We Have Made it to Winter Break!

Happy Holidays!

See you in 2017.

Fun Christmas Websites

I am sure your normal routine has become not so normal with the holidays approaching. Are you looking for something festive to fill in gaps? Are you looking for a holiday activity to engage your students? Check out a few holiday interactive sites for students!

Northpole.com
This site allows for students, parents, and teachers to set up accounts. Northpole.com has everything from connecting with Santa, to baking recipes to directions for making ornaments. It also includes a more instructional writing activity. 

Google Santa Tracker
The Google Santa tracker site is full of great animation. It has a place to play, learn and explore. Each day in December a new activity opens up, so there is always something new!

NORAD Santa Tracker
When you go to the site, it welcomes you with festive music. This site offers a Santa Tracker countdown, a view of the North Pole, games, music and more.

Other holiday activities

• Winter Magnetic Poetry
• Winter around the World
• Build a Snowman
• PBS Kids Holidays

What are your favorite sites for the holiday season?

Bringing the World to Your Classroom Through Virtual Field Trips

What are Virtual Field Trips?
Wikipedia defines Virtual Field Trips as a guided exploration through the world wide web that organizes a collection of pre-screened, thematically based web pages into a structured online learning experience. (Foley, 2003).

Why Should We Go on a Virtual Field Trip?
Take your students beyond the classroom walls and into some of the world's most iconic locations for rich and immersive learning experiences — no permission slips required!

What are Some Virtual Field Trip Resources?

• American Museum of Natural History Smithsonian
• Google Cultural Institute
• Discovery Education
• National Geographic
• RealWorldMath
• Google Maps & Street View
• Additional Ideas

3 Ways to Use Google Classroom During Literacy Stations

Have you ever used Google Classroom with your literacy stations? Recently many schools I work with have been purchasing chromebooks and are wanting to use the devices during their station/small group time. Here are a few ideas I have seen in classrooms using chromebooks in literacy stations.

The Morning Journal
The teacher linked a video to the Classroom Assignment and then attached a Google Slides where students could type their journal response on a specific slide. This could be a collaborative effort or the setting in Google Classroom could force each student to make their own copy. After the student creates their response, they can turn in the assignment for the teacher to review.

Reading Log Recording Sheet
The teacher created a reading log recording sheet template and then added it to an assignment on Google Classroom. The students were then able to get their own individual copy which was saved in their Google Drive. This made it easy to distribute a paperless reading log which will always be in the student's Google Drive for easy access to complete each time a student completes a book.

Reading Comprehension Activity
If you are looking to create a paperless classroom, this might be the route for you! Google Classroom allows you to upload a reading passage as well as a comprehension quiz. Not only can students read the passage on the chromebook, but they can also take the comprehension quiz online, thus creating a paperless classroom.

After watching a few teaching in action, I put together a short presentation to help other teachers incorporate chromebooks into station work time. 


These are just a few ways I have seen teachers incorporate chromebooks and Google Classroom into their literacy/small group stations. What other ways have you seen teachers use chromebooks during literacy/small group time?

#OKCPS - The 12 Days of Twitter

This is the blog post I wrote for my department's blog post advertising the upcoming Twitter PD, The 12 Days of Twitter. Join us!

The 12 Days of Twitter

December 12-23, 2016

Are you ready for another educational technology learning challenge? Join us from December 12th - December 23rd for The 12 Days of Twitter. You will become a Twitter star in twelve days. Each day a new task will be posted on the OKCPS ETS Blog for you to complete.

Here’s how to get started!

1. Visit the OKCPS ETS Blog on December 12, 2016 to read about the first task.
2. Then, visit the blog daily to read about the new task. Complete the daily task and share it on Twitter using the #OKCPS12Days hashtag.

If you would like more information about getting started with Twitter, check out this blog.

For more information, contact Mandy Green at 587.0315. See you on Twitter on December 12th!

#OKCPS Hour of Code Cohort Wrap Up

Each year I work with a cohort of teachers interested in the Hour of Code. We work through three to four types of coding and then their culminating activity is to host an Hour of Code event on their campus. Last year we had six teachers complete the cohort and activity. 

The first week we explored Unplugged Coding or coding without technology. We learned about and explored programming, debugging and more all without a tech device!


The next week, we explored four different web-based coding programs. This allowed for differentiation as well as a wide variety of experiences.


The final week, we explored Code.org and set up classroom accounts.


We will be wrapping up our cohort by hosting Hour of Code events in classrooms as well as on campuses. Stay tuned for Hour of Code events updates!

