Optional Tech PD for Canvas and Zoom

baby-hey we're here for you

Hello PCCS Staff,

We hope you are having a fun, relaxing, and safe summer. To support the rollout of both Zoom and our new district-wide LMS, Canvas, the technology integration specialists will be offering a number of optional virtual trainings during various dates in the month of August. While there will be a 6-hour PD on September 1st that will include workshop time with colleagues, we know that many teachers and staff want to get started right away. Here is what you can look forward to in the coming weeks:

  1. Engaging Students in Zoom (50 min): In this session, you will learn how to engage with students using the Zoom platform and cover features such as breakout rooms, polling, the virtual whiteboard, and more.
  2. Introduction to Canvas (50 min)*: Canvas will be our new Learning Management System for the 2020-2021 school year. During this session, participants will be able to learn why we chose Canvas, take a tour of the platform, and discuss some of the ways to engage students in Canvas.
  3. Creating in Canvas (3 hrs.)*: Canvas, our new district LMS (Learning Management System) has many features including assignments, modules, quizzes, conditional releasing, and a video studio. During this time participants will learn about these various features, and have some time to collaborate with TIS and other teachers on how to use the platform.

*Please create a free account and use your __@pccsk12.com account email: https://www.instructure.com/canvas/try-canvas (we have confirmed that any content created in these accounts will be able to be transferred to your district account when it becomes available).

To access and add these virtual trainings to your Google Calendar click: http://links.pccsk12.com/aug2020techpd

We have also included a number of other trainings in our calendar, and if you would like to subscribe to our calendar simply click: http://links.pccsk12.com/subscibetotis

Please let us know if you have any questions or concerns,

Matt and Rick

Interested in Zoom training this weekend?? SimpleK12 offers a free 30 minute webinar at 10 am on Saturday, August 8th entitled Using Zoom Video Conferencing Tools for Student Engagement. 

Have a district Windows laptop that has begun to show a blue alert box?

The following blog post was initially shared this past April and remains relevant for a growing number of district laptop users…. At some point you may see a blue alert window declaring Your Windows license will expire soon; You need to activate Windows in settings. There is no need to panic.

Windows licensing issue

Our laptop’s Window licensing usually renews automatically through the district server, however you need to be on our network for that to happen and many haven’t been for long enough to trigger this warning. To reset your license for another 180 days of use, when convenient within two weeks of first seeing that warning, head to any district building with your laptop. You don’t need to actually enter the building, you just need to be close enough to have the laptop connect to the district Wi-Fi. It’s even possible at some of our locations to remain in your car and still be close enough to get a signal. While remaining connected to the district Wi-Fi (either PCCSK12- Secure or PCCSK12-Staff), completely restart the laptop, then log into it and make sure it completes the log in process. Surf somewhere on the internet to confirm that you remained connected. Doing this should suffice to reset the license counter for another six months and you’re good to leave, mission accomplished.

If you still cannot get the alert to go away after doing the above, please submit a service ticket and our department can assist you with other steps to take.

FlipgridLIVE 2020: The All-New Flipgrid

On June 30th, Flipgid announced the all new Flipgrid with updates during their biggest annual educator celebration: FlipgridLIVE! Every change to Flipgrid is driven by your ideas, your stories and your feedback.

These Flipgrid updates will launch starting August 5 and continue monthly into the fall. Check out the full FlipgridLIVE broadcast and keep reading for a look back at Flipgrid’s biggest updates: https://blog.flipgrid.com/news/flipgridlive2020

 

Five links to check out

John Sowash is a former HS biology teacher and principal who helps teachers use technology to improve instruction. A few links he has posted on his blog https://www.chrmbook.com/blog/ are shared below along with his commentary.

