April 2023

Tech Tips

Autism Acceptance Month

What do Anthony Hopkins, Greta Thunberg, and Bill Gates all have in common? They are all people with autism!

Every April people across the globe celebrate Autism Acceptance Month with events to educate and raise public awareness about autism. We use “acceptance” and not “awareness” as acceptance calls for society to meet children and adults with autism where they are and make room for them. The word “acceptance” asks that we see autism not as a disease, but as a natural difference in neurology.

Autism is a lifelong developmental disability which affects how people communicate and interact with the world. The autism experience is different for everyone. Like all people, people with autism have their own strengths and challenges. While individual strengths might vary, some may include: 1) terrific memories with ability to quickly absorb and retain facts, 2) unique thought processes that lead to innovative solutions, 3) being accepting and non-judgemental of differences.

What can you do to celebrate Autism Acceptance Month and create a more inclusive classroom? Here are some ideas:

Read aloud and recommend books that have characters with autism. Check out this all ages book list from KCLS that promotes acceptance, inclusion, and self-determination for all.
Watch the short video Amazing Things Happen to help students learn about autism
Color a Neurodivergent Narwhals coloring page from The Neurodiversity Library (see how to color in Google Draw)

NEA also have a guide to Teaching Students with Autism that provides some research to show that accommodations for students with additional needs lead to greater achievement for all!

This experience is viewed through the eyes of Carly Fleischmann, a 17 year old girl living with non-verbal Autism.Based on an excerpt from the book Carly's Voice: Breaking through Autism, it explores how, for someone with autism, a simple act like going for a coffee can descend into chaos.Carly's Café was developed as an interactive video that allows the user to experience autism from the inside-out

We're Hiring!

Do you know a secondary teacher that is passionate about integrating technology into their classroom with an equity lens? Is that person you? We are looking for another awesome Secondary Instructional Technology Coach to join our team. Please encourage your friends (or yourself) to apply! See the job listing on FrontLine.

Instruction

ClassClassTechTech is a primary-focused event, where teachers in the Auburn School District learn from each other about technology and how to best support their students with technology introductions. Similar to our TechConnect event, the sessions in this event are led by classroom teachers, intended to support K-2 teachers and instructional paraeducators. Join your peers in learning how technology in primary grades can engage, educate, and empower our young learners!

Primary Tech Conference

Saturday May 6th, 2023

8:00 AM - 12:00PM

Pioneer Elementary School

Thank you to everyone who attended Tech Connect on March 18th! It was our best event yet, with 45 incredible sessions led by Auburn teachers and, for the first time ever, colleagues from other districts. We also had a great keynote address from Jerome Morrison from Meow Wolf, showing us how games and playing can help us to understand our students learning preferences.

Check out the Flip video to see some of the fun. We look forward to welcoming you back for Tech Connect 2024!

National Library Week - 23-29th April

Libraries are full of stories in a variety of formats from picture books to large print, audiobooks to ebooks, and more. But there's so much more to the story. Libraries bring communities together for entertainment, education, and connection through book clubs, storytimes, movie nights, crafting classes, and lectures. Library infrastructure advances communities, providing technology access, literacy skills, and study support for students.

This National Library Week, take time to get to know your school and local library better. Talk to your librarian and see what they can offer you and your students. You might be surprised!

Tech Tools

Wait... Chrome Can Do That?

Are you getting the most out of Chrome? We all have to use it every day, so why not make it work for you the best way possible? Watch the video to the right to see Mt Baker ITSS Jay Kemp walk you through some time-saving tools that are built directly into Chrome:

Manage your tabs
Create QR codes
Search by images

KCLS Databases

Auburn Riverside ITSS Lisa Gallinatti shares the following Tech Tip:

Gale databases are available from KCLS’s online library For login instructions, click on staff or students. Classified staff who live in King County can apply for an e-Card on the KCLS website.

Besides being able to save to one’s Google Drive (example), students can highlight text and add notes directly to the article in the database with their cursor. A dialog box appears prompting the user to choose a color and add notes. Select the Save icon before closing the window.

Users can view their highlights and notes independent of the article by selecting Highlights and Notes from the menu, and then again from the bottom of the pop-up window. This will give a full page view where final edits and commentary can be made. Click on the Send To icon at the top of the page to save it to one’s Google Drive (example). In addition to the highlights and notes, the document includes the citation of the article and a direct link back to the original article in the database.

