Top Tech Tip #4 - 3 iPad Apps to Assess Reading Fluency and Track Comprehension

This weeks top tip is on 3 iPad Apps to Assess Reading Fluency and Track Comprehension.  In the original post I shared 3 apps that would track fluency and comprehension. These apps are useful, but I wanted to add some alternatives for those teachers who do not have access to an iPad.  One alternative is using Evernote.  I shared some links below on how other teachers are using Evernote to track fluency and comprehension notes on students.

• Penultimate-iPad App
• Using Evernote to Record and Track Fluency
• 2nd Grader Explaining how she uses Evernote to record fluency

I hope these are helpful and I would love to help you get started using Evernote in your classroom next year.

Top Tech Tips #3- Kidblog in the Classroom

The third most popular post this year was Kidblog in the Reading Classroom.  This post highlights many of the great ways you can use Kidblog in your classroom and it also includes some great resources to help you get started using this tool.  I have also prepared some instructional videos to help you get started as well.  They are located on the Kidblog organized technology resources page. 

This site is a great tool for the classroom and we will be offering a session on it at our Ed Tech Camp on June 10th.  Matt Hardy the co-creator of Kidblog is joining us to share why blogging is important, how to best use Kidblog in the classroom, and to highlight some of the new features.  Please sign up for this session to take part in this great learning opportunity. 

Also, please let me know if you are interested in using this tool next year.  I would love to plan how this could be utilized in your classroom.

Evernote in Education Part 2

Evernote is one of my favorite tools both in my personal life and professionally.  In this post I am compiling resources that will help you get started using Evernote as a tool both as teacher and to help organize your life.  I have listed resources below that will provide you with plenty of information on how to use Evernote and how other teachers are utilizing this tool.

Evernote in Education Livebinder - This online binder is filled with tons of great resources and ideas to help you get started using Evernote.

Evernote for Teachers - Evernote itself has created a page for teachers.  This page includes programs that Evernote works with and also has an hour long webinar about Evernote for teachers.

Pinterest Board of Evernote in Education -This Pinterest board has tons of great resources to get started using Evernote

The Ultimate Simplified Guide to Using Evernote - This final resource is a simple guide to using Evernote for instruction and how your students can use it as well.

Remember Evernote is one of many tools out there, but this free tool has many implications for data collection, goal setting, and instruction.  I would love to meet and plan how you could use this tool in your classroom.

Primary Docs, Live Stats, and Game Based Vocabulary

This week we are taking a break from iPads and I found some resources that focus on some specific areas and grade levels.  I will list the grades and skills I would recommend using each of these sites for.  If you have any implementation questions let me know.

Social Studies - 7-12

I came across this presentation by Richard Byrne about using primary sources in your classroom.  He gives some great suggestions in his presentation of various sites that you can use.  I would highly recommend checking these out.  If you view his presentation you can click on the slides and it will take you directly to the site he is talking about.  Here is his Link to information and presentation 

Math - 5-12 - Stat Silk
As you are teaching various levels of math I am sure you have searched for real life data to analyze in your classrooms.  I came across this interactive map site called Stat Silk which allows you to select the data you want to analyze and it will create a graph and data table for you to use.  This site seems really easy to use and allows you to quickly sort and analyze data on the fly.  Please leave a comment below on how you have been able to implement this tool.  

Here are some implementation ideas:

• practice reading graphs (great for MCA practice)
• critically analyzing data and brainstorming cause and effect 

Vocabulary Building K-12:

I also found this great site on Richard Byrne's site Free Technology for Teachers.  This site is a game based learning site based on the foundations of the dictionary.  This site blends interactive video vocabulary with word-based learning games.  Teachers can measure progress and performance through this site and students can learn through games.  Check out this site at Wordia

 (adapted from posts by Richard Byrne - Free Technology for Teachers

3 iPad Apps to Assess Reading Fluency and Track Comprehension

A teacher asked me for a fluency app that would track students fluency so they could listen to it when they are finished.  Below are three apps that I found during my search.

 

Record of Reading:

The record of reading app allows you to record a student reading a passage and fill out a running record form simultaneously.  It has some shortcuts to save you time while you fill out the running record and the student's audio will be attached to the running record.  You can then email this record or save it.  This app is very easy to use and is a great way to keep running records of students reading.

