Old Dog New Tech

In this episode I talk you through some video creation tools I tried out during the Emergency Remote Learning months.  The links are below, you should check them out.  Make sure you know what you need in a video creation tool, which is really determined by what your students need of course, but video creation can be difficult and the end product a disappointment.  Check out the podcast and find out my struggles and successes and my go to video creation tool. Tools mentioned in this Podcast Screencastify Screencastomatic Loom Hippo video Awesome Screenshot Explain and Send Power Director KapWing YouTube

A few new updates and past thoughts about using Google Sites in your classroom.

I have been busy keeping in touch with my students, researching tech tools and developing content.  This episode highlights the following tools that I have been using and suggest you give them a try. Audio creation Soundtrap Audacity Garage Band Screencast your content Screencastify Screencast-o-matic Loom Awesome Screenshot Explain and Send Video assessment EdPuzzle Playposit Google Forms

Developing, delivering and assessing online content requires careful of consideration many details. Here are 3 questions that will help with the process. What do you want the students to learn? What do you want the end product to be? Is this a time to try a new tool or use a tool you are comfortable with? Tech Tip or Integration idea- Communicate Email, Chat, Group post tools Backchat Channel  Join me-Chrome Browser Zoom     Screen share extension

I have been off the air for a couple of months and I have a line up of podcasts.  I also have finally gotten “in the flow” so to speak, with the new teaching assignment I asked for and was given. Along with my HS music classes, I am teaching STEAM to gr. 3-5 using Project Lead The Way; a great curriculum with a lot of resources.  I will talk more about that later.  This podcast is about online resources that allow you to insert questions or audio content.  You can create assignments or mini-lessons or you can have your students do the same.  A great way to create a meaningful learning experience. Video is a great way to engage students.  However, it can be even better for delivering content and assessing understanding.  I have used several different tools to do this but find myself going back to one or two.  I just got used to them, you should try out a few and see what would work for you and your students. Flipgrid Playposit EdPuzzle I did some research and found a few more tools.  Richard Byrne, an awesome tech blogger and speaker (got to hear him at MACUL 2019), compiled the following list of tools.  You can read his blog here.  Here is a list, I have checked these out and they seem to offer not only some of the same features, but also the option to foster discussion in some cases. Spiral Vizia Moocnote Vialogues Tech treat-  Nearpod add-on for Google Slides Create a slide presentation and insert interactive slides to check for understanding or engage.  You present the slides through Nearpod’s site and information is from each time you present the content is stored on the Nearpod site.  I have had great experiences using this tool.  If you are 1:1 then this tool is a must for delivering interactive lessons.

The past few epidsodes have been about student engagement, but this episode is about my engagement.  Each day I use the same tech tools, I have become more adept at using them as a result.  I use about 3 pieces of online software and try to incorporate 1 or 2 tools as they apply to my teaching.  This episode is about my regularly tech tools, whether on my phone or Chromebook.  Here are my primary tools: Chrome Browser (Phone and Computer/Chromebook) Google Slides (Chromebook, but sometimes my phone)*I use a presentation remote extension...sometimes Google Keep (Phone mostly) Google Drive (Phone and Compter/Chromebook) You will want to try out using Keep.  Take a pic on your phone using keep and add it to a Slide on your Computer/Chromebook.  I like using this at the end of class for many reasons. This weeks tech treat has endless opportunities for students to learn about the environment.  That is kind of a weak description really.  Take some time and check out Google Arts and Culture’s Hidden Worlds of National Parks.  The pictures are incredible and the information is awesome.  Click the link, you won’t be disappointed. https://artsandculture.withgoogle.com/en-us/national-parks-service/parks

This episode is a continuation of sorts of episode 61 in that I am focusing on creating or increasing student engagement using Google Slides.  The last episode, I looked at using Slides to deliver content or have students create a slide demonstrating their understanding of content.  This time I want to cover the following points: Using slide links to enhance your slides Creating games or adventures Linking text boxes not text This weeks tech treat is one you can use to let students share their poster and rate others work.  Your choices are many when using Padlet.  My students have been engaged and deepened their understanding of content, as well as expanding their communication and creativity skills.

