Flash Card Learning Videos

Here's something that I was tinkering around with today. I think that it would fairly easy to implement into any classroom regardless of age or content. 

Offering my BEST to you,
Bethany. 

Have you used this strategy with your students? What have been the positive effects that you've noticed from publishing your students' work to a global audience? 

Directions for posting a comment:

1) Choose "Comment As" first. If you don't have a Google/Blogger account, you can choose Name/URL and type in your name, then place the web site that best describes you in the URL (i.e. www.ajusd.org). Or, you can choose "Anonymous".

2) You may need to press "Post Comment" more than one time.

It is always wise to copy your comment before pressing "Post Comment" just in case something happens. 

3) Type in the word verification.

4) If you did everything correctly, it will state, "Your comment has been saved and will be visible after blog owner approval." If you do not get that message, please try again. 

5) Many thanks to Tracy Watanabe for these directions to post. 

And thank you for commenting!

Literature Discussions with Google Slides

In my never-ending quest to find unique ways of using Google Slides, I started to tinker around developing a template that teachers could use for a modified version of literature circles. 

I know that other educational enthusiasts have shared their versions of how to have a class discussion using Google Slides, but nothing seemed to be quite the right fit for what I was looking for. 

So here's what I've come up with. Maybe it'll be a right fit for you too. Go ahead and check it out for yourself by clicking through the slides.



As you can see, much of it is blank because...well...it's a template. It's meant to be changed as the teacher deems necessary. If you think that this is something you'd like to attempt, CLICK HERE to get access. You'll need to have a Google account. To get your own copy, click on File and Make a Copy.

After you've used the Literature Discussions Template, drop me a line and let me know how it worked. 

Offering my BEST to you,
Bethany. 

How have you gone digital with literature discussions? What benefits do you see in having online discussion groups versus verbal face-to-face discussions?

Directions for posting a comment:

1) Choose "Comment As" first. If you don't have a Google/Blogger account, you can choose Name/URL and type in your name, then place the web site that best describes you in the URL (i.e. www.ajusd.org). Or, you can choose "Anonymous".

2) You may need to press "Post Comment" more than one time.

It is always wise to copy your comment before pressing "Post Comment" just in case something happens. 

3) Type in the word verification.

4) If you did everything correctly, it will state, "Your comment has been saved and will be visible after blog owner approval." If you do not get that message, please try again. 

5) Many thanks to Tracy Watanabe for these directions to post. 

And thank you for commenting!

Podcasting in the Classroom

I was recently discussing with a teacher the power of incorporating podcasts into her junior high English classes. And this got me thinking...what can students be doing either before, in the midst of, and after they listen to a podcast? So here are some suggestions:

1. Today's Meet - This online backchannel discussion board can be utilized as students listen. Students can post interesting tid-bits, ask questions, respond to questions posed by the teacher or their peers. 
2. Poll Everywhere - With this data gathering tool, teachers can conduct brief surveys before and after listening to see how ideas may have changed from start to finish. Showing survey results can also be a great way to introduce discussion.
3. Google Forms - This tool could also be used as both a pre/post assessment.
4. Google Drawings - Students could be instructed to complete some sort of graphic organizer as they listen.
5. MindMup 2.0 - This is an additional app found in the "connect more apps" section after clicking on the red NEW button within your Google Drive. Students can build mind maps collaboratively as they listen or even better, afterwards.
6. Padlet - After students listen to a podcast, they can conduct additional research about the topic and find websites, videos, images, or other content and post it on a shared Padlet.
7. Plickers - If a teacher is looking for a way to assess student comprehension, using Plickers is an interactive way to gather data.
8. Blogging - If students have access to a blog, whether it be their own student blog or a classroom blog, they can write out their ideas and share them with a wider audience. The conversation continues when reader's post comments making the learning experience relevant. 
9. Twitter - If writing a full blown blog post isn't in your agenda, then consider having students use your class Twitter account to write out their big take-aways to a global audience. It's quick and requires students to be concise with their thinking.
10. AnswerGarden - Tweeting still too big of a task? Then try AnswerGarden. The teacher asks a question, students respond with a single word answer. The responses are then generated into a word cloud. Seeing which words are most popular (or not) can generate a wonderful class discussion. And then, when the teacher has a moment to breathe, the word cloud can be posted as part of a teacher-composed blog post. 

