Hard to believe any of us have time to watch television and movies, and, as you might guess, I seldom watch television anymore. Instead, I snatch moments of thrills and excitement via "small screens" using apps like those included below.  Note that most of these require subscriptions of some sort, but they are well worth the price.Amazon Music - One of the best ways to take advantage of Amazon Prime account is to listen to the endless supply of music. I have discarded much of my MP3 collection--painfully ripped from my defunct audio CDs--and now simply rely on Amazon Music.Amazon Video - Wow, what a wealth of great videos, series that are available. Justified, The Killing, and countless movies have kept me entertained while working at home on a project. Definitely encourage the Amazon Prime subscription.Netflix - Looking for a great series or catch up on some movies? Netflix may provide the content. I won't spend much time on this, but it's definitely worth the subscription.Hulu - If you need to catch up on a television series you've missed, Hulu is the answer! A new series, The 100, has enthralled us at home, but due to work and school, we can't often catch it at its scheduled time. And, the family television set may be in use when we can watch it. As a result, Hulu makes it possible to "catch up" on our favorite shows (e.g. Criminal Minds) when we want, where we want.Movies by Flixster - And, finally, since going to the movies is something we thoroughly enjoy, finding out when/where new movies are playing, available movie reviews, etc., then this is the app I use.Some other apps include my Roku remote control app that makes for fun when others are using it (I have no idea how that channel changed!) and TimeWarnerCable suite of apps.What are your favorite entertainment apps?Everything posted on Miguel Guhlin's blogs/wikis are his personal opinion and do not necessarily represent the views of his employer(s) or its clients. Read Full Disclosure

Be sure to check out my new article over at TCEA's TechNotes blog...thanks to Lori Gracey (Editor) and TCEA for publishing it:Read the restHere's the lead of that article:Researchers from the Pew Research Center have found that gamifying learning stimulates interest and deep engagement with content.  Two tools that facilitate this include Kahoot! and the relative newcomer, Quizziz.Read the rest over at TCEA TechNotes.Interested in reading more of what I've written for publication at TCEA's TechNotes? Click this link!Everything posted on Miguel Guhlin's blogs/wikis are his personal opinion and do not necessarily represent the views of his employer(s) or its clients. Read Full Disclosure

Wondering what to do about video streaming high school graduation live? Yes, it is that time of year when superintendents are frantically turning to their technology staff and saying, "Help! We need to stream graduation this year! Can you get it done?" Of course, at this time of year, there is little budget to get the job done, so you have whatever funding is left over from the school year.  The pressure is on! Read the Complete blog entry over at TCEA TechNotes blog entryInterested in reading more of what I've written for publication at TCEA's TechNotes? Click this link!Everything posted on Miguel Guhlin's blogs/wikis are his personal opinion and do not necessarily represent the views of his employer(s) or its clients. Read Full Disclosure

Looking for powerful tools to enable critical skills like group-to-group creativity, collaboration, and sharing? Microsoft Office 365 provides educators with a powerful suite of tools that can be used to empower students to create, connect, collaborate, and share their processing of academic content. If you are familiar with Google Apps for Education tools, then you already have foundation skills to take advantage of Office 365. I invite you to explore how MS Office 365 tools OneNote and Sway can boost teaching and learning in your classroom.Read the rest of this blog entry online at TCEA.org/blogInterested in reading more of what I've written for publication at TCEA's TechNotes? Click this link!Everything posted on Miguel Guhlin's blogs/wikis are his personal opinion and do not necessarily represent the views of his employer(s) or its clients. Read Full Disclosure

Check out my latest blog entry, On the Horizon: Digital Signage, over at the TCEA TechNotes blog! Here's the lead:Today’s schools are asking for digital signage: in the cafeteria, in the hallways, near the entrances. Digital signs can be a wonderful tool for getting your message out. But what’s the best solution for providing them? Find out in this blog post. (read more)Read the complete blog entryInterested in reading more of what I've written for publication at TCEA's TechNotes? Click this link!Everything posted on Miguel Guhlin's blogs/wikis are his personal opinion and do not necessarily represent the views of his employer(s) or its clients. Read Full Disclosure

In collaboration with Lori Gracey, Executive Director at TCEA, I was pleased to author the blog entry linked below featuring my dear friend, Dr. Joy Rosseau's district, Arp ISD. Arp ISD was recently named a "Digitial District," earning second place in its category! What an awesome honor! Knowing Joy's work (and having borrowed so much of it over the years! (haha)), it came as no surprise that they were selected.Find out more about Arp ISD and other Districts receiving a National Digital District Award!Joy has promised more information after she returns from her trip to receive the Award.Everything posted on Miguel Guhlin's blogs/wikis are his personal opinion and do not necessarily represent the views of his employer(s) or its clients. Read Full Disclosure

