Wednesday, March 30, 2016

Storyboard That for Earth Day

Storyboard That is the wonderful educational tool that educators everywhere are using to create storyboards, timelines, graphic organizers, project based learning, and much much more.  Recently, they released their Earth Day Activity Guide to celebrate this important day.

I highly recommend checking out Storyboard that by clicking here!!!

*Storyboard That is an advertiser of Technology Tidbits.

Tuesday, March 29, 2016

Lyrics2Learn

Lyrics2learn uses Hip-hop and rock to boost K-5th grade reading fluency, and offers 4 levels of interactive comprehension practice.  Kids read along with rappers and rockers during each lesson.  Kids memorize quickly while learning about about character building, history, science, and grammar and boost reading skills.  Each fluency video is followed by 4 levels of interactive comprehension.  Lyrics2learn gives students and educators immediate feedback and tracks data.

L2L offers free, full access trials to teachers, parents and entire schools.

I highly recommend checking out Lyrics2Learn by clicking here!!!

Below is a demo video...



BoomWriter Pro


BoomWriter is a terrific site that I’ve written about many times because it lets elementary, middle, and high school teachers conduct non-fiction, fiction, and vocabulary development group-writing activities in almost any subject area.

Now they’ve added BoomWriter PRO, which is a paid version of their product, and any teacher whose work with students involves writing should definitely consider this upgrade (only $2.99 a month) for the following reasons:

  • Standards-based Rubrics! Boomwriter has made Argument/Opinion, Information/Explanatory, and Personal Narrative rubrics that will resonate with and prove useful to any teacher regardless of the state or region they may teach in.

  • Makes Grading Easy!!  BoomWriter has done a very clever job of overlaying the rubrics and grading feature atop the individual student’s submission.  This allows the teacher to look at the work and the performance descriptor simultaneously before then applying the grade/score with a single click.

  • Capture Student Writing Data!!!  If the first two reasons were not convincing enough, this one should seal the deal.  Are you frustrated by having to wait until the following school year when the standardized testing results arrive to learn how your students’ writing is progressed?  Not particularly helpful, is it?  BoomWriter PRO lets teachers capture whole class and individual student writing data in real time before then presenting it to the teacher in a highly visual and easy to interpret manner.  This allows you to identify any potential writing instruction ‘blindspots’ that you may need to address with your class, as well as the ability to consistently assess and monitor the progress of each individual student in your class in all areas of writing throughout the entire school year.   

BoomWriter is a free site that keeps finding new and better ways to support teachers through technology.  If you join, be sure to opt for the PRO upgrade.

I highly recommend checking out BoomWriter Pro by clicking here!!!

*BoomWriter is an advertiser of Technology Tidbits.

Friday, March 25, 2016

Land of Venn

Land of Venn is a fantastic iOS game for practicing Geometry.  This is done in a tower defense style game (i.e. Plants vs Zombies) as students try to defend their land Venn from monsters by drawing geometric shapes.  This game has tons of replay value as users have over 30 levels to complete as well as earn money to buy spell upgrades and more.  This game is ideal for Adaptive and Game Based Learning, as well as aligned to Common Core Standards.

I highly recommend checking out Land of Venn - Geometric Defense by clicking here!!!

For a more detailed review check out Graphite.
For my Pinterest board on Game Based Learning click here.

Tuesday, March 22, 2016

GoConqr

GoConqr (formerly known as ExamTime) has recently been through a major site overhaul which has improved on the user interface, mobiles apps (iOS/Android), and polished new look.  This is an excellent learning tool for education that lets users create, flashcards, mindmaps, quizzes, and more.

Here is more email from their promotional email...
  • ExamTime is now GoConqr. We’ve changed the name and given it a fresh look to better reflect what the learning platform is all about. It’s still the same team behind GoConqr, the same great tools and features. Read more about the change below
  • We’ve recently passed the 1 million member mark. Over 1 million students and teachers from around the globe have signed up for better learning with GoConqr. Our community is increasing rapidly by the day, with thousands of learning resources being created and discovered daily. To celebrate this milestone, we’ve given users on our basic accounts more free subjects
  • New mobile apps launched! After thousands of requests from users, we are delighted to announce that GoConqr is now available as an iOS or Android app. View, discover and share great learning resources on the go
Below is a demo video...


