Learn Lead Grow

The last five minutes of class can often a difficult time period to plan for because students often use this time to complete homework, pack up materials and socialize. One teacher has artfully combined exit tickets with Tellegami to use this time more effectively. Students use this free App to record a 30 second Gami of the top three things they learned from class that day. Their Gami, a combination of a cartoon and voice recording, can be shared via email, social media, or embedding into a website. Students email this Gami to their teacher as a way to check for understanding; however, the best part is that the “best” Gami is reused. This teacher embeds it on their website and shares with students who might have been absent, didn’t understand the topic, or just needed a brief reminder.  NOVEMBER IS CLICK FOR A CAUSE MONTH! Check out a recent article about Ayden! Posts for the month of November are dedicated to a little boy named Ayden Murray from Wrightsville, P

It's always fun going back to your old stomping grounds. Tonight was especially fun because I got to meet a group of future teachers at my Alma Mater,  Delaware Valley College in Doylestown, PA. I wasn't sure what to expect, but I quickly grew attached to this group of college juniors and seniors. It was refreshing to see such a young group of adults, so passionate and willing to invest their own time to attend a free workshop designed to help all students learn. I applaud their efforts to impact their future students. So what did we do? We played "chef" and cooked up some recipes on how to use LiveBinders to help all students learn. From reading assignments to providing supports, we looked at ways to eliminate barriers and provide students with access to learning. If you would like to see some of the recipes we "cooked" up, check out my website . Do you have more ideas on how to use LiveBinders? Email me some of your ideas! NOVEMBER IS CLICK F

  I love getting ideas with other like-minded educators, who are passionate about UDL and technology. Earlier today I was emailed by Scott, a principal from Minnesota, who told me about an App called Tellegami. Over the next few posts, I will share with you some ideas on how you can incorporate this cool App into your classroom. In 140 words or less, of course!  What is it? Tellegami is a way to share animated messages (called Gamis) through your Smart device through Facebook, Twitter, Email, or texting. You can customize your character, change their mood, customize the background, type a message, and record up to 30 seconds of your voice with just a few swipes.  Hmm…  To show you how easy this is to use, I created my own Gami (below)! Check out my future posts! Thanks Scott!   NOVEMBER IS CLICK FOR A CAUSE MONTH! Posts for the month of November are dedicated to a little boy named Ayden. He was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer and is at Hershey Medical Cen

Collaboration is a buzzword in education and with good reason. It helps our students prepare for tomorrow! In the past, I have created collaborative note taking experiences through Google Presentations. I assigned each group a slide containing a particular set of questions and they were supposed to add to the slide. Due to permission difficulties within my school, this experience is no longer a possible. With this same idea in mind, I creatively substitute PowToon as a way for my students to collaborate.  I broke students into groups and assigned each trio the task of creating a brief presentation on a section of our outline. They shared their link on Edmodo and presented their material to the class. Their classmates filled out their note outlines and I acted as a facilitator, asking questions, and highlighting major topics. 

If you ever watched Fox Sports 1, you may notice that they have a news feed that is titled “3 Things You Should Know,” which communicates a brief summary of the 3 most important sports happenings of the day. It made me think some ways to use PowToon and the “3 Things You Should Know” idea in my class: Create a PowToon about 3 current events currently happening in your subject area. Play it at the beginning of class as students begin taking their seats. You will be amazed by the engagement! From getting a pencil out to handing in homework, communicate beginning of class instructions through PowToon!  Have your students create their own “3 Things You Should Know” about the topic covered in class that day. It is a great way to gauge understanding! NOVEMBER IS CLICK FOR A CAUSE MONTH! Posts for the month of November are dedicated to a little boy named Ayden. He was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer and is at Hershey Medical Center receiving treatment.  For ev

For my next couple of series, I plan on inspiring you to use new technologies in 140 words or less, because I want to challenge myself to say more with less. Start counting now! A few weeks ago, I had discussed putting together a toolbox of UDL friendly tools for students to use. Powtoon is a new presentation tool I plan on adding to my toolbox.  What Is It? Think of Powtoon as a completely online cross between PowerPoint and Movie Maker, where you can add many of the same presentation elements (text, pictures, animations, sounds, etc.) into your presentation. A New Way of Engagement Several weeks ago, I had given my students and assignment. Create a presentation using any medium of your choice. One of my students created a knock out presentation using this free program. Not only is it easy to use, but it engages students in a new way. Now everyone wants to try it! How can you use it? Stay tuned!  NOVEMBER IS CLICK FOR A CAUSE MONTH! Posts for

In this series, I would like to continue sharing some more simple ideas to bring experts into your room without much time or effort. Skype OR FaceTime  Engaging our students differently requires looking at different pathways to gauge their interests. For example, you could read about a particular topic or you could find someone to serve as a guest teacher through Skype. Which method will engage the most students? My students and I are discussing the importance of how entrepreneurs capitalize on simple ideas. Instead of reading about it, I chose to take a different approach. I reached out to 1800 GOT JUNK CEO Brian Scudamore and asked for his help. I wanted him to share his story of how he started all three of his companies. Not only did he tell his story, but he also took Q & A from my kids. It is amazing how using Skype or FaceTime is much more appealing to experts in the field. It is easier for them to take 30 minutes out of their schedule to talk versus three hours t

In the 21st century, it is difficult to be an absolute expert on every single topic in your curriculum. Especially with all of the information that is available at our fingertips. If we are honest with ourselves, we will admit that we may not be an expert of everything. Instead we may be the "jack of all trades, but master of none." There is nothing wrong with this. As we grow in our teaching career, we start to get more comfortable with our curriculum, but as we know in education, what we teach and how we do it often changes.  In this series, I would like to share some simple ideas to bring experts into your room without much time or effort. iTunes U App Several months ago, I was teaching a rather difficult unit to my Honors Business Management students. Since I am not a CEO of a Fortune 500 Company or a management guru, I decided to turn my attention to iTunes U. If you are not familiar with this section of iTunes, it is an unbelievable resource of lectures and ma

As we continue our series on "Don't Be a One and Done," I wanted to share with you a creative idea I learned about several months ago. It takes a different angle to iPad use and involves Books, AudioBoo, and QR Codes. Getting kids to read is a difficult task in its own sense; however, a librarian wanted to motivate her students to read in an engaging and high-tech way. When students read a book, they were given the chance to create a book review using AudioBoo and QR Codes.  Step 1: Create Your Review Using AudioBoo After students were finished reading their book, they were asked to create a script for a book review. When they were finished with the script, they were asked to read the script and record it using the free AudioBoo App. Not familiar with this App? It is a free podcasting application available on the iTunes store. Record your own audio or listen to thousands of recordings from users worldwide! Students generated 3 minute trailers, summarizing the book a