In this blog entry, published at the TCEA blog, I explore 3 approaches to using Voxer. Those 3 approaches include the following:Approach #1 - Enhancing Student Publishing"The minute kids think their work will be published, they take greater pride in the result," says editor Susan Meyer (read source). Apps like Voxer allow a teacher to quickly collect photos AND audio collections of student(s) reading their pieces. By going to the web version of Voxer, you can save pictures, video, and/or audio to Dropbox or to your computer.Approach #2 - Tapping into Students’ Collaborative Potential"Greater access to technology and computer-assisted learning can be effective in engaging English Language Learners’ (ELL) motivation, developing writing and editing skills," said Dr. Roland Rios of Ft. Sam Houston ISD at the TCEA 2016 Convention and Exposition (Are you a member yet?), "and tapping into the collaborative potential [technology]." At our presentation, Dr. Roland Rios and I had the opportunity to introduce a roomful of TCEA members to Voxer. Participants learned Voxer, then recorded ideas for how to use Voxer in their teaching and learning situation.Approach #3 - Participate in Peer Learning Chats"When we view ‘sharing’ as something that both supports and pushes us to be better," writes George Couros in Innovators’ Mindset, "the big winner will always be our students." The quote came from a picture capture on a mobile device, and was then shared via the InnovatorsMindset Voxer Chat.Ready to give Voxer a try? Join the TCEA Voxer Sandbox!Read the entire blog entry online at http://www.tcea.org/blog/voxer/Everything posted on Miguel Guhlin's blogs/wikis are his personal opinion and do not necessarily represent the views of his employer(s) or its clients. Read Full Disclosure

From about 7:30pm through 9:04pm, I had the opportunity to encourage and assist University of Incarnate Word (UIW) students in Dr. Lucretia Fraga's (@lucretiafraga) class on blended learning. What a joy it was to connect with fellow learners, sharing a few tips I have picked up over the years!Thanks to Dr. Lucretia Fraga and her class for having me over!1) Organizing for the Session - Diigo OutlinerTo organize for the session, I decided to go retro and use Diigo, which I recalled had a built-in social group feature that facilitates sharing information and links to group members. What it also had, which I hadn't seen before until I revisited Diigo, is the Diigo Outliner. They include an Outliner tool that you can drop information in. Here's what it looks like:You'll notice that the items on the left side of the screenimage reflect links that I've saved to Diigo, while the right side of the screen shows my outline. The "+" symbol next to each point indicates there is more information. You can see the full outline online--with links--online at http://tinyurl.com/bce2016mgI also created a Diigo Group to facilitate sharing among the group. Thanks to Diigo for their featuring groups like this as part of their solution!2) Class ActivityWhat a joy it was to meet the UIW students, which ranged from 24 years old to retired military men in their 50s. And, what a diverse audience, too. To get them going, I shared selections from Vicki "CoolCat Teacher" Davis' podcast series, Every Classroom Matters. These were well-received. Rather than do a written report back, I asked them to keep track of 1-2 points takeaways, then introduced them to Voxer.After the short introduction, I asked them to record their takeaways into a Voxer group I created (Teaching Today's Learners, or TTL for short at the suggestion of Dr. Fraga). What fun to see them exploring and learning how millenials and Generation Z folks could connect. For some, it was a stretch, but they jumped right in!Thanks again to Dr. Lucretia Fraga and her class for being such good sports and learners!:-)Everything posted on Miguel Guhlin's blogs/wikis are his personal opinion and do not necessarily represent the views of his employer(s) or its clients. Read Full Disclosure

One of my favorite commercials is this funny, if problematic, commercial featuring Cowboys' coach, Tom Landry:I was reminded of this commercial when a friend sent me this photo of me staring in rapt attention at my Chromebook while sitting in an Apple's Austin headquarters:In the meantime, iOS 9.3 Update shared a whole bunch of great information today. Carl Hooker writes about some of it here, as well as shares a Sketchnote:Source: https://twitter.com/mrhooker/status/717732015068426241I wrote a few blog entries about the information shared, but those are pending publication via the TCEA blog.:-)Everything posted on Miguel Guhlin's blogs/wikis are his personal opinion and do not necessarily represent the views of his employer(s) or its clients. Read Full Disclosure

Jennifer Bergland (TCEA) shared this information about this event...For your convenience, please find a brief blurb below:The day and half agenda provides Future Ready District Leadership Teams with dedicated time to set a shared vision for student learning, make action plans for digital learning, and meet other regional leaders who are engaged in Future Ready.   Each summit provides access to experts in the field who will answer detailed questions and help solve specific issues facing each district team.  The teams will engage in facilitated conversations, sharing sessions, networking activities, and team planning opportunitiesTo find out more about it, read their web site. Future Ready is coming to Austin on April 25-26th - Sign up TODAY to save your district’s spot!We are excited to be coming to Austin, Texas for a Future Ready Summit!  Please consider joining us for this free event.  It is a great way to 1) develop a strong Future Ready Team in your district, 2)  collaborate and network with other district leaders in the region, as well as 3) leave inspired and able to create and implement a Future Ready action plan. The Summit is a team based agenda with hands on activities, demonstrations, and plenty of team planning time! Review the Workshop Objectives  and consider participating in this important event.Registration is free, and space is limited.Sign Up Today!And, from TCEA:TCEA is excited to host the Future Ready Summit in Austin on April 25-26. Future Ready, in partnership with the U. S. Department of Education, will be a free two-day event focused on district-level planning for the purpose of elevating instructional outcomes using digital learning and networking with other regional leaders who are engaged in Future Ready initiatives.The Summit is open to district leadership teams from districts where the superintendent has signed theFuture Ready District Pledge, a commitment to implementing meaningful changes toward a digital learning transition that supports teachers and addresses the district's vision for student learning. If your superintendent has not yet signed the pledge, it's not too late - sign the pledge!Don't miss out on this perfect opportunity for your district team to jump-start planning efforts and vision for student learning under direct guidance from Future Ready facilitators. Registration for this important event is FREE, but space is limited. So register TODAY to save your team's spot at the Summit.If you have any questions, please contact Sara Hall at 410-279-3368 or shall@all4ed.org.We look forward to seeing you there!Everything posted on Miguel Guhlin's blogs/wikis are his personal opinion and do not necessarily represent the views of his employer(s) or its clients. Read Full Disclosure