BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) can be a challenge. SMART has created a bridge — SMART Amp. Together with a web browser, SMART Amp builds a bridge between diverse BYOD devices in a simple collaborative workspace connecting students and teachers. Unveiled this past Wednesday via live stream, SMART Amp makes it easy for students to work together. To illustrate the simplicity of the tool, as the panel discusses collaboration, students from San Diego and New York study biomes in the SMART Amp workspace. (This is the live collaboration we dreamed of when writing Flattening Classrooms, Engaging Minds.) This post is divided into two parts. In Part 1, I’ll share SMART Amp product info. To sum up the panel (including Clay Shirky, Angela Maiers, Cristin Frodella, and Warren Barkley), Part 2 is my transcription of the best quotes. Clay Shirky says "Introverts are often the ones who flourish in this environment. Degree of introversion and extroversion has a huge impact on how students choose to contribute - shy kids most benefit from the modes that are asynchronous. Otherwise, you let the extroverted students dominate. It is also important as students grow older to have girls in a situation where they won’t get interrupted." (Scroll down for the rest of the quotes from the panel.) ### SMART Amp Cloud Software Neil Gaydon, SMART CEO says "Disparate devices present challenges, In BYOD, how are they going to work together? SMART Amp brings together devices under one simple architecture. It ‘glues’ the classroom together and unifies it. SMART Amp lets anyone choose any device they want." Students in San Diego and New York City collaborated live as they studied biomes. As evidence that technology is often not transformational, Warren Barkley from SMART observed an iPad classroom where the students stack their iPads on the teacher’s desk like paper. The teacher checks assignments and hands back the iPads when done. Warren says it was "the saddest thing I have ever seen." ~ (Note to reader: In the classroom Warren Barkley observed, the style is entrenched in the "Substitution" phase. Notably, the SAMR model as  shared by Richard Wells helps us understand why some classrooms aren’t transforming. We are substituting technology for what we’re already doing but we’re not REDEFINING what happens in the classroom as we should.) ~ Although I haven’t tested SMART Amp (yet) with my students in collaborative projects, collaboration via web browser in such a way is exciting. We need this because we must reinvent writing (my new book coming in just 2 ½ weeks) and collaborate globally. As Clay Shirky says in the panel discussion: "The ability to distribute collaboration over large areas is one of the characteristics of this new era." We will all be making decisions in the near future about how to bridge our BYOD devices. From what I’ve seen SMART Amp will be a contender. For the cost of an app, SMART Amp is between $9 and $3 per student per year. (Depends upon volume.) Notably, you are not required to use a SMARTBoard to use SMART Amp. ~ SMART Amp Talking Points SMART Amp - cloud based software lets students collaborate and share ideas in interactive workspace - requires no installation or updating of apps and is accessible from most internet enabled devices. Overcome struggles of multi platform  (BYOD). Seamless transition from whole class, small group, and individual learning. Project based learning (PBL), student led learning, collaborative learning, personalized learning, inquiry based learning are all possible using SMART Amp. Robust way to get dynamic content on or off personalized devices. What is happening in most classrooms isn’t transformational because students and teachers aren’t connected. Teacher creates file →  Sends content to student devices. Live collaboration and sharing real time. When computers "die" - teachers won’t "freak out" because files are based in the cloud. Files live in the cloud. They collaborated and then split off into small multi-classroom groups. Teacher embeds assessment - capture individual learning inside the workspace. ### Panel Discussion on Collaboration Warren Barkley from SMART leads a powerful panel discussion around student collaboration with technology. In this section, I’ve taken live notes but when verbatim, I’ve put it in quotes. Angela Maiers says: "The necessity to operate in ‘the we’ defines your role as a learner and your potential to lead. We must create environments and mindset to let the work move forward." Angela Maiers "Be the kind of learner you want students to be." Clay Shirky Focus on social media and technologies. "The ability to distribute collaboration over large areas is one of the characteristics of this new era." Cristin Frodella, Google "In our workplaces we never work alone, we are constantly working together… we get to work with students and teachers who are grocking the information flow." Warren Barkley, SMART As social expands are we preparing students to prepare for this collaborative world? Clay Shirky When technology comes into the classroom it is easy to still do old things in a new way. Collaboration enables better forms of learning than the repetition and test model. Collaboration gives students permission to say what they don’t know. It is easier to turn to your peers than to turn to your teachers - collaboration does a better job of surfacing the short term goals of education. Angela Maiers We shouldn’t position collaboration as a skill. Collaboration must be the default, not just an activity. Collaboration is the how work is done. The necessity to operate in "the we" defines your role as a learner and your potential to lead. We must create environments and mindset to let the work move forward. Cristin Frodella Google researcher Rich Kiker told Cristin teacher John Benner’s story. John is a middle school math teacher who flipped his classroom. (Kids go home and absorb content via video and learn concepts. In the classroom John teaches using project based learning, collaboration and working together.) 