Every Day Use of Tech in the 7th Grade Classroom

For me, technology in the classroom has always been about extending learning and providing opportunities that wouldn’t (or couldn’t) happen in the traditional classroom.  If the tech tool isn’t doing something more efficiently and effectively than I can by using a traditional teaching strategy, I keep looking.  There are a few tools that have fundamentally changed my 7^th grade Language Arts classroom.  A lesson I taught recently over the myth of Icarus incorporates some of my favorite tech tools.

“The Flight of Icarus” is a story in our 7^th grade Language Arts textbook.  The topic is always appealing to students (they tend to love Greek mythology), and the responses that I garner from the reading and activities are truly exceptional.  This lesson occurs toward the end of a unit on myths, legends, and folktales and precedes the writing of a piece of folk literature that represents/mirrors a civilization that is studied in Social Studies (the Easter Hemisphere). 

The tools:

OneNote- I have been experimenting with OneNote for over a year and absolutely love the flexibility that it gives me in the classroom.  Paired with Office 365, my students have access to their class work through any mobile device.  OneNote Class Notebook allows me to “deliver” documents to students, create comprehensive lessons, and allow students to collaborate in a dedicated space.  I, as the teacher, can see all of my students work, but they can only see work shared in the collaboration space. 

Office Mix- Office Mix is a PowerPoint add-in that I installed a year ago.  It allows you to take your traditional PowerPoint presentation to an entirely new level by adding opportunities for response questions (and analytics), audio recording, inking, and incorporating screencasting.  This is truly a valuable tool that allows you to “flip” parts of your lesson so that students can work at their own pace and replay any information within the lesson.  The added bonus of being a simple add in to PowerPoint makes this my go-to tool for creating tutorials and quick lessons.

Verso App- Verso is an AMAZING online tool that allows students to have online discussions with one another in a safe and engaging environment.  The key aspect that makes Verso stand out among many other tools like it is that student names are hidden in the program.  The teacher has access to all names, but students don’t know exactly who they are having an online discussion with in the program.  This creates an environment that encourages authentic discussions (not just discussions among close friends).  Students can give comments a “thumbs up” and can reply to other students.  They don’t ever know who they are responding to because all students are called “respondent” in the program.

The Lesson

“The Flight of Icarus” lesson began with students visiting their OneNote Notebook.  They saw directions that asked them to plug in their headphones and click a link to the class Office Mix.  After viewing a video clip of the myth “Theseus and the Minotaur,” students entered responses to constructed response questions about theme and created predictions.

The lesson continued in Office Mix and instructed students to read the selection out of the textbook, looking for key points and concepts.  About half way through the reading (and after a few guiding questions), students were asked to complete a section of the reading by using dyad reading partners.  At the end of the selection, the Office Mix directed them to log in to Verso and complete a discussion question.  Students were asked to respond to the question and reply to two classmates.

Finally, students were asked to combine the two myths (“Theseus and the Minotaur” and “The Flight of Icarus”) into a comic that would illustrate the central ideas and themes present in the paired set of myths.

Things I love about this lesson:

1.       Students get to work at their own pace.

2.       Not all work is independent.

3.       Students discuss their thoughts with some ambiguity so they are free to truly express their ideas.

4.       The product/assessment is a fusion of their understanding of the central concepts from two texts.

Game Changer: The Surface

When I first entered the field of education, my mentor told me that everything in education went in cycles.  Administration, the state, and department heads would lead the charge, fully convicted that whatever initiative, strategy, etc. was popular at the moment was the game changer that education needed.  I've seen this myself in the form of writing programs, a loss of the much adored teaming concept in middle school, and now with the implementation of new technologies.

One such game changer came in the form of an interactive white board (IWB).  Years before I received an official interactive white board, I was using a projector and laptop on a cart and my regular white board.  It was cumbersome and glitchy, but it worked.  Then came the much anticipated IWB.  I no longer had the obstacle of a cart and laptop because I could run things from my teacher computer on my desk.  I could write digitally directly on the board and could save my notes/annotations so that I could print them for students who missed the lesson.  I thought this was it.  This was the thing I needed to make my class more interactive an engaging.  It truly was for about two years.  Then, another game changer entered my life.