Engaging students is a challenge all educators face.  No matter how perfect we think our lesson plan is, there always seems to be 1 or 2 students that are slow to get engaged in class.  This episode is about using Google Slides to deliver content with or, better yet, have your students create an interactive poster.  You might want to work with a tech savvy colleague or consult YouTube for some help videos for this activity, but you should be able to do it on your own as well if you are familiar with Google Slides.  This is a great way to build empathy in young people and teach them some valuable tech skills. Tech treat this episode is Wizer.me--Create interactive online worksheets using this online tool.

I have been off the podcast for awhile and I have a few things to share about Google Sheets. Splitting text into two columns, flippity.net, and Google Forms are highlighted in this episode. Oh, and don't forget to share!!

In this episode, I look at (literally) the Triple E Framework for integrating tech into the classroom.  Get ideas on how to determine if technology is the right tool to use for your lessons or how technology can enhance learning.  I encourage you to click the links below and find out more, because this podcast is just a quick overview with a few of my personal applications. Triple E Framework website Tech treat video

  I have had a great summer.  You can probably tell because I have not been podcasting as regularly as I did during the school year.  Well, I am sorry about that and I am not sorry about that.  I traveled and took time for me.  I kept reading articles and listening to podcasts but I noticed that things were slowing down a bit even for those who are the gurus of Ed Tech.  There were new ideas introduced but mostly podcasts were focusing on pedagogy and using tools that have been available for awhile.  If you are just getting into tech integration that is great but don’t think you are behind.  You are not.  This episode will focus on student needs assessment, ideas on how to find out where your students are at and where they want to go.  I think the second part is so important and fosters an environment that could help develop other skills, like discussion and collaboration.  Tools mentioned: Wakelet Padlet Survey Monkey Remind Flipgrid

Welcome to Season 2!! I discuss some tech free activities and thoughts on how to integrate tech in the process of building the collaboration skills of students.  Thanks for listening and drop me an email or leave a review on iTunes.  My email is olddognewtech10@gmail.com Tech tools in this episode: Glogster MyHistro Screencastify or WeVideo Google Sheets Canva Don't forget to check out the tools available in the tech you have used either personally or in class.  It might add an exciting and engaging piece to your lesson

Closing out the year, I am looking at the things I wish would have gone better and the things that went great!  In this episode, I focus on 4 things that I should have made sure all students understood before trying to implement some technology.  These 4 are not the answer to every problem, but I found myself answering entry level "how to" questions instead of the advanced "how to".  You know, "how do I share a doc?" vs. "how does Beethoven's music differ from Mozart's?"   I found that I needed to do some learning gap closing before assigning deeper learning activities.  I think the skills highlighted in this episode may be useful to you and your students.   Enjoy the tech treat at the end.....yes a treat!!

In this part of the interview, Jodie and I continue to compare the two groups of tech users- natives and immigrants.  We find we belong to both groups and most people do too.  What do you think?  Does it matter in the end?  We talk about solving problems horizontally and look back to the time technology came into our lives and how these experiences help us currently to integrate tech and help teachers and students harness the power of technology.   Jodie shares a great story about a conversation with an administrator who wanted all teachers to use tech right away.  FYI- I received a phone call toward the end and I left that in, so be ready to jam to my cool ringtone!!

