Exploring and Implementing Technology

in the K-12 Classroom

Betsy Schragewww.betsyschrage.com

www.betsyschrage/wikispaces.com

1

“Technology makes it possible for people to gain control over everything, except over technology”

– John Tudor

2

Session Agenda• Getting to know the audience

• Technologies split into 3 different categories:

– Elementary/High School Technologies

– Special Education Classrooms

– Technologies if your school has the money

• Caveats and Suggestions

• Questions

3

Elementary and High School Technologies

4

Flashdrives• Upload images and files from your computer and

transfer them to different computers• Simple, portable and inexpensive• Link between home and school work

Ideas for Implementation

•Use as a computerized portfolio for each child

•Require each student to bring one at the beginning of the year

•Attach study guides or PowerPoints and allow students to study at home

•Encourage students to bring back documents, pictures or websites they found at home to help with a unit at school 5

GoDaddy.com and Weebly.com

• GoDaddy.com allows you to buy your own domain for $10.00 or less

• Weebly.com allows you to easily create your own website for free! (www.example.weebly.com)

Ideas for Implementation

•Create a classroom website and post homework, classroom news, upcoming events, etc

•Allow students to create their own websites for a project

6

7

8

Example of website created through Weebly.com

www.betsyschrage.com

• Took less than two hours to set up• Cost $7.89 to buy the domain for a year

9

Twitter• A social networking tool that allows people to

‘follow’ what you’ve been up to • It also allows you to ‘follow’ other people

Similar to a Facebook ‘status’ or instant messaging ‘away message’

Only allows 160 characters10

Example of Twitter in Classroom

www.twitter.com/SJA5thGrade

• 5th grade classroom updates their Twitter daily by posting about what they learned that day

• Parents and Teachers ‘follow’ this classroom by going to the above link

• Parents and Teachers can comment on the Twitter page if they create their own account

11

12

Other Twitter Examples• Create a class Twitter and ‘follow’ accounts such as

Barack Obama, CNN or NASA

• Create a personal Twitter in which daily updates detail the homework for the day

• Create a class Twitter and have students update about classroom news, upcoming events, etc.

13

TeacherTube.com or YouTube.com• Websites that feature videos from all over the

world about hundreds of subjects• Simple search options, free, and exciting for

the students

Ideas for Implementation

•Great resource for supplementing a lesson or unit

•Having trouble explaining a concept? Search it!14

TeacherTube VideoIntroduction to Fractions Rap Video

YouTube VideoPaddle to the Sea Video Clip

15

www.scrapblog.com• Allows you to upload pictures, use

backgrounds and create your own online scrapbook for free

Ideas for Implementation

•Allow students to create projects online versus by hand

•Create a scrapblog to document an entire classroom year 16

17

18

• Upload any picture or document and create a poster sized image for your classroom!

• BlockPosters.com will create your poster and send it to you in a PDF file

• Free and easy!

19

Ideas for Implementation

•Create unique posters to decorate your classroom

•Have students use for projects

20

Animoto• www.animoto.com is a unique and easy way

to create short videos by uploading your photos, video clips and/or music to this website

Ideas for Implementation

•Allow students to create short movies demonstrating their understanding of a certain concept or event

•Have each student create an Animoto movie at the beginning of the year as a good to know you exercise 21

www.docs.google.com

Ideas for Implementation• Co-Teaching? Use GoogleDocs to make joint

lesson planning easy and straightforward.

• Encourage high school students to utilize GoogleDocs for group projects

22

Same features as a Microsoft Word Document

See who last edited the document

23

Cell PhonesWe already know our students have them, how about

utilizing them for educational purposes?

Ideas for Implementation

•Have students take pictures of a certain subject found outside the classroom. For example, ask students to bring in pictures of where they found percentages used in the real world

•Serves as quick calculator

•www.polleverywhere.com Ask students questions and have them respond using their cell phones via text message!

