Five Apps for Taking Notes On Class Reading

I was observing an English class recently where the teacher was discussing a piece of text with students. He was telling the students what the text was about while the students listened. Student engagement was at a minimum, with the students at the front of the class occasionally engaging with the teacher while the students in the back seemed to be counting the minutes until class was over. 

It must be said that this is a one to one classroom, where each student has their own Chromebook. Never mind that engagement was at a minimum, but the students had technology that could have made the whole process easier for the teacher to check for student engagement while being more engaging for the students!

Three apps that can help engage your students when discussing a text passage in the classroom are:

Google Slides:  Students can use Google Slides to summarize information and keep it nice and orderly. Simply title each slide by chapter or even paragraph.  Each slide can contain a summary, a wondering, or even discussion questions that pertain to a particular part of the text.

Kami: Kami is a fantastic pdf online annotation app that works great with Chromebooks.  Students can upload the document into Kami then annotate with text and highlights. Or, if the teacher has a pre-made note sheet, they can upload the document as a pdf where students can then upload the note sheet to Kami, complete the sheet, then upload it to an LMS such as Google Classroom

Google Keep: Google Keep is an indispensable notes app that ties neatly into the Google ecosystem.  It's on the students Chromebooks, making it ready to use.  And, one of the cool things about Google Keep is that it goes everywhere there's an internet connection.  Students can access their notes from virtually any device with an internet connection.  And, when the teacher wants to check student notes, students simply share them with the teacher via the share button.  No paper collected or returned.

Nearpod: Nearpod is a very good interactive presentation app that works well with both iPads and Chromebooks.  Use the open ended question option in Nearpod and attach the document for reference.  Ask students to summarize a chapter or paragraph per slide.  As the teacher, you get instant feedback on your own device as students submit their responses.

Google Sheets: Did you know that a spreadsheet could be used to take notes?  Well, it can.  Fill column A with chapter or paragraph numbers.  Then, title the rows as necessary with such things as summary or with questions.   

Two Apps That Will Move You Toward A Paperless Classroom

I was recently in a Social Studies Department meeting.  The topic turned to a discussion about when they’ll get more printing paper for their classes.  Not being familiar with the number of cases of paper teachers received from the school, I asked how much paper they were given.  I was told they received a case of paper per semester. 

They noticed my surprised look and stated that it was still not enough.  And, here’s the kicker, their students have Chromebooks assigned to them! It’s a one to one school!

There are many reasons to go paperless with some classroom assignments, among them is time saved at the copy machine.

Teachers could save a lot of time by going paperless with these apps:

1. If you’re using Chromebooks in your class, you gotta check out Kami.  Kami is a fantastic PDF annotation web app.  Students can open up a document in Kami, annotate to their hearts content with text boxes, highlights, or with their stylus, and then upload it to your LMS.

2. Whether you’ve got iPads in your class or Chromebooks, the Showbie app is an easy way to go paperless in your classroom.  Showbie is available on the web as well as an iOS app.  Upload a PDF to Showbie and students can annotate with a text box or drawing tool.  Showbie also allows students to highlight text.  One of the really cool things about Showbie is the ability for students to leave a voice note on a document.  Showbie can also serve as an LMS of sorts in that you can distribute and collect work. 

Apps Your Students Need To Be Familiar With

Teaching in the age of technology is a great thing.  The multitude of apps available to help you teach is too many to count.  But there are certain apps that your students should be familiar with.   Why?  Well, there will come a time when you don't have time.  What I mean is that you may need to come up with a quick lesson in a pinch.

Most of us have been there.  You decide at the last minute that you need to take a sick day.  There may be an occasion where something comes up, prompting you to have to leave school early.  The bottom line is, you have to come up with a lesson plan for your students, and quick.  That's where the power of apps comes in.  Some apps come with their own lesson store.  You can browse through the app's own store and find a lesson you deem appropriate for your students to do. 
Below are five apps that come with their own lesson store. 

Nearpod: Nearpod has a multitude of ready-made lessons that you can download and edit as needed.  Granted, some a cost a few bucks, but others are free.  But once you buy it--it's yours to use over and over!   Click "Explore," and you're presented with lessons based on categories like "subject" or "publisher".  You can preview the lesson before adding it to your library.

Formative: Formative also has a good selection of already made Formatives. Type in the subject and choose the Formative that works best for you. Download the lesson and edit it as you see fit.

Kahoot: Have your students learn new or review content!  Finding a Kahoot that's already made is one click away.  Click "Explore Games" and then choose the Kahoot that fits your class.

