 Hi! It's been ages, I know, but I've been a bit busy growing, birthing, and nurturing a tiny human, so the blog and website have been a bit neglected. Meet Miss Audrey, our gorgeous, cheeky, precious girl, who joined our family in January 2017. But now I'm back in the classroom and excited for 2018! Things progress and change quickly in the teacher tech world, so I'm keen to try out some new tools and plenty of new features for some of my tried and tested favourites, so stay tuned for updates and plenty of new info in 2018. Have a fantastic Christmas and New Year everyone, and I'll see you all back here in 2018. 
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Wow, it's been ages since I last posted and I apologise! The year is just slipping by way too quickly and it's been an exciting and busy one so far both personally and professionally. Holidays are coming up soon though, so stay tuned for some updated info on the tech tools I'm using this year and some of the interesting things I've learned about eLearning theory and ensuring you're integrating tech into your classroom in a thoughtful and meaningful way to encourage the best outcomes for students.  June/July holidays are coming up in a few weeks, so check back then for more updates!  Well it's been a crazy start to the year! In my last post I said I'd have my next post up within the first two weeks, but it's already Week 6 and this weekend was the first time I've even looked at the site since the beginning of the Term! But don't let my slow start put you off, I think you'll be hearing from me a lot this year because so much is happening in my little teacher techie world and I'm so excited to see what this year has in store - so much to learn and try and share! I think I'm in for a hectic, but awesome year! So what cool tech am I using in my classroom this year? |
 | Wow! Where did the year go? It's been ages since my last post and since I've now been on Summer holidays for almost two weeks this won't be a techie post, it's simply a quick catch up to wish you all a Merry Christmas, a well-deserved, relaxing break, and a happy, safe, and successful New Year! See you in 2016! |
Hey techie teachers! It's been a while since my last post so thought it was time for a catch-up!
I haven't trialled any new technology recently, but I can give you an update on both Remind and Plickers, which are relatively new tools for me in the classroom.
REMIND: So far parental involvement has been minimal, but the few who have signed up have responded positively and I've found it very useful in quickly and easily getting in touch about things like chasing up overdue assessment or keeping in touch when students have been out sick.
Student involvement, however, has been greater and the kids have really responded well to the system. It's been great to see the accountability of students improve with the use of the app because they can easily ask questions outside of class time and I've been able to quickly remind students about upcoming or overdue assessment items or send information to students who have been away or sick so that they can work to stay on top of things.
PLICKERS: Really enjoying testing this tech tool and the kids seem to like it too so far. I've tested it occasionally in various classes and it's working well. With the help of our wonderful teacher aides I now have card sets for each class, which has made it so much quicker and easier to use this tool for quick formative assessment. We've just started new units for the Year 8s and 9s, so I think the next couple of weeks will be the perfect time to check to see how much of the new information they're retaining and understanding.
Coming up this week I'll be presenting to some of the teachers at school about the technology tools I use to keep in touch with parents. This will be my first PD so I'm pretty nervous but excited! I'll be chatting about Weebly, ClassDojo, and Remind, then next week I'll be presenting at another PD all about ClassDojo. Love CD and can't wait to share such an awesome tool, hopefully some of my colleagues will find it as useful as I have!
If you're an Aussie teacher, good luck with the Term 3 madness, especially if you're a Qld high school teacher with Verification coming up. If you're overseas, enjoy the start of a new year and I hope you'll try out a few of these tech tools in your classroom this year!
I haven't trialled any new technology recently, but I can give you an update on both Remind and Plickers, which are relatively new tools for me in the classroom.
REMIND: So far parental involvement has been minimal, but the few who have signed up have responded positively and I've found it very useful in quickly and easily getting in touch about things like chasing up overdue assessment or keeping in touch when students have been out sick.
Student involvement, however, has been greater and the kids have really responded well to the system. It's been great to see the accountability of students improve with the use of the app because they can easily ask questions outside of class time and I've been able to quickly remind students about upcoming or overdue assessment items or send information to students who have been away or sick so that they can work to stay on top of things.
PLICKERS: Really enjoying testing this tech tool and the kids seem to like it too so far. I've tested it occasionally in various classes and it's working well. With the help of our wonderful teacher aides I now have card sets for each class, which has made it so much quicker and easier to use this tool for quick formative assessment. We've just started new units for the Year 8s and 9s, so I think the next couple of weeks will be the perfect time to check to see how much of the new information they're retaining and understanding.
