First Student-Created Videos

I'm impressed. It's just the third day of school and we've already finished our first student-created videos in the Shepard classrooms. The project was to create a tour of the classroom that we'd be able to share with anyone. Here's how we made it happen.

We decided to use the app 30Hands to create the video. If you aren't familiar with the app, you should check it out. It lets you take pictures, add narration, and publish as a movie. Both classes organized their video first by brainstorming the content. They came up with a list of spots in their room that were important for day-to-day operations. Examples were the lunch tub, class library, desks, iPad area, and classroom job board. Then students were assigned expert areas to highlight in the video. That was the hard part.

In both classrooms, we pulled the expert groups to create their segment. The other students had other work to do while they waited. The project was completed on one iPad to make it simpler. Each group only took about five minutes to make their segment, which would have been shorter had we not needed a few minutes to show how the app worked. We had two jobs, the photographer and the speaker(s). One took the pictures, we quickly worked up a short statement, and then recorded. If a mistake was made, it was really easy to rerecord. Of course, they loved listening to their finished segment.

After all the groups were finished, we simply published the video to the camera roll. We then let the class see the finished product via Airserver. It was great. And so easy. I'm heading back there after school to work on publishing the videos to the web. I'll send out the links as soon as we get that part started. 

Scavenger Hunt in Action

Today was an exciting day at Shepard! The students got to use the iPads for the first time. In the morning, students worked to come up with a contract for how they should use the iPads (I'll put examples up later). Then when I arrived, we got going on the scavenger hunt.

I was really impressed at how easily they went through most of the tasks. I gave them a little bit of background and just a few hints. I showed them how to access the smart search to find apps. We walked through what to do when you get certain popups like "push notifications" and "location services". They handled it well. 

The toughest part of the hunt was definitely sending their picture to the teacher in an email. Mrs. Guillory's class found out that they could just type in "Leanna" and her email popped up. I don't think Mrs. Heath's class found that out. But it was really cool to see all the emails appear on the teachers' screens announcing the arrival of a funny picture. I think that's going to be a huge help during the year. 

We ended up with a QR code. They did an awesome job of reading the code. Those are going to be all over the place this year, both as teacher created resources as well as links to student work. 

I couldn't have been happier with how today turned out. They handled the iPads very well. They were excited and then disappointed when it was time to stop. In fact, Mrs. Guillory's class decided to skip recess and Mrs. Heath's class didn't even complain even though it was approaching 90 degrees in their trailer. Hot. 

First Day of School 2013

Usually, the first day of school is pretty slow for me. Teachers are doing their own things and don't usually need support. But this year was much different. Susan and Leanna invited me in to be a part of their first days. It was a lot of fun getting to help pass out papers, organize supplies, and see the cool things that they prepared for today.

First off, both Susan and Leanna made a short video about playground expectations using the app 30Hands. I gave them this assignment so they could learn the app and model how students would be using it. We plan on using the app with students later this week. It went really well. The students were so engaged. They learned in five minutes what would normally occur in a half hour walking around the playground. Of course, it will be seen how well the information was learned. I left before lunch/recess...


I was also impressed with Susan's surprise use of a word sorting app. She had all the students' names on cards with headings for how they would be getting home. While some students were setting up their desks, other passed her iPad around and moved their name to the correct heading. And she was displaying it using Airserver. Very cool. 

This afternoon, both classes were going to work on their iPad handling and usage expectations contract. They'll have those signed before they start using them tomorrow.

I was a great morning. I think it was a nice blend of using new tools alongside the established routines. Which is exactly how we were hoping to start out. I'll let you know tomorrow how our scavenger hunt goes. 

Sites are ready to go!

After just a short time, Leanna and Susan have their classroom blog/site ready for publication. They were surprised at how easy it was to put create posts, pages, and add helpful widgets on the sidebar. Our goal to start the year is to have one post written each week. That's the theme: start small. Here are the links to their new sites. Follow them to keep up with their learning throughout the year. 

Susan Heath's "Thoughts of a Third Grader"

Leanna Guillory's "Third Grade Class"

Going Mini

Things just keep looking up. Julie, my amazing boss, has just allocated 20 iPad minis for our third grade project. I'm looking forward to building an image for them this week and getting them set up and ready to go for day one. 

We'll have to figure out the best way to deploy them. My initial thought is to break them up and put ten in each class at a full time basis. Our other option might be to have all twenty in each room for part of the day. I'm leaning towards the former, but we'll have to see what Susan and Leanna have to say. Because we'll be launching a BYOD initiative this fall, having the small number of minis might not matter at all. I'm hopeful. 

Using Google Forms for Parent Contact Information

Are you getting ready for a mound of paperwork to start off your school year? When I was in the classroom, I always distributed some colored sheets of paper asking parents when and how I should contact them. Then I spent the next several weeks getting them back and placing them neatly in each student's manila folder.

How about you cut down on some of the work by using Google Forms to organize some of your important information? Here's how we are going to make it happen in our classrooms this year.

Create a Google Form for your parent contact information. Include all the standard questions: What is your email address? Phone numbers? Best time to call? Do you need a paper newsletter or will you use our Twitter feed? Then insert a really fun background theme. 

During Meet the Teacher Night, set up several laptop or iPad stations. Have the Form bookmarked and easy to access. Then the parents can sit down and fill out the form in the classroom. In case you aren't familiar with the process, the submitted information is sent straight to a spreadsheet in your Google account. And in case parents don't make it that evening, email them the link or include it on your class webpage.

I see several benefits for going this route. First, it's convenient for you and for parents. All the information is stored in your account, so you don't have to carry paper copies around with you. It's always available on any device. Second, and maybe most importantly, it sets the tone for digital communication. Parents quickly see that you'll be doing things differently, more efficiently.  

If you have any questions, please let me know. Good luck!