As with any new learning, students need to be able to hear or interact with the concepts multiple times. If the podcast is short enough, students should be given opportunities to listen at least twice. Each time, students can be asked to share what new learning has taken place.

Offering my BEST to you,

Bethany.

How have you used podcasts in your classroom? What benefits do you observe? How do you hold students accountable for what they are listening to?

Directions for posting a comment:

1) Choose "Comment As" first. If you don't have a Google/Blogger account, you can choose Name/URL and type in your name, then place the web site that best describes you in the URL (i.e. www.ajusd.org). Or, you can choose "Anonymous".

2) You may need to press "Post Comment" more than one time.

It is always wise to copy your comment before pressing "Post Comment" just in case something happens. 

3) Type in the word verification.

4) If you did everything correctly, it will state, "Your comment has been saved and will be visible after blog owner approval." If you do not get that message, please try again. 

5) Many thanks to Tracy Watanabe for these directions to post. 

And thank you for commenting!

Thrive: Quarter 1 Update

Photo by:@BethanyLigon (April 2016)

Can you believe that one quarter of 2016 is already done and over with? It's amazing how quickly time flies. I thought that I would reflect on the first quarter of the year with my #oneword2016: THRIVE. But before you read on, if you didn't read my initial post about my one word, CLICK HERE to see where my thinking was back in January.

THRIVE Victories 

• In January I started reading The Innovator's Mindset by George Couros and had a question about defining innovation. So I stepped out of my comfort zone, kinda, and tweeted out a question using #innovatorsmindset. And to my surprise and huge delight, Mr. Couros tweeted back! I was so excited I couldn't stand it! 

• February was a big month for our district as a Tech Badge initiative initiated. Teachers submit artifacts of how they are using various tech tools to enhance their instruction and they earn a badge. Putting together the website, reviewing the artifacts and delivering the badges is my responsibility. It's so awesome to be able to interact with teachers in this way. You can read more about our program by CLICKING HERE. 

THRIVE Challenges

• I've been battling some stinkin' thinkin' this quarter. Nothing too tragic, scary or dark, just thoughts that are the antithesis of Thriving. Thoughts that hold me back rather than push me forward. I'm a worrier. And if there isn't anything to worry about, I tend to make junk up in my mind to worry about, "what if" kind of thoughts. It's not a thriving way to live and so I've had to be very intentional about the things that I am thinking about. I wonder how many people are like me? I tend to not broadcast this character trait of mine, well, until now, because it's so ridiculous. But it's real and something I deal with. I'm thankful that the people who are the most important to me are kind and patient and most importantly, help me snap out of a mental funk.

• I still need to finish reading Innovator's Mindset. Sigh.

Looking to THRIVE in the next quarter

Yesterday, my pastor was speaking about JOY. And one of the words that he used to define JOY was THRIVE! Part of his sermon discussed how to keep joy in your life (and therefore, THRIVE): serve others. Get the focus off of yourself and start paying attention to others; be intentional about being a blessing to those around you, both people you know and people you may not know at all. I wouldn't necessarily identify myself as a selfish person, but let's face it, there is certainly room to improve. And the whole idea of being a blessing to others, really aligns with my idea of THRIVING. So hopefully, the next time I reflect on my one word, I'll have something positive to share.

Until next time...

Offering my BEST to you!

Bethany.

 

Are you doing #oneword2016? How's it going for you? What victories and challenges have you faced in the first three months?

Directions for posting a comment:

1) Choose "Comment As" first. If you don't have a Google/Blogger account, you can choose Name/URL and type in your name, then place the web site that best describes you in the URL (i.e. www.ajusd.org). Or, you can choose "Anonymous".

2) You may need to press "Post Comment" more than one time.

It is always wise to copy your comment before pressing "Post Comment" just in case something happens. 

3) Type in the word verification.

4) If you did everything correctly, it will state, "Your comment has been saved and will be visible after blog owner approval." If you do not get that message, please try again. 

5) Many thanks to Tracy Watanabe for these directions to post. 

And thank you for commenting!