The Tastiest Tidbits
WE enjoyed at Convention
Facilitator: Lori Gracey - lgracey@tcea.org Twitter @lgracey
Session Description
What were the top trends at the annual convention? What new tools and resources were popular? Join us as we discuss some of the learning that we experienced.
The Word of the Convention
What Inspired Us
"Figure out ways to start and end your day with joy."
What are the first 10 things you do at work?
How many of them bring you joy?
How can you start with the things that bring you joy?
What are the first things your students do at school?
How many of them bring them joy?
How can we help them start their days with joy?
"Create a first aid kit for my attitude, a collection of things on hand that can quickly shift my attitude from negative to positive."
Bonnie St. John
From an attendee: “My kit contains a few inspirational quotes, links to favorite books/authors, notes from coworkers or students, chocolate, and music! What does your kit contain?!”
The "First Aid Kit" Team Building Activity Guide
Building an Attitude First Aid Kit Jamboard template from Kylie Lloyd
“Did you have a bad day or a bad 10 minutes that you let ruin your day?” from Angela Matthews
"If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together." African Proverb
Hamish Brewer
"My kids are not defined by their zip code."
What's your legacy?
What are you fighting for? What do you stand for?
The power is in the holder of the pen and what we do with that pen, how we write a narrative.
How do we write a story?
How do we amplify their voice?
One of our most important responsibilities in school is to protect and advocate for our students' individuality and identity; it's their greatest gift.
"Let's stop finding the bad in education and plan around the good instead."
John Hattie
We should define success criteria for the "knowing that" (surface learning) and the "knowing how" (deep learning). Both are needed and important.
We also need to define two assessments for this so that we can see where students truly are (surface vs. deep learning).
"Different strategies work at different times."
"Teachers do 89% of the talking at school. Students ask, on average, 11 questions a day, of which nine are procedural (What page am I on? Can I go to the toilet? etc.)"
The Funniest Thing We heard
If this school year was an episode of “Chopped,” what would be in the ingredient basket? (edible items that fit inside the baskets only; e.g. no flaming dumpsters!)
Onion, chicken feet, fruitcake, and rose water (fan favorite!)
Cactus flower buds, haggis, calamari, and pork skins
Chickpeas, watermelon, granola, and blue cheese
Most Talked About Tools
New websites/resources
18 Amazing Mindfulness Activities for the Classroom (lots of five-minute activities to use)
Accommodating with Google Tools (presentation by Jessica Powell)
Activities with Google Drawings (from the fabulous duo Joan and Janet)
Chemistry Equipment and How to Use Them (free web Glide app by Efren R.)
Digital Choice Boards (also from Joan and Janet)
GameStormEDU (how to gamify your class activities and learning)
Increase Engagement in Your Zoom Classroom (presentation from Jennifer Bergland and Peggy Reimers)
Newspaper Front Pages Template (available for PowerPoint and Google Slides; great for writing assignments or history projects)
ReadingVine (free reading sets, passage, and comprehension questions for grades K-12)
New Tools to Try
Art Coloring Book from Google (great for brain breaks)
Awesome Web Apps (for everyday needs: audio, video, PDF, and more)
Body Synth (make music by moving your body)
Bouncy Balls (noise management site for your classroom)
Free Math Apps (available for both web and iOS)
Poetry Machine (tutorials and tools to create amazing poems)
Remove (removes backgrounds from pictures; great for bitmojis and more)
Scroobly (create fun images using movement and your device's camera)
Unscreen (remove backgrounds from short videos and convert them to GIFs to use in other tools)
Whiteboard.fi (great blog on how to use it here)
Wordwall (create a variety of interactive teaching resources; limited free plan available)
Ideas and tips from Attendees
The Coaching Continuum from Ashley Parker (image to the right)
“Did you know that #ImmersiveReader is available in @PearDeck?! Game changer for our remote/quarantined students!” from Amber Marshall.
"Chromebook app hub has an idea section. IT ALREADY HAS LESSONS MADE!" from Caroline Carr.
"I love Padlet! At the beginning of my PLC meetings I have my teachers post on a #Padlet called 'Tell Me Something Good' just to start every meeting on a positive note!" from Dana Kickler.
"Accidentally close a tab in Chrome? Hold down ctrl + shift + T to reopen the last closed tab in Chrome. Because, yes, I have so many tabs open that sometimes I click on it and I accidentally close it without even knowing what it is!!" from Kimberly Thompson
"We need to reinforce respectful discussion among our students and their peers" from Terri Lira. (image to the right)
Recommendations from Webinar Attendees
KumoSpace - virtual video conferencing tool
Puzzle Party - from Google Arts & Culture for puzzle brain breaks; watch out for things like nude statues or art
Whiteboard.chat - "Takes whiteboard.fi to the next level and is free. You can even collaborate with others and join other student's board as the teacher. And the templates that are there are unreal!!" "Immersive Reader was just added to Whiteboard.chat, too."
Select to Speak - free and built-in text-to-speech reader on Chromebooks.
Google Slides mood board - holds fonts and colors that you don’t want to lose. All you have to do is copy/paste the slide into your deck and it will add to the custom colors. Then delete the slide and the colors stay.
Translate.it - translated conversations
Use the Explore button in Google Sheets to get formulas for your query.