1:1 Chromebooks - Are we ready? Setting up for our Students

I'm really not sure if we are ready. All 3-5 graders next year at my school will have 1:1 chromebooks. And while I want to move toward blended learning, I feel like we need to over the basics first! If teachers and students don't even know how to use these devices, then blended learning will never happen.

There is so much to know about Chrome OS I don't feel the least bit prepared. And I feel up on technology! What about my teachers that have no idea what to do! Yikes. It all seems a bit scary. But we have to dive in head first.

So, here's what I know about 1:1 chromebooks so far. Hopefully it'll help you out a little!

So what even is a chromebook?

A Chromebook is a laptop running Chrome as its operating system (Chrome OS). The devices are designed to be used primarily while connected to the Internet, with most applications and data residing "in the cloud". Instead of installing traditional applications such as word processing and instant messaging, users add web apps from the Chrome Web Store. A multi-layer security architecture eliminates the need for anti-virus software.

1:1 Chromebooks in the Classroom

Tips and Tricks

• Setting up for your students
• Number each of the Chromebooks with a removable label.
• Number the slots in your cart to correspond with the chromebooks
• Create a symbaloo page - Check out my blog post about Symbaloo HERE
• To make logging in a breeze, create login cards for each of your students and adhere it (with removable labels or tape) to the chromebook by the trackpad.
• How To Create Log in Cards
• Create a new google document
• Go to the Add-Ons menu.  Find the Avery Label Merge add-on.
• Once you have the add-on installed, choose Avery -> New Merge.
• Choose name badge (or address labels for smaller labels).  #5395 works well for login cards.
• Choose the google spreadsheet you’d like to pull information from.
• The column header names will appear in a list on the right.  
• Choose the information you want to add to your label.  You can also type on the label.
• Hit the blue <Merge> button on the bottom right.
• Open up your new document and rename it!
• Create a google classroom
• Benefits
• Easy tracking of assignments and grades
• Allows you to set up assignments in advance and differentiate instruction
• A closed social network for you and your students
• Parents and Students can access assignments at home.
• Have students create a user profile
• How to create a new profile:
• Students click on “add user” or the "+" in the bottom left corner of the dock
• Students enter their user ID and password
• Students click on the camera icon to take a picture to show on their profile (this picture should be a selfie, not a stock photo).
• This profile will be saved and should be used every time
• Have students learn how to create a bookmark and have them create a bookmark for websites you will use frequently (ie Google Drive, Google Classroom, your symbaloo page, the Bentley Computer Lab symbaloo page, etc.)
• Teach and use proper vocabulary with your students
• Apps and Extensions
• Maximizes efficiency - Work smarter not harder
• Get them here: chrome.google.com/webstore
• Really helpful presentations that explain the different between apps and extensions as well as give you suggested apps and extensions to use to streamline teaching and help students:
• https://goo.gl/4YWxCy
• https://goo.gl/6qvVij

Common Issues and How to Solve them

1. If the chromebook is glitching and not working properly the first response should always be to restart the machine
1. Hold down the power button until it shuts off
2. Most problems can be solved by googling the issue or saying “How to.____..on a chromebook” and taking about 5 minutes to read through the first or second link
3. Printing
1. Our 1:1 Chromebooks DO NOT have the capability of printing.
2. If you want students to print, you will have to print all of your student’s documents. To make this easier on yourself, follow one of these methods. You will have to figure out which you prefer. My favorite method is the first one.
1. Use the add on PDF Mergy to merge multiple documents into one PDF for printing. Follow the link to learn how. https://www.synergyse.com/blog/print-multiple-google-docs-simultaneously-from-a-chromebook/
2. Have your students save whatever project they are working on as a PDF in google drive. Click here for how to: http://goo.gl/NHMNJH
1. Have students either share the PDF with you or submit it as an assignment in google drive
2. Go to your drive
1. If students shared the PDF with you - click on “shared with me” from the left menu and you should see all of your student’s shared PDF files
2. If your students submitted it through google classroom then you will need to go to your classroom folder to see all of their submissions
3. Go to this website: https://pdfmerge.w69b.com/
4. Drag and drop all files you wish to print, IN THE ORDER you wish to print them
5. Then press MERGE in the upper right hand corner
6. Then you will be able to download and PRINT one PDF for all of your student files
3. Another option for printing is creating a zip file straight from Google Drive, check out this video to learn how
1. http://iserotope.com/how-to-print-multiple-google-docs-at-once/

