Four nights per week, students are expected to complete a two minute timed math fact practice sheet. These sheets must be returned to school. As the saying goes, practice makes perfect, and the school district is looking to keep students (and parents) accountable for learning basic facts.

However, this is a lot of paper, and how will teachers manage these accumulating piles? How will they collect the data from these sheets? And who has the time to analyze all of this?

The proposed solution: using Forms in Google Docs. Here is a sample of an online math log. Feel free to take it!

Below is a partial screen shot of what results would like from this log. It is housed in an online spreadsheet.

Pros:

• Students seem to be a lot more interested in doing the math sheet online versus the traditional paper method. There is something also very powerful and real world about a submit button!
• Parents like that students are using computer skills, and there is no paper being sent back and forth to school.
• Each student submission is time stamped in a spreadsheet for the classroom teacher documenting accountability.
• A simple sort in the spreadsheet allows a teacher to see the number of submissions and answers for any student over the course of the week. A teacher easily can see the progress a student is making with the number of facts completed.
• Also, the data at a glance can identify with which facts a student needs correction, and the teacher can on Day Two of the log week quickly meet with the student to give him/her a post-it of facts that the student should focus on in study.
• More math logs are created simply by making a copy of the Google Docs and then plugging in new math facts.
• The teacher takes the quiz first, typing in “” for the student’s first name and “Key” for the Last Initial fields. This Answer Key makes it easy for comparison to student results as they are filtered.
• A tool called Flubaroo may be used right in the Google Doc to grade the results to give the teacher more information about how the whole class and individuals are doing.
• Data is secure since only collaborators (teachers) have permission to view the results.
• Data can be downloaded to a teacher’s computer as an Excel spreadsheet for archiving purposes.
• Old data can be cleared from the online Google Doc, so it may be reused year to year.
• Google Docs is free.

Cons:

• There is no built-in timer. The student has to use the same timing method that s/he would have used for the paper sheet.
• Students need to remember not to use the Enter/Return key to go from problem to problem.
• All students may not have computer/Internet access at home, and a paper copy may need to go home instead.

More grade 4 classrooms will be using the online method this month. Every week a new online math log will be available for students from a teacher’s web page and/or a central math curriculum web page.

Your feedback is welcome!

This month, more projectors were powered up and ready for business in classrooms. What follows is a little sample of how projectors are being used as well as how they could transform learning in the classroom. Get inspired. Please add your own ideas as well!

Ideas for using a Computer Projector

•    Daily Slideshow for Students – Eye-catching slideshow of regular routines and new information that is displayed each day as students are settling into the classroom.

•    Notes – Type notes using an application like Word or Excel for students to view and copy. Easy to store and print out for absent students.

•    Review Books – At the end of each lesson (science or studies) create a page/slide in PowerPoint that summarizes what has been learned. At the end of the unit, this book/slideshow can be made available for students to review.

•    BrainPOP or online videos – watch current, up-to-date, curriculum related videos as a whole class.

•    Maps – View maps from Google or take virtual tours through Google Earth.

•    Graphic Organizers – Use Inspiration or another application to create and fill out Graphic Organizers with your students. Online organizers also are available.

•    Skype – Connect with another classroom or expert in the field to share and exchange ideas on any topic. Find partners at Skype in the Classroom.

•    Graph – Survey your students in the moment and create a graph using Excel or an online tool.

•    Flashcards – Make your own or use an online tool, such as Flashcard Machine, to study as a class.

•    Photo Slideshows – Take pictures of events, experiments or any topic and then as a class watch as iPhoto slideshows. Students can discuss observations, connections and reflections, even record annotations.

•    Jeopardy – Review topics by playing as a class with a game board created in PowerPoint.

•    Your Own Classroom Computer Lab – Sign out the laptops and use your classroom computer and projector to guide students right from their seats through a technology infused project.

Ideas for using an IPEVO P2V USB Camera with a Computer Projector

•    Sharing – You no longer have to pass artifacts around which can become a management and focus nightmare! Students can see when it’s placed under the camera and the projector is on, letting everyone concentrate on the discussion.

•    Read-Aloud – Place a picture book under the camera, and everyone has a great view to enjoy the pictures as well as follow along with text. Don’t forget to flip the text!

•    Textbooks and Maps – Don’t have a digital copy or no time to make one? No worries- put your document under the camera to enhance your directions or lesson.

