Best Classroom Apps

We have iPads at my school, but I haven't used them a lot for their apps (more for their internet).  I guess when we try to buy apps, we have to buy them separately for each iPad?  Anyway, I have used apps on my phone a little bit with my students.  One I do use is for ClassDojo which is a behavior point type system.  I can give and take points from my students with my phone. 
Hope King hosted a link up on her blog, Second Grade Shenanigans, for the best classroom apps.  The "So App Happy Linky Party" has some good places to start if you're wanting to use your phone or iPad with your class.  The app Hope King talked about seems like a good one.  It's called Book Retriever and is a library system for your classroom.  You can scan in all your books and keep up with them when students check out and return them.  It even updates parents when their child has a book out!  The apps First Grade Garden posted also look very good and educational.  I'm looking forward to trying out more apps this year!  Are there any great ones y'all use?

Real World Math Mistakes

I always love the Jay Leno "Headlines" segment where viewers send in real-life headlines that have some sort of mistake.  Mr. Byrne at Free Technology for Teachers posted the article "Bad Math in the Real World" talking about a similar example he noticed at McDonald's that involved a math mistake!  He then discovered the Bad Maths Flickr group where people post pictures of math mistakes they find in the real world.  Showing your class one of these pictures a day could be a great way for kids to use some of their math skills.  There are pictures on the Flickr group that could be used at every level, so it is worth checking out.  It seems like something kids would enjoy and benefit from as a great skill review and connection with the real world. 

Olympic Studies

I always become very interested in the Olympics and end up becoming mesmorized by events I'd normally pay no attention to.  I also become fascinated by the athletes and their stories and countries.  So, it's very likely that our students are also involved and engaged by the Olympics.  It makes sense to connect some learning with the current world event.  Mr. Byrne at Free Technology for Teachers highlights some resources worth checking out in his post, "Exploring the Olympics on Google Earth and Google Maps."  You can take Google Earth tours of the competition sites and view maps of the medal distributions.  It'd be a great way to tie in some geography. 
In first grade, we teach a lot of sportmanship/teamwork as well as patriotism so the Olympics would be a great way to tie in those concepts.  I wonder if there are apps of sites that would be good for connecting those topics?

Cell Phone Handout

We all know how popular smartphones are these days and we've heard of college professor and some high school teachers embracing the use of them with their students, but have you heard of colleges giving their incoming freshmen free smartphones?  Well, that is what Seton Hall University is trying.  Ryan Lytle detailed the initiative in his article "Free Cell Phones for College Students."  The goals are that freshmen will be able to connect with each other and their teachers, that they will stay engaged in school from wherever they happen to be, and that they can be taught how to use the phones professionally and productively.  Because students are so familiar with using smartphones, the school's vice president thinks that having them for educational purposes is a great way to keep the learners engaged.  While college instructors have mixed feelings about smartphones in the classroom, many teachers are using it to their advantage in helping students connect with the real world and engage in more meaningful learning.
I just wonder if the phones will then be used strictly for educational purposes or if students are allowed to conduct all of their "personal" business on them as well.  Will students no longer go to college with their own cell phones?  Do you think this type of initiative will take off among other colleges?

6 Web Tools Worth Exploring

In the article "Summer School for Teachers" on Edutopia, Nicholas Provenzano discusses 6 web tools that he thinks teachers should take the time to explore.  He listed If This Then That, Livebinders, Prezi, Glogster, Evernote, and edshelf and gave descriptions of each.  While I have heard of a few of these, many are new to me.  Prezi is something I've seen before and I know several teachers who use it, but I haven't tried it out yet.  I'll have to give it a shot this year.  Evernote is one that caught my interest as it is a way to organize your teaching materials!  The author said he went from 3 filing cabinets to just one half filing cabinet when he started filing all his stuff with Evernote. 
Have you guys tried any of these web tools?  What are your favorites?

Connecting the Community with Live Streaming

Principal and blogger, Joe Mazza, posted a story on Edutopia about how live streaming can be used to broadcast school events to family and community members.  Free tools like UStream make it possible for far away relatives or busy parents to virtually attend everything from graduations to band concerts to PTA meetings.  Several schools have decided to embrace this type of connection and ensure they prepare the appropriate technology before events.  Through this live streaming, schools have seen their meeting attendance rise and parents are even able to contribute their thoughts and questions and participate in online polls.  Integrating live streaming is just one way technology is helping connect home and school.

Student Blogs

This post is great for anyone who is still hesitant about starting a blog with your class.  Mrs. Patton at www.pattonspatch.blogspot.com wrote an entry called "Blogging with students? Yes please! (Even the little ones!)."  She attended a conference about using technology to support good teaching and was very impressed with Kathy Cassidy's session on blogging with students.  Mrs. Cassidy's Classroom Blog is such a great example of how useful blogging can be.  I'm very interested in letting my students have their own blogs for this upcoming year and her site is very inspirational in how to make that happen effectively.  Mrs. Patton discusses how the blogs can be set up and how Mrs. Cassidy ensures student privacy is protected while still letting people all over the world see their digital porfolios.  Getting comments from parents, other students, and random people from around the world would be so motivational to my students and I know it would enhance their writing and effort.  I really hope I can make that happen this year, so if any of you want to stop by our blogs and leave comments, that would be great!  Check out Mrs. Cassidy's blog for some wonderful ideas and examples and head to Mrs. Patton's blog too for a nice summary.

