1SecondEveryday

1SecondEveryday is an app/website that you take a video of a second of your day everyday. It is like a personal journal but in video form. I started using this July 1st of 2018 and so far I have a three minute and thirty second video of my life from then until now. It is a cool tool to have to capture moments that you do not want to forget. Instead of remembering just the chunks and pieces of life, this app allows you to remember at least one thing from everyday. How awesome is that? After using the app consistently over a long period of time, you can watch your life day by day in movie form. To bring this into the teaching/learning aspect, a teacher can download the app and take a video of their students every day throughout the school year doing different activities or lessons. As the year progresses the teacher will be able to see how the students grow and things change throughout the school year. There is many different ways to integrate this awesome piece of technology into a classroom and make it an enjoyable process for both the students and the teachers.

Zoom

Zoom is a conferencing service that allows remote access to meetings by combining video, audio, mobile, and chat or texting software. Powered through the cloud, Zoom brings people who may be far apart together for collaborations, meetings, and more. Zoom offers multiple solutions for the workplace ranging from webinars to enhanced conference rooms dubbed 'zoom rooms'. Zoom also allows screen and file sharing for ease of use and efficiency. Working with all types of software, Zoom is extremely convenient and is compatible to use on PC or Macs alike and can navigate the different scheduling capabilities across a myriad of devices. Zoom is incredibly reliable and works well not only for small scale projects, but can accommodate 1000 video participants and support over 10,000 viewers! With its user friendly design that anybody can navigate and streamlined appearance, the video conferencing software has earned itself glowing reviews. You can download Zoom for free or choose one of the several comprehensive pricing plans for larger scale consumers. Zoom is all about bringing people together and fostering that cherished face to face connection that can so often be lost in our current technological world full of emails and linked voice calls.

Khan Academy

Khan Academy is a valuable internet resource that is used to help teach/reteach historically difficult subjects. It offers practice exercises, instructional videos, and a personalized learning dashboard that empower learners to study at their own pace in and outside of the classroom. The subjects Khan Academy covers are math, science, computer programming, history, art history, economics, and much more. This resource tool is so credible that it boasts of partnering up with institutions like NASA, The Museum of Modern Art, The California Academy of Sciences, and MIT to offer specialized content. I personally use this site quite often especially when I'm stuck on a problem or just want to brush up on my art history knowledge. My children also use this site. It is part of their daily curriculum at school and Khan Academy is offered as an extra resource for students to advance their skills. What I truly love about this site is the detail they give to each subject. Not only do you get Plenty of detailed videos, but you can test your knowledge with practice examples at the end of each module. I highly recommend Khan Academy as a resource to use in your classroom or even if you're interested in learning more about any particular subject. It's truly groundbreaking!

Snow Day Calculator

This week Michigan has been hit by extremely cold weather and significant snow accumulation. Students and teachers everywhere are wondering, “what are our chances of a snow day?” This is where the snow day calculator comes in! Just type in your school’s zip code, the number of snow days you’ve had, and the type of school. The snow day calculator uses a “custom formula” to give you the percent chance you have of a snow day. The snow day calculator also offers apps for Android and iPhones, as well as text notifications. The service remains free because of ads, which I think is well worth it. The snow day calculator claims it is “the only automatic snow day predictor available.” This website gives conservative predictions about the chance of a snow day based on the weather. The only improvement this site could use would be the addition of a cold day calculator. As of now, we have been called off or the next two days because of the windchill, but the snow day calculator gives only a 4% chance of a snow day. Either way this website is a great resource for when students and teachers alike are wondering if school will be called off. Happy snow day!!

Desmos

desmos.com is a free-to-use online scientific and graphing calculator website. In this website, you can practically do anything that a very expensive calculator can do with only the typing of the web address. It can graph any number of complicated formulas, whether sine, cosine, tangent, etc. It can do all the basic operations like multiplication, addition, subtraction, and division, as well as logarithms, e calculations, absolute values, inequalities, and various others. It also has a teaching function, allowing you to view examples of concepts from an online teacher, playing games/challenges related to subjects, you name it! All of this and more for free.

The only few criticisms I have of it are the inability to use it on a test as well as the somewhat confusing ways to input various operations by keyboard. These are both minor problems, but it’s enough to use it as a sort of homework helper rather than an everyday thing.

