Mr. B EdTech Blog

This is a great article describing "The Big FOUR" keys for success in EdTech. Professional Development Digital Citizenship Devices Infrastructure Read the blog post here:  http://jcastelhanothisandthat.blogspot.com/2016/04/the-big-four.html

I came across this blog post today. It was originally posted during teacher appreciation week. This educator has spent over 39 years in education. On a side note, I am currently finishing my 5th year in education. Check it out here:   https://21centuryedtech.wordpress.com/2016/05/03/teacher-appreciation-its-true-i-teach-because-i-cant-do-anything-else/ Out of all of the reflections in this article, I most closely related to this statement: I can’t be a computer programmer because while creating new digital applications is exciting, finding ways to integrate technology to inspire real learning is rewarding.

Check out this article below on ways to use News-O-Matic in Your Classroom. http://classtechtips.com/2015/02/24/7-ways-to-use-news-o-matic-in-your-classroom/ What is News-O-Matic? News-O-Matic is the daily newspaper for kids on iOs and Android, an exciting and engaging nonfiction experience, and a fantastic modern educational tool. It gives young readers a window into the world — and a reason to love reading news for kids. Whether the stories are about India’s election, the World Cup, or the moons of Saturn, they provide students opportunities to make connections in meaningful ways and inspire children every day. Check it out for yourself Click here:  http://press4kids.com/info/

http://woodrow.org/news/perspectives/teacher-tech-tools/ This is a very spot-on list of tech tools for teachers. Using this tools can help keep you sane, or at the very least help you manage the classroom a little easier.

http://fortune.com/2016/05/02/eric-schmidts-6-tech-trends/ Number 6 on the list was interesting for education. 6) Fixing education using tech: Everybody knows that every student learns differently, said Schmidt...

https://medium.com/synapse/the-impersonal-future-of-schools-42831e9520e5#.syjzl8bqy This article offers a very interesting look at the future of educaiton. “The goalpost has moved. It’s become much more difficult to do your job as an educator and actually prepare students for the 2030s, ’40s and ’50s.”  — Max Ventilla

http://time.com/4307144/great-teachers-1966/ This is a very interesting article from Time magazine. It is predicted that the U.S. is going to be facing a teacher shortage. The idea that the U.S. may be facing a potential teacher shortage, or that teachers are consistently undervalued , probably wouldn’t surprise anyone who follows today’s education news. Are there lessons we have already learned from a similar prediction in the 1960s?

http://www.techlearning.com/blogentry/10644

Today is the last day of instruction at my face-to-face school (SY16). As educators across the country are preparing for their last day, I thought it would be appropriate to share some of these tips for the last day(s) of school. How Teachers can Prepare for the Last Day From Scholastic.com http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/collection/tips-wrap-school-year I really liked the idea of students writing letters to their next year's teacher. How Students can Prepare for the Last Day From WikiHow.com http://www.wikihow.com/Have-an-Awesome-Last-Day-of-School How Parents can Prepare for the Last Day From Great Schools.org -  http://www.greatschools.org/gk/articles/tips-for-last-days-of-school/ Start preparing for next school year now Plan your gift to the teacher and more...

http://classtechtips.com/2016/05/04/5-tech-tools-for-writing-prompts/ Take a look at this list of apps for writing prompts. I really like that the blog author broke down what devices can access these apps.

I have been an advocate of using screen casts in the classroom. This tech tip linked below is a great way to screen-cast from your iPad. http://practicaledtech.com/2016/05/15/practical-ed-tech-tip-of-the-week-how-to-screencast-your-ipad/ How to Screen-cast from your iPad Using a Mac

The video below was shot with time lapse photography. Each still image used in this video is over 80 megapixels each. This video was shot in 10328x7760 resolution. Also known as 10k.  To give you an idea of how big this resolution really is see these pictures below. 4k Video Compared to Previous Formats (8.29 Megapixels) 4K (2160p) - 3840 × 2160 Ultra High Definition 1080p - 1920x1080 - Full High Definition 720p - High Definition DVD - 640x480 - (480i or 480p) - Standard Definition VCD - 352x240 Video CD (released in 1993), The current best home video standard in place today (in May 2016) is 4K. This is 2.5 times higher resolution than 4K. At the time of this article Sharp has released an 8k television, but with the hefty price tag of $133,000 and with little to no 8k content available. For more information on 8k see:  http://money.cnn.com/2015/09/17/technology/8k-tv/  or https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/8K_resolution 8k Video Compared t...

There are some very good tips in this article about mistakes to avoid when creating a school website. http://www.techlearning.com/blogentry/10653

  http://www.teachthought.com/the-future-of-learning/technology/3-fun-examples-of-technology-based-assessement/ Quizizz, Quizlet, and Kahoot! I have mentioned these tools in the past, but in case you missed that post or would like more information, check out the article linked above.

Check out the resources here at:   http://classtechtips.com/2016/04/17/teacher-tools-from-the-library-of-congress/

Over the weekend the blog reached over 5000 views. Thank you soooo much for your continued support! I use this as an Ice Breaker for some PD Sessions. Don't be afraid to press the button.

See the full article at:  http://www.techlearning.com/blogentry/10579 "How can we use this for differentiation?  Though it has tremendous impact at the higher levels, the flipped classroom can be used for differentiation to reach all students who need additional resources. RtI is a perfect opportunity to allow the flipped classroom to flourish. Here, we identify areas of weakness through target-based evaluations and improve those skills as students relearn content. I recommend an exit-slip or other formative assessment to ensure mastery. This truly allows educators to pinpoint areas of weakness and work at an individual’s specific needs. If you have laptops, you can have students move around to different stations while monitoring student progress." Student Testimony on the Flipped Classroom

This article gives a very good tutorial on how to save YouTube videos to Google Drive. http://techviral.com/save-youtube-videos-google-drive/

Read this article at:  http://www.theage.com.au/national/education/the-art-of-turning-science-technology-and-maths-learning-into-a-game-20160415-go7lyc

http://www.techlearning.com/blogentry/10644

Read full article at:   https://www.graphite.org/app/sketchbook-pro#more Autodesk Sketchbook Summary: Impressive creation tool for teens serious about art Pros: Impressive brush selections, professional tools on an easily accessible tablet screen. Cons: There’s a learning curve for kids not already familiar with professional-level digital art tools. Bottom Line: Gives students easy access to professional tools for creating digital art. See it in action

When good technology goes bad See the article at:  http://www.teachthought.com/pedagogy/4-reasons-technology-might-not-helping-learn/ The article linked above shows some good points about when technology can be misused in the classroom. There are ways to avoid these common pitfalls when implementing technology into the classroom. It helps to not forget the golden rule: Content before technology

See Article Here:  http://www.teachthought.com/the-future-of-learning/things-that-will-disappear-from-classrooms-in-the-next-12-years/?platform=hootsuite This article starts out with a starts out with a statement that I have long believed is eventually going to happen in education. What will disappear from classrooms in the next 12 years? "1) Whole Class Instruction/Direct Instruction - In what universe does standing up in front of 30 people to “teach” something make any sense?" From the 1950's until the early 2000's, education technology integration practices were mostly geared toward making the technology fit into already existing teaching practices. Lectures turned into videos or filmstrips and chalkboards became marker boards or overheads, even smart boards. However the teaching practice stayed the same. All students were required to focus all of their attention on the same thing, at the same time, and follow along at the same pace. There were some alter...