Sweet in Second

This week we are looking at Erin's blog on teaching digital citizenship in the classroom. As our students gain more and more access to technology at increasingly younger ages this topic becomes more important. It is also a topic that classroom teachers can integrate into their every day classroom activities.  These are some things to consider as you revisit digital citizenship throughout the year.  #1 Acknowledge that students use technology outside of school Plan to address real world situations with your students. Teach them how to make informed and safe choices. Teach students how to search, comment, hot to report, how to deal with ads, and how to make sure their information is reliable.  #2 Digital citizenship is not a one time lesson at the beginning of the year While it is good to introduce the topic at the beginning of the year, you should plan to revisit and discuss all year long. Posting visuals is a good way to keep reminders around the classro...

This week I blogged about how my students have used Google slides this year. I thought sharing Erin's blog on Google slides would be a great way to extend my own learning.  This blog post covers how to hide and reveal hidden text in Google slides when creating assignments for students.  What is hidden text? Hidden text refers to text that the user cannot see because it ts the same color as the background on the slide.  Why hide and reveal hidden text on Google slides? Erin suggests that you can hide text right on the slide and have the students reveal the text after completing the activity or to simply boost engagement. Some ideas for text that can be hidden are: answers to the particular activity helpful hints fun facts sight words vocabulary words clues or number codes to a digital breakout prize won! (scratch off ticket) spelling words to unscramble, retype, find, etc How to hide and reveal hidden text on Google Slides Insert a s...

This is the first year I have dabbled in Google apps in the classroom. We were introduced to Google Classroom at the beginning of the year but since we are not 1:1, it is difficult to use effectively. Back in December, I decided to have my students collaborate on a project to learn about holidays around the world. Instead of the traditional paper-pencil product, I decided to introduce them to Google slides.  I had only started using Google slides in the past year so I was familiar with the basics. I thought it might be a challenge for my second graders but they caught on super quick! The most difficult part was teaching them how to create their slides without deleting or messing up something their partner was working on at the same time. They learned how to research, screen shot, insert pictures and videos, typing skills, and how to collaborate with other students.  After using Google Slides for this project, my students have been able to use them on their own f...

This week I'm blogging about movement, mindfulness, and incorporating those things into academics. GoNoodle is a free resource for all of those things for anyone in a K-5 classroom. If you are an elementary teacher looking to incorporate movement into your learning or even just a few brain breaks throughout the day, you should definitely check it out!  WHAT IS GONOODLE? GoNoodle is a FREE online resource for teachers in the K-5 classroom. It provides short, interactive videos that get kids up and moving throughout the school day. Activities range anywhere from 1 minute to 15 minutes, depending on what you are wanting your students to do. You can find anything from calming videos that simply teach your students to breathe to intense workout videos that get students up and alert for the day.  WHAT KINDS OF ACTIVITIES CAN YOU DO? There are several "channels" on GoNoodle that allow teachers and students to have choice in what kind of activity they want to engag...

This week on  Erin's blog , she is talking about paper circuits. As a second grade teacher, this is something I haven't explored but would be great for upper elementary or secondary classrooms. Paper circuits are a fun addition to any STEM or Makerspace in a classroom. Getting Started Erin suggests starting with a kit like the  Chibitronics  one linked in her original blog. This kit comes with materials and their site has templates and lesson plans to go along with it. You can also purchase the kit on  Amazon . If you are already familiar with paper circuits you can order materials in bulk. You can also try snap circuits, squishy circuits, conductive ink/paint, and conductive thread. She also linked this  Makerspace  site about setting up makerspaces for paper circuits which might be useful. Project Ideas There are lots of fun ideas for paper circuits! Light up cards, posters, robots, pop up books pages, and more! Check out her page for some gr...

This week on Erin's blog , we are looking at using technology as a tool to create successful parent relationships. I had not heard of the tool she discusses in this blog post so it was a good read for me.  #1 Use ClassTag This is a website/app that supports parent communication in various ways like messaging, newsletters, schedules, meetings, and volunteers.  #2 Share Photos and Videos You can easily share photos and quick videos directly in ClassTag for parents to see throughout the day.  #3 Allow Parents to Access Student Digital Portfolios Though students cannot create a portfolio within the ClassTag app (although you CAN do that in Classdojo! See my previous blog post), you can send announcements to parents in ClassTag to remind them to check out other apps you may be using with your class.  #4 Be Consistent Parents appreciate consistency in communication and ClassTag makes this easy with "auto" features for different things like newslett...

This week I'm talking about an app that does it all...behavior management, photo/video sharing, and parent communication. Class Dojo is a great way to motivate students, as well as keep parents in the loop.  I originally stated using Classdojo for behavior management. With Dojo, teachers can assign each student their own avatar to which they are assigned points. Teachers can use both positive and "needs work" points for student behavior. One of the features I like most is that you can create your own skills for awarding or deducting points. This makes the point system more relevant to your students and can allow for differentiated skills based on your students needs.  Here are some examples from my own classroom: Not only does Dojo keep track of students points, it also generates pie charts based on students behavior feedback and can be emailed and shared with parents daily, weekly, monthly, or by using set dates.  Another way you can use Dojo is by...