Monday, March 22, 2010

SMART Boards!!!

After a long decision making and planning process, the first SMART Board was hung in Mrs. Martin's 5th grade classroom at Cottonwood Creek Elementary!!!

It will take us some time to hang all of the boards because it is a very intricate process, but we plan to have all boards hung by summer break. Get excited!!!

If you are going to have a SMART Board in your classroom, please don't forget to sign up for a SMART Board Training this summer.

Friday, March 5, 2010

Make your students FAMOUS!

We are in need of pictures of students for the website...

Please send pictures of your students to your secretaries. Make sure to include a caption and student names for each picture.

Microsoft Lesson Plans

Find new ways to enhance student learning through technology! Use the search tool to find technology integrated lesson plans and how-to articles for your relevant subjects, grade levels and products.

www.microsoft.com/Education/LessonPlans.mspx

Thursday, March 4, 2010

VozMe.com=Student Proof Reader

Don't waste hours proof reading your students' papers over and over again... Let the computer share the proof-reading load.
Once students have typed their papers in a Word document, they can copy and paste it into VozMe.com. The computer will read their paper back to them, and they will be able to 'hear' their errors. I just saved you hours of proof-reading time... You are welcome!


Moodle


With an emphasis on communication with parents, Hutto ISD is creating easy and informative ways for parents to be involved in the education of their children.

Next year, elementary parents will have a revolutionary opportunity to participate in an online learning environment in order to support learning at home.

How? Parents will be given access to Moodle, a Web 2.0 tool that is designed to help educators create online courses with a focus on interaction and collaborative construction of content.

What does Moodle stand for? Modular Object-Oriented Dynamic Learning Environment.

What can parents do with Moodle? Every grade level will have a math center that parents can access on any computer with internet. The math centers will provide tips for parents to help with homework, a vocabulary glossary and virtual flash cards, different ways to incorporate math concepts at home, lessons for students, and much more.

How can I use Moodle in my classroom? You can use the lessons and virtual flash cards at your computer center, and you can give parents the Moodle link when they ask for homework help.

How will I know it is consistent with our curriculum? We are working with the Curriculum Department to create the different components of the math centers, but we welcome suggestions from teachers!

When will it be ready? Moodle will be up and running by the beginning of next year!

Tuesday, March 2, 2010

Easy Digital Storytelling


Here is a fantastic web 2.0 tool I thought you might enjoy in your class: Storybird.com

This site houses thousands of stories that other children and teachers have written. Students can browse and read these stories during reading center, for writing inspiration, when they are done with their work, or as a reward.

If you sign up for a free account for your class, your students can write their own stories and watch them come to life. The pictures are already provided, so students use their imagination to write a story to go along with the pictures they choose.

It doesn't get any easier or more fun than this!