24

• Go to the website and click on “create your first poll”

• Sign up for a free account and click on “free text poll”

• Ask a question on the board and allow students to anonymously text in their short answers

25

Let’s try it…(Standard Text Message Rates Apply)

• Similar to GoogleDocs, but different in that it is more like a website

• Multiple parties can edit the wiki

Here is an example of a Technology Wiki...www.betsyschrage/wikispaces.com

Ideas for Implementation

•Create a classroom wiki about a particular topic. Allow each student to be a member of the wiki and have permission to edit it according to a specific aspect of that topic.

•Create a wiki for the teachers at your school. Upload lesson ideas, videos, pictures and more for everyone to access and edit.

26

27

Digital Cameras

Ideas for Implementation

• Have around to take candid pictures to make an end of the year slideshow

• Create real PEC picture cards for an Autistic room• Hang pictures around the classroom• Upload pictures to class website, Twitter or Wikispace

28

www.teacherspayteachers.com “An empowering place where teachers buy & sell original and used teaching materials and make teaching an even more rewarding experience”

So how to access the free stuff?– Go to the home page and scroll down to the Catalog

Browser box on the left hand side of the screen– Click on FREE downloads and have fun browsing!

29

Examples of Resources/Templates found on TeachersPayTeachers.com…

30

Special Education Technologies

31

iPod/iPhone Communication Applications

• Proloquo2Go- communication device for people who have difficultly speaking. Most famous for its effectiveness in children with Autism

• SoundAMP- serves as a hearing device

• Sign 4 Me-

32

http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/2009-05-27-iphone-autism_N.htm

Digital Books• A inexpensive book usually found on a

PowerPoint to allow students the option of being read to and of being able to go to and from pages with ease

Ideas for Implementation

•Create a whole library of digital books for students to take home or use on the computer

•Create a digital book documenting an entire school year complete with pictures, field trips, big projects and more… 33

Pulse Pens

Ideas for Implementation

•Give to student struggling to stay on top of lecture type material•Perfect for college

About $200, allows student to record lectures, upload to computer, search for specific parts within the lecture and lots more…

34

Ideas for Implementation

•Use the conference call options during IEP meetings

•Allows for easy group work and collaboration options35

36

Skype is an online phone service that makes talking around the globe easy and inexpensive.

Ideas for Implementation

•Great for conference calling during IEP meetings

•Keep in touch with Pen Pals, teachers or classrooms from all over the world

•Allows you to call land lines and cell phones directly from your computer

37

38

Technologies if your school has the money…

39

Ideas for Implementation

•Especially great for classrooms with ESL learners or young students learning how to read

www.gofrontrow.com

•Front Row is a surround sound system that allows the teacher’s voice to be clear and evenly distributed throughout the classroom

•Multiple studies have proved this technology to generate “more focused, productive classrooms”

40

Speaker

Microphone

Receiver

41

Tutor.com is a one-on-one tutoring service via the internet that serves children and adults from Kindergarten through college!

How Tutor.com Works...

42

Ideas for Implementation

• Families, school districts, libraries and even companies can purchase services through Tutor.com

• Have your struggling student go to Tutor.com for a free 20 minute trial to see if this is a plausible option for them

Who currently has access to Tutor.com in Michigan?

43

Smart Boards• An interactive whiteboard complete with

overhead projector and touch recognition feature

44

Interactive WhiteBoard Demonstration

45

An overhead Projector that, unlike a normal overhead, allows for 3D objects to be clearly projected.

46

Caveats…

Always have a backup plan when technology doesn’t work!

Be aware of Privacy Laws and Regulations. Make sure you get permission to post pictures of your students online!

Watch out for inappropriate material when having students research websites and technologies

47

Last Minute Suggestions…Remember: It is our duty as teachers to educate our children about technology.

Don’t be shy…experiment!

Oftentimes we forget the biggest resource we have is right in front of us:

Don’t be afraid to ask the students!

GOOGLE it

Technology Grants… Look for them!HAVE FUN!

48

Thanks for attending this session!

I look forward to any and all feedback on your attempts and successes at implementing technology in the classroom…

Remember to check out www.betsyschrage.wikispaces.com for technology explanations, updates, examples, and more!

49