The day I opened my Surface Pro 3, I didn't realize what a jewel I had under my fingertips.   My intention was to replace my Surface RT which was used primarily as a personal device and something I carried into classrooms when I did my instructional coaching cycles.  The device, however, inherently changed my classroom in ways I didn't even imagine, and here's how:

1. Wireless Projection

My projector was old, so when I opened the Microsoft Wireless Display Adapter and saw that it only had an HDMI port, I was bummed.  I dismissed the idea of being able to tap into my Surface in my classroom until one of our amazing tech department members sat down with me and discussed options.  Through trial and error, we found a converter that worked.  After simply plugging in the adapter and converter, I was up and running in minutes.  Projecting was seamless and efficient.  I could have my screen projected in just as little time as my wired teacher computer, but I was now mobile in my classroom.

My co-teacher currently uses a Surface 3 during our shared class period.  The transition from one Surface to another is quick and easy.  Our dueling Surfaces in room 703 are the envy of many of our colleagues because it is so seamless.

2. Mobility and Engagement

The most frustrating part of using an IWB is that you are basically chained to the board.  You can walk a bit and go back to the board, but you are truly anchored to the front of the room.  Not with the SP3 and Wireless Display Adapter.  I quickly learned the benefits of freedom.  When students were working on notes or a task displayed on the board, I could circulate the room and talk with my students.  If a student had a particularly good response or an astute insight, I could hand them my Surface and they could add their notes for all to see.  If students struggled to find something in our OneNote Class Notebook, I pulled up the notebook and walked them easily through the steps of finding the document/adding a video/inserting a printout while I was physically helping those who were struggling.  An added bonus has been that students LOVE to write on the Surface.  They consider it "fun" to correct grammar with the pen and argue about whose turn it is.  CRAZY grammar fun happening in room 703 all thanks to the SP3 and Pen.


4. Grading

I would be remiss if I didn't add how much I love the SP3 for grading papers.  In my last post, I discussed some of this, but again, it is so freeing as an English teacher to go home without any papers and still be able to get grading done over the weekend.  Digital inking is AMAZING on the SP3!  It is one of the biggest reasons that many of my colleagues have used their hard-earned money to purchase a Surface because it is SO WORTH IT!

There you go folks, my love affair with my Surface explained. 

4 Things I Love About OneNote Class Notebook

1. Instant Delivery
I LOVE that I can instantly deliver class content (handouts/notes/images/links) by placing them in the Content Library.  The Content Library makes my documents read-only until they are placed in a student notebook tab which means I don't have to worry about my master copy getting any unintentional (or, let's face it, intentional) adjustments by students.  Students can copy those documents/links/pages very easily and paste them into their notebooks within seconds of seeing them in the Content Library.  Easy, quick, and reliable!

2. Collaboration Space
The Collaboration Space has been instrumental this school year as my students work in groups to answer their driving questions.  Students love that they can see what their group members are working on.  It helps group leaders keep other group members accountable and makes this type of collaboration accessible for everyone in the group.  I love to be able to monitor what they are doing and enjoy having one location for all group work.


3. Audio/Video Recording
Having students do quick audio/video responses to prompting questions or lessons in class has become a frequent practice in my classroom.  Not only does it allow me to gauge student understanding, but it also provides a venue for students to practice their speaking skills (a long-lost set of standards and skills that middle schoolers desperately need).  They enjoy listening to themselves and are more thoughtful in their responses when they are being filmed/recorded.

4. Inking
Grading essays became so much easier when I implemented inking in OneNote.  Students submit their papers on a 'turn in' page for their assignment which not only allows me to see the timestamp (monitoring edits), but also allows me to easily find their work.  Then, I pick up my Surface Pen and ink directly on their essays.  I also provide audio feedback directly on the page in their notebook so that they can listen to my comments as well as read any editing that I've indicated on their essays.  I love not having a stack of papers and students love that they can see the feedback I add to their essays as quickly as I complete it!

Swaying Away in Humanities

This is the second month that my Humanities students have been using Sway.  Primarily, it has been used to facilitate group consensus statements. 

First, I should probably define a consensus statement.  In Humanities, we do a great deal of group discussion before we "answer" open-ended or critical thinking questions.  The groups then developed a consensus statement, which is a well-written glimpse at the discussion.  It is almost as if this statement is a window into the discussion.  All group members should agree on the statement and everyone's ideas should be represented. 

