Entry Fourteen: Team Teaching

We are so excited for our training this Thursday on Co-teaching! It's such an awesome model and we know that working together can make such a difference for kids. Check out some of our resources below...

Benefits of Team Teaching
Planning with a co-teacher

Entry Thirteen: iPad Apps Galore!

Using an ipad in the classroom is such a blessing! In just under a year, this one little tool has completely transformed our teaching. We have searched over (what feels like) thousands of websites, worked with hundreds of teachers, and have finally come up with the most effective ways to use one iPad in a classroom. Below, we would like to share our top ten resources for using an ipad in the classroom:

1. This first one is a slideshow of several useful apps for classroom teachers. We love how they not only share the name and picture of the app, but also ways to use it in the classroom.

2. We love this graphic showcasing several ipad apps linked to the different levels in Blooms! Simple, easy to select from but lacks a description for how to use this app.

3. If you want to be able to print a PDF to view the apps and simple ways to use them then this resource is for you! It include the top ten free apps for teachers and it only costs $2.00.

4. This list of 20 ipad apps for educators shares the names and uses of some common apps. Great, simple resource!

5. Appitic. Need I say more?

6. Eschoolnews shares their top ten apps for educators in this simple free post.

7. This resource costs $6.00 but shares 28 unique apps (most are free) and ways to use them. The apps are aligned with ELA common core standards for second grade but can be easily transferred to other grade levels.

8. While many of the following apps are paid apps, they are all simple and easy to use for educators.

9. The top ten paid apps for educators is a free tool that we recommend any teacher check out.

10. This last one is a great tool sharing free apps and the appropriate grade level usage.

Source: slideshare.net via Brenda on Pinterest

Want more?

Mobile Apps for Education

iPad in Education

iPads in Education

Entry Twelve: Around the World

We are so excited to present on global awareness tomorrow at the National Staff Development Council Summer Conference.  It’s a topic we are very passionate about and can’t wait to share some resources and learn from our participants.  Teaching students about global awareness is so important to help prepare them for their future.  We just learned about these great sites to take students on virtual tours of several large cities around the world.  This is such a great way to engage students for an upcoming unit, share similarities and differences of different cultures, and just introduce students to the sites.  Enjoy!

• Victoria Falls, Zambia  

•   Venezuela,Surroundings of Angel Falls,Venezuela  

•   Angel falls, Venezuela  

•  Kalyan, Minaret, Bukhara, Uzbekistan   

• Miami, USA  

•   Las Vegas,USA  

•   Lake Powell,USA  

•   Manhattan, New York, USA  

•   Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco, USA  

•   Millennium UN Plaza Hotel, New York, USA  

•   Oahu, Hawaii, USA  

•   Las Vegas, Nevada, USA  

•   Millennium UN Plaza Hotel, New York, USA    

•   Statue of Liberty, New York, USA                                   

•   Manhattan, New York, USA  

•   Hollywood, California, USA                                   

•   San Juan and Colorado rivers, USA                                   

•   Goosenecks, Utah, USA  

•   Mono Lake, California, USA                                     

•  Chicago, Illinois, USA  

•   Los Angeles, California, USA                                   

•   Kiev,Ukraine  

•   Ay-Petri, Ukraine  

•   Dubai, UAE  

•   Dubai, Islands, UAE  

•   Palm Jumeirah, Dubai, UAE  

•   Bangkok, Thailand  

•   Sankt-Moritz, Switzerland  

•   Cape Good Hope, South Africa                                   

•   Cape-Town, South Africa  

•   Moscow, MSU, Russia  

•   Moscow, Kremlin, Bolotnaya Square , Russia                                   

•   Moscow, Russia  

•   Moscow Kremlin, Russia    

•   Trinity Lavra of Sait Sergius, Russia                                   

•   Saint-Petersburg, Russia 

•   New Jerusalem Monastery, Russia                                     

•   Novodevichy Convent. Moscow, Russia                                   

•   Ramenki,Moscow, Russia  

•   MKAD, Moscow, Russia    

•   Krokus Expo Center, Moscow, Russia                                   

•   Moscow Region, Russia 

•  Moeraki Boulders, New Zealand  

•   Fiordland, New Zealand  

•   Nepal, Nepal  

•   Maldives, Maldives  

•  Kuala-Lumpur, Malaysia  

•  Grimsvotn, Iceland  

•   Amsterdam, Holland  

•   Neuschwanstein Castle, Germany                                   

•   Egyptian Pyramids, Egypt  

•   Hong Kong, China  

•  The Iguassu Falls, Brazil  

•  Twelve Apostles Marine National Park, Australia  

•   Sydney, Australia  

•   Buenos Aires, Argentina  

Entry Eleven: Prezi

Prezi.com is such a fun way to present information when PowerPoint just won’t do or when you want to WOW your audience. We have used Prezi for our trainings, to share information with students in a fun way, and even helped students create presentations in Prezi to showcase their skills using this engaging web 2.o tool. See how easy it is to use Prezi by clicking on this short tutorial here.

We used this prezi for our back to school night presentation for our new students and families:

Our students each created a prezi to share their goals and achivements with their families for student led conferences in the fall. Here is an example: The best way to learn Prezi is just to create an account and explore. Maybe you'll create your own back to school night presentation using this engaging tool!

Entry Ten: Vocaroo

Vocaroo is a free, simple tool to use for students to record their writing. There are so many reasons to use this tool in your classroom. Here's the top three reasons to use Vocaroo in your classroom:

1. Use this with students who struggle with conventions. We have found that students who struggle spelling every word and forget punctuation can display different strengths as a writer through using this tool.
2. Use with students who write LONG stories. It is much quicker than asking students to type or rewrite their stories to publish.
3. Share the links online as part of a digital portfolio to share with parents, grandparents, and penpals.

Entry Nine: Voicethread

After sharing some resources and favorite Web 2.0 tools last week with teachers in St. Vrain, we realized that there are so many free Web 2.0 tools that we need to share with educators! Over the course of the next several weeks, we plan to share several resources and tutorials on some of our favorite tools. To begin, we want to showcase Voicethread.com. This wonderful tool is so simple to use for any teacher or student and allows for easy, effective ways for students to publish stories with an authentic audience. The power in Voicethread is the option of having students comment and provide feedback on each other’s work. Check out this video for a quick tutorial on Voicethread and all of its uses.



If you have a Web 2.0 tool that you love or you would like to see showcased on our blog, let us know!