IBOT Feb 2016-Share a Cool Tool
Choose a digital tool to use in your classroom or professional situation. You are free to select any app or tool you would like to share with your peers. Add your entry as a comment below. Please include the following in your entry:
1. Name of the tool
2. Platform(s) on which it works (web-based, iOS, Android, etc.)
3. What it does
4. One way it could be used in your situation (classroom, PD, etc.) Be specific with your ideas!
5. At which level of SAMR your example activity falls
Have you ever wanted to use your cell phone to place calls to and receive calls from parents? The stumbling block, however, is not wanting to share a cell phone number with parents. The solution is Google Voice.
ReplyDeleteHere's how it works:
You create a Google Voice Phone Number. (https://www.google.com/voice?pli=1#inbox)
Link your Google Voice Phone Number to your Cell Phone.
Verify your phone number.
Share out your new Google Voice Number.
Optional: Download the Google Voice App for your phone or tablet.
Parents call the provided Google Phone Number, the call gets forwarded to your cell phone. You can answer it after hearing from Google who is calling you (The caller is asked to record their name which is played for you in the form of "You are receiving a call from ___________ ", and the audio voice recording is played for you.) or you can send the call straight to voicemail. Parents never see your personal cell phone number. To call them back, you either go through the Google Voice web version or through a Google Voice app.
Since Google Voice works with iOS, Android, and on the web, it is the perfect solution for parent communication regardless of device (and your parents will never have your actual cell phone number).
In terms of the SAMR Model, Google Voice ties in to Augmentation. GV definitely promotes a functional improvement over the traditional method of: parents call the school, then the teacher returns the call when available, etc.
For more information go to https://www.smore.com/974ca
The digital tool I have used is Google Docs. We used it on a Web-based platform, but I believe it could be used on others. I used it to record the grades of my RTI students. It helped us communicate with the teachers on the progress of their students in RTI. This probably would fall into the Augmentation level in the SAMR model.
ReplyDeleteI have used Digital Storytelling with the iOS app. It is such fun! I simply took pictures of the playground the first day of school. Then, I entered simple, repetitive text. I made it available to my preschool children to view that first day. It helped my students feel better about entering new terrritory (the playground). They saw how much fun they would have. Each week I would have a new story for them to view. The repetitive story lines helped them feel better about reading. By the end of the year, they were helping me take pictures and setting their own text. How excited they would be when they saw other students viewing their story. This app is particularly helpful to those students who are reluctant readers and/or have trouble interacting with others. It is a real ego-booster! I believe, that since the students can help make this project, this app would fall in the modification level of SAMR.
ReplyDeleteFor recording purposes can you let me know your other name Nanny Goat? ;)
DeleteI have been using Google Forms (similar for what Libby mentioned earlier) for the past few weeks to receive information from teachers regarding how my speech students are doing in the classroom. It is web-based on the google drive of your email. When ACRs come around I am always scrabbling to talk to the teachers during their prep or email them. I created one Google Form for all teachers regarding the information I need for each student that attends speech class. It has been a wonderful tool and helps keep information organized for each student. Google Forms can be used many ways, but this has been very helpful in keeping my students information organized and always available (instead of carrying around papers or have lots of emails in your inbox). I believe this would be Augmentation of SAMR. It has saved me alot of time.
ReplyDeleteOne of the best tools I can use in my classroom is Kahn Academy! The ability to allow my student to work at their own pace and master skills in their own time is huge!
ReplyDeleteOne of the best tools I can use in my classroom is Kahn Academy! The ability to allow my student to work at their own pace and master skills in their own time is huge!
ReplyDelete1) Google Forms
ReplyDelete2)Google Forms is web-based and can be used by anyone that signs up for a Google drive account.
3)Organized way to get responses from students. Makes grading easy and teachers can track completion
4)Our corporation recently started participating in eLearning Days on snow days and other cancellations. I can use Google Forms to ensure students participated in the virtual assignment and that they comprehend the information.
