Apps for the Xooms

I am really looking forward to working with the Xoom tablets as they are on the Android system.  The super cool thing about it is many students have Android smart phones and will be able to download and use the same apps outside of class also!

 I have started to put a list of apps together, in no specific order, that I would like to place on the Xoom tablets to start off the year.  I will be installing the apps on the devices using the Chrome to Phone extension via Google Chrome.  Take a look and if you have any recommendations/suggestions, please leave a comment!

• QR Droid                                  
• Where's my droid?
• Student Clicker
• Trippo
• Catch
• Blogger
• Docs
• Word Reference
• Verb Conjugator
• Ipadio
• Google Earth
• Flash Card Maker Pro
• Document Scanner
• Socrative Teacher
• Spanish Verbs Pro
• Spanish Verb Trainer
  

Model Classroom Physical Setup

Today I worked on setting up the physical structure of my classroom.  I wanted to create a couple different types of work spaces to accommodate the various learning experiences that will take place throughout the year.  I am excited to have students try them out and get their feedback.  Hoping these will work well, but if not it can always be easily changed! 

collaborative group space, reading and work area

area designed for direct instruction

another collaborative group or work area

Learning about my students...

I have done a personal info. questionaire of my students for many years now.  It started out as a regular old paper copy, but last year I started doing it through Google Docs/Forms.  The questions are updated a bit each year and this is the version I will use for the 2011-212 school year. 

My 2011-2012 Student Info. Questionaire

21st century learning - New Teacher Inservice

A few of the other Pulaski model classroom teachers and I were asked to present some of the ways we integrate technology into our classrooms.  I have chosen the following 3 instructional tools to highlight:

• Text polls/discussions via Polleverywhere

Replace audience response hardware with Poll Everywhere

• Spanish 3 Professional Website Project

• Video Recording via SMART Recorder

Wow to Webdocs!

Am super amazed and excited by this new Web 2.0 tool! There are so many different things you can do with it and what I love most is there is very little learning curve. I was able to create this, my very first Webdoc, and post it in a matter of minutes! A Webdoc integrates text, links, images, video, sound and apps in a super simple and visually attractive format! Plus the Webdocs can then be posted to a blog or shared via e-mail, Facebook or Twitter. I can see a million possibilities for this in the classroom.... voting tool, getting student feedback, comparison of websites or blog posts, posting media, creating interactive collages/posters, etc.!

Professional Learning Academy 2011

The Professional Learning Academy this week was AWESOME!  I am so glad I had the opportunity to collaborate and brainstorm with some really amazing and innovative teachers in my district!  I am super excited about some of the ideas we came up with and learned about (which I shall share in more detail very soon).   Now, all I have to do is get to work on implementing them for this upcoming school year!  Some of the topics and tools we discussed included...

• Problem Based Learning
• 21 Century Classroom Design
• Google Apps for Education: IGoogle, Google Reader, Google Docs, Google Earth and more!
• Blogger - to be used as a class managment tool and as a living document of student work, projects, etc. throughout the school year
• Moodle
• Discovery Education
• Video Tools - Screenr, Splicd, Youtube, and Jaycut
• Introduction Videos for 1st day of school
• Digital Citizenship and Proper care of 1:1 Devices
• Parent Letter for students that will be enrolled in the 21st Century Model Classrooms

Creating a Model 21st Century Classroom..

I am thrilled to be creating a "Model 21st Century Classroom" in the upcoming 2011-2012 school year! My school district has chosen 5 classrooms (2 elementary, 2 middle school, and 1 high school) that will basically be given a "technology makeover". The technology tools in each room will be a little bit different, but in all the classrooms the implementation of technology rich lessons and problem based learning will take place.

What will this entail for my high school Spanish classroom?

• A Smartboard - A large sized Smartboard was purchased at the end of last school year and installed in my classroom in May 2011. So, I have already had some time to work with it and start creating lessons using the Smart software. However, I still have much more to learn and will work to optimize the capabilities of the Smartboard in the upcoming year to improve teaching and learning.

• 30 Motorola Xoom Tablets - The Motorola Xoom is the first tablet device that runs on the Android 3.1 Honeycomb System. It also contains a dual core processor, HD Video Camera, front and rear facing cameras, and is Adobe Flash Player 10 ready. The video below demonstrates in more detail the capabilities of this device. With the 30 Xoom tablets, there will be a 1:1 student to tablet ratio in my room. As you can imagine, this opens up so many opportunities for learning and my brain has been working overtime lately with new ideas that I want to try out. I have to shut it down sometimes so I can fall asleep at night!

As the year unfolds, I will be continuing to post updates on the creation of the "Model 21st Century Classroom" as well as reflecting on the various new tools, apps, strategies, and technology rich lessons that are implemented. I love getting and sharing ideas with others! So, if you have anything you think would be useful for me and others looking to improve 21st century learning, don't hesitate to leave a comment!