Applicable Link:

desmos.com

Tutoring, anytime, any place, with HelpHub!

Through helphub.me, students will be connected with tutors and other students through messaging online and tutoring over phone calls. The use of technology in this resource makes asking for help and receiving help easy for students. Connecting to others through this forum can be much less intimidating than going up to a teacher or staff member and express one’s struggles. No matter the subject, HelpHub will provide students with a tutor to help them master any subject. Math, English, English as a second language, science, business, humanities, test prep, programming, and history… the list of subjects with tutors at students’ disposal is an incredible resource for students. This platform provides students with access to academic scholars from around the world and there is no contractual obligation within HelpHub, it is pay as you go which is convenient for students as their needs change. However, this resource is only available through selected schools. There are 1,500 schools that can access HelpHub; schools would benefit from partnering with this resource because it would be valuable for students so they can learn at their own pace at any time in any place, and it is valuable for teachers because they will have more time to provide feedback and create lessons for the students since they do not need to provide as much after school assistance. A really cool part about HelpHub is that you can become a tutor yourself if you do not require the help, and many people would attest to helping someone else actually enhances your own comprehension of the topic. Overall, it would behoove all students, faculty, and staff to have access this this resource and the integration of this technology into education is a positive contributor to student success.  

More Information on HelpHub here!

Does Taking Notes Make You Anxious? Note Anymore- Thanks for Livescribe SmartPen!

The Livescribe smartpen is an incredibly innovative and useful resource for taking notes in class. Syncing written and spoken word has never been easier. This pen captures more than just words, but even symbols, diagrams, and scribbles. This pen can even translate your written words into a different language! Tapping anywhere on the notes will make the pen play back what was written and those notes can all be transferred to a PC or Mac. The best part about this smartpen is the accessibility, the notes can be accessed at all times from an iOS or Android device. This pen will also increase instruction time because it can capture and archive a lecture so the students can listen to the lessons as many times as they need and also accommodates all students learning styles as those archived lessons can be aurally or visually interactive. Students will appreciate the ability to look back on instruction so they can learn on their own time and can even share their own “pencasts” through interactive PDF’s. Teachers will benefit from this smartpen because they can build Electronic Student Portfolios to monitor their progress, easily identify student misunderstandings by actually hearing the students’ verbal justification of their answers, and their thought processes. This resource increases peer collaboration in the classroom and promotes progressive and dynamic educational environments. Accommodating different learning styles is a huge advantage of this smartpen. Many students experience anxiety when taking notes because they are falling behind or are not able to comprehend the information in the time allotted, but the use of this pen eliminates those worries which builds a student’s confidence and independence. The unlimited amount of times a student can listen to their notes and the simplicity and advantages of using this pen provide teachers and students alike with an opportunity to comprehend new information or assess work in a more reliable and easy way.

More Information on Livescribe SmartPen Here!

Kahoot is a learning tool many instructors utilize in their classroom. It is a website that allows the teacher to create multiple choice questions for their students. Their students then use their favorite thing in the whole world, their cell phone, to interact and take the quiz. They simply have to go on to Kahoot, type in the code for the quiz, and compete with their classmates to see who can get the most right in the best timely manner. One of the best parts of Kahoot is that after every question, you can see on bar graphs which questions were the most popular answers. This is great because if the class is struggling on a concept the teacher can see the bar graph with the wrong popular answer, and address the concept to better help the class understand. Personally, I love using this because it is a great way to test the students on content while being competitive for interaction.  https://kahoot.com/

Noisy Classroom? No problem- download "Too Noisy!"