  1. ​Link to a specific portion of a webpage – Google released a handy Chrome Extension that makes it easy to point someone to a specific portion of a web page. It even highlights the text you want to emphasize!
  2. ​The Anywhere School 2020 – Google is planning a special back-to-school event in mid August. Details are sparse, but they claim it will be awesome! RSVP to attend (free).
  3. ​The best ELA tools for your classroom – in this blog post [John] shares his favorite web-based ELA tools for helping students become strong readers and writers.
  4. ​Turning paper assignments into digital activities – Assignments that were designed for printing, don’t always translate well into digital activities. Here’s a look at how [John] redesigned a paper assignment into a remote learning activity.
  5. ​25 Novel Hyperdocs – Karly Moura (@KarlyMoura) shared her collection of ELA hyperdocs over on the Ditch that Textbook blog. If you are doing a novel study, this is an awesome resource!

 

Summer Learning Blitz!

As Wayne RESA continues to develop new ways to support literacy across Wayne County, they are sharing their first Wayne County Summer Learning Blitz. The Learning Blitz consists of free webinars offered daily in August from 3:00-4:00 pm. 

Although the focus is on implementing essential practices in remote settings, technology integration within face-to-face settings can be used to enhance current practice – making these sessions applicable no matter the school model for the coming school year. 

To provide synchronous and asynchronous options, sessions will be recorded and emailed to all who register. These recordings will also be archived on the Literacy Learning Network website.

In addition to the webinars, interested coaches and instructional leaders are invited to join a 30 minute facilitation debrief, immediately following most sessions. During this time, participants will be provided ideas and facilitation resources to support the delivery of this learning within their own school setting. The goal is to empower literacy coaches and staff responsible for professional development within their individual districts. 

All webinars are grounded in early literacy and all educators are welcome.  There is no cost.  See the attached flier for topics and registration links.

Summer Learning Blitz

Free webinar on “Using Zoom Video Conferencing Tools for Student Engagement”

Zoom webinar

Simplek12 offers each week free access to various of their popular 30 minute webinars one of which is Using Zoom Video Conferencing Tools for Student Engagement. Some folks may want to check it out as it covers…. ** How to start taking your online learning experiences to the next level with Zoom ** Directions on using breakout rooms, the whiteboard tool, and digital annotation ** Tips on using Zoom in a way that allows for enhanced student engagement

Tuesday | July 28, 2020 5 pm – 5:30 pm

Thursday | July 30, 2020  10:30 – 11:00 am   OR  12:00 – 12:30 pm

Digital Subscriptions Update for Teachers and Students

For those interested in reviewing the confirmed digital subscriptions for the coming 2020-2021 school year, please check out the dynamically linked spreadsheet below. It will be updated with any new information should changes or new subscriptions be adopted. This sheet will be published via the Home Teaching Hub as well. If you need additional support please connect with a Tech Integration Specialist at tis@pccsk12.com

FREE WEBINAR SERIES on Ways to Engage Students Online

Webinar Series

For ways to engage online learners, Wayne RESA is facilitating a webinar series that provides practical ideas and instructional strategies for creating a student-centered classroom that has learners connecting and communicating, collaborating, co-facilitating, and continuously reflecting. There are four webinars in the series, but you may elect to attend one, two, three, or all four sessions. (see https://www.smore.com/230vn)

CONNECT AND COMMUNICATE

Discover ways to develop community through synchronous and asynchronous interactions. Learn ways to build student rapport, going beyond the traditional icebreaker activities. Finally, we’ll discuss the importance of creating multiple channels of communication between teachers, parents, and students. Leave with strategies you can use tomorrow.

July 27, 2020 from 1:00-2:00 PM

COLLABORATE

Move beyond teacher-student and student-student communication and explore ways for students to collaborate in their learning. Explore examples (and non-examples) of collaboration, and how to spot the differences. Discover the importance of strategic group assignments as well as defining and assigning group roles. Delve into ways to monitor collaboration to prevent a few group members from doing all of the work.

