Using QR Codes to Email in the Classroom

Ahhhh the relaxing month of February is upon us... said no teacher ever! I mean you have black history, dental health, Groundhog Day, 100th Day, Chinese New Year, my birthday (hahaha ha you all celebrate it right?!), Valentine's Day, President's Day, Leap Year... you get the point. At this point in the year I'm trying to keep the kiddos on their toes and manage to get to everything I intend to cover. Easier said than done, right? That's why it's great to multitask and kill two birds with one stone. 

At my school we have been working hard on building writing skills the last month or so and dying to tie in our iPads with it. This is where this idea popped up. A teacher across the hall came up with the idea and I ran with it.  The month of love notes is upon us, right?!?!

QR codes that link to your email! We downloaded a free QR reader app on our iPads and I used QRstuff.com to create my QR codes. It was super easy. You choose email address on the first step for 'data type' and then enter your email or the email you would like the code to lead to. For today I projected the QR code on my board, but you could aways print them for their tables or folders.  

Bada-bing bada-boom, it immediately opens an email as soon as they scan it. 

My kinders then took out their morning writing page and typed it up (corrections and all) and sent it to my email.

They loved getting to send me special mail and this teacher loved that they were building keyboarding skills!

They couldn't have been more proud of their work and loved asking me if their email made it to my Apple Watch for me to read! 

Just one simple activity brought a days worth of teachable moments:

-Writing rubrics also apply to typing.

-How to capitalize and punctuate on a keyboard.

-Finger spaces are just like tapping a finger on the space.

-Why does a squiggly red line come up under my word?

-Hitting the spacebar twice adds a period and a capital for me.

This activity would also be great for: 

-students to email their parents for incentive of good behavior

-students to email spelling lists or sight words home

-student pen pals 

-students to email about upcoming events

The possibilities are ENDLESS!

What would you use it for?

Don't forget to check out our February Resources

If you haven't yet I'd love for you to check out my blog:

   

Organizing technology in your Classroom in just 3 easy steps {FREEBIE}

Are you lucky enough to have technology in your classroom?  If you are, you know how tricky it can be to keep it all organized, right?

I needed a place to store our chrome books and iPads on a budget so I bought these letter trays and spray painted them.  Just place them in front of an outlet and pull the chords in from the back of the tray.  A little tip: Teach your students how to use this organizational tool, how you expect devices to be outback, and your overall expectations.

So now that you've found a home for your devices, it's time to organize your actual devices.  In our class, we have five computers.  Students are assigned to different computers to keep things organized.  Plus, a few of our computers headsets get plugged into the back instead of the back and I was tired of kids coming to me every day asking where to plug in their headphones.  Assign them a computer and they'll know how to use it!  So, I solved this problem by creating numbered screensavers for up to eight devices.

You can use them for your devices too! They're photos so all you have to do is save it to your camera roll and set as wallpaper.  Easy!

Could you use these screensavers in your class?  Just snag it below!

MUST GET IPEVO...NOW!!

Hi Friends!

It's Amber from A Smiling Teacher!
Did you notice my name change and blog overhaul?! 

I decided at the Teachers Pay Teachers Conference this past summer that I wanted to make a change and everything is finally complete! I am so in LOVE with my design from Alexis at
Laugh, Eat, Learn. She is seriously the best! 

In other news...Happy Black Friday! 

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving and were able to spend some quality time with your loved ones.  Are you a Black Friday shopper or do prefer to shop online from the comfort of your home? I didn't go out yet but am thinking about heading out later today. To be honest...I've already done quite a bit of online shopping and the only thing I really want is the laminator from Walmart. Yes, yes, I know I already have one BUT wouldn't it be nice to keep one at school?! I bring mine to school sometimes so that I can have classroom volunteers laminate for me and it's just kind of a pain to transport back and forth. I think it's settled. I MUST have it. 