Too Noisy is a necessary app for all Elementary school teachers or any teacher who may need help with behavior management. The intention of this app is to discourage negative behavior by utilizing the microphone on an iPad to assess the noise level which makes an alarm go off when the volume exceeds the acceptable level. The sound of the alarm can be changed depending on what the teacher thinks their students will respond well to or what sound fits into the classroom style. Outside of managing student volume, there are many other advantages within this app. For example, there is a reward system that the teacher regulates that allows students to win “stars,” and the students desire to gain stars can be increased depending on how teachers value the reward system. The use of visual aids in this app is prominent, for example this app keeps track of the time to further assess when students should receive stars, perhaps on a ten minute interval, giving students a visual reminder of how close they are to earning another star. Teachers also control the noise sensitivity level based on the lesson plan for the day. If students are collaborating, perhaps the teacher would set the sensitivity level to “group,” while during a lecture it may be set to “silent.” Another awesome way to integrate this app into the school environment is by bringing them to theatre rehearsals or class assemblies so the speaker(s) can make sure that they are speaking at a reasonable and audible level. The personalization within the app gains and keeps student attention and allows teachers to monitor that attention and noise level over the course of an entire term. This app will assist the teacher in managing student behavior and the students will not mind because they are earning rewards along the way!

Learn More About "Too Noisy" Here!

Enhance Participation and Cultural Understanding Through Linkr!

If you are a college student, chances are at one point or another you have taken an online class. In online classes, often professors utilize discussions in order to increase participation and communication in students. This idea sets the stage for linkr, which is a global educational network with the intention of increasing interactivity, connection, and an opportunity for students to explore their interests. All the while, teachers are able to monitor this process and facilitate their learning. Both teachers and students will appreciate all the benefits of linkr, teachers will particularly enjoy the continuous updates on student progress and grow an understanding of their students mental processes as they publish their own original work and collaborate with others. For example, students can be assigned an essay in their English class and are instructed to post their work on this forum to receive feedback from other students. The teacher can either restrict accessibility of their work to only their classes or make them availability internationally. The benefit to this is that students will be provided with the opportunity to analyze and experience that challenges of intercultural communication, furthering the foundational mission of linkr, which is to enhance students’ participation in conversation and prominent issues or topics that arise. Other than increasing student knowledge of multicultural education, students will also enjoy the personalization, opening of doors, and meaningfulness of this forum. For example, students make the class their own through their published content related to the coursework and the doors that open through those publications like enabling students to connect with other students from around the world. Linkr does not support busy work, so students will tend to care about this work since they are publicly sharing their work that will display their own interests and ideas. Linkr provides many opportunities for student growth and teacher’s benefit from the organization of this forum and the ability to assess and communicate with their students in a way that keeps them engaged.

Learn more about Linkr here!

I Love Going to School... Because We Play Minecraft!

If you’re someone who loves to play video games, you have definitely heard of Minecraft. You have probably spent countless hours playing Minecraft instead of doing the homework that you have been procrastinating to complete. But what if playing Minecraft was your homework? According to an article from emergingedtech.com, integrating games, or “gamification of education,” into the classroom induces student engagement. Students will be surprised at what they can learn through playing Minecraft in the classroom because there are many different avenues available through this game that can aid in learning a skill. The flexible, customizable gameplay alongside Minecraft’s rising popularity brings students an open mind and interest in seeing how this game could enhance their educational experience. Giving lessons about math, history, and English, is simple through one of many games available through Minecraft called "the sandbox video game." To explain further, the ability to create a civilization, construct buildings, interact with other students’ civilizations, and develop an economy gains a student’s sense of leadership and cooperation within the study of history. As a future English teacher, I was particularly interested in the use of Minecraft as an incentive to learn a language, as displayed through their incorporation of coding, influencing the practice of English verbs and tenses. The endless amount of creative and unique ways to teach through this video game is beneficial because, first and foremost, if the students are having fun while they learn they will stay engaged, but it also sneaks in lessons that may be unintended, like using symmetry to create buildings. The different modifications available to this game allows the teacher to fit the game to their curriculum, ultimately having the potential to change the way students learn.

Learn More About Using Minecraft in the Classroom!

Socrative- The App to Bridge the Communication Gap Between Teachers and Students!