Flipgrid: Flipgrid has a variety of topics your students can address.  Journey back to the late 1970s and click on the "Disco Library" tab. Select your audience, topic subject, and goal.  If you find a Flipgrid you like, select your grid and add it.

Seesaw: If you're using Seesaw in your class, you must check out the Activity Library.  If for no other reason than to get ideas on how to use Seesaw in your class.  If you find an activity you like, click the "share" button and choose the appropriate class to assign the activity to. 

Liven Up Your Staff Meeting With These Apps

Come on, you can tell me.  We’ve all been there.  Whether you’re in education or some other profession.  We’ve all been in those staff meeting where your attention is everywhere other than on the material at hand.  Your eyes wander.  You can hear your heartbeat.  You stare at the ceiling.  You resist the temptation to one of those people that stare at their phone all meeting.  Time crawls.  Minutes turn into hours.  The clock seems to be going backward.  You don’t want to be rude or seem inattentive, but you just can’t seem to pay attention.  The presenter drolls on, pretending that everyone is hanging on every word.  Come on, admit it, you’ve been in those meetings.

Don't let this happen at your meeting.

And now it’s payback.  The chickens have come home to roost.  It’s your turn to present in front of your colleagues.  You don’t want the staff to feel the way you do at some of these meetings.  What do you do?  Well, lucky you, it’s the age of technology in the classroom!  You’ve got a Chromebook, an iPad, or perhaps just a smartphone.  You are ready to make your presentation interactive and engaging.  But how do you do that?  Let me share you with you a few apps that you can use to keep everyone’s attention by engaging your audience.

When it comes down to it, school staff are much like the kids they teach.  In the same way, the students might get a bit fidgety when sitting in front of their teacher listening to the lecture for an hour, adults do the same thing when being asked to sit and listen to someone present information for a long period of time.  Just like in your class where you want to engage your students and keep their attention throughout your teaching, you want to have the same impact with the teachers you’re talking to.  And you know what, you don’t have to look far for the tools to help you because the apps used for your classroom can also be used in much the same way for a PD or presentation to your colleagues.

Socrative : Use the space feature to check for understanding or summarize the meeting. Create a Socrative quiz, then use it to summarize the meeting with a space race.  If you’ve got more than 20 in your meeting, simply have people pair up.  Give out a prize to the winner.

Kahoot: Use Kahoot to test the staff about the contents of the meeting.  Again, like the Socrative space race, give out small prizes for first, second, and third.

Padlet: As you’re giving your presentation, ask the participants to participate by putting very brief summaries of what you’re saying on a Padlet board.  Pause every so often to allow your fellow teachers to jot down a tiny summary of what you’re talking about.

PearDeck/Nearpod: I put these together because although they have differences, they’re kinda the same idea.  You present your information, then, embed small exercises in your presentation, such as a drawing exercise, a multiple choice quiz, or a short answer question.  The beauty of Nearpod and PearDeck is that you don’t have to leave your presentation to have your audience participate, it’s in the presentation.  Another fun aspect of the two is that you can share participant answers and drawings with the rest of the audience.  

Google Slides Q & A: If you’re using Google Slides to give your presentation, then using Google Slides Q & A is a must!  Ask the audience to not only ask questions or comments, but make it interactive by posing certain sceneries that concern your topic and ask teachers to respond in the Q & A portion.  For example, if you’re talking about classroom discipline, ask your audience how they would act in a certain situation.

5 Apps For Student Field Trip Reflections

Your students are going on a field trip.  Perhaps they're headed to a natural history museum or art museum.  You want to make sure they go away with something--anything that proves that the field trip was worthwhile.  The simplest thing to do is assign a reflection of what they learned on the field trip.  

Make sure students are aware of the assignment beforehand so that they can prepare.  Allow them to use their smartphones while on the field trip so they can take pictures or write notes about what they learned.  

The following apps will help students share what they learned on their field trip:

Google Slides:  One of the easiest ways students can reflect on their field trip is by creating a presentation about it.  Slides provide a couple of templates tailored to field trips-the field trip template or the photo album template.  Or, students can create a presentation from scratch. Students can insert pictures or videos they took of their experience.

YouTube: Students can use their phones to shoot video, edit it, and upload it to YouTube.  When shooting video, advise students that they should include a piece from the visit and their thoughts on the topic.  At the end of the day, ask them to film a reflection of what they learned.

Storyboardthat: Students can use Storyboardthat.com to upload a timeline of their learning.  Use each box to document the day. Students can upload pictures from the day and include written comments.

