Jump Start your 2011/12 School Year

With some summer PD opportunities! Click through to see the complete descriptions.

23 Things: Independent Study (self paced)

SMART in Social Studies (August 15th)

Moodle - Not as Scary as You Think (August 16th)

Better Together - Social Media Bootcamp (August 17th - morning)

Blogging 101 (August 17th - afternoon)

Learning Coaches - Get a Jump Start on Your New Role (August 18th)

SMARTboard 101 (August 22nd)

Want to Engage Your Students - There's an App for That (August 23rd)

Google for Educators (August 24th - morning)

Web 2.0 - Create, Collaborate and Critically Think (August 24th - afternoon)

 

 

What I learned at MPTCA

It was a good one!  Managed to attend 8 of 8 sessions, although my stomach didn't appreciate it, my brain did!

Rick Wormeli (@rickwormeli) I attend his opening and closing keynotes.  It was great way to start the conference with a few laughs and great reminders to take back to the classroom. Some things that I will take back from the opening session:

Teachers do not play fair, students need to know the target to be able to hit it.  Why are tests kept secret?

Deviating from the path, sometimes produces the best results.

Because I said so = eat your spinach assignment!

And remember this about Rick...

During the closing keynote, who could forget the Sound of Music clip!  What an awesome way to explain differentiation.  Make sure that you follow Rick on Twitter and check out YouTube, he has tons of great clips, like this one.

Vanessa and the SMART session!

SMART Board in Humanities was next on my hit list, facilitated by twitter friend Vanessa Cassie.  She was fabulous, as usual, and even though I had to skip out early she gave the group these two fabulous ideas:

1. Hiding the text bubble in a political cartoon, allowing students to brainstorm what would be there and then erasing to reveal.  I created my own here for those that are interested in trying it out and learning how to create their own.
2. Using dice to create a story prompt.  Using the image and text dice and have dice representing character, setting and object.  Allow student to role to create their own writing prompt.  Again you can see my example here to try out!

Nicole Moodling!

Intro to Moodle was facilitated by Nicole Gilles and attended by all three Grande Prairie Districts!  It will be so awesome to have a common language and to be able to easily share and collaborate.  You can find all the session information here.

What I loved about using Twitter, again, is that I have my notes from each session! See the #mptca twitter search here.

What's Up? (March 7-11)

Thanks to everyone that has been Tweeting, Facebooking and following along at this blog.  I really appreciate the comments and the feedback. 

Here is what my week looks like:

Monday/Tuesday - Teepee Creek Technology Project days. 

Tuesday evening - Peace Wapiti Academy Parent Council Presentation.

Wednesday - AM at PWA working with staff on their flexibility course.  PM Networked Educational Leader session with Sandy McDonald

Thursday - All About Blogging 12:10-3pm in the PWA Computer lab.

Friday - Intro to Moodle 9-10:15 with Nicole Gilles in CP 85, I will be the trusty assistant.  Technology Integration in Social Studies Div 3 10:35-1:25 in the PWA Computer lab.

Some items to check out....

• Mighty Peace Teachers' Convention program looks fabulous, do you know what you are going to?
• Technology Integration Matrix - where do you fit, where do you want to be?
• Take a minute and comment on the PWSD Community of Practice teacher Blog.  
• How could you use this video?

Have a fabulous week and I hope to see everyone Thursday or Friday at Teachers' Convention!


I totally stole this idea from George Couros and his staffroom blog.

4 ways to create a fake Facebook page

Creating a fake Facebook page for a story character or historical character is an excellent way for students to demonstrate deep understanding.  They have to be able to articulate the connections and relationships this person has, what they would say, who would they say it to, what images would they share or not share.  It becomes an immense critical thinking activity.

There are a number of different ways to do this!

1) A Word Template: I created this last year when I wanted a simple way to create a Facebook page for feudal Japan. I hosted the template in Moodle and students opened it from there to work on.

2) My Fake Wall: This website allow you to create a page that will be saved with a unique URL.  It does require students to create a login with an email address.