Increase Your Productivity - November Ed Tech Updates

Microsoft Outlook Productivity Tips

1. Categorize Emails - There are 4 D's when it comes to categorizing your emails. When you receive an email, categorize the email under one of the following categories:
       a. Delete - Delete the email as soon as possible. 
     b. Do it - Complete the task required by the email.
     c. Defer - Put the email on a "to-do" list with other tasks.   
     d. Delegate - Move the email and task to a colleague. 

2. Create Action Folders - Outlook folders may be created by project, person or purpose. When creating these folders, consider adding a "Pending" and "To-do" folder.

3. Flagging Emails - Not only can you drag emails to folders but you can also take advantage of the priority settings. First, select the email, then click on the "Follow Up" icon which is located on the menu ribbon. You will see a menu of priority settings pop up. Then, select "Add Reminder." This allows you to set a due date or time reminder to complete the task in the selected email.

4. Using Rules in Your Inbox - By clicking on the Rule icon on the menu ribbon, you can create new rules for your inbox. This will allow you to create a folder and have all email messages sent to that specified folder. You can also create a rule to send all messages with a specified title to a specific folder. Essentially, Outlook Rules automatically sort emails for you!

BONUS 
Have you ever run out of storage in your inbox? Try Archiving!

Reinventing Learning

Over the summer and last week I had the chance to present about Reinventing Learning. This session is about 21st century skills. Last spring, our district identified 8 high-impact instructional practices. One of the practices we identified was 21st century skills. This practice includes making real-world connections, using multimedia tools, digital citizenship, HOTS questions and flexible grouping.

As a former CTE Counselor and current Ed Tech Trainer, I prefer to focus on real-world connections and multimedia tools. These two areas can engage students, motivate students as well as make learning relevant and visible!

Some of the tools we explored included Skype in the Classroom, Virtual Fieldtrips and digital storytelling.

I changed the presentation from summer to fall to incorporate hyperdocs to promote more engagement, interaction and critical thinking.

#IMMOOC - Powerful Learning First, Technology Second

Being an Educational Technology Trainer, we often are bombarded with questions about using technology in the class. Teachers will email and state they are teaching a lesson on nouns and verbs but they want a technology activity to go along with it. I usually start by asking questions about their lesson and how it is framed. I ask more questions about what engages their students and motivates them. I then ask they question, "How can we make this more effective?" Not every lesson activity needs to involve technology as we have many other useful tools to teach with in this day and age. There should be a connection between the learning taking place and the technology being used. The technology tool does not drive instruction. If we are looking to improve instruction and student outcomes, then the technology tools we use should provide support. When I work with teachers, I use good questioning to help evaluate the lesson as well as the tools used framed from a student/learning outcome viewpoint. 

I love the quote in the book, 

Technology should personalize, not standardize.

Digital Storytelling in the 21st Century

Last week I had the opportunity to present at my district's Fall Focus. It was a great professional learning conference for our teachers. I decided to present on digital storytelling.

Why Digital Storytelling?
The world is full of stories. Digital storytelling allows us the chance to tell our story in a creative manner. The images in our digital stories are impactful and help the audience remember the story. 

Digital Tools
There are many tools to use and the key is to find the right tool for you and your story. When deciding on a tool to use in your digital story, evaluate the devices you have available to you as well as how you want to convey your message. A few of my favorite tools are Adobe Spark, Powtoon and YouTube. This is also a great time to discuss digital citizenship with your students. 

Here is how we explored digital storytelling at Fall Focus.

#ETCoached Blogging Challenge - Week 5

This challenge has been great. I love reading other's blog to keep up with trends across the nation and/or world. 

I plan to keep blogging by participating in other blogging challenges, sharing presentations as well as bout the awesome things I see our teachers doing in classrooms. 

#IMMOOC - School vs Learning

When I look at this picture and reflect, I think about Chapter 6 - Engage Vs Empower. I think about school as something you do as opposed to learning which is what happens. Another view might be that school is the motions and learning is the outcome. School is about learning facts whereas learning is about inquiring and asking questions.

Learning is a life long skill. The ability to learn and unlearn is a pressing skill in the 21st century of education. 21st century learning emphasizes in depth understanding built upon interdisciplinary themes. We must integrate these skills to help prepare students for the workforce of the future.

#OKCPS Hour of Code Cohort

“Computer Science is a liberal art: it’s something that everybody should be exposed to and everyone should have a mastery of to some extent.” — Steve Jobs

What is Hour of Code?
The Hour of Code is a movement around the world to help every student have the opportunity to learn about computer science. Code.org provides lesson guidelines for the Hour of Code/Computer Science Education Week.