Book Creator: Students can use Book Creator to create a short book that shares their field trip.  They can add different kinds of media such as photos, video, and sound.  Book Creator provides the students with the ability to create a comic book style book that can showcase their field trip.

WeVideo: WeVideo is a free all in one video app that allows students to shoot and edit video.  WeVideo has an iOS app for those iPad classrooms and is available on the web for those Chromebook classes.  It’s easy to use and students can create and edit video right on their mobile device.  

How To Lesson Plan With Google Keep

Google Keep is one of those apps that could be used for almost anything.  It’s a note taking app, it’s a to-do list app, it’s a place to store pictures for later use, it’s a drawing app, it’s a reminder app, and the mobile version allows for voice memos.  Needless to say, it’s a very versatile app, and, it’s all part of G Suite for Education!  Keep is right alongside Google’s more popular Docs, Sheets, and Slides apps.  Another reason why Keep is pretty cool is that it’s everywhere!  That’s right, no matter the device it will be with you.  You can sign in from your PC, Macbook, iOS device, or Android device.  

Of course, you can use it for all of the above, but did you know it’s great for creating lesson plans? You can write your plans from scratch into a note or upload an old lesson plan that you plan to use.  If you plan on using a handout for your students, simply upload it via the “add image” button.  Along with creating lesson plans, it helps keep those plans organized using color coding and labels.  Labeling the notes is important so when you click on the label, all of the notes that pertain to that particular label will be displayed.

Have you ever needed or wanted to share a lesson plan with another teacher or administrator?  Of course, you have--we all have!  That’s where another great aspect of Keep comes in.  Instead of printing out a copy or your lesson plan or photocopying your lesson, simply click the share button on your note and type in the email address of the person you wish to share the lesson plan with.  It’s that easy!

Here’s how to keep your lesson plans organized in Google Keep:

1. Create a note with the title of the name of your class.  Choose a color for the note.  Then, create a tag for the note.  For example, if the class is World History, create a tag titled World History.

2. Repeat for each class that you teach.  Make sure to choose a separate color for each class.

3. I think it’s easier if Keep is in Grid view.  If you only have one or two classes, then the list view will be fine.

4. The title of each subsequent note will be the date.

5. Color code the note according to the class.

6. Include the label of the appropriate class.  Again, clicking the label will display all of the notes with that label. 

With each lesson plan that you create, simply drag it under the title of the class.

And that’s it!  Along with using the customary Google apps in the classroom, Google Keep can help you stay organized with your classes.

The Importance Of Immediate Feedback And Two Apps That Can Help

The other day I was observing a class.  The teacher did a formative assessment of that days learning by asking the kids to take out a piece of paper and answer the three questions she wrote on the board.  The students did so dutifully, pondering what they had learned that day. Some students wrote a few sentences for each questions while others wrote just a few words.  The students turned in their work in a tray at the front of the room and sat back down waiting for the dell to ring.
The bell rang and students exited the room, not knowing how they did on their end of the class assessment.  I asked the teacher when the students should expect to see the results of the assessment. She told me that she would get to it before the end of the week (it was Tuesday).

In an effective teaching practice, this should never happen, with or without technology.  I ask you, what’s the point of formative assessment if the students are not getting immediate feedback?  Isn’t the point of the assessment to find out where the students are in regard to their learning? What’s the point of getting feedback a few days later, after students have since moved on in their learning.  Because of that, the feedback won’t matter to them anymore. Most of the papers will end up in the trash after given back some days later.

This is where tech can help.  Feedback is important in the classroom for both teachers and students alike.  The students need to know where they stand in the learning process while the teacher should know how they’re doing in their teaching the material.  Are their methods effective in reaching their students?

There are a couple of apps that are not only great for giving feedback to students but they are great at giving immediate feedback.  ClassKick and Formative are two fantastic ways to see how students are progressing—in real time—and give the teacher the ability to give the student feedback on student work—as they’re doing it!

With student work being shown in real time on the teacher device, it ensures that each students work is being seen.  It replaces the old way of the teacher walking around and peeking over the students shoulder, hoping to get a good glimpse of student work.  Although it’s important for the teacher to continue to walk around, knowing that they’ll be able to view all student work in ensured.

The thing that makes both ClassKick and Formative unique is that they have the ability to show the teacher student work, as their working on it.  As the students is solving a math problem or writing a sentence, the teacher can see it all happen. Granted, with Google Docs, you can click into a students work and see how they’re progressing, but that takes an extra step.  And the way that ClassKick and Formative present students work, all on the teacher device in real time, makes it much easier for a teacher to monitor the students.

Again, immediate feedback is important in the classroom. Tech can help in the forms of Classkick and Formative.