So What is a Kahoot?
The Top 10 Reasons Why You Should be Using Kahoots in your Classroom
Teacher Tips
Try it Just Once: You need to try a Kahoot in your classroom just once early in the year. Maybe use a Kahoot to introduce yourself to the class or to quiz them on the procedures of your classroom. Whatever you do, try a Kahoot in the first weeks of school and I guarantee it will not be the last time you do.
Get Some Help: Start by poking around the Kahoot website. Look to see what others have created, and then decide if you want to use or change them to make them your own. There are a lot of really great websites to help you with set up. There are plenty of youtube tutorials that I found helpful. Do yourself a favor and visit this website to see all the ways you can use this technology to bring learning to life in your classroom. This is Not a Test: While I've heard of teachers using Kahoots as a formal assessment, I would discourage this. There are plenty of other tools out there to measure and record students’ academic performance. Turning this into test could kill some of the energy and excitement around the experience. Pretest/Posttest: While I do not suggest using Kahoots as formal assessments, giving a quick Kahoot of content prior to a unit of study can provide a valuable snapshot of the students’ overall understanding of the content. Then, at the end of a unit, give the same assessment to compare overall performance. Using “Ghost Mode” for this will allow the students to try and beat their "less educated selves" and will hopefully increase confidence in their overall learning ability. The Name Game: To start a Kahoot, each student is asked to enter their name, which will be displayed on the scoreboard. This can cause issues when students are sharing a device or when students may want to type an inappropriate name. Before they have the opportunity, I tell students to either enter their and their partners initials or to simply enter their Kindle’s number (each one of my kindles has a label with Helder1, Helder2, Helder3…). This speeds things up and gets you into your Kahoot quickly. If later in the year you want the kids to have fun with silly names, go for it. But I’d hold off for now. Reinventing the Wheel: Don't feel like you have to create every Kahoot you use from scratch. There are over 8 million different Kahoots currently available online right now. I have found that for most subject areas, there is typically something out there that is already great or close to what I want. Though I use these quite a bit in my classroom, I rarely make my own. Tailor for the Perfect Fit: The vast majority of Kahoots are great, but not always appropriate or accurate. Before using any Kahoot with your kids, make sure to go through each question to ensure that each is:
2, 4, 6, 8, What Else Can We Integrate?: While you’re editing a Kahoot, think through what else you might integrate into the experience.
Favorites: Within the Kahoot program, users can save their favorite Kahoots for later use. This is great for accessing them later. However, I have enough favorites that I’ve needed to start organizing them somehow. Renaming each Kahoot can help with this. I like to include the subject, unit and then lesson in the title. So if the Kahoot is originally named “Plant Life Cycle,” I suggest renaming it “Science - Plants - Life Cycle” to make it easier to find later. Sharing is Caring: Create and share Kahoots with colleagues. If you find something or make something great, tell your grade level team. A teacher on my team created both an Old Testament and New Testament review Kahoot that were fantastic. It took almost no effort on my part to bring them up and the kids loved them. Pair Up: Because I have a 2:1 Kindle Fire program in my classroom, the kids pair up and take turns. While some teachers prefer to have a device for every child, I think there is something so good about having to take turns, let go and work together. Get Some Help: If you don't have someone in your building who is using Kahoot, there are many really great websites to help you get started. There are plenty of youtube tutorials that I found helpful. Do yourself a favor and visit this website to see all the ways you can use this technology to bring learning to life in your classroom. Finally, check out this pdf below for step by step instructions. Support Classroom Tech!
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The What and Why
Coding. The foundational process by which our digital world of apps, websites and operating systems is built. The demand for professionals who can code is increasing exponentially year over year, even while most schools simply do not teach coding, let alone introduce it. Beyond future employability, there are a host of other reasons why schools should be moving coding into the classroom. A 2013 Forbes article called "Teach Kids How To Code And You Give Them A Skill For Life" by Nick Morrison summarizes the need for coding instruction in schools quite nicely.
