If you checked out the last blog post, you know that we are going through a bunch of updates that you might not have heard about regarding the main tools that we use here in Springfield. This week we are looking at PowerPoint and how amazing that it is. I’m not blowing smoke at you. When you check out these updates or Top 5s you will be amazed! Presenter Coach Improvements I cannot tell you how much I love the…
I love fall, while fall means summer is wrapping up (which I don’t love) it means that all our favorite systems get some fancy updates! This will kick off a whole series of posts about the main tools we use and the updates they get. The first one of those systems that we will explore is Microsoft Word. Word has come a long way from when I was using it in high school. Every year updates come to Word but, as a teacher, I think this is the best year yet. We are going to look at my Top 6 new…
I know I ended last year with a quote from a Michelle Branch song, and it is only fitting that we start the year off with one too! This one happens to be from when she formed a band called “The Wreckers” with Jessica Harp. This band, for their time, was awesome and I still listen to the live album all the time. My, Oh My Look How the Time Flied For many of you the summer was a welcomed reprieve from the hard school year. You took solace in knowing that we have made…
We made it! The end is near, and we can all take a collective sigh of relief that we have done the best we could. I am reminded of a song by Michelle Branch called “Breathe”. A couple of lines from the song really resonated with me over this past year and a half. While I know the song is not about being a schoolteacher (I’m pretty sure the song is about unrequited love although you might feel that way about your school year) heck the song is almost 20 years old, but the phrasing of these words resonated with me. For…
Have you used templates before? Templates create layouts for documents for you to use with your students which can enrich the activities you are doing in the classroom. Using templates can save you loads of time. Templates can also be thought of like graphic organizers, many of them are designed for assignments and help deepen understanding of topics and units. You might be saying wait a second, “I thought graphic organizers are only for organizing a student’s thoughts”, and you’re right. The basic definition of templates means that they are reusable files…
Back in January of 2020 I wrote about this exceptional tool, Skype in the Classroom. Just a quick recap of that article: Skype in the Classroom is awesome! Skype boasts six ways that you can connect to the world: Virtual Field Trip Skype Collaborations Mystery Skype Guest Speakers Theme Collections/Lesson Plans Special Events Fast forward to December 2020 and this tool is changing. As Microsoft has continued to invest in Microsoft Teams and Flipgrid, they are discontinuing Skype in the Classroom during the summer of 2021. You might remember…
It’s Sunday Night. A year ago, you would have been finalizing your plans for the next week and finishing up your grading so you can give work back on time. For most of us, we would have had some time for ourselves to read or watch a show, maybe we would have gone for a hike, or had a nice dinner with family and friends. That would have been 12 months ago before we entered this uncertain time. In today’s world of teaching, we are isolated at our homes…
If you missed it, in Episode 103 we meet with various teachers, students and parents from Liberty Elementary School in Springfield to discuss Minecraft in the classroom. When I was talking with everyone, I quickly realized that I needed to share the whole interview with the teachers, as they gave me so much good stuff, but I did not want to make a 2-hour episode, I’m not Joe Rogan. So, I am producing two separate podcasts with the full interviews…
Listen and learn how one school in Springfield has taken Minecraft for Education to the next level. Check out this episode with Liberty Elementary.
In the latest episode of the SPS Digital Learning Hour, I met with Kristyn Brannigan. She is a classroom teacher from Alice B. Beal Elementary School here in Springfield. With over 15 years of experience, you will learn all about what it’s like to be a teacher that has had the opportunity to teach in schools around the world. In this episode you will learn all about her journey, you’ll get to hear some great ideas on teaching remotely, including…