 

Running Record Calculator:

This app is also very easy to use and quickly allows you to record students reading and then mark their errors and WPM.  Once you click record you can flag parts of the audio to go back to later.  When the student finishes the reading you enter the WPM, Errors, and SC.  The app will automatically calculate the accuracy for you.  In the Lite and  Pro Version you can email yourself the record, but with the pro version it will attach the audio to the email so you can listen to it again.  This app would be a great way to keep track of student's reading accuracy throughout the year.

Readers Workshop:

This app is my favorite.  It is very similar to a pensive you would use with the Daily 5/Cafe.  It allows you to keep track of your conferring with students.  You can track how they are doing on different comprehension strategies by clicking on a rating scale.  You can also save notes about that student and the book they are reading.  My favorite feature is that you can record audio of yourself or the student that is part of your conference notes.  The app will then create a graph of their progress and allow you to easily go back and check in on each student.  This would be a great app to collect data on your students during conferring sessions.

2 SMART Board Tips and 10 Google Search Tips

Since many of you have SMART Boards in your room or may use the software to create lessons I am going to share two tools that will save you time and enhance your instruction. 

Dual Page and Pin Page
Many times during a lesson you want to show two pages or keep one page stationary and scroll through other pages.  This tool works great in math if you want to keep the teaching example up and scroll through other pages while students are continually referring back to the example.  This may also be helpful in reading to keep a passage up and scroll through some questions or prompts that get students thinking while they are still able to see the passage page.  Below I have created a short video explaining how to create both a dual page and how to pin a page.

 



Internet Browser in SMART Notebook
When I have created lessons in SMART Notebook I include links that allow me to navigate to a internet browser outside of the software.  Now SMART has included a browswer within their software so you can include that in your lessons.  In the video I show how to quickly and easily drag images from this browser to use in your lessons.  I also show how to add these images to "My content" for later use.  This tool allows you to easily navigate to a internet browswer within the flow of your lesson.  Below is the video explaining how to insert a browser and how easy it is to use.

Ten Google Search Tips for Kids
I have seen some of the searches that kids do on Google.  No wonder sometimes their searches do not come up with the information they expect.  The document below gives you ten Google search tips you can implement in your classroom.

Techniques Google Search Star

2 sites full of K-12 Interactive Resources for SMART Board

I usually do not post huge lists of resources, but this Livebinder and website are definitely exceptions.  We have so little time in the day and sometimes finding time to create our own resources can be difficult. These websites have tons of interactive resources organized by topic that you can use on your SMART Board.  I would highly recommend checking these out!

1. http://bit.ly/SIVXCI
2. http://bit.ly/S5IIuR

Scholastic Thanksgiving Resources for K-12

Scholastic has developed a collection of many great resources to help students learn about the Pilgrims, Native Americans, and the first Thanksgiving.  The first step is go to the Sign-Up/Home page and register your class.  You will receive a diary letter from different Thanksgiving characters in your email inbox during the month of November. 

The voyage on the Mayflower section allows students to take an interactive journey that the pilgrims experienced or they can tour the ship. 

 

Scholastic also provides implementation plans for K-2, 3-5, and 6-12 to help teachers use these resources effectively in their instruction. 

Finally, Scholastic has partnered with Plimoth Plantation to produce three video tours of Plimoth Plantation, a Wampanoag homesite, and a Pilgrim homesite. They will also be adding a Mayflower virtual fieldtrip.  This is a great set of resources which will bring Thanksgiving to life in your classroom through technology.

 

This following video I found on History.com.  It shows the Pilgrim's route they took and deconstructs the Mayflower.  



2 Tools to Help Eliminate Distractions Around YouTube Videos

YouTube is wonderful tool to use in your classroom.  What isn’t so great: all of the garbage that can come along with it (i.e. advertising, comments, related videos…in short-distractions). Here are two resources that will allow you to safely view and share YouTube videos without all the garbage.

YouTubeXL- This is a service that YouTube provides that lets you watch videos on large screens without the ads and comments.

Safe Share TV is a fantastic way to share You Tube videos with your students. Safe Share TV removes all distracting and offensive elements that surround a video on You Tube and allows you to share the video with a unique link. Safe Share TV also gives you the option to crop videos before sharing them.

