May 2026

Professional Development

Available self-paced training:

1. Introduction to Magic School

2. Magic Student

3. Clipchamp

4. Next Level
   
   

Upcoming self-paced training (summer): 

1. Nearpod

2. Kami

3. Canva Code

4. Canva like a Pro
   
   

Upcoming in-person trainings:

1. NY's Computer Science and Digital Fluency Standards - May 26th from 8 am to 3 pm

   1. Stop wondering how to fit "one more thing" into your day and discover how you’re already crushing New York State’s Computer Science and Digital Fluency standards through the high-impact teaching you do every day. By demystifying the standards, we shift the focus from daunting technical requirements to a celebration of the creative, hands-on activities that naturally integrate into any grade level. Teachers will walk away with a refreshed connection between their current practices and the standards, as well as a toolkit of engaging, high-energy projects that transform these standards into some of the most memorable and fun moments of the school day.

Kami

Kami has been making plenty of changes to incorporate AI, and so far they all seem to useful! Most recently, Kami added an AI feedback tool that helps teachers provide feedback efficiently without being removed from the loop. They also updated their "understand" tools to better serve students and allow for more customized results. Check out those updates in the videos below. 

Canva AI 2.0

This should surprise no one, but Canva is getting another makeover. They're calling it their biggest shakeup yet, shifting from a design platform with AI tools to an AI platform that does design. All these changes won't fully roll out until June, and most won't impact educators, except for the need to figure out a possibly new interface. One highlight for educators though, is the Learn Grid. Check out what this entry point will look like when all features have been fully rolled out in the video below. Also don't sleep on Canva Code, where you can make all the little edtech tools your heart desires, to fill those gaps left by the big edtech players we pay for. Check out my gallery of Canva Code projects here to be inspired. 

TIM Matrix and Anti-Edtech Voices

You might be seeing more chatter on social media and in the news about growing anti-edtech voices calling for a return to fully analog teaching and learning. This comes on the heels of conversations born out of the book, The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt. We are developing a polished response to all that chatter in case it starts making the rounds in our community, but it all boils down to avoiding big pendulum swings and aiming for intentional technology integration that puts learning first without chasing the next shiny edtech toy. This intentional approach benefits from grounding in guiding documents. One example of this is the Universal Design for Learning framework. Another great example that you might not have heard of is the TIM, or technology integration matrix. If you're familiar with the SAMR model, this matrix should feel like the next logical step in reflecting on how we integrate technology into our instructional practices. You can check out that matrix here.