ICE TECH 2015 in Springfield

On Thursday, May 7th +Michael Saracini and I took 2 students down to the Illinois State Capitol Building in Springfield. Mike applied months ago for the opportunity and the day was finally upon us. It is a 3 hour ride from suburban Chicago to get to Springfield. We left early and the children were anxious to get there. When we got there one of our students remarked that they had never been through a metal detector before. That's when I realized this was a very new experience for both of them. We got there early, so we set up our table in the south hall on the 1st floor. I have recently broken my leg, so I watched our stuff while Mike and the kids looked around the Capitol Building.

The visit is set up by the Illinois Computing Educators (ICE). The goal of TECH 2015 is two fold, the first is to spotlight the use of technology in the classrooms as a vital tool for students. The second is to shed light on the need for increased funding for Illinois schools.

$3.00 green screen!

                                              

Our goal was for the kids to use the +TouchCast app to create a news video about our visit to the Capitol Building that day. It was Mike's ideas and it was brilliant. I was just there for moral support and to schmooze with the legislators.  I have been doing a lot of Touchcasting lately. It is such a versatile app, as I have said before. Natalie and Angel went around and interviewed participants in our area. They interviewed the president of ICE, Charlene Chausis, a teacher from Murray Elementary Language Academy in Chicago and Senator Napoleon Harris.  They had been practicing and developing their interview style for quite a few weeks and it showed. They both did a great job of creating and asking questions spontaneously of their guests. I was so impressed with their skills. 

Angel interviewing Charlene Chausis

Natalie showing Senator Landek how to use Touchcast

These kids were fearless and they did such a wonderful job interviewing different people with different perspectives on being at the Capitol Building. Sometimes it is hard to believe they are only 5th graders! 

If you are from Illinois and you want to apply to have your students attend, it is really easy to fill out the application form and send it in. The applications open around the first of every year and close in early February. Schools are notified in mid-February. The event is always in May. The ICE committee and its members did an outstanding job organizing and running the event. Thank you to all of them.

Here is the link to their final product! Great job Angel and Natalie! We are so proud of you! 

ICE TECH 1015 Touchcasts

From Senator Landek's Website

For more information on the use of Touchcast visit their website or read this blog post. 

Animal Touchcasts in First Grade

The Process

I have been working in first grade for the last few months. We did an animal unit that incorporated CCSS ELA standards and technology. This particular classroom has iPad minis. It is hard to believe that the teacher +Julianne LaFleur has only had iPads since we returned from winter break.  Julianne has so many great ideas. We had to really narrow them down to get started. She also worked with the Literacy Coach in the building +Leah O'Donnell. Leah got us started. She came in to model close reading of a picture for the class.

Students then went back to their seats in groups by animal and wrote down the very specific things that they saw in the picture. The picture on the SMART Board is a red tree frog. As an example, students would write down - two large red eyes. We encouraged them to use adjectives and not to assume things that were not seen in the picture. For instance, we did not want them to say frogs hop. You can't see that happening in the picture. It was great to have Leah there with us. This project truly was a team effort. I look forward to working with the literacy coaches in the buildings on a more regular basis! Here is the link to Leah's blog.

Students made an I see/ I wonder chart to get them thinking and give them questions to research. It's also a common core standard. We chose to focus on sharks, zebras, gorillas, pandas and walruses. Since they are 1st graders Miss LaFleur gave them some direction. Our areas of concentration, which are evident in the Touchcasts, were characteristics (what do they look like?), diet (what do they eat?), habitat (where do they live?), family survival (how does the mother care for the babies or how do they work as a family unit?) and fun fact (something they didn't know before). Then each animal had one questions specific to it as well. The gorilla specific question was, why does the silver back pound on his chest. Ms. LaFleur with the help of Mrs. O'Donnell set up Blendspaces. The blendspaces were used to help students learn to do research on characteristics, diet, habitat, family survival and the animal specific question. They viewed each Blendspace through one of these lenses in order to know how do their research. Blendspaces are a great platform for sharing different multimedia resources!

Next, I flooded the classroom with fiction and non-fiction texts about the animals that were chosen.  I also brought in biome/habitat books from the public library for the students to use. The school librarian also brought us everything that she had. We used those books and myON digital reading platform for students to do their research. As we did research we continued to emphasize finding information using non-fiction text features.