•    Math Manipulatives – Much easier to see than on an overhead.

•    More Demonstrations – Show students what buttons or apps to push on an iPod. Or maybe you need to show them how to do some intricate origami folds. No matter what the demonstration, the camera and projector make it easy for everyone to see clearly.

•    Microscope-like – Perform science experiments and analyze results right under the camera. No more crowding around a table! Snap pictures with the camera, too.

•    Need more ideas? Go to IPEVO’s website for Tips, Tricks and Ideas.

Background:

Third graders traditionally study famous people who have lived in Massachusetts (MA HSS Standard 3.7). Unfortunately, what should be a celebration of contributors to our state turns into mass confusion for this age level. Appropriate materials simply are not available for all these leaders.

Our solution:

Enlist the help of a 5th grade class to analyze the resources and create podcasts and flash (quick fact) cards that would serve as an accessible, multimedia, research experience for the 3rd graders. A newly, created Library Wiki and dedicated iPods served as the portal of learning.

The outcome:

Third graders were engaged with research materials that were appropriate for all learning styles and reading levels. In the end, these flexible materials helped yield a “green screen” sharing of knowledge. Third graders produced a mock CNN style interview.

What follows is our presentation that we shared at this fall’s MassCUE Conference. Please check it out to read more about our goals and see the specific equipment and software that we utilized.

Five years ago, I used to say: if only we had digital cameras then… (Did I just date myself?) Then we could have made quick, authentic, non-fiction books using a word processing program….

Time to jump to today’s innovations. I now say: if only we had iPod Touches back then…

Recently, a third grade class started using Touches to check out trash barrels in our school as a part of a grant. The goal: to see how we could improve and promote our UpCycle program. Would we find trash or treasure in these barrels? This week, these third graders are going to present their initial findings in the form of a slideshow at an all school assembly. From there, we will develop short movies or public service announcements to target the areas of environmental awareness need.

The power of the Touches is how each student can be so independent and involved in the process of completing this project. Each Touch has been given a free Gmail account. The classroom teacher’s email has been added into Contacts. Therefore, when a student snaps a picture, s/he can email it to the teacher with a tap. A note, thought or reflection may be typed into the email’s body. (For example: Look at all the paper in here!) The teacher can evaluate the child’s work from her inbox.

If the objective is to combine the images from the different devices, the teacher may put them in a shared folder for a slideshow in iPhoto. Or the students may select the images on the Touches to go into a free Dropbox app on the Touch. Now, these images will be accessible on a designated computer or from any of the other Touches through this Dropbox app. Using Photos or  iMovie right on the Touch,  students also can create their own slideshows or movies using each other’s images. These can be shared via email to the teacher again. (Or put in the Dropbox.) Soon they will be posted to a class blog or wiki for viewing by an audience beyond the classroom walls.

Putting the power in students’ hands… love it! And how great is it, that we’re saving paper and toner while teaching people to be green?!

Does anyone else want to give this tool a try? Or please share how you’re utilizing the camera and/or sharing features of the Touches!

What I want to focus on right now is what is already available to teachers in Google Earth. There are tons of tools, but no creation is necessary to access rich content compliments of Google and its content partners. You have to be willing to do a little exploring, but it’s like a candy store.

Here is what the Layers look like at first glance:

Let’s peel back the Layers  and see what awaits you and your students. In Google Earth, you simply click on the drop down arrows and see the goodies.

• Borders and Labels: standard map fare helping to define boundaries clearly. No need to use outdated classroom maps anymore!
• Places of Interest: a feature that shows places like businesses, transit stations, mountains, parks & golf- great for legend reading skills and commerce lessons.
• Photos: current and authentic pictures about a location submitted by users are available. No worries- the pictures are screened before being chosen. The pictures focus on the location (without people). There are two options: Panoramio and 360 Cities.
• Roads: traditional map info regarding highways, routes and streets for map reading skills.
• 3D Buildings: This is what sets Google Earth apart from traditional maps. Actually go and check out a city, and let your students get a feel for what it’s like there. Switch over to the Street Level view and take your own virtual tour strolling the streets. And don’t miss the Trees feature in this layer!

• Ocean: where to even begin… see National Geographic articles and quizzes tagged to locations; find shipwrecks; and track marine life to name a few.