August 3, 2020 1:00-2:00 PM

CO-FACILITATE

Provide students with opportunities to take responsibility for their learning by giving them voice and choice over what they learn. The teacher can step back as the source and filter of information and become an active participant in the learning process, providing guidance only when appropriate. Discover how to maintain sanity and monitor progress in an online environment, while giving students more options.

August 10, 2020 1:00-2:00 PM

CONTINUE AND REFLECT

Inspire students to take control of their own learning through ongoing reflection. Enhance the metacognitive abilities of your students after a learning experience is complete, and how it can be used as a springboard for future learning. Learn how to create an environment of reflection and exploration for your students to help improve each learning experience.

August 17, 2020 1:00-2:00 PM

School Is Out For Summer, But We’re Still Here To Help!

Summer is here and we want to remind you that we’re here to support your personal and professional learning over the summer. We know that next year is going to look a bit different with all of the challenges of Covid-19 and re-opening schools and we want to support you in any way we can! There are some opportunities we’re creating to support you as you think about next year and we will be announcing them via The Home Teaching Hub, Tech Blog, and Professional Learning Calendar.

Please note, we have summer 1:1 appointment hours available Monday through Friday. Just navigate to our Calendly link to schedule time with a Tech Integration Specialist. We can help you with specific tech tools or planning for a blended or virtual learning environment or assist you with other tech integration wonders: https://calendly.com/tis-pccs/15min

Consider also adding the professional learning calendar to your Google Calendar so you can get updated directly on your Google Calendar of any newly released learning opportunities. To do so, see guidance below.

End of Year Google Classroom Cleanup

Google Classroom

As staff end their year with students, there are several recommendations to consider.  You can read more, watch a video, or listen to the podcast from Eric Curts here: controlaltachieve.com/2019/05/classroom-cleanup.html

Here are the top tips to consider:

Tip #1 – Return all student work

Tip #2 – Unenroll students from old classes

Tip #3 – Archive old classes*

Tip #4 – Remove old class calendars

Tip #5 – Move old class folders in Drive

*Keep in mind that archiving the classes will remove access for students, so if students still need access for some reason, wait until later in the summer to archive. Once the school year has ended, there are some important steps you should take in your Google Classrooms. It’s important to archive finished classes so students don’t see older classes in their dashboards when they login to Google Classroom. Remember, you can use posts/materials from older classes or copy those classes completely for next year.

Archiving a Class

Archiving classes is important so that students do not see old classes in their Google Classroom dashboards when they login. It also declutters your own active Classroom dashboard. Remember, you can always go back and look at archived classes and copy them or use posts/materials/assignments from them. They are not gone forever. 

How to Archive a Class

  • From the Google Classroom dashboard where you can see all of your classes, click on the 3 vertical dots of the class you’d like to Archive
  • Choose Archive from the menu. 
  • Read the warning and if you’re sure about what you’re doing, click Archive once more.

How to View and/or Restore Archived Classes

  • From the Google Classroom dashboard, click on the 3 vertical lines (pancake stack) on the upper left side of screen. 
  • At the bottom of the slide-out settings menu will be “Archived Classes”. Click on that to see all of your Archived classes. You can look at them and interact with them just like classes that are active.
  • You can restore an archived class by clicking the 3 vertical dots of the archived class and choose the Restore option.

Copying a Class

Copying a class creates a copy of the class with all of the materials and assignments in DRAFT status and with no students. It’s highly recommended that you do this from year to year instead of dumping students out of last year’s classroom and adding new students in. 

To Copy a Class

  • From the Google Classroom Dashboard click on the 3 vertical dots in the right corner of the class you want to copy. 
  • Click on Copy 
  • Give the new class a name along with a section title. I recommend using the year or semester somewhere in the name or section to make it easier to find later. 
  • Click Copy when satisfied.
  • It will take a minute or two, but then the newly copied class will appear in your Classroom Dashboard. It will be grayed out until it is ready for you to start working in it. Larger classroom will take longer to activate.