Use Plickers to Collect Real-Time Data Without Student Devices

If you're looking for a way to collect real-time data from your students but lack student devices, Plickers is a great option.  Plickers stands for "paper clickers".  It's a simple tool that allows for quick checks for understanding.  Plickers use a technology similar to QR codes and it allows the teacher to quickly assess students throughout a lesson.

https://goo.gl/images/zMqW4H 

Teachers assign all the students a Plickers card. Each card has a unique number that can be assigned to individual students.  You can print out the cards for free from this site: https://www.plickers.com/cards  On each card, students have the option of choosing A, B, C or D as their answer choice.  Here's an example of what a student card might look like:

You must also have the FREE Plickers mobile app installed.

Next, teachers need to add classes and students through the Plickers website on the Classes page.  You can have up to 63 students per class.  Then, you add your questions which can be multiple choice or true/false and even include images.

Tap the camera icon to scan students' responses and receive instant feedback:

If you want to display classroom results with students, use the Live View tab on the website.  You can use the Scoresheet to monitor student progress and Question History will show you the latest results.

What a quick and easy way to assess students using just one device.  Better yet, students cannot easily look at another student's answer since no two Plickers cards look alike.  You can't get much more authentic data than that!

If you'd like a little more in-depth tutorial, check out this 30 minute recording:

Padlet

One of my go-to tools for collecting responses from an audience is Padlet.  Padlet acts as a virtual wall that allows people to post content, such as text, images, videos, and even attach documents.  The Padlet looks like a piece of wallpaper and users double click anywhere on the wallpaper to start a new sticky note.  Padlet does not require you to create an account BUT it is helpful if you do because you can easily access Padlets you have created in the past.

Here's how you set up a Padlet:

1. Go to https://padlet.com
2. Click "Create a padlet".  (If you want to keep up with your Padlets, Sign up to create a free account or Log in, if you already have one.)

3. Give your Padlet a Title and Description.

4. You can then adjust the layout (how posts are arranged) or select the wallpaper.  When finished customizing your Padlet, click the pink "Next" button.

5.  Then adjust any People & Privacy settings, as desired.  I tend to leave all these as default.  Then click "Next".

6. If desired, take a peek at the "Share/Export/Embed" options.  Here is where you'll find a QR code to your Padlet, the hyperlink, and embed code, among other things.

7. When you see this screen, you'll know your Padlet is ready to go:

Share the Padlet with others by posting the link or QR code somewhere people can access.  Users then access the Padlet and post!

If you need ideas for how to use Padlet in your classroom, there are lots on Pinterest!  Check some out here.

I Can't Stop Recommending Quizizz

Especially this time of the school year, I find myself recommending Quizizz more than ever before.  For those of you who are familiar with Kahoot!, it's just like that BUT even better...in my opinion!  Quizizz is a web-based clicker tool that allows students of all ages to answer questions in a game-like atmosphere.  There are sound effects, funny memes, leaderboards, and timers.

The teacher logs onto Quizizz and can search for a pre-made quizzes (using the "Public" tab) or can create their own.

Once the teacher finds or creates a quiz, he/she clicks "Play Live" in order to launch the game immediately.  Clicking "Homework" instead allows the teacher to schedule a window of time for the game to be open.  This is great for those who want to assign it for homework or for teachers who want students to complete the activity in workstations throughout the week.

Teachers can adjust any of the settings on their game including whether or not you want the questions and/or answer choices jumbled, if you want the correct answer to show after the student responds, and game settings such as a leaderboard, question timer, and music.

Once the settings are adjusted to your preference, a website for students to join the game (join.quizizz.com) and a unique pin code is displayed on your screen.  Students enter the code from any device that has Internet.  If you don't have a lot of devices, have students play in pairs or teams!

Here's a sample of what students see on their device:

As students play the game, the teacher can monitor the students using real-time data.  Once the students are finished, the teacher can review any of the questions and even download an Excel spreadsheet with the data.  If you log into your account any time later, you can access this same data under "My Reports".

So why do I like Quizizz better than Kahoot!?  