"...Teaching coding is about much more than helping children understand the technology they are using, important though that is... At a basic level, it improves problem-solving and thinking skills, and having digital skills will improve their chances of being employed in the future....It also has the potential to bring about a fundamental shift in the way we view technology, turning us from passive consumers into active producers... There is a massive difference between consuming content and being able to create it... It is important to have agency over the tools you are using." So, great, coding is valuable and may have a place in my classroom. I think I should be doing it, but I have no idea how or where to get started. I don't know anything about coding myself. How can I expect to teach it to my students? And isn't early elementary a little early to start? Leaping Before Looking
In April, after months of dealing with extensive water damage in my home, I realized that my opportunity to introduce my students to coding this school year was disappearing quickly. Because our math curriculum is quite "light" in the final quarter of the year, I thought it best to devote two 20 minute slots for coding throughout the month of May. Before I could come up with another reason why I didn't have time or couldn't pull this off before the end of the year, I downloaded Lightbot:Code Hour and Scratch Jr. to all of the Kindles during a break and had my kids jump into Lightbot before I could change my mind. I had toyed with Lightbot earlier in the year and remembered that the first level was very basic and that they built in complexity from there. So, in pairs, my students jumped into coding. I figured, if it didn't work, I'd try Scratch Jr. next. If that fell through, I could at least say I gave it a shot and build on it next year.
The Nuts and Bolts: Using Lightbot and Scratch
Lightbot: Code Hour is a great FREE introduction to coding. Students draft collections of commands for a little "lightbot" to perform. It is very intuitive and builds in complexity the further you proceed into the game. This is a great way to dip your toes into coding in the classroom. If your students really enjoy this game, there are more Lightbot apps they can purchase for their devices at home. These include Lightbot Jr: Coding Puzzles for Ages 4+, Lightbot Jr: Coding Puzzles and Lightbot : Programming Puzzles. For further information check out this review at Common Sense Media.
Teacher Tips: Don't tell your students how to do anything. That is what their brains and buddies are for. If they have a question about what to do, ask them what they have tried and who they have asked for help. Remind them that failure is a stepping stone, not a stop sign. Keep your hands off of their devices. Here are some pointers for each level in the app:
Scratch Jr. is a conceptual step above Lightbot. Where Lightbot gave very specific tasks, Scratch is a playground where students can choose their own adventure and program objects to move, change size, change color, make noises and much more. I see this variety is both a strength and a weakness. There are a lot of fun things that kids can accomplish, but it's also easy for students to get distracted and to jump from one thing to the next. Nevertheless, we had a great time with it. We just spent two or three class periods using Scratch Jr.. I hope to go deeper in the year ahead. For further information check out a review at Common Sense Media.
Teacher Tips: While you could have the kids just jump in, I think a more orderly entry may be called for. There are great printouts with fun self-directed activities for students as well as scripted teacher lesson plans. I printed out packets for each pair of students and let them decide what they wanted to do. For more ideas or "Starter Projects" as they call them, click here. There is also an awesome Scratch for Educators section of their site that I highly recommend checking out. Just as with above, resist the temptation to solve problems for your students. Remind them to follow directions carefully and to work together to find a solution. Next Steps There are endless amounts of apps, programs and curriculum for teaching coding out there. Of all of the things I have seen, the best stuff is being published by Hour of Code and Code.org. Looking into the next year, I think I'd like to run a similar coding program in the spring, but will start the week after returning from spring break. This will lengthen the overall coding "unit" from 4 weeks to about 7 weeks. I will continue to use Lightbot:Code Hour and Scratch Jr., but hope to use more of the other Hour of Code and Code.org activities out there. I know I will for sure use the Angry Birds or Star Wars activities. I still need to find some time to discern whether these will work on Kindles, or whether I will need to use the iPad cart or computer lab at our school. I'll continue looking for a variety of quality, easy to use, free programming that will peak student interest in coding. Then, perhaps later this spring, I'll share what I've found. It's worth pointing out that this unit will not create master coders. This is all about exposure to a new language, a new process, a new and important way of thinking. The true measure of the success of this program will be found in student engagement and intrigue. I hope to open a door to something new and light a spark of excitement for coding that will extend into the future. I'd love to have other educators join me. As always, if you have any ideas or successes you have to share or questions about the items above, please ask in the comments section below. For many more free coding ideas for kids Pre-K through College, visit Hour of Code and Code.org. Special thanks to Juan Carlos Velasquez for finding and sharing the Code Studio Star Wars activity.
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For those thinking about using Kindle Fires in the classroom or buying just one for yourself or as a gift for others, next Tuesday's "Prime Day" is THE day to buy. CNET just posted this deal today. The price will likely not fall this low again until Black Friday. At 3 devices for about $100, it's hard to pass up.
At $35 each, using personal money for classroom technology seems reasonable. However, this weekend might be a good time to find friends and family who would be willing to sponsor a technology pilot program in your classroom. For just about $450, you could get a dozen of these powerful devices ready to go for this fall. A few things to consider before buying:...
On another note, I have always struggled in displaying my MacBook Air to my Apple TV. There is a known issue of choppy or lagging video that keeps me from being able to play videos from my Macbook Air. Now, using the Chrome browser, I can easily project the contents of my screen on the whiteboard in my room.
