QR Code Basics

QR Codes! A whole new EASY world to incorporate into the classrooms!

First, welcome back! I am so excited to be bringing you these tech tips this year. You should know that these first couple of weeks, the blog will include new tips and instructions for Studywiz, PowerSchool, and Lanschool. Then by September, the blog will focus on various web 2.0 resources to make teaching fun and effective! As always, if you run across a site or tool that is AmAzIng, please share! (Heads up, prizes are staying around for this year too! :) )

Second, above is the presentation on QR codes that we did in our technology session today. This session was just a QUICK overview. What ways can you think of using a QR code in your classroom?  I can't wait to see your Challenge Entries!

Lastly, Welcome Back and I look forward to working with you this year!

Teachers Pay Teachers

We all have grand ideas and plans to make new things over the summer to spruce up our classroom and curriculum, but often life throws us a curve ball and we don't get to it. Or maybe during school, we are fresh out of ideas on ways that we can reteach a topic. Or you know the days that the flu bug or other germs pop out of nowhere and we have to make sub plans. I have stumbled upon a great resource for just those situations. http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/

Yup! Teachers Pay Teachers. The site has great organization and filters that you can use to find exactly what you are looking for. You could search by grade level, subject, idea, etc. You can pay for some resources or download the ones that people put up for free.

You should know that there are THOUSANDS of free resources that you don't need to pay for and are really great quality too! Just the other day I downloaded a resources about Cheating and what students may or may not think that cheating is. (Here it is: http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Cheating-Survey)

I did just purchase my first thing from TpT this evening. It was painless and easy and downloaded right to my computer. It was a clip art graphic set of owls. :) I love little clip art to add to different things and this pack was perfect. Owl Clip Art Package

This is a great resource for any subject! Check it out! Be sure to add a comment if you try it or download a really great resource that others could use!

Symbaloo

First, congratulations to Stacy Chik for earning a morning beverage! :) Stacy used Pinterest to find quotes and images to make a reflection guide on the Eucharist that students took to the chapel during adoration. Thanks for trying Pinterest Stacy!

Second, our tech tip for this Tuesday is one that I have been using for a couple of weeks now and I am truly enjoying. The great part of being able to help with technology AND teach is that I get to try things out with my own classes as a trial one. 

This weeks tip is called Symbaloo. http://www.symbaloo.com/ It is an online bookmarking site. You can create different mixes to house different information. Once you have created a mix, you can either keep it private, only you can see it and use it OR you can share the webmix and Symbaloo will give you a link that you can post and then anyone can access the mix that you have created. Below are a couple of pictures of various mixes that I have created and shared.

This is a webmix of all of the Tech Tips that I have featured this year. You can find this link posted on the left side of this blog! http://www.symbaloo.com/mix/tuesdaytechtips

This is a webmix that I created for Creative Commons image and music searches for CC  http://www.symbaloo.com/mix/creativecommons1

This is an EASY way to organize a large amount of material or links in one place. You can create a mix for each book you read through the semester, or various images on a topic (just so you don't have to have 17 million tabs open during a lesson), or various tutorial videos posted for students to watch if they need extra help on a certain concept.

THIS WEEKS CHALLENGE --> Use Symbaloo to create either a personal webmix or a webmix that you create to share with your students. Post the link in the comments section or send an email with the link! See below for the reward...no limit on this week's reward! Looking forward to seeing all of the mixes!

NBC Learn and Digital Learning Day

This week, I found so many tech tips possibilities that it was hard to choose what to feature this week!

Today's tip is NBC Learn. http://www.nbclearn.com Here real situations have been connected to various topics and shown with real video clips. One section is Science of NFL Football. These would be great to pull out later in the week with the Big Game happening on Sunday! It would be a great anticipatory set for a lesson. You might be able to pull in students that normally aren't interested. :)

The link above is only to the FREE resources and full videos. There is a subscription side of the site. I will investigate the cost and benefits of that site throughout the remainder of the semester.

Lastly, tomorrow Feb. 1, 2012 is Digital Learning Day. http://www.digitallearningday.org/ 
It is a day that is encouraging teachers to teach with a new piece of digital learning or media in their lesson.  

"Digital Learning Day is a nationwide celebration of innovative teaching and learning through digital media and technology that engages students and provides them with a rich, personalized educational experience. On Digital Learning Day, a majority of states, hundreds of school districts, thousands of teachers, and nearly 2 million students will encourage the innovative use of technology by trying something new, showcasing success, kicking off project-based learning, or focusing on how digital tools can help improve student outcomes."


So here's my challenge- The first 2 teachers who try something new (technology or media) in their classes on WEDNESDAY or the rest of the WEEK and COMMENT on this blog will get a lunch of their choosing next week! READY SET GO!!!