1. Students play asynchronously--once they answer a question, they move on and do not have to wait for the rest of the class to answer
2. Teachers can shuffle the questions and answer choices
3. Students see the questions AND answer choices from their own device and don't have to look up onto a projector screen or SMARTBoard
4. Teachers can monitor real-time results

And yet, it still has many of the same GREAT features as Kahoot such as the game-like feel, public quizzes available, and it can be used on any device with Internet.  Oh, and they're both FREE!

For a quick walkthrough of Quizizz, here's a short video posted on their website:

Want to Simplify the Reading of Online Articles? Use Evernote Web Clipper!

In March I had the privilege of attending NCTIES, a well-known technology conference in Raleigh, NC.  One of the sessions I attended was led by Richard Byrne and he highlighted some of his favorite web tools.  Evernote Web Clipper was one of the tools he shared and it's now one I've been eagerly sharing with teachers and administrators in our district.

Evernote Web Clipper is an extension in the Chrome web browser that clears away the formatting, layouts, and advertisements so the reader can focus on the content.  Check out the before and after of this Time for Kids article I found online:

BEFORE

http://www.timeforkids.com/news/earth-day-eruption/235076

AFTER

So how do you use Evernote Web Clipper?  Once you're on a website that you want to simplify, click on the Evernote Web Clipper icon near your bookmarks bar and select "Simplified article".  Ta da!  It really is that EASY!

If necessary, you can then share it as a link (e.g. https://www.evernote.com/shard/s186/sh/e00cd4d3-ab88-495d-9062-77f354b7a3b1/0406a12858c696cd6966f2b150d3d38d) or save it as a PDF (via Print > Save as PDF) if you want to print it out and/or upload it to a website.

So, go to the Chrome Web Store and search for Evernote Web Clipper.  You'll be glad you did!

Formative for Real-Time Formative Assessments

Are you looking for ways to formatively assess students?  Formative is an amazing FREE tool that was created by teachers and allows for real-time assessments.  The teacher can easily create online classrooms for their classes.  Then, students register for an account and join your specific class with a code.  Below is a quick overview of the process once a teacher has an account:

Teachers can upload a document or PDF that they want to transform into an interactive activity for students.  Then, on the document, the teacher can click on any part of the worksheet and make it interactive by adding in question prompts, hyperlinks, even videos!

As the teacher, you're able to distribute assignments to students, which could also entail entrance and exit tickets.  If desired, point values can be assigned to questions.

The best part about Formative is that assessment results are available in real time.  Students can type, show their work with drawings or submit images.  Below you can see a sample screen of what a teacher might see as students are drawing an image in response to the proposed question about surface area:

As you're learning how to use the tool, know that Formative has a bank of tutorial videos that are quick and easy to follow.  Check out their tutorial videos: http://community.goformative.com/videos. 

Here is a quick 5 minute overview of Formative that will paint a clear picture of the application: 

Creating ebooks in iBooks Author

This week I had the opportunity to train a group of teachers on how to use iBooks Author to create iBooks that can be read on a Macbook laptop, iPad or iPhone.  These books are interactive and can include as much (or as little!) multimedia as you prefer--images, video, audio, links, etc.

I had not created an iBook in a while and needed a refresher so I browsed YouTube for endless tutorials.  The tutorials I found most helpful are below with a series by Matthew Henchen:

To actually create the books, we went through the process step-by-step together in just under an hour from start to finish and shared to iPads.  We chose to do blank templates and create simple books with text, images, and a Discovery Education video.  The easiest way to add multimedia is just to simply drag and drop the item onto the iBook page.  We decided to use iTunes U to share the books with a student set of iPads because it does NOT require syncing the device with each new book.

Here is the presentation I walked through with teachers.

Here is a copy of one of the books I created as an example.  I have embedded it as a PDF in case a reader of this blog does not have iBooks.

Don't be intimidated by the thought of creating your own iBook!  It's easier than you would think!

Virtual Field Trips with Google Cardboard and Google Expeditions

Expeditions is a virtual reality platform built for the classroom. Google worked with teachers and content partners from around the world to create more than 100 engaging journeys - making it easy to immerse students in entirely new experiences.

