Teaching & Learning
WESTWOOD INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT
"WE PREPARE FUTURE READY STUDENTS IN A POSITIVE AND ENGAGING EDUCATIONAL ENVIRONMENT"
TEACHER SPOTLIGHT
At WISD.....we believe every person is a leader - they lead from where they are from!
Mrs. Hebert is completing her Master's degree in instructional technology and continuing her hard work with teaching both in-person and home-based learners.
Recently, Mrs. Hebery has helped revamp the new WISD Passport Badging System.
She has created a Google Classroom titled WISD Teacher Badging System. In this classroom for the staff, she has broken down the Badging system starting with Badging System 101 then moving into each badge level. Within each level, she has broken the system down for further assistance with a short overview video, explaining what the level consists of; interactive Google Slides on How to Earn badges, one-pagers including screenshots for step by step directions, followed by the corresponding submission forms.
To join the google classroom with the following code: pjnp4j5
Thank you for your hard work to help the WISD teaching staff in their Badging System journey!
WISD PASSPORT BADGING SPOTLIGHT
At WISD ... we believe in being the best!
Remember to badge up! The badging information is on the Curriculum and Instruction Website - http://bit.ly/WISDCandI.
Mrs. Tyler Jean Hebert; High School
Mrs. Talia Hodge; Primary
Mrs. Jennifer Wright; Primary
Mrs. Virginia Gayso
Mrs. Amanda Haney
Mrs. Cassandra Huddleston; Junior High
STRATEGY SPOTLIGHT
At WISD .... we believe in academic excellence for all students
With the shift to 1-1 with our students in the district and home-based learners - many teachers have been utilizing the free version of Pear Deck to make presentations interactive, including assessment.
Now WISD teaching staff will be upgraded when logging into their Pear Deck account to take advantage of all features offered, including keeping students synced during learning. Pear Deck seamlessly integrated with Google to increase rigor while reducing teacher strain.
Mrs. Asheligh Bishop has been using the free trial of Pear Deck this fall and has seen great success. The three pictures above are actual photos from her real-time data that students are answering. Questions are embedded into the Google Slides. She can see who is working and who is not. Mrs. Bishop can share student's work with the SmartBoard to discuss in class and give immediate feedback. Mrs. Bishop's favorite thing about PearDeck is the ability to adjust instruction based on the data collected.
If you want help with Mrs. Bishop, feel free to reach out to her at adbishop@westwoodisd.net or see your instructional coach for continued support.
On January 4th, PearDeck will do a quick 1-hour overview of the program to get you started in the new semester. Be on the lookout for this information coming soon but for now, check out PearDeck's YouTube training videos playlist https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL1lHHMSvWNHprVbWnccnoAaSUY2qE4ENo.
Check out the 2020 Pear Deck Logic Model below, as well as the Getting Started for Teachers document.
Enjoy Creating 🙌🏻
PROGRAM SPOTLIGHT
At WISD .... we believe students have a place to belong
Benchmark Universe is an adaptable ebook library that enables teachers to create bookshelves full of engaging ebooks in their libraries, provide students with reading assignments and assessments with a click of the mouse, blend classroom instruction with interactive resources, and more. Offering 3,500+ ebooks, students can find a genre of their liking to stay engaged in learning both in and out of the classroom.
Benchmark Universe covers grade levels PK - 8th grade.
Contact your instructional coach for assistance with Benchmark Universe in your classroom today!
http://bit.ly/WISDCandI - Instructional Resources > Resources > Benchmark Universe