5)I believe that Google Forms acts as a substitute on the SAMR model. It substitutes for me being in the classroom with my students, and still allows me to check for understanding.
One tool that I like to use is called Plickers. It works with any platforms. Plickers allows you to assess student learning quickly and easily. You can ask the students a multiple choice question and scan their answers to immediately have the data recorded. It can be used in different ways within the classroom learning environment. One possibility would be to use Plickers for an exit ticket. It could be helpful to ask the students a question regarding the lesson from the day before they leave. Then you could see if you need to cover the topic in more detail the next day. I have also used Plickers to survey my students about a new idea that I implemented during class. It was a great way to get feedback from the students in order to make adjustments for the next time that I planned to use the idea. I would say that Plickers falls into the Augmentation level of SAMR.
ReplyDelete1. www.the-qrcode-generator.com
ReplyDelete2. web-based
3. Create dynamic QR codes for Free, dynamic QR codes allow you reuse the same QR code image while changing what the code it pointing to.
4. Create Digital Answer sheets where students can do their work, then scan the QR code and check their answers. Create scavenger hunts. Quickly get a URL link to students without the need of having students type it.
5. It can hit several different levels of SAMR. It depends on how you use them.
The digital tool that I use is Canvas. It is a web-site that our school uses to connect to our students for lesson plans. It is a great way to keep connected to our students. When a student is absent all information can be obtained through this web-site. It also can involve different levels of SAMR depending upon how much the teacher links it to. I have reached the M-R level in the SMAR model. I have linked a URL through this site so the the students can download their artwork to our online art gallery, Artsonia. (I guess I use more technology than I thought I did!)
ReplyDeleteThe digital tool that I use is Canvas. It is a web-site that our school uses to connect to our students for lesson plans. It is a great way to keep connected to our students. When a student is absent all information can be obtained through this web-site. It also can involve different levels of SAMR depending upon how much the teacher links it to. I have reached the M-R level in the SMAR model. I have linked a URL through this site so the the students can download their artwork to our online art gallery, Artsonia. (I guess I use more technology than I thought I did!)
ReplyDeleteI use a combination of the digital tools Canvas and Google Docs. Canvas is a web-based student management program and is absolutely wonderful! Students can see lesson plans, assignments, get links to outside apps and web sites and so much more. I use Google Docs to upload notes, assignments, and other important documents so they are always at the students' fingertips. Students can download assignments to Notability and turn them in on Canvas. Students can create their own documents and post them on Canvas or have a dialogue with all other students in their class or the entire course. This program can be used on any level of the SAMR model, depending on how the teacher chooses to use it.
ReplyDeleteI currently do not use an app or any other tool on a regular basis. I do use Khan Academy as a remediation tool for students that are struggling with a concept. In this module I did learn about some apps that I am interested in learning and using. So I guess that I am still at the substitution level.
ReplyDelete1. Class Flow
ReplyDelete2. Web-Based - Also available as an iPad app
3. Class Flow brings the lesson to the hands of every student in the classroom. When I deliver a lesson to my students, each student can participate, manipulate, and respond from their own devices. I am able to see, right away, how my lesson is going by implementing polls to quiz the students on what they are learning. Instead of one student coming up to the board at a time to manipulate what I am presenting, each student can do it on their own in front of them. You can create and deliver interactive lessons.
4. I use this in my classroom every day and I think it hits every level of the SAMR model. The website allows students to go elsewhere online if they need to do research or go and find an example of what I am teaching.
1. ABC Mouse
ReplyDelete2. iPad App is the way I use it
3. Students progress through the alphabet and sight words, different activities for each letter and word to keep learning fun and exciting. ABC Mouse is best for kindergarten and first grade classrooms.
4. I use this for times when I want to work with an individual student or a small group. The students LOVE it.
5. I think this is Substitution, there are many ways to practice the letters and sight words, but this is a way to incorporate technology into the classroom.
1. Spiral
ReplyDelete2. iPad 1:1 App
3. Allows students to answer questions digitally which provides students confidence and privacy to give their best answer.