I highly recommend checking out GoConqr by clicking here!!!

For my Pinterest board on Web 2.0 for Schools click here.

Teach'n Go

Teach'n Go is a new site for managing online courses for educators.  This is a nice way to create a course, charge what they want, schedule, and communicate w/ parents and students in a safe collaborative environment.  Also, Teach'n Go is web based and works on any browser based device making it ideal for mobile learning.

Below is a brief demo video...



I highly recommend checking out Teach'n Go by clicking here!!!

*Teach'n Go is an advertiser of Technology Tidbits.

Help Teaching

Help Teaching is an excellent site for educators, parents, and others looking for educational resources such as quiz/test creators, online assessments, or worksheets/printables.  These printables are for K-12 and cover a wide range of subjects.  Also, there is a test/virtual room where students can take online assessment and get results in real time.

I highly recommend checking out Help Teaching by clicking here!!!
For my Printerest Board on Educational Resources click here.

*Help Teaching is an advertiser of Technology Tidbits.

Friday, March 18, 2016

Quiz Hero

Quiz Hero is one of my favorite new free mobile (iOS/Android) apps for Game Based Learning.  This amazing app uses an RPG style (i.e Bards Tale anyone ;-) to help students learn a wide variety of subjects, such as Math, Vocabulary, Science, etc.  The game follows a familiar RPG formula where users select a class (i.e. mage, warrior, archer) and then begin a fun filled educational quest.  There is a ton of interaction w/ other characters, an easy walkthrough for beginners, the ability to buy/sell/craft items, and much much more.  As users level up they unlock more features, problems get harder, and more of the quest and areas are revealed.

I highly recommend checking out Quiz Hero by clicking here!!!
For more information check out Edshelf.
For more info on the background of Quiz Hero and the story/game elements click here.

For my Pinterest board on Game Based Learning click here.

Thursday, March 17, 2016

Erase all Kittens

Erase all Kittens is an interesting online game that I just found out about from Free Technology for Schools.  This game has a rather cool concept as it has kids hacking into levels to help them complete the game and rescue all the kittens by editing html code.  It's very easy to get started and has students learning basic concepts of coding/programming.

I highly recommend checking out Erase all Kittens by clicking here!!!

For my Pinterest board on Coding/Programming click here.

Pindex

Pindex is an interesting new (private beta) that I just found out about from the amazing blog Free Technology 4 Teachers.  It is very similar to Pinterest where a user can "pin" a image or video, w/ some nice sharing options.  However, there is a nice feature that awards digital badges for users who complete a "course" on a given topic.

I highly recommend checking out Pindex by clicking here!!!

Wednesday, March 16, 2016

Class Compete

Class Compete is a fantastic Game Base Learning and Assessment system that educators are using to help boost student's test scores and eliminate test anxiety.  Class Compete works on any mobile device (iOS, Android, etc.) and follows the familiar "running/racing" game formula.  Students will answer questions from any subject as they race against opponents to try an win.  Educators can even create their own content and best of all assess student progress through detailed reports.  This makes it easy to differentiate instruction and even works for Blended Learning or the "Flipped" classroom model.  Finally, there is even a parent portal where parents can track their child's pro
gress and engage in their learning.

I highly recommend checking out Class Compete by clicking here!!!

Below is a brief demo video...



For my Pinterest board on Game Based Learning click here.

Quizalize

Quizalize is a fantastic learning tool for educators to create game based learning quizzes.  What separates Quizalize apart from similar sites is the detailed reports generated as well as how easy it is to differentiate instruction and see how each student or class is doing on any given topic.

Also, Quizalize features a new dashboard integrating Zzish, which allows teachers to track student progress in real-time, while generating detailed reports and seeing exactly which questions were answered correct and which ones were answered wrong w/ their "given" response.  This innovative dashboard makes it easy for educators to integrate Quizalize into their classroom and can be used for any curriculum or subject.

Finally, Quizalize allows for teachers to create "team" games where a classroom can be divided in half and students can answer questions anonymously while not having to worry about being embarrassed getting wrong answer.  This is a great way to engage students and introduce game based learning as well.

I highly recommend checking out Quizalize by clicking here!!!

