0 Oh Wow! Who Wants to Try This???

With Freckle, your students automatically work on the Math, ELA, Science and Social Studies lessons that are perfect for them. That way, they are always engaged and challenged, never facing material that is too difficult or easy for them.

Teachers can peruse a set of sample student questions as well, allowing teachers to differentiate standards-based content for students (from basic math facts to writing skills to science inquiry lessons)

Upon first logging in, students are prompted to complete a baseline assessment. They'll choose one of the program's 11 domains, targeting either foundational or more advanced skills before answering at least 10 questions. Teachers can use the results to assign students additional practice as needed throughout the program. Students can access Freckle using a tablet or from a web browser.

Freckle has:

• Over 40,000 questions aligned to Common Core and state standards, covering all of K-8 math
• Over 400 non-fiction articles that are written at 5 different levels covering K-12
• Over 2,400 common core aligned videos
• A diagnostic pre-test so every student starts at the right level
• An adaptive engine that automatically gives every student the perfect lesson
• Collaborative features that motivate students to help each other
• Motivating features to make sure students are engaged
• Real-world questions that allow students to practice their math knowledge in exciting real-world settings
• A powerful dashboard so teachers know exactly how students are performing across standards and skills.

Freckle for Grades K-2

Freckle for Grades 3-5

0 So What is an ePortfolio/Digital Portfolio Anyways?

Digital portfolios are:

• Student-driven
• In Seesaw, students “show what they know” using photos, videos, drawings, text, PDFs, and links.
• Collection of digital artifacts representing hard work, creativity and collaboration
• Allow students to show their individuality
• Provide a means of tracking student growth from Kindergarten through high school and beyond.
• And.....One of the most important ingredients in a portfolio is the student’s reflection on their work. Students should include reflections on each performance to clarify why pieces are included in the portfolio. This is perhaps the most valuable part of the portfolio, since it provides a much clearer window into the learning of each student

0 Do Your Students Have Trouble Responding to Other's Work? Do They Always Say "Good Job"?

Having students reflect on their work and their peers may make learning more meaningful for them. Feedback is important part of peer assessments. Students tend to respond better and engage more fully with the feedback they get from their peers than they do with comments from their teachers.

However, sometimes their reflections are superficial like: "Good job!" "I like what you wrote/said!", "I like your story." In order to have your student provide thoughtful and constructive feedback, consider setting expectations from the start of the lesson that peer review is not about judging each other’s work, but helping each other out.

Also, remind students that it is important for the peer feedback to be safe and judgement-free in order for everyone to truly benefit from the feedback.

• Have students focus on the positive aspects of the work before pointing out areas of improvement.
• Show students how they can phrase things constructively. Consider posting these possible prompts so students may refer to them when commenting on other's work in Seesaw.
• Or consider having your students utilize use TAG: Tell them something you learned / Ask a question / Give a compliment
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

0 Don't Forget About Texting Story!!!

Texting Story app allows students to write texting stories between two characters and then saves the conversation as a video. This app is so easy to use and very intuitive! An online version may be found here.

The possibilities are ENDLESS. Here are a few ideas:

• Dialogue between two characters or contributions of historical figures.
• Dialogue on the characteristics of what makes a good digital citizen.
• Conversation between the Bill of Rights / Constitution and citizens.

• Dialogue between fiction and nonfiction / fact or opinion.
• How would you use a specific text feature to help you learn more about a specific topic.
• Describe characteristics of a various types of poems (narrative free verse, limerick lyrical , humorous and how they creates imagery and /or meaning.
• Compare the various forms of energy (i.e. mechanical, sound, electrical, light or thermal).
• Dialogue identifying and comparing the physical characteristics of the Sun, Earth, and Moon.
• Dialogue between synonym and antonym, parts of speech, punctuation, types of sentences or cause and effect..
• Dialogue between the types of season or day or night or rapid changes in Earth’s surface.
• Describe the physical characteristics of place such as landforms, bodies of water, natural resources, and weather.
• Describe tell difference between coins/money ( i.e. nickel and a quarter).
• Why you should know the different ways to do something (i.e. addition and subtraction)?