Computer Science Education Statistics
According to Computer Science Education Week, there are almost 2,000 open computing jobs in Oklahoma, but we only had 411 computer science graduates. 71% of new STEM jobs are in computing and 8% of STEM graduates are in Computer Science.

According to Code.org, there are 1,319 teacher accounts and 54,798 student accounts across Oklahoma. 

Let's start teaching computer science to not only engage students but also allow them to have an employable skill upon graduation.

Hour of Code Cohort
All OKCPS teachers are invited to participate in our cohort which has a culminating activity of create and Hour of Code project in your classroom or on your campus. Check out THIS flyer for more information. The three sessions will be Unplugged Coding, Code.org and new this year, Scratch.

#ETCoaches Blog Challenge - Week 4

BLOGS
I love reading blogs from other educators. I learn so much from bloggers and their ideas trigger other ideas for me. 

I enjoy hearing what others classrooms, districts and organizations are doing to change teaching and learning. Blogs also inspire me and help me create new ideas to change teaching and learning in my district.

My Favorite Blogs...Currently
Shake Up Learning
George Couros
Ditch That Textbook
Free Tech 4 Teachers

@IMMOOC - Innnovation

I have always viewed innovation as trying something new and different. I grew up with parents who encouraged trying new things and finding new ways to accomplish a task. When I compare my career as a psychotherapist to an educator, I struggle with innovation in education. The field of psychology is constantly reading, researching and trying interventions to fit the perspective of clients. Juxtapose, education where it seems we teach to 1985. In my current state, the view is, if it fails, never try anything ever again. Failure is a change to regroup, rebuild and try again!

I like the definition of innovation being something new and better. Innovation in education is not just technology tools, but changing our we teach and how we learn. Moving towards innovation requires having relationships, being connected and listening to the needs of others. Innovation cannot happen in a vacuum, it happens in community.

#ETCoach Blog Challenge Week 3

As an Ed Tech Coach, I love sharing cool new tech tools to engage students and transform teaching and learning. 

1. Hootsuite - This tool allows users to manage multiple social media networks and profiles. 

2. Canva - This tool allows you to create infographics, flyers and more. The tool is very intuitive and simple. 

3. Adobe Spark - Adobe Spark lets users create and share pictures and videos. This is a great tool for digital storytelling.

4. Plickers - This is a great tool for classrooms without a response system. Plickers require printed plicker cards and a teacher mobile device. It is great for formative assessments or exit tickets.

5. SMART Notebook - This tool allows teachers to create engaging and interactive lessons for students using the SMART board. 

#ETCoaches Blog Challenge Week 2

My current role is that of an Ed Tech Coach. This year we are having a shift in our role and responsibilities. Change can be hard initially, but is welcomed. 

Strengths It is hard for me to talk about strengths since I tend to be very tough on myself. However, I feel I am intuitive and have a good sense of what is going on within the system and it's functioning. 

Challenges A huge current challenge is the transition of our roles & responsibilities at work. We are shifting our role to a more global role to make large systemic changes rather than working 1:1 with teachers or putting out one fire at a time. I love our changes, but when just a few people are making the change and the system is not, it makes it VERY difficult.

I love my role in terms of sharing the good news of our district. I do have the opportunity to work in schools and I get to see the awesome things teachers are doing to transform learning!

#ETCoaches Blog Challenge Week 1

Hello and welcome to my Innovations & Expectations blog. My name is Mandy Green and I am currently and Ed Tech Coach on Oklahoma. My other roles in education have included:

• K-2 teacher
• High school counselor
• Special Education counselor
• Career Tech counselor

When I taught Kindergarten, I had a blog I used as a weekly newsletter. Then as I moved to 2nd grade, it changed and became a place to showcase the cool things we were learning and creating in class. Then as my role shifted to educational technology, my blog has shifted with it! This blog is, currently, a collection of thoughts, ideas and cool things I see in schools. 

I am excited to participate in the #ETCoaches PLN and look forward to learning and expanding my worldview. 

#IMMOOC - Change

The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines change as:

• to become different
• to make someone or something different
• to become something else

As a former psychotherapist, now in education, change can be hard. Change can seem impossible and scary. The first step in making a change is the hardest step. It is also common to hear that change is the only constant and if you are not changing, you are being left behind. 

To make changes in education, we must be scared, not afraid to fail and step out to make changes, which are in the best interest of learners. As educators, we must be risk-takers and commit to trying unconventional means to meeting the needs of learners. 

I, currently, have a great supervisor who lets me try new ideas for our district and if I fail, we re-evaluate and try again. However, if I succeed, we keep pushing the envelope. 

Be brave, connect, collaborate and push the boundaries.