Coming up this week I'll be presenting to some of the teachers at school about the technology tools I use to keep in touch with parents. This will be my first PD so I'm pretty nervous but excited! I'll be chatting about Weebly, ClassDojo, and Remind, then next week I'll be presenting at another PD all about ClassDojo. Love CD and can't wait to share such an awesome tool, hopefully some of my colleagues will find it as useful as I have!
If you're an Aussie teacher, good luck with the Term 3 madness, especially if you're a Qld high school teacher with Verification coming up. If you're overseas, enjoy the start of a new year and I hope you'll try out a few of these tech tools in your classroom this year!
The second new ClassDojo feature is here - YAY!
| Firstly, please note this feature is still in the beta stage, so you'll need to sign up as a beta app tester here in order to use this feature straight away. So what is it? Class Story is another way for teachers to keep parents in the loop. It lets parents see their child's progress anytime, anywhere. It extends the current messaging feature and helps parents engage quickly and easily with your class. It makes sharing class news and photos a breeze, and with read receipts teachers can see when parents have read their Class Story posts, so they always know the messages are getting through. How does it work? Teachers can post photos and text to their Class Story in a similar way as we use social media 'walls.' These posts are shared with all connected parents automatically and parents can even 'like' them. However, unlike public websites or social media sites, this means that only the parents connected with your class are able to view the information you choose to share. This is a big plus because safety and privacy online is a big concern for many schools. Of course you can still access the messaging feature to send out group and individual messages as well! |  |
How can I access it?
Class Story will be accessible through the ClassDojo app on any iOS or Android device and through the website on any computer, however, remember that it is still currently in the beta phase, so it's not fully available to all users just yet - hopefully by the end of the month!
Class Story is just another example of the fantastic and dedicated Dojo team listening to feedback and giving teachers features that are useful, practical, engaging, and fun! I love being able to keep parents in the loop quickly and easily, plus it's great to see how they engage with what I'm sharing, so I'm keen to test and discover all that Class Story has to offer!
For more information about Class Story, or to sign up as a beta tester, check out www.classdojo.com/ClassStory.
Class Story will be accessible through the ClassDojo app on any iOS or Android device and through the website on any computer, however, remember that it is still currently in the beta phase, so it's not fully available to all users just yet - hopefully by the end of the month!
Class Story is just another example of the fantastic and dedicated Dojo team listening to feedback and giving teachers features that are useful, practical, engaging, and fun! I love being able to keep parents in the loop quickly and easily, plus it's great to see how they engage with what I'm sharing, so I'm keen to test and discover all that Class Story has to offer!
For more information about Class Story, or to sign up as a beta tester, check out www.classdojo.com/ClassStory.
It's no secret that I'm often frustrated by Education Queensland's archaic technology policies and when my old, slightly broken school laptop was recently replaced with a new one running Windows 8 I was super excited, until I realised that my previous workaround for using Microsoft OneDrive was now completely blocked, even on my home network. So I've been searching for an alternative, and I think I may have found it!
On occasion Ed Qld will grant individual access to Dropbox, I've applied and am keeping my fingers crossed that it will be approved, but having purchased Office 365 and having everything at home in OneDrive, it's my preferred method of keeping everything in sync.
On occasion Ed Qld will grant individual access to Dropbox, I've applied and am keeping my fingers crossed that it will be approved, but having purchased Office 365 and having everything at home in OneDrive, it's my preferred method of keeping everything in sync.
Enter...
I came across cloudHQ in one of my many Google searches and while it seems to mainly be a solution for businesses, individuals can also use it. Basically, it allows you to integrate and sync multiple cloud accounts or use a secondary cloud account as a backup to a primary one. It's very early days for me using this program, so keep an eye out for future posts, but so far it seems like the answer to all my cloud storage problems. My plan is to predominantly use OneDrive, but have Dropbox setup on my school laptop and use cloudHQ to sync back and forth between OneDrive and Dropbox so I can still work between my school and home computers. I'll definitely keep you posted on how it all works out, in the meantime, check it out for yourself here.
I've been wanting to write a review on an awesome new program I've been using in class for a while now, so here it is. It's called Literacy Planet!
I've been trialling this program in my classroom for a few weeks now and the response has been overwhelmingly positive. Every lesson the kids ask if we'll be using Literacy Planet!
Now I'm sure most English teachers would agree that getting and keeping students engaged with things like spelling and grammar can be difficult! Well let me tell you, Literacy Planet has got my kids saying things like "I'm totally addicted to spelling!" and "Do we get to do spelling today?" and "Miss, I completed all my spelling activities last night, can you set some more?"
