Zachary Walker threw so many ideas at me in his session it’s taken me a month to digest it all. I picked up so many tips, tricks and tools. However, like he recommends in his session, I came away with 10 ideas/tips that I want to try out.
1. www.govote.at and www.mentimeter.com were great websites where students could submit a quick response to a poll question. It was cool to see the results posted on the screen. This could be a great formative assessment tool.
2. www.tcea.org/ipad has a HUGE selection of Apps divided into subject and topics. If you need an app for anything, then this is the place to go.
3. One of the first things I will implement when the kids get their iPads is the phrase “dock your device.” With this instruction the kids will put their iPads in the upper right hand corner of their desk.
4. I also want to implement “hands up” where kids put their hands in the air. This is a great way for me to check if they are doing what they are supposed to be doing.
5. I would like to use photos to have the kids take pictures of things that connect to the stories we read. Sometimes they will take a picture of someone who reminds them of a character. Sometimes I will have them take a picture that conveys the theme of the novel.
6. Video would be a great tool for the kids to record for conferences. They could talk to their parents about what they’ve done at school and what they are the most proud of.
7. One of the most important things for a student to learn is how to search in Google. I would like to spend a lot of time 1st quarter teaching the kids this skill.
8. One of my favorite activities from the session was “find an app, video or website” where students would find one of those related to what we are studying. This would then become a great resource for kids to look at.
9. Todays Meet is a great source for back channel discussions. This could be a good way of taking notes during a video. Kids could discuss the video while they are watching it to keep them engaged.
10. One thing I want to have each student do is write several goals at the beginning of the year and use www.futureme.org to send those goals to themselves at the end of the year. It would be a great chance for reflection.
