Tue, Apr 14, 2026

Penney Matos

Centennial HS's Digital Learning Coach

What is a DLC?

Status Dashboards

Having trouble with a site? Check out their dashboard:

Canvas Status
Clever Status
Eduphoria Status
Google's G Suite Status
Kami Status
Lightspeed Status [Filter, Classroom Relay]
Respondus Status [Lockdown browser, StudyMate]

Student AI Usage in FISD poster

For Everyone

Fact Checking Sites

There’s a lot of information flying around these days and not all of it is true. Misinformation spreads fast, especially when it’s designed to trigger a strong emotional reaction. If something you see online makes you feel angry, shocked, or outraged, that’s your cue to pause and double-check it.

If you're looking for fact checking sites, try some from Tech & Learning's Best Free Fact-Checking Sites for Students and Teachers!

Canva Presentations Offline

From your Canva homepage, select a presentation, click the More ••• icon, and select "Enable offline presenting." Now, even if your internet isn't cooperating, the presentation will appear on your homepage and you can open it!

Students Bypassing the Filter

In an attempt to close loopholes that students are using to bypass our filter on Chromebooks, recently "data:text" and the SketchPad App have been blocked. If you see students with unfiltered access to the Internet, please watch to see how they're doing it. If we can recreate and record a video of what they're doing, that's the most helpful way to work toward getting the loophole blocked.

If you see something on the socials showing how students bypass filters, it does not mean that it works on our system. You're welcome to try it out through a student's login on a Chromebook. Staff members and students have different levels of rights so it might work for your login but be blocked for a student login. If it works for students, let us know and we'll pass it along!

News and Noteworthy EdTech

Canvas Updates

These updates assist with ADA compliance.

2.21.26- Currently users can check accessibility issues anywhere the RCE is present. With this update, you can now check an entire course instead of page by page. Click on the Accessibility link in the Course Navigation bar.

3.25.26- In the course Accessibility Checker, AI Generated text for missing image alt text can be generated.

Aware Update

Aware updated the STAAR version of the Desmos Graphing Calculator. This version now matches the Texas STAAR Desmos version, ensuring student answers are marked correct after following the expected mathematical steps.

May Lesson Ideas

If you're looking for an impactful lesson for the days in May after grades are due, try one of the resources from Edutopia's Podcast: How to Teach Students to Spot What’s Real, Fake—or Deepfake. If you would like to discuss ways these resources could be used with your students, reach out!

Game Show Templates

Matt Miller of Ditch That Textbook recently shared these Game Show Templates.

Reach out for support!

Cultivate - Tuesday, June 2

Don't miss out on this high-impact, one-day professional learning experience designed to ignite your teaching. Whether you're looking for specialized differentiation strategies, the "GT Connection," or innovative tools to support advanced learners, there is a path for you.

Cultivate registration is live [Register] [Catalog]

We’re especially excited to have CHS staff members leading sessions!

Efficiency Through AI: Practical Tools for Secondary Teachers - Discover how AI can help you streamline your workflow and reclaim valuable time. This session will explore practical strategies for using AI as a supportive partner in planning, creating, and managing classroom resources — so you can focus more on teaching and less on tedious tasks.

Facilitators: Matt Lotz, Penney Matos

Engage, Guide, Empower: Differentiation in Action - Join us as we explore dynamic strategies to make the most of your role in the classroom, whether you're guiding whole-group instruction, supporting small group work, or empowering independent learners. Discover how intentional movement, clear expectations, and smart differentiation can turn everyday teaching moments into high-impact learning opportunities. Walk away with practical tools to elevate engagement, boost behavior, and meet the needs of every student!

Facilitators: Jennifer Breaux, Kelly Munro

Get on the Path: Differentiation in Canvas - Learn how to set up and use Mastery Paths in Canvas for differentiation! Teachers can set 2 or 3 different learning paths based on students' scores on a Canvas Quiz or Assessment. Learn all the ins and outs and what to consider when setting up a Canvas Mastery Path. Participants will practice setting up a path in their own Canvas accounts! Note: Mastery Paths are NOT MasteryConnect.

Facilitators: Nikki Lotz, Penney Matos

Leveraging Canvas Rubrics for Data Collection and Comparison - Do you need meaningful data to track student performance, but don’t have a common formative assessment (CFA) in place? In this session, teachers will learn how to download and analyze rubric data directly from Canvas to identify trends, compare results across classes, and inform instruction. We’ll walk you through the step-by-step process of exporting rubric scores, organizing the data, and using it to make data-driven decisions that align with program standards and student learning outcomes. Leave with practical tools and strategies to turn your Canvas rubrics into a valuable source of assessment data.

Facilitators: Jennifer Breaux, Kelly Munro

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