In a world where education is constantly evolving, the need for innovative tools that ignite students’ creativity and passion for learning is more important than ever.

Night Zookeeper, an interactive online platform, is revolutionizing the way teachers inspire imagination in their classrooms.

In this post, we will explore how Night Zookeeper can foster creativity in the classroom.

Unleashing Creativity in the Classroom: How Night Zookeeper Sparks Students’ Imagination

What is Night Zookeeper?

Night Zookeeper is an educational online program for children aged 6 to 12+ (Grades 1 to 6) that uses gamified learning to help them develop reading and writing skills.

It offers a full language arts curriculum while transforming “boring school work” into fun and engaging games, challenges, interactive lessons, and collaborative projects – children often don’t even realize they’re working!

Night Zookeeper also provides a safe space for all children, including awesome community and blog pages which they’re free to explore and use to further improve their reading and writing skills.

A team of highly qualified tutors reviews all content shared within the program.

Are you ready to make reading and writing fantastically fun for your students?

*Related: 3 Essential Guides for Teachers: Adapting Instruction to Every Student Ability

At its core, Night Zookeeper is designed to make learning fun and engaging. The platform revolves around a captivating world where students create and interact with magical animals, embark on quests, and engage in creative writing challenges. It’s this blend of storytelling and interactive gameplay that captures the imagination of young minds, making them excited about learning.

One of the most significant ways Night Zookeeper sparks creativity is through its focus on creative writing. Students are encouraged to write stories, poems, and reports about their unique magical animals. This not only helps improve their writing skills but also allows them to express themselves in a safe, imaginative environment. As they create their narratives, they learn the power of language and storytelling, skills vital in all areas of education and life.

Another aspect where Night Zookeeper shines is in its ability to personalize learning. Every student’s journey is unique, with the platform adapting to their specific learning pace and style. This personalized approach ensures that students remain engaged and motivated, as tasks are neither too easy nor too challenging. It’s in this tailored learning environment that creativity flourishes – students feel confident to explore, make mistakes, and learn from them, which is essential for creative growth.

*Related: Say Hello to FigJam: Your Jamboard Alternative with Endless Possibilities

Check out Night Zookeeper’s downloadable learning resources, great for getting your child excited about reading & writing.

Night Zookeeper for Schools and Teachers

Teachers are not left behind in this creative journey. Night Zookeeper offers a suite of tools for educators to track student progress, provide personalized feedback, and integrate the platform’s resources into their lesson plans. This ease of integration means that teachers can effectively use Night Zookeeper to complement their teaching methods, making lessons more dynamic and impactful.

Night Zookeeper is more than just an educational platform; it’s a catalyst for creativity in the classroom. By blending the art of storytelling with interactive and gamified learning, it provides a unique space for students to explore, imagine, and create. For teachers looking to spark imagination and foster a love for learning in their students, Night Zookeeper is a valuable resource worth exploring.

Get the FREE Trial!

Classroom Reading & Writing Program

• Make reading & writing fun for your students!
• Boost their vocabulary, spelling, and grammar!
• Save yourself hours of grading time!

*Please note that this post contains affiliate links, and I may earn a small commission if you make a purchase through these links. This helps support the maintenance of this blog and allows me to continue sharing valuable content.

© Shake Up Learning 2023. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Kasey Bell and Shake Up Learning with appropriate and specific direction to the original content on ShakeUpLearning.com. See: Copyright Policy.

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I’ve been learning how to use Book Creator…and LOVING it!

More specifically, I am experimenting with ways Book Creator can be used to create and implement choice boards in the classroom.

Book Creator is very intuitive and is loaded with student engagement tools.

And I have a brand new idea to share in this post: Weekly Choice Board Books! (Keep reading and watch the video below.)

This post is sponsored by Book Creator.

Creating Choice Boards with Book Creator

Y’all know I love choice boards.

Until now, I have kept things simple and used Google tools. But I am expanding my toolbox and exploring other tools that can offer more for teachers and students.

Book Creator is a content creation tool. Teachers and students can create a library of “books” filled with multimedia content.

So how can we use a book for choice boards?

Let me show you!

We can easily use a page in Book Creator to create a choice board and even use additional pages for templates or include details for the assignment choices.

But I wanted to try something new.

Weekly Choice Board Books

I wanted to create a Weekly Choice Board Book–a book with several choice boards we will use throughout the week.

First, I created my book using one of the comic templates. It already has sections divided, so it seemed perfect for a choice board!

Next, I created a cover using Canva. You can connect apps like Canva to Book Creator, and they already have book cover templates specifically for Book Creator. This was super easy!

Then I started adding pages and creating different types of choice boards.

Bell Ringer Choice Boards

Many teachers like to use bell ringers to get kids settled as class begins.

What if we give them a few choices for their bell ringer activity and reuse this choice board throughout the week?

It doesn’t have to be complicated; I created a bell ringer choice board with six choices. By the end of the week, students will complete all but one, but they can choose which one they want to do each day.

Pick 2 Choice Board

Next, I created what I call the Pick 2 Choice Board. You can easily create a pick 2, 3, 4, etc. The intention on this one is to select one choice from the top row (template-driven activities) and one from the bottom row (videos).

It’s really easy to embed videos in Book Creator, and students can watch them without leaving the app.

Thanks to Shake Up Learning Team member Sarah Kiefer for sharing her history choice board and letting me use her content for this one!

There are two other features that I wanted to try on this page, inserting a voice recording of the directions and linking text to outside resources. Both features are very easy to use and easily found in the menu when you click on the plus sign.

Using the voice recorder to read the directions aloud to students can help all students better understand the expectations and give the teacher extra “room” to elaborate.