100% of his class has succeeded to the highest level of Pennsylvania standards for improved learning. Clay Shirky "The thing this medium is best at, if you’re shy, there is an asynchronous way to add to the discussion without having to raise your hand. Introverts are often the ones who flourish in this environment. Degree of introversion and extroversion has a huge impact on how students choose to contribute - shy kids most benefit from the modes that are asynchronous. Otherwise you let the extroverted students dominate. It is also important as students grow older to have girls in a situation where they won’t get interrupted." Standardized tests - the problem is we are looking at rankings instead of how kids learn Angela Maiers Spent time to talk to students before they started the press conference. When educators talk about collaboration we talk about standards but students didn’t mention any of that. Kids said "It helped us as individuals because it helped us work together. We don’t have a choice not to contribute." It is a deliberate environment. The cool part is "we learned ideas about each other that we never knew." It was default that "contribution became nonnegotiable." "These are the mandates and tenants of the sandbox. Put them in a sandbox, this is what they do." ~ Clay Shirky says "People try to optimize what they are measured for - they ignore what you say and act on what you measure. We have to measure these things but we have to start insisting on additional kinds of value and how it can be evaluated. Other kinds of skills matter. Math is not the only thing to get right. Don’t stop measuring and ranking - how can we start adding to the rankings so more of what matters gets reflected." Clay Shirky "People try to optimize what they are measured for - they ignore what you say and act on what you measure. We have to measure these things but we have to start insisting on additional kinds of value and how it can be evaluated. Other kinds of skills matter. Math is not the only thing to get right. Don’t stop measuring and ranking - how can we start adding to the rankings so more of what matters gets reflected." Warren Barkley Saw teacher take up iPads - mark it on the iPad and then hand the iPads back out. "It is the saddest thing I’ve ever seen." Cristin Frodella We’re not providing change management training to schools. How do we teach teachers how to do this? Clay Shirky Back when computers first emerged, only one class of companies thrived. In most companies, people were computerizing but weren’t becoming more productive. The companies who upgraded and changed what they were doing were the ones who became more productive. We must upgrade and change what we’re doing. "Teachers don’t absorb best practices from administrators, they absorb them from other teachers. If you don’t have a community of practice then change will not flow between your classrooms." "Letting teachers choose to opt out of new tools works because it gets the naysayers and blockers keep things from being blocked moving forward. Let those who are interested implement change. They’ll talk to their peers. Otherwise you have pockets of learning and nothing spreads across the whole school." Likeliness is to copy their behavior from one another not from vendors and not from administrators. Angela Maiers "Isolation is the most detrimental enemy of collaboration and innovation." She points to Twitter as building community. Clay Shirky The principle obstacle to a group innovating is the group itself. Too rigid and people will opt out. Too open people will distract themselves. Angela Maiers Masterful explanation of cooperation versus collaboration. Cooperation is often each student with defined roles. Collaboration is a lot messier and requires students to grapple and push back to get to the final product. Clay Shirky Cooperation is a Flickr photo group. Collaboration is a Wikipedia article. Both are possible modes of working but if you’re going to say that they labor together to shared outcome is harder to do. ### In summary, the potential impact of online spaces on introverts and girls points to collaborative spaces as a way to engage all learners. (Something many of us have been saying for years (2007).) I would argue further that online spaces that are synchronous and asynchronous help your students who are more introverted. Schools are bricks and clicks. Every classroom has a face to face environment and an online environment. Likewise, as a teacher, I have a face to face and a digital persona. Both are important ways I connect and communicate. Building a bridge in BYOD is going to be of strategic importance as we move our classrooms through the  SAMR model  to bring them to a total redefinition of how we teach and learn. From what I’ve seen, SMART Amp will definitely be a leader in this space. ### Disclosure of Material Connection: This is being written by me as I watched the live stream of their press conference. I am being compensated by a related company via cash payment, gift, or something else of value to live blog the press conference and post it to my blog. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I believe will be good for my readers and are from companies I can recommend. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.) The post SMART Amp: The New BYOD Collaborative Bridge appeared first on Cool Cat Teacher Blog.