I've had students create consensus statements and submit them in a variety of formats: a single paragraph answer that is read to the class, a class Verso discussion, and a Sway.  My favorite, when doing a novel study, is using the Sway.  Students are always amazed at how easy it is to make a well-designed response.  They add to their group's Sway so that by the end of the selection/novel, they have some culminating answers that will help them prepare for the assessment and will capture the most important aspects of the piece.

Pros of using Sway for this activity:

• Simplistic
• Easy to share
• Many authors can manipulate the content, but it appears cohesive due to the layouts

Cons of using Sway:

• Difficult to change groups
• Limited in the types of responses at this time (voice recording would be AMAZING)

Using Sway

As an English/Language Arts teacher, I find that I typically have my students writing in one, at times boring, format- the typical word processed paper.  Writing encompasses over half of my state standards and a large portion of the standardized test, so having students practice this as often as possible is a necessary evil.  Students quickly type responses to prompts or questions and then I read through them, grade/respond, and hand them back (either virtually or on actual paper- archaic, I know).  Thanks to Sway, I'm finding that this process is much more enjoyable for both my students and myself!

Recently, I have been having my Humanities students write their "responses" in Word within Office 365.  After they have completed a series, these students then add these "responses" to a Sway and create a digital newspaper, complete with images.

Not only does this break up the monotony of grading multiple assignments written on the same topic, it also adds a higher level of understanding on the part of the students because they have to consider visual appeal, add images, and make design choices that they may not have done previously.  Additionally, the ability to share when using Sway has been invaluable.  Students can very easily see each other's work by sharing the link in their OneNote Class Notebooks, emailing it to their parents, and even sharing information online with the world! 

I created a very basic Office Mix to introduce Sway to my students.  They watched the tutorial and were able to complete their first Sway (by copying and pasting from Word in Office 365) within minutes.  Students had very few questions and really enjoyed the 'remix' and design features.  I am definitely using this tool throughout the remainder of the school year!

Instructional Coaching- Life made easy with Office Mix

If there is one tech tool that has helped me make the transition from full-time Language Arts teacher to a half-time teacher and half-time instructional coach, it is Office Mix on my Surface Pro 3.  I'm often asked to create tutorials for strategies and techniques demonstrated during our weekly PD sessions for teachers who want a refresher course or were absent.  Where do I turn?  Office Mix!  This effective PowerPoint add-in easily allows large PD-leading PowerPoint presentations to become intimate and usable tutorials. 

It is a tech-coach's dream because I only have to perform the tutorial ONCE and it is forever recorded and is easily shared with any colleagues who may want more practice or to try things with the video.  Countless teachers have commented that they love these videos.  Little did they know, it is our familiar go-to (PowerPoint) with a little more razzle-dazzle!

I've linked a few samples of recent tutorials that I created for my teachers below.

Office Mix can easily be added to your PowerPoint through a quick download.  Our tech department recently sent it out for all teacher computers.  I'm excited to see my colleagues begin to play with this efficient, effective, and exciting new tool!  https://mix.office.com

Ready, Set, Launch!

After a summer full of professional development, my brain is absolutely packed with new and exciting tools and strategies to try in my Humanities classroom.  One tool that I am going to implement day one is the OneNote Class Notebook.  I use my Surface Pro 3 and Surface 3 to run this amazing program.  I've played with it quite a bit in the past, but have never used it as a primary tool in my classroom.  This year, I've fully committed to being as paperless as possible, and the OneNote Class Notebook is the tool that I'm going to use to help me achieve this goal!

To introduce the OneNote Class Notebook to my students, I first showed them THIS VIDEO from the OneNote for Teachers website.  I then had students login to their Office 365 accounts, and open OneDrive.  I had previously created their OneNote Class Notebooks and shared those with them, so they were able to click on their 'Shared with Me' link and see the notebook.  They then launched OneNote Online by clicking on the link.  After the program opened, they clicked on the 'Open in OneNote' button at the top.

At this point, I began to play the tutorial video for OneNote Class Notebooks.  Students watched the video and walked through the steps on their own Class Notebook pages.  It gave them a great overview of the program and allowed them to "try" things while still being directed.  Since the tutorial was doing the "teaching", I was able to walk through the classroom and help my 30 students navigate and troubleshoot any issues.

We had a few glitches and a few computers struggled to load the full version of OneNote, but after the initial class period (48 minutes), students had a working knowledge of the program and were ready to begin the next lesson using the program.