Learn Lead Grow

Helping students self-regulate their behavior is often a challenge at all levels of school. One former graduate student of mine was a middle school teacher in an urban school district. She created something called a Mad Pass to help students with dealing with anger in the classroom. This Mad Pass had several easy-to-us components to make it work: Anger Ladder This teacher created a poster sharing the levels of anger that we all face: 0 = calm 1 = annoyance 2 = anger 3 = rage As students come into class each day, students would use this poster to communicate to their teacher where they were "at." For example, 0 means calm,  while 2 would mean angry. The Mad Pass If her students being feeling angry (2) or higher, students were encouraged to grab the Mad Pass and exit the classroom to get a drink. If this becomes an issue in your classroom, you could even have a "chill zone" with items to calm the student down. Accountability Just takin

A few months ago, I was attending a conference and I noticed that almost every presenter was using QR Codes instead of URL's to share web resources with their audience. This trend is quickly spilling into our classrooms because QR Codes make life so much easier for teachers and students. I recently ran into a math teacher named Travis, who came up with a very unique way to use QR codes. Step 1: Work Sheet Students have a worksheet with problem number 1 at the top. They must solve the problem and show their work. Step 2: QR Codes After they are done, they walk to a location in the room containing a QR Code. When students used their Smart device to scan the QR code, an answer was revealed. If it matched their answer, they got it right. If it didn't, they got the question wrong and had to figure out what they did wrong. If students arrived at the correct answer, they would also see the next problem appear on the screen as well. Travis used QR Code Generator to cr

It never fails...you have a PDF that you need converted to Word. I seem to get this question out of the blue every month or two. You may want to check out InvestinTech's free PDF to Word converter. What makes this different compared to other similar tools? There are NO limits on how many files you can covert or how large of a file you can convert! Files of all sizes can be converted for an unlimited number of times.  Scanned and standard PDF files are supported. This tool is completely free. The only price is viewing a few of advertisements during the conversion process. Don't you do the same thing waiting for your favorite YouTube video to play?  How does it work?  Step 1: Choose your file. The best part is that scanned and standard PDF files are supported. Step 2: Type in your email address, so that your PDF can be converted into a Word Document.  Step 3: Covert Your PDF and receive it via email Conclusion : This simple, but easy tool will

Time management has to be one of the most difficult tasks for students (and adults) to master. There are so many things to do and keep track of each day! When we are helping our students become expert learners, we need to help them develop important self-regulation skills, like sustaining effort, managing time, and even breaks. A Great Time Management App: One of my recent graduate students wanted to find an App that could help her students plan and manage the amount of time they spent on assignments, tasks, and even breaks. She found an excellent iOS time management app called 30/30 , where students set up a customized list of tasks and the expected time of each task. When students start the timer, you will be prompted when to move on to the next task. How can you use this App? Step 1: Create Your Task List Students can open up 30/30 and create their own new Task List, where they can customize the task name and amount of time spent on each task. Add as many tasks as you wou

Many of you have asked to see my Simple K12 presentation from Saturday afternoon. As promised,  here it is .  I have spent most of my career as a secondary teacher and recently I made the transition to our elementary school. As a Technology Integration Specialist, I had no idea how an elementary school worked; however, I am quickly learning that brain breaks are an integral part an elementary teacher's day. An Awesome Brain Break Tool! Several of my colleagues and a few of my graduate students have suggested that I take a look at GoNoodle . If you are looking for a quick and easy way to help all of your kiddos get their energy out, this is the tool! If you are not familiar with this free (and entertaining) brain break site, you will want to create your own free account. Once you create an account, you have a plethora of activities, videos, and games to choose from. It is a fun and interactive site that gets kids moving, stretching, and even practicing breathing techniques

I love having guest bloggers post from time to time. Today's guest blogger is Kaitlin Krull. Kaitlin is a writer and mom of two girls living the expat life in the UK. Her writing is featured on Modernize.com and a number of home decor sites around the web. She can also be found blogging from time to time on her personal blog, A Vicar’s Wife . Top 5 Essential Gadgets for a High-Tech Home   Modern life isn’t exactly what we imagined, technologically speaking. While our cars don’t hover and our homes aren’t run by robots (yet), there are many high-tech gadgets that make home life easier and more advanced than that of our ancestors. If you’re looking for ways to bring your home into the 21st century, here are five essential gadgets you’ll need (and a few extras you’ll probably want). Smart thermostat or HVAC system At the top of the home technology list for most homeowners is a smart thermostat or HVAC system. Most of us have heard of the range of products from Nest, an