With responses like that you'd be mad not to integrate Literacy Planet into your classroom ASAP!
I've been trialling this program in my classroom for a few weeks now and the response has been overwhelmingly positive. Every lesson the kids ask if we'll be using Literacy Planet!
Now I'm sure most English teachers would agree that getting and keeping students engaged with things like spelling and grammar can be difficult! Well let me tell you, Literacy Planet has got my kids saying things like "I'm totally addicted to spelling!" and "Do we get to do spelling today?" and "Miss, I completed all my spelling activities last night, can you set some more?"
With responses like that you'd be mad not to integrate Literacy Planet into your classroom ASAP!
You might've seen some of the ads for Literacy Planet and Word Mania on TV or you may have seen the review on A Current Affair. Literacy Planet is certainly taking Australia by storm at the moment! Check A Current Affair's report on Literacy Planet by clicking the link.
HOW IT WORKS:
Teachers upload their students into classes and the program automatically generates logins. Teachers can set tasks from the multitude available and can also create custom spelling lists as needed. There are activities to promote spelling, grammar, and reading skills for students from Prep to Year 10.
The interface can be clunky to navigate at times and I've heard mention that the team are working to update certain areas to make them easier to use, but overall Literacy Planet is fairly easy to navigate from a teacher's point of view, and from a student's perspective it's even easier! Plus, it's super easy to organise an online training session with one of the team for yourself, your faculty, or even your whole school to find out all the tips and tricks!
Here are some of the positives I've noted:
Some room for improvement:
HOW I USE IT:
I've tried both the web version and the iPad app in class and at the moment I'm predominantly using the app. This is because it's quick and easy for the kids to jump on without having to take time starting up, logging into a computer, and navigating to the web page, and also because I don't have consistent access to computers for all my classes. The iPad app is great, although it does seem to be a little glitchy at times, however this hasn't affected the overall effectiveness of the program. Some of the sections you can access on the website aren't available on the app, but all the essentials are there.
Generally I use it in 10-15 minute slots twice a week as part of our weekly spelling routine (remember I teach high school) and the kids who have internet at home (which is most) jump on and complete activities as part of my weekly homework requirement.
At the start of the week I hand out our spelling words and the students look at their spelling test from the previous week to see which words, if any, they need to revise again this week. Then they jump on the app, upload their list of words in the My Spelling section, and off they go completing activities until I call time. They love it! I think the highlight so far was when I overheard one of the boys in my Learning Support class, who often struggles with basic Literacy skills and can be difficult to engage, tell one of the other boys that he was a little embarrassed to admit it but he was on Literacy Planet for ages last night and he thought he might be addicted to spelling!
This is a relatively new tech tool for me, so I'm still working out the best ways to use it in the classroom, but so far I'm so excited with the results. Not only are my kids positively engaged in practicing and improving their Literacy skills, but overall the attitude in my classroom has generally improved. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that it continues!
COST:
You can try Literacy Planet for one month for free, but after that your school will need to purchase licenses for students to continue using the program. Contact the Literacy Planet team to discuss pricing, they're very quick to respond and happy to help!
Teachers upload their students into classes and the program automatically generates logins. Teachers can set tasks from the multitude available and can also create custom spelling lists as needed. There are activities to promote spelling, grammar, and reading skills for students from Prep to Year 10.
The interface can be clunky to navigate at times and I've heard mention that the team are working to update certain areas to make them easier to use, but overall Literacy Planet is fairly easy to navigate from a teacher's point of view, and from a student's perspective it's even easier! Plus, it's super easy to organise an online training session with one of the team for yourself, your faculty, or even your whole school to find out all the tips and tricks!
Here are some of the positives I've noted:
- Students are very engaged!
- Easy to differentiate as you can adjust levels for individual students based on their needs without it being apparent to the students
- Excellent automatic data collection tools for cohorts, classes, and individual students
- Students can access from home, so it can also be used as a homework or revision tool
- Teachers can create custom spelling lists and assign tasks easily that are applicable to individual classes and students or they can use the pre-loaded lists that are aligned with the Australian Curriculum
- Tasks can be scheduled so students can’t access them until the teacher wants them to, so students can’t race through and complete activities at home that are meant for class time
- Programs are lockable, so students can’t access the miscellaneous literacy activities or arcade games until they have completed all tasks set by the teacher
- Students can create custom spelling lists with their own words, but the program won't let them input incorrectly spelled words (yay!)
