PDFescape...typing, highlighting, etc. on PDF documents

Mr. Peters had asked for a way to annotate on documents...  PDFescape is a great resource for typing/drawing/highlighting/placing sticky notes, etc. on a PDF on your MacBook. There are several apps available for mobile devices, including one we are looking at purchasing called Notability.  By signing up for a free account, you can share, save, and print documents as well as view files online.  Use it as a way for students to fill in templates or forms, digital worksheets, etc.  

Mrs. Krehbiel's 8th Grade Quizlet Resource

Mrs. Krehbiel is using quizlet.com in her classroom.  "A simple tool, that lets you study anything, for free"!  You can create your own, have your students create your own, or use what other teachers/students have created around the world.  You can search by topic, subject, grade level, etc.  Once in Quizlet you will have a variety of choices for students to study, including flashcards, quizzes, races, tests, etc.  Students love studying because it is fun and competitive!

3rd Grade Kansas Communities Keynotes

Mrs. Lafferty's 3rd grade students completed Kansas Communities Keynotes.  

The students worked together to research Kansas communities using a guide of questions including population, location, and interesting facts.  

The students then put the information into a Keynote to present.  

Mrs. Boese provided a livebinder with pictures for them.  If you haven't checked out livebinder, you need to!  I have several and it is an online organizational tool you can use to get specific resources to students.  I used it entirely for my computer classes.  Here is her binder for this project: 

As you can see there are tabs across the top with resources for the students in each tab.  It prevents you from having to give each resource individually and also prevents students from having to go find the websites.  If you are interested in livebinder I would love to help you set one up!!

http://www.livebinders.com/play/play?id=759997

Here is one of the completed projects:  

Mrs. Becker's HS Biology Meiosis App

Mrs. Becker brought iPads into her high school Biology classroom this week using the app Meiosis.  I bet the students had a blast!  
Here is what she said about the lesson:

"Went well...kids were engaged.  It was an interactive lesson on "meiosis" of forming of gametes/ sex cells (sperm and egg).  ALWAYS enlightening to teach to HS kids.  Wrap up of our unit on genetics.  App creates mythical "Snurfles" by creating their gametes.  From that point on, it leads into Punnett Squares, using the gametes that were created in the lesson.  They use the interactive squares to predict the offspring. Teaches a lot of key concepts of genetics.  Handout that tracks their progress.  Answer questions along the way.  Interactive quiz questions throughout and "game" at end to check for understanding."  

Mr. Schrag's (4th)Free Pic/Safe Searching Websites

Looking for a way for your students to search safely online and use copyright-free images?  Here are a couple of really good tools Mr. Schrag had requested for use in his 4th grade classroom. The first 3 links provide "safe searching" for students while on the internet.  The last 3 links are sites that contain copyright-free images for use in projects.  

1. Safe Google Searching for kids: http://www.wikiforkids.ws/safe-search.html#.UugQRWTnYy4

2. Safe Searching: http://www.kidrex.org/

3. Safe Search: http://www.sweetsearch.com/

4. Free pics for learning: http://www.pics4learning.com/

5. Edupic: http://www.edupic.net/

6. free pics: http://weblist.me/copyright-free-images-for-education

Mrs. Kaufman's (1st) TumbleBooks Resource

Mrs. Kaufman shared this wonderful resource she uses in her 1st grade classroom called TumbleBooks. "TumbleBookLibrary is an online collection of animated,

talking picture books which teach young children the joys of reading in a format they'll love."  You can sign up for a free 30 day trial of the resource.  The paid version includes things like quizzes, lesson plans, and teacher guides.  What a fun and interactive tool for kids! Also available for mobile devices!

****Update from Mrs. Yoder:  Just a note on TumbleBooks--we actually get it free through the State Library of Kansas.  I'm sure we don't have access to the paid version with quizzes, etc., but no one should need to sign up for a 30 day free trial.  

http://www.tumblebooks.com/library/asp/home_tumblebooks.asp

(Hopefully that link works--if not, go here http://www.kslib.info/digitalbooks.html and click on the TumbleBooks icon.)

Mr. Graber's Depression Era Podcasts HS

Students in Mr. Graber's class have been studying the Depression Era and putting projects together to show their knowledge of this unit.  Mr. Graber has a VERY detailed outline of the project at this link: Mr. Graber's Depression Era Project Directions including detailed directions, timeline, rubrics, etc. for the project.  His project could be used as a template for a project like this in your class!  Please visit Mr. Graber's YouTube page (http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVe-CFEN1U6WJhXyIvF046A/videos) to see the finished podcasts created by our Hesston Juniors.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pD-svdOB2M4&feature=youtu.be

Mrs. Pennington's 6th Grade "I Am" Poems & iMovies

Mrs. Pennington's classes created "I Am" poems using phrases such as "I dream, I hope, I feel".  After writing the poems the students partnered and created an iMovie together.  I love this project as it pushes the students to think deeper about themselves.
The movie ties it all together so well and the kids love making them! 

