CPP Technology Today
A Communication of the CPP Technology Committee - Vol 1.2
In This Issue
- Instructional Technology in Action - "Students as Technology Leaders - Computers and Collaboration at Carder Elementary"
- Instructional Technology in Action: "IXL Math Excites and Motivates CPP Middle School Students"
- Resources Spotlight - What's New on the CPP Technology Website
- Resource Spotlight - Symbaloo
- Resource Spotlight - Google Apps
- Library Media Tech Connections
- District Technology News: BrightBytes Technology Survey
- Technology Master Plan Goals - Year 1: Tech Goal 1
- Smart Schools Bond Public Update
- Updates from Tech Services
- Get Involved! Join a Focus Group and Become a Techy Turnkey Trainer!
- Newsletter Suggestions and Ideas
Friday, Jan 8, 2016, 03:00 PM
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Instructional Technology in Action
Students as Technology Leaders - Computers and Collaboration at Carder Elementary
Laura Tolbert is a member of the technology committee, and was part of the team that researched and wrote the CPP K-12 Technology Skills Curriculum. The committee is working this year on determining ways to integrate instruction of those skills into an already busy elementary curriculum, and Tolbert has been brainstorming ways to make it work for her students. Tolbert and Friedrichs arrived at the idea of collaborating to teach those skills, since it met the needs of both sets of students - The third grade students needed review and reinforcement in basics and technology vocabulary, while the younger students needed an introduction to computers and instruction in some basic foundational skills.
"This has been very helpful to me to have all these extra people helping," Friedrich says. "It's hard to help 20 five-year-olds all turn on a computer at the same time."
Fortunately, there are plenty of helpers in the computer lab on days when the classes combine. The third graders arrive first. Each has a packet with a list of tasks and materials for the day. On December 18, the list included teaching the kindergartners to identify parts of the computer, log on to the computer and log off, and to adjust the volume. Third graders smiled widely as their buddies approached the computer, lingering behind each computer's chair as they settled the younger students into the seats.
"I'm so glad to see you! Do you remember my name?" one of the third-graders prompted his buddy encouragingly as she sat nervously in her chair. Within minutes, the shy little girl was giggling loudly as her buddy reacted in mock amazement and awe as she named the parts of the computer off the picture flash cards he showed her, and pointed out the parts on the actual equipment.
The scene replayed around the computer lab as the pairs worked through the vocabulary (incorporating a little letter-sounds practice along the way), logged in to the computers, found volume settings and logged out.
"We only meet for ten or fifteen minutes a time, whenever we both can fit it in," Tolbert says. "We get there first, the little kids come in, and we stay and complete our own work after they go. That way we both get to use the lab at the same time." Those ten minutes are enough, though, to provide instruction on four of the skills on the kindergarten technology skills curriculum.
When asked one she had learned in the lab, one of the kindergarten students said, "Now I can get on the computer and off it myself!"
"And she found all the parts of the computer and she knows her letter sounds!" her buddy added proudly. Of course - she has several great teachers.
IXL Math Excites and Motivates CPP Middle School Students
by Carrie Howe, and the CPPMS Grade 7 Math Teachers
Middle school math students have been using the resource IXL to build fluency with grade level skills that have been taught in class. In IXL, students are able to work on computers to practice math skills and concepts. Unlike regular web-based math practice programs, however, the IXL program enables teachers to modify the program to provide specific lessons to specific students. Students are therefore able to work on gaps within their math skills, to practice targeted concept or they can receive enrichment for skills ahead of the lesson targets.
IXL also provides students with feedback. When a student answers a question incorrectly, it shows students the correct answer and walks them through the process for solving the specific problem. This method reteaches the process and allows students an opportunity to identify the error that occurred.
IXL doesn't just give students feedback, it also provides teachers with a comprehensive look at all students' progress. The teacher dashboard shows the skills students have practiced, questions they've answered, the students' "smart score," the amount of time students have been idle and targets which students need help. In addition, teachers are provided with additional features that allow them to gauge the progress of the class as a whole, helping them to make decisions regarding the pacing of instruction.
IXL engages students and encourages them to keep working through the program by enabling them to earn medals, certificates, and access to games based on their progress.
IXL is changing the way students feel, view and learn math in the middle school classrooms. This technology provides our middle school students the necessary targeted instruction they all need to improve their individual skills in Math. Teachers are better able to address all students’ needs simultaneously and design targeted instruction with the assistance of the IXL program and the district's technology equipment.
Instructional Technology Resource Spotlights
What's New on the CPP Technology Website?
New:
- Find tutorials, samples and resources for using Symbaloo
- Access the teacher, student and parent links for the BrightBytes Technology Survey
Other Important Resources:
Access the CPP Technology Newsletter - new issues and archives!
- Open presentations, handouts and resources from many of the technology-related
- Find information and tutorials on using Google Apps
- Access tips and tricks for teaching in a 1:1 environment
Symbaloo Resources
Resources for Symbaloo
Symbaloos can be set as a user's homepage, shared via links, embedded in a website, or linked to an Edmodo or Google classroom. By uploading a document to Google Docs or another cloud sharing site, you can even attach a document to a tile via a link.
Symbaloos can be used by teachers to keep track of resources, to share with students/parents, or students can create their own symbaloos as part of a portfolio or project. Visit the CPP Technology Webpage Teacher Resources page to find tutorials and samples of Symbaloo.