Tic-Tac-Toe Choice Board

Last but not least, I had to test out my favorite choice board style, the tic-tac-toe. Since there wasn’t a comic template with nine squares, I just used the shape tool to build it.

The novel study tic-tac-toe is a choice board I created many years ago, and I just copied and pasted the content over from Google Docs (a Book Creator makeover).

Students Creating with Book Creator

Now that you have seen how the teacher can use Book Creator to create, I want to show you the power of having students create with it.

My last page demonstrates different types of student choice activities you could use in Book Creator.

Here’s a quick list of some of the features you can try with students:

• voice response
• embed code: embed videos or any other content with embed code
• use paper backgrounds like graph paper
• draw and auto-draw (AI tool that predicts what you are trying to draw)
• comic strip
• import files from a computer or Google Drive
• text response (Voice typing option is great for all learners.)
• webcam response: take a still photo or video
• create and import from Canva
• image response (search from a copyright-friendly database)
• use comments, emojis, and more!

The possibilities are endless. I have only scratched the surface!

Be sure to watch the video below to see these ideas come to life.

Sign Up for Book Creator

Get started today with a free Book Creator account! You can upgrade later to access all the features.

Book Creator at TCEA 2023

Going to TCEA, be sure to visit the Book Creator booth and catch my presentation on Wednesday.

• 11:00-11:30: Empower & Engage Students with Book Creator Choice Boards with book signing and giveaway (Book Creator Booth #878)

© Shake Up Learning 2023. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Kasey Bell and Shake Up Learning with appropriate and specific direction to the original content on ShakeUpLearning.com. See: Copyright Policy.

The post Creating Choice Boards with Book Creator appeared first on Shake Up Learning.

In this episode, I chat with Scott Nunes, a teacher and District Engagement Advocate for Canva.

Scott shares insider tips, tools, and new features in Canva.

Canva has gone from this super cool image creation tool to a blended learning platform for teachers and students.

And Canva for Education is FREE for teachers and students!

Don’t miss this jam-packed episode!

Listen to this episode.

This episode is sponsored by Konica-Minolta.

Over 1.4 million violent incidents occur in schools every year. What if technology could bring peace-of-mind for parents, students and educators? Konica Minolta’s intelligent video security solutions allow you to easily sign in guests, track visitors, and monitor your entire campus to keep unwanted visitors out. Visit rethinkschoolsecurity.com to check out their visitor management system, door barriers, and smart security cameras. While you’re there, you can also take a quiz to determine the level of security your school currently has. It’s time to rethink school security.

4+ Things You Didn’t Know Canva Could Do!

Scott Nunes has the insider scoop on all things Canva! He shares some awesome new features that you need to know about.

1. Record a Presentation or Lesson

Did you know that you can record lessons in Canva? This is great for creating asynchronous lessons that students can watch over and over again. It frees you up during class time to facilitate, answer questions, and give feedback to students.

Here’s how it works. Go to the top right corner of your presentation and select “Share.” Then you should see the option to “Present and record.”

Related: Asynchronous Learning Tips for Teachers

2. Text to Image

Text to Image is an app inside of canva that uses AI to help you find the perfect image for your projects. Using the words you input, Text to Image will find images to match your description. It is only limited by your creativity!

How to make AI-generated images

1. Launch the Text to Image app

   Start a design project from scratch or with a template. On the editor, go to the sidebar and click More. Then, click on the Text to Image app.

2. Convert text to image

   Enter your text prompt on the text-to-image generator to convert it into an image. Get creative and descriptive with your prompt. You can choose any available image style like Photo, Drawing, or Pattern. Or use the “Surprise Me” option to get a random style. Then, click Generate Image.

3. Enhance your AI image or art

   Click on the AI-generated image to add it to your design. You can enhance the photo with our built-in photo editor. Adjust the image setting sliders, add depth of field with Autofocus, or apply exciting filters. Crop images, resize, or flip as needed.

4. Explore the media library

   Spruce up your AI-generated images or design project with fun graphic design elements from the free media library. Add stickers, illustrations, and borders to your AI image. You can also put text on your image and play with different font styles.

5. Download and share

   Download your unique AI-generated image in a high-resolution image format. Or save your design project that contains the converted images. You can also share your work online via social media and email. 
   

3 & 4. Magic Write and Canva Docs

Magic Write is an AI-powered content generation tool. (Think Chat GPT inside of Canva.)

You can use it to write anything from brainstorming, lesson plans, reports, etc.

Before you panic, Magic Write and Canva Docs are NOT available in Canva for Education. It may be in the future, but for now, you must have Canva Pro.

But this feature is so cool, it is definitely worth a look!

Magic Write is only available in Canva Docs, which is another feature teachers will love.

Canva Docs allows you to design documents supercharged with videos, images, graphics, charts, and graphs.

As much as I love the simplicity of Google Docs, Canva Docs is pulling me in with its amazing features and design capabilities.

So now you can create documents of any style just like you can a presentation inside of Canva.

• Drag-and-drop editor: No more formatting woes. The drag-and-drop editor makes adding and editing visual content easy.
• Hassle-free data visualization tools: Make your data beautiful and easy to digest with features like checklists, tables, graphs, and charts.
• Content at your fingertips: Tap the + button and search for tables, videos, images, or any graphic your Doc needs. Add editable Design Blocks to make document banners and page dividers pop with custom text and graphics.
• Collaborate in real-time: Your team can view and edit your Doc in real-time – even if they don’t have a Canva account. Keep track of everyone with cursor colors and selections.
• Add comments: Leave comments and assign tasks to your team, or simply react to their work with emojis and stickers.
• Work from anywhere: Create, view, and edit your Docs wherever you are, with Canva available across desktop, tablet, and mobile devices.
• Make it interactive: Share your Doc online, and your viewers can scroll through and interact with it – just like a website.
• Track engagement with Insights: Built-in analytics shows how your audience interacts with your Doc. See who has viewed your Docs and when.
• Turn Docs to Decks: Need to present a Doc? Easy! Turn your Canva Doc into a Canva presentation in moments. You’ll always be a couple of clicks away from being ready for anything.