3) Google Doc Template: This Presentation template has 4 slides.  Wall, Info, Photos and Video that you can change with your own information.

4) SMART Notebook Template: Another template, this time in Notebook.  I like this one because a lot of the items are locked, so they cannot be moved or deleted.  Also check out the attachments, there is a handy little word document to guide the assignment.

How can you see using this in your classroom?

Cultivating a Digital Classroom (Part 3 of 3)

This group rocks!


Becky, Daniel, Terrina, Lyla, Stacey, Anna, Marion, Shawn, Natalie, Darcy, Sharolyn, Adair & Sarah

 Our three day cohort came to an end on Friday, here you can find Part 1 and Part 2.

Friday started out with a reconnection with our PLN. Revisiting Twitter, update your profile and tweet.  Connect with professionally relevant Facebook pages and look into RSS again.



Anna and Marion's Pecha Kucha

 Our second activity was a Pecha Kucha.  Usually this is 20 slides advancing every 20 seconds presentation.  Since we were pressed for time, we used 10 slides advancing every 10 seconds around the topic "Teaching and Learning in the 21st Century" 

Digital Classroom - Pecha Kucha

View more presentations from jenclevette.

All groups did a fabulous job with the very short amount of time that I allotted them!  We then used a Moodle forum to reflect how we could use this technique in the classroom.



The Savanna Ladies!



Until lunch everyone had time to work on projects.  Some worked in Moodle creating courses, other explored Web 2.0 tools or fought with Word trying to make forms work.  Work was done and laughs were shared.

Adair, Becky, Daniel and Natalie working on their Google Preso!

Before we broke for lunch each person was given some digital scavenger hunt clues.  Such things as old technology, new technology, fun, jump, and the funniest thing you could find.  The assignment was to go out and take pictures with what you had.  Phone, iPod, camera or borrowed camera.  When we got back from lunch we collaborated on this Google Presentation.

This group had the "best" scavenger hunt pictures,
can you find them?

 We experienced first hand the positives (I can add the pictures and you do the captions) and negatives (who deleted my slide!) of working on a collaborative document. 
We also had to figure out how to get images off devices and re size and flip them for the presentation.
A short discussion on blogging and the day was over!

My intention was to end the day with this video



But all groups were far to busy trying to get all their last tweets in to be entered into the draw for the Flip Cameras  :0

Thanks so much to my fabulous group.  They were challenging and engaged, fun and a great colleagues to learn and reflect with.  

Introducing PWSD's Community of Practice

Another little project!

From September 2006 until August 2010 Alberta Education ran a research project around 1-1 laptops.  When this research project ended Alberta Education had another call for proposals to create a Community of Practice to extend the 1-1 project.  Peace Wapiti is practicipating in this project with Division 3 teachers around 21st Century Skill development.  You can see the entire proposal here.

For this project we have 24 Peace Wapiti  Division 3 teachers that are using the TPACK model to inform effective instruction around the integration of technology.  These teachers have committed to three face to face meetings, one collaboration day of choice, sharing their resources on Ecommunity and reflecting on the Community of Practice Blog.

Please drop by the blog and see what we have been up to!

Cultivating a Digital Classroom (Day 2 of 3)

The whole gang.

Another fabulous day with an amazing group of teachers.  Thanks for hanging in there as I coughed, sneezed and made the FM system make horrible noises.  All of the resources for the day can be found here, under intermediate.

We started the day by signing up for Twitter.  I just finished posting on the PWSD twits below.



 

Team PWA

After a little inspirational video, we shared what we had been doing in our classrooms in the two months since we had last met.  In August when we met we spent the session working on creating) There were some amazing stories shared about what worked and what didn't work.  PWA teachers shared students were using what they learned in their classrooms, Prezi and Glogster, and were transferring that to other classes and their personal life.  Bezanson shared this fabulous website, A Story Before Bedtime, that they highlighted to parents at the literacy parent's night.  And there were a few that just could not hide their love for Moodle! There were also some challenges shared.  Quite a few teachers have created Facebook groups for their classes but students are just not joining.  Technology had failed at times, files were lost or computer labs were full.  However, the good definitely outweighed the bad.

