Classroomscreen.com offers simple web widgets when displaying your screen

ClassroomScreen

If you browse to ClassroomScreen.com you can find a set of possibly useful widgets that can be displayed.

Currently, there are twelve widgets you can use on ClassroomScreen. You can display multiple widgets at once.

  • Language – Choose to display text in a large range of languages
  • Background – Customise your background with one of the images or GIFs provided. Or, you can upload or record your own background.
  • Random Name/Dice – Enter the names of students and choose one at random. Or, roll one or more dice.
  • Sound Level – Monitor classroom noise levels using the microphone on your device.
  • QR Code – Enter a link and a QR code is automatically generated. Great when students have devices like iPads — they can come up to the board, scan the code and go straight to a site.
  • Drawing – There are two sizes available where you can free draw. The larger sized canvas can replace the background if you wish.
  • Text – A simple tool to write instructions, reminders, learning goals and so on.
  • Work Symbols – Display one of four options: work together, ask a neighbor, whisper, and silence.
  • Traffic Light – Display a red, amber, or green light to provide a visual reminder of when to move around, begin a task, pack up etc.
  • Timer – Count up or count down, record “laps”, and more. You can customize the tone that rings when the time is up.
  • Clock – Shows the time as a 12 or 24 hour clock. Also shows a calendar.

Classroomscreen icons

Additional Feature: ExitPoll

ClassroomScreen’s ExitPoll tool lets you get feedback from students.

You can ask students what they thought about the lesson or check for understanding by asking them a question about the lesson content.

Students simply walk past the interactive whiteboard, tablet, or computer at the end of the lesson and cast their vote.

You can access the ExitPoll tool by going to https://www.classroomscreen.com/exitpoll.html or use the icon at the bottom right of your screen.

ExitPoll tool by ClassroomScreen

Rejoice, LanSchool is Ready to Go! (Grades 3-8)

LanSchool, the program the district offers teachers for student device management and monitoring, can now be used with dynamically updated student rosters. For those teachers who have students using Chromebooks, especially teachers of 3rd through 8th graders, you can now install and use LanSchool by following directions we are providing.  Please note, the following linked directions will NOT apply to new teachers or those new to Lanschool.  If you are a new-to-the-district teacher this year, OR if you did not install Lanschool last year, please submit a service request so that a technician can install LanSchool for you: Service ticket

Additionally, if after following the directions linked below, you cannot get LanSchool to load your student rosters, you will also need to submit a service request:  Service ticket

First, we’d like to apologize for the Lanschool delay. There were some unforeseen backend issues that had to be addressed related to rostering, Clever*, and Wayne RESA.  Our department spent many hours over several weeks working with staff from Clever, LanSchool and WayneRESA to address these issues and we’re not quite done, but for many of you, the install and load should now be doable without our further assistance. Please follow these directions ONLY if you were using LanSchool last year: Click Here

While the directions have a lot of “clicks”, it should actually only take a couple of minutes to load and install.

*A quick note about our Clever / LanSchool integration. Since Clever (Single Sign-on), syncs nightly with MISTAR, and then LanSchool syncs with Clever, unlike last year, class rosters in Lanschool can now be kept up to date and all classes a teacher has in MISTAR (including previously unavailable homeroom classes) can now be loaded in LanSchool.

Instagram, Middle School, and Digital Citizenship

Read about how one middle school teacher is using Instagram in her ELA and Social Studies classes to address a real and present need in Digital Citizenship. It’s no secret that kids have Instagram accounts, and potentially multiple accounts as early as elementary school. 6th grade teacher Sara Landis notes: “I think it’s so important for them because they’re going to wade into that pool anyway. So, you’re either going to teach them to swim, or you’re going to watch them drown. So we need to give them the information that’s going to help them make informed decisions.”

Read more to learn how she is addressing this issue in a very real and practical way. LINK

Scratchwork for Math Class

Scratchwork is an online whiteboard and video conferencing tool designed with math students in mind. The platform works like many similar services as it provides you with a whiteboard on which you can draw, type, and import images to annotate. Scratchwork is a little different than other services because it includes a Latex editor for writing equations.

