EdTech@NSCDS
All the Tech & Innovation News You Can Use • Issue #7
EdTech@NSCDS News
- From 3:15 pm to 4:15 pm every Monday in October, I'll be in US 024 for tech drop in sessions! On Monday, October 15, our topic will be managing digital photos. Bring your laptop or iPad and any questions. All are welcome!
- NSCDS faculty should email me (Lucy) with requests for apps to be installed on their school or student iPads. I will then approve the request or ask for more information and the IT department will install.
- For subscription services, generally speaking, you should go through your department for these purchases. For example, if you need (and will use) a particular subscription-based tool or app such as Quizlet, purchase it and seek reimbursement from your department. Over the course of this year, I am planning on developing a process for requesting subscriptions prior to the next school year so that we can obtain bulk pricing or negotiate pricing based on users with specific companies.
- I'm available to meet with you, your grade level and/or department to explore how to integrate technology into classroom instruction. Book an appointment on my calendar here or send me an email!
- If you are teaching in the middle and upper schools, please make sure you are reinforcing NSCDS iPad policies and requiring students to bring their charged iPads to school every day.
Apple's Everyone Can Create Initiative
Everyone Can Create is a follow up to its Everyone Can Code program. Everyone Can Create is a collection of project guides that bring creative expression to every subject. The projects in the Everyone Can Create guides teach students to develop and communicate ideas through video, photography, music, and drawing. And they help ignite creativity by giving teachers fun and meaningful ways to bring these skills into any lesson, topic, or assignment. These are not art lessons, but rather suggestions on how to integrate creativity into whatever you teach. Read more about these resources here.
Wordprocessing Using Pages
Why would you use Pages instead of another word processing product? Pages allows one to create beautiful, elegant documents. There are templates available for flyers, newsletters, certificates, school reports, research papers and more. Pages allows you to collaborate with others and you can export Pages documents to PDF, Word and other formats.
A relatively new feature in Pages is Smart Annotation and there are more cool features available once we move to the current iO12/MacOS Mojave systems.
I also recommend that set up Voice Dictation on your Mac and on your iPad in order to have students use their voices to dictate their stories or papers. Dictation is particularly great for younger kids and those with learning differences.
Want to learn more about how to use Pages in education? Download the iBook guide for iPads here or the iBook for Macs here.
GLOBAL COLLABORATION
Teens Dream Co Lab
Teens Dream Co Lab is a collaborative of teens and adults who encourage teens globally to be change agents in their communities and the world. This idea is promoted through a global video competition and virtual Dream Hubs based on the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
Global Math Project
Global Math Week starts October 10 and ends October 17. (It is actually eight days long!)
The idea is that we’re asking teachers and math club leaders and math circle leaders, or anyone, to have a first conversation on the topic of Exploding Dots with students sometime during that week – one class period, half a class period, even just 15 minutes is possible and will count!
Then know that millions of people across the planet have already had this experience and millions more will be doing so with you during Global Math Week 2018.
Here’s what to do:
- Have a quick look at Exploding Dots for yourself.
- Register: Have you and your students (and your city and your country) count towards the global phenomenon.
- Conduct an Exploding Dots experience with your students sometime during Global Math Week.
- Share comments and photos on Twitter (#explodingdots) and on our Facebook page.
Adobe Spark Post
Adobe Spark Page
Adobe Spark Video
Adobe Spark Video is also free and available on the web or via an iOS app. This is an easy to use video creation tool that can be used for digital storytelling.