• Weather: maybe charting temperatures for a location is old hat, but what about cloud watching?

• Gallery: You’ve got to see it to believe it! With partners like Discovery Networks, NASA, National Geographic and the New York Times supplying content in various multimedia as you visit a location, students are engaged in learning, not just being entertained.

• Global Awareness: See what organizations are present in an area, such as Greenpeace and WWF.

• More: This section has plenty to offer from National Parks to US Senators that can be integrated into social studies lessons.

So power up that classroom projector, and with a simple check mark in the Layers of Google Earth, vast content is within flight. You just have to choose the destination for your students’ learning.

It would be wonderful if we had an unlimited amount of time to let learning come full circle. I believe that is where the true reflection happens and deeper learning transpires. Often, I feel like we just make a project, and it’s put it “out there”. But then what happens? Was the purpose met, and could there be more to it?

As the school year draws to a close, I’m thinking about the great projects that I have assisted over the past ten months, and wondering how could I help build in this important part of the process. Perhaps, this is an authentic use of our fixed block time when students come to the computer lab without their teachers every three weeks. Having the opportunity to explore and share each other’s work, to leave/answer comments or to reflect (with the aid of a guided sheet) would be completing the circle.

Something that we need to do more.

Something to think about this summer.

• 78% of the students feel that they read more than they used to

• 56% of the students feel that they talk more about books with family and friends

• 100% of the students feel that the teacher should offer Goodreads to future students

• 56% of the students plan to continue using Goodreads in the future

• 100% of the students explored other parts of the site that weren’t mandated (such as writing stories and book trivia)

The teacher felt that these results demonstrated that the experimental use of Goodreads was a success. And I would agree! These results certainly are aligned with the teacher’s ultimate goal of her students becoming lifelong readers and reflectors. Any one else want to give it a try next year?

The Snow Man

Chicken Little

These movies are very simple attempts at a “how-to” narrative and a retelling of a story. For both movies, we used IPEVO Point 2 View USB Document Cameras. With “The Snow Man”, we used a Logitech USB Headset for clear, sound quality. We were amazed at how easy and fun the movies were to make with the SAM Animation software. We are hoping to integrate this technology into fifth grade social studies, specifically European explorers, next year. Wish us luck!

For the next few weeks, a handful of teachers and myself are exploring what SAM Animation has to offer. This software developed at Tufts University is very user-friendly. It comes as a demo or pay for a full download. The demo works well enough to capture images with your built-in or external cameras , and then add narration or audio. The movies can be exported as QuickTime or other file formats for various mobile devices and destinations. (Tip: in the demo version, to find these other options, use the File- Export Menu.)

Stop-action movies lend themselves beautifully to science topics due to the time lapse capabilities that allow a very slow process (such as plant growth) to be observed at a faster rate. However, science is not the only subject that can harness the power. Check out the many examples here. (And stay tuned for a future post that displays the teacher created examples that we are going to develop as a part of our May challenge.)

What I REALLY like:

SAM Animation was developed with the understanding that the technology should not get in the way of the content. The content should be front and center. (Read about how animation is good for the classroom in their white paper.)  It’s a true integration tool that is easy to use, and the concept of stop-action movies really makes students think. Students have to plan how they will break concepts and actions down in meaningful chunks to in turn build a coherent message that demonstrates understanding. Plus, it’s tactile, hands-on and fun!

Want to get started? Check out SAM Animation’s video tutorials here. Also, iCreate to Educate, a partner company, has great resources for teachers.

Your thoughts and experiences with animation and stop-action movies are welcome!

In the meantime, I was psyched to come across free, online, technology professional development. Teacher Challenge is a web site supported by Edublogs. The purpose of the site is to take teachers through 30 day challenges to increase their technology skills. Some of the challenge topics include: teacher blogging, student blogging, the best of free web resources and student safety on the Internet.

A wonderful feature: the challenge is 30 days; however, the teacher can complete the tasks on his/her own schedule. Interested in the topic, but stretched too thin right now? Not a problem. The challenges are archived. I’m thinking this would be great for a collaborative or study group to explore through out a school year. Or maybe, summer by the pool with your wireless connection is your preference? Either way, it’s your time table.

I’ll conclude with a quote from the site: ‘The greater we support and increase a teacher’s skills, the better they are able to support their students use of web 2.0 technologies.’

I couldn’t agree more!