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" You are always a student, never a master. You have to keep moving forward. " Conrad Hall We are working on updating our  web resources  for different subject areas. This week the focus is on English Language Chrome and G Suite Resources for K-12 teachers and students. This is the working document. Digital English Language Resources for K-12 Teachers & Students If you have suggested resources or ideas can you share them with us using one or more of these options? Add a comment to this  English Language Resource Document . Post in this  Collaborative Padlet . Add a comment at the end of this post.

Creativity - Students demonstrate creative thinking, construct knowledge, and develop innovative products and processes using technology. Students will: Apply existing knowledge to generate new ideas, products, or processes. Create original works as a means of personal or group expression. Use models and simulations to explore complex systems and issues. Identify trends and forecast possibilities. Source: Student Skills Connected to Creativity “ You can't use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have. ”― Maya Angelou I started exploring different avatar creators about a year ago after I realized that my twin boys were using and modifying images of me they found online as their Chromebook backgrounds. This led to a conversation with my own children about being aware of what they post on the internet. Once you share something online, it will most likely be there forever. We decided that using avatars on some sites could be a fun way to creatively share who we are with the w...

Today at the EdTech Team Illinois Summit I was inspired by a great session on HyperDocs and Visible Thinking Routines .  I've created a quick activity connected to a  3 - 2 - 1 Bridge Activity for my students to initially activate their knowledge about sustainable agriculture. They will then reflect on their knowledge after completing this HyperDoc  connected to sustainable agriculture. Finally, students will reflect on the connections between their before and after ideas using a FlipGrid  response.  3-2-1 and Sustainable Agriculture Activity How could you adapt this for your students? How could I do this differently?  Source

This is not normally how I see my students, but I sometimes wonder if this is how they feel if I don't engage them in the learning? I have been enjoying the HyperDoc Takeover of the Project Learn Facebook Group and this started me reflecting on some of the HyperDoc tips I've shared at conferences, on social media, and in this blog. Here are some of my top HyperDoc tips. What more can you add? Please add additional tips using the comment feature this Google Doc , by replying to this post below, or by sharing your voice in this Flipgrid . (I will add any additional suggestions to the doc and give anyone who submits full credit!) Don’t let your students become keyboard monkeys. If you let them they will check the boxes to finish the HyperDoc without engaging in the learning. Engage them outside of the HyperDoc with face to face discussion and interactive formative assessments .  HyperDocs do not need to be Google Docs. They can be Google Slides , Google Sites , Google Drawings...

via @SARAHLANDIS I was inspired to create this quick post by the HyperDoc Takeover in the Project Learn Inspired by EdTechTeam Press Facebook Group I use HyperDocs as learning frameworks that connect my students to digital resources. I do my best to use HyperDocs to engage students in the content and connect our learning to the 4 Cs of collaboration, communication, critical thinking, and creativity. I play the role as facilitator or guide on the side as my students explore. I also try to be an active learner as my students engage in the resources.  How do you define a HyperDoc? What are your essentials when creating a HyperDoc? Please share in the comments below. Dive Deeper Into Hyperdocs Sarah Landis's Hyperdocs Defined Slide Deck When I create a HyperDoc there are 5 essentials that I always try to keep in mind.   Don’t just use Instructions that ask Students to complete, answer, or submit. Use action verbs like engage, explore, interact, apply, analyze . . ...

Critical thinking   - Students use critical thinking skills to plan and conduct research, manage projects, solve problems, and make informed decisions using appropriate digital tools and resources. Students will: Identify and define authentic problems and significant questions for investigation. Plan and manage activities to develop a solution or complete a project. Collect and analyze data to identify solutions and/or make informed decisions. Use multiple processes and diverse perspectives to explore alternative solutions. Source: Student Skills Connected to Critical Thinking A Google a Day   - A Google A Day was an online puzzle game from Google which invites the player to solve a lateral thinking puzzle by using Google to find the answer. A new puzzle was added every day. The questions may be any of the following categories: Sport, Science, Pop Culture, History, Arts and Literature, or Geography. Digital Breakout EDU   - Library of digital challenges and problem solvi...

Pear Deck recently  announced a new update to their Google Slides Add-on. I've just begun to explore this but I wanted to share 3 quick sample self-paced lessons to demo the new options from a student perspective. The first 2 just use the unedited template slides from the Add-on, the third is an actual exit slip or reflection connected to the first two. We made these to demo all of the new slide templates, of course, a teacher would not need to use all of the slide templates in their own presentations at the same time like we did to model this.  Take a look and let us know what you think? Feel free to share with your PLN if you think they might be interested, the more feedback the better? Pear Deck Sample 1 – Use to Start a Class or Lesson Pear Deck Sample 2 – Use During a Class or Lesson Pear Deck Sample 3 – Use to Start a Class or Lesson The Pear Deck Orchard also has some nice Sample Interactive Google Slide Decks you can explore. 

Why Use YouTube in the Classroom? Teachers who use instructional video report that their students retain more information, understand concepts more rapidly and are more enthusiastic about what they are learning. With video as one component in a thoughtful lesson plan, students often make new connections between curriculum topics, and discover links between these topics and the world outside the classroom. - NTTI When available, YouTube is an incredible learning resource for teachers and students. I use video in many of our AP Environmental Science Activites . When used well, I believe:  Videos connect students to people and places outside of our classroom. Videos help students connect concepts from our textbook. They often serve as great examples of key vocabulary in the real world.  Videos make great hooks for lessons and activities. They are often great discussion starters.  Videos can be inspirational and motivational for students and teachers.  Videos suppor...

“ Try to learn something about everything and everything about something. ” – Thomas Henry Huxley The best educators are not content to do the same old thing year after year. Innovative educators push their thinking by engaging in social media, exploring blogs, attending conferences, and exploring the newest generation of educational books. These resources connect educators to the incredible books my PLN explores to learn and grow as educators. We will do our best to update these resources as new books are recommended. We've created a site to organize and share some great books connected to teaching and learning. The site connects teachers to recommended books in the categories below. We placed each recommended book in 1 category, but we realize that many of the books stretch across multiple categories. EdTech - Popular books connected to best practices in instructional technology.  G Suite for Education - Popular books connected to Google for Education.  Mindsets & Inn...

" I have no special talents. I am only passionately curious. " Albert Einstein Happy 2018 2017 was an awesome year for me as an educator and a learner. I hope everyone is looking forward to another year of growth as teachers and learners, I know I am! Tis the season for everyone who anyone to share their top posts of 2017. (Not sure I fully qualify for this, but I'm going to follow the trend anyway.) I've organized my top posts, not by the number of hits, but instead by their impact on me as a teacher and learner. I created this blog to share my learning experiences. These are the top 5 posts that impacted me the most as a leaner in 2017. Formative Assessment and the Growth Mindset This is one of those posts that caught someone's interest on Twitter and led to a rather lengthy debate about the validity of the Growth Mindset. The discussion kept me on my toes and forced me to explore more about the Growth Mindset than I ever have in the past.  The Power of Collabor...