Giving students an opportunity to use digital math tools is an important part of the modern classroom and allows students to:

 

  • Draw naturally… with what you already have: Turn your pen and paper drawings into digital objects with your webcam or phone. Or draw on a tablet and see the big picture on your computer.
  • Develop your ideas: Reorganize, resize, and mark up your drawings. Upload and annotate PDF documents, or arrange your ideas on virtual pages to export as PDFs.
  • Collaborate: Share and edit your boards with others in real time. Chat, audio, and video calls are built in.

There is a free version available that includes:

  • 4 boards
  • 100MB storage
  • 3-way collaboration + video chat
  • PDF export with watermark
  • Basic math recognition
  • URL sharing

UPDATE: Remind WILL Work with Verizon After January 28, 2019

Remind previously announced that their service would no longer work with Verizon after January 28, 2019 due to increased cost of Verizon text messaging services. It appears that Remind and Verizon have come to an agreement, which will prevent any interruption to Remind notifications sent to Verizon customers. While this is good news for now, we encourage staff to promote the use of the Remind app for notifications to avoid any potential future interruptions to text message notifications.

For additional details, please visit: https://www.remind.com/blog/verizon-update/

How to Create a Self Grading Quiz in Google Classroom

This resource comes from Richard Byrne. Richard is an Edtech expert and former High School social studies teacher. He is the lead author of https://www.freetech4teachers.com/

Use Google Classroom and Google forms to your advantage with creating quizzes that can be auto-graded. When students complete the quiz you will get a Google Sheet of all of the student’s answers and their scores from the quiz. And because it was created in Google Classroom, it will also allow you to assign a particular due date.

Enjoy!

Be Internet Awesome(3rd-Adult)

Be Internet is a digital citizenship tool that was developed by Google to teach and prepare kids to use the internet in a safe and meaningful way. This site has videos, resources, and an interactive game called INTERLAND. Where kids can immerse themselves in different worlds and learn about including, What is ok and not ok to share online, discerning what is fake and real, security, cyberbullying, etc. Resources and games are intended for 3rd grade through Adults.

Site:

https://beinternetawesome.withgoogle.com/en_us

Online Data Breach Reveals Millions of Emails and Password

Last week another large online data breach was reported. (Read the article from CNET.) The technicians that checked the breach list found that much of it was current and accurate, which is rare for such a large data set.

What can you do?

  1. Enter in your email address(es) in the following website to see which websites/accounts have been breached, and potentially exposed data about your account. www.haveibeenpwned.com
  2. Get notifications of future breaches that expose your email address and potentially other sensitive data. www.haveibeenpwned.com/notifyme
  3. Learn about data breaches and the types of fraud so that you are prepared when it happens.
  4. Change passwords! Make unique passwords for every account.
    • To keep track of all your unique passwords, consider using a password manager like 1Password, Dashlane, LastPass or one of the free ones reviewed here where you only have to remember one [unique and complex] master password and the app will save the rest of your passwords in AES-256 bit encrypted vaults.
    • When using a password manager, make sure to set the settings to automatically log you out after a short period of inactivity to prevent others from accessing your vault (it completely defeats the purpose of the vault if you leave the door always open!).
  5. Read this article: Data breaches can sucker-punch you. Prepare to fight back

Visit these sites for information and next steps if you have been a victim of identity theft:

Hope you find this helpful and that it serves to keep you digitally safe during harrowing digital times.

REMC Virtual Courses – February 2019

It’s easy to embrace your love of learning with REMC’s Virtual Courses! They offer a convenient way for teachers to connect and collaborate while reducing time and cost. These courses are available throughout the school year and are open to all Michigan school personnel. Best of all, all courses are instructor lead, free, and offer free SCECHs when completed.

Register Now for the February sessions

Five to seven courses are offered each month. Each course is open for three weeks and consists of two (2) one-hour webinars and four (4) to eight (8) hours of resource review, assessment developments and written reflection. SCECHs are available, ranging from 6 – 10, depending on the course.

Courses offered in February:

  • The What, Why, and How of Open Educational Resources (OER)
  • OER to Support Competency-Based Education (CBE)
  • Design Thinking made Practical
  • A Practical Guide to Global Success Skills in the Classroom for the 21st Century and Beyond
  • Social Media: Professional Development through Social Media, Level 1
  • Extending Your Classroom to the Cloud
  • Coding in the Classroom

Please feel free to contact the technology department if you have any questions.