Tuesday, March 15, 2016

Learnteria

Learnteria is a new site for finding educational resources, reviews, sites, and more, that I just found out about from Tech Learning's blog.  This is a great place for educators to rate and review resources as well as find a wide variety on resources such as: STEM, sites, books, etc.

I highly recommend checking out Learnteria by clicking here!!!

For my Pinterest board on Educational Resources click here.

Monday, March 14, 2016

Milk Hunt


Milk Hunt is a super fun highly entertaining iOS Math game designed for grades
1st - 5th.  This game plays like a typical "Platform" game and has students running, jumping, and flying w/ a jet pack as they try to collect bottles of milk while answering different questions.  Best of all, is the detailed reports that shows how well a student is doing as well as being able to select wh
at grade/subject (i.e. multiplication, addition) of Math you want to cover.  This makes it very easy to different instruction and a great way to integrate Game Based Learning in the classroom!!!

I highly recommend checking out Milk Hunt by clicking here!!!

Below is a brief demo...



For my Pinterest board on Game Based Learning click here.

Wednesday, March 9, 2016

FreshGrade

FreshGrade is a wonderful new tool for educators looking to create digital portfolios of their students work.  The way this works is through an easy to use mobile app (i.e. parents, students, and teachers) that allows teachers to capture student work through, video, audio, photos, text (notes), etc.  Also, FreshGrade easily allows educators to share student's work through a tap of a button, to either the student or parent.  Finally, using the web app a user can use FreshGrade to assign activities, assess them in real-time, and even differentiate instruction.

Below is a demo video...



I highly recommend checking out FreshGrade by clicking here!!!

*FreshGrade is an advertiser of Technology Tidbits.

Quick Rubric

Quick Rubric is the wonderful new (beta) site for creating rubrics from the creators of Storyboard That.  This is far and away the easiest site I've seen for creating a beautiful rubric where a user can add a row or a column w/ a tap of an arrow button.  Everything inside of the rubric is customizable (i.e. from the heading to customizing points) and a user can save/print out as many rubrics as they need.

I highly recommend checking out Quick Rubric by clicking here!!!

Weo

Weo is an excellent new site for mobile learning that reminds me a tad of Pinterest.  The way this works is educators create a class and then can manually add students or have them join via a unique "class code" (i.e. ClassDojo), making it ideal for CIPA/COPPA compliance.  Once the class is created then educators can then search for assignments and "pin" them to a board similar to the way Pinterest works.  Also, they can create their own assignments if they are not finding the ones they want and assign them to a class.  Finally, students can then complete their assignments online and educators can get results in assess them in real-time to help differentiate instruction.

I highly recommend Weo by clicking here!!!

Below is a demo video...



*Weo is an advertiser of Technology Tidbits.

Tuesday, March 8, 2016

Lyrics2Learn

Lyrics2Learn is a wonderful site for helping improve student's reading fluency.  The way this works is  by combining music w/ lyrics/text to increase fluency and comprehension.  Lyrics2Learn is ideal for grades K-5, works w/ any subject, and is aligned to Common Core Standards.  Also, it helps educators save time, motivate students, create life-long learners, and much more.

I highly recommend checking out Lyrics2Learn by clicking here!!!

Below is a demo video...

Matific

Matific is a great site for finding educational resources for Math in grades K-6th.  These resources include videos, worksheets, activities, and more w/ an educational portal that allows educators to track student progress.  Also, teachers are using this to assess students performance in Math and differentiate instruction.  There is even a free mobile (iOS/Android) app for El Ed math games.

I highly recommend checking out Matific by clicking here!!!

Click here for the iOS app.
Click here for the Android app.

For a more detailed review check out Edshelf.



For my Pinterest board on Educational Resources click here.

Monday, March 7, 2016

Buncee for St. Patrick's Day

Buncee is a fantastic learning tool that educators around the world are using in a variety of ways to integrate technology into the classroom.  Buncee gives a user a digital canvas to create stunning presentations, slideshows, digital stories, and more.  Teachers are using it for Project Based Learning, to introduce a subject, for announcements, digital storytelling, flip a lesson, and much much more.  Best of all, the educational portal allows educators to track and manage student accounts in a safe environment.

I highly recommend checking out Buncee by clicking here!!!