Expeditions teams visit selected schools around the world, including the United States, Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, Brazil, Canada, Singapore, Denmark and Mexico. Each team brings a complete Expeditions kit with everything the teachers need to take their students on journeys anywhere. The team or representative shows teachers how Expeditions works and helps set it up before class.

Expeditions are guided tours of places schools buses can't go. They are comprised of virtual reality panoramas and are led by a guide or teacher. Using a tablet, teachers can guide up to 50 students wearing virtual reality viewers. Teachers can guide their class and point out highlights while referring to editable notes.

Carolyn Vickers, a 4th grade teacher and Teacher Technology Leader for Butner-Stem Elementary (BSES), and Shannon Norton, a 5th grade teacher at BSES, signed up for this program. The Google representative indicated that this high interest is what brought the program to Butner-Stem. On Monday, March 21st a Google expedition team member, Brendan Dermody, came to show the teachers and classes how Google Cardboard can take them to places they could not otherwise visit.

Fifth grade classes visited monuments around the United States just before a trip they are taking to Washington, D.C. Fourth grade classes visited the moon and some went to the Galapagos Islands and explored under the sea.  Third grade classes explored exciting places around the world like Thailand, Antarctica, and Egypt.

The teachers guided the tours with an iPad as helpful facts are presented on their screen, meanwhile the students see the location through the cardboard viewers in a 3D virtual world. Students learn about the world while seeing it virtually. It is the next best thing to being there. Students were engaged and excited to be going on these virtual tours from their classrooms. The excitement was contagious.  Besides the constant “Oohhs” and “Aahhs”, we overheard one student shout, “I can’t believe my eyes!”. If you're interested in Google Expeditions coming to your school, you can apply here.

Vokis for Student Presentations

Earlier this week I had the opportunity to work with a third grade class who had just finished learning about How-To writing and wanted to show off their knowledge.  The teacher and I brainstormed some ideas for how students could present their How-To Writing and she suggested using Voki where students could read their writing to share How To ______.

Voki is a digital tool that allows you to create a talking character.  There are many characters to choose from, people and animals alike, and students can make their character talk by recording their voice or typing in text.

Students got a kick out of choosing their character and personalizing him/her down to the outfit and hairstyle.  Of course they enjoyed sharing their work with their classmates and were eager to email it to their teacher.

Students could also use Voki to present all kinds of things such as book reviews, topic presentations, introducing themselves to classmates, etc.  Teachers, there is even a Voki Lesson Plan database I encourage you to check out for further ideas.

Using QR Codes for Read Alouds

My colleague and I have been in the midst of writing an online Professional Development module on Using QR Codes in the Classroom for the teachers in our district .  We outlined countless ways to use them and you can access a presentation of ideas here:  https://goo.gl/gq0y3i

One of my favorite ways to use QR codes is leveraging YouTube read alouds of children's books.  Teachers can create a QR code with the YouTube video link and attach the QR code to the book in their listening center or library.  I've seen teachers glue it to the front or back cover of the book or on the inside cover.  Then students are trained how to use a mobile device to scan the QR code and access the read aloud.

With budgets the way they are, funds for purchasing books on tape or CD are difficult to come by--why not take advantage of FREE videos on YouTube that still allow the students to hear a quality story read aloud?!

If you're new to creating QR codes, here is a quick step-by-step guide for how to do so:

1. Browse YouTube for the video read aloud you like and copy the hyperlink.
2. Go to to a QR code generator on the web, such as www.qrstuff.com or www.qr-code-generator.com
3. Paste in the YouTube hyperlink
4. Right click on the QR code that is automatically generated and "Copy" or "Save as" and paste it into a document to be printed off and attached to a book or card. 

Earlier this week I was in a kindergarten classroom at one of our elementary schools.  I was thrilled to see this teacher used QR codes in her listening station.  I loved her idea of keeping laminated cards containing the QR code and picture of the book in a little pencil box for easy organization and quick access.