Alright! That's what I've got so far from 1 years experience with only one grade level. There is so much more out there, but I thought this was some of the basics. 

Happy Techy Teaching! 

I know you Pinterest, but do you Symbaloo?

I know you Pinterest, but do you Symbaloo?

You know that pinterest helps you save all those amazing links for that DIY project, that delicious desert, and keeps all our classroom needs separated by different boards. It's a great way to keep track of those thousands of websites we want to remember.  Symbaloo, is similar, but even better for our students.

Symbaloo is an AMAZING book marking tool and it is FREE!  You get to create a webmix of links and Symbaloo will generate a link to share either publicly or privately (your choice). Anyone who has that link will automatically get any updates you make on your Symbaloo page.

So how on Earth could Symbaloo be used in the classroom???

1. Keeps websites at your student's fingertips in a colorful and bright way and has AUTOMATIC UPDATES
2. You can easily control what websites are available to your students and these websites are ALWAYS available to them - even at home!
3. You could make a different webmix for each unit or month or class to keep you and your students organized. 

Follow these directions below to create your very own classroom page!

• Go to symbaloo.com
• Click Login in the upper right hand corner
• The first time you use this you will need to make a log in
• Then right click on any tile for a menu to appear and click “edit”
• Then, on the menu that comes up on the left hand side of the screen, you can edit the name of the tile, the address to the website you wish to link to, the picture (icon) on the tile, the color of the tile, or the text color.
• Once you have edited everything you want to edit, then click save.
• After editing or adding all tiles, then you have to publish the webmix for it to be live. At the top of the screen click on the share button .

I can't wait to hear how you use Symbaloo in your classroom!

Check out this blog for more information too: http://www.theedublogger.com/2014/04/09/11-ways-to-use-symbaloo-in-the-classroom/

Happy Techy Teaching! 

The basics of Managing 1:1 iPads in the classroom - Getting Started and some Common Issues

In our district we just finished our second year with 1:1 iPads for ALL kindergarten, first and second graders. The first year we only had Kindergarten and First graders with 1:1, this year we added second graders. Our second year was MUCH better than the first, and I have really refined my tips and tricks!

As the media specialist I had to work with our teachers on implementing them with our students and coming up with ways to integrate them even with limited app choices. So here's what I will give my teachers at the beginning of next year to start their year off as organized as possible.

1:1 iPads In the Classroom

Tips and Tricks

• Setting up
• Number the slots on your cart and number the corresponding cords on your cart so students can easily know which slot and which cord are theirs
• Give each student a number to correspond with their iPad
• You may choose to number your devices, but know that you may have to renumber each year as devices are shifted to accommodate different enrollment numbers across the district. (At least this is how it is in our district. In order to keep costs down the district may have to move iPads from one classroom to another as enrollments change from year to year. So, we have tried to avoid renumbering by not numbering the devices - this is why we have the next tip!)
• Using Pictures as the Lockscreen and Home Screen
• At the beginning of the year, have students use the camera to take a selfie and then place that selfie as the student’s lock and home screen - this makes iPads easy to identify by anyone outside of your classroom who does not know their classroom number
• Go to photos > click on the photo you want > click the export (square with the arrow) button > click the grey “use as wallpaper” icon > set > set as both
• BONUS For fun you can always have their family set a picture as their home screen during Open House! :) All you would do, is follow the steps above and instead of "set both" you would "set as home screen". It makes the kids happy to see their family during the school day! :)
• Log-in to google
• Have your students (or their buddies) log into the app google drive.
• It makes saving projects and working in all google apps possible!
• Logging your students into google also gives them access to Docs, Sheets and Slides to do presentations, type documents and more!
• It also allows specials teachers or resource room teachers an option to have students use their devices and save work to their drive to share with parents
• The 30 minutes or so of time it takes to do this it totally worth it!
• Teach and use the correct academic vocabulary associated with these devices