Team Bezanson

Team Sexsmith

Another video, Changing Education Paradigms and short discussion before we set to work on designing some technology projects for the upcoming weeks.

After lunch we launched into using Outlook to subscribe to RSS.  Since my voice was going and the technology failed me slightly, I created the video below to add some clarity to what I was trying to demonstrate. (This is 2nd only to Twitter in my personal technology toolkit) 

Thanks to all the teachers that participated, they day could not have happened without you.  Looking forward to our next meeting in January!

Monday Moodle: Collapsed Topics

I am kind of enjoying making these!  Here is a new addition to our Moodle servers.

Monday Moodle: Lightbox Gallery with Roles Override

I had a request for a how-to video, so here is my first attempt. How did I do?

A lightbox gallery is a Moodle photo gallery.  With a roles override, students can upload pictures.  I love using this in connection with Big Huge Labs to allow students to see and comment on each others work.



I used Camtasia, which has a 30 day trial, and I will admit to liking the program.

Peace River PD Day

On September 27th five Peace Wapiti teachers made the trek to Peace River to present at their professional development day. Debbie Harris (HRS), Memorese Walter (HBS), Shelley Freisen (PAVE), Joan Coy (PAVE) and myself presented on a variety of topics.

The day started with a 10 minute keynote, over Elluminate, from the Honourable Minster of Education Dave Hancock.

Elluminate with Minister Hancock

Here is a list of sessions and the accompanying documents.


Using Gallery items in SMART Notebook for Div 3 Science

Deb's Science folks

Debbie Harris
You will be shown examples of how the Gallery items in SMART Notebook can be used to create interactive science lessons. You will have an opportunity to create some interactive lessons that you can use in class the next day, so come prepared to get lots done that you can take away with you. BRING A MEMORY STICK!!

Interactive Resources for Teaching Science using a SMARTBoard
Debbie Harris
If you are new to using a SMART Board and want to find some ready-made interactive resources for science this is the session for you! You will have the chance to explore websites such as LearnAlberta.ca and 2Learn.ca to find science resources that you can use in class the next day. BRING A MEMORY STICK TO SAVE WORK!

Let's Moodle in Science 9-12
Joan Coy
Using a blend of technology-rich on-line learning resources with traditional classroom teaching environments, we can improve the school experience and engage students in self directed learning. Teachers in our large rural division have created a Moodle site that hosts our Science courses and gives students access to high quality on-line courses on their Moodle site (24/7), in addition to classroom instruction. The Moodle site is being used to facilitate differentiation and inquiry learning (i.e. self-checks, self reflections, and project collaboration). Each teacher has their own way of doing this (that's the beauty of Moodle.) Come and see how the classroom has changed!

Advanced Moodle k-12
Joan Coy
This session is designed to extend and enhance the skills of a Moodle course creator. It includes a brief consideration of the pedagogy – Social Constructivism and how Moodle Activities are designed to support this social and interactive philosophy. It will also examine effective strategies for Resources & Blocks – how to provide information to students. The session will show participants, in a hands-on environment, how to use the relevant components of Moodle to support the learning needs of students. You will be able make creative progress in your Moodle course
 
Introduction to Moodle k-12



Intro to Moodle group

 Jen Clevette
Whether you have never moodled before or you want a refresher on the basics and time to work, this is the place for you. We will be covering some moodle basics like linking WebPages & files, embedding video, adding topics & pictures, glossaries & games and assignment basics. You must have a moodle course created to attend this session


SMART in JH Social Studies
Jen Clevette

Social Studies & SMART

What works and where can I find it? Pre-made materials for the new curriculum are hard to come by, so let's start making our own. We will go over some lesson basics, like title pages & themes, identify the interactives from the Lesson Activity Toolkit that work best and play with some Web 2.0 tools that will add some pizazz to your lessons. Put it all together and we will have lessons to share.
All lessons created will be added to this collaborative website http://tiny.cc/div3SS

Senior High English - Bring them in and start them off!
Shelly Friesen
This session will share some resources that high school English teachers can use for ‘Daily Starters’. Using your SMARTboard, you can establish structure, fill that change-of-class time and get your students thinking about the English language. There will be time to explore, share and collaborate.

