Distance Learning Apps and Platforms to Engage Students

I've been on a steep learning curve journey the past few weeks trying to learn new ways of teaching in the new frontier of distance learning.  Even though I teach at the university level, I feel that many of the apps I have discovered can be easily used in K-12 as well.  I've had to completely redesign a few of the courses I am teaching this semester and it's been a journey!  The word that my colleagues and I seem to be repeating often is "overwhelmed".  Hopefully my descriptions of these apps can help you design engaging learning opportunities for your students, even when you are not with them.  

1.  Flipgrid:  Flipgrid is an easy video app where you and your students can make mini videos.  It feels a little more personal when you can see each other's faces.  The other thing I love about this platform is that you can also reply with a video.  It's sort of like a visual discussion board, which makes things much more engaging for students.  You can create a free class account and share the code for the class with students so they can find it easily.  You can create individual assignments within each class with descriptions and prompts on what students need to discuss in the video.  You can also adjust the time frame when you set up assignments; the default is 90 seconds, but you can make it longer or shorter.  I found this video helpful in learning a few more tricks in Flipgrid.  Flipgrid is free.  Here's a screen shot of my home page for my STEM ED Course.  I have added 2 assignments so far. 

.  EdPuzzle:  Edpuzzle allows you to upload videos you want your students to watch, with the added tool of inserting questions throughout the video.  The video will actually stop until the viewer has answered the question.  You can go back to your EdPuzzle account and see what students responded.  This platform gives students accountability for watching videos.  One thing I learned with this one is that you need to ask the students what their names are right away so you have record of each student's participation.  You can find videos that are already out there, or you can make your own.  I've even recorded Zoom sessions with screen share of a PowerPoint and then uploaded those to EdPuzzle so that I can ask questions throughout.  Ed Puzzle is free for up to 20 videos stored per free account. 

3.  Nearpod:  This is probably my favorite so far.  I am using this app for many of my asynchronous teaching days where I am not on live Zoom.  This app allows you to use powerpoints and insert all different kinds of interactive media.  You can insert open ended questions, polls, web pages, simulations, and even your voice.   If you use Google Drive to create slides you can install the Nearpod Add On which makes it super easy to use by allowing you to insert the interactive pieces right into your google slides presentation.  For this one after you create the interactive presentation you get a code to share with your students.  Nearpod is free for the "Silver" level.  You can pay to get more benefits.

4.  Voxer:  Voxer is a walkie talkie type app where students can use their phones to have conversations regarding a reading or specific assignment.  I am using this as a collaborative tool and making "Voxer Groups" so that groups of students can have a discussion group.  Each group has to add me as well so that I can listen in.  Voxer is free for the basic app.

Take some time to check these platforms out and be patient with yourself.  It took me a week or so to get comfortable with each of these.  I'm excited to give my students some engaging tools to help with the distance learning aspect of learning.  

Are there any other apps or platforms that you have discovered?  If so please leave a comment and share your experiences.  We really are all in this together!

Now What? Making the Transition to Learning (and Teaching) From Home

Just a week ago I was hitting golf balls enjoying a nice spring afternoon.  Now I am self-isolating and attempting to teach my college students from home.  It's been quite a scramble to get things figured out, and honestly, it's still a process.  I've read several articles floating around out there, and the biggest message I am hearing is, we don't need to feel like we have to do everything perfectly.  Some things are going to have to go.  What we need to do as educators is find ways to educate students as best we can, and not be so hard on ourselves.  I decided on a very simple format for my college students taking an introductory 1 credit education class.  It's one page of directions with  a "Read This" section with links to articles related to the topic of the week, a "Watch This" section with links to videos for them to watch, and a "Do This" section for them to complete a discussion board thread post or written reflection with prompts.  We need to remember that our students are also transitioning to this online learning from home challenge that they did not sign up for.  I think keeping things simple and demanding a little less of them during these times is the right thing to do.

