Tech Talk Tuesday 10/20
From the Office of Dr. Rachel Evans
Dates to Remember
October 24-31 - HSV Science Festival STEAMfest (Click HERE)
November 9 - Deadline for "I Love My Librarian" Award Nominations (See below for more info)
January 15 - Governor's App Challenge Due (Click HERE)
February 1 - STEDTrain Grant App is Available (Click HERE)
March 13 - Alabama Wildlife Federation Grant Due (Click HERE)
.::Techie Teacher Tools::.
Google Meet Updates
Current Features
Ability to Turn the Chat Feature Off
Manage Who Can Join Meeting
Jamboard - Digital interactive whiteboard
Upcoming Features
Breakout Rooms - Split students into small groups
Attendance Reports - Google Sheets report includes each student’s name, email, and length of time on the call
Polling - Allows teachers to check for understanding
Click HERE for more information regarding these updates.
Jamboard - Google Meet
Jamboard is an awesome new feature in Google Meet that allows teachers and students to interact on a virtual whiteboard. Click the button below to view a quick video about how to use this new resource!
If you would like to use Jamboard separate from a Google Meet, simply go to Jamboard.Google.com to create and share a Jamboard with your students.
EdPuzzle
- Teachers already on Edpuzzle: All registered teachers are already taken care of and upgraded to Pro.
- Teachers new to Edpuzzle: New teachers should register to Edpuzzle via this unique link for your district to get automatically upgraded as well: https://edpuzzle.com/schools/join/network/pzhp2j (upgrade code is pzhp2j).
- Lastly, Here is our Resources Page. This page is a main hub of tutorials, webinars, Teacher Certifications, and more: https://edpuzzle.com/resources.
As a reminder, Edpuzzle helps you easily create beautiful interactive video lessons for your students you can integrate right into your LMS. Tracking progress and understanding is easy with Edpuzzle.
Google Level 1 Certification
Madison County has over 200 Google Certified Level 1 Educators! Kudos to these educators for going above and beyond to make themselves better for their students!
We will recognize all new Level 1 and Level 2 certified educators in the Tech Talk Tuesday!
Click HERE for more info, and let me know if you have any questions!
Community Connections
Bayer Fund - Grow Rural Education Grant
The Grow Rural Education program allows eligible farmers to nominate their local public school district for grants to help enhance STEM education. Once nominated, school districts submit applications to compete for a $15,000 grant to help fund a project that enhances their STEM curriculum. These grants are helping to improve test scores, but better yet, they’re getting kids to think bigger about their tomorrow.
If you are interested in pursuing this grant for your school, please let me know. Only one school can submit each year on behalf of the district. The application will be available on January 1, 2021. Click HERE for more information. This year, the grant amount is $15,000.
Little Free Library
Click HERE for more info, and let me know if you are interested in adding a LFL for your students!
"I Love My Librarian" Award
Click HERE to nominate your favorite librarian for this prestigious award before 11/09/20!
Huntsville Science Festival Oct. 24-31
Your students can also receive FREE at-home science kits by filling out THIS form and emailing it to huntsvillescience@gmail.com.
FUSE FUN
Ms. Amber Bryant's students at NHHS are 3D printing and designing houses in their Fuse Lab!
Techie Teachers on Twitter
Most schools are utilizing their Swivls for virtual teaching. The Swivl is a tremendous resource for our virtual teachers. If you need assistance getting started, please contact me or your DLP.
STEM Standouts!
myon Reader Winners
Renaissance myON® Reader is a student-centered, personalized literacy environment that gives students access to more than 6,000 enhanced digital books.
PPG STEM Grant
Each school within Madison County is eligible to obtain up to five $1,000 STEM grants per year from PPG! Click HERE for more info. Click HERE to view a template for the grant.
Teachers have used this grant to aid with the following initiatives: Robotics Team, Greenpower, paying for AP exam fees, creating an outdoor classroom, adding Makerspace to the library, purchasing STEM kits for the classroom, etc.
SchoolsPLP Support
Some helpful links are below:
- The Schools PLP Video Resource Catalog can be found HERE
- SchoolsPLP support email address: support@schoolsplp.com
SchoolsPLP Knowledge Base: https://schoolsplp.helpscoutdocs.com
Archived Tech Talk Tuesdays
Contact Me
Email: revans@mcssk12.org
Website: www.mcssk12.org
Location: 1275 Jordan Road, Huntsville, AL, USA
Phone: (256) 852-2557
Twitter: @RachelEvansEdD