WIDA

Last year, Massachusetts became a part of the WIDA consortium, which means it adopted its standards, tests, and other resources. Today as I was looking through their website I found that you can purchase the
WIDA Standards for your iPad. It was just released at the end of last month. When I was an ESL teacher, I would have found this app very helpful.

Here is their description about the app:

The WIDA Standards iPad Application delivers the content of the 2012 Amplification of the English Language Development Standards in an easy-to-use app format. The app includes:

* Curriculum and instruction planning tools from the printed version

* Searching by standard, grade level or language domain

* Grade-specific example topics

* Expanded and integrated strands

* The WIDA Can Do philosophy

* Description of how to use and understand the WIDA Standards

* Description of the Features of Academic Language in the WIDA Standards

The WIDA Standards app contains the content found in the paper version of the 2012 Amplification of the English Language Development Standards.

Go download it today. 

Why Are Video Games So Attractive?

Ever wonder why your students can be enthralled in a video game for hours, but not in your classroom? Read this article about designing your classroom like a video game. The author, concludes with these points:

10 Strategies To Design Your Classroom Like A Video Game

1. Realize self-directed learning not by merely suggesting it, but making it necessary to get anything done.

2. Design learning experiences so that students see visible progress on a daily basis.

3. Make objectives clear, and offer students multiple ways to accomplish them.

4. Give students the tools to design and build what you hadn’t thought of.

5. Design with iteration in mind: one skill builds on the next–and students need it all to succeed.

6. Use project-based learning where students design the entire process from brainstorming to publishing.

7. Give students malleable learning tools and resources that they can customize–or “upgrade” to fit their approach to learning.

8. Make learning both collaborative and competitive.

9. Consider challenge-based learning and place-based education, where students solve problems important to them, in communities that are watching.

10. Gamify your classroom in a way that focuses not on standards, data, or “proficiency,” but personal progress meaningful to the student.

Level It Books

Want to match your students to the books in your classroom? Not sure what level your books are? I have the app for you - Level It Books.

I don't know much about this app, and the reviews are so-so, but I do think its worth a try. Its made for an iPhone, but it will also work on the iPad (just make sure to search for it under iPhone apps.) You can scan a book's bar-code or type in the title and information about the book will come up. You can view the Lexile, Guided Reading, Grade Level Equivalent, and/or DRA levels for each book. From what I have read, they are constantly adding books to this app. 

Leave a comment if you have used this app, or plan to, and let us know how it works. Happy Reading!

Back to School with iPads

Do you have access to iPads in your classroom? Are you struggling to figure out how to use them? 

Check out this graphic detailing how to use the iPad in the first 5 hours, 5 days and 5 weeks. Its a nice gradual increase of using the iPad in different ways in the classroom.

First 5: iPad Classroom

Happy First Day of School!

What kind of legacy are you leaving behind? What do your students think of you? Listen to this inspiring TED talk about being a Champion for your students.


Kids don't learn from someone they don't like. How are you going to inspire your students this year?

Webcast: Academic Language and English Language Learners

Featuring Dr. Robin Scarcella, providing an overview to academic language instruction for English language learners, as well as teaching strategies, activity ideas, and recommended resources.

Posted on Colorin Colorado. 

Rewordify

I read an article, actually blog post, this morning about a website called rewordify.com. After reading the post, and looking at the site, it reminded me of an assignment in grad school where we had to alter a text so it was easier for our ELs to understand, but not simplified. That is a hard task. It is much easier to simplify a difficult text, then actually keep the tough concepts while making it readable.

The website rewordify.com is a good stepping stone. While some difficult concepts are still embedded in the text, understanding the actual words is important.

Here is an example of the Gettysburg Address "rewordified:"

Eighty-seven years ago our fathers created on this continent, a new nation, understood/created/gave birth in Liberty, and dedicated to the suggestion (or plan) that all men are created equal. 

Now we are involved in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation so understood/created/gave birth and dedicated, can long last through/tolerate. We are met on a great battle-field of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field, as a grave for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live. It is completely fitting and proper that we should do this. 

But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate -- we can not bless -- we can not make holy -- this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have blessed it, far above our poor power to add or take away. The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have so far so honorably advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great job remaining before us -- that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion -- that we here highly resolve that these dead will not have died without success (or without purpose) -- that this nation, under God, will have a new birth of freedom -- and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, will not die from the earth.

Educator Evaluation

I know no one wants to think summer is almost over, but reality says school is about to start. As you are in your classroom getting it organized for the new year, have you thought about how you will keep track of your evidence for the educator evaluation?