Do you need more reasons to try this? What an amazing tool. This can revolutionize the way we create documents, lessons, and assignments!

Ready for more? FREE Canva Training with Scott Nunes

Don’t miss the free training on YouTube coming January 23rd! Watch it here!

About Scott Nunes

Twitter: @MrNunesteach

Podcast: Education Today

Scott Nunes is an energetic ELA Teacher turned Edtech Coach now Consultant, Podcaster, and Influencer. Scott builds on his 20+ years as a freelance Graphic Designer to bring real world relevance to classrooms around the world. When he isn’t busy podcasting (Education Today) he can be found sharing on Twitter (@MrNunesTeach). Scott is all about building relationships and uplifting teacher and student voices while advocating for belonging, choice, and creating positive work cultures that empower stakeholders to achieve a unifying vision.

© Shake Up Learning 2023. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Kasey Bell and Shake Up Learning with appropriate and specific direction to the original content on ShakeUpLearning.com. See: Copyright Policy.

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Let’s have some fun with Winter Magnetic Poetry with Google Slides!

Winter is coming! Well, at least for some of you. Things are still pretty warm here in Texas!

This is the third installment of magnetic poetry templates that I have shared.

Magnetic Poetry

Lynn Kleinmeyer’s Students Using Winter Magnetic Poetry

What is Magnetic Poetry?

© Shake Up Learning 2023. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Kasey Bell and Shake Up Learning with appropriate and specific direction to the original content on ShakeUpLearning.com. See: Copyright Policy.

The post Winter Magnetic Poetry with Google Slides appeared first on Shake Up Learning.

In this episode, Kasey chats with Dr. Monica Alicea, a Technology Training and Integration Specialist, about strategies and tools to engage students.

Monica loves getting students connected on a global scale and loves to use digital tools like Lumio to create interactive lessons to engage her students.

Tune in to learn more about Global Connections Week and other great ideas from Monica!

Currently, Monica serves four elementary schools in her district.

She helps to support them with the district’s technology initiatives, she coaches teachers and models lessons.

Monica also offers professional development to her teachers on a number of free technology products. 

Listen to this article.

Engaging Lessons for the Next-Gen Connected Creators

This episode is sponsored by Lumio.

Lumio is a digital learning tool that will transform your lessons into active, collaborative learning experiences. Every day more schools and districts are switching to Lumio – it’s truly a flexible, time-saving tool that makes it easy to turn your PDFs, Google Slides, PowerPoint, and Notebook files into engaging lessons with interactive activities, games, group workspaces, and formative assessment ALL built right in. Boost your student engagement on any devices wherever learning needs to happen. To get Lumio for FREE, head to Lum.io today.

Returning to the Classroom with Technology

Monica shares that many of her teachers, upon returning to the classroom from remote learning, wanted to simply feel like a teacher of students once again. Meaning that they looked for lessons that gave students hands-on experiences and movement. Tech products like Lumio offer engaging tools such as a spinning wheel and moveable manipulatives. 

Working with a school that is moving towards classroom laptop carts, Monica enjoys sharing Lumio since every student doesn’t need a device to make lessons engaging. Another great way to engage students with technology in the classroom would be Flipgrid videos. 

Lumio for Teachers

Kasey shares how Lumio impressed her with its practicality during the remote teaching days. Monica agrees and points out that Lumio organizes lessons that match her district’s instructional framework. Teachers can use Lumio to quickly create a full lesson that includes a hook. Hooks can be several different options: YouTube video or clip, KWL chart, check-in, quick response, and more. 

Monica explains how teachers can personalize learning through Lumio lessons. Providing whole class instruction, small groups, assign differentiated instruction, collaborative work, or individual practice. To conclude the lesson, teachers can assign formative assessments. These assessments can be individual or group reviews depending on the type of feedback needed for future learning. 

Teachers love how easy Lumio makes lesson creation with each of the elements necessary to complete the framework. Having resources at their fingertips while designing saves tons of time. The variety of options available also helps keep students engaged. 

Related: Must-Have Tips and Tools for Pandemic Teaching

Going Global in the Classroom

Monica and Kasey share a passion for showing students how to collaborate and learn on a global scale. The Global Connections Week was created by Monica’s district in order to help students connect with other classrooms around the world. 

Connecting can mean several different things: taking a virtual field trip, inviting a virtual guest speaker, or even connecting with other classrooms locally and globally. The group of tech coaches also developed training materials to support their teachers and provide some ideas. Those ideas, stemming from the Mystery Skype concept, included: a mystery animal connection, a mystery number connection, a mystery geography connection, and reading your favorite book. Each class would have to guess the other’s mystery by asking yes or no questions. 

Monica shares that one of her classrooms was able to connect with a teacher in Russia, who shared what her students were learning. Another classroom connected with a class in Canada to discuss the similarities and differences in their schools. The purpose of the week is to show students that there is a big world for them to explore. 

Connecting with other classrooms around the world can be very simple. Collaboration can take place in every grade and subject area. 

Related: Get Students CREATING with Global Maker Challenges

Learning Design with Technology

Monica reminds us that the framework helps focus on the content and who’s constructing knowledge with the lesson. Rather than spoon-feeding knowledge to our students, it’s best practice to allow them to construct their own knowledge. When students collaborate it’s important to ask if the group is meant to complete a project or are they working together for shared decision making? 