Use Buncee for holidays including St. Patrick's Day!!!



Below is a brief tutorial on the new Buncee experience...



*Buncee is an advertiser of Technology Tidbits.

NameCoach Directory Integration Service

NameCoach the innovative site for learning students names and how to pronounce them correctly has  just released their latest update, Directory Integration Service.  Directory Integration Service allows a district/school to embed a voice recording of your students' name pronunciation directly into your existing directory listings.

I highly recommend checking out NameCoach's Directory Integration page for schools by clicking here!!!

*NameCoach is an advertiser of TechnologyTidbits.

Recap

Recap is an excellent new (beta) site/app that educators are using for students to reflect on their learning through video.  The way this works is a teacher assigns a question to a student group of students, the students record their thoughts using Recap/video, and then student's results can be shared to other educators, parents, class, etc.  This is a great way for educators to assess students and differentiate instruction while helping students reflect on their own learning.  Also, students can use Recap to create digital portfolios so they can asses their own learning needs.

I highly recommend checking out Recap by clicking here!!!

Friday, March 4, 2016

Chronicle

Chronicle is an amazing iPad app that helps educators harness and organize their best teaching methodologies.  This is done by "chronicling" a students' data and using it in a beneficial and meaningful way.  Chronicle is an all-in-one tool that teachers are using for classroom management, grading, assessing, and so much more.

Here are some of Chronicle's features...

1. Ideal for Reading and Writing Workshop conferring notes, but great for any subject
2. The ability to capture multiple pics, videos, and audio recordings within a note enables teachers to easily provide rich feedback, document student growth, share student achievements, and intervene for student needs.
3. The integrated grade book and traffic light system equip teachers with a means of formatively tracking unit goals, grades, report card descriptors, and more!
4. Many customizable features, including the option of associating any Common Core Standards with a class, if desired.

Below is a demo video...



I highly recommend checking out Chronicle by clicking here!!!

*Chronicle is an advertiser of Technology Tidbits

Digipuzzle for St. Patricks Day

Digipuzzle is a wonderful site for finding educational games and puzzles.  Educators are using this for centers or free time for students to introduce Game Based Learning into the classroom.  Finally, Digipuzzle is a great site to find games/puzzles for different holidays.

I highly recommend checking out Digipuzzle for activities of St. Patricks Day by clicking here.

*Digipuzzle is an advertiser of Technology Tidbits.

Thursday, March 3, 2016

Coda Game

Coda is a wonderful free iOS app that students are using to create their own games and learn about programming and coding.  Coda uses a familiar visual interface where users drag-n-drop blocks of commands (code) together to create their game.  Finally, the safe online Coda community allows students to share and play other games.

Coda also helps students w/ their:

  •  Problem solving 
  • - Logic
  • - Computational Thinking
  • - Creativity
  • - Game Design & Game Development
  • - Pattern Recognition
  • - Algorithmic Thinking
  • - Basic intro to STEAM subjects
I highly recommend checking out Coda Game by clicking here!!!

Tuesday, March 1, 2016

Otus

Otus the excellent and easy to use Learning Management System for schools has a sleek new design, that allows for easier functionality, a brighter customizable color interface, and real-time analytics and third party integration (i.e. Khan Academy), and of course Otus Worksheets.

Here is a list of their updated features...
  • Cleaner Interface: A polished, streamlined functionality lets users more easily navigate existing features including polling for instant feedback, a real-time assessment center, blogging capabilities and classroom organization tools.
  • Real-Time Analytics: A comprehensive analytics dashboard integrates a wide range of performance indicators into one place, including content from select third-party apps like Khan Academy. Teachers can link data to Common Core State Standards or integrate their own custom standards to report on. Otus tracks a variety of data like attendance, participation, student blogs, assessments and grades. In addition, teachers can also create and track meaningful behaviors like grit, leadership and staying on task through Otus ‘Recognitions’. Because Otus logs all student activity in real-time, teachers can quickly gauge their impact on student growth and provide timely, constructive feedback.
  • Toolbox:  Otus functions as an open, interoperable educational ecosystem allowing teachers to integrate and quickly access the third party apps and content that they use everyday in their classroom. Any Otus user can access free third-party apps or content. If third-party apps and content require a subscription, the subscriber must simply link their account to Otus and they will never have to sign-in to access it again.
  • Colorful Work Environments: Now teachers and students can choose from a variety of theme and background color options to create a more personalized, vibrant work environment.