Check out this example:

• Family discussion about mixtures and solutions ends in argument in form.

0 Flipgrid: Analyze a Nonfiction Text

4th grade ELAR teachers had their students utilize Flipgrid to analyze a nonfiction text to determine the author’s text structure (cause and effect, sequencing, and comparison) and support their thinking with text evidence.

Additionally, students commented to each other’s responses and communicate to their peers (via a response flipgrid) on what they thought was interesting about the text they chose and how the text structure helped them better understand the nonfiction text.

Students loved this activity!

Initial Activity:

  

Student's response to another student:

0 Flipgrid: Student Communication and Formative Assessment!

Flipgrid is a K-12 resource that is designed to promote open discussion between all students within your classroom. Teachers post topics, videos, or links for discussions and students respond to the prompt and to each other with short video reflections. It’s a wonderful resource and Flipgrid offers a free plan as well as paid versions.

Flipgrid is meant to provide a digital space for students to share and reflect on ideas with their teacher and with their peers. It’s a wonderful way to get students participating equally in discussions, and for students to hear their peers voices and insights. FlipGrid is available on the ipads and can be used with Chromebooks.

• Check out this FlipGrid on how educators use FlipGrid in the classroom
• Consider following Flipgrid on Twitter @Flipgrid
• 15 Ways to Use Flipgrid in your class
• 10 Ways to Use Flipgrid beyond the classroom
• Check out the below introduction and student example videos:
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Quick Walkthrough Video from Flipgrid on Vimeo.

0 4C's? Why Yes.....When it is Collaboration, Creativity, Cultural Celebration and Cuteness!

3rd grade students worked collaboratively to research a specific Ethnic/Cultural celebration and created a PicCollage of their findings. The project was uploaded to SeeSaw and students recorded their presentation. The final project is just adorable! 

0 Place Value App Smashing

Utilizing the app, Number Pieces Basic, 2nd graders created base block pictorials and uploaded them into the app, Popplet Lite. Students wrote number sentences in word form, standard form and expanded form. Then they comparied the numbers drawing a greater than/less than symbol. Students took it a step further and uploaded their project to Seesaw and explained their thinking.

I wish I could take credit for this GREAT idea but it was orignally created by Meghan Zigmond.

0 Collaboration (...check), Critical Thinking (...check), Creativity (....check)

An innovated 4th grade teacher, came up with an unique idea for "Geometry in My World"

In teams of two, students worked collaboratively and took pictures of various geometric figures they located in the school. Utilizing the app, TypeDrawing, students wrote well defined attributes of those geometry figures then inserted these photos into a PicCollage.

Their finished projects will be posted in Google Classroom and the students will evaluate each other projects by providing feedback in the forms of two compliments and one suggesting for improvement. 

Nice!

0 Gami Book Reviews!

2nd grade students wrote a book review utilizing the app, Tellagami. Students took pictures of their book for the background of their Gami and completed the below statement stem for their recording. 

"Hello 2nd graders! 

My name is ______________ and I am reviewing the book _________________. 

I think this is a ___________ book for 2nd graders to read because ___________________, ________________, and ___________________.

0 ChatterPix: Super Cute Biography Research

2nd grade students created a construction paper representation of their famous person. Utilizing the Chatterpix app, students recorded who they were, why they were famous and what made them a good citizen.

They turned out super cute!

0 PicCollage: Character Feelings and Emotions

A 1st grade class brainstormed different character feelings and emotions and created a PicCollage poster for their classroom.

0 Stinkin' Cute for 100th Day of School!

Kindergartners used the AgingBooth app then uploaded the picture to ChatterPix answering the following question: When I am 100 years old..... Way too cute!

