Connected Classroom and More on Google+

Website Wednesday

You're probably asking yourself, "What is Google+?" Simple answer: A wonderful Google product that is a should have for ALL teachers. Google+ is a social network owned and operated by Google. If you have a Google Account then you can access Google+. 

Google+ has many communities which are groups created on a specific subject. 

After purchasing Google Cardboard, I was left asking myself "Now What?" I made my way to Google +, found, and joined a Google Cardboard Community. Now I'm able to chat with other educators about how they use Google Cardboard in their classrooms. I also have access to Google Cardboard resources and videos. 

Want to take your classes on virtual field trips? Go to Google+ and Follow Virtual Field Trips from Learn Around the World. 

In preparing for our monthly focus of Global Connections and how to take classrooms beyond the classroom walls, we stumbled upon an amazing community - Connected Classrooms a community on how to utilize technology to enhance education. It is a community for educators to collaborate and share technology resources, classroom strategies for integrating technology effectively, and ideas on how to use technology in and beyond the classroom.

Reading a novel? Working on a Science Lab? Completing a History Project? And your class wants to work with or discuss ideas with another class from a different state or country? This is the social network for you. 

Stay Connected with Twitter

Summer is coming and I can't think of a better time to start using Twitter. If I could only pick one social media tool, I think it would be Twitter. Thank goodness I don't really have to choose.

Twitter can be accessed from any device, but I love how easy it is to use the Twitter app on my phone. I can view posts, send a tweet, upload an image and find people to follow all from my phone. 

Many people say they just don't "get" Twitter. Here's the best way I can describe it - global connections with others. 

Why do you need to connect globally?  Think about this - if you are on a campus with three other 3rd grade teachers and they are all great teachers - you have a nice little network to share ideas, find resources, get help. If you connect to thirty other 3rd grade teachers and they are all great teachers - you have a nice large network to share ideas, find resources and get help. There are great teachers all over the country (heck, just in Texas) that are doing awesome things and they are sharing them on Twitter. You have awesome ideas too and people want to hear about it. Share it on Twitter. 

If you're not sure how to get started - try this link.

SAISD Twitter Challenge - A HUGE SUCCESS!

Thank you so much to everyone that participated in our 2016 SAISD Twitter Challenge. I think it is safe to say that everyone gained new knowledge and ideas! It's amazing what you can learn in just a few tweets. That's what makes it so powerful.

I hope that each of you continues to use Twitter as a tool to gather and share information and get connected with your peers, students and parents. It's a great opportunity to shout about the great things you are doing in your classrooms and on your campuses as well as a place to ask for help and feedback.  ~ Happy Tweeting! ~

TCEA Notes

I had great intentions when I came to the TCEA conference this week. I was going to blog every day about what I had learned so I could share it with you. Needless to say, it is now the end of the conference and I haven't done a very good job at this. 

There was so much good information at the conference this year - it's hard to know where to start. I picked out a highlight from each day to share with you now and I'll post more when I have a chance to sit down and go through my notes.

Day 2 Highlight

Apple is coming out with another update to their iOS. I know what you're thinking, what's so great about that? Well, this update will prove to be something educators have been waiting to see for a long time. Here are two big improvements coming our way - Student Logins for iPads. That's right, students will now be able to log in to a device to make it more personal. Everything they create will be stored in the cloud under their Apple ID. Classroom App for the iPad. Teachers can use this app to lock a device, send content to all students or put everyone on the same app. I don't have a date for the update launch, but at least we know it's coming.

Day 3 Highlight

I spent the day learning about the importance of communication. I think we can all agree that this is critical in education. We have to make sure we are sharing what's happening in the classroom, on campus and throughout the district. Whether it's blogging, tweeting or posting, we should be promoting all the great things we are doing in schools. I encourage you to look into Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, blogging, online newsletters and websites to make sure you are getting the good word out. If you need help with any of this, just let me know - that's why I'm here.

Day 4 Highlight

This was my day of inspiration. I love those days. I attended several sessions that just got me excited about education and how technology can really transform what happens in the classroom. We can start small, a simple form to gather information from parents, students or teachers. Create a form to gather demographic information from parents. It will be placed into a spreadsheet so it's easy to access. Use forms with students as an exit ticket. It will also put the information into a spreadsheet where you can go back and review student responses. Use a form to gather questions from teachers about an upcoming faculty meeting or professional development. Best thing about forms - it can be accessed from any device.

Day 5 Highlight

Tips, Tricks and Tools! I love to find shortcuts, extensions and other tricks to make technology easier to use. I promise I will have more of this coming in the next few weeks. 

TCEA was a great week of learning, sharing and networking!  

Storytelling with Storify

Storify defines its service as "the easiest way to find, collect, and share what people are saying all over the web." I suppose that is the correct definition, but it's so much more than that. 

Storify uses a multitude of different social media resources to create stories. From Google images to Facebook posts and everything in between, Storify takes content from the web and helps you develop your own story about a certain topic.

Check out these articles to get an idea of how you could use Storify in your classroom - 

4 Ways to Use Storify in the Classroom 
Potential Uses for Teaching with Storify
How Storify can be a New Platform for Students

Happy Storytelling!

Let's Get Connected

Technology makes is so easy for people to stay connected. Social media sites like Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest give us the opportunity to share information in real time so we can stay up on what's important to us - family, hobbies, old friends, even technology. 

I would love for you to follow me on Twitter, Facebook and/or Pinterest. I'll share new web tools, apps and instructional best practices when using technology in the classroom. I will pin, post, tweet and retweet resources and tools that will assist you as you use technology to increase your productivity and engage students in the classroom.

So if you would please, click on one (or all) of the links in the Let's Connect section of my blog to get information delivered right your social media of choice!