Appy Tuesday: Voxer

I have to admit when I first downloaded voxer and started to use it with just my family, I wasn't impressed. I thought why do I need this if I want to send them a short message I will just text them. I left the app sitting on my iPhone for a year unused and unloved. Over the summer I joined a professional learning experience "PTcamp" and was reintroduced to "The Vox" man oh man did I quickly start to realize all the potential this once misunderstood app held for me in the classroom and beyond.

What is it...

Voxer is a walkie - talkie like app on steroids. You can hear audio messages right as people speak or wait and get caught up on your messages later.  As well as voice messages you can send text, images, or even share your current location. Groups can be formed to organize those amazing PLN discussions you have going on.

How to use it...

I have started incorporating it right into my classrooms. Parents love it, they can quickly ask a question if they aren't sure what their child is supposed to be working on, or if they just want to check in on their son or daughter. Students have really started to get the hang of being able to ask any question they have pretty much anytime of day. I can listen to their questions and respond in the car hands free, no need to try to email them or text a message. Those quick questions that students think of when they are in homeroom. Honestly I was a little nervous as I initially rolled out "the vox" to my students and parents I was afraid they might abuse it and I would be getting voice messages at all hours of the day and night asking silly random things. While I do get messages throughout the entire day, they have never once abused it, and thanks to the voxer I can listen and respond to their questions when it's convenient for me (my 30 minute ride to work and home everyday).

Outside of the classroom I have found Voxer to be an irreplaceable tool for connecting with other educators. Through my voxer groups I have connected with educators as far across the globe as Australia. We can discuss everything from our differences in our classrooms to our differences in our culture. I have connected more with other educators outside my district in my 6 months of really using voxer than in my six years of prior teaching.

How to get started...

Download Voxer, have your students and parents download it as well (I created a short tutorial for my parents that is included on my class homepage) share your voxer handle with them and get started "voxing"!

Interested in connecting with me on voxer? You can contact me at cnidli834

My Teacher Lifeline - Part 1: The Calendar

If you are like me it can be difficult at times to keep track of everything you have going on.  I had a desk calendar, a calendar on my computer, a calendar on my phone and then a calendar in my plan book. I could never find the exact thing I need to help me keep it all together.  Sooooooo I decided I would create my own.  I am a huge fan of Erin Condren and if you haven't seen her stuff it is a must for any educator, but I still just wasn't finding exactly what I needed for a middle school setting.  I did however use her teacher plan book as my inspiration for creating my very own calendar/planner/gradebook aaaannnddd because I love it so much I wanted to share it with YOU GUYS......

Introducing.... My Teacher Lifeline (calendar installment)

The calendar includes all twelve months, and some really great quotes on each of the those months. And while the design is really cute and catchy I think my favorite part is that it is very flexible as the actual dates haven't been filed in. Just circles where you can put the correct number in. This way you don't need to re-download a new version come December. I hope you enjoy it and get as much use out of it as I am. Please let me know if you have any questions or you see a correction that needs made. Keep checking back for the rest of My Te
aching Lifeline - my gradebook and lesson planning sections, as well as all those little miscellaneous documents that are vital to a teachers life. Enjoy!!!

My Teaching Lifeline - Calendar

Appy Monday: Multiplication!! and Division!!

Just wanted to take a quick minute to share two apps that I used in my classroom this week. One of the things that I notice each and every year with my seventh graders is that they seem to have forgotten how to do long division and two step multiplication. I always struggle with the fact that these are two time consuming activities that is usually practiced through worksheets Ugh! I hate worksheets!!

I am always on the look out for new and innovate apps, but sometimes it is just a good old basic app that is exactly what I need! That was the case with these two apps.

 

We used Multiplication!! and Divison!! this past Friday when, after a long first week, the students needed a little down time.   I really wanted to continue to work on basic operations in a fun environment. I loved that I could customize each students settings to enhance their difficulty or take it back down to the very basics of multiplication and division.

The apps were engaging enough to keep the students attention while still working through some of the mundane aspects of basic math. It was such a great way to practice, We turned the lights off, played some soothing sounds and just relaxed while we practiced multiplication and division.  I really don't think my students even realized they were doing math, to them it just seemed like play.

