Tech Tuesday

Finds and Thoughts about Tech Integration

Make a Self-Graded Quiz in Google Forms – Fast!

August30

Did you know that you can quickly turn that Google Form into a quiz that gives students immediate feedback with a grade and lets you view the results individually or collectively and even graphically?

I needed to update a Responsible Use Policy quiz for this school year that I had made years ago with another program. I no longer have that software, so I decided to remake my quiz in Google Forms. At first, I was thinking: I’m going to have to look at the results as they come into the spreadsheet and figure out how to set up a grading system. I’ve always liked how my old quiz program gave students immediate feedback that I could look at right on their screens. Wasn’t I elated to see under Settings today in Google Forms the option to make my Form into a graded quiz that did a lot of the work for me!? I also was thrilled that the assessment data is collected and archived for me… something my old program did not do. Therefore, if a student clicked out of the quiz without showing me at the end, s/he had to take it over to prove their score to me. (And that did happen on occasion!)

If you work in the Westford Public Schools, try out my demo quiz here. I have it set to collect usernames, so people have to sign in. That’s an option that I like to use with students so they are not giving out too much personal information on an online questionnaire, and I can identify them easily. It also gives them good practice with logging into their accounts. Furthermore, I have it set to not let them skip questions… another option, so just do your best educated guesses if something’s not applicable or you’re not sure of an answer. (I won’t share your score with anyone, promise!)

Learn how to make one of these quizzes here at Google’s glorious Docs Editors Help. It has step by step directions!

Furthermore, I just did a search to see if anyone had made a video about this feature…voilà! SimpleK12 has one in their 3-Minute Classroom Problem Solvers! Check it out:

Or contact me, and I’d be happy to coach you through it and chat about the possibilities of using Google Form Quizzes with your students.

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Digital Lesson Creator

June7

Recently, someone shared Blendspace with me.

If you want to create stations, differentiate instruction and/or preview, enhance or review topics with students, you’ll want to check out this quick demo of this service:

Using Google Classroom? Blendspace lessons may be a perfect match for organizing links and online content for access via a Classroom Assignment. It also will work on Chromebooks. (Win-win for us!)

I know it’s the end of the school year, but that often is the time when teachers will look for new ideas. Perhaps, you will have the leisure of putting together new lessons or approaches during the summer? Just something to think about and play around with (if you choose) during your time off!

Making Video Assignments More Interactive for Students (and More Informative For Teachers)

January5

For demonstration purposes, I am a student in many real Google Classrooms. Therefore, I often will receive emails to assignments (since I’m an adult in our school domain with email privileges activated).  I don’t mind receiving these emails as they keep me in the loop of how people are using Google Classroom. I have noticed a trend lately. A lot of assignments revolve around students watching carefully selected videos for curriculum topics. This is an easy way to have students access videos. I, myself, have had students access videos in Classroom and then complete reflections about the videos on a Google Doc. I now think it’s an appropriate time to share a tool that can take this video watching to a different level: EDpuzzle.

EDpuzzle allows a teacher to insert specific questions into a video. The video actually will stop playing at the desired point and ask the watcher to answer a question. The student does not have to wait until the end of the entire video. Even better, EDpuzzle collects the answers for the teacher. Here’s a straight-forward example I found on the site:

If you sign up for EDpuzzle (It’s free!), you can look at lots of examples there. (I discovered that some people made their own videos first and then used EDpuzzle to insert questions… those are quite advanced! Most videos, however, were educational ones that people found on the Internet.)

The service also is easy for students to sign up for… they just use a class code that you give them.

The EDpuzzle site is very supportive and takes you through the steps of using the service, including video cropping and adding your voice. I also found some great tutorials  from Richard Byrne. (His blog, Free Technology for Teachers, is a tremendous resource that you should check out!) Why recreate the wheel? Embedded below are his step by step screencasts. The first one takes you through the basics, and the second shows you how to integrate this tool seamlessly with Google Classroom. Win-win!

Creating & Distributing Flipped Lessons Through EDpuzzle by Richard Byrne

How to send lessons from EDpuzzle to Google Classroom by Richard Byrne

(Videos too small? Click on the YouTube link to watch them.)

Digital Storytelling with Toontastic

December8

I had such a great time today with two third grade classes that I’m going to make this a “Two for Tuesday” with a second post!

I did some interactive “writing” with students where I modeled choosing a prompt and then how to tell my story using the app Toontastic. This easy to use app took us through the elements of a story, guiding us to choose backgrounds and characters. We even could add mood music! I brainstormed with students as I constructed my story and then made choices. I even asked students to get into character and help me with the animation and voices. What an engaging way to “write” a story as a class. They loved it, and are highly motivated to try out this app at a literacy center for writing their own stories or retelling stories that they have read.

The prompt that I chose today is holiday inspired… please enjoy the two different versions below! And of course, this app has so many backgrounds and characters, plus the option of creating your own, that the possibilities for topics are endless in your digital storytelling. Any subject will work, too. I envision seeing these embedded on blogs for sharing with an audience… How can you use it?

Please double click on the boxes for the videos to begin.

Cookie Conflict

Elves on Strike

Show (And Tell) What You Know Apps… More Pic Collage Examples

December16

Last year, in a post entitled Show (And Tell) What You Know Apps, I mentioned the Pic Collage app.

I wanted to share a couple of recent examples because this creation app can help students achieve so many different learning objectives

  • Self-Reflection on Teamwork

Grade 4 students used Pic Collage to reflect on their Genius Hour group work dynamics. See the examples on their blog here.

  • Observation

Grade 3 students used Pic Collage to make observations of the Abbot Nature Trail. Students had to show evidence of Autumn in photos (that they took themselves) and words. (This project may be replicated for all of the seasons so that a multimedia comparison can be made.)

2014-09-26 14.30.58

I also used this app with Grade 3 recently as a part of a Digital Citizenship lesson on private and personal information. Students practiced making online profiles, making sure not to share private information. See mine below:

2014-12-14 20.26.32

This online profile activity easily could be modified for an English Language Arts objective with characters in a story or a biography study.

  • Formative Assessment for Science

Grade 5 students were sent on a scavenger hunt to see how many simple machines they could find (snap photos and label) in the school within a time limit.

simplemachinecollage

With all three of these activities it was not about the technology, but rather the learning because there is not a lot of time devoted to directions about how to use the app. Pic Collage is easy to use. Take photos and add text quickly.  Arranging and rearranging is simple. The collage shares via email or right to the camera roll where it can be used in another app, moved to an online space or inserted in another document or presentation.

I know that time is a factor these days… so much to do in our school day. I think you will be amazed what learning objective can be undertaken (and even accomplished) in a 45 minute block with this app.

Gotch ‘ya thinking? I’d love to chat.

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