Below is a brief demo...



I highly recommend checking out Otus by clicking here!!!
For more information check out Otus on Technology & Learning.

*Otus is an advertiser of Technology Tidbits.

CodeQuest

CodeQuest is a super fun iOS app that is currently free designed for teaching young students how to code in CSS or HTML.  The way this works is like most games where a user progress from level to level learning the basics of coding.  Once they complete the level they earn badges and unlock more of the game.  Best of all there is a parent section where they can signup to get emails of detailed progress reports.

I highly recommend checking out CodeQuest by clicking here!!!

For my Pinterest board on Programming and Coding click here.

30hands Pro

30hands Pro the excellent iOS app for project based learning, flipping a classroom, and digital storytelling.  Educators are using 30hands to integrate technology in a easy and seamless way.

• New Features in Pro:
— Enhanced Drawing with Editing, Adding Images to canvas, Layering Images, more! (Basic Drawing is still there, too)
— Share-a-Slide to create a single slide video
— Stop Motion is easier with settings and Enhanced Drawing
— Storyboarding is faster and easier
• New icons from Font Awesome and ION
• added support for iOS 9
• fixed some bugs

• Pro has 2 Drawing Modes: Enhanced and Basic
— Enhanced Drawing is vector based which is huge!
— Add images + photos to a drawing
— Edit a drawing after saving
— Drawing lines are crisper
— Text can be on multiple lines
— Resized and stretched text can still be edited!
• Pro has Share-a-Slide to create a single slide video
— Share a single narrated drawing or image to parents, teachers or friends
— Share-a-Slide allows for better collaboration
— Add video slides from multiple students into a central presentation
• Pro has easy Stop Motion settings
— Stop Motion slides can be within a normal presentation
• Easier Storyboarding in Starter and Pro
— New + icon to add a drawing from slide preview/record screen removes extra steps

For more information on 30hands Pro & 30hands Starter click here!!!

*30hands is an advertiser of Technology Tidbits.

Super Teacher Worksheets

*Be Sure to check out the printable activities on Easter.

Super Teacher Worksheets is one of the best sites around for finding educational resources on a wide range of subjects.  Educators can find, worksheets, printables, puzzle generators and more.  Also, they are constantly updating their site w/ more resources all the time and recently released new crossword puzzle worksheet generator.

I highly recommend checking out Super Teacher Worksheets by clicking here!!!

Check out the new puzzle generator by clicking here.

For my Pinterest board on Educational Resources click here.

*Super Teacher Worksheets is an advertiser of Technology Tidbits.

Apricot

Apricot is a site I covered awhile back that is a nice tool for educators/parents.  The way this works is educators sign up and create a class that students join through a code (i.e ClassDojo).  Once the class is created educators can then ask a question, the students respond in real-time, and then their parents get the results emailed to them.  Also, parents can join the same class as their child's w/ a unique login code.

I highly recommend checking out Apricot by clicking here!!!

For my Pinterest board on Web 2.0 click here.

Grid Lines: Ordered Pair Game

Grid Lines: Ordered Pair Game is one of my favorite iOS Math apps from Math File Folder Games.  This game designed for El Ed and Middle School allows players or multiple players on multiple devices (up to 5) via bluetooth to try to shoot alien ships by drawing a laser through them by plotting points on a graph (grid line).  Besides having high replay value the game generates detailed results that can then be emailed to a parent or teacher.

I highly recommend checking out Grid Lines: Ordered Pair Game by clicking here!!!

For more iOS multiplayer Math games click here.

*Math File Folder Games is an advertiser of Technology Tidbits.

GoClass

GoClass is a wonderful site/app for flipping a classroom.  This is a fantastic solution for educators to be able to manage their classes/students and create dynamic lessons that can be shared on mobile devices.  Students can login to a session on their mobile device and then follow the lesson following the "show-explain-ask" method.  Teachers can then get instant real-time feedback on student engagement and learning as well as attendance.

I highly recommend checking out GoClass by clicking here!!!

*GoClass is an advertiser of Technology Tidbits.