As I watched my field day team win one of the longest bouts of tug-of-war I’ve ever seen, I was reminded how forces combine to tug education in the wrong direction. It might be as subtle as a phrase or a bad habit permeating our profession.  This morning as I sat down to blog, opinions and rants poured from my heart onto the page about the forces tugging us in the wrong direction. We can pull back - add your voice but even better - add your actions. Education is a noble calling - lets do things worthy of that calling. 9 Defining Ways Educators Can Tug Education Back in the Right Direction 1. Take Time to Listen and Learn Every Week Learn from intriguing people. Your energy and excitement is often in direct relation to the ideas you’re bringing into your life. Teachers learn best from other teachers and educators from other educators. Teachers must be a living model of lifelong learning. To do this, we have to carve out time to learn. Administrators and others should leave behind the misconception that a teacher should always be working. Sometimes they should be learning if they’re going to be a great teacher. The best teachers are great learners. Teaching is an incredible profession. But we must have the courage to speak about the forces that tug it in the wrong direction. 2. Ensure Professional Development (PD) Includes the Pedagogies Teachers Should Use Our PD should be an engaging use of the pedagogies we are espousing in the classroom instead of lecture-only hypocrisy. If it works use it. If you lead PD, don’t say you "don’t have time" to use the best teaching methods because teachers won’t either. Lack of time is a grand excuse - we all have the same amount. It is how you use your time that counts. Teachers do as you do, not as you say. So, when you teach PD, model effective teaching practices. And teachers, be professionals and engage. When I am in a session and see teachers misbehaving, I could "snatch a knot" because teachers should know better and be there to learn. 3. Teachers (and Students) Need a Voice First, include teachers in your panels and conferences! I’m done listening to condemnation-breathing guilt-inducing "thought leaders" who don’t comprehend or understand today’s teaching situation. I’m also sick and tired of panel discussions talking about teaching without one teacher on them. Thought leaders. Business leaders. Political leaders. Not one teacher. COME ON!!!! ENOUGH!! We are not idiot children who can’t speak for ourselves. There are hundreds of thousands of teachers who ARE making the change into the 21st Century who can share how transformation happens. Stop acting like 21st century learning hasn’t arrived and we have to sit alone hypothesizing what it looks like. Many of us are there NOW. Include teachers who are doing it in the conversations. Second, add diversity! With a profession that is 80% women, I’m also quite disgusted at the under-representation of women and minorities in conversations that should represent the diversity of the teachers and students we serve. We need more perspectives from a variety of backgrounds to move forward. Third, most  staff meetings need a serious agenda-lift. Teacher led staff meetings are happening in innovative schools everywhere. Instead of the top-down approach let teachers take the lead on important issues - you might be  surprised. Most teachers will tell you that staff meetings are some of the biggest wastes of time at school. Don’t read us the announcements - let teachers  read announcements before the meeting and talk about things that can improve the school! Fourth, after you include teachers, turn to students and include them too. Stop talking about students and start talking with students - many poised, knowledgeable students are ready to contribute their voice. Student voice is part of an effective school (and conference.) In education, the often unknown but influential "helpers" are those who plan our education conferences. Their choices of speakers are important. 4. Share Your Learning and Inspire Others Educators who care, share. Take time to share your favorite books, internet radio, and resources to help inspire those around you. First, share with your colleagues. Your peers don’t need a consultant — THEY NEED YOU. If you’re excited - you should be sharing. Get over the fact that your sheer excitement will be offensive to teachers who exude complacency or crabbiness. I’m going to be excited even though my peers may not like it. My message to those teachers who get upset when other teachers get excited is to  stop worrying about others making you "look bad" and just make yourself look good by being engaged in your job. Make copies of inspirational best practices and put them in the teacher’s lounge boxes.  Share something new you’ve learned every day with someone. Include people who don’t connect via social media. Second and perhaps most importantly, at least once a week share something you’ve learned with students. In my classroom these conversations will start like this: "I’ve been reading the book __ on __. I find ___ fascinating.’ or "When I learned ___ it blew me away (I’ll show the article on the board if it is online). What do you think? Then, encourage them to bring things in they’ve learned too. "Show and tell" should become "care enough to share." Let’s be the lead learners in a society needing to see living examples of lifelong learning. What you do when you are alone at your desk is important.   5. Be Fair Because You Care Because we can’t take everyone in the back room with us - we must do our best to avoid all appearances of favoritism, nepotism, and discrimination. Be fair to all children and respect their personal learning journey. First, be fair with any bonus opportunities. If you give it to one, give it to all of them. Honor roll may mean to one kid what passing means to another. Second, listen to all sides as you reconsider decisions. Beware of digging your trenches before you know you should be defending the land.  