App EXTRAS!

Where in the app world do you find fab apps?! It takes a lot of searching, reviewing, and playing to find some great ones, but don't worry, I've done it for you! 

Previously, I wrote about FREE Math, FREE Literacy, and apps you SHOULD pay for. Right now, let's talk app extras that ROCK!! These are apps that may not fit directly into math or literacy curriculum, but are add-ons that you definitely need for your tech literate classroom.  

This list was super hard to compile - great apps are coming on the market every day.  It is a great place to start though, let's chat a little more about my absolute favs. 

Read a little more about my love affair with Showbie - using our iPads with Showbie makes life A LOT easier. There is just so much you can do with it!

Another MUST in an iPad classroom is a QR scanning app. QR codes are a fun, fast, and logical way to get appropriate content to your students. Here is an example of how we use QRs in our classroom.

This one is both for parents and kids. Remind makes easily communicating with parents in a timely fashion a breeze! Plus you have a record of all your parent contact - hello Danielson teacher evaluation domain 4 - check and check!

Telestory is a fun way to get creative with story making and can get some of your reluctant kiddos rolling!

Last, you are going to think I am crazy. Which I am, but thats besides the point.  Here are three apps that help kids learn to code. I know, my students are 5/6 yrs old. CODING?! No, I can't make you try it, but you should.  

I was VERY skeptical when I introduced Lightbot for Hour of Code this year. HOLY SMOKES! Did my kiddos not only GET it, but the LOVED it!  And...they sat together trying to brainstorm and figure out the code. As in, without my direction, my 5/6 yr olds discussed, problem solved, and collaborated on a topic.  It was INSANE watching and working with them on figuring it out.  Some of the kiddos like Lightbot, which takes more of a lineal path to coding.  Others like Scratch Jr. which is like building a scene that you create code to make the characters function. I could talk about this for hours, but I won't bore you. Ha!

If you want to try some of these bad boys out before getting your kiddos involved, just scan the QRs above. They will take you directly to the app store where you can download the apps for yourself.  

Still looking for more? Download my FREE App Ready Pack, complete with QR cards to help your kiddos access the apps too! If you're just getting started, here are some tips and tricks for ya!

Thanks for stopping by, I would love to hear about the apps that WORK for you and your classroom!

Why 1:1 Technology Matters

I teach at a school where 83% of our students are low income. All my kids have iPads (that they take home). And we are all Kinders. These three things in isolation are not all that unique, but when you put them together, our classroom and school becomes one of a kind.


Putting technology into the hands of young, inquisitive, active minds, who would otherwise may have limited access to it, opens the doors of differentiation, project based learning, extending the school day, instant engagement, and increased home-school connection.

I have recently read on a few forums posts where teachers have asked, "Why does technology matter?" or "We are looking to gain more technology in our buildings, what are the pros and cons of iPad carts or 1:1 technology?"  There is so much more that goes into it than just a simple "reply." 

Soooo....below are the five components of integrating technology (for all grade levels) than I find extremely important: differentiation, project based learning, extending school day, instant engagement, and increased home-school connection. I am by no means an expert at integrating technology, but I love the opportunities it presents to my classroom and have explored many aspects by trial and error. Since I am most familiar with iPads, I will mainly talk about those devices. Here we go...

Differentiation

We all have students who have never been with a group of children before and those who have been in school for two years as well as attending all the museums in the city a million times.  Putting all these students into the same class presents quite the quandary for teachers. Enter iPads. Each student can have individualized apps that fit their learning profile. Once the app is no longer needed, move it to a folder for "old apps." Ok, that's easy, what else?

How about uploading all those PDFs, teacher created materials, worksheets, pictures, etc to the iPads for students to edit? I can upload 2nd grade material to Maggie's iPad and letter tracing to Emily's iPad. They can then work (write on, fill in, edit, draw) and submit work back to me - in class, homework, you name it. I use Showbie for this, but you can also use Schoology, Google Classroom, etc. More on how I use Showbie here.

Your kids can also record themselves reading for reading responses, research through YouTubeKids using a voice search, compare work samples, and watch center instructions. 

And YES! My 5- and 6-year-olds do all of this! Does it take training and time? Of course. But the results are exponential. 

Project Based Learning

Above, I touched on research through YouTubeKids. We just finished a unit on the rainforest. After the kids did a graphic organizer on Showbie, they went to the YouTubeKids app to research rainforest animals. Can anyone spell those words correctly? Not really...so they press the microphone next to the search bar and voila - voice activated research. Oh, and I should mention, it was one of my little ones who figured that out. :o)

In K, it's a little harder, but for older grades, you can give your students a task, give them app choices, have the work flow (Showbie) set for for submission, and you are off!

Students can create a portfolio of resources on their iPad, and share out the finished product using Air Play or uploading their project to Showbie, Schoology, or Google Drive. 

Extending the School Day

The driving force for our district being 1:1 technology is to extend the school day. The entire district hovers around 80% low income families - hard working parents with multiple shifts or night shifts, kids spending time at extended families' homes, packed schedules - you know, such is life. Giving our students a tool to take with them at the end of the school day that can be used wherever they go to promote learning, is priceless. Our students have textbooks, trade books, reading and math programs, writing tools, all at their disposal on one device. They have it for weekends, sick days, etc. Which brings me to the next topic...