In the technology course I took last week I learned more about Evernote. It's a program that keeps notes organized. You can write new notes, take pictures of student work, and even upload files. You can even share notebooks with others, such as your grade level team. Evernote can be installed (for free) on all your devices, and kept in sync with each other. So far, I love this program/app. 

In my course, someone suggested creating a notebook for each standard, to keep track of your evidence throughout the year. I thought this was a great idea. I bundled them together into one notebook called "Educator Evaluation" and then four notebooks in there, each one named for the standard. For the first note, I put the piece of the rubric that explains the standard. You could create separate notebooks under each standard for the indicators, but that's up to personal preference.

Enjoy using Evernote. Leave a comment to let me (and other readers) know if and for what you use Evernote.

Social Media Tips for Teachers

I am a fan of social media, but am still trying to bridge using it in work related experiences. I do find it to be a great learning and sharing platform. Here are some tips I found on edudemic, one of my new favorite educational websites to search. 

While twitter is not new to me, actually using it is. That's my goal for this year, to become an "expert" in Twitter, and start tweeting. To start, I am going to tweet about this blog post. 

Story Wheel

This is a new app I just found. Group story telling - I love the idea of it. You choose a theme, add 1-4 players (students), then each player takes a turn. They slide the wheel and a picture comes up. The student then hits record and starts the story, using the picture selected. I believe they only have a certain amount of time, and then it's the next student. Can't wait to hear how this turns out with students.

TESEL

Zondle - interactive learning games for students

Zondle is a program that I have used in the classroom in the past. Through it you can create quizzes, or choose pre-made quizzes. Students have to log on to Zondle, and then choose the quiz and choose a game. I found that the variety of choice in games helped to keep students motivated. As a teacher you can see student scores and how often they play.

Zite and Idea Paint

Yesterday, I found a web page/program yesterday that collects articles you like. Its called Scoop.It!, you can access it on this link. Or click the page linked above in my blog, titled "ESL articles" and you will see my Scoop It collection of ESL articles.

This morning I was looking on my iPad to see if there was an app for Scoop It. There isn't, there is something similar, called "Read.It!", but I didn't love it at first. Then after reading a few more articles (because there are a million articles on using the iPad in education) I found an app called Zite.

Zite collects articles based on your interests, then the more you read and the more you "like" a topic, the more specific it gets to your results. After reading a few articles and "liking" new topics, my article news feed got better and better.

I started reading some education articles, and came across this topic - idea paint. Its whiteboard paint. I looked it up online. Its a bit pricey, $225 for 50 sq ft, but I think it could be a game changer for a classroom. Imagine every surface being a white board...the possibilities are endless.

The Pedagogy Wheel: Convergent Thinking In Learning Technology

I had seen this, or something like this before. Now that I have an iPad, it is making more sense, and I am excited to find it again. I found it here, on the TeachThought website.

Little Bird Tales

I used this website "Little Bird Tales" in my classroom last year. Its a great site to get kids excited about writing, especially younger ones. I used it for a project with first graders. We wrote a story together, then they illustrated different pages, and took turns reading the story into the computer. They loved seeing and hearing their final project.

2012 Photo Book

This is a way I have used Shutterfly in schools, integrating learning about photography with showcasing what the students have done.

Click here to view this photo book larger

The new way to make a photo album: photo books by Shutterfly.

Here is a link to the "Share Site" we created for the parents.

A Practical Guide for Teachers Who Just Got iPads

I just found this article which Holly Clark posted yesterday about teachers using iPads.

Here are her top points: (Click on this link to read the full article.)

1. Don't start collecting apps
2. Remember the iPad is not a computer
3. Learn about the SAMR Model
4. Put some limitations on personalization
5. Workflow
6. Offer guidance with passwords
7. Don't forget creation literacies
8. Back to school night
9. Top three apps
10. Get training
11. Allow for failure

Some apps I like so far

Last night I was uploading some pictures from my computer to shutterfly when I remembered that I had some pictures I wanted to scan. So I went over to our new printer/scanner and hit "scan." Nothing worked. It turns out you need to control the scan function from your computer. I went back to my Mac computer and searched for a scanner program, but couldn't find one. Then I decided to look for an app on my iPad...and happily I found an app that did just that. If you have a canon printer, download the app Canon Easy Photo Print. It is a fantastic app and easy to use.

Another app I have just learned about is Pic Stitch. It's a fun little app to make simple photo collages. It's a great way to showcase a few things together in one photo. Here is a picture I made from some pictures on my iPad.

Here is a program I would like to look up for future use, so I am documenting it here.