Overlap Maps

Mr. Byrne at Free Technology for Teacher highlighted a website that could be great for social studies/geography lessons.  His post discusses some of the features of OverlapMaps.com.  The site lets you compare the size of two places (countries, states, bodies of water) by having one overlap the other.  A lot of times, my students have trouble visualizing differences in size and viewing it on an ordinary wall map or globe doesn't always help much.  This site lets them easily compare the size of places and could be a nice addition to any study of places.  It could even work for comparing settings in stories or birthplaces of famous Americans.  You might as well use it in math too when discussing measurement topics like size and distance.  It is a relatively simple tool, but I think kids would enjoy it and benefit from what it shows them.  Plus, it is easy enough to do whole group or for the kids to do on their own. 

Best Apps for College Students

Allegra Tepper wrote an article for USA Today titled "10 apps for the connected co-ed."  The article highlighted some of the best and most useful apps for kids who've gone to college and are suddenly out on their own.  She discussed apps for fitness, budgeting, cooking, and planning, but the one that intrigued me the most was the free app called gFlash+ Flashcards & Tests.  It sounds like it's a better, high tech version of the traditional index card.  With the app, you can download and create flashcards that also include pictures and videos.  There is a way that you can sort them for what you know and what you don't know and you can sync your cards with your classmates' through Google Docs.  It seems pretty handy and like something I probably could have benefitted from when I was in undergrad or high school even.  I wonder if this app could be used in the classroom at the elementary level?

News in Pictures

Free Technology for Teachers recently posted the article "Discovering the World's News in Pictures" about a feature on BBC News' website called "Day in Pictures."  I'm so happy I saw this post because I think it could be a great educational tool.  I've really been thinking that I need to include more current event discussion in my class and this site would be a perfect way to do that.  It gives a few pictures a day from all around the world including photos of serious situations and more light hearted day to day life images.  The pictures also include brief captions that would be great for teaching non-fiction text structures as well as geography and map skills as you discuss where each picture came from.  I definitely need to remember this site and incorporate it into our daily routine.  Do any of you have good activities for using current events in a meaningful way, specifically with younger students?

Blogging in Your Class

I found another good post at Free Technology for Teachers.  I really love what Kathleen Morris had to say in her article "Making Educational Blogging Work for You." She mentions how commenting is important in the beginning to get students connected and collaborating.  She also emphasizes the necessity of modeling how to leave quality comments.  I don't think I've done enough of this in the past and will try to do it better this upcoming year.  I love that she has her students work to earn their own blog!  I haven't given my 1st graders their own blog before, but I know that I have some students who could handle it and really use it productively.  I'll have to try it!!
Morris also discusses how blogging can help your class connect with classes all over the world.  I really want to make that happen with our class blog this year.  It seems like a perfect way to expand horizons, learn about different cultures, and make learning more authentic.  So, if any of you want to be blogging buddies, let me know!

A New Way to Interview

Over at Free Technology for Teachers, Scott Ziegler is telling us how to interview for a teaching position is this technological age.  Since it's been four years since I've had to interview for a job, I haven't really thought about how it might be different now.  However, in the article "How to Ace Your Interview for a Teaching Position," Ziegler gives some interesting tips for proving you'll be an excellent 21st century educator.  He recommends showing the interviewer your professional social media persona, your blog, your digital portfolio, and your professional email.  Currently, the only thing I have going for me is a professional email address!  I guess I do have a couple of blogs as well.  I use one with my students, I have a personal/family blog, and now the one for this class.  Ziegler says everone should have one where they write about their professional life, so I can probably do that some with the future of this blog. 
I've never considered making a professional twitter or facebook though.  Have you?!  I'm not really sure what I would put on there, but it is something to consider.  As for the digitial portfolio, I think that's a great idea.  The author suggests creating a Glogster (or some other site) with links to student videos, web projects, Animotos, etc.  This is something I should begin working on, especially if I want to try to get a job in a different county soon.  What do I say at the interview though?  Would you mind turning on your computer and going to this site?  Or should I bring my own laptop/ipad and log on with it?  Do y'all have digital portfolios?  Do you think administrators prefer them over the old fashioned 3-ring binder portfolios?

Choosing Technology

Heather Wolport-Gawron posted the article "Teachers and Tech Use: It's Time!" on edutopia.  It's sort of crazy to think about some teachers turning their back on all types of technology, but it does happen.  The author gave the example of the teacher taking her one classroom computer to the teacher's lounge for whoever wanted it.  I can even think of a few coworkers who have a hard time embracing and integrating the wonderful technological resources we have at our school.  This article focuses on persuading us that using technology in the classroom can no longer be debatable; it has to happen.  Instead of deciding whether or not to use technology, teachers need to decide how to use it and what types to use.  The author listed reasons for greater technological use and pointed out that that means more than a weekly trip to the computer lab. 
She also emphasized the importance of choice and differentiation even with technology.  She believes there should be several types of technology and that students should have choice in what they use and what they create with it. While I am a big fan of technology and use it regularly in my teaching, I very rarely let my students choose how they want to use it.  Wolport-Gawron says, "our classrooms should offer choices to students, choices of what to produce, how to produce it, with whom to produce it with, and with what tool to use." 
Do you agree with this and do you offer all of those choices to your students?