 "I Am" Video 6th Grade

I Am…from one of our 6th graders:

I am loyal and caring,

I wonder where I came from and how I got here,

I hear a wolves cry in the night,

I see me in 20 years,

I want my family to have faith in me,

I am loyal and caring,

I pretend I am on a unicorn sometimes,

I feel a horses scared breath,

I touch a cow’s nose,

I worry about my dad,

I cry when I think about my Great Mother,

I am loyal and caring,

I understand our money problems,

I say my problems to God,

I dream that I have someone’s shoulder to cry on,

I try to do my best on everything that I do,

I hope that my mom and grandma make things up,

I am loyal and caring.

Elementary Teachers: TurtleDiary

Elementary School Teachers:  Turtle Diary is now available as a shortcut on the desktops in the 1-2 Lab.  You can search by grade level, subject, or topic.  There are hundreds of interactive games and activities for the students to choose from that give instant feedback to the student.

Creating Contact Lists for Gmail/Drive

Creating Contact Groups can allow you to quickly and easily share Google Drive files with groups of students or colleagues.  So many of us are now using Google Drive with our students as well as colleagues.  The principals are using it regularly to send out information to staff.  Many district groups you would need are already built in through our email system, however if you would like to build a class or other list here is how to do it:   

Step 1: Open your mail, place your cursor over "Mail" and choose "contacts" from the drop-down menu.

Step 2: Click the "add contact" icon.

Step 3: Select at least one contact name to reveal and open the "contacts group" icon.

Step 4: Name your new contacts group.

Step 5: Your new group is now created. You can add more names by simply selecting them from your contacts list and assigning them to your new group. Contacts can be members of more than one group.

Step 6:  Now when you open the sharing menu on a Google Document you can type the name of a contact group rather than entering emails individually.

Miss Wiebe and I's Tech Presentation at TEEN

Miss Wiebe and I had the honor of presenting at TEEN (Technology Excellence in Education Network) this Monday for 5 districts including Hillsboro, Marion, Herington, Peabody, and Centre.  We were able to showcase how we use technology in the classroom and share our resources with other teachers.  We were privileged to hear the Keynote speaker from the day, Corinne Hoisington a Professor of Information Systems of Technology at Central Virginia Community College in Virginia.  She was motivational regarding the area of technology in schools.  She presented this highly engaging video that sums up where the world is going with technology.  Our job as educators is preparing our students for THEIR world...this is what THEIR world looks like: Life on an iPad.  
One quote resounded in my head:  

"Don't limit a child to your own learning 

for he/she was born in another time".  

Greta and I's resources from the presentation are found on Edmodo.  
The group code is  uhvdue  if you would like to view the resources and what we presented, there are many helpful tools included!

Random Name Picker

Random Name Picker is a new free tool from classtools.net.  You simply edit the name list and it creates a wheel that you can spin.  It saves your wheel with a unique URL so you can easily find it.  Editing the list is easy.  It took me a whole minute to set it up.  It cheers when the name is selected!


Click here to see MY Random Name Picker

100+ Stores That Give Teacher DISCOUNTS!

Don't miss out on saving yourself some money!  

Most of the time you just have to show your school ID...

CLICK HERE to see which stores offer a discount!

Edutopia's "Setting Technology Goals for the New Year"

Why not have one of your New Year's resolutions be a technology goal for your classroom?  It doesn't have to be big and overwhelming, just start small and try something you haven't done before...This article from Edutopia can give you a few simple and quick ideas to get you going:

Choose a New Tool Each Month

Whether you have one laptop or a class set of tablets, there are tons of educational technology tools to explore. Choose one new tool to try out each month. This will give you enough time to really see if it works with your teaching style and if it is relevant to the content you're teaching. If you love it, add it to your technology tool belt and keep using it for the rest of the year. If it's not for you, at the end of the month move on to the next one.

Join a Twitter Chat

All around the globe, educators are doing exciting work in their classrooms. Instead of just following a couple of your favorite teachers and education organizations, engage with your peers in a Twitter chat. There are weekly chats on a wide range of subjects. Follow thehashtag to read about what other people are saying and post your own answers to questions posed by the chat's facilitator. You're sure to leave with ideas and inspiration to take back to your classroom.

Host a Google Hangout

Even if you just try it out with family first, host aGoogle Hangout to connect your computer screen with friends from around the country. Once you're comfortable, try using this tool for virtual office hours, in place of committee meetings, or to connect with former colleagues and alumni.

Use Your Phone

This year I've shared some of my favorite technology tools that you can use straight from a smartphone. If you're uncomfortable using your phone during instructional time, consider it as a handheld device for entering grades, updating a class blog, or scrolling through tweets when you're on the go. A smartphone can be used as a classroom and time management tool.

Check Out Pinterest

Pinterest is a fantastic resource for teachers! It's a place where educators can gather ideas for organizing their classroom, develop engaging activities and just get excited about teaching. This year, set yourself a goal of trying two new ideas a month that you've found on Pinterest. Instead of just bookmarking your favorites, commit to putting these great ideas into action.

Try Skype

It's so important to open students' eyes to the world around them. If the days of pen pals are long gone in your classroom, why not find another class to Skypewith? Whether they're down the block, across the country, or five time zones away, connect with a class in a different community.

