On Twitter, Richard Byrne is one of my favorite instructional technologists that I follow! There is so much information but the posts are never overwhelming in my opinion. If you are not following Richard, consider doing so right now, as you will not regret spending the time to read anything that is posted or contributed to his website blog. I always look forward to his tweets on Twitter when his new blogs are published.
One of my favorite areas to explore is the "Free Download" section. I really like the "11 Techy Things to Do in a School Year." This download makes creating a technology tool for your students very simple. I am about half way done with this guide and have done the following in the last year, thanks to the technology trainers professional development courses in Bellevue Public Schools. I have created a math website for my parents and students, have been using Twitter for over a year now, created blogs (yes, more than one) and videos (love Animoto, Photo Story and ScreenR), and use Google Forms to create class take home quizzes that are automatically corrected using a script called "Flubaroo." Results can even be automatically emailed without a teacher picking up a pen to correct a paper. "Google for Teachers I and II" are also must reads. I still have a lot to learn about Google, but I my favorite part about it is no longer wondering what flash drive I need to have to access a document - it's all on my drive!
There is so much technology that I could incorporate into my classes, but we all know that we need to vary our delivery devices to keep our content fresh and interesting. The novelty of using hand-held clickers can quickly wear off and videos can get boring. I was recently reminded that I had wanted to try creating a math lesson using QR codes. I definitely found some inspiration to do so on this blog and found other great resources in the process. I discovered that some educators are using QR codes for class coupons (now students won't lose them, and there is nothing to copy) and interactive bulletin boards. If you need information to get started, this article on QR codes for Classroom Use is very informative. From there, there are tons of other great resources and ideas. Recently at a conference, I was discussing QR codes with one of my daughter's past teachers who had used a QR code to share her contact information with parents at Back to School night. She still provided business cards but found that many of her parents and students loved having her information right on their phones. This would have been a great way for me to get students more involved on a daily basis using our class website to access their resources consistently.
A blog is a great way to share information with students as well - I think of it as an online newspaper. I'm not quite ready for this commitment - I currently have three blogs going but have not spent much time writing on any one of them (until this class). I really wanted to incorporate blogging with my English students last year and used KidBlog. I had one class out of three that were super excited about this opportunity. I primarily used Edmodo to share daily news and for a large research project and to share online materials for research with my students, I used Scoop.it! to guide and interest my students. It's not that I don't enjoy blogging, but my priorities lie in updating the class website and homework calendar to make sure students have current information. I love using technology in the classroom and am passionate about learning about different tools. The important thing to remember is that you don't have to do it all at once - it's better to build a good product that is useful, than to have a half dozen that few use. Just my thoughts.....
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