What's New in the Nest...

Well, I have been absent from here for a while. It wasn't a conscious decision. I, like most teachers/moms/people I know just got busy.

A lot is happening in my little corner of the world though. My class is starting our Lego stop motion movies using the iPod touches I acquired through grants from the Assistance League of HB, Disneyland, Chevron, Kids in Need Foundation, Huntington Beach Educational Foundation and a classroom donation. We are using Stop Motion Studio and iMovie to help us make these fun projects. We are going to have a red-carpet premiere in May for our parents and families.

We just finished our second round of Benchmark testing for our district. I am proud to say, my student showed improvement and I am a proud teacher! We learned from our first Benchmark and made some changes to our game plan and it helped! We still have a ways to go, but we are making great strides toward mastery of our standards.

I just installed Apple TV in my classroom. I love that I can show my iPad on the SMARTBoard and instruct students using apps and other iPad tools. We can also listen to music, watch instructional videos and tap into other great instructional materials.

I started using SMART Response Clickers in my classroom over a year ago. However, I never really started using them until last week. I had the opportunity to attend a training class at CCS Presentations by the awesome Nicole. I learned so many great things I can do with the clickers. They have now become an integral part of my instructional plan. The kids love using them and I love having data throughout the day to drive my instruction and make decisions about student knowledge and outcomes. If you haven't seen what these can do and how they can help you and your students, you should really check it out! Here is a video that will give you an idea of what it's all about. So awesome!

Well, that's about all... I will try not to stay away so long next time. Just having fun doing my thing! 

Technology for Teachers

I love technology! Finding ways to use it in my classroom and to make the job of teaching more fun and manageable is the greatest thing in the world. This year I am looking for more ways to integrate technology into both my teaching and management.

Last year I was fortunate enough to be awarded a grant to purchase SMART Response Clickers. They are awesome. I used them a little last year, but I am going full force this year. The kids have a great time using them and I love the instant feedback I get right on my computer. I use question sets I find on the SMART Exchange website as well as question sets I create to go with what I am teaching. My favorite thing about my SMART Response Clickers is that every kid has to respond, every time. No one gets skipped, no one can hide and there is no pressure to answer before your neighbor.

My iPad 2 is another one of my favorite tools to use when I teach. I love my SMART Board, but don't enjoy being tethered to it. I tried using an Airliner tablet, but never really got the hang of writing on it and not having a frame of reference of where I was on the board. I took advantage of an inservice opportunity at the Orange County Department of Education last year and learned about an App that has made my iPad an invaluable tool. It's called Spashtop. Using Splashtop allows me to mirror my computer screen on my iPad. I can hold my iPad and operate my computer and SMART Board from anywhere in the room without wires. It is awesome! I can move around, interact with students all over the room and make lessons dynamic. Check out their website and see if this would be a good solution for you and your teaching.

Pinterest came through for me again! I found a pin for Remind 101 and I am singing it's praises. This App allows me to use text messages to communicate with my students' parents. In this day of instant communication, using text messages helps parents and students stay updated and informed quickly and efficiently. I like Remind 101 because it keeps my phone number private and makes texting easy. I can schedule texts for future delivery, too. I am looking forward to using this a lot this year!

I am hoping to use our school's new N-Computing system this week with my students. Six computers running off of one tower. So far, I love it. The clean design and lack of hardware and cords everywhere has really improved my classroom decor. After we have a chance to use them this week, I'll weigh in on how they function.

Have a great week!