IPEVO Visualizer Web Version

Did you know that you can access IPEVO Visualizer right from the web? This is a great way to provide access to a guest teacher, especially when they are checking out a building Chromebook for presenting for the day. The web version has the core functions of Visualizer, such as annotating, rotating, and snapshot. You can add the link to right in your sub plans if that is helpful for your presentation set up.

Data Security

Welcome Duo Mobile - MFA

The Department of Technology is rolling out a new security application called Duo Mobile. This application verifies your identity when logging into district devices, networks, and systems. The reasons for using Duo Mobile are:

Protection for all of your employee and student/family information.
For our ASD cybersecurity insurance purposes, we need to update our system.
This is the best practice for computer and identity protection.

DoT is working on communicating with all departments and schools across the district to ensure everyone has the support they need during this transition, which begins this month. Your building or department leads will be communicating to you when your scheduled shift will happen. In the meantime, do not install the Duo app on your smartphone until you are prompted to do so. This needs to happen during a specific part of the set up for your account.

If you have questions, please connect with your supervisor, reach out to the Department of Technology, or see our new MFA Website.

Duo Setup.mp4

Please remember while watching this video, do not install the Duo app on your device. This step will happen at a specific time during your setup period, and you will be prompted.

Skyward

External Links

Clicking on the globe icon in the menu bar brings up a set of external links. This is a quick way to get to the Skyward Google site, submit a support ticket, or access other frequently used websites. Links are unique between Administrative Access, Teacher Access, Employee Access, or Family and Student Access.

More Skyward News

Learn about teacher gradebook analytics, displaying assignment averages, or how to obtain a list of students missing emergency contacts. All of these and more are in April's Skyward News.

The Data Services Website provides additional help and information for Skyward users.

Shout Outs!

Tech Connect Presenters

A huge shout out to the following staff who shared their expertise with us at Tech Connect - it's a conference for teachers, by teachers and we could not do it without you!

Amy Anderson (Ilalko), Susan Benes (Pioneer), Tiffany Bucci (Data Services), Christina Celver (Bowman Creek), Erica Covey (Arthur Jacobsen), Kim Foss (Lea Hill), Dani Glaholt (Gildo Rey), Pınar Johnson (Mt Baker), Jessica Lee (Mountainview), Emily Marsh (Auburn High), Michael Martin (Ilalko), Lynnette Miller (Data Services), Elizabeth Palow (Highline SD), Steve Quist (Student Special Services), Tanya Safsten (Gildo Rey), Katie Schultz (Olympic), Sandy Scott (Willow Crest), Art Spencer (Mt Baker), Donna Squires (Peninsula SD), Olivia Stucki (Terminal Park), Amanda Umberger (Highline SD), and Shawn Welsh (Gildo Rey)

NCCE Conference 2023

Several members of the Auburn School District community had the opportunity to recently attend the largest edtech conference in the Northwest this past March. Hosted at the Tacoma Convention Center, technology leaders in our buildings attended several professional learning sessions to experience innovative instructional strategies from over 150 presenters across the country. Many of the participants attended the event through the use of building Innovation Funds and are eager to share out their learning among staff and students. If you are interested in attending NCCE in Seattle in 2024, connect with your building administrator or instructional technology coach for more details on how to access innovation funds.

Thank you to the following attendees for their commitment to continued learning:

Amy Goodner, Joe Wiles & Aiden Ray (Alpac), Erica Covey, Eric Daniel, Melissa Cox & Nicholas Serdahl (AJ), Molly Picatti-Baker (AHS), Stephanie Austin (AMHS) Lisa Gallinatti (ARHS), Kevin Olson & Ryley Dozier (Cascade), Deborah McGraw & Brittany Robello (Evergreen Heights), Tanya Safsten & Shawn Welsh (Gildo Rey), Sarah Spring (Ilalko), Liz Ray & Kim Foss (Lea Hill), Art Spencer (Mt. Baker), Susan Benes & Juli Huntsman (Pioneer) and Krysta Matt (Terminal Park)

Elementary Teacher Chromebook Rollout Complete!

Over the last six weeks, the Deparment of Technology has partnered with each elementary school to deliver and provide training to teachers receiving new Chromebooks. This was a huge project, and we are proud to announce we are all finished! A special thank you to all our BTCs, ITSSes, and the DoT staff that made this a success. Secondary teachers - we look forward to your rollout this fall!

Tech Tips Trivia Winners

Brenda Leyda

(Bowman Creek)

Kim Haaby (Lea Hill)

Karen Sain (JPF)

Claire Cook (Washington)

Stephanie Provost (Auburn High)

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