We are lucky to live near the Brookfield Zoo, so we took a field trip. We were able to see a few of the animals on our list, and talk about our focus areas while standing in front of the animals. The kids had a great time at the zoo. We also did one of the Zoo's programs that talked about the characteristics of the five groups of vertebrates (amphibians, birds, fish, mammals and reptiles). Ms. LaFleur did some prep work for that and the students did a great job in the class talking about the characteristics of the different groups and what makes them alike and different.

It was at this point that we needed to decide how the final product was going to look. Ms. LaFleur had started Keynotes on the iPad with the students, but she was not happy with them. She soon scrapped that idea as the way to share out the final product. I was actually pushing for Book Creator, but the class had already used it quite a bit in the last few months to make projects. We both agreed we wanted something different. That's when I suggested Touchcast. Ms. LaFleur took a look at it and was instantly swayed. It is so versatile. If you have never tried either app you really need to download them on your iPad. They are my two favorite content creation apps. Touchcasts are built on an iPad, but they are viewable through any web browser. Here is a link to Touchcast training videos for educators.

Next each student worked independently to create their own scripts in order to share out the knowledge that they had about their animal. We took the scripts and had each group make one master script for their group. Part of that exercise was to get them to see what was most important. They negotiated with their group the top three facts from each category and wrote them down on the master script. I think one of the best things we did was not have the students memorize the scripts. First of all, that is a huge undertaking for a 1st grader and second of all, it made each Touchcast very unique. You hear some of the same facts, but they each put their own spin on it!

Next we used the Image Searcher app to find pictures for the Vapps portion of their Touchcasts. I like this app but would like to find a better one for next year. Vapps are things that you can add to your Touchcast like, a map, stock updates, social media handles, and many many more. I gave the students about a 6-7 minute overview of the app and then we let them have what I call "sandbox time". Some teachers also call it test driving the app. This where they can test out and play with the different features in an app. This is where we encourage them to make mistakes, to create and recreate. This lasted about 25 mins. This is an important part of the process. Make sure you give your students this time.

We decided that we were going to use the school's green screen so that the students could actually tell us their facts as if they were standing in the animal's habitat. We set up the green screen in the school's library, but it could have been set up in a corner of the classroom. It was nice for me to be able to pull the students out of class to complete the Touchcasts.

Here is a bit of information about setting up and using Touchcast. As stated we used a green screen. We also used a iRig Microphone to capture the sound and a tripod that held the student's iPad minis. There are many out there to choose from. I'm not crazy about the one I bought, so I am not going to link to it here. We used the CAST side of the app. We added the GREEN SCREEN effect. We added Titles. Finally, we added Photo Vapps. As you can see I sat on a chair just next to the iPad. I had students build the entire presentation. I had them practice one time before I pressed record. I prefaced it with "Tell us where you are" and "When this picture pops up what are you going to say about characteristics or food, etc". I pressed the photo Vapps, so that the photos would pop up during the presentation and students could concentrate on telling what they learned during the project. I wish there was a way to save and share out the flubs. They were so cute. For our friends who were really nervous or had a hard time with sharing all that information we used an interview style. Ms. LaFleur joined us in the library during her planning period or had the co-teacher cover. We knew that the students learned the information. It was just a matter of getting it out of them. Just because they couldn't do it totally independently doesn't mean they didn't learn something.

Watch the final products here:

Touchcast Channel

SAMR
Substitution - The technology acts as direct tool substitute, with no functional change - Doing the research using the myON digital reading platform - if used without the sound.
Augmentation - The technology acts as a direct tool substitute with functional improvement -  Doing the research using the myON digital reading platform - with the book being read to the students and the use of the image searcher app. They would never have been able to look through thousands of pictures to find just the right one for them. Also using Blendspace as a repository for all digital multimedia content. 
Modification - The technology allows for significant task redesign - recording their projects in the Touchcast app.
Redefinition - The technology allows for the creation of new tasks previously inconceivable - the immediate feedback possible by sharing out the Touchcasts on this blog and on Ms. LaFleur's blog. There was interest by the Brookfield Zoo and Touchcast Education division on Twitter about the process of completing this project.

