Awesome Apps

I wanted to share 3 awesome apps that I started using towards the second half of the school year: Book Creator, Seesaw, and Shadow Puppet EDU. All of these apps were easy for my 3rd grade students to use, but are also appropriate for older students. Basically, I made the apps available and they did the rest! I'm calling them "take it and run with it" apps! I have been able to learn more about the features of each app by following them on Twitter. For that reason, I am including their Twitter handle.

Shadow Puppet EDU

Twitter: @puppet

This app was a great way for my students to share what they learned with others.

The only prep on my part was to give my students a storyboard to help them plan their slideshow. They used the storyboard to record their voice over. At first, they wanted to include a lot of text on their slides, so I had to back up a little to talk about making more effective slideshows.  You can use Shadow Puppet's storyboard or you can easily create your own specific to your task.

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Students can easily find photos with the image search options without even leaving the app. We first used Shadow Puppet after our study of Georgia Regions.

Seesaw

Twitter: @Seesaw

Seesaw is a great learning journal.  Students do not need a username or password.  They can simply scan your class QR Code to log in.  As a teacher, you can decide how your kids log in based on the availability of devices in your class.  I have a class set of iPads, so we use the "individual student sign-in" option.  For classes with limited devices, there is a "classroom sign-in" mode.  You can then choose to allow students to view their classmates' journals or just their own. You can add folders for each subject, if you choose, making this the perfect digital notebook.

When I say this is easy for kids to use, I'm not kidding.  When I first met Seesaw, a kindergarten teacher shared it with me and at first glance, I thought it was a little primary for my students.  Boy! Was I wrong!  The expectation of the teacher is what determines the students' end result.

Why aren't these magnets touching?

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Student Reflection

Imagine a student showing a solution to a math problem and then explaining how they solved it with a voice recording. Awesome! 

A voice recording explains how they solved the problem

Parents can be invited to join and they can like or leave comments on their child's journal post. This is a great way to share the happenings in your class.  Students and teachers can add videos, files, pictures, audio recordings and drawings with a simple touch! I forgot to mention--Seesaw is now available on Chromebooks and Android devices as well as Chrome and Firefox on desktop computers! Awe--some!

Book Creator

Twitter: @BookCreatorApp 

Both of the apps I just mentioned are free.  Book Creator also has a free version so you can try it out.  But believe me, you will definitely want to purchase the app.  Why?  Students can create an unlimited number of books with the paid version. It is so easy to use this program, even I could do it! My kids were so excited to become real authors and share the books they created with others. Students can upload their books to iBooks or export them as a PDF file to print or as a video to post to the web.

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Everyone was busy adding books written by their classmates to their iBooks shelf. The next day it was no surprise that everyone wanted to read books written by their classmates during independent reading.

Sharing Books using AirDrop

I haven't even begun to tap into the power of Book Creator. Students can collaborate on books. They can work on their own section and then combine the books for a collaborative effort.  You can create class books by assigning a section to individuals or small groups. A few weeks ago I realized that I could use this app to write (for lack of a better word) "textbooks" for my class and then share it with them using AirDrop.  Hummm, that sounds like a good summer project!

Like I said before, you will definitely want to follow these apps on Twitter. Just enter their Twitter handle in the search and you will find tons of resources and ideas to help you use these tools in your classrooms.   I'm so excited about the possibilities!

My Summer PD

Today was the beginning of my summer break and after I woke up naturally (no alarms going off) and took the dogs out, I sat down at my computer; just to see what was happening in the world. And I am so glad I did. First, I ran across a post about the different types of blended classes, which got me thinking about my flipping experience.

When I first started flipping, I taught fifth grade and I flipped my math class in the traditional way: students watched videos at night, took notes, and completed an online quiz or used Google Doc to show their understanding. Then in class, we were able to spend time doing more hands-on type activities. Later, I added science to the mix.