A balance between digital and analog activities and learning is important to consider in relation to student screentime. Monica adds that tech creation tools are a great use of technology in the classroom. Allowing students the opportunity to choose and create how they share their learning is a great use of technology. Many of these creation tools also teach students during the creative process. 

While using technology to teach can be exciting and time-saving, it’s always important to match the learning goal to the tool. Educators want their students to be less a consumer of knowledge and more a creator of learning. To do this well it can often mean letting go of control. A difficult task for many educators. Monica shares that she was in that place and when she did let go of control everything changed for her. 

She advises teachers to find other educators who are doing what they’d like to be doing and reach out to them. Many teachers are willing to support other teachers and share their lesson ideas and methods. Monica shares that there are several ways to connect with other educators through social media platforms. Kasey also points out that attending conferences can be a great way to find your people. 

Monica wanted to leave everyone with one last tip on using technology in the classroom: we can learn from our students. Sometimes it may feel as though we need to know all the ins and outs of the tech to use it with students, but oftentimes we need only provide the content and allow students to use the tech.

About Monica Alicea

Monica Alicea is in her fourth year as a Technology Training and Integration Specialist with the Cobb County School District in Marietta, Georgia. She supports four elementary schools where her responsibilities include supporting district initiatives, providing training, coaching, and modeling of Digital Age Classroom instructional strategies and district priorities based on district and school needs. Prior to this, Monica was a Gifted Education Specialist and taught 1st-5th gifted students. Monica was Teacher of the Year in 2015-16 school year at Cheatham Hill Elementary and the 3rd place Voya Unsung Hero award winner of

 a $7000 grant for Farm2Table: A Service Learning Project in 2017. Monica holds a Ph.D. in Elementary Education from Georgia State University. She has a passion for Service Learning, Global Connections, and Experiential Learning.

© Shake Up Learning 2023. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Kasey Bell and Shake Up Learning with appropriate and specific direction to the original content on ShakeUpLearning.com. See: Copyright Policy.

The post Engaging Lessons for Next-Gen Connected Creators – SULS0160 appeared first on Shake Up Learning.

In this episode, Kasey chats with Jennifer Conti about the podcasting initiative launched at her school. Jen shares how podcasting can help students meet content standards, explore their interests, learn new skills, tap into the 4 c’s, and engage in authentic learning.

You don’t want to miss this episode!

Jen shares her background as a teacher for 24 years. Nineteen of those were in middle school, which is the level where she currently serves as a Tech Integration Specialist. Her job is to help teachers to use technology to meet the needs of their students. 

Listen to this article.

Engage Students AND Meet Standards with Student Podcasting!

Getting Started

A unique aspect of Jen’s school is its elective program for seventh and eighth-graders. Once a week students choose their elective class based on an area of interest. These classes are taught by teachers, parents, grandparents, and community members as organized by the principal. Jen took this program a step further by offering students an opportunity to podcast about their interests that they are learning about throughout this time. 

Jen began by letting students explore the content available in podcasts. Next, students started recording their own content using Google Slides. Jen took their podcasting to the next level when she was awarded $10,000 of grant money. They were able to purchase recording equipment, as well as, professional development for helping all teachers to utilize podcasting in their classrooms. 

Building the Podcasting Elective Program

With the help of educator friend, Jake Miller, teachers and students were given hands-on learning with the new recording equipment. Chris Nesi, another educator friend, and podcast producer took time to Google Meet with students and provide feedback. To continue with this feedback, Jen and Chris set up a Flipgrid space for students to upload their episodes. 

The best way to get started is to just start. Simple voice recording tech makes it a podcast. There is no need to have fancy equipment or to stream on all the name-brand platforms. Teachers interested in using the podcasting concept should be encouraged by the simplicity. 

Exposing students to other student-created podcasts helps students to gain the confidence for sharing their own content. Whether 100 or only 1 person listens to the episode it’s still a podcast and students shared their voices. Jen’s students started simple. They each had a Google Slide to upload their voice recording. They also designed logos and added Slide animation to play on clicks. Eventually, Jen created a Google Site to share their Slides. Here is an introductory Hyperdoc lesson that Jen uses with her students to get started.

Podcasting in ALL Content Areas

As students’ competency grew they began writing their own scripts and inviting guests for interviews. They are owning their podcasts and having a whole lot of fun doing it. While Jen’s kids may be creating for an elective this concept for students to show what they know can be used in content classes as well. 

Consider how students might use a podcast as an assessment tool. Students can present their learning on any topic without having to write it all out or record with their faces being displayed. Of course, writing out their ideas first is an option and one that can help many students. The opportunity to record their writing can also help students to hear mistakes and make edits. Reading their writing aloud also helps students gain fluency skills. When students have an authentic audience and experience they take more pride in their work. 

Jen knew her students had arrived at that next level when students in other grades were talking to her students in the halls as their podcasting persona. Kids are well versed in the video creation world of YouTube and see how the professionals create nicknames or slogans. 

Podcasting Equipment

With the grant money, Jen was able to purchase 12 Blue Yeti microphones. They simply plug into a computer or Chromebook with a USB. Students were able to Google directions for how to get them up and running. They also purchased sound boxes to give students specific spaces to record. 

For the younger students, Jen started using iPads and microphone headsets to help them to record their voices. Teachers are excited to start their elementary students recording their voices. 

In the beginning, students would record for 60-90 seconds. Now students have built up to 12 minutes. Soundtrap for EDU allowed students to add music and talk for longer on their topics of interest. Jen shares how one student interviewed her for 20 minutes about the Harry Potter series. Students were surprising themselves with how long they could talk on their topics. 

