the Update button to make sure your students are moved over to your dashboard, the wizard book of spells, and a few other bits that may be helpful for you and your students.  Check out THIS VIDEO if you would like to use it with your students.

Flipgrid is awesome!!! Watch THIS VIDEO to find out more. I actually have one teacher who will connect with a class from Texas. We will compare environmental impact in unique regions. Students teaching students. #StudentVoice #KidsCanTeach

Thanks for all the kindnesses you share with me.  I enjoy being in community with you!!

Kindly,

Adobe Spark, Hour of Code, Free PD & Vision Impaired Watch - Wk 08

CN Elementary Teaching Team,

A few highlights from this week:

Week 8 (October 8 – October 12, 2018)

Thursday Giggles:            What do you get when you cross a cantaloupe with a border collie?
Melancholy puppies.

Optional/FREE PD – Google Drive @ Mountain View on Wednesday, October 24 from 2:30 – 3:30. 

Google Drive: Did you know there’s more to Drive than just a storage, sharing, and folder space? There are actually a host of educational tools in there too. We’ll cover the basics of how Drive works, but I will also show you how to access some of those learning tools as well: geography, art, architectural design and more.
REGISTER HERE – MORE INFORMATION HERE

Google Classroom Archive. If you have ever co-taught with someone and the author archives that Google Classroom space, you will still have the ability to push out those “old” assignments with the “Reuse” button.  In your new space (whatever your new Classroom is for this year…), simply choose the “Reuse post” option.  Those archived classes will show up in the drop-down menu.

If you were concerned that I archived our class from last year…no worries.  You can still push out that “old” content.

Vision Impaired. The Apple Watch is a great tool for people who can see, but what about people who cannot?  No worries, some really smart tech company figured that out.  There’s a smart watch that can lift magnetic dots so that people who read in Braille can have access to up-to-the-minute information just like you.  Do you have students on your campus who are vision impaired?  If so, see if their parents are interested in a tool like this.  WEB LINK HERE.

Adobe Spark. So our students now have access to Adobe Spark.  You can find the link in Clever.  Chis Edmondson recently sent out an emailing letting everyone know we have access to this tool.  Have you ever used it? How might you use it? You can use this for academic purposes to showcase a theme, concept, or idea: odd numbers, even numbers, tundra, rainforest, mammals, predators, herbivores, sedimentary rock, decomposition, decomposers, angles, parallel, perpendicular, or author’s intent to name a few.  You can find that video here: VIDEO LINK HERE. Kids log in with @my.cusd.com at the close of their username.  No password.

Computer Science. So, I was on a video conference with a computer science sales rep out of Canada the other day.  And, he shared with me that China has a Computer Science portion in their end-of-high-school assessment. It’s like adding Computer Science to our SAT’s. Children (pre-adults) are supposed to know how to code in Python (a computer language). For reals! In the years to come you will see some significant changes to the amount of Computer Science in our elementary classrooms. Ask question. Be curious. Ask your students about coding. Some of them are already coding at home.

Usage rights permitted on this image: LINK HERE.

Hour of Code. Keep an eye out for more information about Hour of Code.  It’s a global-wide event that introduces children to coding and encourages them to code.  How much code do you bring to your classroom?  I plan to write a few grants.  Would you be interested in having a FREE coding license if I qualify for those grants?  LET ME KNOW HERE.

Image credits: Screen capture from Hour of Code.

Kindly,

EdPuzzle, Padlet, Time Savers, and Digital Citizenship - Wk 07

Here are a few highlights from this week:

Week 7 (October 1 – October 5, 2018)

Thursday Giggles:           What did the necktie say to the hat?
You go on ahead, I'll just hang around.

Optional/FREE PD – Google Drive @ Mountain View on Wednesday, October 24 from 2:30 – 3:30. 

Google Drive: Did you know there’s more to Drive than just a storage, sharing, and folder space? There are actually a host of educational tools in there too. We’ll cover the basics of how Drive works, but I will also show you how to access some of those learning tools as well: geography, art, architectural design and more.
REGISTER HERE – MORE INFORMATION HERE

Time Savers.  So here are two time savers that could impact your search/learning/teaching strategies.  Or, if you’re working on collegiate research, you may not be able to survive without them.  Hands cramping?  Too much clicking?  Have the computer work for you.  LINK HERE.

EdPuzzle just opened up all their premium features.  If you already have an account, check to see if you just got upgraded to the wow.  And if you’re new, there might be a possibility that you just got the wow too.  You are free to #FlipYourClassroom.  Literally.  Email people to add more storage to your account.  Invite them to flip their classrooms as well.  EdPuzzle LINK HERE.

Image credits here.

Padlet has opened up a new feature where you can capture a picture of a wall that is filled with post-its and those post-its will be converted to Padlet comments.  It’s in the beta testing state (as of 14 weeks ago).  They plan to work out the bugs as users provide feedback.  Super cool!

Image credit: Twitter Feed for Padlet.

Common Sense. Digital Citizenship Lessons. Common Sense has done a splendid job of organizing lessons that specifically target the theme of Digital Citizenship. Use this link to find the scope and sequence. In each of the grade specific buttons, you will locate lessons that are specific to your grade level. For grades 3 through 5, there are interactive online resources available to you. Soon, Common Sense will launch online lessons for other grades. LESSONS HERE.

Image credits: Screen capture from above website.

Digital Citizenship Parent Information. On the Common Sense website, they have a parent tab. Parents can locate information that is helpful to them. Themes like sexting, cyber bullying, online ethics, and safety.  Do your parents ask you about digital safety?  Point them here, it will answer some of their questions.  LINK HERE.

Image credits: Screen capture from above website.

Kindly,