Whenever I attend any sort of conference where there are sessions happening simultaneously, whether an edcamp or a tradition conference, I always experience FOMO – Fear Of Missing Out! Even if I am fully engaged and learning things that blow my mind, somewhere, in the back of my mind, I’m wondering what others are learning in the sessions I am missing. Continue reading
This week I was in a training for a specific online tool and the trainer shared that we could zoom out to see the box we needed to click by pressing the control and minus key. I was so excited about this keyboard shortcut, I showed at least 5 people that same day when I returned to my campus! Why? I love any ANYTHING that will save me time and help me to be more efficient and the right keyboard shortcuts can do JUST THAT! Continue reading
I love creating and sending quick notes of encouragement to teachers and friends. My favorite go-to for creating these was an eCard type app (it was called Red Stamp), but it is no longer available in the app store, and it stopped working (boo). I haven’t found any other ecard app that compares and have been looking for creative ways to pass on positivity and praise. Whether you are experiencing the same sadness over this particular app, or you just want some fresh ideas for sharing feedback, read on for 5 ways to quickly and easily provide positive feedback. Continue reading
I recently gave a math student who had completed all of his work and had a bit of extra time on his hands an extension assignment using emojis. I asked him to create a math problem and gave him the example below which was inspired by the #mathmoji hashtag on twitter: Continue reading
Gamification of learning is an exciting trend in education. I’ve heard of many different schools and districts that are using ideas started in the classroom to gamify Professional Development by offering learn-on-your-own modules that teachers can complete to earn points or badges. I have been interested in this idea and have even started developing ideas for setting up a choice menu and badges for a summer professional development offering for my staff (more details to come 😉 ), but this morning, after listening to a couple of episodes of the Well PlayED Podcast on my morning run, I was inspired to gamify EVEN FURTHER! Continue reading
Have you ever seen a flyer, template, or quote graphic and thought, “How did they make that?” OR if you’re me… “How did they make that SO CUTE?” Continue reading
We are offering a new kind of PD this spring at Ault Elementary inspired by an idea shared by Tricia Reilly @PrincipalReilly at EdCamp Cy-Fair. Instead of a standard “sit and get” we are encouraging staff to get up and move as they listen to an educational podcast of their choice – taking care of their minds and bodies during this stressful time of year! Continue reading
When I was in high school, I recall frequently being divided into groups of four students, each of the four members being given a different section of the textbook to read, and then we would come back together and teach each other the part that we were responsible for. You may know this as the Jigsaw Method.
In this digital age, why not allow students to be more creative than this, use the digital resources freely available online, and create something that they are proud to share with their classmates – or even a larger, global audience? Continue reading
Duplicate yourself and guide each student in your classroom simultaneously by embedding instructions outside of the canvas in google slides and drawings. Continue reading
Often, when we think about school culture, it can feel like something we have no control over. This is a myth! The truth is: a school’s culture is created by every person in the building. So if you’re looking to improve the culture on your own campus, take these three simple steps to make an impact on your school TODAY. Continue reading
