TechieTeacher5280

As one of the Instructional Technology Coordinators for Adams 12 Five Star Schools , I am frequently called upon by principals to assist with technology purchasing decisions. Often it seems that people are hoping to hear of one tool that is the "magic bullet" for all tech integration purposes, but alas, no such device exists. My goal during these meetings is to help buildings determine not only what technology to purchase but also help focus their instructional purpose for the technology. As a result of these meetings, I've found that there are common themes and considerations that surface each time. To help with the process and to highlight these themes, I recently wrote an article for the Adams12 Learning Services Newsletter , which you can read below:

Well, it's been a while since my last post, but in my defense, I've started a new job...and created a new life! I'm pregnant! Very exciting, but the two combined keep me busy and exhausted! That said, I wanted to share some of my new discoveries around the use of iPads in the classroom. There's little doubt that instructional technology can transform learning. The tablet (iPad) is a powerful tool that allows students to access the Internet as well as use apps to support their learning. Ideally, the iPad should be used for more than just skill & drill. That’s not to say that you should never use it for this purpose, however this should not be the primary function of the iPad. iPads should be used to create, collaborate, research, differentiate, and explore! Avoid activities that could be easily done without an iPad; take full advantage of its power! Now, as those of you who have read my previous blog posts know, I started out as an iPad cynic . I started to co...

#edchat #edtech #vitalcpd I recently decided to get creative with my resume and turn it into an infographic .  While putting it together, it occurred to me that it could be fun to have students create their own version of an infographic resume at the beginning of the year to share information about themselves with the class as a cool new ice breaker or get-to-know-you activity. You could also assess students by having them put together infographics on whatever topic they’ve been studying! There are lots of great, free tools online that can help students create their infographics, and they can use software on the computer as well. In fact, after experimenting with creating an infographic online, I decided to put mine together using MS Publisher just because it gave me the freedom I needed to make things look the way I wanted.  If you’re interested in creating infographics, check out some of these great online resources:    (Of course, as always, be sure t...

I am addicted to my smart phone. I admit it. I can't imagine how I ever lived without it, and our students are equally enthralled, if not more so.  As teachers, we are constantly competing with cell phones for our students' attention. Why not take advantage of the fact that students are rarely more than a foot away from their devices? I recently wrote a post that was featured in Tech & Learning's Advisor Blog  which reviews  several of the best websites that allow you to text message groups of students without exchanging phone numbers . Want to remind your kids of tomorrow's test, ask them to bring certain supplies to class, alert them of a room change, tell them basketball practice has been cancelled, etc.?   Sure, you could post an update on your website, but honestly, how many of your students check it regularly?  If you've ever wished you could effectively communicate with your students outside of class, check out my post !

#edtech #edchat #vitalcpd Since starting to write for the Instructional Technology blog in Poudre School District, it seems that I’ve neglected my own. It’s time to rectify the situation!  As the school year comes to a close, many of us are looking forward to summer vacation, and some of us are starting to think about next year.  I’d like to share with you an activity that would be a great way to start off the school year and can help establish a caring classroom environment.

I was recently asked to write and maintain our Poudre School District Instructional Technology social media, including a Blog , Facebook Page & Twitter account. I am very excited to take this task on! One of the things I'd like to do is repost the content from the district blog into my own personal blog, Facebook page , and Twitter accounts. Unfortunately, I can only do this automatically from the blog to a single account, and as there are Facebook and Twitter accounts I'll be using for our department, this means my own accounts are left out in the cold. The good news is, I recently discovered a website called IfThisThenThat , which allows you to automate these types of tasks pretty easily. You can create If-Then statements to automatically repost information, such as If a particular user Tweets something Then post it to my Facebook page. There are lots of different sites you can connect to, which is very useful! The only downside is that you can't connect anything...

Each Friday, I spend time at the media center of a local high school making myself available to teachers who may need tech help. About a month ago, I was speaking with the school’s librarian and learned that their media center only has one set of encyclopedias available to students. She explained that over the last few years, more and more students have been turning to the Internet for their research needs; very few use the library as a resource for this purpose.  As a “techie,” this was no surprise to me, however, I can’t help but wonder how many teachers take the time to help their students learn how to identify a credible Internet source vs. a biased or hoax site.  Coincidentally, several weeks after my conversation with the librarian, my teammate and I were visiting a middle school in the district and were recruited to teach a lesson on website evaluation. We learned that many teachers are not comfortable with this topic and often don’t consciously know what ...