Archives for 2014
Share Your Social Media Accounts
Attention Granite Educators:
- Do you have a social media account for your classroom?
- Do you have a personal/professional social media account that you use to connect with other educators?
- Do you have a colleague with an awesome account that more people need to know about?
Please share with us so that we can add these accounts to our lists of connected classrooms and educators in Granite School District.
Social Media in Granite Classrooms
Granite Educational Technology is looking to connect with and spotlight any and all Granite teachers using social media in their classrooms or for professional development.
You can find great accounts to connect with via these growing lists of Granite teachers using social media in the classroom. If you have or know of educator accounts that should be on these lists, you can submit them using this handy form, or follow us and let us know via one of our social media channels. We look forward to connecting and learning with you!
Granite Classrooms on Twitter
Granite Educators on Twitter
Granite EdTech Specialists on Twitter
Granite Schools on Twitter
List: Granite Classrooms on Twitter
List: Granite EdTech Specialists on Twitter
List: Granite Educators on Twitter
Teacher Spotlight: Shanna Bingham, Pioneer Elementary
Mrs. Shanna Bingham is a kindergarten teacher at Pioneer Elementary. I had the opportunity to watch her work with her students on counting and number recognition. Her students worked as partners and used iPads to scan QR codes. Those codes took the students to her UEN website (http://my.uen.org/myuen/230078). The students then counted the number of pumpkins and wrote the number on a worksheet. Once that activity was complete the students then used the app Doodle Buddy to practice collaboration and providing feedback while counting. One student would say a number and the other student would tap out that amount of snowflakes on the screen. The first student would then give a thumbs up or down to indicate whether the student completed the request accurately. The final activity was using the app ShowMe which was the first time using this application. The students were give a two minute explanation as to how to use the app. Then with their partner they created a mini counting movie. It was amazing to see how engaged and the amount of collaboration that took place during this forty minute lesson.
Mrs. Bingham is always eager to incorporate technology into her lessons. Whether it be using the SMART board to instruct from or having her student use iPads instead of worksheets to complete lesson activities. She always keeps productivity at the forefront of her lesson planning. Her lessons are engaging and keep her kindergarten students collaborating. To quote one of her students “This is super awesome!” She is a true 21st Century teacher.
Spotlight Author: Heidi Meenen, Granite District Educational Technology Specialist
Additional Resource Shown on Video: Class Dojo
Google Apps for Education in Granite School District
All staff and students in Granite School District have been provided with Google Apps for Education accounts on the granitesd.org domain. [Read more…] about Google Apps for Education in Granite School District
Granite Ed. Tech. Monthly Newsletter – November 2014
Granite Ed. Tech. Monthly Newsletter – November 2014
Our department’s monthly newsletter was recently sent out to all teachers in Granite School District, but you can also access it here.
This month’s highlights Include:
Teacher Spotlight: Robin Farnsworth, Armstrong Academy
Mrs. Robin Farnsworth is a third grade teacher at Neil Armstrong Academy. This 2014 Excel Award winner is noted for ensuring that her students learn by doing and that they are each active participants in her classroom. Whether they are creating on an iPad, using their hands for exploration, connecting to the world by participating in a Global Read Aloud, blogging, doing a #MysterySkype, or another innovative learning opportunity, Mrs. Farnsworth uses a variety of ways to engage her students in learning. She also emphasizes innovation and world problem solving with her FIRST LEGO League (FLL) team that she coaches before school. FLL students have to build a robot and learn how to program it to perform various tasks for competition.
Outside the classroom, Mrs. Farnsworth is inspiring teachers to collaborate and share. She had the vision to bring Edcamp to Utah on October 11, 2014 at Armstrong Academy. Edcamp is a type of “unconference” designed to bring teachers together to talk about the things that matter most to them. With the help of Jared Covili of UCET, Mrs. Farnsworth’s vision was a success. Teachers who attended Edcamp Utah were able to discuss topics of interest, share their own knowledge, and leave with new knowledge and ideas for teaching.
If you are interested in learning more about Edcamp Utah you can go to www.ucet.org/edcamput. Also, watch Neil Armstrong’s principal, Tyler Howe, interview Robin Farnsworth about Edcamp Utah’s success:
Spotlight Author: Kristen Johnson, Granite District Educational Technology Specialist