Jen shares how students are beginning to see how these skills can help them explore career choices. They are recognizing the professionals in the field of podcasting and video production. It’s opening their eyes to the aspects of production that they enjoy and excel in. 

Future Projects

Jen hopes to expand the podcasting project into all classrooms. Sharing this project helps to give students a tangible growth mindset work ethic. Teachers at Jen’s school who have implemented podcasting or voice recording are already guiding students when they ask to try again for a better recording. 

Jen is also working on an ELA project with our 5th grade and Literacy Enrichment teachers to help students “Show What They Know” about Summarizing, Character Analysis, and Sequencing. We are “App Smashing” with Canva, Google Slides, Flipgrid, Fake Text Message, and Slidesmania.

This school year the teachers of Immaculate Heart of Mary are focusing on aligning standards and assessments. They opened the school year with a PD analyzing the verbs in our standards and aligning assessments to match those verbs. It was REALLY eye-opening for some teachers! The principal, two teachers, and Jen were on a podcast episode for the Diocese of Cleveland talking about the goals for this project. Take a listen! 

Up next for Jen is a virtual PD workshop through Kent State University. A semester course, Innovative Teaching, and Learning: Integrating Digital Tools to Engage Your Learners, where educators can work at their own pace on tech tools like movie trailers, Pear Deck, Flipgrid, podcasting, and so many more. The course is open to all educators for $75 and graduate credit through Kent State is also available. 

About Jen Conti

Jen Conti is a proud alum of Kent State University’s College of Education, Health & Human Services. She brings 24 years of classroom and tech integration experience helping students and teachers use tech in innovative ways. She is a Google Certified and Flipgrid Certified Educator. She has presented at multiple local and state conferences and has worked on several Curriculum Planning Teams for the Diocese of Cleveland. She was also part of the Blended Learning with Google Book Launch Team. Her passion is helping other teachers bring learning alive in their classrooms!

© Shake Up Learning 2023. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Kasey Bell and Shake Up Learning with appropriate and specific direction to the original content on ShakeUpLearning.com. See: Copyright Policy.

The post Engage Students AND Meet Standards with Student Podcasting! – SULS0134 appeared first on Shake Up Learning.

In this episode, Kasey interviews Jaime Donally, one of the Global Maker Day organizers about the power of creating and sharing on a global level. Learn about the creation challenges and how your classroom can participate. The 4 C’s are more important than ever so you don’t want to miss this free opportunity to help students learn how to problem-solve and innovate!

Jamie and seven of her colleagues began organizing the Global Maker Day in 2016. As a day built for inspiring educators to help innovate, the day has evolved and updated in the last five years. 

Listen to article.

What is Global Maker Day? 

To be clear, the day does not require teachers to have or assemble a Maker Space. “We are all makers!” Jamie and her team want to be sure that educators don’t feel a need to purchase fancy equipment or a laundry list of materials. The day is meant to be a source of inspiration, collaboration, and sharing. 

Classrooms can tune in live (or recorded) to watch each of the 30-minute presentations on October 12 from 9 AM-5 PM EST. There are several types of presentations, but each one is meant to inspire students to create for themselves. 

Presenters in the past have included classrooms as they work on their own projects, teachers who share a specific idea, industries like Stanley Black & Decker, and many others. Each of the presentations will provide an open-ended challenge for students to try on their own. 

Why Watch? 

The goal of each presentation is to inspire students to create and then share their creations. Whether teachers choose to watch every presentation or a few, students will need their critical thinking skills to complete any of the challenges. Jamie explains that these challenges are purposefully open-ended so that students will evaluate their limitations and critically think through finding a way to make them happen. This is also why classrooms do not need any fancy technology or materials to complete challenges. 

In the past, some teachers have used the day to present their own challenges to their students rather than asking them to complete the presented challenges. The heart behind this chosen day is to inspire students to create. 

What to Expect? 

Variety. Each presentation will be different because making is all about creativity. Jamie shares a past presentation by Joy Schwartz, whose students developed a passion project to 3D print prosthetic limbs for children in need. While this is a major undertaking, Joy’s students drove this project based on their learning in class and they wanted to inspire others to use their talents to help. 

Inspiring creativity may be the heart behind Global Maker Day, but sharing those creations is what keeps this day alive. So much of the learning process in life is about learning from others. Allowing someone else’s creativity to spark new creative ideas for others. 

The range of challenges can be as simple as cooking recipes or as advanced as digitally created AR/VR projects. However, it’s never necessary for students to have the same equipment or materials to complete any challenge. Students can think through what is available to them to overcome the challenge presented. Jamie suggests teachers pull out any materials in the classroom you have on hand and bring your junk drawers that day. 

There is still a need for more presenters at this time, so if you are hearing about this for the first time and have something to contribute be sure to connect with the team. 

How to Share? 

With today’s technology, there are a gazillion different ways for students to share their creations. To honor student safety over the Internet it’s important that teachers do the sharing. Sharing may be as simple as a shared drive for the class or teachers can share across social media outlets using the hashtag #GlobalMakerDay. 

However, students are putting their creations out into the world it’s important for them to recognize their work is for an authentic audience. This means it’s just as important to view the different creations. Taking the time to have students see other finished challenge products extends those critical thinking skills. 

How to Get Involved

If you would like to participate or even learn more visit the Global Maker Day website. There, teachers can register for the day as a participant. This is a free opportunity and it’s important to register so all updates and important information are emailed to you. The first email will be a welcome letter with frequently asked questions answered. The website is also a great place to view past presentations. 

Mark your calendars, and join Global Maker Day on October 12, 2021!