So how does the Chromecast compare to an Apple TV ?
Projecting Small Screens onto the Big Screen - With an Apple TV, teachers can stream your entire screen. What you see on the screen, your students see. With the Chromecast, you can only stream one Chrome tab at a time. (If you know how you can do more, please let me know). Originally, I was disappointed to be limited to one tab on a browser window. However, the more I thought about it, them more I liked it. The students don't need to see the toolbar, my occasional calendar notifications, or whatever document I have open on the desktop. Casting only one tab at a time frees the screen of a lot of "computer clutter" and also allows me to play a video in one tab for the class while I pull up the next video, or check my email or prep for the next subject in another browser tab. What I originally saw as a limitation, I now recognize this as the Chromecast's greatest features.
Remote Control? - Currently, unlike the Apple TV , the Chromecast does not come with a remote. As a result, the Chromecast requires that you download the Chromecast App on your phone, tablet or computer and use your device as the remote. The downside is having to pull out my phone occasionally. The upside is that I never lose my phone, but regularly lose my AppleTV remote. Now, if I have my device, I have the remote.
For scads more information about the pros and cons for all of the streaming devices currently available, check out CNET's reviews here. CNET is my favorite place to stop for the best in tech reviews. You can also keep up to date on the Google for Education Blog.
Having recently completed my first year with Kindles in the classroom, I thought it best to stop and share some successes and pitfalls in using these devices.
Storage Over the course of the year, I was delighted to find that my storage solution for the Kindles held up quite well. Plugging and unplugging went very quickly. I'd still like to find an inexpensive way to keep these devices cleaner in the year to come. Because they are regularly shared between and among students, I would like to find an easy way to keep them clean, fingerprint free and less germy. I'd love some suggestions if you have them. Apps We used a variety of apps this year. Some were heavily utilized while others were quickly deleted for being light on content, obnoxious, ad-heavy, or just less user-friendly than others. Students regularly helped me update, move, and manage apps. Here are the winning "go to" apps as well as and the flops that won't be on the Kindles next fall. Flops
Winners
Technology Integration During a typical day, we used the Kindles 3-4 times a day. In math we used them for basic facts review, in spelling we used them for word work and Spelling City, in reading a few students used them for Raz Kids. Of course, throughout the week there were many opportunities to use these devices in other content areas, I just found that this didn't happen very often outside of a occasional Kahoot!. Looking into next year, I hope to find ways for students to create more meaningful content and perhaps go beyond just playing review games or basic skills tasks. Now that most of the kinks are worked out, this is one area that I will need to focus on in the year ahead. Going Naked? I debated originally whether or not I wanted to purchase cases for these devices. I ultimately decided to use whatever funds I would have spent on cases to instead purchase more devices. I have to say that I'm very happy I did. After many drops and bumps over the course of the year, I was delighted to see the resilience of the Kindles. In a carpeted classroom like mine, I do not see the need to purchase cases for these devices for the year ahead. Got any questions about my first year using Kindles? Comment below.
Well, it's good to be back. A lot has happened in the last few months of my life (a major flooding event in my home, moving twice, the end of the school year, and the birth of our third child), and I have some catching up to do.
In April, Amazon introduced an updated 7" Kindle Fire Tablet. Though there wasn't much that changed with this update, there are a few things worth noting. Perhaps these changes will be just the nudge you need to try these budget friendly and capable devices in your classroom this fall. A Splash of Color
As pictured, the 7" Kindle Fire Tablet is now available in blue, magenta and tangerine as well as the original black. These are a nice touch. For me, I almost always choose to purchase black when given the option, but I can see some potential for why you might want tablets in different colors. Beyond matching your classroom decor or personal preference, you might utilize the different colors by:
Breathing Room
Pricing
With the new option to upgrade, consumers can now spend $20 more for about $5 worth of increased memory. The MSRP of the 8GB device has not changed much. Originally, when I purchased the first six for my classroom, they came in a bundle for $250, but this bundling is no longer being offered.
This summer the 7" Kindle Fire sold for only $40 a piece right before Father's Day. This is a common discount that seems to be running every month or so. I can't imagine the price ever going lower than this, but anything is possible. Last November the Black Friday price dipped down to $35 a piece. To see the price history of the 7" Kindle Fire, and to set up up an alert for when the price dips down, visit the 7" Kindle Fire product page on Camelcamelcamel. This is a great site that I use to secure the best prices on items I don't need to purchase immediately. Looking Ahead
By no means is the following a list of every great app that everyone should be using on the . These are the apps I have used thus far, and I'm always looking for new apps to try. Also, because I am a 2nd grade teacher, some of these apps are very grade level and content specific. I'll try and update this list occasionally as new things pop up.