Beyond the Bake Sale: Week 2 Wrap Up

As I am FINALLY finishing the fourth chapter of Beyond the Bake Sale (give me a break, it was a holiday weekend), I am again realizing that while I truly felt I had the best interest of my students always at the forefront of my mind I was leaving out a critical part of their education. Without making their family an integral part of my daily teaching I am leaving behind some of these students whom I claim to love so dearly.

I want to reflect on the four core beliefs the authors state in Beyond the Bake Sale, and examine them through my own classroom

Core Belief #1: All parents have dreams for their children and want what is best for them.

I know how I feel about my own children, I would do anything for them. I want them to be and do all the things that I never could. I hope that one day they grow up to be The President, or a doctor, or anything they want to be. I can't believe it never occurred to me that my students parents could and do feel the same. I look forward to tapping into those goals and dreams, through a video assignment where the students interview their parents at the beginning of the year.  Students will ask them what their dreams are for their student and what steps need to take place to achieve those dreams.

Core Belief #2: All parents have the capacity to support their students learning. 

So many times I have thought of myself as the expert in educating a child. What I have forgotten is that my students first and most important teachers are their parents. I want to empower those parents to continue to take part in their education. I hope to implement a family night where parents can come enjoy a meal with their students teachers and learn how they can promote what is being taught at school at home. As well as how the school will support them. Through social media I hope to keep parents in the loop about what is happening at school. I want them to have conversation starters that will lead to discussion around the dinner table regarding school, rather than the age old; "What did you do at school today", "Nothing" conversation. I feel one tool that will be easy to implement that we are not currently doing is a parent survey about how they would like to be involved as well as how they wish to be informed. By giving parents options we are letting them know that we value their opinion and want them to be a part of our team. 

Core Belief #3: Parents and school staff should be equal partners. 

This might be the hardest of the three core beliefs for me. While I know that parents are a vital part of their child's education, giving up some of that control is very difficult for me.  Also I have always felt as if I would be bothering parents if I invited them into my classroom, or sought their experiences and input on different topics. This is an area I really have to work on. I want to be partners with my students parents, not only because I believe it will lead to academic gains but also to lead to emotional gains. How much more influence can two caring loving parties have over a student than individuals pulling at opposite ends.

Core Belief #4: The responsibility for building partnerships between school and home rests primarily with school staff, especially school leaders. 

I know as a parent myself I feel intimidated by my son's school I don't want them to think I am a helicopter parent who just wants to control what they do. Rather I want them to understand that I want to be their partner. "Reaching out to parents is easier for educators than "reaching in" to teachers and other staff is for parents" The quote from Beyond the Bake Sale really hit home for me. It is so much easier for teachers and administrators to extend that welcome than it is for parents to assert themselves into the school. The very first goal I am planning on setting for myself is to get out and greet the parents. Welcome them in the morning and at pick up in the afternoon. I also want to start sending out invitations for parents to come in and see what's happening or choose to volunteer in our class.

Checking for Understanding: The Drive By

I have a lot of different topics that I want to hit on soon but as I was working in my classroom today I thought I would throw this quick and easy idea out there.

One of the most important things about the flipped classroom is making sure that each and every student has that 1 on 1 assistance when they need it. In my class students are working on different lessons, multiple projects, and even taking a variety of assessments all at the same time. It is critical that I can quickly see who needs assistance immediately and who I need to meet with at some point during the class period.

Here is the link to the google doc: Teacher Time: Sign Up Sheet

I have come up with a couple different strategies to handle that. The first being a google doc that I created that allows students to schedule time with  me during class. I spend a lot of time working with small groups and wanted to have an easy way to see if there were several people who were in need of a little assistance on one specific topic. I form small groups all the time but usually use exit tickets and other informal assessments to form my groups I felt like this really gave students a voice in their learning.

The second tool I use to quickly access if my students need me are these little sheets that I have placed on each students desk.