Integrity is best shown when we mess up. When ethical situations occur, students watch us carefully. Be as fair as possible because life’s not.   6. When You Get a Spotlight, Grab a Mirror Some love the spotlight. But remember that hundreds of thousands of incredible educators are doing a great job every single day without encouragement or thank you. Most of us would agree that introverted genius teachers are under-recognized.  So, we can spotlight more teachers in two ways: grab a mirror or make more light. Grab a Mirror To be inclusive, when you gain a spotlight by winning an award or being given the chance to speak- grab a mirror. Shine some  light on those who inspire and help you. Point out teachers who deserve it. Mention your favorite teacher when you’re receiving recognition. Don’t teachers deserve some credit? Make More Light Notably, today’s social media gives us the opportunity to make more light. My Internet radio show, Every Classroom Matters is how I’ve made more light. I felt there was a need to have a short show that the average busy teacher could listen to on a ten minute break. Also, I wanted to feature teachers from all parts of the world including teachers not on social media.  Every Classroom Matters is my way of making more light. You can do this too through your blog, status updates, Tweets, and Instagram or any way you share. Enlighten the world on your awesome profession. Be part of the movement to share great teaching.   7. Be Gracious But Keep Perspective Here’s a pet peeve. When award winners say "I’m so humbled by ___" No, you’re not humbled - you’re proud. Being humbled is when a kid tells you three months later that she thought you didn’t like her because of something you said back in January. Being humbled is when someone comes to observe your room and two of your students didn’t take their ADD meds and are swinging from the fluorescent lights. Being humbled is realizing you’ve eaten in the lunchroom instead of packing your lunch and gained 10 pounds this month. But being humbled is not winning an award. You’re proud - AND YOU SHOULD BE. "A rising tide raises all ships." We can be the tide. Our job as educators is to lift up others, even as we’re being recognized. So be proud. Don’t pretend you’re humbled. You’re not. You’re grateful and glad. Accept the award. Say thank you. Don’t act like the teacher who doesn’t deserve it. Would you see business leaders sheepishly holding their heads down accepting award for man of the year? Spotlights give you a megaphone. Your profession needs you. Speak IMPORTANT words, not what all the puffy, happy people want you to say. Why is the word "proud" a dirty word in education? There  is a difference between being proud and being prideful. If you are fortunate enough to win an award, choose your words to feature your profession and to speak for your profession. If you’re the best,  use that moment to exalt our profession further. A rising tide raises all ships. Be the rising tide. And have pride in a job well done — and then get busy doing more.   8. Stop the Flattery: No Rock Stars This past year, Mashable listed me as one of 10 Rockstar teachers on Twitter — (I’m humbled…. uhm, no I’m not. It was exciting when I was sitting in the teacher’s lounge and my Twitter stream told me.) I spend a lot of time curating and working to inspire others on Twitter and I’m honored and proud to be included but… I AM TOTALLY NOT A ROCK STAR. I don’t look good in leather pants. I’d rather be a heroine than take some. I’m after a higher calling and one that fills me with meaning and so are most of you. Why do we need to slap labels on us to make us more important? Isn’t a being called a teacher awesome enough? Flattery can turn a helpful person into a know-it-all faster than rock star Eddie Van Halen’s fingers move playing  Eruption. People who think they are the center of the universe will watch opened mouth as it  implodes when they find that their universe and the real one barely intersect. Thank people for their work and service but let’s ditch the "rock star" moniker. Flattery doesn’t help anyone but can make incredible people less helpful. "Stormy seas" made you a more skillful classroom navigator. Use problems as an opportunity to level up. 9. Level Up Every Day Leveling up is a decision - a craving to be better, teach better, and learn better tomorrow than we did today. Yesterday’s laurels will become stale - you need fresh ones every day to continue to excel at the art and craft of teaching. Teaching is active. It is something we do every day. Most compelling evidence shows that joining or forming a professional learning community (PLC) is one of the most important things the committed educator can do. PLC’s help us work towards weekly and daily improvement. It also requires us to admit we can improve. Your perspective is important! Share it.   Teach On Our lives are but a blip in the heartbeat of history. But how we  use our blip is important. Teaching one of the few professions that will impact the future blips. Teaching is a noble calling. I’m Grateful For You Each one of you who reads this blog, shares on Twitter, or connects and comments here — you give far more to me than I could ever give you. Publishers and conferences notice me because you noticed me first. You’ve told them about me via Twitter, email, or phone calls. I’m so grateful for you. Thank you for what all of you  do and share. Remember that sharing the work of other educators does make a difference like it has for me. When you reweet and reshare articles you’re showing others that this is an important conversation to have. You are the real rock stars of education because you are the rock solid people who help kids reach for the stars of their dreams. When forces tug our profession in the direction we don’t want it to go, let’s have the courage and perseverance to pull back. This fight is worth fighting because the future is at stake. Call me a teacher.  That is reward enough.   The post 9 Defining Ways Educators Can Tug Education Back in the Right Direction appeared first on Cool Cat Teacher Blog.

