Teaching with Technology

Using educational technology to enhance the learning environment and increase student engagement!

Interactive Notes for Secondary Students

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Happy Monday, friends! I hope your week is off to an amazing start, and that you’re staying safe and healthy wherever you are in the world. I’m coming to you tonight, as I normally do, while I’m watching one of my daughters’ many activities. Lately, sitting on some super-comfortable bleachers is my only time at my computer! The time I normally spend writing has been spent working out, running, or binge-watching Bridgerton – seriously, have you WATCHED BRIDGERTON?! As my students were wrapping up the first mini-unit of the semester last week, I asked them for feedback as I frequently do. Their main constructive feedback revolved around taking notes on the instructional videos. The notes they typically create are disorganized, missing information, and hastily written, which result in notes that are not USEFUL for my students! So … I decided to try something different … interactive guided notes!

 

Now, before you panic and say, “no, Bethany! Not guided notes!” let me explain. Guided notes, at least in my opinion, have gotten a bad reputation in the world of education. Most guided notes I’ve seen focus on fill in the blank type activities, that don’t offer any choice (you know I’m a huge fan of student choice if you’ve read Create!) or opportunities for extension or application. The interactive guided notes I created include components of traditional guided notes, like an outline that mimics the presentation I use for the instructional videos, as well as space for students to record important information that I share in the videos, and extra space for any additional thoughts.

To make the guided notes a bit more interactive, I embedded extension and reflection opportunities in the notes, along with very specific, detailed instructions.

Check out the images below to view a portion of interactive notes:

I created the interactive notes using Google Slides, changed the orientation to 8.5×11, and added a custom background to mimic notebook paper. Then, I added text boxes, images, links, etc., to encourage extension and reflection. I also made use of the extra space on the Google Slides presentation to offer additional “sticky notes” for notes or thoughts, and additional information/instructions for my students.

The feedback I received today was FANTASTIC! Students felt more organized as they were viewing instructional videos and found that they were paying more attention because they knew what they were “listening for.” One of my students told me that it was “kind of like a test where you look at the questions before you answer them.” Woohoo! Others said that they weren’t as anxious because they knew they could listen to the information and add their notes as they went through the video.

I’ll count that feedback as a win!

If you’d like to use my template (NOTE: images used on slide 2 of this template are of our elected legislators from Missouri), please feel free to do so! Make sure to give credit where credit is due and DO NOT attempt to sell this as your own.

Have a great week!

Fabulous Features of Google Forms #4

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Happy HUMPDAY friends! I’m coming to you live from … my oldest daughter’s basketball practice! Yes, that’s right! I lead a super-glamorous life! 😜 It’s been a bit since my last post because life has been a tad on the hectic side! I know you understand! Next week, the online educational technology class that I teach for pre-service teachers starts, and the following week my specialist classes begin. I feel like I’m taking the last few deep breaths before the real nuttiness commences! I’m in the process of refreshing one of my favorite seminar presentations relating to Google Classroom and, in looking back through my notes, I realized one of my favorite features of Google Forms is often missed. What is it, you ask? Check your preferences!

 

That’s right! No, I’m not talking about your settings wheel, but preferences!

When you open your preferences, you’ll be able to establish a few settings or *ahem* preferences, that will “stick” to all of the forms that you create (in your Google Drive). One of these preferences is … AN ESTABLISHED POINT VALUE!

If you’ve taken advantage of the awesome quiz features in Google Forms, you’ve probably realized that you have to select the correct answer (duh) and enter a point value for each question. This can be a time-consuming process. However, if you select the “default quiz point value” option, you can enter the point value for each question on quizzes you make! Time saver!

Warning: setting the default point value will make EVERY QUESTION worth points! Even the name! So, you’ll have to go back and delete the point value for questions such as name, class period, attempt, etc. OR you can always deal with the “ummm, how’d I get my name wrong on this?!!” or my favorite, “sweet! I got three points for my name!”  🤦🏻‍♀️

I hope this tip is helpful and that you’re having a fabulous week!