International Dot Day!

What is International Dot Day? International Dot Day began when Terry Shay introduced Peter Reynold's book, The Dot to his class. The day is all about celebrating creativity, self expression and bravery.

There are many ways to celebrate Dot Day in your class. Check out the links below!

1.  Mrs. Rosenquist's Class
2.  Mrs. Bowker's Class
3.  Tech Tips: A Thinglink Synopsis of International  Dot Day

Also, do not forget to check out Skype in the Classroom, I bet there are many teachers interested in skyping and sharing their Dot Day creativity!

This Week in Pictures...

This Week in Pictures...

A Little Motivation from Kid President!

Quizzes in Google Forms

In the past there has been this awesome add-on called, Flubaroo, to create self-grading quizzes in Google Forms. Now Google has added that feature to their Forms.

This feature can be used as an exit ticket or a formative assessment. It also immediately sends feedback to the teacher. The teacher can view data from the entire class or by individual. 

Here's how easy it is to set up a quiz.

If you have tried Google Quizzes, let us know how you like it!

Back to School 2016

How do you get ready to go back to school? We are on a modified year-round school calendar, so teachers go back July 27st! #yikes

As I prep to go back, here are a few of my favorite ed tech tools!

1. Remind - This is a great tool to communicate with parents about what's going on, reminders for upcoming events and meetings.

2. Skype in the Classroom - I love bringing the world to my classroom. Skype allows you and your class to visit places you cannot, meet people from around the world and bring learning alive!

3. Google Classroom - I love Google Classroom as it allows you to begin the process of going paperless. We do not have that many devices in our school, but I try to have at least 1 assignment/week on Google Classroom. I also love how other applications, such as Discovery Education, integrate with Classroom and make it super easy to create assignments!

~Happy Learning~
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Twitter is More Than Just an App!

Twitter is more than just a social media app. Twitter is a great way to build a PLN or personal learning network. This allows you to collaborate with educators from all around the globe. Twitter is also a micro-blogging platform, which means you can share information in 140 characters or less. You can retweet ideas you wish to share and follow professionals who you are interested in their work.

Below are resources to help you get started with Twitter. Jump in and join us in learning with others!

Here are some other links to help!

• Kathy Schrock’s Guide to Twitter

• Beginner Guide to Twitter for Teachers
• Twitter 101 Guide
• Twitter 101 webinar with Matt Gomez
• 50 Way to Use Twitter in the Classroom

My Favorite Things for July 2016

This month I am loving Google Classroom. Not only does it provide a path to a paperless classroom but it also integrates well with several other applications and websites. 

I am a big user of Discovery Education as well as a DEN Star Educator. I can create assignments in Google Classroom directly from Discovery Education! 

I created a short screen cast to walk you through the simple process!

This is currently one of my favorite things to use in the classroom. I hope you found it helpful!

~Happy Learning~

Summer Reading List

What is on your Summer Reading List? Every year I set a goal to read a specific number of books each year. This goal is comprised of fun as well as professional books. During the summer I try to focus on professional books.

Here are a few books on my list to read.

1. Creative Confidence by Tom Kelly
2. Launch by John Spencer and A.J. Juliani

3. Innovator's Mindset by George Couros

4. Drive by Daniel Pink

5. Creating Innovators by Tony Wagner

What is on your Summer Reading List?

21st Century Skills...Buzzword or Necessary Skills?

What is up with the phrase 21st Century Skills? Is this just a buzzword or necessary skills we should be equipping students with in 2016?

My district recently defined 21st century skills as a high-impact instructional practice. We debated on how it should be defined and which strategies should fall under the 21st century skills umbrella. 

As the team was working on this, we asked ourselves the question, "What do our students need to know after they leave our district?" We know we are working to prepare them for jobs which don't exist and for skills we're not sure they will need. 

Our first strategy identified was making real-world connections. We wanted to make sure learning was connected to the world around us. We also wanted to note the importance of connecting not only around our state, but also our country and the world. We want learning to be relevant!

Another strategy we identified was multimedia. Technology is all around us and if we are not having our students use multiple devices, then we are doing a disservice to them. We also noted the importance of students creating projects to show understanding rather than taking multiple choice tests.

The last strategy I will note here is digital citizenship. Our hope was digital citizenship would become embedded in every lesson and every conversation rather than an "add-on" lesson or activity with no relevance. 

As educators, I believe, we all want to prepare our students for the future in whatever career they choose or path their future takes. By teaching the same lessons with the same strategies for 25 years is not preparing our students. We have to get out of our box (or even throw the box away) and our comfort zone and challenge ourselves as professionals to move education in a direction which is more rigorous and relevant.

