All middle and intermediate classes had the opportunity to join the Media Center's Google Classroom during visits the past two weeks. Many teachers are already using it, but if you would like to see a good introduction, here is the latest one from Google. I have requested a demo student account that teachers could use to show the student view, and am waiting to hear back from the technology department.

Here are the codes if you had students who did not get to sign up:

5th grade: pq22no

6th: hnce7q

7th: oop9sn

8th: jdos1xy

Last week I came across this infographic from Alice Keeler which gives a great summary of Google Classroom Essentials.

Google Drawings is one program that I need to explore more! This post has several examples of ways students can use it from Matt Miller (author of Ditch that Textbook). He has many other worthwhile resources on his site, which he continually updates.

Matt generously shares many of the strategies and activities that have worked-- and those that weren't quite what he wanted. He is a Spanish teacher from Turkey Run HS currently on the speaker circuit around the world relating his experiences.

generationOn's stated mission is "to inspire, equip, and mobilize youth to take action that changes the world and themselves through service". They have a curriculum called Learning to Give (searchable by academic standards). In addition, with Creston as a member of generationOn, teachers who register are eligible for $250 grants to do service learning projects with students; our own Lesley Tyra is one of Indiana's leading recipients. We can even use their website to track all of the service learning projects completed by our school. Please let me know if you have any questions. I have had student groups in the past who were transformed by the experience of helping others.

Dr. Zhao is one of my favorite keynoters (third time I've seen him). He includes some of the strengths of the American education system-- and how we are eroding some of them with things like CCSS and standardized testing. An older version of his presentation can be found here, although he's such a good presenter, he can throw the slides together as he goes.

Dr. Tate is author of several Worksheets Don't Grow Dendrites books. Her strategies include greeting each student at the door and beginning class on a positive note. Her session "20 Instructional Strategies That Engage the Brain" had several hundred attendees, and was well worth it. With as many difference conferences I've attended through the years, I can't believe I had never seen her before.

I had heard her before, but her session was amazing. I was so busy taking notes I didn't have time to tweet! She started off her session by asking if we knew the greatest predictor for middle school students to become at risk. No one guessed it, or even came close. Feel free to ask me what she told us! (She referenced much of the material from her book specifically geared toward middle level students.)