In this episode I talk about the next things I did in fostering stronger discussion skills.  Some students are intimidated by students that speak up so easily; so I held a discussion on more general questions that everyone could answer and gave them the opportunity to communicate online and in person.  The questions worked well for me and maybe they will for you too!!   The questions focus on getting groups "in-sync" and I found them in a book and on Twitter.  Just did some research and got a lot of ideas, I listed some of the resources below. Resources from this podcast Edutopia article Bringing all students into the discussions Edutopia article Scaffolding student reflections Discussion guidelines from Edutopia  Univ of Maryland Teaching and Learning Transformation Center Tech treats- Research resources and On-line Journals American Educational Research Journal Empowering Teaching Excellence- Utah State University EdSurge TeachThought

In this first part of 3 podcast episodes, I reflect on the first steps I took in developing the discussion skills of my students.  Researching articles, books and Twitter led me to using certain types of discussions and developing questioning styles.  The articles listed below are a few I found helpful and the tech treats are great for engaging students.  You might note that this podcast is not heavy on tech integration but it did help with engaging students and gathering data.   Students do not know how to discuss class content and I wanted to help them develop these skills.  Through discussion deeper learning occurs.  Tech is a great tool for teachers to use for researching and developing discussion styles/types, as well as students to use to begin developing their discussion skills. Edutopia Bringing All Students Into Discussions Discussion guidelines available in this post. Edutopia Scaffolding Student Reflections + Sample Questions George Couros 5 questions to start out a class or year. Jennifer Gonzalez The Big List of class Discussion Strategies Tech tools to use  Google Forms- collect, save and review answers to questions.  Develop that relationship! Twitter- Broadcast a discussion or have your students do a broadcast on their own. Answer Garden- Ask a question and let students see the answers appear in a word tree/cloud.  Great discussion starter!

Are you utilizing blended learning? This method of educating demands tech integration, but may not be the right thing for your students.  I give you a run down of different blended learning models (complete with my philosophical meanderings) and focus on using Google Sites as a tool for creating meaningful learning.  You may be ready to try blended learning or a flipped classroom,  your students may need a blended classroom environment...now what?  Decide which model may work best and create a Google Site to help facilitate learning.  Better yet,  let your students create one! Find out about Blended Learning Models at Blended Learning Universe. Click here to create a Google Site

 In my 40th episode, I look at some articles about what reflection is and why it is important to utilize it in your classroom.  I also give a few suggestions on how to integrate tech to start and complete the process.  Reflection is an integral part of creating meaningful learning experiences.  Think about how this might meet the needs of your students! Articles Scaffolding Student Reflections + Sample Questions Bringing the Science of Learning Into Classrooms 15 Reflection Strategies To Help Students Retain What You Just Taught Them Tech tools Google Forms  Doc to Form Add-on

A pun in the title...This podcast goes with a blog post I did on using Google Keep and Awesome Screenshot to create png's easily.  Take a look at it for more examples of what you can do with these tools. Sometimes the biggest barrier to integrating tech into the classroom is time. Part of the challenge is also ease of use, both of the tools can take a few uses to get the hang of them, but are worth the few minutes in the long run. “We do know that when our eyes our open, our vision accounts for two-thirds of the electrical activity of the brain – a full 2 billion of the 3 billion firings per second – which was the finding of neuroanatomist R.S. Fixot in a paper published in 1957 (from blogpost https://www.imagethink.net/true-or-false-vision-rules-the-brain/).” This fact alone should make all educators utilize visuals as often as possible. This is not always do easy to do with the limited time educators have to prepare. So, I thought I might highlight a couple of great tools that make it pretty quick and easy to create an image and insert it into a digital tool.

Looking back at my first use of tech and comparing that to where I am now might help .make some integration decisions.  Google Drive and Keep were my first primary apps but you might want to try something else.  Remember student needs drive the integration of tech, but I also think tech can make your teaching life easier or more productive. Remember to patient and decide what works for you.  This will ultimately lead to enhanced learning and achievement. Tech treats this week I started using Adobe Spark (https://spark.adobe.com/) and investigating the Adobe Suite.  Looks cool, but... Headliner (https://www.headliner.app/) for easy video creation and sharing to social media.  Create a class announcement or communication quickly and easily.