Thanks for reading 🙂

 

One Word: 2021 Edition

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Happy New Year! Thank goodness, right? What a year, 2020! I hope you were able to have fun ringing in 2021 and maybe, you even stayed up late enough to watch the ball drop in NYC? My husband and I were able to enjoy dinner at my favorite restaurant (everyone was masked and seating was socially distanced, don’t worry!) while my daughters and my nephew spent the night with my parents. As we were leaving my parents’ house, my mom asked what our plans were for the night. I said, “a 6:30 dinner reservation and probably in my pajamas by 8.” And … I was right! Gone are the days of staying up to watch the ball drop in my household, and I’m totally ok with that! A few years ago, I started choosing a word to guide me into the new year instead of choosing a resolution. I’ve rarely had success with a resolution, but choosing one word as a focus throughout the year has been fantastic!

In 2018, I chose to focus on BETTER throughout the year. I was starting to refocus on my health and fitness efforts, and being a BETTER version of me for everyone in my life.

In 2019, my word was GRIT, which really piggybacks from BETTER. In 2019, I focused on continuing to strive to be the person I wanted to be.

In 2020, my word was PROGRESS because I was happy with the steps and accomplishments I was making and wanted to continue to do so.

What’s my “one word” for 2021?

Drumroll, please …

Throughout 2021, my focus word will be …

INTENTIONAL

Yup! That’s right! By choosing INTENTIONAL to be my #oneword for 2021, my goal is to continue to be better, live my life with grit, and make progress in all areas of my life by being INTENTIONAL.

INTENTIONAL in my time in my Bible.

INTENTIONAL with my family.

INTENTIONAL in making good choices for my physical and mental health.

INTENTIONAL when my feet hit the floor each morning!

While 2020 was definitely unprecedented and uncertain, my family and I found many blessings throughout the year. We were able to enjoy so much time together during the shutdown of March-May. I snuggled, played outside, crafted, and napped with my daughters who were in 1st and 3rd grade at the time – we hadn’t spent so much time together during the school year since maternity leave! I was able to teach from the comfort of my basement while wearing running shorts and a hoodie. I started my Specialist degree – because what else do you do during a pandemic?! – and was able to continue presenting seminars, webinars, and workshops to teachers all over the country. My students talked my into making a TikTok account and were THRILLED when one of my videos reached 1 million views (they say that makes me TikTok famous?). I wrote and published my 2nd book, Create, in 2020, and found out that I’ll be getting another nephew! I was accepted into the Google Innovator Academy, which had long been a goal of mine, was chosen as the Missouri Council for the Social Studies Secondary Teacher of the Year, and learned that I had been nominated for two additional state awards in education. I’ve been so blessed!

So, while 2020 was definitely one for the history books (goodness, can you imagine having to TEACH about the events of 2020? I’ll be retired before then!), my family and I are safe and healthy, which means I have SO much to be thankful for. I’m ready to take on 2021 with an intentional mindset!

Blessings to you and your family for an amazing 2021!

Thanks for reading 🙂

 

NEW Review Activity!

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Happy Friday, all! I’m coming to you from the middle of the last week of our semester. A week filled with review games, finals, and makeup work, along with SNOW earlier this week! I absolutely LOVE snow days, as do many teachers, and was extremely bummed when the snow didn’t quite stack up to the forecasted amounts, and I had to put actual pants on to go to work, instead of staying in my leggings at home. Oh, well! The break is upon us!

As we were reviewing this week, my students started asking if we were playing Kahoot, Quizizz, Quizlet Live, or Heads Up to review. These tools are wonderful and fantastic, and we use them daily. However, I like variety! So, I did some research and found another pretty awesome website that my students can use to review content. Enter WORDWALL!

