Nearpod ~ engage your students

This past weekend I found a new app for student use: Nearpod.

http://www.nearpod.com/

App: https://search.itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZContentLink.woa/wa/link?mt=8&path=apps%2fnearpod

This app is great for the class sets of iPads and BYOD. I say BYOD because it is available on windows, android and iOS devices. It is free to download to view the presentations (teacher made). So, if you get your students to download the app onto their device, they can follow along and participate too. I downloaded the app onto the 15 iPads that I have been assigned to. The shared use went really well.

Perks:

• allows you to present assessments (open ended questions, m/c questions, t/f questions)
• allows students to submit drawn answers
• allows you to play videos (.mp4, .mov, .mpg, etc...)
• allows you to upload existing lessons (.ppt, .pdf)
• allows you to add images (.png, .jpg)
• you build/edit the presentation files with a web browser (on iPad or computer)
• the app collects data (student responses) that can be viewed later.
• as activities are occurring, you can monitor the % of student completion and cue those not done.
• you can display student responses/illustrations to prompt discussion
• you can load content from google drive, dropbox, box, or the computer that you are using

Cons:

• $$$$. The app is free. 90% of the features are accessible for the free account. BUT the paid part allows for a couple more features ($12/month; $120/year). 
• Paid features:
• host a webpage within the presentation
• "homework" feature where students can (re)do activity/presentation at home or at their own pace.
• more space for presentations

Video:

Assessment image from a presentation/activity in my class:

The National Film Board visited Central Senior

The National Film Board visited Central Senior school recently to build student and staff knowledge and capacity in the areas of stop-motion film making and clay animation.

Staff and students were involved in two ½ day workshops.  Each classroom teacher identified 5-7 classroom “leaders” to learn alongside them.  Staff and students collaboratively developed stop - time and clay animation videos.  The product staff and students developed in just a short time was amazing - it was a clear indication of what can be created with more time, support and fluency.

The National Film board offers a variety of workshops that target different audiences, ages and purposes.  The cost for the workshop was affordable, however, they capped the workshop at 30 so providing access to all staff and students was not economically feasible.  I believe it would be great learning for technology champions at each school to participate in and then share with their colleagues back at the school.  The NFB also came out with a new movie making APP recently.  You should definitely check it out.

We have included some photos and videos of our experience.  Contact us if you have any questions.

Jamie Stone

Clay Stop Motion Clips

student engagement with Explain Everything

My class has had mixed success with Explain Everything.  Sometimes it has impeded student engagement.  My wondering is why.  Unsuccessful uses have usually been in math to explain their thinking.  Maybe the technology competed with their thinking; having to think about how to use the technology AND the math?  Maybe their accountability decreased their risk-taking?  Maybe they simply were not able to articulate their thinking?  Maybe accountable talk just looks more productive from a distance and without evidence?
However, our newest success involved using Explain Everything to tell a narrative.  What do I attribute to this success?  We have been explicitly working with narratives in reading and writing all year.  We were inspired by storyteller Dan Yavinsky who visited our school and asked the students to tell a story from their personal life.  We immediately returned to class and used our familiar narrative planner; using pictures and/or words to plan.  Knowing that completion of their planner allowed them to record on the ipad definitely sped up the planning stage.  All students proudly completed their organizer and recorded their personal (or fictitious) story using Explain Everything within 110 minutes.  The voice clarity was excellent:)
Next, we are going to create narratives using Sock Puppets or Toontastic.  Any suggestions or tips?

Student Engagement with ipads

For the request of video evidence of students' feedback on technology, my students had two ideas.  First, they love using technology in the classroom because it is like home.  Second, they like video recording their ideas rather than having to write them.  Not a surprising finding but authentically out of the mouth of babes.

Film Making at CSS

Throughout Central Senior small teams of students are engaged in film making - interesting conversations can be overheard about acting, camera angles, editing, and communication. As each group works towards a finished product they have planned, scripted, prepared and edited (one group has 1.5 hours of video to edit down to 3 mins) using iPads.

Mr. Lowell’s class - using video to meet expectations from Writing, Media Literacy, Oral Communication, and Drama and develop Learning Skills like collaboration, initiative and responsibility. Students are using Success Criteria designed for the Film Festival and given choice of the different film categories in order to develop and express their ideas using the Enduring Understanding “We can make a difference.”

A variety of genres are being represented, stop motion, PSAs using actors, drama and documentary. Students are also advertising in order to promote their films in the class.

Clips and photos of students at work

Creating Films in Central Senior Classrooms

Central Senior has begun the film making process. We have been experimenting with using iPads and MacBooks to film and edit short videos. I have posted links to examples of Commercials, Heritage Moments, Procedure Videos, Promotional Videos and Stop Motion. Our students are very engaged in the process and are becoming more creative and daring as they experiment and learn about planning angles and transitions.

Shoe Commercial

Heritage Moment

Music Procedure (Weight Room)

Welcome To Central Senior

Stop Motion with Watch

Stop Motion with Chalk

Stop Motion with Cups

Study Blue

It's that time of the semester...exam time. Earlier on in September I had looked at an app called "study blue" ( https://itunes.apple.com/ca/app/studyblue/id323887414?mt=8). My project's goal is to increase student engagement and to get students to use higher order thinking. I started to play with the app only in the past month and a half. Students have been involved in this experiment and I think it has gone well.

 It can be really difficult to get students to focus and use their time well at this time of year. I also don't want the iPads to go unused just because we are in exams. At the start of using this app, I made my own "deck" of cue cards/flip cards as the unit progressed. It worked well to reinforce the concepts. Students joined the class and could view my deck of cards and use them as a quiz, a review sheet or a flash-card like activity. The app really becomes more and more powerful when the students start making their own decks and sharing them with the class. I think that this helps to employ some of the higher order thinking skills because students are reviewing their notes and trying to identify key concepts and devising questioning techniques around these concepts.

The best part during exams is that students pair off and practice with the iPads during the quiet days. They have self-assigned areas of strength and have taken on making decks in those areas. They can go backwards through the old decks in other units to help review and refresh the content. I encouraged the other section of chemistry that is happening at the same time to join our class. That teacher could not believe how well the 75 minutes were used with the iPads and how engaged and focused the class was. Students have also self-reported better retention of information and performance on tests. Some students have started other classes and are encouraging others to use this tool. Once students leave the class, they can access the app on android and iOS devices and on their home computers so this goes beyond just an in-class app. The free version is perfect for class use. I will put some images into the questions but cannot put images into the answers because I have not subscribed.

This app only really goes beyond drill-and-kill practice when the students themselves start to make the cue cards and collaborate in making the cards.