Senior High English: How can I use technology to help me?
Shelly Friesen
Teach SMARTer using teacher tools on the web and in your classroom. In this afternoon session we will investigate how to use SMARTboards to help your students learn and help you professionally. In the first few minutes you will help to build the agenda and content direction for the afternoon.

“Playing” with your SmartBoard K/1
Memorese Walters


Mem's SMART session

Non- and beginning readers have special learning requirements that your SmartBoard can help provide. This session will leave you with lots of curriculum links and content that you can take back to your classroom and use immediately to meet their unique needs
2/3 SmartBoards – Curriculum First!
Memorese Walters
Want to know how to better incorporate your SmartBoard into your classroom instruction? This session will provide you with lots of curriculum links and content that you can take back to your classroom and use immediately. LA, Math, Science, and Social activities including pulling it all together on a daily basis and a little extra with the document camera's amazing abilities!

Monday Moodle: Themes

New Themes have been added to E-Community. To change your theme

1) Go to your course

2) Under the Admin Block, Settings

3) Find Force Theme and select the one you want

4) Save Changes



Monday Moodle

It has been awhile since I have done one of these.  In previous years, Monday Moodle, was your weekly moodle how-to.  So I am going to highlight a couple of places you can go to for Moodle help!

1) Monday Moodle Forum use the search function at the top right  to quickly find what you are looking for.

2) PWSD How to Area is loaded with printable quick reference guides and short video tutorials for some of the most popular moodle activities and resources

3) 2 Minute Moodles 34 quick videos that answer your questions and get you moodling!

4) Global Classroom has a number of ways to supercharge your moodle course.

5) Contact me!  I am happy to help.  Either drop me an email or put your problem in the help desk.  Is there a Monday Moodle you would like to see done?

Moodle Explained with Lego

5 + 1 First Day Suggestions!

1) Create a Game to get to know your class.  Choose from one of the many PowerPoint or Notebook templates (As a Social Studies teacher, the first day always included Current Event Jeopardy)

2) Borrow some of these ideas from 14 Interesting Ways to Get to Know Your New Class

3) Watch an inspirational video, can your class make one?



4) Download Edutopia's Back to School Guide which is packed with lots of great ideas for the start of the school year


5) What is your sentence going to be this year?  My class did this last year and posted them up on the wall as reminders of our goal for the year.

Two questions that can change your life from Daniel Pink on Vimeo.

6) Borrow some First Day of School Notebook Lessons from the SMART Exchange.  There are lot of pre-made and ready to go files for attendance, calender and school routines.

New Teacher Ed Tech Orientation

I had the privilege to spend an hour and a half with new (or at least new to PWSD's September) teachers to our district.  The time went by way too fast and these lovely ladies and gentlemen are going to keep me on my toes this year.

We did a basic overview of PWSD's systems using this short Prezi.

PWSD New Teacher Educational Technology 2010 on Prezi

Some of the WOW, I need to remember this items included:

• Sharepoint : once you are logged in at home you have access to your My Documents!  No more emailing back and forth or putting things on memory sticks.
• Resources : if you need some one stop shopping for resources remember that Collaboration has resources for subject & div level as well as Education Technology resources.  You also have access to all my public bookmarks, just use the navigation on the right side to narrow down what you are looking for.
• E-Community : with over 700 courses created there is lots here to borrow! Browse through other courses and if something jumps out as useful to you, drop me an email and we can move that over to your course page. We did get a chance to work a bit in ecommunity, where almost everyone added a title, link to a website and embedded a video. There are lots of Moodle how-tos here.

Darcy come in from IT to answer all the tough questions

• Internet filters : yes we have then, they are a site based decision so talk to your administrator
• Server space: teachers have a soft 5 GB limit
• Network access forms : need to be submitted before you can do anything on a PWSD system!

So fast and furious but hopefully a little bit fun!

Top 10 for 2009/10

In no particular order, the tools that I found the most useful and engaging this past school year!

