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    Let's continue with our series titled #LAST5 and explore several ways to keep your students engaged during the last five minutes of class.  Here's what we have covered so far: Part 1 - Provide students with an audio version of summarizing learning through  AudioBoo .  Part 2 - Provide students with multiple ways of using post-it notes through  Padlet .  Part 3 - Changing the ways students engage with one another through Today's Meet What about using the idea of social media in your classroom? Social media is a curse word in many school districts; however, its use in education is not only engaging, but game-changing. Here are some ideas on incorporating social media into any classroom: 1. Class Social Media Accounts One of my colleagues, Christine Halliday, is a fourth grade teacher at the Milton Hershey School. She was recently featured on our local news for her use of Twitter in the classroom with her fourth graders! Check out her report!

Let's continue with our series titled #LAST5 and explore several ways to keep your students engaged during the last five minutes of class.  Here's what we have covered so far: Part 1 - Provide students with an audio version of summarizing learning through  AudioBoo .  Part 2 - Provide students with multiple ways of using post-it notes through Padlet .  So far, we have talked about different ways to say it and show it. What about changing the way that students engage with one another?  Engage Your Class Differently with Today's Meet: If you want to create your own temporary chatroom or discussion forum,  Today's Meet is the site for you. You can easily create your own chat with a customized URL without a username or password. You can customize how long your chat is open and best of all, you can download a transcript of the entire conversation.  In the past, I have mentioned Today's Meet as a popular tool for back-channeling. Today I would like

What are you doing with the last five minutes of class? Are students doing homework, packing up materials, and goofing off? Let's continue with our series titled #LAST5 and explore several ways to keep your students engaged during this challenging time period.  My last post focused on providing students with an audio version of summarizing learning through AudioBoo .  Today we will look at creating a parking lot. Many teachers use parking lot activities to summarize learning at the end of the day. Teachers post a question and have students record their responses on post-it notes. Post-it notes are then placed on a wall, chalkboard, or window as students leave. The teacher collects the post-it notes and checks for understanding.  This is a simple, but effective low-tech way of seeing where students are at; however, it only addresses one type of learner - students who like to write.   How can we use technology to accomplish the same thing, while providing students with diffe

What are you doing with the last five minutes of class? This was a question that I asked myself several years ago when I was finishing up my Masters degree. Through my research, I found that most of the discipline and engagement problems (in the school I taught at) occurred during the first five and last five minutes of class. Let me ask you again, what are you doing the last five minutes of class? Are students doing homework, packing up materials, and goofing off? How can we increase the engagement of our students during this time period? I'd like to introduce you to my new series titled #LAST5. Let's explore several ways to get your students engaged during this challenging time period. Options for Summarizing Learning: If you are not familiar with AudioBoo , it is a free Podcasting platform available online or as an app. Students can use this program to record short podcasts called "boos." In the past, I have used this program to have my students answer d

Let's face it, not every district has the ability or capabilities to go 1:1 or BYOD right now. How can you harness the power of technology, while staying true to your budget? If you are strapped for cash and only have access to one iPad in your classroom, then this series is for you. Our previous #1iPadClassroom posts include: Assessing Students with Plickers (clicker alternative) Use #Educreations to Turn Your iPad into an Interactive SmartBoard Keeping kids on task can sometimes be a difficult thing to do.How can an iPad help with classroom management? Class Dojo could be a helpful addition to your classroom management tools. Here's a few ideas on how to incorporate this awesome App into your #1iPadClassroom: 1. Document Positive and Negative Behaviors Part of being a teacher is handling discipline issues. None of us really enjoy dealing with them (maybe unless you are aspiring to be a future assistant principal), but it just comes with the territory. Class Dojo

If you are strapped for cash and only have access to one iPad in your classroom, then this series is for you. Wouldn't it be nice to turn your iPad into a Smartboard? Here's a quick idea: Ingredient # 1: Projecting Your iPad How can you get your iPad to appear on your projector screen? You can do a few things: 1. You can get a 30-pin to HDMI to VGA adapter 2. Use Apple TV 3. Use the Reflector App to project from your laptop or Macbook Ingredient # 2: Educreations Educreations is an all-in-one interactive whiteboard App available on your iPad. You can choose from ten different pen colors, add text, add pictures, and record yourself teaching. Your videos can easily be shared via email, URL, or social media. How can you use it in your classroom? Here are some ideas: English or Foreign Language Classroom? Teaching sentence structure or parts of speech? Why not use Educreations to help students diagram sentences. You can easily prepare several pages of sample s