Michael wanted to tell his story but he needed help. So, teacher John Lozano helped Michael find his voice through video. Although it took seven months to craft and edit, Michael’s video is released first on YouTube (then removed  for reasons John shares on the show). After editing, it is rereleased on NextVista.org. This touching story points to something many of us are finding out: video gives us a powerful way to help kids with special needs share their story. Listen to John Lozano via Web Browser Listen to "How Do We Help Other Kids Kids and Adults Understand Autism?" on iTunes I love John’s authenticity for the struggle but his passion for helping Michael share his story. As soon as the other children see the video, John says they start to understand Michael better. As can be seen from this story, every student needs a voice, whether via blog, audio, or video. Let’s help them develop that voice. Of course, we must add our voices too. In this story, my friend Rushton Hurley told me about Michael and John. Rushton used his connection, not to promote himself but to help another. With this in mind, we all must be advocates to help students who have important messages like Michael’s be noticed. Every child we teach matters. Uniquely, this modern age has given us the opportunity to take the pressure of a live audience off of students. To be fair, I believe that students on the autism spectrum should be given opportunities to create videos instead of always being force fit into live presentations. Applause to John, Michael and Michael’s mom for sharing Michael’s story and the bravery that comes with "putting yourself out there." If you are inspired,  leave Michael a message in the comments. (Notably, these comments are moderated so give them a chance to go live.) Here’s the thing about Michael that impresses me. Although Michael has autism; autism doesn’t have Michael. There’s a difference. This young man will tell his story to the world. As can be seen in this story, he and his Mom will help him reach out and be the best Michael he can be. In summary, Michael and his mom have been empowered by a visionary hard-working teacher who didn’t do this for the notice he would get. John Lozano did it for Michael. And in helping Michael find his voice, John is now a voice for what can be done when you use technology to embolden and empower every child. Hats off to you too, John Lozano, you’ve shared a best practice that matters: using video with special needs kids. Great work! Michael’s Video: My Name is Michael Show Notes: John Lozano ECM Show #73 John Lozano is a Resource Specialist at Easterbrook Discovery School in San Jose, California. He used video to teach digital storytelling to a student labelled with autism. The student created a video telling others about being someone labelled with autism. His video created empathy with his fellow students about the problems he experiences. The video is hosted on Next Vista and the music used is by Kina Grannis, who allowed her music to be used in the video. Add John Lozano to your PLN @mrjohnlozano My Name is Michael Every Classroom Matters is a bi-weekly Internet radio show by Vicki Davis on BAM Radio network with best practices for busy teachers.  Subscribe. Show notes prepared by Lisa Durff, Production Coordinator for Every Classroom Matters. Need help listening to the show? If you’re clicking "Play" on the BAM Radio Site, this often works best in Internet explorer. Or subscribe in a podcatcher. If you need help, use this tutorial. The post Using Videos to Give a Voice to Kids with Autism with Teacher John Lozano appeared first on Cool Cat Teacher Blog.

12 Choices to Step Back from Burnout Edutopia May 16, 2014 In more than a decade of teaching, I’ve come precariously close to burnout probably close to 20 times. (The last week of school is always a given.) Edutopia asked me to write about these for my blog over there. If you’re going to step back from burnout you have DECISIONS to make. Hope this helps you make them so you can thrive. The post 12 Choices to Step Back from Burnout [Link] appeared first on Cool Cat Teacher Blog.

