Work flow and Learn flow.

The fabulous Silvia Tolisano (Langwitches blog)  talks about work flow and learn flow when using iPads.

I really like this term and I encourage everyone teaching using technology, to encourage the flow between apps and tools to get the best possible result.

Recently I was working in a school with iPads, I created this workflow example to work with a group of students and share back with their teachers.

Mystery Bus Tour- Literacy sharing.

Last night I had the privilege of joining 100 other Whangarei teachers on a Mystery Bus Tour, organised by the local literacy association.

We toured 3 local schools, 2 primary and an intermediate and had a chance to talk to staff and look through the classrooms, libraries and staffrooms.

What an amazing chance to see what is happening in our neighbouring schools, an opportunity most of us don’t get very often as we get caught up in the busy-ness of our own school day.

The highlights for me were the amazing literacy rich classroom environments displayed in all schools, the adventure learning and self-managed timetables being explored by Simone Gentil at Morningside, and her classroom culture built around the bucket filling concept. 

I also loved the modern learning spaces explained so clearly by Adam at Morningside.

Whangarei Intermediate’s literacy lead teacher Karen Hinge shared her reflective blog and Tracey Allison at St. Francis Xavier’s classroom and blog show how effectively e-learning can enrich a classroom literacy programme.

Such a huge amount of learning is gained when a large group of teachers meet to share, discuss and learn from each other. I can’t wait for the next opportunity to visit new schools and share ideas with other teachers.

How about contacting your local literacy association to see if they already hold or will organise a similar event in your teaching community? 

On a smaller scale - spend a lunchtime at a neighbouring school.

Take one of your staff or team meetings to a neighbouring school and factor in some exploring time.

Run a shared staff meeting with another school(s) and then plan to do this every term with a different school - remember to factor in exploring and sharing time.

 - cross-posted from my update on the ICT in English list serve.

Creating reading responses using Sock Puppets.

So here is my number 2 app of choice.

Sock Puppets!

Sock Puppets are free but you have to purchase extras like save to camera roll and the ability to import your own backgrounds.

Great for independent reading responses, easy to embed into blogs and share!

Making full use of the (still) camera on the iPad.

I remember my excitement when the iPod introduced the camera feature. Suddenly our ability to quickly document our learning journey increased ten fold.
Now all iPads and iPods come with excellent built-in still and video cameras and spending a little bit of time ensuring the students can use the camera effectively will pay huge dividends when you are using other apps.

How to improve camera skills.

I introduced a bingo camera skills challenge. I gave each child a sheet, a device and sent them off to tick off the skills they already knew and could demonstrate. Once they had ticked off all the skills they already knew they then had to buddy up with one another to try and find others to show them how to do the rest.

Here are my bingo sheets - feel free to use and share.

Simple - Year 1 and 2.

Medium  - Year 3 - 6

Using popplet in a multitude of ways.

The more I work with apps in learning contexts the more I believe that you only need a few quality apps to fulfil all your needs.

If you keep on introducing new apps then you are going to have to spend a lot of time 'teaching the apps' rather than getting on with the actual learning you want to be doing. 

I am encouraging you to take one app and really explore how many ways you can use it enhance your learning programmes.

Here is one of my favourite apps - 18 ways!

Drag the posters off and print them out to inspire your students and colleagues to try using Popplet in lots of new ways.

Popplet online gives you the option of adding video.

The Free Popplet app is here. (you get 1 free-but you can delete and start again)

And the paid version is here.

Let me know how you have used Popplet. : ) 

Check out this Gami!

I have been fiddling around with a new app called Tellagami.
This week I used it to send a blogging challenge to a class I have been working with.

 Tellagami is a mobile app that lets you create and share a short animated message called a Gami. Quick and easy to use, Tellagami is a fun way to create animated messages to share via email, text or by embedding onto your blog. Download the free app and get going creating your own gamis. : )

 Here are some simple instructions.

 

  There are more instructions on the website too.

byod2013

I collated all the tweets and photos from the byod2013 day at Albany Senior High on 2 May 2013 using storify. You can view them here.

http://storify.com/catrionapene/byod2013.html

Blogging 101.

Blogging is such a great way to inspire your writers to publish and to share all that wonderful digital content you are creating with your parents and wider community.

Here is a guide to beginning Blogging that I presented at Learning at Schools in Whangarei and New Plymouth recently.

Blogs can be used across the curriculum to provide a window to the classroom, connect learning to home and family, create authentic audiences for writing, offer a space for reflection… and more!

Are you…

seeing other teachers blogging but not sure how to get started yourself?
looking for a way to share all the digital content your students are creating?
wanting to increase the learning conversations between home and school?
new to blogging but are not sure where to go next?


This workshop aims to provide stories, examples, tips and advice on how to harness the power of blogging and integrate it with effective learning.

Please use this resource and give me some feedback via the comments below. 

Engaging reluctant writers using e-learning tools.

Recently I presented at the Learning at Schools roadshow in Whangarei and New Plymouth.

It was exciting to see so many teachers keen to learn new skills and familiarise themselves with new tools to add to their teaching toolbox.

I introduced my presentation with the story of my own early teaching years struggling with reluctant writers, often boys, who would do anything to avoid writing, and also of my own son's reluctance to write. I shared how e-learning had changed that in my classroom, had brought fun into our writing time and allowed the children to express themselves in a range of ways, to see themselves as writers and authors and to experience success.

I made a deliberate decision to create a resource for each presentation that would provide the participants with a take-away resource to revisit when they had time, hopefully sooner rather than later, but one that would be able to give them the confidence to have a go at using these tools once back in their own classrooms.

I have already had some great feedback from my sessions and hope that teachers will continue to feed back to me how they have found the resources useful - or challenging!

Each time I present I learn so much, nothing is more humbling than standing in front of a room of your teaching peers (including your own form one teacher!!)

Please use this resource in your own classrooms to engage those reluctant writers and give them back the joy of writing.

And drop back in and leave me feedback : )

Making, creating and using Digital Kits.

Digital kits are useful for creating a platform of resources to lead an inquiry with students.


Using google presentations to make Digital Kits.


Here is an example of a digital kit


Pattern Digital Kit