Jaime Donally is a passionate technology enthusiast. She began her career as a math teacher and later moved into Instructional Technology. Her desire to build relationships has brought about opportunities to collaborate with students and educators around the world. She provides staff development and training on immersive technology as an edtech consultant.

​Her latest adventures include the launch of Global Maker Day and the #ARVRinEDU community, events, and presentations. She works as an author and speaker to provide the practical use of augmented and virtual reality in the classroom.

About Jaime Donally

Twitter: @jaimedonally + @GlobalMaker

Websites: ARVRinEDU.com + GlobalMakerDay.com

Bio: Jaime Donally is a passionate technology enthusiast. She began her career as a math teacher and later moved into Instructional Technology. Her desire to build relationships has brought about opportunities to collaborate with students and educators around the world. She provides staff development and training on immersive technology as an edtech consultant.

​Her latest adventures include the launch of Global Maker Day and the #ARVRinEDU community, events, and presentations. She works as an author and speaker to provide the practical use of augmented and virtual reality in the classroom. 

© Shake Up Learning 2023. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Kasey Bell and Shake Up Learning with appropriate and specific direction to the original content on ShakeUpLearning.com. See: Copyright Policy.

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The 4 C’s are foundational skills that students need to thrive in the 21st Century.

How are you ensuring your students are tapping into the 4 C’s this school year?

In this episode, Kasey shares learning activities that align with the 4 C’s, as well as tips to help you build these skills throughout the school year.

Be sure to listen to the podcast episode! Kasey will walk you through the activities and how to apply the 4 C’s!

Listen to this article.

Back to School with the 4 C’s [Aligned Activities]

Back to School is the perfect time to begin planning with the 4 C’s!

As you plan your lessons this school year, think about the 4 C’s and how you can implement them on a regular basis.

Are there C’s that you implement frequently? Are there some that you rarely implement?

At the heart of the Dynamic Learning Model are the four Cs: creativity, communication, collaboration, and critical thinking skills.

Foundational for learning transformation, the four Cs help prepare students for the future.

I often refer to the 4 C’s as the “Superfoods of Learning.”

Every time I walk into a classroom and see something amazing, at least one of the four Cs are present, if not more. Every Dynamic Learning Experience should include at least one of the four Cs.

This is something I share more extensively in my books, Shake Up Learning: Practical Ideas to Move Learning from Static to Dynamic, and Blended Learning with Google: Your Guide to Dynamic Teaching and Learning.

What Are the 4 C’s?

For our purposes, we will define these skills as the following:

Creativity: The use of imagination and original ideas to solve problems and create (Examples: Cultivate creativity and innovation with projects that require students to design original solutions, invent something new to solve a problem, or integrate art and design, with room to fail.)

Communication: The ability to effectively and clearly communicate for a variety of audiences and using a variety of tools and mediums (Examples: Give students opportunities to interact with adult experts, authors, and real-world audiences. Let them experience speaking and presenting.)

Collaboration: Learning and working in groups or teams, locally or globally, to achieve a goal (Examples: Ensure that there is purpose to the collaboration and not just group work. Form partners and teams strategically, with assigned leadership roles, include team-building exercises, and establish collaboration guidelines and shared decision-making.)

Critical Thinking: The ability to conceptualize, analyze, synthesize, and evaluate information for the purpose of deeper understand- ing, problem-solving, and guiding action (Examples: Create learning experiences, such as mock trials or debates, scientific investigations, interpreting events in history or literature, or design challenges.)

Related: The 4 C’s Choice Board

The 4 C’s Aligned Activities

The table below is merely a starting place.

Obviously, activities can be tweaked to include other C’s, but these are the basics that usually coincide with these types of activities. (Listen to the episode, and I will explain each one!)

Move BEYOND traditional assignments, expectations, and OLD rubrics.

For instance, communication goes far beyond presentation skills, in fact, you will see that communication has the most checkmarks in the chart below because it is required for almost everything that we do. How that gets translated in the classroom is up to you.

On the other hand, collaboration could be added to many of the activities below. However, I encourage you to not look at collaboration as an add-on.

Going back to episode 120 with Vicki Heupel, collaboration is much more than just putting students in pairs or groups. It needs a purpose, and often a deeper learning expectation to make it meaningful. Think of assignments that are much more challenging solo.

There is a lot of overlap in the C’s. Collaboration requires communication, and often time creativity and critical thinking also go hand in hand. It depends on your implementation.

* This is just a general place to start. Be sure to listen to episode 124 of the Shake Up Learning Show for a breakdown of skills, and variables to reach more C’s. Created by Kasey Bell, ShakeUpLearning.com

Related: The 4 C’s: The Superfoods of Learning!

What will you try this school year? What would you add to this table?

The Back to School Conference (FREE)

Looking for more Back to School ideas to prepare for the “new normal”?

The Shake Up Learning Team is excited to announce a brand new online conference coming this September! It’s completely free, online, asynchronous, and designed for K-12 teachers and educational leaders.

With a focus on adapting to the “new normal,” this conference will help teachers and educational leaders learn new skills and strategies to engage students in online and blended learning.

With 30+ breakout sessions from education experts and special keynotes by Kasey Bell and Jen Giffen, this is sure to be an event to remember. Teachers will walk away with practical ideas to move learning forward. Leaders will learn about critical shifts, and how to lead meaningful change.

All presenters have been hand-selected from the Shake Up Learning Team, and special invited guests, including Jake Miller, Evan Robb, Angela Draper, and Jon Corippo. We even have a few sessions in Spanish!

With engaging presentations by the expert SHAKE UP LEARNING TEAM and invited guests, educators across the globe can take their teaching and leadership skills to the next level.