The Standards 

Common Core ELA
Informational Texts
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.1.1 - Ask and answer questions about key details in a text. 
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.1.2 - Identify the main topic and retell key details of a text.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.1.4 - Ask and answer questions to help determine or clarify the meaning of words and phrases in a text.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.1.5 - Know and use various text features (e.g., headings, tables of contents, glossaries, electronic menus, icons) to locate key facts or information in a text.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.1.6 - Distinguish between information provided by pictures or other illustrations and information provided by the words in a text.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.1.9 - Identify basic similarities in and differences between two texts on the same topic (e.g., in illustrations, descriptions, or procedures)
Writing
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.1.2 - Write informative/explanatory texts in which they name a topic, supply some facts about the topic, and provide some sense of closure.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.1.5 - With guidance and support from adults, focus on a topic, respond to questions and suggestions from peers, and add details to strengthen writing as needed.
Language
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.1.1 - Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage when writing or speaking.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.1.2 - Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English capitalization, punctuation, and spelling when writing.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.1.4 - Determine or clarify the meaning of unknown and multiple-meaning words and phrases based on grade 1 reading and content, choosing flexibly from an array of strategies.

NGSS
1-LS1-2  - Read texts and use media to determine patterns in behavior of parents and offspring that help offspring survive. 

I had so much fun working with Ms. LaFleur and her talented students!
This is the iMovie I made for the class to say goodbye and document the entire process visually. Enjoy! 
iMovie 

Ed Tech Teacher Summit Boston 2014

Sabba & I before our presentation

I had the pleasure to attend and present at the +EdTechTeacher Summit in Boston November 12-14. On the first day I co-presented with +Sabba Quidwai. The title of our session was iPads in the Elementary Classroom. It was a a full day hands on workshop. We covered many applications during the session, the most popular app, not only in our session, but during the entire conference was Book Creator. While this app cost $6.49, every presenter at the conference agreed it was well worth the money. If you have an iPad classroom you should check it out. There is a free version so that you can preview the app.
Even though we had a lot to cover I think one of the most beneficial parts of our session was when we broke up into groups and everyone was able to share what is working and not working in their own districts. There is something very powerful about being able to tell your own story.

Teachers from all over sharing their stories. 

During the session Sabba and I ran a back channel chat (we used Today's Meet) and we were able to connect with one teacher in particular who was very frustrated by what we were doing. He felt that he could not use the apps we were going over with his students because he did not know them well enough himself. I told him not worry about that. He and his students could learn together. There is no harm in doing that, no matter what the age of the students. I told him the teacher can also be the learner and the teacher is no longer the "sage on the stage" in a 1:1 classroom. It took him awhile to absorb everything, but he seemed to be more comfortable by the time the session was over at 3:30 pm. Thanks to Sabba for such a wonderful experience presenting! If you don't follow her on Twitter you should @askMsQ.


On the 2nd day +Jordan Garrett (@jg_jgarrett) and I presented Bringing PLCs to Life with Google +. This was my first time presenting in front of a large audience of educators that I didn't know. I tried not to think about that fact too much. Our presentation was about using Google + as a communication platform in our district. We chose Google + because we are a GAFE district, meaning all staff has access to Google + Communities. We chose this platform because it is searchable (through the use of keywords and hashtags) and archivable. We have 2 communities. The first one is called The Toolbox.
The Toolbox is a place where staff members can
1. share resources
2. post questions

The resources come in lots of forms:
1. links to favorite apps
2. tutorials
3. curricular ideas.

The posting of questions has taken some stress off of our tech department. Teachers are able to pose questions and get answers in a timely fashion instead of putting in help desk tickets to our tech department. The tech department has also posted tech alerts and tips in The Toolbox. We made The Toolbox private to our domain since there is paid subscription information in it. We also wanted teachers to feel safe to post questions to their colleagues instead of to the entire world.
The second community that we created is called The Fridge. Our superintendent, +Stan Fields , came up with that name. It is a digital repository to post students' finished products, just like you used to post student work on the refrigerator at home. Our students have created some outstanding projects over the last 3 years that we have been 100% 1:1. The projects would just die on their laptop or their teacher's laptop. We wanted our students to know that they have an audience, a wide ranging audience. We are slowing building up the number of projects stored there. Our students are doing great things and we want the world to know about it!

2 Guys Visit South Berwyn

The students and staff of +South Berwyn 100 will benefit greatly from having +Drew Minock and +Brad Waid come and train us on the use of +DAQRI Education 4D Studio. 4D Studio is an augmented reality platform that is far superior to those that are out there. I think it is better than Layer and Aurasma both!