0 Analyzing Attributes of Persuasive Text and Developing Persuasive Writing Skills with ChatterPix

5th grade teachers combined the literary skills (analyzing the attributes of persuasive text and developing persuasive writing skills) for both reading and writing into a persuasive ChatterPix project. 

Working cooperatively, students created a drawing for a specialty product, planned their “commercial” using the “Commercial Planning Tool” page from Stead and Hoyt’s Explorations in Nonfiction Writing  (as well as a teacher-created rubric), then recorded their commercial using the free app, ChatterPix. The results were entertaining and verified the students’ levels of understanding of persuasive text. 

Below are two finished examples:

0 "App"lifying US Symbols

2nd graders researched one of the following US Symbols and created projects from their research.

• US Flag
• Statue of Liberty
• Liberty Bell
• Bald Eagle
• White House

Two classes chose to app smash with Wordfoto and Tellagami, while the other classes utilized the TypeDrawing  app (paid). Below are a examples of their finished projects.

Wordfotos: Link to FlipBook:

Tellagami / App Smashing:


TypeDrawing:

0 A 2fer: Forms of Energy

Since both of my schools were studying Forms of Energy, I thought why not put both of their project ideas together in one post.

Bam! A 2fer! What a Deal!

3rd grade students at one school, downloaded four examples of forms of energy from Dropbox and utilizing the TypeDrawing app, wrote characteristics for each one. Then the four pictures were uploaded to the Strip Design app. (Direct Link)

My other school utilizied the apps, Wordfoto and Tellegami for their forms of energy project. Students created a Wordfoto brainstorming at least 5 characteristics of their form of energy. Using the Wordfoto as the background for their Tellegami presentation, they recorded what their form of energy was, how is it used and what would happen if they did not have that specific energy.

0 Formative Assessment with Pic Collage? Sure....Why Not?

4th graders went on a scavenger hunt throughout the school taking pictures of different type of resources to depict their understanding of Renewable and Nonrenewable Resources. Below is their final product created with the free app, Pic Collage for Kids.

0 Famous Americans....Captured and QR'd!

An innovated teacher, at on one my campuses, came up with a unique idea for their Famous American curriculum writing project. 2nd grade students researched a Famous American and created apps which represented their specific Famous American.  (See the example below). Once the research was completed, students created short videos (utilization the YouTube Capture app) depicting their Famous American. QR codes were created and added to the ipad template for students/parents to view.

Examples:

0 DoInk: Green Screen App: Ecosystem

3rd graders at one of my schools, created videos using the app, DoInk Green Screen on the topic of Ecosystems. (Note: DoInk is a paid app ($2.99) but well worth the price!)

The students learned how energy flows through an ecosystem and how changes to the ecosystem affect both plants and animals within the ecosystem. For their project, students were in groups of 4 and chose the following job; producer, editor, reporter and camera person. Together they brainstormed a place, an event that would change the ecosystem, and how it affected the plants and/or animals there. Students worked collaboratively to create an idea and wrote a script to produce into a broadcast.

Click here to view the finished products

0 Bam! There it is!

Almost 2 years ago, I blogged about a 5^th grade project on App Smashing…Well, this is worth repeating but this time with another grade level. Third graders researched about a particular planet and created a Wordfoto. Then they added the Wordfoto graphic into the Phoster app. The Phoster was inserted as the background for their Tellagami.  (Bam!! There it is…the three apps, my friends!) Please see the below example:

The lead teacher for this project is phenomenal and always has specific directives and rubrics for the students to follow. Below is a snapshot of the directions and rubric she used. She also gave me permission to share the doc - should you wish to use it. http://goo.gl/tXIXnlLastly......

When I was at TCEA in February, a presenter had used a Symbaloo as a way to showcase the student’s final product. I had already uploaded the Tellegamis to a YouTube playlist but never considered using a Symboloo as showcasing the final products. How is cool is that? What is even neater? There are no suggested videos....anywhere.