• 30+ sessions, including keynotes by Kasey Bell and Jen Giffen.
• Video presentations are released each day of the conference week.
• Videos available until Oct. 30, 2021 (or one-year access with the ALL-ACCESS PASS)
• Topics include: Google tools, Dynamic Learning, Google Certification, Leadership, SEL, and Accessibility
• GET CREDIT! Certificates will be available for each session.

LEARN MORE & REGISTER HERE

© Shake Up Learning 2023. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Kasey Bell and Shake Up Learning with appropriate and specific direction to the original content on ShakeUpLearning.com. See: Copyright Policy.

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In this episode, Kasey chats with Jen Giffen, a teacher-librarian and new Shake Up Learning trainer.

Jen shares ideas that will help teachers go BEYOND traditional assessments like reports, essays, presentations, and cookie-cutter assignments.

Learn how you can use projects like podcasting, Ignite talks, sketchnoting, and student voice to demonstrate learning.

You don’t have to keep doing the same, old-school, static assignments!

AND! Learn all about the Summer Webinar Series with Jen Giffen to go deeper into all of these topics.

This episode is sponsored by Schoolytics.

Schoolytics helps you measure, monitor, and manage student engagement and assignments. It also organizes all the student engagement data from Google Classroom in one easy-to-use dashboard. And my favorite part? Schoolytics is free for teachers!

Visit: schoolytics.io to sign up!

Listen to this article.

Shoutout

Thank you, Jasmine Pearman, a recent Google Slides Master Class graduate, for leaving this testimonial.

“This course was very informative and hands-on to truly teach how to use Google Slides, this is great for anyone wanting to learn more about google slides.”

Quick Tip of the Week (Rotate Text in Sheets)

Have you ever wanted to rotate text in your Google Sheet so it is tilted vertically like in a grade book? It’s super easy!

 Watch this quick video to learn how!

Quick Tip Video Library

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   OR, watch it on TikTok!

4 Projects that Go Beyond Traditional Assessment

Sketchnote by Jen Giffen

Jen Giffen, aka Virtual Giff, is a Teacher Librarian and Former Curriculum Consultant in the York Region District School Board in Ontario, Canada. This school year Jen reentered the classroom and shares some of her favorite engaging student assessment and assignment ideas.

Adding color and joy is what Jen does best. You may remember her color-coding system to “beautify” Google Drive in episode 10 of the Google Teacher Podcast from a few years ago. In this episode, Jen discusses how technology has truly stepped up the teacher collaboration opportunity in sharing ideas for student engagement. When educators share what they discover and learn every teacher becomes a cog in this big machine that educates kids. It truly takes a village.

Related: Make Your Google Drive Beautiful

Beyond Traditional Assessment

As a Shake Up Learning trainer, Jen will be offering a 4-part webinar series this summer. Each webinar will explain several teaching strategies to help assess students in more engaging ways. Rather than dreading a stack of essays to read, teachers can look forward to interacting with student learning through these dynamic project ideas.

Dynamic Learning is at the heart of Kasey Bell’s books, Shake Up Learning and Blended Learning with Google. Going beyond traditional, static assignments is what Dynamic Learning is all about!

Teachers can learn new ideas that move away from the “cookie-cutter” assessments and assignments to give students the room to flex their creative muscles and truly showcase their learning. These 4 projects are not just essay alternatives. Jen will share how these strategies can be adapted to many grade levels and subject areas.

Related: How to Push the Boundaries of School with Dynamic Learning

#1 Podcasting

The first part in the webinar series discusses how student-created podcasts not only demonstrate student learning but also require students to practice a number of skills. Producing a podcast requires students to demonstrate multiple standards in many areas. Students might write scripts, record and edit audio, provide show notes on a website designed and built by them, and even read some fiction or nonfiction as background based on their topic. The podcasting possibilities are truly endless for students to share what they know.

The format of a podcast can take the shape of a fictional story, true stories, explanations, reflections, interviews and more. The other side to this project is the collaboration of students and then the sharing of this work. Students as an audience of learners is one more advantage for using this assignment.

In the webinar, Jen will also share how you can use Google Slides or PowerPoint to produce a podcast. No fancy equipment necessary!

Related: The Best Way to Listen to Podcasts

#2 Storytelling with Ignite Talks

Storytelling is an incredibly popular model for sharing information these days. Think TED talks. Now consider a TED talk with a 5-minute limit. That’s a basic Ignite Talk. Ignite talks are presentations accompanied with 20 slides containing only 5 words each that automatically advance every 15 seconds.

The simplicity of this project is appealing to many students, but it adds a layer of complexity when students are forced to choose their words wisely. The requirements ensure students use their creativity and critical thinking skills.

Students will also gain the skills necessary for creating presentations. The use of only 5 words per slide helps students to recognize that presentations are not about reading every slide to the audience. Considering the design of an engaging slide is also an important skill to learn when presenting an Ignite Talk. A dynamic project that certainly goes beyond the subject and includes each of the four C’s.

Related: Blended Learning with Google – Storytelling 

#3 Sketchnotes

Jen is the sketchnote queen! A research-based practice that can help anyone deepen their understanding of a topic. Jen first started sketchnoting in 2016 as a way to keep track of her own learning during professional development. She quickly recognized the power in this process and decided that if it helped her then it could help students as well.

Based on the research of sketchnoting, it can help with retention, memory, and synthesizing material. It can even be very relaxing. The great part about sketchnoting is that it naturally lends itself to differentiation to reach all types of learners. Utilizing images, words, size, and color make this activity personal and accessible for everyone.

Related: My Pencil Made Me Do It! 