Click the icons to visit Symbaloo on Facebook or Twitter, visit the site itself, or check out the video below for a quick overview of the program.
Website: http://www.symbaloo.com
Facebook: facebook,com/Symbaloo/
Twitter: @Symbaloo
Google Apps for Education Resources
To access your account:
- First, go to drive.google.com to log in to Google Drive. Drive is your starting point for all the Google Apps.
- Your username is whatever you use to login here at cpp +@cppasd.com (ie, lpruyne@cppasd.com).
- Contact Lori Pruyne, Carrie Howe or Dave Mayotte for your password. Passwords are all preset, and you will be prompted to change it at your first login.
Students also have accounts. Their usernames are set up the same ways as teacher accounts, and their passwords explained in the tutorial below.
Troubleshooting:
If you have a Google Account already, you need to remember that your @cppasd.com Google account is separate from your personal account. You will need to log out of that account, and log in with your @cppasd.com username. Google Apps for Education is set up so that users within our cppasd.com domain can only communicate with, share docs with and work with users INSIDE the domain. This is to keep our kids secure online.
There are extensive resources for using Google Apps for Education at the CPP Google Apps Hub on the district technology page. Resources include videos, tutorials, practice exercises and activities to use with students.
If you'd like some help accessing and using Apps, please contact Lori, Carrie or Dave!
District Technology Updates
BrightBytes Technology Survey
To gather information, students, teachers and parents are being asked to take technology surveys. The questions deal with the technology climate, direction and needs within your building. In order to get clear data on specific needs there are building-specific links for parents, teachers and students. In this way, we can determine what the needs are in different buildings around the district, and ensure that all teachers and students receive the resources, professional development and support that they need to help students succeed.
The BrightBytes surveys are accessible from the District Technology Website. The main page of the site contains links to Parent, Teacher and Student surveys. Once on the appropriate page, click the link for the specific school and complete the survey.
Teacher surveys should take about 15 minutes to complete. Parents surveys are about 5-7 minutes in length, and student surveys require about 7-10 minutes.
The document linked below contain more information about the BrightBytes survey. Building principals will be contacting teachers with more information about the survey.
Technology-Related Master Plan Goals: Goal 1 Progress
On the face of it, the goal is about the technology committee. But in looking at the three objectives that support that goal, the goal's communication focus becomes apparent:
Goal 1: Technology Committee: Develop the role of the committee in regards to decision-making, communication and implementation of current Master Plan
Objective 1: To evaluate and re-evaluate the technology integration master plan goals and vision ( Complete June 2015)
Objective 2: To create a process for accountability and communication to and from external stakeholders (Complete June 2016)
Objective 3: To facilitate the process to investigate and compare new technologies (Complete September 2016)
The Technology Committee met in June 2015 to review the goals, and to make plans to accomplish the objectives. Currently, the committee is engaged in completing Objective 2 - developing a process for communicating news, initiatives and progress of the committee to all district stakeholders. This newsletter is the first step in that progress. Work will continue throughout the year on the district technology website, another method the committee has determined to use to communicate with staff, students and parents.
Other methods of communication are being considered and discussed. Ideas and suggestions for means of communication would be welcome and appreciated - contact any of the Technology Committee members made below to share your thoughts!
Smart Schools Bond January Update
Creating a committee to investigate and determine how best to allocate these funds was Goal 8 of the Technology Master Plan Goals. This committee, comprised of administrators, teachers, board members, parents and other stakeholders, began meeting in August and met several times before completing a proposal in November.
After the plan went through the first round of approval with the state, it was placed under public review for thirty days, and a public hearing on the proposal was held at the December 16 Board of Education meeting. No changes were proposed to that plan at the hearing, and so the Board of Education met in a special session on December 21 and approved the Smart Schools investment plan.
Further information on the progress of the plan will be made available in future issues. You can learn more by visiting the links below:
Updates From Tech Services
FAX It - From Your Email!
Users can send faxes using their email by sending a scanned PDF or other graphic file to the "fax number#@gstfax.local."
For example, enter 6076542745@gstfax.local as the email address in the "To:" box of the message. Attach the scanned PDF or graphic file to the message.
This can even be done from home through web mail
Internet Explorer Woes
Anyone having trouble using Internet Explorer can use Google Chrome by clicking START / Programs / Google Chrome on the Start Menu.
Get Involved! Join a Focus Group and Become a Techy Turnkey Trainer!
There is no better resource for a teacher than another teacher. Toward the end of enabling teachers to support each other, several focus groups will be forming in the following months with the goal of enabling interested teachers to become "turnkey trainers." These focus group members will explore resources, investigate programs and share and instruct each other. They will then bring what they learn from each other back to other teachers in their buildings.
The first of these groups to form will be a Google Apps Focus Group. Teachers of all grade levels are encouraged to be involved; ideally, the group would contain at least one teacher from each school in the district. It is not necessary that teachers have used Google Apps for Education with classes at this point, but they should be familiar with Google programs and comfortable with technology. Meeting times and further information will be determined once membership has been solidified. Please contact Lori Pruyne, through email or at x3503 to indicate interest or for more information!
Newletter Information
Email: lpruyne@cppmail.com
Website: cpptechnology.weebly.com
Location: CPPHS B215
Phone: 3503