It is kind of difficult to see but there are little clear velcro tabs on each of the red, yellow, and green rectangles. I have small buttons that have the other side of the velcro tab on them, that the students will use with these. At the beginning of each period students will start with their buttons on the green box and if they feel they need some extra assistance they can move their buttons to either the red or yellow box. This enables me to quickly see as I do a quick drive by around the room who needs immediate attention and who needs assistance as soon as I can get there. This little laminated sheet has saved me lots of lines at my table while I am working with other students.

If you are interested I have included the file here for you to download and use.

Check for Understanding: Drive By Sheet

If you have a really great idea to check for understanding quickly let me know in the comments. 

Beyond the BakeSale: Week 1 Wrap Up

As educators we jump through nearly every hoop to attempt to give our students the best education we can deliver. We use the latest technology, follow the latest research, incorporate the hottest trends, and even spend too much of our own money to ensure our students have what they need to be successful. But what if we have missed one of the cheapest, easiest to find, and most invested opportunities there is to increase student achievement.

FAMILIES

In the book "Beyond the Bake Sale: The Essential Guide to Family/School Partnerships" authors .... lay out a rubric that details the four different types of parent/school partnerships and challenge us to aim for the highest level

After carefully analyzing the rubric (I even printed it out just so I could blow it up on larger paper :) I fell that my school district currently falls in between an Open Door School and a Come if We Call School, leaning more towards Open Door.

In the supporting advocacy category we firmly fall in the Open Door School category. Our principal is available to meet with parents, progress reports go home, and parent teacher conferences are held twice a year. The other bullets that I checked off in the Open Door School were our friendly office staff and the fact that all our teachers will explain test results if asked.

Unfortunately I felt that we still have a few of the Come if We Call school attributes. Our better educated parents are definitely more involved. Schools will call home when there is a problem with a student, and our families typically just visit the school on report card pick up day. Our PTA seems to be a small selective group with little to no input from teachers.

So what can we do... Let's open the gates!

In the next school year I want to push an initiative to get a Family Resource Center in our school.  A place where families feel welcome to get involved in their child's education, get information on relevant topics, and provide learning opportunities. I hope that our families start to feel like they are just along for the ride in their child's educational journey, but they are helping to drive to boat.

I also want to incorporate families in learning activities. I have already planned my opening project for the year where students interview their family about what their goals are for them for the school year. What they hope they will achieve and what they dream they will become. My goal is that this introductory project will be a first in many family activities that connect with what we are learning in the classroom.

By working together we can achieve more!

"Appy" Monday: TouchCast

"Appy" Monday everyone. I am looking forward to a short week here on the farm. We will be heading to the lake this weekend to celebrate the Fourth of July with family but in the mean time I wanted to share one of my all time favorite apps to use in the flipped classroom.

I stumbled upon Touchcast last year and immediately fell in love. I was getting ready to go on maternity leave and needed a way to show my students how to set things up when I was gone (I was planning on being out the first nine weeks of the year) I wanted my classroom to run smoothly upon my return and touch cast gave me the ability to teach as if I was right in the room with them. Moving from writing on the chalkboard, to polling the audience, including a youtube video, and even surfing the web all from within my touchcast video. It is fantastic!!

Our students are used to receiving information quickly and multiple ways. They are multi-tasking experts, and they want their information fast. Touchcast allows for that. It also gives you the ability to include social media feeds, and quick check questions.

Currently I have been using this app to create videos for my students in my flipped classroom. Not all of my videos are Touchcast videos but I feel it is a great tool for when I need to incorporate multiply tools.

I plan on encouraging my students to use Touchast as they create their own projects and assignments. I also want to start using it to help provide information to parents and other members of our community. I foresee it being a wonderful tool to really help bridge the gap between the parent/ school partnership.

I truly feel that Touchast is allowing me to create more meaningful and engaging content for my students. It is giving that instant feedback that they need to know if they are on the right track with something of maybe need to revisit it. I also am really looking forward to extending my use to communicate outside my classroom environment. There is a fantastic PDF that can be used to find out more about Touchcast in Education or to share with your colleagues. Feel free to leave any comments below if you have used Touchcast or would like more information about how I use it in my class.