#4 Amplify Student Voice with Flipgrid

In these times of a global pandemic, Flipgrid went from being a super cool tool to a must-have tool. For many teachers, using Flipgrid was a way to not only hear from their students but see their students’ faces.

Jen shares how she was immediately impressed with the value of Flipgrid and connected with its creator back in 2017. Rather than teaching Flipgrid through a checklist of items or functions, Jen shows off many of the bells and whistles of Flipgrid through activities. The activities that webinar participants will complete can then be translated into a classroom setting.

Be sure to register for this summer webinar and learn more about these assessment and assignment ideas from Jen. The webinars will be live with an opportunity to ask questions, but the recordings will also be available to those who register.

Related: 10 Awesome Ways to Use Flipgrid in Your Classroom

About Jen Giffen

Jen is a Teacher Librarian and EdTech Consultant. She has an M.Ed. from the University of Toronto and a specialist in Education Technology. Google Innovator, sketchnoter, podcaster, and dad joke aficionado, Jen seeks to ensure learning is authentic and relevant, especially for struggling students.

Current Certifications: Google Certified Educator Level 1, Google Certified Educator Level 2, Google Certified Trainer, Google Certified Innovator, Apple Teacher

Jen’s most popular presentations topics: Sketchnoting, Google tools, keynotes, and Flipgrid

Shake Up Learning Summer Webinar Series

Jen will be hosting four webinars this summer on the topics above. Learn more and register here.

© Shake Up Learning 2023. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Kasey Bell and Shake Up Learning with appropriate and specific direction to the original content on ShakeUpLearning.com. See: Copyright Policy.

The post 4 Projects that Go Beyond Traditional Assessment – SULS0111 appeared first on Shake Up Learning.

I have long been a fan of Tony Vincent and his website and resources at LearninginHand.com. Tony is one of the most creative educators I know.

One such creative project that has blown me away is his Shapegrams projects (grades 2-8), an image challenge for students to recreate images using Google drawings.

In this post, Tony will show you how Shapegrams can challenge students much like a puzzle while also teaching them technology skills.

These grab-and-go Google drawing lessons are so much fun!

Below is a guest post by Tony Vincent.

Shapegrams: Grab-and-Go Google Drawings Lessons

You might be looking for quality activities that students can do independently. The best independent activities tend to be engaging, easily understood, and worthwhile.

You might be looking for ways to boost students’ communication, creativity, and technology skills. You might not feel comfortable teaching specific drawing and graphic techniques.

I might have a solution that would work well for you and your students. I’ve made a sequence of lessons called Shapegrams. Each Shapegram challenges students to recreate a picture using shapes. Think of it like a puzzle–a puzzle that helps students level up their drawing skills.

Shapegrams are packaged inside a series of Google Drawings documents. Each contains an instructional video, design hints, and a related activity.

Shapegrams are designed to be very low prep. It’s easy for teachers to grab a link to a Shapegram and send it to students.

1. Go to shapegrams.com/get and copy a Shapegram’s link.
2. Send the link to students.
3. Students click the link and are prompted to make a copy.
4. Students watch the video and recreate the picture.
5. Encourage students to put a creative spin on their pictures.

Thirty-six Shapegrams are sequenced to build students’ capabilities gradually. The first four are freely available. Students learn about fills, borders, zooming, duplicating, rotating, aligning, ordering, grouping, and flipping in those four initial lessons. They also learn helpful keyboard shortcuts.

A Shapegrams membership gets you access to all Shapegrams and gives you a license to distribute them to your students. The skills become more advanced, and students practice things like drop shadows, custom gradients, hex codes, perspective, and drawing emotions.

Membership is $35 per year for one teacher. School accounts are available for teams, schools, and districts. Membership is affordable because I believe in the importance of what students learn by doing Shapegrams challenges.

When I taught fifth grade, a new Shapegram greeted students in our Google Classroom for their morning message every Wednesday. By the end of the school year, my students could expertly draw their own clipart, diagrams, and models. Their skills are transferred to Google Slides and other apps.

Shapegrams are challenging, and students can get frustrated. That’s why I’ve included growth mindset encouragement in each instructional video.

Shapegrams can be incorporated into a student’s day in a variety of ways:

‍ Whole class lesson

Station rotation

 Morning message

 Choice activity

 Maker space

 Small group work

 Passion project

About Tony Vincent

Learning in Hand started in 2002 as part of my classroom website. At first, focusing on Palm handhelds, Learning in Hand now encompasses anything I think might be handy for teachers.

I live in Council Bluffs, Iowa, and after 12 years of self-employment, I returned to classroom teaching for the 2018-2019 school year. I taught fifth-graders at College View Elementary School. Teaching in a classroom for the year has reinvigorated my passion for helping teachers.

Since 1998 I’ve been a pioneer in digital learning, having a classroom website before many classrooms even had internet access. In 2001 I had a one-to-one classroom with Palm Pilots, and in 2005 I started one of the first podcasts from an elementary school. After teaching fifth grade for six years, I was my school’s technology coach for a couple more. I enjoyed helping my colleagues integrate technology.

In 2006 I became a self-employed consultant. I have traveled to almost every state, Canada, Australia, England, and the Caribbean to facilitate workshops and to make presentations to K-12 educators and students.

I’ve been on a mission to help teachers be more awesome, and that often involves technology. Over the years, I have authored books, produced videos, developed an iPad app, and blogged about learning and technology—all in an effort to support great teaching and deeper learning.

Tony’s Website: LearninginHand.com

Tony on Twitter: @tonyvincent

© Shake Up Learning 2023. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Kasey Bell and Shake Up Learning with appropriate and specific direction to the original content on ShakeUpLearning.com. See: Copyright Policy.

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