On another note, this is the time of year that we have to spend a lot of $$ outside of the classroom right?! So, how about winning a bundle of AMAZING classroom resources, so that you have more $$ to spend on your family... or yourself this holiday season??! 

Today is the last day to enter The Primary Pack's Black Friday Giveaway.
We hope YOU are the lucky winner!!

What other items are on your classroom wishlist for this holiday season?! Let me tell you about one of my favorite classroom items that I seriously can't get enough of. Honestly, you probably...well DEFINITELY need it too!

I absolutely LOVE my IPEVO document camera!

I've had mine for 3 years and it still works great! One of the best selling features of the IPEVO is the price! These little guys are very affordable compared to other classroom technologies. I bought mine 3 years ago for $85 but they currently have another model for $69 on their website. There are seriously a million and one ways that you can effectively use this tool in the classroom. Today, I'm going to share a few ways that I've used my document camera in my kindergarten classroom. 

1. Read Aloud

The IPEVO is a great tool to enhance your interactive read aloud with your kiddos. By simply placing the book under the camera, students can see the pictures and text in a larger version on your interactive white board. I don't use the IPEVO every time I do a read aloud, but it's a great tool to change it up a bit. We also use the IPEVO for students to read in front of the whole class! This picture is actually a first grader who came down to show off his improved reading skills and read to my kinders! 

2. Writing Workshop

The IPEVO is probably my favorite tool to use during Writing Workshop! I love being able to display student work and using it to discuss strengths, areas for growth, or as an example for my mini-lesson. 

(This little friend only knew a few letters at the beginning of the year....check him out now!! "I was going to McDonald's"). 

3. Interactive Lessons

A document camera makes any lesson that uses a worksheet, MORE interactive and fun! I like to use my IPEVO when we are doing a whole group lesson. Recently we've been learning all about maps. Students have been exploring different types of map and creating their own maps of the classroom, their bedroom and their home. 

We created this map together and then students created their own versions of a classroom map. Students were able to reference the collaborative map
and  follow along much easier because they could actually SEE it!!

Okay, now on to my FAVORITE...

4. Video Calls
My favorite thing about the IPEVO is that you can use it like a regular webcam and make video calls. Want to go on a field trip but can't leave school?! Contact someone and see if they can Skype with your class instead!
Two years ago, I had a student who temporarily moved to China. We were so sad to see her go, but wanted to learn all about her new home. We set up several "Skype dates" and were able to talk with her live.  Of course it was 9 P.M. in China and 9 A.M. for us :) The kids brainstormed questions for her  about the culture and she of course had plenty to share with us.

Do you have a document camera?! If not, add it to your list! If so, comment on how you are using it in your classroom!
Enjoy the rest of your long weekend friends!

Periscope 101-A Live Event!

Hey there! It's Megan from A New Box of Crayons here!

I hope you are all having an amazing week! 

I am here today to share a very exciting idea with all of you!!! SO GET EXCITED!!!


For the past month I have been exploring the new app's Periscope and Meerkat.  For those of you that don't know, these app's allow users to stream live from their phone and interact with followers/viewers over Twitter! Sounds crazy, right?!

click image to go to App store

(For those of you that are still wanting to understand more about this "live streaming" app 

CLICK HERE)

Well, over my Spring break I decided to try a live stream with Meerkat. I showed viewers my friends 5th grade classroom and had a blast! Granted, there were only 9 people that watched, but it was still a lot of fun.  This spontaneous adventure sparked an idea...what if I hosted a live stream of my classroom and allowed my followers to ask questions while in my room?!?! How cool would that be?! 

Sidetone: Now...I explored Meerkat and I found that it would freeze and there was a large delay in the viewers being able to comment. I decided to explore Periscope and I found the layout was much easier to use and there were less delays and almost no freezing! WOOHOO! 

SOO....CHECK IT OUT!! 

I am so excited to be able to talk with you LIVE and show you my classroom! 

Here is what you need to do....

1) Download Periscope on your iPhone, Android phone or device

2) Follow me on Twitter....when I go live the link will be posted to Twitter!