Home-School Connection

Not only do I use Showbie for submission of work, but I can message my students and receive messages from parents looking for clarification on work. Sure, they can e-mail me too, but messaging through a platform on the iPad allows the students to do it too, so that they can also take ownership of their education. We use Remind (a text messaging service) on the iPads too. The app is on the iPad, I send out a reminder or note I want the parents and kids to see. The kids get the reminder on their iPad, and parents get it sent to their phone. The parents cannot text you back, so it is kind of a one-way street to disseminate information, but that's why I have the message function in Showbie. 

Instant Engagement

Let's be honest, iPads make things fun. Why do adults buy iPads? For the apps, accessibility, the small, compact nature of the device and to available via social media. Why do kids like iPads? To have ownership, to pay games on apps, and to stay current with friends and family. iPads are highly desirable and many companies have excellent resources for choosing apps and implementing an iPad classroom.

Thoughts to Consider

Going 1:1 is a HUGE task. What works for us-each teacher has a iPad cart, each cart having its own ID. We check in devices at the beginning of the year and out at the end. Damages are assessed by the principal and students are in charge of covering a percentage of the repairs. 

My district does both personal sight visits and virtual sight visits, which is an awesome way for both in district teachers to learn from each other and interested parties outside of the district to get a feel for what goes on here. 

If you are looking for helpful apps we use, I will be posting about that soon - didn't want to add much more length to this post!

Anyone have suggestions for using tech in K? I would love to hear how you are using iPads in your classroom!

Five for Friday - Instagram Tech Link Up

Helloooo there! Happy Friday all! I am super excited because I have been working all week on organizing a little Instagram link up and today is the day it goes out! Hooray!

Theses three sweet gals (Shanda, Andrea, and Marie have teamed up with me to provide a few tech tips and FREEBIES on Instagram. So head on over there, click my post, and click on through til you get each of our tips. I hope you gain some good resources from it and share some back with us!

 

 We are learning about the rainforest this week and today was parrots. After we read a non-fiction book on parrots, I projected this graphic organizer (grab it for FREE here) on the Smart Board and modeled how to fill it in.  Then the kids went off and worked on it (in Showbie) in their bubble spaces. As they worked, I walked around and read the book again to give them some ideas. I also posted words they would need to write next to the Smart Board (sorry no picture). After the kiddos filled our the organizer, they went on to step 2. Step 2 was to use the ideas to write 4 sentences on "things we know about parrots." I am AMAZED at what my kiddos came up with and the completion rate for my kids. Tomorrow we are going to continue to share with peers and next week we will publish digitally. Wowza. They are a pretty awesome bunch.

 Mmmm molten cookie... Is it bad that I have had this for dessert almost every night this week? Put a scoop of vanilla on top and it is sinful. #cookieaddict

Has anyone else seen this?! Thank you Google for making sure I don't look like a crazy who never attaches the attachments. Also kind of creepy....but I am for it! 

Last, obligatory dog picture. This week it's my two sleepy heads. I wish you could see how little room/blankets/comfort I have right now, but they are happy, so it's cool.

Also, HUGE thanks again to these ladies for helping me out and collaborating for my first tech link up on Instagram!

Shanda at The Little Teachers Who Could
Andrea at Always Kindergarten
Marie at Once Upon a Classroom

Lastly, my Friday Freebie  is the graphic organizer I used above! Check out some more Friday Freebies here:

Repost Showbie for Tech Tuesday

Linking up with Once Upon a Classroom this week for a re-share of my post on Showbie.

I love Showbie for student engagement during the day as well as for the home-school connection. You can upload documents, send voice messages, pictures, etc...Ok I am getting ahead of my self...

When I started teaching with two iPads last year, they were a way for me to reach students who were A) disengaged, B) bored, or C) in need of an extrinsic motivator.

Now, I can use each child's iPad to differentiate to ability level, in addition to using apps. Through the app Showbie, I can provide differentiated instruction, while using iPads.  Don't tell my kids, but I am tricking them into learning by making it fun AND relevant.

I have already posted on Showbie here and here if you are interested - but this week I wanted to talk about how we are actually using it in the classroom.

One of which is during Read to Self. Oh. em. gee. Read to Self was a little painful for those non-readers for a bit. Enter the iPad... and not so much anymore! After my littles spend 5 minutes practicing their book in Read to Self, I let them take out their iPad and record a video of themselves reading.  And BAM, reading is fun again.

After they record, my littles upload to Showbie so that I can see what they did, I have a record of what they are reading, and I can provide differentiation based on their comprehension, fluency, etc.

Here is a PERFECT example - a child who is very shy and talks little to adults in class. And look at all these uploads!

It is also absolutely hilarious to see what is going on in the background and the conversations I am having with other students.  Want a good laugh? Subscribe to my Showbie account, I wish you could. Hilarious. But then again, you know that because you also teach primary - I am assuming. :o)

Anyways, I digress. 

