Ok, so I am getting pumped about the start of next school year. Yeah, I know a bunch of you just got out of school, but here in Mississippi, we are down to a couple weeks. Yeah, teachers start back August 1st in my district. I got the opportunity to teach computer science next year… all day… Not just one class period like last year. I jumped on it. So, while looking around online for resources, I came across Olexa’s YouTube channel. Continue reading
Resistance is futile. The day of the computer program has come. Now, you have a couple of choices. You can choose to ignore that computer science should be a required course, or you can embrace it and head over to www.code.org to see how to get your kids started. Continue reading
Day Four
The end is near, or is it? Is it really ending, or just the beginning of something much longer?
For those who have read about the first three days, you understand that this has been a high energy experience. The folks at code.org manage to keep things running at full steam, all the time. So, how did day four look for those of us going through the CS Discoveries program here at TeacherCon Atlanta?
Wednesday… Hump Day. The day that folks at professional development or teacher conferences SHOULD really feel the drain of being out of their element… out of their own beds… their normal routines. Energy is usually down. As you can see below, that is certainly not the case at TeacherCon! Continue reading
Day Two:
So today we started day two of our weeklong TeacherCon. I’ve gotta say, the energy of day one would have been hard to beat. I’ve also got to say, the Code.org team did it. Today was a phenomenal day of learning. Continue reading
Google Classroom has been steadily improving since it’s release almost two years ago. What started out as a solid, but still pretty basic way to deliver/manage content with students is growing into a powerhouse. The best part, what Google does with it is based in large part on what we, as educators, want and need.
Google has had the ‘Ask a Question’ feature for a while now… and that feature just got better. Continue reading
Newsela. If you have not heard of them, you have been missing out. Google Classroom, yet again, if you’ve missed out on the greatness that is Classroom, I feel for you. Now, the two have finally almost become one… or at least, they work very well together. Continue reading
Growth. It’s what it’s all about. Our job, as educators, is to ensure that students grow. Let me rephrase that a bit. Our job, as educators, is to ensure that ALL students grow. See what I did there? Yes, there is a difference.
Ask a public school administrator about a cost effective way to try to go 1:1 in a school, and the odds are a good many of them will say to buy Chromebooks. We had the privilege of being asked to come to a school to pioneer paperless classrooms. We were always known as those teachers who were out there, dancing around the room, doing whatever we could to keep kids engaged. We were also known as those who were always looking for new ways to engage students. To us, this sounded perfect. Continue reading
I recently decided to give using Google Keep in my classroom a try. Typically, most teachers that I have talked to about using a digital note taking platform espouse the greatness of Evernote. I’ve used Evernote, and it’s a decent enough tool, but I wanted to try something different. Something that the kids might enjoy as well. Continue reading