Flipping math and science gave me so much time in class to do hands-on activities and labs. After doing it this way for a couple of years, I found myself moving to 3rd grade; with a much younger bunch of students. How would this work with 3rd-grade students?  I must admit I was a little worried. But I knew the value of flipping a class so I couldn't give it up!

Moving to 3rd grade meant that I needed to tweak how I flipped my class. Initially, I still assigned videos, but I saw that most of the students ended up watching them in class; which was perfectly fine! Actually, it probably worked out better for this age group. They could watch in class and then work on activities after they finished.  I was also there to immediately address any questions they had.

Next year, it will be that way by design. Of course, students can still review the videos at home,   I've been reading more about in-class flips or in-flip and it seems like that's the direction I'm headed in.  I just read in a newsletter from Jon Bergmann and Aaron Sams how Randy Brown flips his 3rd-grade class.  He divides the class into 2 groups.  While 1 group watches the video, he helps the other group complete work. Essentially he lowers his student-teacher ratio by cloning himself!



No, I won't spend my entire summer reading or planning. I will go the beach and be mesmerized by the waves coming and going, but until that happens you can find me online @shefish52.

Do you flip a younger class?  

Please share what you have found to be successful in the comments below.

You Are Awesome!

Someone recently told me I was an awesome teacher.  I said that to say most days I don't feel so awesome! I haven't won any awards, or published any books; which is something I have wanted to do since I was in the fifth grade.  In fact most days I feel overwhelmed.  I feel like there was something else I should have done or could have done to reach my students. It seems there is always a lesson that I didn't get to, something that will have to wait until the next day.  It goes without saying that most teachers probably feel overwhelmed at one time or another.  Don't they?

I also think there are a lot of wonderful teachers who don't hear how awesome they truly are.  So the next time you get a chance, take a moment to tell another teacher how awesome you think they are. They will appreciate it, even if they don't happen to be feeling it at the moment!  

Image Courtesy of Angela Williams

The Biggest Loser

For some strange reason I was laying in bed thinking about dresses.  I don't own many dresses and the few I do own are all different sizes reflective of (how shall I say this?)  how large or small I have been throughout my life. Even though I have donated a lot of my clothes from time to time, for some reason I still have different sized dresses hanging in my closet.  The problem is they simply don't fit.

I'm beginning to think this describes me teaching third grade. Like my dresses, I have taught a lot of different grades. I've actually taught all grades from kindergarten to fifth.  And like my dresses I have loved them all.  Except for this one!

If I may be honest this has been a difficult change for me: moving from fifth to third grade.  When I think about the other times I have switched grades, they were gradual changes.  I didn't notice them as much.  I moved up or down 1 grade at a time.  From first to kindergarten, K back to first, then K-1, even K-1-2, I skipped third, then fourth and fifth before moving down to third.  Without revealing my actual dress size, it was pretty much the same with my dresses.  I moved up or down just a little so the difference wasn't that noticeable.  I transitioned into each new grade level (like my dresses) smoothly.  So when I thought about going down to third grade, I thought that transition would be just as smooth. . . Easy Peasy. . . WRONG!

It's a whole lot harder to move down 2 dress sizes than it is to go up one!  You've got to change things to be successful: your eating habits, exercise more . . . .  And that takes work!  So with third-grade, I have had to change how I do some things.  Nothing drastic, but still changes needed to be made to make that dress fit comfortably.

I've changed things like only eating snacks at tables.  That "working snack" thing did not work! Wrappers were left here and there . . . crumbs on the floor.   And calling one table at a time to come to the carpet instead of the whole group or saying the "Word of the Day" as a signal to move from one place to another.

Maybe I'm thinking about this because it's time to fill out the form to say what position I would love to have next year and it would be so easy to slip back into that larger dress size.  It's so comfy!  But would it be the best?  I must say, there are some days this third-grade dress fits much better than others.

I think I'll keep working out to make it a comfortable fit. . .

Holiday Wishes!

