Students Sharing Apps: Perfect Project

Today, I had the opportunity to catch a Periscope live broadcast of a group of students in Endwell, New York sharing out their favorite apps. The students gather information about their apps first in a Google Slide presentation, and then each student presented their rationale for the app they chose.

Without further ado, here is a link to the Periscope for you to watch to get an idea of how their work was shared out globally.

LIVE on #Periscope: #Digcit App Smackdown https://t.co/ItQfBuSRPK

— Rachel Murat (@MrsMurat) November 10, 2016

You can also get an idea of the apps the students featured by looking through this Google Slide deck the teacher, Rachel Murat, shared.

App Smashing

Here are three screen captures from the slide deck:

Here is a sample of the Google Form (survey) that was filled out to evaluate each of the apps presented. Students later created a blog post to support their top choice.

Overall, I was fortunate to watch the live presentation via Periscope to see the class in action and was impressed by the way the students took control of the learning, sharing their favorite apps with others and defending their choices as well as explaining how the app worked and its benefits.

First Days: Setting a Positive Climate

As the first days of school approach, we aim to set the tone for our classes and to get to know our students. Many have shared ideas about ways to approach these initial days.

• Edutopia offers ideas under 4 four categories in this post, Building A Positive Community in Any Classroom. Many of these ideas work for other times of the year as well. 
• From 26 Questions Every Student Should Be Able to Answer pick a few and decide how to adapt them to your classroom setting.

• Shaelynn Farnsworh, an educational blogger with a focus on literacy, shares these ideas Kicking Off Back to School With Camera Fun. As a camera buff, I illustrate one of her ideas, creating a 6 Word Memoir alongside a personal photo. 

• In the post 8 Back-to-School Ideas That Will Get Students Learning and Laughing, Katie Dunn recaps some classic icebreakers. 

November Learning, an organization founded by famed educator Alan November, provides these videos of educators offering their ideas found on this website page,  "First 5 Days of School."

Bring the News Into Your Classroom

I just learned of this site DOGO News, from Richard Byrne's blog, Free Technology for Teachers. You can check out what Byrne had to write about the site at his post, DOGO News Create and Share Lessons about the News.

One thing that intrigued me about the site is that once a news story is accessed, a teacher can grab an embed code and post the story right within a blog post. I am trying it out now with one of the stories. Perhaps this specific story won't interest you, so I will try a second embed code and post another story. What captured my attention is that a teacher can easily embed one of the stories from the site and then post on a blog or website questions to ask students related to the story. The site also has a variety of other features for sharing as well as a link to CCSS and vocabulary terms. Be sure to check the options, and let us know what you think about how DOGO News can be used in the classroom.

Students as Self-Designers of Their Learning

Student creation of blogs, websites, and digital stories epitomizes self-directed learning. Take a look at how some students design their learning. Examples include blogs, websites, and digital stories.

cc licensed ( BY ) flickr photo shared by Spree2010

I collected this list for a workshop for social studies and art teachers, and the student examples are from social studies, English, and art classes. Review a few of the student examples, and let us know what you think of integrating these kinds of projects in the classroom.






Blogs from Mike Gwaltney's Students (created with WordPress)

• OSG's AP Government Blog 
• Directory of US History Student Blogs from Mike Gwaltney's class
• Discussion Boards from Mike's History class
• To learn more about this class, see the About page
• 10th Grade Age of Exploration Blog (course taught fall 2012): combined class blog; for more details about the class, see the About page

Digital Stories:

• See digital story examples on Government Gabfest Blog--Paul Fitzpatrick's students
• Depression Era (iMovie)
• Sept. 11, 2001(iMovie): scroll to bottom of the blot post; the video is the last one in the post.

Student Projects from Mike Gwaltney's Class Inspired by 2013 National History Day Competition (collected on a joint Blogger account)

• Turning Points in American History (students selected to create a video or website)--they posted links to their projects on a collaborative class Blogger account. You will find numerous examples of websites and digital stories. In most cases, students used Weebly for their websites.

Websites (created for high school English classes using Google Sites)

• Summer P. English2 H Website (Google Sites)
• Candace's English Site (Google Sites)
• Leon's English 12 H Website (Google Sites)

E-Portfolio (created with Wix)----shared by Vicki Davis

• Madison T. Art Portfolio

To follow Mike Gwaltney on Twitter: @MikeGwaltney

To follow Vicki Davis on Twitter: @coolteacher

What Does It Mean to Be Literate in the 21st Century

Before watching the video embedded in this post, ask yourself, "What does it mean to be literate in the 21st century." Write down your answer somewhere if you think you will forget it after watching the video. Then watch the video, and ask yourself the question again. So what are your thoughts on what it means to be literate in the 21st century? The producers of the video, educators, stepped into teachers' classrooms and asked this question and video-recorded the responses. What did you think of the responses you heard in the video? How do you think students in the elementary, middle, and high school grades would react to the video? What do you think would be their definition of literacy? What literacy skills do you think it is important to teach?

Using Technology Successfully in the Classroom is a Mindset

The 21st Century Classroom

View more presentations from Kim Cofino

Saw this slide show on Slide Share, and thought it was worth sharing with others. It makes several points about using technology in the classroom. We are reminded that the use of the technology is a mindset and not a technical skill. There are points made about problem-based learning, inquiry learning, and backwards design. The visuals help carry the message, so look through the entire presentation. Leave your comments. Did the presentation inspire you in any way? Did it deepen your appreciation for technology as supplementary to learning? What point was made about the use of technology as a mindset?