Socrative is an app intended to enhance the quality of communication between a teacher and their students. In the free version of this app, it provides the opportunity for teachers to create quizzes, polls, on the fly questioning, assessments, real-time results, and to make accessing this all the more simple it is accessible from any device. Using this app in the classroom helps students feel safer and more comfortable asking questions since they are not forced to raise their hand, but instead can ask it through the app for the teacher to answer. Another benefit to this app is how easily a teacher can create their own unique quizzes for the students to begin the class in order to turn their focus to the topic of the day. For example, the questions could ask students to pick a theme that stands out to them throughout a novel they are reading to assess what they are noticing through their reading and what they need help understanding. These valuable resources can be available to fifty students per session in one public room which gives Socrative the ability to reach a large community and assist them in creating stronger communication between students and teachers. If this is not enough, there are upgrades available to K-12 and higher education which allow up to 10 public or private rooms as well as shareable links, countdown timers, and restricted access with student ID. The cost for these upgrades are very reasonable at $60 and $100 considering the unlimited possibilities provided by this app in aiding students and faculty alike through their educational journey.

Learn more about Socrative!

Desmos

Desmos is a fantastic online tool for any math or science instructor. Desmos, essentially, is an online graphing calculator. However, Desmos recently created activities for instructors to use in the classroom. Instead of placing your old TI-83 on the overhead projector and watch the students cringe at the archaic "pea soup" monochromatic display, go on Desmos and bask in its colorful & visual glory. Desmos also has a Learn section, which teachers can use as a supplement to a concept such as Pythagorean Theorem or students can use to visualize and grasp a concept. Desmos can also be used in an art class. Use math to draw a Camaro! It encourages students to practice math skills. It also encourages creativity and curiosity. Immediately, students can see what a rate of change or a variable can do to an expression. Because it is free, it is very accessible. Students without graphing calculators at home can use this online tool for their homework. Overall, I believe Desmos can be a fun way to learn!

https://www.desmos.com/

ABC Mouse Early Learning Academy

You may have seen the TV commercials with parents and teachers alike praising
a website called ABCmouse.com. They claim that it drastically improved their child’s
mathematics skills, or gave them a head start in reading, but how could simply a
website accomplish such feats?
ABC Mouse is a subscription-based comprehensive early learning website. The

company refers to itself as a digital learning academy and offers children ages 2-8
over 8,500 interactive educational games and activities that are specifically created to
facilitate learning by a curriculum board of education experts. The ABC Mouse
curriculum is also customizable by parents and includes not only the basics such as
math and reading, but delves into art, music, science, and more.
The website also is as kid friendly as possible with no advertisements or routes for
external parties to contact users, a detail that is very important to parents in this digital

age. The interface is easy to navigate and has a wide array of puzzles, audiobooks,
animations, and printable resources for the many kind of learners kids can be. Parents
are also made aware of their child’s progress and are able to adjust the learning level
as they see fit.

To learn more about ABC Mouse visit the website's homepage.

Screencastify

Screencastify is a useful resource for any teachers that are interested in participating in the flipped-learning teaching style. This resource is able to be downloaded on to your computer, it is best if the user uses Google Chrome since it is a Chrome based resource.

Once the application is downloaded, the Screencastify logo added to the tool bar for easy access. When using the the user is able to record themselves using their webcam, their microphone, or their desktop screen, or a combination of all three.  Each month, the users using the free version are able to record up to 50, 10-minute videos. Once a video is finished recording, it is saved to the user's Google Drive account. Here, the user is able to edit the video.

Teachers could use this resource for students that have to miss classroom time, or to teach parents how to maneuver informative websites. Sometimes it is easier to show, not just tell and Screencastify helps make this process easier from wherever!

himama

Himama

This app can be used in a school or daycare setting, it is a great way to communicate with parents. The parents are able to know everything throughout their child’s day. You can send pictures of the child to the parent. All the parent has to do is download the app, very simple. The teachers/caregivers send a confirmation email and the parents set up their account. They get every update sent to their phone.

I use this app at my center and the parents love it. Being able to receive pictures of their children throughout the day is the most popular, personally I think this is super great so the parents can see when the child ate and what they ate. Especially for the infant classroom, being able to see when your baby ate, slept and was changed is always helpful. Everything that is shared is also has the times on it so they can know exactly when the last time their child was fed ect.

An awesome feature I love especially being a teacher is the activity icon,  where you take pictures or videos and send to the parent. Well you can also attach a subject of the activity they may be doing in the pictures and attach a developmental skill. Most parents think their younger children just ‘play’ all day, now we can show them how children learn through play.

This app can be accessed on your phones, tablets and even a computer just type in himama.com it is very easy to navigate around and understand how it works.