4. I have used this app in class discussions. I have used it with my entire class. After students read the section, I can use Spiral to ask reading comprehension questions. It is also a great way to review. The best part is I can send an answer back for the students to edit or try again.
5. Modification
An app that I like to use is Scoodle Jam. It is an iPad 1:1 app. The app serves as an interactive whiteboard that uses built in projects, graphic organizers, graph paper templates, etc. It allows for creative, organized and original thinking across the curriculum. You can address ELA, Science, and Math concepts using the Scoodle Jam app. I like to work one on one with students using this app. While reviewing a math lesson, we can pull up a graph paper template to plot points. Or while reviewing prepositions during ELA, the students can easily write on a blank sheet, using stickers and any other options. It really offers a wide range of learning opportunities. It is probable that this could be used at any level of the SAMR model, but I would likely use it as substitution.
ReplyDeleteSite/app I use is plickers (www.plickers.com)
ReplyDeleteIt is a website that requires you also download the free app on either IOS or android. You also download and print off cards.
On the site you can create classes and add multiple choice or true/false questions. You then can project the problems on the board and the students answer by holding up their cards. All cards are differently coded and each side of their cards represents a different letter (A,B,C,D).
One way I use it in my algebra 2 class is as an exit ticket. After we have gone over the lesson and the students have had some time to practice the work, I ask them 2 or 3 questions that I then get immediate feedback on. If there is time I can address them right then if not I know to make sure to go over it again in class the next day. It also lets me know which students understand and which ones are still struggling. If just a few are in need of help, I then can do small group instruction while others continue working.
Could Unknown please send me your name so that I can give you credit for your response? Thanks, Linda
DeleteI would have to say the two apps that I am using right now on a regular basis is Google Forms and Google Docs. I will admit I am newer to this, and I have been playing/investigating other apps, but have not been comfortable enough yet to roll them out to my class or elsewhere. Using Google Docs is a great way to get feedback from my students. I not only use it in a substitution way for students to do writing and to turn in, but I also have them use it to have students to upload notes, turn in assignments, and I use it to give guidelines, rubrics etc..and general information to my students. It can be web-based or added to your android as an app. So the students can always have at their fingertips their information or a way to communicate or turn things in.
ReplyDeleteThe other app I mentioned was google forms. I have began using this in many ways. I first use it as a warm-up or exit slip in my class. It provides fast feedback, I can see what my students grasped the day before, or at the end of class, and then I can either end class with a quick review or begin the next day review maybe a concept the students struggled with. I have used Forms also a lot this year as a Senior Class Sponsor. I have used it to take surveys when I had to make choices for the Senior Trip, I have used it to get feedback from parents, and teachers. It is quick way to gather information. It is neatly organized and easy to work with. It also can be web-based or used on androids as an app. I believe either of these tools can be used as a substitution, augmentation, or modification depending on how the teacher decides to utilize them. I believe depending on what I have used them for I have fallen somewhere on all three levels.
1. Kahoot
ReplyDelete2. I use this web-based tool with our iPads.
3. & 4. This is a fun way to practice and provide a quick assessment of skills. There are many different quizzes already made and there is also an option to make your own quizzes.
5. Augmentation
1. Animoto
ReplyDelete2. iOS
3. Creates short videos with animations.
4. Students could create their own rules and use this video as a way to recall those rules, projects, all sorts of things that include creating videos.
5. Modification
I have used Quizlet some this school year. Quizlet has a free version and a pay version ($25 a year) which gives you more options as a teacher, including a student use tracker if the student joins a class you set up. We are not yet 1:1, but many of my students have smart phones and use the Quizlet app on those, so I believe it is web-based, but has an app, and I'm not sure what Ios means (please excuse my ignorance). I can quickly set up a vocabulary list or verb conjugation file (I teach Spanish) and add it to any class I have set up. I can also search for files other teachers have made and use those. There are several ways the students can use the file, including games, so they seem to enjoy it. They can use it in class, as a bell-ringer or extra time filler, or they can use it at home or anywhere a smart phone works (if they have one). With the student use tracker, I can offer credit for time spent with the files, which is a motivator for some students as well.