Another great daily Showbie routine is morning calendar. Each morning, the kids have a choice to do either the calendar app, or their Showbie calendar. Credit goes completely to our bilingual teacher, Lily, here for coming up with this idea. 

In Showbie, there are three pages which the kids can use to tell us the date, day, number of the day, weather, sight word, etc.  I usually then project one of my lil volunteers on the SmartBoard to keep engagement high.

Next post I will give out some more Showbie ideas and maybe talk about parental involvement? We shall see, there is just SO MUCH you can do!

Thanks for stopping by, leave me a comment or two! 

Showbie in ACTION!

Skeptical on what kindergarteners can do on iPads beyond apps?

Don't be! Kinders can TOTALLY do more on iPads than we can imagine. I mean, my attitude has completely changed over the course of this year, and I am sure I will continue to be surprised!

When I started teaching with two iPads last year, they were a way for me to reach students who were A) disengaged, B) bored, or C) in need of an extrinsic motivator.

Now, I can use each child's iPad to differentiate to ability level, in addition to using apps. Through the app Showbie, I can provide differentiated instruction, while using iPads.  Don't tell my kids, but I am tricking them into learning by making it fun AND relevant.

I have already posted on Showbie here and here if you are interested - but this week I wanted to talk about how we are actually using it in the classroom.

One of which is during Read to Self. Oh. em. gee. Read to Self was a little painful for those non-readers for a bit. Enter the iPad... and not so much anymore! After my littles spend 5 minutes practicing their book in Read to Self, I let them take out their iPad and record a video of themselves reading.  And BAM, reading is fun again.

After they record, my littles upload to Showbie so that I can see what they did, I have a record of what they are reading, and I can provide differentiation based on their comprehension, fluency, etc.

Here is a PERFECT example - a child who is very shy and talks little to adults in class. And look at all these uploads!

It is also absolutely hilarious to see what is going on in the background and the conversations I am having with other students.  Want a good laugh? Subscribe to my Showbie account, I wish you could. Hilarious. But then again, you know that because you also teach primary - I am assuming. :o)

Anyways, I digress. 

Another great daily Showbie routine is morning calendar. Each morning, the kids have a choice to do either the calendar app, or their Showbie calendar. Credit goes completely to our bilingual teacher, Lily, here for coming up with this idea. 

In Showbie, there are three pages which the kids can use to tell us the date, day, number of the day, weather, sight word, etc.  I usually then project one of my lil volunteers on the SmartBoard to keep engagement high.

Next post I will give out some more Showbie ideas and maybe talk about parental involvement? We shall see, there is just SO MUCH you can do!

Thanks for stopping by, leave me a comment or two! 

iPad Platforms for K

Last week, I posted on organizing iPads for kindergarten to make them most useful day to day.  One of those things is the Showbie app, which I use for my classroom platform. I could NOT be truly effective using iPads without it!

What is it?
Showbie is an app that allows you to upload any PDF, picture, video, or voice memo and send to all of your students. It is a way to send home homework, notes, help students self-monitor improvement, use for center responses, in guided reading, etc.

Why use it?
It streamlines the work you are giving students, cuts down on issues at the copier, reduces paper waste, and provides for both differentiation and immediate student feedback.  The parents also have constant access to student progress and can message you questions, concerns, etc.

Disclaimer: I do understand the need for developing fine motor skills, so we are definitely not completely paper free in my class. The kids also use stylus's to help develop fine motor.


Here is what my Showbie looks like from the teacher perspective.

If you click on an assignment such as "Monday Homework" it brings you here.



Now you can see my last three Monday homework assignments. It can be a document or an uploaded video of you reading. This is what the kids see on their iPads. They can edit each document, send me a note, upload a video, etc. When they make edits it goes directly to me and no one sees their edits.  When I edit the document though, everyone gets it.

Think of it this way - You are virtually passing out papers, and getting them back to grade. Then editing them and handing them back to the students. But, it is SO FAST this way!

Ok, so how do I see the assignments? Just click on "Shared Folder" and then the little people sign in the upper right. Then you can see a list of the kiddos and who has completed the assignment, Just click on the name to grade.  After you press "done" they get the edit.

Want to change an assignment? Just click the tool sign.

Ok here's where it gets fun - uploading documents. Click this little plus sign in the corner. Here is where you add pictures, comments, voice notes, etc. If you want to add a PDF or other file we have to go through Google Drive.

You can actually upload PDFs or other documents two ways, but this is the Google Drive way. If you don't already have Google Drive on your iPad, download the app - l.i.f.e. saver.

Open Google Drive > open your document > click "i" in corner

Click "open in."

 Click "open in" again.

Click "Open in Showbie"

Here it will tell you what folder you are putting the document into. If it is not the right folder, you can exit out, open the folder in your Showbie app, and repeat the process.

Once you click "Add File" it is in and ready to go!

What is really nice, is that you can differentiate work for each student. You can click on a student and upload things only for them, which is fabulous.

Next time, I can go through that process and I will also do a tutorial on uploading from your computer. Uploading files can be a little confusing at first, but once you get the hang of it, this process makes like so much easier! Plus, you cut down on copy time, paper usage, and copier problems - hip hooray!