Text messages for teachers

I found this really cool website and I can't wait to try it out.  It's called remind101 and it's designed for teachers to have a way to text students without using a phone number.  You set up an account and receive a number-- it seems to me like the way radio stations do promos ("Text WIN to 4567"). You give that number to students and they can text a message to it to subscribe.  There's also an email link if they don't want texts.

Our district has some pretty strict rules regarding texting and emailing students so I'll probably need to be sure I clear it with the admin people.  As long as I keep the messages professional and don't send any after 10 pm, I think I should be okay using the site.

Every student I talk to would rather get a text than an email.  I have to send emails to my IB students about their extended essay papers and it's about the only contact I have with them since I don't see them on a regular basis in a class.  I am going to use this website next year though when I start over again with our juniors.  I can continue on with our ManageBac site to send emails but supplement it with this one.  Then the kids will have NO excuse for not remembering a paper due date!

What kind of success have you had with texting students? Do your students like receiving text reminders?  Or do they think it's "lame" to get texts from a teacher?

TCEA

So our budget for professional development is slim this year --that means no TLA convention since it's in Houston.  However we have a great alternative right here close to home--the TCEA conference.  The Texas Computer Educator Association is not only for computer people, they have a large section of presentations for librarians as well.  And the vendor area is huge!  Not as many book vendors obviously but a lot of the same people we deal with for databases and equipment. 

There's also an app for my phone containing the conference schedule.  I love it!  I can tell at a glance which sessions I was interested in.  I can post the different sessions to the schedule and if there's an overlap, that's okay.  I have a choice if the session I want is full.

I didn't go last year but year before when I went, I learned so many Web 2.0 tools, my head hurt.  I was able to share a lot of websites with teachers and found some nice laptop batteries, which my tech person and I were able to purchase to help out our laptops. 

All in all, if you are reading this blog, you are probably the kind of person who has all ready registered for a conference like this.  But on the off hand chance you haven't, check it out!

The boy who harnessed the wind

A book we recently purchased is entitled The Boy who Harnessed the Wind.  (cover courtesy of Amazon.)  I haven't read this book yet but I found the TED talk from the young man in the book.  Now I need to read this book.  Hopefully, his talk will inspire you as well.

TED talks

So am I the only person who is just now figuring out how valuable this site is?  I've heard about TED talks and seen a few videos, but oh my goodness!  The wealth of information available on this site is overwhelming. Short videos from experts in whatever field about new ideas, explanations of old ideas, new uses for current technology-- you name it, it's probably there!

@TEDtalks is the Twitter feed to see what new information is being posted to the site.  And @TEDNews is their general Twitter feed of information.

I'm not sure the site would be something you would want to use with students but for professional development, it's priceless.  Whether it's something you want to know or you want to share with your teachers, check the TED site.  Each video listed also has a transcript of the video so you can get a quick overview of the content without watching the whole thing. 

I also have downloaded the app to my phone so I can watch some on the go.  Guess I'm getting a bit obsessed about this site!  Check it out and see what you think.

Using Ipads in the classroom

Our district is considering Ipads, as are most school districts, I'm sure.  A district close to us provided Ipads to all their juniors and seniors through a grant and people are watching closely to see the results. I've seen studies that go both ways on the use of the devices.  Most seem to show an improvement in students' learning--these are "digital natives" after all, but I've also seen some studies that suggest if the Ipads do not belong to the students personally, they don't have as much invested in the use of the device.  So everyone around is watching this pilot program to see the results.  The district hasn't decided if the students can have the devices when they graduate yet.  I guess they would be able to purchase them at a reduced cost?  I don't know what their plans are.  Here's a blog that the district is keeping to show the progress of the pilot program. 

But what to do with them is my biggest question.  I know you have the Kindle app and there's Project Gutenberg.  But there's lots more teachers and librarians can do with them.  This is a listing of 70 ways to use Ipads in the classroom--it's on a Google doc so you might have to sign into Google to see it.  Some of the suggestions are actually rather elementary, which for some reason surprised me.  I guess I'm so secondary oriented, I never thought of little kids using tablets.  Some of the suggestions are things like reading aloud to the students, practicing letter formations and making music. 

I'm curious where this will lead, especially after last week's announcement by Apple that they were getting into the textbook market through the Itunes store.  I need to read more about that so once I understand it better, I'll write some here.  But I am curious--how would you use an Ipad in your classroom right now with the apps available?

Using Pinterest in the Library

So I recently discovered Pinterest thanks to my daughter. This has to be one of the biggest time suckers on the web!!! I love the site but I'll get on it and an hour later, I realize what I'm doing--which is still looking at pictures!!

The site is basically an online bulletin board. "Pinners", or users, can "pin" pictures, videos or basically whatever to the boards--sort of the way I use my refrigerator door at home. The major demographic user of Pinterest seems to be young women--lots of weddings and baby pictures are pinned to the site.

But companies are just starting to see the power of the site. And so are libraries. I found this blog listing some ways libraries can use Pinterest. I actually never thought about using it for school, but it's a brilliant idea. I would need to make a separate account because I don't want my personal information available and attached to the library site.  But that's the same thing I've done for Twitter and Facebook so it's no big deal.

But I could make a board to highlight new titles.  I could make a board for student reviews or to highlight my library aides and their reading choices--sort of like Barnes and Noble does with their "staff picks."  I could make one for research sites.  The more I think on it, the more possibilities come to mind.

Try it and if you do, let me know what sorts of boards you come up with.  But whatever you do, don't look at any recipe pages!  You'll be there the rest of the day......(yeah, ask me how I know that........)

Common Craft videos

Have you ever wondered how Twitter works? Or what QR codes are? Common Craft videos can help show you how these and many other items function. The videos are short and easy to understand. And they help to explain many of the web's newest functions.

I've used Common Craft videos to show students about searching the web. You'll have to call them up and show them from the website unless you want to join their site. I haven't done that yet, but I can still use the videos, just not embed or save them.

Here's the link to their video on blogging. Check out the site any time you need an explanation of a new topic or you want a quick explanation for your students.