iTech e-Newsletter
May 2017 - Oconto Falls Public Schools
The Year in Review
The Tech Committee was able to meet several times throughout the 2016-17 school year. Our goal was to begin charting a course for technology integration in the Oconto Falls School District. We researched everything from age-appropriate technology for our youngest learners to the pros and cons of different devices for our high school students. We demoed various learning management systems to streamline assessment and tech integration at the elementary, middle, and high school levels. The team also discussed how and when to introduce one to one technology in our elementary classrooms and have set aside time this summer to work on a technology education scope and sequence for the district. Finally, to ensure students use technology appropriately, the team revised the district’s Acceptable Use Form and piloted software that would improve classroom management of tech devices. We hope that these first steps provide a strong foundation for technology integration in the district grows and evolves to meet the needs of our community.
Summer of 2016:
We planned and held 3 optional professional development days to introduce staff to Google's "G Suite for Education." This included Gmail, forms, docs, and drive. Within the months of June and July, we were able to train over 85% of our staff to prepare them for the next school year prior to the teacher professional development days in August. We were able to train the remaining 15% during those PD days.
August & November of 2016:
After the summer training session, two additional PD days were held. In order to meet the needs of district staff, the iMentor team utilized Google Forms to survey staff members. The results from each survey were used to determine the focus of our professional development sessions.
May 2017:
The team met to outline district goals for technology implementation for the 2017-2018 school year. There will be additional meetings held this summer to continue this process.
Updated District Logo
Apps & Extensions to Use
Toby
The main purpose of Toby is to help tame your browser tabs. To do this, simply drag the tab from the right bar into a collection in the center. This will close the tab inside the window. Once a tab is "inside" a collection you will be able to move, rename, and tag it.
Boomerang
With Boomerang, you can write an email now and schedule it to be sent automatically at the perfect time. Or if there are times you need to make sure you follow up within a specific time frame after sending a message. You can select to only be reminded if nobody replies, or regardless. This way you won't let messages slip through the crack and will never forget to follow up with people.
Screencastify
Looking Forward...
- G Suite for Education: This will continue to be a large focus for the district
- Grades 6-12 will be 1:1 with devices
- Additional devices and carts will be placed within the elementary schools
- Optional Chromebooks for Elementary Educators
The iMentor Team
Brett Crandall
1st Grade Teacher
Melissa Leja
5th Grade Teacher
Beth Trochil
6th Grade Math Teacher
Hannah Zischka
5th Grade Teacher
Jackie Rochon
Physical Education Teacher
Sherri Woelffer
6th Grade Math Teacher
Candis Holtz
Math Teacher
Carla Nielsen
SPED Paraprofessional
Sara Phillips
Math Teacher
Opportunities to Learn and Share
- Google Summit-Fall
- Google Summit-Spring
- EdTech Sages Training
Sometimes, our district is able to bring additional teachers along with the iMentor team to learn and grow. If you are interested in possibly attending a future professional development opportunity and are willing to share your knowledge, please email Tracy Tate at tracy.tate@of-ps.org and let her know of your interest.
Triton Academy - August 8 & 9 Professional Development Opportunity
If you overlooked this opportunity or are now able to attend, please click on the following link and fill out the form.
FORM TO BE PUT ON WAITING LIST
Website: https://sites.google.com/a/gillett.k12.wi.us/triton-academy/
Location: Gillett High School, Gillett, WI
Classroom Spotlight
1st Grade Mystery Location Hangout!
Google Classroom
Chromebook Shortcuts
Another cool trick, while on your Chromebook press and hold the following keys at the same time: "Ctrl + alt + ?". This will bring up a keyboard and if you hold down various keys as stated on that screen it shows you shortcuts!
Smores
Click on the example link to see and learn more about what could be created by using Smore! EXAMPLE