Digital Learning Day

I bet you didn't know that today, February 1st is the first annual Digital Learning Day!

So... what exactly does that mean anyways?

According to a US News article, today is about celebrating K-12 educators like all of you who successfully bring technology into the classroom. They have created a website based on today, that even includes a "toolkit" of ideas to enhance lessons using technology. 

Another great resource to find ideas is Scholastic. They have several Interactive Whiteboard activities to choose from and use with your students, separated into Language Arts, Social Studies, Science, Math, and other Learning Games & Teaching Tools. Check it out.. maybe you'll find something new!

Also, don't forget to check out Ms. Techie Teacher's new blog! 

Comics, Cartoons, Graphic Novels Galore!

Whether it is on our laptops, iPads, or online, there are so many tools you can use with your students to make their own cartoons! Here are some ideas:

Did you know that Comic Life is already on all of our school computers? It is a great program that students can choose a layout for their comic and then add text boxes, speech bubbles, pictures, and more. 

ToonDoo is a website that also makes comics from a collection of clip art and backgrounds available on the site. Similarly, ToonBooks is a website that students can use to read graphic novels, read other children's cartoons, and create their own. A great feature of the site is that the graphic novels are leveled by grade so you can differentiate for your students. 

Looking to try the iPads in your classroom? Try these great apps! Toontastic is one of my favorite apps on the iPad. What I love about it is that to create the student's story, the app walks through the "story arc", guiding students to create a setup, conflict, challenge, climax, and resolution. There are a variety of scenes and characters to choose from, and students record the movements of the characters with their own voice to make the story. 

Sock Puppets is also so much fun! It is similar to Toontastic in that students record the movements and voice of the characters, but they are more limited in the scene they create. They can choose different puppets, props, scenery, and backgrounds and then start creating with the record button. A fun feature of the app is that it will manipulate your voice based on the character - it is sure to get lots of giggles from the kids and teacher!

Marvelous Math

I seemed to stumble on a lot of new math websites this week! Hopefully you find a new site to use in your classroom or for your students to use at home. 

Johnnie's Math Page has games and activities categorized into Counting Activities, Addition, Subtraction, Division, Place Value, Decimals, Integers, and Operations & Functions. They are links to other games, but I love that they are categorized and easy to find what topic you're looking for. 

K-5 Math Teaching Resources has standard-based math activities divided by subject and grade level. Some of the activities are online, but others are hands-on games or ideas. 

For anyone who is studying 3D shapes and nets, how would your students feel about making their own 3D Angry Birds characters? This site has a PDF printable for you to make your own!

And just to make you smile....

MLK Jr. Day & Teachers Pay Teachers

This week I came across a free set of resources to celebrate Martin Luther King Jr. Day. While I found it on a blog, the link took me to another great resource called Teachers Pay Teachers. Teachers Pay Teachers is an open marketplace full of resources for teachers, by teachers. Anyone can sign up to either buy or sell lesson plans, worksheets, SmartBoard activities, and more! It is free to join, and while some teachers charge for their creations, there are several fantastic freebies on there as well. You can search by subject, type, grade level, and price- I know several teachers who go to TpT often and have found their purchases worthwhile. So, below are the links to the free MLK Day resource, and Teachers Pay Teachers. Enjoy!

Happy New Year!

Last night I came across a new blog, The Daring Librarian, that I instantly fell in love with, mainly because of the title of the first post I saw: "10 Super Geeky Tips for the New Year". I like quick tips, and I am a self-proclaimed geek, so it sounded like the perfect post for me! Here is a basic rundown of her top 10, and check out the link for more detailed info on each.

1. Change your passwords. Yes, ALL of them. "According to CNN Tech an 8 digit password can be hacked in 2 hours but a 12 character password would take 17 years."

2. Dump your cache, cookies, and clear your browsing history in whichever web browser you use (Firefox, Safari, Chrome, etc.).

3. Consolidate your flash drives. Clean out things you don't need anymore and backup the important things you can't live without.

4. Wait, forget the flash drive, try a cloud! Something like GoogleDocs, Dropbox, iCloud, etc. (Dropbox is my personal favorite!)

5. Edit your privacy settings and Facebook friendships.

6. Be transparent. What's your "digital footprint"?

7. Buy your name... domain name, that is.

8. Get Wikified. (At Central we already do this on our Sharing Place! Yippie!)

9. Build your PLN - Twitter is actually an awesome place to connect with other educators! (Follow me @iTeacherLauren :)

10. Back up your data - purchasing an external hard drive is a great investment!

Like I said, check out the original post "10 Super Geeky Tips for the New Year" for detailed descriptions of each step. She has some great ideas!

Reflections & New Year's Resolutions

The holidays can be a crazy time of year, so with the words of Ferris Buehler in mind - "Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in awhile, you could miss it" - this week I won't be showing you a new cool tool that you should use with your students. Rather, I think it is the perfect opportunity to step back, breathe, and reflect on the first half of the school year so far. My inspiration this week came from an article I read on Edutopia, "Embracing Continuous Improvement with EdTech". 

I really hope that you will take a moment to read it and reflect up on it. The gist of the article is basically that when integrating technology into your classroom, it can be a bumpy road. When you see inspirational things that teachers are doing with their students, keep in mind that that kind of teaching does not happen overnight. The article focuses on five main points:

1) Be Transparent:  It's OK to say, "I'm trying something new - I'm not sure if it's going to work out the way I expect." Tell your students, "We're in this adventure together."

2) Learn from failure: We all know the old bicycle metaphor, and we use it with our students. Sometimes picking the bike back up and trying again is a powerful experience.

3) Revise: Analyze and rethink your failure -- tweak your lesson, talk to your students, talk to your peers, seek out advice.

4) Reteach: If it didn't work the first time, try a different approach.

5) Avoid Insanity: We all know Einstein's famous adage about insanity... "Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results."

As you reflect, I also challenge you to make a New Year's Resolution.. not just to get healthy, quit biting your nails, etc., but something for your students. Is there something you want to improve upon in the second half of the year? Something new you want to try? And as always, if it is tech-related, never hesitate to ask for help along the way.. that's what I'm here for!

Happy Holidays!

Even though it doesn't look like it outside, the holidays are just around the corner! Below are some tech ideas to bring the holiday cheer into your classroom.

Scholastic has some resources for holidays around the world. There are digital scrapbooks of different holidays, online games, printable activities, as well as a teacher guide with ideas for extension activities. 

FunSchool.com has games for every season, including a section for Winter Games. There is an arcade and printable puzzles, like hidden pictures, mazes, and a word search.

Jan Brett is one of my favorite authors around the holidays too- she has a website with games, activities, and ideas that go along with her stories.

Laura Candler also has been collecting holiday ideas on her blog, as she says, "Are you looking for great seasonal activities for your classroom? Sometimes it's difficult for upper elementary teachers to find seasonal activities that are fun yet meaningful, so I've created two different collaborative projects to gather seasonal resources all in once place." You can find her collections below.

Finally, this is a link to a list of other links! Most are Christmas themed, but at the bottom there are Christmas Around the World resources as well as some for Kwanzaa and Hanukkah.