ReadWorks

If you are a Kindergarten through eighth grade English Language Arts teacher, you need to go check out ReadWorks.org. ReadWorks is a free reading comprehension website that provides research based materials. All you have to do is create an account and then you are good to go! I love to use this site in my Special Education Classroom. Because my students are not performing at grade level, I am able to search reading comprehension units based on their ability level to help close their academic gap. ReadWorks is broken down into four different categories. The categories are Skill & Strategy Units, Comprehension Units, Novel Study Units, and Reading Passages.

Go on over to ReadWorks,org, create an account and explore. Let me know what you think of this great resource!

EDTECH 537 Poll Results

On Sunday, August 9, 2015, I posted a poll on my blog asking my readers to let me know which LMS (learning management system) they used in their classroom. I only had 5 readers take my poll and 4 of them use Google Classroom while 1 uses Moodle. One of my readers commented stating that she used SchoolLoop but entered Google since I did not have an option for the LMS she uses. So, based on my results, Google Classroom seems to be the go to LMS for the classroom.
                                  

EDTECH 537: Final Post - Reflection

As I write my final post for EDTECH 537, I have thought long and hard about what I wanted to write. I must have developed writers block or something. Then, I
 noticed that many of my classmates wrote reflections on their experience with EDTECH 537 Blogging in the Classroom and I thought that was a great idea. So, for my last post for EDTECH 537 but not my last post in the blogging world, I am going to reflect on my Blogging in the Classroom experience.

When I first signed up for EDTECH 537, I knew I was going to learn about blogging, but I didn't realize I would take this much away from just one class. I have learned how to use my own blog, blog in a classroom, and microblog. I enjoy surfing the web for new information and have came across blogs and never really understood them until taking this course. I now know what the buzz is all about and I'm glad. I love to share  resources that I find and I plan on continuing to use my blog to share with other teachers. As far as blogging in the classroom goes, I am very excited to get back to my students after my maternity level to start blogging in the classroom. I am going to start off slow and then let them run with it. I will be using the Russell Street School blog and what I learned in EDTECH 537 as guides. In addition to my own blog and classroom blogs, I learned how to use Twitter. I have had a Twitter account since 2009, but I never really understood it until this course. Now, I believe I am becoming better at Tweeting and I have even participated in Twitter Chats. I am learning a lot and developing my own PLN.

Overall, this course was a great learning experience and I am glad that I decided to take this course this summer verses next summer. Now, I can get the ball rolling with blogging and connecting with other educators.

EDTECH 537: iPad 1:1 Discussion

I just recently found out that the high school in my district will be implementing an iPad one-to-one initiative during the 2015-2016 school year. I think that it is great that our little town is moving in the right direction during the 21st century. However, I would have wanted to have a Chromebook one-to-one school, but I teach at the middle school and have no say with what goes on at the high school. My understanding is that the teachers were the ones that decided what they wanted.

This week, our technology coordinator mailed letters out to the parents of the high school students letting them know that the high school would be implementing a one-to-one iPad initiative for the 2015-2016 school year. The letter stated that parents had to sign the acceptable use form and pay a $50.00 maintenance fee for the iPad. The parents were also informed that students could only download stipulated apps and software and that no personal apps were to be installed on the iPad. In addition, if the student loses or breaks the iPad, then the parent would be responsible for the cost of the replacement of the iPad.

Many parents are irate over the fact that they have to pay a maintenance fee and replacement cost if the iPad is lost or stolen. The students are not allowed to bring their own iPad because the school will not be able to monitor personal iPads. So, I am curious how other schools are implementing 1:1 programs in their schools.

For those that implement a 1:1 iPad program in your school, do parents have to pay a maintenance fee? If so, how much? If they do not have to pay a maintenance fee, do parents have to pay anything? For those that have Chromebooks instead of iPads in your 1:1 program, is there a fee?

EDTECH 537: Poll - LMS

There are many different Learning Management Systems (LMS) available for teachers to use in their classrooms. At the middle school where I teach, there are a few teachers using Google Classroom, one teacher using Moodle, one teacher using Edmodo, and one teacher using Schoology. I hope to see more teachers utilizing the free learning management systems available during the 2015-2016 school year. I am curious which LMS is the most popular one among my blogging community. If you could please take a second to answer my poll, I would appreciate it.

EDTECH 537: Video - Quizizz

If you use Kahoot! or Poll Everywhere, you might want to check out this new multiplayer classroom activity! It is known as Quizizz. Quizizz is a free resources that allows you to create quizzes for your classroom or use the millions of questions other educators have shared. It works on any device, so if your school is a BYOD school, this will be great for you. You can make your quizzes public or private. Check out the video to get a quick overview of how it works. There are more videos on YouTube that demonstrate the process of playing a game and creating your own quiz.

I would love to hear your thoughts on this new classroom activity!

EDTECH 537: Audio - Windows 10

I have reserved my copy of Windows 10, but I have yet to download it. I am currently running Windows 8. I spoke with my technology coordinator and he suggested that I reserve my copy of Windows 10. So, I went ahead and got it but have yet to download it. I am nervous to download since it is so new. I like to wait to download updates until they get the bugs out. However, I was informed that Windows 10 was much better than Windows 8. I found that this podcast interesting. I will warn you that there is some language that is dropped throughout the podcast.

Has anyone downloaded Windows 10? If so, what are the pros/cons? I would love to hear what others think before I download it.

EDTECH 537 Image: Schoology

Have you heard of the learning management system (LMS) known as Schoology? I had not heard of it until last school year. I was co-teaching with the 7th grade Science teacher and he was using it in his classroom. I was amazed at how well the students picked up on this LMS that was so new to them. 

Schoology offers a free basic course management tool that allows teachers to engage students in their learning, communicate with their students, and to share resources with co-workers using Schoology. Schoology allows teachers to upload material and then assess student learning right in the LMS. After teachers have assess the students, they can provide feedback directly to the student. 

I am currently designing a workshop for my co-workers on how to use Schoology. If you use it or have used it in the past, I would love to hear about your experience! Please give me your pros/cons and any skills that you think teachers need to successfully use Schoology in the classroom.