Life Lessons

Image from The Six Steps to Overcoming Adversity

The Internet is down at our house (we're switching plans) so I decided to go to our local coffee shop to work on lesson plans for the week and enjoy a Passion Tea Lemonade with a Peppermint Bliss Bar (compliments of my sweet class).  As I was sitting in one of the comfy chairs a young lady walked up to me and asked "Do you mind if I sit here?"  and I replied "Of course not!  Please, have a seat!"

This immediately made me think of what I am trying to teach my students on a daily basis - lessons they can use throughout life.  Instead of having a designated door holder, I teach my students how to hold the door for the person coming behind them and to say "thank you" and "you're welcome"  as they take hold of the door before going through.

Another life lesson we work on is choosing our seats.  I have a couch and ottomans that students can sit on during our whole group lesson. Needless to say, these are popular seats in my class. While students are gathering for our group, it is inevitable that someone will need to go back to their table for a pencil, a book, or something.  So as others join the group they should ask if someone was already sitting in one of those spots before they sit down. We practice saying things like "Excuse me, is someone sitting here?"  before taking a seat.

My goal is not to control who sits where, but to help them understand that kindness and respect goes a long way.   Do they always get it right?  No!  But we're working on it.

Now, thanks to a very polite stranger, I have a new phrase to share next week, "Do you mind if I sit here?"  I think that one will work well with choosing seats in the lunchroom, don't you?

Multiplication Madness

 I found these free Multiplication Multiples on Judy Hopf's Teacher Pay Teacher Store. I knew I wanted to use them in my class but wasn't sure exactly how.  Then it hit me!

I inherited a Multiplication Race Track display when I moved to my new room this year. I loved it and didn't want to take it down.  So I paired the two together for a perfect math center. I added the Multiplication Multiples to the track and the kids now have a great way to practice their facts.  Here's how.

Have you ever used number ladders for students to learn their facts?   The students bounce a tennis ball as they say the multiples for the digit they are working on.  Brain research says that the bouncing and repetition of the multiples makes the learning stick for the kids.

They also build arrays, use Cuisenaire rods and lots of other multiplication partner games from K-5 Math Teaching Resources to help them learn their facts. Then it's time to assess.

I must say up front that I am not a fan of timed tests. OK, I feel better now.  Having said that, each child takes a test for whichever number they are working on.  We call them "Scoops Test".  I got the "Scoops Test" idea from Laura Candler many, many years ago when I taught fourth grade.  I tried to find a link on her website, and on her TPT store, but I couldn't find it.  I was able to find a link to her multiplication and division sample pack. She has changed it a bit since I used first used it.

Here's what we do.  To get ready for their test, each student writes the number they are working on 10 times down their paper.

 Once everyone has their paper ready, I call out numbers 0-10 (in random order) and they add the second factor to their paper.  To make sure we all start at the same time I say a little chant that goes like this:  "Raise your pencils in the air, and wave 'em like you just don't care.  If you're ready to take this scoops test, somebody say Oh Yea!" and the kids respond loudly, "Oh Yea"!  They have 1 minute to write their answers.

Once they have passed their test (with 100%), I make a note of the date on my recording form.  That way I can check-in with any students who get stuck for too long.

They color in the next "scoop" (get it:-))  on their recording sheet and move their popsicle sticks to the next number on the board. When I originally used this idea, each student had a cone on a bulletin board, and they added scoops to their cone as they passed their test.  You can get the student recording sheet and scoops from Digital Classroom Clipart's TPT store.

Now they are ready to practice the multiples for their next number.   Each student keeps their recording sheet glued on the last page of their math journal.  When the class learns their facts we will have an ice-cream party to celebrate!

I wasn't going to put the sticks in the pockets, but they wanted to.  The sticks have their student number written on them. I also added the Touch Math Memory Cue Poster so my students can make the connection when they are multiplying.  It has become a popular center in my room.  What do you do to help your students learn their facts?