ReplyDelete1. Name of the tool: CANVAS
ReplyDelete2. Platform(s): WEB-BASED
3. What it does: It connects teachers and students in class and out of school. It allows the students to post and communicate with each other.
4. One way it could be used in your situation: The way that I currently use this is by accessing other teachers pages to go through notes with students, print worksheets and keys to review for quizzes/tests. I could take this a step further and create a CANVAS page for the resource room and this would allow us to communicate to our students, notify them of important upcoming items, have them fill out their transition paperwork, etc.
5. At which level of SAMR your example activity falls: In having students interact with CANVAS, currently it depends on the class. The English and social studies classes are more involved and detailed because they post and communicate through responding to each other's projects through CANVAS. Whereas the math and science post more notes, assignments, and items that will be helpful tools for you as you go through the course. In strategic instruction (resource) we could consistently communicate with them and this for many could be the organizational piece that helps them keep their items together! Messaging back and forth with each other and giving simple reminders would be so helpful for many of out students. I think this would be at the augmentation level. It could be consistently used to communicate with our students!
1. Quizlet
ReplyDelete2. Web based
3. In theory (I'm still struggling with getting myself and my students acclimated to this technology) it is a website that lets me design study sessions for my students. I am able (again in theory) to track their success and weaknesses. We had difficulty the first time I tried to use it, and I decided to wait until after spring break to try it again!
4. Help the students practicing a current skill
5. Augmentation
I am not sure how to post my name... I am Sara Kesyer
Delete1. Membean
ReplyDelete2. Web-based
3. This is a vocabulary program for high school. The teacher creates classes, the students join and calibrate. The students are then given words to learn that they do not know--it's an individualized list of words for each learner. The students get mnemonic devices, roots, videos, word maps, contextual references with links to the original articles, quizzes, and spelling for each word. The program stresses time learning words as opposed to a number of words to learn. The teacher can assign quizzes, which the program generates according to the words each student studied. Tracking includes time on each word, words learned, words restudied, idle time, accuracy, and more.
4. We are using it to replace traditional vocabulary lists that force everyone to study the same words no matter what their vocabulary may be.
5. Modification. This type of depth and differentiation would not be possible because most educators need to go to sleep at night.
Cynthia, I'm going to repost your thoughts on our group's blog--may apologies as we have the wrong link, here! Here's where you'll see your blog post: cooltools4teachers.blogspot.com
Delete*my apologies...goodness
Delete1. XtraMath https://xtramath.org/
ReplyDelete2. Web-based
3. XtraMath is a math fact fluency website. The program helps to increase speed, automaticity and accuracy in arithmetic. Students move at their own pace and ability.
4. I use XtraMath at the beginning of each math period. My 2nd graders begin their math period with XtraMath and the program takes anywhere from 4-7 minutes.
5. This program would fall into the substitution category because it basically replaces math fact flash cards. I enjoy the website because it's fun and engaging and the students are really engaged each day.
Quizlet
ReplyDeleteOne app that I enjoy using in my classrooms is Quizlet. It can be used on any platform or just web based. All you need to do is go to quizlet.com and download the app. Or you can just use the things on the website as the website has more options.
Quizlet is an app that is used for studying vocab words. All you have to do is type in all the vocab words to create a set. Then add students to your group and have them study them. They can play a matching game, type in the words, or just use flash cards. On the website, there is also a space race game that they can use to compete against each other.
I use Quizlet for my book units. I add the words in at the beginning of each section or book and they can study them. It’s really nice because if we have five minutes left at the end of class then I just tell them to get on quizlet and it gives them something productive, but enjoyable, to do.
My college daughter introduced me to Quizlet. I have not yet tried to use it in my classroom but it is something that I would like to use. Not only can it be used to study vocab words, I can put in math problems that they need to solve or equations of lines.
Delete