Share Your Story

You are sure to have some great success stories this school year, so why not share them? This might meanstarting your own blog, tweeting out something great that happened during your day, or finding an old colleague or classmate on Facebook. Use the Internet to connect, share and inspire other teachers by finding a platform to share your triumphs!

Amazing Twitter Chats for Educators

Below is a round-up of different Twitter chats by content area and when they occur. 

(All times are in CST.)

Hop on Twitter at the times below and gain an incredible amount of resources in a short time!  Plus, you can ask questions and receive instant feedback from experts in your content area!

#eSNEdChat eSchool News 

#edtechchat: Educational technology chat, Mondays from 7-8 p.m. Administrators, teachers, curriculum directors, and technology coordinators covered how they use digital tools in the classroom, they addressed technology problems, use of mobile devices, and more. In fact, stats revealed more than 1,600 tweets during the most recent hour-long Twitter chat.

#edleadchat: School administrator and leadership chat, Mondays from 7-8 p.m. During the most recent chat, Twitter participants shared some of the major projects or tasks they accomplished this semester and what goals they set for themselves and their staff.

#scichat: Science teachers chat, Tuesdays from 8-9 p.m. This Twitter chat covers an incredibly wide variety of science information, including videos, resources, lesson plans, labs, and more.

#STEMchat: STEM education chat, Tuesdays from 8-9 p.m. Twitter participants share STEM success stories from their own states, compare strategies, and share other STEM news. While this chat has a designated day and time, tweets are tagged with #STEMchat every day.

#ipadchat: iPads in education, Wednesdays from 12-1 p.m. Participants trouble-shoot iPad problems, trade tips and advice, and learn about implementation strategies.

#libchat: Librarians, Wednesdays from 7-8:30 p.m. The changing role of school librarians and library media specialists is a near-constant topic today, and this Twitter chat covers all aspects of a school librarian’s role.

#mathchat: Math teachers chat, Thursdays from 6-7 p.m. Like the science Twitter chat, participants tag posts with #mathchat all week long, which makes for a steady stream of math discussion, resources, and more.

#DENchat: Discovery Educator Network chat, Thursdays from 7-8 p.m. DEN members are found across the country, and the tweets and topics are as varied as the DEN members themselves. They include teacher resolutions, learning management, standards, and local DEN member meet-ups.

#levelupED: Gamification chat, Thursdays from 8-9 p.m. This Twitter chat includes topics and discussions on gaming apps, digital badges, how gaming supports STEM education, and more. Participants also discuss ways to support gaming from top to bottom.

#byotchat: Bring your own technology (BYOT) chat, Thursdays from 8-9 p.m. All things BYOT are discussed during this chat, including policy, strategy, resources, tips for student engagement, and more.

Panoramas.dk

http://www.panoramas.dk/2010/carl-bloch.html

Panoramas is a site full of panoramic, 3D tours with interactive views of everything from this one at the Kings Oratory Frederiksborg Castle, to current events such as New Year's Eve in Times Square, mourning the death of the Polish President, the moon, to Mount Everest.  You can make the image your full screen a move around like you are walking through it, zooming in and out. Tour these great wonders from around the world, your students would be totally engaged!

Mrs. Lafferty's Remote Mouse

Want to control your computer using your phone, iPod or iPad?  You don't have to be near your computer, you can feel free to walk around your classroom and not be tied to your computer.  There is a free app that will do most things for you, or a $2.99 Pro version.  I would recommend trying the free version first!  Thank you to the Lafferty's for sharing!

To get Remote Mouse:

 1. Download the app on your mobile device

2.  Go to your App Store on your MacBook Pro (type in App store in your Spotlight)

This will install it on both devices.

Go to your App on your mobile device and choose "Start", 

look for your computer number (found on your lid), select it and you are connected!

FlipBoard

Use Flipboard to customize what shows up on your 

board to personalize it and get the news and articles you want to read! 

"Flipboard is the world’s first social magazine, a single place to keep up with everything you care about and collect it in ways that reflect you. Inspired by the beauty and ease of print media, Flipboard is designed so you can easily flip through news from around the world or stories from right at home, helping people find the one thing that can inform, entertain or even inspire them every day. Start reading your magazine by downloading Flipboard at www.flipboard.com. or the Flipboard app for your mobile device."

Mrs. Becker's PicMonkey Photo Collages

Mrs. Becker had her students from her "Human Body Systems" classes create photo collages using PicMonkey.  PicMonkey is a free, easy website you can use to create photo collages using a variety of templates and designs.  The students researched a specific type of cancer and created an information flyer to display their findings in a fun, interesting way.  See her detailed assignment information, research directions and rubric information below!  

Photovisi.com is another free, fun photo collage site.

Miss Reed's Online Reading Logs

Miss Reed now has her reading logs online!  She has created a Google form the students fill out for their log.  The form is then linked to a spreadsheet which she can easily see their results.  The students love it because they can fill it out on their phones on other device...and Miss Reed loves it because the paper trail is less!  Please feel free to click on this link to view the full reading log.