Tech Lessons for the Week of Sept. 10-14

Happy Monday everyone! I hope everyone had a great weekend!

Along with our great teachers sharing awesome ways to utilize technology in the classroom, I will try to provide some various resources each week as well.

Alice Keeler has a great resource for Google Classroom. This link provides ideas for how to utilize Google Classroom in several ways!!!!👍

This week some teachers used GSuite apps, Screencastify, Kahoot, and Hoopla. Google Slides, Forms, Drawings and Docs were all utilized for different classrooms. Kahoot (a fan favorite for fun assessments!), Hoopla (an ebook site that is accessible with a library card), and Room Sketcher (roomsketcher.com) for designing a room.


Mrs. Rogers uses Google Forms & Slides for "Bell Ringers" in her reading class. She has students fill out a form or has a slide presentation with everyone having access to provide input, thoughts, analysis, etc.

 


Mrs. Swales had her students use Google Drawings to create a template to track text evidence and analysis while reading their novel. This allowed for connections to be made and questions to be answered. This picture is just of one student's template. Students were able to use the many features that Google Drawings has available.
Mrs. Swales also uses Hoopla in her class so students have access to ebooks to read for leisure or accelerated reader points. In order to use Hoopla's site, you must have a local library card to access the ebooks.

Mrs. Brown's math class was completing a Kahoot when I came into her classroom, and they were competitive and having fun at the same time! The Kahoot was a review of that day's lesson. It was really neat to see how they had paper and pencil on the side so they could work the problems out to get the correct answer. To say they were excited to see that they were correct and they were in the top 5 overall points leaders, would be an understatement! 😂😂

 


Mrs. Brooks's choir groups use Screencastify to assist with seeing their performance and breaking down that performance. This picture shows a video replay and students are watching this video to critique themselves to be better for their final performance. 👌

Mrs. Radcliffe's science classes used roomsketcher.com to create a "middle school dorm" room for their "Design a building" unit. Students were able to quite a few things within this site which made the creativity stand-out even more. Here are some student samples of their "middle school dorm".

 



Teachers, thank you for sharing those technology integrated lessons with us! These could very well spark some thoughts into something special for our classrooms and students. I hope all of you have a fantastic week!


Joshua Benjamin
Technology Integrated Specialist
Phone extension: 12918
Email: jhbenjamin@sunmandearborn.k12.in.us
Twitter: @coachjb4 and @sdmsdropzone
"Be the change that you wish to see in others."

Tech Lessons for the Week of Sept. 4-7

Hey all,

I hope everyone is having a great week and day so far! We have some great things going on in our classrooms and sharing what you know and what you do....is wonderful! This provides a "PD" side of things for all of us as well, so keep sending those great ideas to me!


Collages + Chromebooks + Collaboration + Cross-curricular Connections = Great Learning!!!
Mrs. McAdams and Mr. Theising, Art and P.E. teachers at North Dearborn Elementary are currently working on a collaborative project with second graders and searching Google images. Students are working in groups creating large monochromatic collages of fruits & vegetables, researching their healthy benefits, and designing informational posters. Mr. Theising is extending the lesson by discussing the importance of eating a colorful plate of food in addition to staying active.

 



Mr. Durham's, Science - Computer Coding class had a project where groups had to create an app that would be beneficial for people to utilize in the real world. Students had to have several pieces of criteria answered prior to presenting to the class and to the "sharks". Groups used Google Slides to "show off" their hard work and they were impressive. Students used different transitions, themes, fonts, pictures, and animations to create their presentation to "sell" their app to us "sharks".

 



Mr. Dawley gave his science classes the chances to use Google Forms. His students prepared themselves for an assessment by creating "test" questions for each other and turning in their form for an assignment. Within Google Forms, students created different types of questions, included photos and videos, and even used the "Quizzes" settings to apply an answer key and points to questions.

 



Mrs. Rogers used Google Classroom and Google Slides together! She posted an assignment in Google Classroom with a Google Slide template for a lesson on inferences and included videos within that template as well for students to watch on their own pace. She made the template available to copy for each student so students could put in their own comments on their own slides.

 


Thank you to all that have sent in pictures and lesson/project descriptions! Teachers, keep making a positive impact on the future with your students!

Have an amazing week everyone!

Joshua Benjamin
Technology Integrated Specialist
Phone extension: 12918
Email: jhbenjamin@sunmandearborn.k12.in.us
Twitter: @coachjb4 and @sdmsdropzone
"Be the change that you wish to see in others."

Tech Lessons for the Week of Aug 27-31

I hope everyone had a great 3-day weekend!

The best part about this post is there is more variety! We have some different ideas to share that others are utilizing right now!

