Activity 4: Google Suite

I use Google Suite in several different ways in my instruction. One of the ways I most often use the Google Suite is to share documents, forms, etc. with my teammates and other staff in the building. It is really nice to have the ability to share ideas/resources with people and have them be saved directly into my drive rather than getting lost in my e-mail (when I forget to save them).

I also sometimes use the suite to create a Google form to use for assessing my students on a particular topic. I like that I can see their responses right away, and they like using technology to take an assessment.

Using a Google spreadsheet as a running document is another way I use the Suite in my instruction. In math, I add a slide each day with a new story problem on it that we solve at the beginning of class that day. By keeping it as a running document, I can see the history of the problems we've done throughout the year, and also reuse it from year to year.  I also have another running document that I use during literacy class to keep the students informed about what we'll be doing during class that day, their tasks during our literacy station rotations, and to organize and let the students know about the actual literacy rotations.


Using cloud computing in a classroom could be useful in many ways. Most importantly, students would be able to access their documents from anywhere, at any time. NO EXCUSES!  Also, by sharing these documents with me (or another instructor), I will be able to give them feedback that they can easily incorporate into their work.  If I send students a document, but only give them viewing rights - not editing or commenting, they will not be able to delete it or change anything I've written (or that they've written previously).  This will help keep them honest.  Using digital documents such as the ones in the Google Suite will allow me to be able to read their assignments, regardless of their handwriting ability (I've had students in the past who have a wealth of knowledge but such illegible handwriting that it was challenging to know what they did actually know/learn/understand).  Likewise, students will be able to read MY writing/comments and will not be able to say, "I couldn't read it, blah, blah, blah".


Pros:
The ability to view documents at the same time (such as during a meeting) as other people with whom the document is shared, so that everyone is on the same page (pun intended!).
Documents, etc. are automatically saved
I can access things from my drive anytime, from anywhere
Can provide digital feedback to students/colleagues in a document they've shared with me (and given me the proper commenting/editing rights)
Easily maintain the history of a document (more difficult to delete documents).
When you open up or view a document that someone has shared with you, it's automatically added to your drive.
The search/key word function (when you've forgotten the name of a document) is very useful!


Cons:
Your drive can get very disorganized, very easily. You must be intentional about forming folders, etc. and keeping your drive organized.
It can be difficult to find a document if you don't know where it's stored or what you may have named it (once upon a time when you last used it.......)
Though the documents, presentations, etc. look very similar to those in the Office suite, not all of the formatting carries over to the Google suite. For those of us who are very familiar with the Office suite, this can be SUPER frustrating.

This is a document that I use with my math students during our multiplication and division units. I use it to reinforce the interconnectedness of multiplication and division, and also to give them practice using one of the methods we teach for organizing data and solving story problems.
Multiplication and Division Story Problems

Activity 3: Part 2

This will be a good resource for students and parents to review concepts at home that we've worked on in class. Of course, if they've forgotten how to do something we learned in class, or want to learn how to do it (parents), they will be able to view the instruction on the screencast. Also,  by viewing a screencast created by me, the language will be consistent with what I use to teach the concepts initially in class, thus helping to reinforce these concepts.

I also think screencasts will be helpful as I teach Spanish to my fourth graders. They will be able to hear my voice pronouncing the words that they are viewing on the screen. They will also able to use screencasts to practice their own pronunciation, and I could have them complete Spanish homework and projects, including speaking portions, from home (or another location), thus allowing me to hear them speak Spanish since i don't always have enough time during class to hear everyone speaking.

Activity 3: Part 1

Hooray! I finally did my screencast (using Screencastify)! To be honest, I was really dreading it, as it seemed to me that it was going to be very confusing and frustrating, and I really just wanted to pretend that if I ignored it completely, it would somehow magically get done by itself.  And enter reality...I finally faced the fact that it wasn't going to record itself so I'd better at least attempt it. And it was surprisingly easy! Yes, I did run in to a few hangups - like when I had to change screens - but I just deleted the screencast that wasn't good, and made another one. I think this could be a very helpful tool and am looking forward to playing around more with it.

Here's the link to my screencast on how to find my Valentine Hills website. With this screencast, I hope the days will be done when I have to explain a million times how to find my website...!

Activity 2: Engagement

This is the first time I've used Pear Deck and, after the initial frustration of trying to figure out how to create a presentation, I really grew to like it! To understand it better, I participated in a short interactive webinar given by someone at Pear Deck and I found this to be very helpful. In fact, it gave me enough guidance that I was able to figure out how to finish my presentation! Yea!

I decided to create a basic Spanish presentation that could be used during the introductory unit that I teach at the beginning of the school year: Los Saludos, Nombres, Emociones y Despedidas (Greetings, Names, Emotions and Farewells).  I chose to create this particular presentation for a very specific reason, and I do plan on using it (or at least attempting to do so!). I will be taking a bit of time off at the beginning of the school year as maternity leave to spend with my newborn son.  I teach Spanish to my 4th graders as my Unit class, and my maternity substitute teacher does not speak Spanish. Thus, I need to find a way to teach the students Spanish without being there myself to lead the instruction. I decided to try Pear Deck to see if it would be a viable option to help me accomplish this task.  I'm hopeful that it'll be a great option to help me teach while being away from the classroom.

Here's what I came up with:
Los Saludos, Nombres, Emociones y Despedidas

Enjoy!

There are many ways that blogging could be effectively used within the classroom, but for me, one of the most valuable is as an informal communication tool between teacher and students and parents.  Using a blog to communicate announcements, assignments, calendars, and many other pieces of information would allow my students and their parents to quickly view this information in a quick, simple manner. 

I foresee blogging to be especially helpful in Math during our multi-digit multiplication and long division units. The way we teach these skills to our students is incredibly different from how most parents learned the same skills.  Thus, many parents become frustrated when they don't understand the way their child is being taught the skills, and that they are not able to assist their child on their homework or answer their questions when they get stuck.  I could use my blog to link a video, such as the ones below, or a website that could help parents understand how we teach concepts such as multi-digit multiplication and long division.  

Unit 5: Multiplication of multi-digit numbers

~ Partial Products

**Video for reteaching/extra support

~Area Model

**Video for reteaching/extra support

• What motivated you to become a tech nerd this summer?

As a part of Phase 2 for Chromebooks, I want to learn how to best utilize my Chromebooks within my classroom. When I get the Chromebooks, I want my students to use them to enhance their learning experiences, not simply to do meaningless activities on the Internet just to be "using" the Chromebooks. Also, the rest of my team is also participating in Tech Nerd Camp this summer and I want to be sure that we are able to share experiences and ideas for technology to use with our students.

• What you hope to learn about in Tech Nerd Camp 2.0?

 I know there are many, many different tools, applications and extensions that can be very useful to enhance my instruction, and I want to learn how to use these tools in a practical, everyday way, that will be understandable and beneficial to my students.

• How would you describe your current comfort level with technology?  What tools do you use already in your classroom (if any)?

I am moderately comfortable with technology - it depends on what type of technology. Within my classroom, I currently use (on a minimal level) a Smartboard and a Doc camera, . I have 10 Chromebooks, which I can use on a limited basis with my class. I sometimes use Google Forms and quizlet.