With a whopping four hundred fifteen THOUSAND fans on her Facebook teaching resources page, Laura Candler is at the center of a thriving conversation about teaching on Facebook. Although "retired," Laura finds and vets free resources to share on her website and blog. In this show, Laura shares how she uses a tool she developed based upon Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligences to help fifth graders see the strengths in themselves and one another. Listen to Laura Candler - Multiple Intelligences in Fifth Grade When I blogged about Laura’s Free Multiple Intelligences Survey a while back it instantly sparked so much interest that I booked her for the show to talk about it. We must help students appreciate their own strengths and the strengths in one another. If our students think the only kind of smart in school is making a good grade on a test, we have failed them as a school. This show gives you a creative best practice idea to move past that. However, this free resource is not a research tool or diagnostic - you’ll want to hear how she uses it so you can keep balance. I think you’ll agree with me that Laura is refreshingly helpful, practical and real. You’ll find cool tools and best practices on her website that can help you immediately. Enjoy meeting Laura on today’s episode of Every Classroom Matters. ### Add Laura Candler to your PLN @lauracandler Laura’s Teaching Resources Facebook Page Teaching Resources Corkboard Connections Learn More about Laura’s Multiple Intelligences Survey and Information Listen to Show #68: A New Way to Think About Multiple Intelligences ### Laura Candler- ECM Show Notes #68 - A New Way to Think About Multiple Intelligences Laura Candler, a retired educator, discusses resources for emphasizing Multiple Intelligences in the classroom.  Using these free resources can help students learn about their learning strengths and how they learn best.  She talks about the survey she uses with students, a tool for intermediate students to learn about MI Theory. For the different intelligences she uses K-12 language, like Word Smart, Picture Smart, and Music Smart.  She has never been challenged about MI Theory and has seen it empower her students and believes this is a tool that is successful in the classroom. Laura does not hint at the wealth of information on her website. Be sure to check out her many resources, like the Lunch Bunch and her Literature Circle Resources.  Laura Candler is a retired 5th grade teacher in North Carolina, a conference presenter, and an author. ~ Every Classroom Matters is a bi-weekly Internet Radio Show by Vicki Davis on BAM Radio network with best practices for busy teachers.  Subscribe. Show notes prepared by Lisa Durff, Production Coordinator for Every Classroom Matters. Need help listening to the show? If you’re clicking "Play" on the BAM Radio Site, this often works best in Internet Explorer. Or subscribe in a podcatcher. To get help use this tutorial. The post Laura Candler: How to Use Multiple Intelligences to Help Students See Their Strengths appeared first on Cool Cat Teacher Blog.

Want some practical ways to use tablets in the classroom? I’m a Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) school and was asked by Microsoft to share practical ways that any teacher can use tablets. In this presentation you’ll learn: More than fifty (50) ways that you can use a tablet in your classroom (most of these apps are multi platform) You’ll see a sneak peak of the fabulous new Office Mix tool that will change screencasting forever You’ll get a preview of some of the information from my upcoming book Reinventing Writing. (Released June 3, 2014) It was an incredible session with more than 1,500 registrants. We had attendees from around the world: the US, Canada, Ecuador, Vietnam, Egypt, Australia, and more… There was awesome energy in the group. Upcoming free sessions are with Jonathan Bergman and more. The sessions are free. (If you want a certificate of attendance, you can sign up and watch the 10 video series and receive one.) The post 50+ Ways a Tablet Can Make You a More Effective Teacher appeared first on Cool Cat Teacher Blog.

Writing has been reinvented. Nine tools have changed writing, learning and living forever and we need to understand how to use them in our schools. The keynote video in this blog post was part of the Reinventing the Classroom conference and I share the highlights of what I do with my students to teach these 9 types of tools and build community among your writers. I’ll share tons of best practices and give you a sneak peak of the book. Reinventing Writing teaches you about the 9 tools that are changing writing, learning and living forever and how to teach with them. Reinventing Writing, the Book, arrives June 3 My new book Reinventing Writing arrives on June 3, 2014! Reinventing Writing is written for any teacher using or trying cloud documents with students. I teach you how to select the right tool for teaching purposes, how to set it up quickly, and how to prevent common mistakes. I explain that it has never been easier, more convenient, and more important than right now. Participate in the Virtual Book Signing for Reinventing Writing (June 3-10) For the first week of the book launch, I am hosting a "virtual book signing."  There are several ways to get a signed bookplate in the mail from me. Post a selfie on social media with your copy of Reinventing Writing. If you’re on Twitter, Instagram, or Google Plus- use the tag #reinventingwriting -or- Write a book review on Amazon or Goodreads or anywhere you write online (any book review counts, I can’t require it to be a good one although I hope it will be. Email the screenshot, the link, and your mailing address to: reinventingwriting@coolcatteacher.com (If you want the signature to a certain person, let me know the name too.) I’ll mail you my special thank you in a couple of weeks after the book launches. (This is your chance to get a signature for your book if you can’t get out to any conferences this summer!) If you want to participate, you might want to go ahead and order your copy. I have links to many of the book sellers (it is available internationally) on the Reinventing Writing page. Upcoming Events Where Info from the Book Will Be Shared May 31 - Classroom 2.0 Webinar "Reinventing Writing" 12:00 pm - 1: 00 pm EDT June 19 - Louisville, Kentucky - Teach, Tech, Learn - Keynote, Session and Book Signing June 29 - 4:15-5:15 pm - ISTE 2014 - "Wonderful World of Wiki Wiki Teaching" (Preregister for this) July 24 - Leadership 3.0 Keynote Reinventing Writing Coming in July — a Bookchat with #txeduchat If you want to join the conversation I get out for the summer today (May 23) and have time for a limited number of Skype or Google Hangouts with book groups or clubs. If you’ve got a group that is going to learn how to reinvent writing and foster powerful writing communities, just email lisa@coolcatteacher.com to book a time for this summer or early fall. The post Reinventing Writing: Free Video and Virtual Book Signing appeared first on Cool Cat Teacher Blog.