In the middle school DropZone, we conducted a "Tech Challenge" (using Google Forms Quiz version) that involved some Chromebook questions for students. Any student that got a 100% on the form, was automatically entered into the drawing to the win....THE PRIZE!!! It was a Cross Country shirt! Thanks CC! Once I closed the ability to receive responses, I opened the Google Sheet of responses and sorted by their score. I took those students that received 100%, put them in a new sheet, and they were associated with the cell number (which is on the left side of the sheet). I went to Google and searched "Random Number Generator" and then Google gave me the ability to chose my minimum and maximum numbers (screenshot below). Once those have been chosen, just click "Generate" and there was our winner (again, according to cell number in sheets)!

We all utilize Google Classroom in similar and different ways. Mrs. Beck uses Google Classroom by sending out "Bell Ringers" in her health class (videos, accessing prior knowledge, etc). I took a few pictures of students getting on to Google Classroom to access those "Bell Ringers." A great way to incorporate Google Classroom in an efficient and useful way!

 


The NDES fifth grade is working hard in their weekly computer lab time learning as much about the Google Suite apps as they can! In order to prepare for the 1:1 environment in the middle school, Mrs. Cheek's students are practicing editing documents, effectively organizing their new email accounts and google drives, and becoming more familiar with Google Suite (GSuite). With the help of the fifth grade teachers, Mrs. Cheek is able to use subject material and classroom topics in the computer lab assignments to not only teach the students all they need to know about Google, but also reiterate what is being taught in Language Arts, Social Studies, Math, and Science.

In a photo below, a student is working on editing a Google Doc by following the editing instructions on the original doc and learning how to share and comment on that document. In the other photo, a student is embedding a video on the Pueblo people into a document, and editing that document for better presentation. This is helping them to also learn more about the Pueblo history that they are studying in Mrs. Sopcisak's Social Studies class.

 









Mrs. Ritzi utilized Google Slides (inserting pictures, themes, and videos) for students to create different presentations on "Strategic Searching". Students showed their searched topics and created presentations on how they strategically searched.

 


Mrs. Sohns had her students read a picture book in groups. As they were reading, they had to identify and explain any signposts they noticed as they read. For example, as they were reading, they may have noticed another character (maybe older and wiser) giving the character advice. They then had to explain how that contributed to the plot and theme. Here are some pictures and there is a link of the document they worked with.  Signposts Practice

 

 

Take advantage of sending those pictures and summaries of those tech-filled classrooms!!!! 

Have a great 4-day week everyone!!!

Joshua Benjamin
Technology Integrated Specialist
Phone extension: 12918
Email: jhbenjamin@sunmandearborn.k12.in.us
Twitter: @coachjb4 and @sdmsdropzone
"Be the change that you wish to see in others."

Tech Lessons for the Week of August 20-24

Hey everyone! I hope your first full week of school was a huge success!

Mrs. Radcliffe has her Journalism class create the school news, which is distributed to the whole school every Friday. Her students have to create scripts, videos, and then edit those videos to create the final product. After her students have recorded those videos, they use a Google Form that allows you to upload pictures, videos, and other (certain types) of files so they can be put into the "responses sheet" for organization. Students then use an editing software called, "Wondershare" that allows them to create their school news! Here are some pictures of them editing!

Mrs. Brooks and her students are using SmartMusic this year!!! This online tool helps in so many ways! In SmartMusic, you can send assignments, grade assignments, record your own work, search for examples of work, and more!  Students signed up for their class and will be utilizing SmartMusic soon! 

Our Art teacher, Mrs. Moeller, is doing a shoe project with her students and she is using Google Slides and Google Forms. Mrs. Moeller has a Google slide presentation with the different pairs of shoes from the participating teachers. She is having her students go into the Google Form that she created to choose which slide goes with which teacher. 

Keep on sending those tech-filled activities, lessons, and projects into me to share your ideas with our other great teachers!!!

 Have a blessed week everyone!!!

Joshua Benjamin
Technology Integrated Specialist
Phone extension: 12918
Email: jhbenjamin@sunmandearborn.k12.in.us
Twitter: @coachjb4 and @sdmsdropzone
"Be the change that you wish to see in others."

Tech Lessons for the Week of August 13-17

Welcome back all! I hope the summer break was relaxing and refreshing with family and friends!

As we get back into the swing of things, do not hesitate to send me pictures and a summary of how technology was integrated into the classroom. When this was started in the last quarter of the the last school year, there were several positive remarks sent that reflected the fact teachers within the district could see how others were utilizing technology. I really appreciated the kind words, but I challenge all of you as you read this to send your own tech-filled lessons to share with everyone as well. This blog is not just seen by our teachers, but others across the nation. We can truly make a difference, not just in our classroom, not just in our district, but in the world!

S-DMS counselors (Jeff and Renee) utilized the PAC, Google Slides, Google Classroom, and Google Forms for their presentation and the beginning stages of the Trojan Careers Program. Google Slides was used for their informative presentation, which provided details that would make an easy transition to the Kuder Careers and Indiana Career Explorer website. The counselors created a Google Classroom for each of the grade levels (named by their graduation year so those classrooms are passed on to the high school counselors) which makes for an effective way of communicating with our students. Google Forms was incorporated for surveying and an info-seeking purpose for the careers program.

