Taylor ISD DuckLink # 74
empowering student success and school improvement
October 27, 2017
Simple Steps Toward a Technology Infused Classroom
As a district, we are fortunate to have many technologies available to us but sometimes it's challenging to know exactly how to best use those technologies to engage our students in productive learning experiences. As educators, it is our duty to understand the modern student and adjust our instruction to best meet their needs.
It certainly isn't always about technology but one look into the daily lives of students outside of school will most likely reveal students spend a considerable amount of time with some form of technology. Our challenge is to help guide them in meaningful learning experiences using technology when appropriate and useful to the task.
Here are 5 simple steps towards creating a technology-infused classroom.
- Always think pedagogy more than technology tools.
- Stick with 2 or 3 tools that you consistently use so you are spending less and less time teaching and supporting the tool. (Pear Deck, Padlet, Google Docs)
- Give students choice in making their thinking visible. (Videos, Slideshows, Newsletters)
- Make the sometimes mundane tasks fun for students. (Pear Deck Vocabulary, Quizziz)
- Use tools to help manage your class such as ClassDojo, Bouncy Balls, and GoNoodle.
If you would like training or support on any of these items please feel free to contact me at jphale@taylorisd.org. I would be happy to help.
Halloween Activities for Students
- Halloween Magnetic Poetry (using Google Drawings)
- Build a Jack-O-Lantern with Google Slides
- 30 Halloween Activities for the Classroom (Primary)
- Halloween Lesson Ideas from Education World
- Halloween Activities from The Teacher's Corner (Various ages)
Edcamp Georgetown- November 4, 8:30 AM - 12:30 PM
Edcamps are unique professional learning opportunities where the participants decide the learning topics on the morning of the event and attend sessions to learn from and share with fellow educators.
Edcamp Georgetown is a professional learning opportunity sponsored by Georgetown ISD open to any educator from any school or district. The primary audience for Edcamp Georgetown includes classroom teachers, campus and district administrators, librarians, instructional specialists, preservice teachers, professors of education, and other educators involved in PK-12.
Register for the event here. http://tinyurl.com/edcampgtx
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Meet the New Google Calendar
Book Recommendations
- Learning Transformed: 8 Keys to Designing Tomorrow's Schools, Today by Eric Sheninger and Thomas Murray
- The Google Infused Classroom by Holly Clark and Tanya Avrith
- Digital Leadership: Changing Paradigms for Changing Times by Eric Sheninger
- Classroom Management in the Digital Age by Header Dowd and Patrick Green
- Invent to Learn: Making, Tinkering, and Engineering in the Classroom by Sylvia Libow Martinez and Gary Stager
- The Innovator's Mindset: Empower Learning, Unleash Talent, and Lead a Culture of Creativity by George Couros
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Help Desk Contact
Eduphoria Help Desk- http://eduphoria.taylorisd.org/
Phone: 512-365-5015 or x1900
Be sure to visit the Taylor ISD Technology site for more information.
Contact Information
Director of Instructional Technology
Taylor ISD
Email: jphale@taylorisd.org
Website: http://www.taylorisd.org
Location: 3101 North Main Street, Taylor, TX
Phone: 512-365-5015
Twitter: @haleedtech