Research: INEQUALITY IN TEACHING AND SCHOOLING: SUPPORTING HIGH-QUALITY TEACHING AND LEADERSHIP IN LOW-INCOME SCHOOLS Excerpted from A Nation at Risk: Preserving Public Education as an Engine for Social Mobility, Richard D. Kahlenberg, Editor 2000 by Linda Darling-Hammond and Laura Post This important excerpt of a larger book hits on the quality of teachers and the success of children in low-income schools. If you want a better school, spend money on staff development and helping your teachers become more proficient. This article is full of research and important topics of conversation among teachers and policy makers. "Longitudinal studies in Tennessee and Dallas, Texas found that differences in teacher effectiveness are an extremely strong determinant of differences in student learning, far outweighing the effects of differences in class size and heterogeneity." P 128-129 http://www.stanford.edu/~ldh/publications/LDH-Post-Inequality.pdf If you haven’t read this article, take the time to dive through with a highlighter and prepare to discuss the implications. Teacher quality and teacher education makes a big difference. Sadly, the first thing most states have cut is teacher training with some states even making the move to limit teacher education and make sure they are "in the classroom." While being in the classroom is important, being well educated is even more important. I find that when I learn new methods of teaching and strategies, I become a better teacher through the practice of working to improve my classroom. I’ve put this article in my Pocket app to read more deeply this summer. The post Research: INEQUALITY IN TEACHING AND SCHOOLING: SUPPORTING HIGH-QUALITY TEACHING AND LEADERSHIP IN LOW-INCOME SCHOOLS [Link] appeared first on Cool Cat Teacher Blog.

Bring your Own Device (#byod) is a hot topic in education and one that many of us, including me, talk about often. It is challenge to bridge all the devices and teach. But, if you believe the SAMR model, BYOD can redefine your classroom (without killing your budget.) The Epic BYOD Toolchest on my Edutopia Blog includes 51 of the tools I used this past year in my BYOD classroom. Since I was just named one of the top 10 influencers on Twitter in BYOD by Onalytica. (#3 after Maribel Lopez @MaribelLopez and Tina Barseghian @MindShiftKQED of MindShift), you might find my 51 favorite tools for BYOD list over at Edutopia helpful as you look for apps to use with students. Read "The Epic BYOD Toolchest" on my Edutopia Blog ### Keeping Up with BYOD It can be a challenge to keep up with the rapidly changing best practices in BYOD. If you’re into BYOD, I suggest you look at the Onalytica BYOD Influencer List and follow them on Twitter. BYOD isn’t just one person, it is a movement. Even if you have one device of one type you provide, it is likely you are BYOD in some way because you probably have all types of smartphones and devices on your network whether you want to or not. Following BYOD will help you stay up to date whatever type of school you are, because it concerns bridging every type of technology out there. See the Top 100 BYOD Influencers at Onalytica ### Epic BYOD ToolChest with 51 BYOD Tools You Can Use Now Since we’re talking BYOD, I put together an Epic BYOD Toolchest for Edutopia of all the apps and tools I use in my classroom to bridge the various devices my students bring to class. I was amazed when I realized that I don’t just have one or two sites or apps but 51 I depend upon frequently. Multiplatform tools that are easy to set up and serve a purpose are my favorites. Every single tool on the list I used in my classroom this past school year. Hope it helps! The Classroom is Reinventing and Writing is Reinvented My new book Reinventing Writing has gone live on the Kindle Store at $27.80 (those of you who got my message last week, it was temporarily at $19 - if you want it, I’d get it now.) The print book will be out in another week or so. So much of my work with BYOD includes writing with students and the 9 ways writing has been reinvented. I’ve written this book for the modern educator and student for any teacher using or trying cloud documents (essential for BYOD). You learn how to pick the right tool for teaching, how to set it up quickly, and how to prevent common mistakes. If you’re into BYOD, you must work towards becoming as paperless as possible and this book is a must-read. (Remember that you can get me to "sign" your book or ebook by participating in the virtual book signing.) Order Reinventing Writing Now(This Links to Amazon) ~ Top 10 BYOD Influencers (See Onalytica for the Top 100) Rank Twitter Handle Name PageRank (Normalised) 1 @MaribelLopez Maribel Lopez 100 2 @MindShiftKQED Tina Barseghian 75.25 3 @coolcatteacher Vicki Davis 74.97 4 @NMHS_Principal Eric Sheninger 60.83 5 @mssackstein Starr Sackstein 43.17 6 @InnovativeEdu Lisa Nielsen 35.91 7 @RossCoops31 Ross Cooper 28.06 8 @mluhtala Michelle Luhtala 22.63 9 @andycinek Andrew P. Marcinek 21.96 10 @jksuter Jason K. Suter 21.93 The post The Epic BYOD Toolchest (51 Tools You can Use Now) and BYOD Influencers to Follow appeared first on Cool Cat Teacher Blog.