3) Let me know what you would like to see! Fill out this quick Google form prior to the broadcast!

4) Tune in and have some fun!!! You will be able to ask questions during the broadcast as well! 

The sky is the limit, folks! I hope you will join me in exploring my classroom LIVE! 

I hope to see you Tuesday, April 7th 5:30 CENTRAL TIME!! 

Thanks for stoppin' by!

Confer App: Notetaking and data collection app for teachers!

Hello again! It's Meredith from Creativity to the Core. 

Today, I must cut right to the chase because I am beyond excited about this new find! I was at a conference in Jacksonville, Florida right before Thanksgiving listening to a 2nd grade teacher talk about differentiation. It was a great presentation, but to be honest, I was thinking "I already do most of these things in my own classroom". That was until I heard her mention "this new DATA COLLECTION APP". My ears perked up! My eyes flew from my notebook to her face. We are in the age of data, data, data. This is perfection!

Really? I can just add my students into this app and log all of my annotations right on my iPhone? NO WAY. Wait what? I can take pictures of their work and add them to each student's personalized file? This was too good to be true.

But it IS true! It's called Confer. I may seem a little too excited about this, but let me tell you - It is worth it! It's available in the iTunes App Store or through Google Play for Android.

There are currently two versions of Confer. Confer (regular) is the full price version. It is $24.99, which may be more than you are used to paying for an app...however, think of it as a portable, digital, never-ending, never full data binder. I don't know about you, but I would pay lots of money for that.

The Confer lite edition is the free one that you can download quickly. Test it out for yourself! However, if you have more than 10 kids in your class (most of us) and you teach more than 2 subjects (most of us), this may not be ideal. Confer lite allows you to store two subjects with 10 students per subject. It also only allows for 5 notes per student.

Take it from me and download Confer lite. You will love it. Now for a closer look...

You can organize all of your information into three major sections: Subjects, Students, and Notes. Once you create an account, add subjects by using the + in the top right corner. Then add students to the subject. Once you add your class list once, you don't ever have to retype their names! To take notes on each student, just click on their names and then click the + in the top right corner.

A sort feature is at the bottom of most screens in the Confer app. My absolute favorite sorting feature is the options for student sorting. Look at the middle picture in the image above. I can always sort by first or last name, but I can also sort by the date, tag, strength, teaching point, next step, level, group, and flag! CRAZY AMAZING. 

I can literally add my students and their levels and simply click sort by level. Ta-da! Reading groups done. Then, if I want to teach a small group lesson on inferences, I can click sort by teaching point or next step and ta-da: focus group is chosen for me. No more flipping though pages and pages of charts! I can also flag students green, yellow, or red in certain subjects or topics, and then group them by flag color so that I can easily see where each student is. Here is a picture from Confer's website that displays the flagged students in each topic.

Once your students are added, adding notes is a breeze!

This next feature sold me instantly! Click on a student, take a picture of their work, and it's stamped with the date and a comment. Easy peasy and PERFECT for parent-teacher conferences, data chats with administration, and RtI meetings.

And just when you thought Confer had wow-ed you...it can export! Yes! Just click the arrow on the far right bottom of the screen to export a file from the app. There are many different options for you to choose from!

Fonts by KG Fonts & Hello Fonts, Graphics by Pretty Grafix & Ashley Hughes

I am SO excited to use this app full time in the classroom starting in January. It will help me to be efficient with my time and to keep everything in one place. I love that I can check Confer at home in my bed or while I'm talking with a concerned parent on the phone. In these data-driven times, we teachers must find ways that truly work to manage our time wisely and help our students achieve their fullest potential. I hope this little tutorial will help you this year! 

Check out a more in depth tutorial on the app or website. For more information and a video from David Lowe, the creator of Confer and a NBCT, click here. Happy data collecting!

Plickers... Formative Assessment & Data In One Handy Tool!

Hello Everyone! It's Katie from Simply Creative in KY, and I'm so excited to share with you my new favorite formative assessment tool!

