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!

Where do I start? There are so many cool tools to use this year, but here are my top picks!

​Some of the oldies I'll be continuing to use are:

• ClassDojo - Of course!!! My favourite behaviour management and parent communication tool, ClassDojo is an essential part of my classroom and there are so many new and useful features, it just keeps getting better and better. 
• Remind - After a trial run last year, this invaluable tool is now a staple in my classroom tech kit. I use it with my senior students and also with school clubs and groups I'm involved in to safely, privately, and easily keep in contact with students, parents, and other teachers. I also have a widget embedded in my Virtual Classrooms so students can always see my reminders and announcements. Love it!
• Doceri - Doceri works as a wireless whiteboard by connecting your iPad (or tablet) with a computer connected to a projector. You can also use it to create videos and presentations. I used Doceri a little last year, but I'm looking forward to using it more consistently and effectively this year. It can be a bit tricky to use at times, but I'm interested in learning more about flipped classrooms and this is a great tool for that.

Now here are some of the newbies I'm excited to try these in my classroom this year...

Socrative
This is one I'm probably most excited to use! This year we're busy implementing our BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) program and, as expected, there have been a few bumps along the way that have inhibited the use of tools like Socrative, but things are starting to smooth out now and I can't wait to try this tool properly. Basically, Socrative is a quiz/polling/survey tool for use in classrooms with 1:1 devices. It's super simple to use, free, doesn't require student accounts, and so far it seems very reliable. It's fantastic for checking for understanding and I'm hoping it'll become a staple classroom tool for me.

PowToon
PowToon is another great flipped classroom tool and so fun. Students can also use it to create video projects, so it's not just a teacher tool. You can create fun video presentations using cartoon characters and effects, and you can also add audio elements. It's touted as an alternative to PowerPoint and Prezi, and while it may not completely replace these tried and tested tools, it certainly adds an element of interest and fun to the way you present information during lessons. 

So many fun, useful tools, it's no wonder I'm so excited about this year and all it has to offer.
Don't forget to click on the tech titles to find out more about how I use them (info will be updated soon) or click on the images to visit the individual sites. 

Enjoy Week 6!

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.

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! 

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:

• 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.

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!