To reach teachers outside of my TOSA hours, I will be posting a resource (tech or non-tech) for teachers once a week on this website. If you ever have any questions about any of the following resource or have a request for help, please feel free to email me at reaston@cusd.claremont.edu
March 3, 2020 - Blocking Advertisements
If you are like me, you show videos from YouTube to supplement your teaching. And it is incredibly annoying when an advertisement is shown before or during the video. However, I cannot remember the last time I have seen an advertisement on YouTube because I run an ad-blocker. An ad-blocker is a Google Chrome Extension that blocks advertisements from showing up on websites, specifically YouTube. You can use either AdBlock or AdGuard, both work really well and both are free. A note to keep in mind, if you run either one of those extensions, some websites will detect an ad-blocker and prevent you from viewing their site until the program is paused. However, all you have to do is click on the program at the top right of your Chrome browser and pause it. After you pause it, you can view the website in its entirety. Remember, Google Chrome extensions only work on computers, not mobile devices.
February 25, 2020 - Staying Organized
If you have a never ending to do list, these following resources are great to stay organized. I started using a Google Chrome Extension called Momentum. Once you install the Google Chrome Extension, every time you open a new tab in Chrome your to do list appears. It is a great reminder because you constantly see your to do list. Another great app to stay organized is called ToDoList. You can add items to your to do list via the Google Chrome Extension, but you can also add items via an app. The best part is your list on the extension syncs with your list on your phone, so you can add items from either your computer or phone. Finally, another app to stay organized is Google Tasks (got this from Cleo Tobbi, thanks!) Works the same as ToDoList, you can add items to both a Google Chrome Extension or an app, both sync.
February 18, 2020 - https://nearpod.com/
This week's resource is Nearpod. Nearpod is a website where you can make interactive presentations. You can make a presentation with a simulation, a virtual field trip, Desmos integration, video or audio files, ask open ended questions, quiz, have students draw something, ask a poll, have students collaborate, and much more.
It has been out for awhile, but there two big changes. First, Claremont Unified paid for a subscription so all teachers have access via their CUSD Google. Simply go to the website and click "Log in with Google" and use your CUSD Google username and password. Second, you have access to the Nearpod Lesson Library where there are pre-made Nearpod lessons ready to go. There are a ton of lessons, simply search their Nearpod Lesson Library for anything.
February 11, 2020 - https://pdfcandy.com/
This week's resource is a website called PDFcandy. A PDF is a file type that is usually "read only " and you cannot edit the file. PDFcandy is designed to convert files into different file formats, specifically focusing on PDFs. Ever wanted to convert a Word Doc to a PDF? How about a JPG to a PDF? Here's the kicker, how about a PDF to a Word Doc? This website can do all of that and more. There are over 40 different tools you can use to convert certain file formats to PDFs and more importantly the other way around, PDFs to certain file formats such as a word document so you can edit it. The website is free to use. It works well, however it occasionally will not be able to convert a PDF to a word document in certain situations.
February 4, 2020 - https://www.mentimeter.com/
This week's resource is a website called Mentimeter. Mentimeter creates interactive presentation slides. The example that I made consisted of asking the question, "What characteristic best defines an amazing teacher?" Users then log in via a unique code and answer the question. All of the answers are taken by Mentimeter and it creates a word cloud. More common answers (for this example the most common answer so far is "empowering"), Mentimeter will make the word larger.
https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1MhL9uiLKiQuWbddN8e6XnHNpgrAG5_D5QjyTmysyRZQ/edit?usp=sharing