Friday, October 24, 2014

Power My Learing


 


Looking for a one-stop website to gather ideas for lessons, find videos, locate activities and games for students, and so much more...and it be linked to Common Core?  Check out PowerMyLearning!  This site lets you search by grade level and by subject.  Once you choose the subject you can go deeper by searching specific domains for activities, videos, tutorials and so much more.  You must create an account but it is FREE!!!  You can even set up your own classroom, make assignments, create your own activities and monitor progress on assignments.  There are also ways to access these resources as parents and students.  Thanks to Shasta McFry at Ohatchee Elementary for sharing this link with me! Check it out ... http://powermylearning.org/
 
 
 

Thursday, October 16, 2014

Technology Integration in the Classroom

Thank you to Dr. Knighton for helping provide some up-to-date information on several technology tools to our teachers during our Professional Development day on October 10th, 2014. Some of the recent posts on the If You Give a Wildcat and iPad Blog are from the training.  Please share with us how you are using these tools in your classroom with students!

KidRex


Do you worry about turning student loose to search for information on the web?  KidRex my be your answer...this kid-friendly search engine  provides a safe kid zone for web searches.  Since this is powered by Google, kids will be given a list of kid-appropriate sites to aid them in research.  Check out the site at ... http://www.kidrex.org/

What happens if they search something inappropriate?  They get an Oops! Try Again notice!

PortaPortal




PortaPortal is a free bookmarking site that allows you to give students s protected access to a list of websites or links you have selected.  Students and parents may be given a guest login so that they can access the links from home.  This guest access allows them to access the links without having access to alter or add information to your site.  You can create tabs or subject headings to organize your links.   Check it out at ... http://portaportal.com/

Sign up for this free bookmarking tool!

Organize your links for parents and students to easily access by subject or skill.

Math Landing

Math Landing is a K-5 digital resource tool for math teachers that offers both Professional Development tools as well as Classroom tools to help you understand and meet math standards.  This is aligned to Common Core standards.  It is a free resource.  You may choose to use this tool without registering for it; however, if you want to save your searches, you will need to create an account.  Check it out at... http://www.mathlanding.org/

Use the resource or create a login to save future searches.

Search the PD tool for help with understanding, teaching and applying standards.


Use the Classroom tool to find activities and more.

Graphite by Common Sense Media




Graphite helps teachers find apps, games and websites that have been rated by teachers for learning purposes.  Teachers can search by type, subject, grade and price.  Teachers can also search specifically for  Common Core resources/apps/tools in English/Language Arts or Mathematics.  Check it out at ... https://www.graphite.org/


Explore apps rated by teachers.
Find more resource based upon Common Core Standards.

Socrative 2.0


Socrative upgraded to Socrative 2.0 on July 12, 2014.  All previous accounts in Socrative were updated to Socrative 2.0

Want to find out about the new features in Socrative 2.0? Check out http://www.socrative.com/materials/SocrativeUserGuide.pdf

Today's Meet



Today's Meet is an online journaling/discussing board where students can answer questions, make comments, ask questions and so much more.  Teachers can monitor questions directly in the chat and monitor "backroom" chats that take place. 

Here are some quick reminders from Dr. Knighton when using this app...consider making your Room Name unique and double check the room prior to giving it to students to make sure no previous information for another session is there.  Check it out at ... https://todaysmeet.com/

   

See students thoughts as they share.

The Answer Pad




The Answer Pad is an online tool for formative and summative assessments.  Teachers may engage students through quick response feedback opportunities or create quizzes to assess knowledge.  Teachers can generate reports to review student performance.  Check it out at ... http://theanswerpad.com/ 
Website view

The teacher dashboard is always web-based.

TapIt is the student app students can use to respond.
 
Student answer formats

KidBlog



KidBlog is a free and simple way for your students to share thoughts and ideas collaboratively!  You, as the teacher, are in control of topics, blogs and logins.  Students may access the blogs online and through mobile devices. The possibilities are endless for how you could use this tool...enhance your writing standards through collaborative discussions, answer questions of the day, share thoughts from lit circles, and so much more.  What could you blog with your students today?  Check it out... http://kidblog.org/home/


Remind


 
Remind (formally know as Remind 101) is a quick and easy way to alert parents of information regarding your classroom or school activities through text messages.  Parent sign up for your text messages via a secure code....you send information directly to parents...it's that simple!  This is a great tool to increase parental involvement and keep parents informed of tests, field trips, project due dates, BYOD dates, monies due and activities here at school!   This app is available in iTunes and Android Play Store and is accessible through mobile devices and the web.



Check it out by visiting... https://www.remind.com/