            

Sixth grade teacher, Mrs. Lecher used a digital breakout for her classes last week. She mentioned, "A Digital Breakout was created to review the six traits of writing--Sentence Fluency, Organization, Ideas, Word Choice, Voice, and Conventions. It included a puzzle to be solved, a Google Drawing to be looked at, a few hidden messages, and a few videos. Students eagerly completed the breakout and seemed to love every minute of it!" They also used Google Forms to "breakout" of what they learned while in their groups.

 

 

Here are some digital breakout resources to explore for your classroom! 

Digital Breakouts

Digital Breakouts for a Beginner

Welcome to 1:1 ECHS!!! Our high school teachers and students are transitioning into the 1:1 world which means there is a high school DropZone this year! This is operated by Mrs. Hutzel and her highly qualified high school students that are passionate about technology.  The high school DropZone is continually learning about Chromebooks and how they can serve their teachers and peers. When asked about her DropZone class, Mrs. Hutzel said, " EC students submit a "ticket" through a Google Doc and then members of the Student Tech Support Team go to that student's class, retrieve the CB to troubleshoot issues. Doing it this way minimizes distractions from instructional time keeping kids in class. So far we have documented 48 issues in the first full week of school."

Now that the high school is 1:1 and needs a DropZone, the middle is moving into year 2 of their 1:1 implementation and DropZone team too!!! Last year, the middle school's DropZone consisted of high school students (which they did an amazing job, by the way!), and this year it is a group of eighth graders that will head the ship for the middle school DropZone. These middle school DropZone students are eager to learn, help, and anything in-between! They want to find the solutions to problems, assist their peers, and help in any way possible. Welcome to the middle school DropZone everyone!

 



Like I said in the first paragraph, please send me your awesome technology integrated lessons, tools, assignments, projects, etc to share with our amazing staff!! Let's make this the best school year yet!

Have a blessed week everyone!!!


Joshua Benjamin
Technology Integrated Specialist
Phone extension: 12918
Email: jhbenjamin@sunmandearborn.k12.in.us
Twitter: @coachjb4 and @sdmsdropzone
"Be the change that you wish to see in others."

Tech Lessons for the week May 14-18

It...is...almost...here!!!! Field days, the last assessments, book and Chromebook collections, and any other last items of importance are going on right now as I type this blog. How did this year fly by so quickly?

Last week, was a busy week...hence the late blog post (my apologies by the way😁) We had PearDeck, Google Slides, Screencastify, Screenshots, Prezi, and Google Forms to name a few.

Mr. Sizemore had his students use Google Slides to create a small presentation of their "favorite" math skill. As a part of that presentation, students used self-created videos (Screencastify!!) or a YouTube video and used Screencastify to annotate what is happening in the video. Students collaborated and figured out how they were going to "wow" their peers as a presented their final product.

 
 


Mrs. Klenke wanted her students to learn more about PearDeck and the add-on within Google Slides. We walked through the different templates by PearDeck, and learned how to change them for their specific presentation. PearDeck is an interactive presentation that keeps the audience engaged and gives them the ability to voice their thoughts. After reviewing the add-on, we created a presentation and had a student present theirs to the class. By doing this, students got to see what it looked like from the interactive side and the presenter side. We had a TON of fun with this presentation tool!

 



I went into Mrs. Meyer and Mrs. Lecher's classes to discuss Screencastify with their students. They all learned the new look of Screencastify and we created some videos of our own! You can never go wrong with this extension as you have read in previous blog posts, it has been a fan favorite!

 
 


Mrs. Mersmann's classes used Google Slides to create individual presentations on an herb that they chose for this assignment. Their peers used Google Forms to evaluate each other on their presentation.

 


Mr. Jackson's math classes used Google Forms, Slides, and screenshots to create a display of statistics within different categories. Students created a form for others to complete (on a topic(s) of their choice), and took screenshots of the many graphs in the "response" tab within Google Forms to insert into their Google Slide presentation. There were several graphs displayed as well as the students putting their own spin on their presentation. Their collaboration and creativity with this assignment was well-represented!

                                         

                              


To end this school year's blog, we have to conclude with the Middle School Chromebook Collection. The preparation and 3 and a half day collection process was assisted by great people! To all of the personnel that helped make this a successful collection, THANK YOU!!! Just like anything else, we made it fun and the students did really well with the whole process.

 

 

I really hope that this blog has been beneficial for all of you to see at least these few things: how we are incorporating technology into our lessons, the collaboration piece to make tech lessons successful, the ability of our students and how they can create for themselves, and how we can share our classroom with the whole school district.

Have a great summer break! I may even see some of you during the summer at some PD opportunities! Thanks for all that you do!!!!

Follow on Twitter @sdmsdropzone!
jhbenjamin@sunmandearborn.k12.in.us.