Wordwall, similar to other educational sites, provides teachers with the opportunity to sign in with Google (don’t worry about forgetting another username and password!) and to create free activities for their students, with the option to upgrade to a premium account to unlock more features.

Unlike other game-based learning sites, Wordwall allows teachers to create an interactive activity, share it with their students by link or through Classroom, and then lets their students choose to play the game in a different format. Here’s an example:

I created a game about expressed powers of Congress using the “whack-a-mole” option and then shared it with my students. 

After they played whack-a-mole, they asked if they could try the other game options. Of course, I said, “GO FOR IT!” They were able to choose from a few different options to play individually on their device or with a partner.

I’m glad to say, they enjoyed Wordwall! This will be a great individual review activity test, and is definitely something my students can create to demonstrate learning, too! If you’ve read Create: Illuminate Student Voice Through Student Choice, you know I’m a HUGE fan of providing my students with options to create products that demonstrate understanding. Wordwall is super easy to use and definitely a tool to add to your toolbox!

I hope your break is in sight and you have a fantastic and restful time away from the classroom!

Thanks for reading 🙂

 

 

Bring STEM to Your School with Samsung!

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This post is sponsored by We Are Teachers

Happy Tuesday, all! Every now and then, I hear about opportunities for teachers and students to participate in amazing programs that can bring new ideas, fresh perspectives, and possibilities for future content-related growth. Last year, for example, I found a program that would allow me to bring my students to the Hamilton play while gaining a deeper understanding of our founding era, and applying what they have learned in new ways. Sometimes, these opportunities can form a foundation for hobbies, a passion, and even a career! When they’re coupled with relevant and exciting professional development for teachers, well, that’s the icing on the cake! Enter the Samsung Solve for Tomorrow contest!

What is Samsung’s Solve for Tomorrow?
This is the eleventh year of Samsung’s initiative to promote the intentional use of STEM in the classroom to solve problems within communities. Who knows better about issues communities are dealing with than students who are living it on a daily basis? The Solve for Tomorrow contest provides winning applicants with up to $100,000 to spend in their effort to create solutions to a problem within their community. Recent winners of the Solve for Tomorrow contest developed products to combat the effects of flash flooding, provide a quick indicator of the potential for fire in particular areas, devices that measure weight in vehicles to avoid hot-car deaths in children, and an app to help people separate recyclables and non-recyclables. What problems can your students solve? Check out how the students at Omro High School in Omro, Wisconsin worked to educate their community about safety on frozen water!

How to Enter
With the possibilities that the Samsung Solve for Tomorrow program presents, you’re probably wondering how you can enter! So many teachers are deterred from entering contests and participating in programs like this, not because we don’t want the opportunities for our students, but because the entry process is long and cumbersome, and teachers just don’t have time for that! To enter this contest, simply be ready to share how your students might solve a problem to promote positive change within their communities. Also – it’s only 5 questions! After you’ve submitted your application (these are due by December 13!), wait patiently (hard, right?!) to see if your school is named as a semi-finalist!

FREE Professional Development
As a teacher, I know how important solid and applicable professional development is, and how it’s sometimes tough to come by! Samsung has partnered with mindSpark learning to design awesome professional learning opportunities for ALL teachers who apply – yes, ALL! Even if you aren’t chosen as a semi-finalist (or beyond) you still have access to 6 hours of FREE professional development which is full of strategies for whatever your learning environment currently looks like. These PD offerings cover awesome topics such as design thinking (the process I used during my Google Innovator project!) and problem-based learning.

 

 

Did I mention this is an online opportunity?! Yes, that’s right. The events of 2020 probably wouldn’t allow this contest to take place face-to-face, so Samsung has decided to bring this contest to the virtual world. Also, this contest is open to all public school teachers of grades 6-12 … even if you’re not a STEM teacher!

Definitely check out this contest not only to bring an awesome STEM program to your school but also to give your students the opportunity to develop and execute solutions to problems!

Thanks for reading 🙂