Thinglink: Jazz Up Those Research Projects

ThingLink is very cool tool for organizing and displaying projects and content: http://www.thinglink.com/ Sign up for the education account and if you want you can use your Google account.

If you use this with students under 13, you need to be sure to get parent permissions similar to Edmodo: http://www.thinglink.com/action/terms

Classroom Uses:

• 10 Inovative Ways to use ThingLink:
• http://gettingsmart.com/2013/01/10-innovative-ways-to-use-thinglink-in-the-classroom/
• Using ThingLink in the Classroom:
• http://insidetheclassroomoutsidethebox.wordpress.com/2013/06/09/using-thinglink-in-the-classroom/

Student Projects:

• http://www.edline.net/pages/Northwest_Junior_HS/Library/6247062316816064370/Links/New_Edline_folder__SPIERING_05
• http://www.thinglink.com/scene/367668912411639809

Brightlink Interactive Projector Training:

Technology and Education Services contracted with Naomi Harm to provide two days of training this week to help teachers from all levels learn how to use the new Epson Brightlink Interactive Projectors and advance their Smart Notebook skills to produce engaging lessons.  The workshop culminated with each teacher sharing a lesson that he or she had created for use with students in the fall. Teachers left the workshop excited and energized by the new possibilities this technology will afford.

Unlike a Smartboard, all of the interactivity of the Brightlink is contained within in the projector and the two pens, so it makes any whiteboard interactive.  It provides the same functionality, including multi-touch for about half the cost and installation time. 

MCPASD Twitter Registry

MCPASD Twitter Registry

As many of us have discovered Twitter can be an excellent tool to foster communication, expand our knowledge and idea horizons and develop a personal learning network.  While participating in a regional, national or global community is great, we have wonderful experts just down the hall, so I thought I would try to come up with a way to make it easier for us to connect and start conversations.  If you have a Twitter account that you are using professionally and you are interested in connecting with other Middleton-Crossplains teachers or staff on Twitter, please add it to the MPC Twitter Registry by filling out this form: http://goo.gl/V63bDb Results will be tabulated in this spreadsheet: http://goo.gl/nC2lA2

If don’t have a Twitter account and are not sure what it is or why you might want to have one, check out 10 Reasons Why Teachers use Twitter or the ASCD Guide to Why Teachers Should Try Twitter.

Twitter Usernames start with an “@” and you can have more than one if you want to keep your personal Twitter account separate from your professional account.  Use a tool like Tweetdeck or Hootsuite to manage more than one.  Here are some District Usernames:
Middleton-Cross Plains Area School District: @MCPASD
George Mavroulis, Assistant Superintendent for Educational Services: @MCPGMav
Laura Love, Director of Secondary Teaching and Learning: @LLoveWI
MaryBeth Paulisse, Director of Curriculum and Assessment: @MPaulisse
Sheri Cyra, Director of Elementary Teaching and Learning: @CyraSherri
Jim Blodgett, Directory of Technology: @MCPTechDirector
High School LMC: @MHSLMC
Kromrey LMC: @KMSLMC
Kromrey Middle School: @KromreyMS

Twitter uses hashtags (#) to organize tweets by topic and we have been using several for Middleton:
Middleton Technology: #mcptech
Middleton LMCs: #mcplmc
Middleton Literacy: #mcplit
Middleton Equity: #mcpequity
Feel empowered to create your own.  If you put them into registry, I will add them to my District Twitter page.

Here are a few resources to get you started:
Twitter 101 for Teachers
Cybrary Man's Guide for Beginners
Learn Twitter from Joe Mazza (2hours!!!)

The MPCASD Registry is only available to MCPASD Staff, and spam on Twitter can be an issue, so please don’t share the data outside our district.

Getting Started With Google Drive

Google Docs Basics

Google Drive Basics - Uploading, Converting, and Downloading Files

Google Drive Basics - Sharing Files and Folders

Cool Tools To Help Readers

Too Long, Didn't Read

TLDR lets you summarize any text that can be displayed in a web page at using four different levels, summary, short, medium and long. TLDR will help students pre-read any text that can be displayed in a webpage, including a Google Doc. It is added as an extension in Chrome so it is always available from the extension bar.  Get it from the Chrome Store: https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/tldr/giepilabiomhlcmlefmbfkgeoccfhhhc

 

Read & Write for Google

Read & Write for Google takes reading support to the next level by making many of the functions of Read & Write Gold available as a chrome extension for free.  It can read any text web to the student, while highlighting the words being spoken.  The paid version also works with PDFs. It is available from the Chrome Store: https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/readwrite-for-google/inoeonmfapjbbkmdafoankkfajkcphgd?hl=en-US

Readers with Dyslexia

Open Dyslexia changes the font on webpages to one that is more readable for students with Dyslexia.  It is available from the Chromestore:  https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/opendyslexic/cdnapgfjopgaggbmfgbiinmmbdcglnam 

Dyslexia Friendly is similar to Open Dyslexia but has some different features.  It is also available from the Chromestore:  https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/dyslexia-friendly/miepjgfkkommhllbbjaedffcpkncboeo