Building Your PLN Through Twitter

This week is the official start of the OKCPS ETS Summer Ed Tech Learning Challenge. This is a four week, 100% online PD during the month of June. Each week a new ed tech challenge is presented to participants via the OKCPS ETS blog. Then participants have the entire week to complete the challenge and post an accountability post on Twitter. 

The first week's challenge was to create a professional Twitter account. We want to increase the number of district staff members engaged on Twitter. We also want them to experience the benefits of Twitter, especially related to sharing resources and ideas.

As an extension activity this week, we asked participants already active on Twitter to share 3-5 of their favorite people to follow. I chose to share @gcouros because I am reading the Innovator's Mindset (you should read it if you have not!) I also enjoy following @LeadUpNow and it's thoughts about educational leadership. Finally, I mentioned @ShakeUpLearning since her Google stuff is too cool!

Don't forget to follow the hashtag #OKCPSetlc to see all of the cool things our staff members are learning in June. Also be on the look out for the Back to School ETLC and School Webmaster ETLC, both in July!

Getting Started with STEM Club

Have you ever wanted to start a STEM Club? I love STEM. I think of STEM as integration of all subjects at it's finest. When I started a STEM club, we could only have 20 students in the club due to only 1 club sponsor and it being an after school activity. So I had to find a way to vet students. I didn't want it to be a club only for the super smart students, but I also realized we needed students who would be engaged, motivated and curious. So, I created an application and teacher recommendation form. The goal was for these forms to include a narrative and not just check boxes! Then I conducted student interviews to learn more about the student and what motivates them.

I recently created a Teachers Pay Teachers store called Innovations and Expectations, where you can find more STEM resources if you are interested in starting your own club.

Summer Ed Tech Learning Challenge 2016

This summer my department is organizing an ed tech learning challenge for teachers. The professional development course is 100% online. Each week teachers will be provided a challenge with resources to complete the challenge. Once they complete the challenge, they will tweet a comment about the challenge on their Twitter account for accountability as well as to share successes! 

To learn more about this challenge, visit our OKCPS ETS blog.

~Happy Learning~

Motivational Monday

The Power of Words!

Monday's Motivational Movie

Tech Tools Tuesday - Wizer

Nothing like Tech Tools Tuesday post on a Wednesday! It has been a good but BUSY week! Have you seen Wizer?  This app is FREE and creates blended worksheets.

You can create open-ended, fill-in-the-blanks activities and many more. You can also embed Google Maps or videos. I love that you can share this through Google Classroom or a link and activity pin.

This is super cool so go check it out or at least check out Free Tech 4 Teachers post about Wizer!

2.19.16 - Classroom Spotlights

This week started out with a PD day on Monday for our staff. I was lucky enough to start my Monday off with Google Forms and then spend the rest of the morning with eBooks. 

This week I also had the chance to tag team a presentation with a coworker about Google Classroom. As teachers explore Google Classroom, they are starting to love it and all of it's features.  

Arthur ES also held a technology showcase to highlight their use of iPads in the previous three months. 

2.16.16 - Tech Tools Tuesday

This blog is not as much about one tech tool but rather infusing digital learning into each day. Wednesday, February 17, 2016 is Digital Learning Day. 

DL Day started in 2012 as a way for educators to showcase great instruction and instructional technology programs. HERE is a list of the DL Day Live activities. There are SO many ways to participate. Feel free to view THESE resources and participate in DL Day 2016!

2.15.16 - Motivational Monday

Here's a thought for your Motivational Monday. I found this picture on the #LeadUpChat. If you have not checked out that hashtag on Twitter, I suggest you do! The #LeadUpChat inspires me every day! Have a great Monday!

Google Classroom

Last Monday I started off the day at Arthur ES. This school is the 1:1 elementary school in the district. I observed in a 6th grade classroom who uses Google Classroom. The students are so natural when it comes to using the technology. 

Then on Tuesday, I spent my day working with teachers at Van Buren ES and talking about Google Classroom. There seems to be a theme this week! The teachers enjoyed Google Classroom and many in the upper grades want to start using it. They discovered an easy way to get started was to create a vocabulary review assignment. The students can create a vocabulary review in Google Slides where they can add the vocabulary word, definition and picture all on the same slide. This idea came from the Monday lesson at Arthur!!!

This week I have spent two afternoons working with Adams ES and Google Classroom. We divided the sessions into lower grades and upper grades to make the presentations more grade level appropriate. 

I'm still looking for a few early childhood classes to experiment with Google Classroom! Since we are a GAFE district, it only makes sense to use Google Classroom!