Implementation:

• Spark interest in certain topics
• Make real world connections to various topics
• Explain concepts to students

(adapted from original post found on http://ilearntechnology.com/?p=4695)

Utilizing YouTube and Discovery Ed Videos in Your SMART Notebook Lessons

Video is a powerful tool that you can use within your classroom for many purposes.  Today we are going to focus on how to put these videos into your SMART Board lessons so you can easily access them during your instruction.  Our distritct has access to Discovery Ed and the other type I will show is YouTube.  I will show how these videos can be downloaded and embedded, and also include some implementation ideas.  Please remember when you are using a video this way that you should give credit within your lesson to the original video creator.  This is a great way to model digital citizenship to our students.

YouTube:

Discovery Ed:

Implementation Ideas:

• Create lessons utilizing videos for discussion or to build anticipation for the content
• Build your SMART Notebook documents to include these videos to avoid buffering/having them become unavailable
• A great way to have students create presentations so they can use video without having to wait to view it during the presentation (remember to cite the video)
• A way to include only the segments of a video you want within your instruction instead of having to search and find the exact spot within the video

Tech Thursdays-Croc Doc Personal and Leaving Tracks of Your Thinking

This Thursday I want to focus leaving tracks of your thinking.  This skill is taught within the Comprehension Toolkit, but is a skill all good readers should have. Croc Doc Personal is a free tool that lets you upload and comment/annote images, PDFs, and Office Docs.  This tool allows all students to be engaged in the discussion via technology.  Here are a few ways you can use this handy tool.

Implementation Ideas:

1. Upload a document/article for your class to read and have them comment and reply to each other while reading (leaving tracks of their thinking)
2. Leave feedback on student work and email them the feedback written on their document
3. Analyze a photo and leave comments on certain parts of the picture
4. Upload a math sheet and have students leave comments on how they solved various problems
5. Have students self reflect on their work first, before you leave them feedback
6. Have students leave feedback on each others work

Below I have created a video showing how easy it is to use.

2 Tools to Integrate in 5 Minutes or Less

Wonderopolis

Wonderopolis is a great tool to engage students with high interest nonfiction text.  Each day a new "wonder" is added.  Each post will include a video, 3 questions, and information to answer each of the questions.  I know this tool may not be a new one, but I wanted to include some ideas for integration.

Integration ideas:

• This site provides a great way to practice reading with the question in mind.  This is a great tool to use as a shared reading piece where you model/practice using the 3 questions to focus your reading.  Some of the "wonders" can be at a high reading level so keep that in mind as you integrate it.  
• Use it as a station where students can read about the different wonders answering the questions they provide. 
• This site provides high interest reading material and will encourage your students to read nonfiction.  Now this list is not be exhaustive, so please leave a comment sharing a way you are using this tool in your classroom.  

Primary Wall

Primary wall provides a space to collaborate, share, and work together in real time using sticky notes.  This is an easy program to use and students can all be engaged in the discussion and you can view their ideas on your SMART Board.  You can also lock this site and students can access it from home.  Each wall comes with an embed code which allows you to post on your blogs or websites.

Integration ideas:

• Exit slip-students can reflect on class and post it to the wall.  This can be used the following day for discussion or reteaching. One technique is the 3-2-1 summarizing technique.  This technique was designed by Rick Wormeli.
• Brainstorming-students can post questions, things they have learned, research around a topic.  The cool paret is then you can sort their thinking on the SMART Board after you have collected it.

Kidblog in the Reading Classroom

Kidblog is a very simple blogging tool which is made by a teacher for teachers.  I used this tool last year to facilitate discussion and interaction within my reading group time.  My book club groups would post questions they had while they were reading.  Then members of their group would view their questions and respond within the comments section.  Students then would have the opportunity to reply back to their comments as they are posted.  This created great reflection and discussion between the members of each group.  It reinforced higher level questioning, and challenged student's to support their answers with text support.

This slide show and videos are a great introduction to Kidblog:



Here are a couple other ways you could implement Kidblog in your classroom:

1. Use it as a portfolio to collect student learning.
2. Reading Station:
1. Have them answer the questions listed on each "Wonder of the Day" on Wonderopolis.
2. Personal blog to share things they are learning while inquiring about a topic. 
3. Commenting on other students work
3. Digital Notebook for a subject area or a leadership notebook

I know there are tons of different ways to use this resource, and please share any of your ideas in the comment area below.