1) Photopeach has the motto "Fresh Slideshows to Go" and is another tool for student presentations.  It does require the student to set up an account but once in a super easy interface guides them through uploading images, adding captions and finally music.  The slide show then can be linked or embedded in moodle or webpage.
Meiji Restoration on PhotoPeach

2) Word Clouds are an awesome way to make visuals from any text.  Earlier this year wordle, my go to word cloud website went down, and many other word cloud websites popped up.  A favourite of my students was tagxedo, which allowed them to change the shape of the cloud and then save it.  My favourite thing to do is make a word cloud and use it for vocabulary and making predictions about the text.

3) Bubblus is a mindmapping website.  While students can create an account and save their maps to work on another day, they also can just start mapping so long as they finish in one sitting. The map can then be downloaded as a JPG.

4) Prezi slogan is "The zooming presentation editor" and the more it zooms, the more the students love it.  This presentation tools allows videos, images and documents to be embedded into it.  This site does require students to create an account but they can create an educational account.  The final presentation can be embed into moodle or website.  See two examples of how student's used Prezi's here and here.

5) Wallwisher: "Words that Stick" this web 2.0 tool allows you to create a virtual sticky wall.  Students do not have to login, but can double click on the wall you make, add text and image or video.  Check out this presentation for various ways to use Wallwisher in the classroom.

6) Voki allows  you to create personalized speaking avatar.  Without creating an account students have a limited number of avatar choices and 30 seconds of recordable time (from mic, text or upload MP3 file) but with account creation comes more choices and recordable time.  The finished avatar can be linked or embedded in moodle or webpage.

7) Cartoons are a great way to have students tell a story, explain a concept or illustrate big ideas.  There are a number of cartoon creators online but my favourite is stripgenerator simply because it is easy to use.  While there are not a lot of options, it gets the job done.  With an account creator cartoons can be saved, however, I tend to skip creating an account and get student to take a screen shot instead.

8) Big Huge Labs allows you to do "Fun Stuff with Photo's"  My favourites to use with students in the motivator, which I blogged about here, and the trading card.  There are dozens of tools there to explore.

9) Twitter was my motivational tool this year.  Using twitter I connect with hundreds and hundreds of teachers daily.  We share ideas, offer suggestions and encourage each other to try new things.  More on this in the near future!

10) Last but not least Moodle which acts as the glue to hold everything above together!  A one shop stopping place to house the links to the websites, places for students to hand in and embed their work.

Moodle Tool Guide for Teachers

An awesome one page guide created by @catspyjamasnz (follow her on Twitter) that helps you match what you want to do with the best moodle tool for the job! 

Go here to download the PDF.

Grade 2 Webpage

Hello! My name is April Brown and I teach grade two at Harry Balfour School. This year I started a class webpage. I wanted to have a space where my kids and parents could visit to see what students are doing in the classroom. It's also an area where I can communicate with parents about hotdog days, pizza day, field trips or special events. I've posted video's of my kids working in class or answering questions or working on a problem. I've got a link to my eCommunity page on the website and a place where my students started to blog. I've got some different ideas for next year and my blog. I think I'll make it more interactive and have my students add more to it then just what we did this year.

All of this was a great opportunity for me to learn and connect with others. I also started a class twitter account in addition to my twitter account. I had the opportunity to connect with other teachers who are involved with technology. Twitter is a fabulous social networking site to converse with others who are interested in technology. My Twitter name is @maxxakahotdog and my school Twitter name is @2Bbrown.

Moodle Glossary & Language Arts

Nicole Gillies, Peace Academy of Virtual Education

This year there has been a focus on the use of Moodle and getting all of our PAVE courses transferred over to the wonderful Moodle platform. I have recently been working on the Language Arts 8 site and found a very interesting way to use the glossary on Moodle. I will have the students put in their own entries as they read this particular novel study and I have put in some basic Language Arts words to start out. What I have discovered (or realized) is that you can go to Wordia and find an video (that you can embed) of a definition of particular word (s) and put it in the glossary along with the text definition.