Drew and Brad arrived in Berwyn on Thursday morning. We toured 1 elementary school and 1 middle school. We are well known for our site visits. +South Berwyn 100  has hosted over 600 people from 10 states over the last 3 years. They come to see our 1:1 program in action. Seeing is believing. We saw an iPad classroom, robotics club, Makey Makey, 6th grade language arts and math Macbook classes. Next we went to a planning meeting for our +iEngage Berwyn 2 day Ed Tech conference on May 8-9, 2015. It was great to have input from Brad and Drew. They have been to many national conferences. Brad and Drew along with +Kevin Honeycutt and JohnAntonetti will be featured at the conference. Brad's and Drew's input was invaluable. After that +Shannon Soger and I did the 2 Guys Show live with Brad and Drew. 

During the show we talked about what it takes to have an effective 1:1 program, the power of social media and planning an ed tech conference.  It was so much fun to talk about 2 of my favorite things, social media and the great things we are doing in our district. I love my job! It was so much fun doing the show. I hope you can find some time to watch it. 

On Friday Brad and Drew trained our staff on DAQRI 4D Studio augmented reality platform. Teachers were given release time to attend a half day session to learn how to use 4D Studio and begin to create triggers. We were able to work in our new district professional development room. It is an awesome space for teaching and learning. The first step was to have the team members apply for a free 4D Studio edu license.  Brad and Drew demonstrated many of the pre-made DAQRI products,  Anatomy 4D, Enchantium and Elements 4D. They had us hooked. We saw the power that augmented reality could have in our classrooms. Augmented reality is fun and it brings things into the classroom that we could not bring in on our own. Similar to the way Skype or Google Hangouts bring experts into your classroom. Elements 4D enables the user to interact with 36 naturally occurring elements. The user can see what chemicals like, mercury, look like on their own, or what the chemical reaction would be if any of the elements were combined. Using the app is sure to bring oohh's and aahh's to any classroom! Next we dove into 4D Studio. Drew and Brad showed us how to use all the bells and whistles that go with 4D Studio. You can find 4D video tutorials here. The best part was that teachers were given time to play and build triggers to use in their classrooms before they left. Teachers are working now to create projects with their students. Primarily lower elementary teachers are creating experiences for their students to use in class on the iOS devices and upper elementary and middle school teachers are having their students create their own experiences to share with classmates. We hope to have some triggers ready to publish soon. 

It was a great experience for everyone involved and we look forward to the return of Brad and Drew so that we can show them what teachers and students in our district have created. 

They Will Remember How You Made Them Feel

Today's Big Time Literacy Blog Challenge (#BTBC14) is supposed to be to tell a story about a memorable student.

I was a fourth grade classroom teacher for seven years. During that time I had approximately 190 students, plus all the students that came to me for science, reading and math when we had a departmental model. I can't say that I remember each and every one of them without looking at a class composite. They all gave me something. I never met a kid I didn't like (I never understand when teachers say they hate a kid - I've been very frustrated by my students, but I don't think I ever said I hated any of them). I hope I gave them something too. I am very lucky to teach in a district that hires many of its alumni and community members. I currently work with six former students. Two of them are currently in administrative roles. Not all of them are teachers. Two of them are in our custodial and maintenance department. I see most of them on a regular basis. Most of the time when I look at them I see the student that they were, but I am so proud of the adult they have become. I know it is not all because of me. They had great parents and came from great families with a strong support system in place. As a young teacher I always envied the my colleagues who had students come back to visit them. Usually that was from an exiting grade, either fifth or eighth grades in our district. I am so happy that I see some of my former students on a regular basis and they keep me updated on some of the others that they still talk to on a regular basis. I am honored to call them colleagues! When we have site visits I am always quick to point out to our visitors my former students and those staff members that are D100 alumni.

One of the proudest moments of my career was being recognized at our January Institute day by one of my former students +Bill Jacklin , who is now a PE teacher in our district. He gave a speech in front of the whole district about how +Jane Monaco and I impacted his life. He told a funny story about when he was a student. At the 8:30 mark in this video Bill starts his speech. You can see in the video that I am wiping away tears. I was so touched to be honored by Bill. +Zach Pros , the boy the man, on the far right in the picture above is also a former student. We were presented with flowers and a plaque.

I have this plaque hanging in my office to remind me that every day I have an impact on the lives of the children of South Berwyn, and that I should make all my interactions positive ones. Your students may not remember what you taught them, but they will remember how you made them feel.