Tech Tuesday for December 17

Happy Tech Tuesday everyone! I wanted to share a couple of cool tips and tricks regarding Edmodo. Some have started to use it, but might have hit a snag here or there. Here are some great places to start your Edmodo adventure or see what others are doing with Edmodo in their class.

10 Tips for Getting Started with Edmodo

Here is a nice blog post on the Edmodo website written by a teacher that used it his class. These are very short and simple tips on how to use Edmodo in your class to make your day to day life as a teacher a little bit easier. This is a great read for those that are looking to start using Edmodo in the second half of the school year.

15 Brilliant Ways to Use Edmodo

Here is another post by Edmodo on how to use their site with your classrooms. What I like most about this post is that it has people you can connect with after each suggestion. You might like the idea on the page, but you could still have questions. You can connect with the teachers listed and ask them how they do it in their classroom. The post is a few years old, but the ideas still work. I know of many teachers that are doing amazing things with Edmodo and swear but it in their classroom. The Edmodo team is also a great group of people that are very helpful. If you need help, ask for it through email or Twitter (@Edmodo) and they will get back to you.

20 Ways to Use Edmodo in the Classroom

20 Ways to Use Edmodo from seyfert6

Here is just one more resource on using Edmodo in your classroom that is worth checking out if you are really committed to using it or are looking for reasons why you should start. 

Tech Tuesday for December 3

Welcome back everyone! I hope all of you had a very nice Thanksgiving Break. I'm happy to be sharing this blog out to the district again after a short hiatus. Teachers had been asking me to add them to my email list, so I thought it would just be easier to send it to everyone. I promise I will not be sending these blog posts out every week and clogging your inbox. Feel free to bookmark my site in Chrome and visit it when you have a minute. Thanks for stopping by and feel free to send me an email or leave me a comment if there is something you are looking for or something you would like me to share to the rest of the staff. Have a great Tuesday!

Writing Prompts/Journal Posts

Here is a great site that has a bunch of prompts that you might find helpful for your classroom. CanTeach has a long list of possible questions to ask your students. I have found writing prompts to be wonderfully helpful in getting my students to think outside of the standard curriculum and have led to great discussions in class. If you are looking for a digital place for students to write their responses, KidBlog is an excellent (free) site that I have used in the past that is perfect for all ages. It does not require students to have an email and teachers can lock it up so only students and teachers can see it if they want. Digital writing is an important skill to learn and combining prompts and blogging is a great way to help students become more comfortable with it.

Eyewitness to History

Eyewitness to History is a great site that brings together stories and media to tell a complete story of historical events that occurred around the world. The site offers links to famous speeches and photos of important events throughout history. Students can here Charles Lindbergh speak after his historic flight or listen to a reporter describe the invasion of Normandy as he witnessed it live offshore. You can also show students the first narrative film The Great Train Robbery to give them a sense of how far things have come in film. There are pictures galore that could make great additions to class for writing prompts or presentations.

The pictures are interactive as well. If you click on certain parts of the picture, it will take you to another story that provides a rich background to the photo and the time period. This is a great site for students and teachers to make history a little more hands on and visual. 

Interactive Simulations for Math and Science

Here is a great site from the University of Colorado that can give some students a chance to try experiments at home without destroying their house. Here is a quick snapshot of what they have to offer.

The site offers great simulations for students of all ages who might need a different way to look at a concepts being covered in class. Take a look at these and share your favorites with other teachers in your building. 

Thanks for taking the time to read the post and feel free to drop me a line if you have questions or want to share something you use with everyone else. 

Give it a try!

Nick