Reinventing Writing is here — in ebook format at least. Those of you who follow me on Twitter and Facebook got the news last Friday that due to a glitch, the book was released early at a big discount. I’m glad for those of you who jumped on it (the price went back up yesterday.) I didn’t blog it here because I wasn’t sure it was going to stay in the store but I’ve heard from my publisher and the ebook version is here to stay! Reinventing Writing: The 9 Tools That Are Changing Writing, Teaching, and Learning Forever is here! (See table of contents below.) How Will Reinventing Writing Help Me Improve Writing in My Classroom or School? Watch the book trailer to learn more. The Reinventing Writing Book Trailer covers the 9 tools that are changing writing and gives you a sneak peak into what you can expect from the book as I cover each of them. As I said at the end of the trailer, with as much as I love reading books and writing - my life’s work wouldn’t be complete without a book on writing. We can harness the power of peer feedback and community and the technology in our hands to reinvent writing. We shouldn’t just be doing it the way we’ve always done it but according to the 4 step SAMR model, we should redefine the classroom. We need peer review and more revision and technology lets us do that. Infographics. Wikis. Blogs. Twitter. ePaper. eBooks. eBookmarking. Cloud Syncing. Online Brainstorming and Graphic Organizers and more! The Trailer is on YouTube and uploaded to Office Mix. Look at Reinventing Writing on Amazon You can use this to introduce the book if you have a book club or group reading it. Share or use it. You can download the slides from Office Mix along with my video if you want to use it offline just attribute the source. Get Reinventing Writing on Kindle Want a signature for your book? Act now. The ebook on Kindle is available now and you can buy the hard copy now now. (See the Reinventing Writing landing page for more info on where you can buy the book.) The print book will be out soon. Remember that I have a virtual book signing going on right now if you want a signature for your book or ebook. Participate in the Virtual Book Signing Office Mix was the Screencasting Tool I used to Make the Trailer: Take Note Flipped Classroom Fans I made this trailer using the super cool new PowerPoint Plug in called Office Mix. It is a great free tool that anyone who uses PowerPoint can install. It is the best screencasting tool out there - bar none. I LOVE IT. Upcoming Events Stay tuned for a cool contest next week and other announcements about fun things I’ve got going on with the book! Check my events page for where I’ll be speaking and say hello (or bring your book and I’ll be happy to sign it there.) Tomorrow I’ll be at Classroom 2.0 sharing about the book! Reinventing Writing Table of Contents Part I: Get to Know the New Writing Chapter 1 - How Is Writing Reinvented? Chapter 2 - Picking the Right Tool Part II: The 9 Types of Tools Chapter 3 - Reinventing Paper: ePaper and eBooks Chapter 4 - Reinventing Notetaking: Digital Notebooks Chapter 5 - Reinventing Notecards: Social Bookmarking Chapter 6 - Reinventing the filing cabinet and inbox: Cloud Syncing Chapter 7 - Reinventing Word processors: CLOUD Writing Apps Chapter 8 - Reinventing Journals & Book Reports: Blogging and Microblogging Chapter 9 - Reinventing Group Reports and presentations: Wikis and Website builders Chapter 10 - Reinventing Prewriting: Graphic Organizers, Mind Mapping, and More Chapter 11 - Reinventing Illustrations and scrapbooks - Cartoons and Infographics Part III: Practical Ways to Implement the Tools in the Classroom Chapter 12 - Reinventing Citizenship: Preventing problems by teaching students how to be good digital citizens Chapter 13 - Making Your Job Easier: Building Writing Communities where students love to learn Chapter 14 - Will it Ever Stop? Enjoying & relaxing in the new age of change with a timeless mindset Appendices Appendix A - Quick Start Checklist (Putting it all together) Appendix B - Common Core Standards Summarized Appendix C - During Class Writing Checklist Appendix D - Good sources of information to add to the Student PLN Appendix E - Common Pages for Wikis and Websites The post Buy the Book Reinventing Writing and Improve Student Writing Now! appeared first on Cool Cat Teacher Blog.