After deciding on this simple format for my college students, I got to thinking about the K-12 students.  I create science curriculum mostly for elementary level students, and my philosophy is highly inquiry and hands on learning.  But with this wrench in the system, it might not be feasible to ask students to find the materials to conduct hands on lessons that are normally done in schools.  I decided to create some new resources that students could use at home to continue their learning of science topics.  Adopting a similar format to my college class, I have 4 sections:  Read This, Watch This, Do This, and Try This.  The "Try This" is an attempt to give the home-bound students an opportunity to do some sort of hands on learning using simple materials that can be found at home.  Each of the topics is sold separately, but I also have a Growing Bundle of all the topics that I will continue to add to over the next several weeks.  Check it out by clicking on the image below.

Here's to getting through this challenge with grit and determination.  Take care of yourself, don't try to be perfect, and help keep those kiddos learning!

Tips for STEM Night Success

I recently was tasked with planning a STEM night at a rural school in our state.  I worked with one of our graduates who is currently teaching at the middle school to coordinate activities and presentations for the elementary students of the community.  We trained the middle school students to facilitate the activities with the help of some of my college students. 

Here are 10 things I have learned from planning and carrying out this STEM Night:
1.  STEM nights are A LOT of work!
2.  Communication is the key to good attendance.
3.  Using social media to share about the event works well!  Most schools/school districts have Facebook pages.
4.  People don't tend to RSVP even when an email RSVP form is sent to every family.
5.  Find a guest speaker/presenter to kick off the event.
6.  Volunteers appreciate food.
7.  Plan and prepare plenty of materials for the activities.  It's better to have too many than not enough.
8.  Spread activities out.  We used the cafeteria for the more mellow activities, and used classrooms for the louder ones and ones with projectiles. (Check out my STEM night product for activity ideas here).
9.  Take pictures!  (This is where I didn't do so well; I was distracted with organizing)
10.  Get there early to get set up and organized.  This will ease your stress on the day of the event.t

I have participated in tons of STEM nights in my years of teaching, but this was the first one I actually coordinated.  The biggest worry for me was that no one would show up.  Since hardly any families RSVP'd I seriously didn't sleep the night before.  But thankfully, people did show up and all my worries were for nothing. 

               

Another great bonus that I was fortunate enough to have was a guest speaker who was a real live astronaut.  I truly believe the NASA astronaut was a huge draw for the community, and many wanted to come and listen to his presentation before the activities began. 

So my big take away is that this was a TON of work, but it was so worth it in the end.  Seeing the kids smiling faces was amazing, and the turn out of volunteers was very impressive.  Especially since they had to drive more than an hour to get to the school where the event was held.

New Year, New Science Goals!

Life as an elementary teacher is challenging to say the least.  One of the biggest challenges is trying to juggle all of the different subjects and find time for everything.  Coupled with the pressure for students to perform well on standardize tests, it's no wonder that science often takes a back seat.

Do your students a favor, and find ways to make science more of a priority in 2020.  There are a variety of ways to work smarter, not harder when fitting science into your school week.  Here are some ideas to get you started:

1.   Science Friday: When I taught 5th grade, I had great success with committing to teach science on Fridays; once before lunch and again after lunch.  That gave my students about an hour an a half of science for the week.  Fridays worked well for me with my specials schedule and it had the added side affect of getting kids to school on Fridays.  For some reason, that day is notorious for student absences, which doesn't fit so well with weekly spelling tests and other assessments. With Science Friday, the kids looked forward to it and made sure they didn't miss school that day.

2. Team Teach:  If you have a big enough school with more than one teacher at your grade level, try team teaching science.  Get super prepared and immersed in one science unit and become the expert at your grade level.  Trade students or rotate classrooms to teach each other's students the one unit you've become a pro at. 

3. Science Centers:  Science centers are a super efficient way to get all concepts in and let students do hands on experiments without needing enough materials for the entire class.  Set up 5 centers around the room for a week and have students rotate to one each day.  Students should be able to do a quick science activity and have an opportunity to write about their experiences in a journal in a 30 minute time frame.

4.  Integrate Science:  Students are naturally engaged with science topics due to their curiosity about their world.  Try flipping things around and using science as the central theme or topic to integrate with language arts and mathematics.  There are plenty of opportunities for reading and writing in science, and mathematics is a natural fit, especially with data and data analysis.

Give some of these ideas a try!  Your students will thank you for fitting one of their favorite subjects in!