One of my teammates shared with me the most AMAZING tool that I promise will change the way you give some of your formative assessments. I seriously am still on a high from using this tool. My kiddos LOVE using them, and I get so much great data INSTANTLY.

Okay, so what am I talking about here... PLICKERS!!!

I know, the name sounds ridiculous, and I have no idea where that name came from. After you finish reading this post, you need to go to the website and sign up. It's FREE!

Here are the basics: Each student has a Plicker card (it looks similar to a QR code), the teacher creates assessment questions on the website, displays them on the board, and uses the smartphone app to scan student responses.

This is my class set of Plicker cards. 

The question is displayed on the board, and students hold up their cards to show which answer they choose. I wrote in black marker the answer choices bigger so that my students didn't have to worry about reading the little writing on the cards.

This student turned his card to show that he selected answer B. 

Once every response has been scanned, you can analyze the results with your class. You can display the graph on the board while you are scanning cards so students can watch the graph grow.

Now, I know what you're thinking: I don't want to go around to every single student and scan their cards individually... that will take FOREVER. Don't worry. You don't have to! It takes about 30 seconds for me to scan every response from standing at the FRONT OF MY ROOM. Easy Peasy. No joke.

I start at one side of the front of my room and walk to other side, scanning all the cards in about 30 seconds or less! 

I can ALWAYS get at least 3 students at once... many times 5-6 students at once! 

Before showing the correct answer, we always talk about the question, what it's asking, and debate the different answer choices. Finally, you click "Show Correct" and the correct answer choice will pop up in green.

TALK ABOUT IMMEDIATE FEEDBACK!

Seriously, does it get any better than that? Also, using the Plickers app on my iPhone, I can simply look at who missed the question and what answer they chose. On the left, you can see who got the questions wrong. When I'm ready for the next question, I click the back button and choose the next question on my smartphone.

Look at all that fabulous data! Percentages, names of students, dates given... it's all RIGHT THERE for you! I archive my questions so that I can go back to them as needed to review results.

So did I convince you yet? If you're ready to set up your class and start creating assessment questions, keep reading for a quick tutorial! First go to Plickers.com and sign up for an account. You'll also need to download the app on your smartphone so that you can scan student responses.

After you sign up, go to CLASSES, and click ADD A NEW CLASS.

Type in all of your students. In my classroom, every student has a number that they are assigned for everything (cubbies, magnets, behavior tickets, etc.), and it's always the same. This number will be printed on the Plicker card, so you'll need to know which child you've assigned to which number.

Once I handed mine out, I had students put their name on the back so we could quickly identify whose card it belonged to.

Once you've created your class you can print your Plicker cards. You'll go to the option CARDS. There are different options for cards, but I use the standard set. Click the Standard Plickers Card Set option and it will download into a PDF for you to print.

After I printed my Plicker cards, I copied them on colored card stock and laminated them for durability. Now they're ready to go!

Now it's time to create your questions! In the turquoise box, start typing your question.

Here's the question I typed as an example for you. As you type in the answer choices, check the box to choose the correct answer. If you only want to have 3 answer choices, click the X next to the D and you can delete answer D as a choice. You can also switch to True/False at the top if you want that type of question. When you're finished with the question, click Save.

Once you've saved your question, you'll want to add it to your plan. Click +Add to Plan, then choose your class.

Now that you've created questions and downloaded the app, you're ready to use them with your students! Simply pull up the Plickers website on your Smartboard (or whatever display board you have) and click LIVE VIEW. Then, using your smartphone, choose the question you want students to answer and it will immediately change the screen that your class sees. Students hold up their cards while you scan responses, and that's it!

Getting everything set up to use took me about 30 minutes after school one day. Now that I have everything ready to go, I can create questions on the website in a matter of minutes. I'd love to hear from some of you who want to try it out! Let me know if there's any questions I can answer for you!

Happy teaching (and assessing)! See you next month!