- Parents can also sign up to access from home
Some room for improvement:
- iPad app can be glitchy at times
- Teacher web interface is a little awkward to use, hopefully they'll streamline it in the future
- A couple of parents have commented that the graphics are a little babyish for the older kids, it would be good if they changed as the students progressed through levels perhaps, although I haven't heard any comments about it from the kids
HOW I USE IT:
I've tried both the web version and the iPad app in class and at the moment I'm predominantly using the app. This is because it's quick and easy for the kids to jump on without having to take time starting up, logging into a computer, and navigating to the web page, and also because I don't have consistent access to computers for all my classes. The iPad app is great, although it does seem to be a little glitchy at times, however this hasn't affected the overall effectiveness of the program. Some of the sections you can access on the website aren't available on the app, but all the essentials are there.
Generally I use it in 10-15 minute slots twice a week as part of our weekly spelling routine (remember I teach high school) and the kids who have internet at home (which is most) jump on and complete activities as part of my weekly homework requirement.
At the start of the week I hand out our spelling words and the students look at their spelling test from the previous week to see which words, if any, they need to revise again this week. Then they jump on the app, upload their list of words in the My Spelling section, and off they go completing activities until I call time. They love it! I think the highlight so far was when I overheard one of the boys in my Learning Support class, who often struggles with basic Literacy skills and can be difficult to engage, tell one of the other boys that he was a little embarrassed to admit it but he was on Literacy Planet for ages last night and he thought he might be addicted to spelling!
This is a relatively new tech tool for me, so I'm still working out the best ways to use it in the classroom, but so far I'm so excited with the results. Not only are my kids positively engaged in practicing and improving their Literacy skills, but overall the attitude in my classroom has generally improved. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that it continues!
COST:
You can try Literacy Planet for one month for free, but after that your school will need to purchase licenses for students to continue using the program. Contact the Literacy Planet team to discuss pricing, they're very quick to respond and happy to help!
Based on my experience so far I would definitely recommend trying Literacy Planet in your classroom, or at least jump on the website and check it out!
If you know me, or you've had a good look through my site, you'll know that I'm a huge fan of ClassDojo! So I was super excited when the Dojo team asked me to help them promote some awesome new features over the next few weeks. Being both a Dojo mentor and beta app tester I've had the chance to test these features out a little early and provide feedback, and I'm always so impressed by how the ClassDojo team respond and implement the feedback they receive from all of us! To find out more about ClassDojo, check out my ClassDojo page.
| So let's explore the first awesome new feature... GROUPS! Here's a bit of info from the ClassDojo team: HOW IT WORKS: ClassDojo Groups enables teachers to group students any way they like: table groups, reading groups, house teams, project groups, and more. Teachers can easily encourage a team for any skill important to their classroom with just a single tap. Each group will keep its own running total, which students love because it provides a sense of accomplishment and camaraderie, and fosters a desire to keep going and compete with other groups! Group points will still show up on student profiles alongside their individually awarded points so that students and parents can easily see their overall progress from home. DEVICES: Groups will work and sync across any iOS or Android device, and will also work on any computer. |  |
I love this new feature! Having played around with it prior to the official release I've found it simple to use, you just swipe across if you're on a mobile device, and your Groups page is at your fingertips. Students can be added to multiple groups, so you can set up groups for numerous classroom activities, making it really easy to award points! You can find out more about Groups here: www.classdojo.com/groups.
Overall this is a fantastic new feature to kickstart Three New Features in Three Weeks!
Stay tuned in the coming weeks for more awesome new features!
Overall this is a fantastic new feature to kickstart Three New Features in Three Weeks!
Stay tuned in the coming weeks for more awesome new features!
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Author
Welcome! I'm Meagan Caesar, a high school English and Humanities teacher in Queensland, Australia and I've designed this site for teachers interested in using more technology in their classrooms.
I don't represent any of the companies listed in any way, nor do I make any guarantees for the effect of these resources in your classroom. I simply want to share my experiences, ideas, resources, and information in the hopes that you will find some of these technologies useful, engaging, and rewarding.
Make sure you keep popping back because I try to keep the blog updated regularly and add new info, resources, and technologies as I discover and test them in my classroom.
I don't represent any of the companies listed in any way, nor do I make any guarantees for the effect of these resources in your classroom. I simply want to share my experiences, ideas, resources, and information in the hopes that you will find some of these technologies useful, engaging, and rewarding.
Make sure you keep popping back because I try to keep the blog updated regularly and add new info, resources, and technologies as I discover and test them in my classroom.
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