Math Apps
IXL Math (Google Play Store)
Monument Valley (Amazon Actually Free App) - Great visual spacial thinking and problem solving app. Addition (Amazon Actually Free App) Time (Amazon App Store) Peter Pig's Money Counter (Amazon App Store) Math Planet (Google Play Store) Basic Facts Apps Box Drop Math (Amazon App Store) Math Rush (Amazon App Store) Squeebles Math Race (Amazon App Store) Math Practice Flash Cards (Amazon App Store) Reading AppsProductivity?
(This is a bit of a grab bag. So enjoy this random assortment of goodies I've grouped under the title "Productivity.")
Chrome (Google Play Store) Dolphin (Google Play Store) Google Maps (Google Play Store) Kahoot (Google Play Store) Coding
I haven't done anything with this yet, but am hoping to do some coding activities with kids this spring. Here are some apps I'm excited about.
Lightbot Code Hour (Google Play Store) Scratch Jr (Google Play Store) Tynker (Google Play Store) What am I missing? Any recommnedations? Got something better? Let me know below.
One frustration that I have had with iPads and Kindles in the past is their inability to play flash based programs. While I'll be honest in saying that I have no idea what "flash based" actually means, I know it is sometimes required and often prevents me accessing the content I want on each of my devices. This was especially the case for accessing the free features of Spelling City, instead of being locked into monthly payments for their software. This is a powerful freemium tool that I was effectively being locked out of. Enter Dolphin Browser. This internet browser, like Rover for Apple's IOS, allows users to access websites with flash based content. While I was not able to download this software using the Amazon App store, once I downloaded the Google Play store, I was then able to download the dolphin browser easily it to each device. Further more, there are other really cool features that make the Dolphin Browser a great choice:
Synchronized Browsers: Once you've logged in and created an account for the dolphin browser, you can make book marks and adjust preferences within the app. If all of your devices are logged in as well, these changes will automatically take place on each device. Create a book mark on one device, it shows up on all of them. Switch your preferred search engine from Yahoo to Google, all of the others fall in suit. This is slick Simplicity: Here is a screen shot of the Dolphin Browser on one of my devices. As far as browsers go, it's pretty stripped down and basic. This is great for my classroom of 2nd graders. The easier it is to use, the less distractions there are, the better.
Other Great Features: For more information about other specific features, including Evernote integration and cool gesture settings, click here. Have you tried Dolphin? What do you think? Got something better? Share your thoughts and questions below.
So now that I have the devices, how do I keep them charged without the cords becoming a ball of spaghetti? For a $3 investment on my part , I was able to find a handy storage solution for my classroom set of Kindle Fires.
Here is the bare bones, but effective storage solution pushed up against the wall on the counter in may classroom. Sure there area million options for how you can store you classroom devices, but I already had these stacking trays at home so I thought I would give them a try.
You can see that each device has a sticker (Helder 1, Helder 2...) and this coresponds with the number on the binder clip at the end of the shelf. These clips do double duty as they not only show what device goes where, but also help keep the cords for each device in place. I made them by taping pieces of paper to the outside of the clip before slipping them on. It you have a label maker of your own, you could make something more attractive I guess.
The kids know to return the devices with the "buttons out," so plugging in each device is a snap. While I allow students to unplug the devices, I am typically the one to plug them in. This is my attempt to streamline the drop off process and to keep from charging the devices more frequently than is needed. From what I understand, this can be hard on the battery and can reduce the overall life of the battery.
The side of my paper trays had these small bars that jutted out. I found these to be helpful in keeping the cords in line.
All of the cords are a mess in the back, but this stays mostly out of view. The basket at the bottom does a good job of holding some of the loose cords in place while also keeping the shelving unit away from the wall where the cords might get smashed against the wall and become disconnected or damaged. This also keeps it close enough to the front of the counter that my 7 and 8 year old friends can reach them easily.
To make room for 11 plugs on two 5 socket strips, I bought an extension cord with three sockets from Dollar Tree and hid it in the back. This solved the problem, but I would have preferred to have smaller strips with 6 sockets to clean this up.
Last, I used zip ties that I purchased from Dollar Tree to hold the plug strips in place. I had to link two of them together to get them to fit all of the way around.
The only thing I have not yet figured out is how to keep them clean. I find that the screens of the Kindle Fires quickly collect finger prints and I'm curious what the most cost effective way to solve this would be. Got any ideas for better ways to keep these devices charged, clean and accessible? Let me know below. I've posted some good options below that you could use to do the same for under $50.
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