• Other vocabulary not in the picture above :
• Swipe
• Tap/Double Tap
• App
• Background
• Dock (The bar of the apps that stays

Common Issues and how to Solve them

1. If the device has Wifi but doesn’t have the App you need on your, you get get it from the cloud (as long as it has been purchased by our tech department)
1. Click on the ‘App Store’ app
2. on the bottom choose ‘purchased’ tab and locate app.
3. Click on the cloud-looking icon next to the apps picture
4. app should start downloading - you will see a blue circle appear where cloud was
2. If the iPad displays that it needs to be backed up in iCloud.
1. This means the WiFi has been disconnected, and simply needs to be reconnected through Settings>WiFi
3. If you notice that a screen pops up asking you to agree to the ‘iTunes Terms and Services’ or a similar message about "the cloud" (this tends to happen after updates or new apps get pushed out)
1. Please click on ‘ok’ and/or ‘agree’ until it goes away

Hopefully you found some of that helpful for how to start using iPads in your classroom from the management side! Next year we will also have 1:1 chromebooks for ALL 3-5. Keep an eye out for more tips and tricks as we get that rolled out!

Happy Techy Teaching!

Boggle Board Madness!

Two week ago,  I put up a Boggle Board in my Classroom. It has been a HUGE HIT!

I have been looking for a way to continue to add ways for students to make choices and think critically as part of the Technology standards that I work with as Media Specialist. So I've been slowly adding stations to my Media Time. I work with students in small groups with technology to complete projects and tasks to enhance technology skills and then students work at other stations to increase technology, language arts, and library skills.

I'll be doing another post shortly about all the stations, but today I wanted to highlight by Boggle Board.

What is a Boggle Board?

A Boggle board is a simple game that consists of a grid of letters (4x4 or 5x5). Players have a certain amount of time to find as many words as they can that are hidden in the grid. Words must snake through adjacent letters by running up, down, sideways, or diagonally across the board. 

It's actually a digital game that I made into a board in my classroom. It's even on TV; well at least it was. 

Here's a link to the digital game: http://www.ea.com/boggle-ipad

I loved playing it on my phone when waiting in line or otherwise trying to occupy 5 minutes here and there, I figured my students could use this! 

Here's how I did it: 

1. First, I made letters and printed them out - 3 each. I laminated them so they would last. Then I cut them out to make the circles - I wanted mine to look just like the game. 
2. Then I put them on a tri-fold display board - mainly because my bulletin boards were already full (haha), but also because then I could move it wherever there was room that day. 
3. Then I made copies of my student recording sheet - to hold students accountable. 
4.  Next I talked about the game with my students, explained the directions and scoring, we practiced as a whole group. 
5. Then I let them go!

Pictures coming soon!

Turns out they find words I didn't know were in the board! Students did need constant reminders about the fact that 2 letter words don't count. But they had so much fun and they were so proud of themselves when they found 4 or 5 letter words or bigger! 

Why is a boggle board a good idea in my classroom?

·      A fun game that practices multiple skills at the same time

·      Critical thinking skills

·      Differentiation made easy – put a time limit for higher students or make the grid 5x5 for higher students, allow lower students to find 2 letter words

·      Vocabulary and spelling word practice

·      Word Work Station

·      Great for early finishers

Click here to buy my kit from my Teachers Pay Teachers Store to get you started!
https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Boggle-Board-Display-Kit-2475759