Google Docs... Wow!

Wow!  I have been gone for a while and I have been having quite the month.  Several unfortunate events have happened to our family back to back and it has really taken up alot of my time.  What I will say is that I have come to love my Google Docs!  A while ago, I transferred my school documents to Google Docs and boy, did it come in handy this last week.  While I was sitting in the Emergency Room,  (my husband needed emergency gallbladder sugery)  I needed to send my sub plans to my team leader.  Of course,  the only device that I had with me at the time was my phone.  I wasn't sure that it would work but I was more than pleasantly surprised that I could locate, update, and send my sub plans from Google Docs to my team leader with just my android phone!  What a great resource!

Ahhhh! End of the Year Chaos!

Wow!  It has been a couple of weeks since I have posted!  We were sorting out a family emergency and it has sure been a whirlwind couple of weeks.  It is a crazy time of year.  As the year is winding down, i am always overwhelmed by the amount of paperwork and meetings and other things that come up at the end of a school year.  I have decided that I am going to spend the next couple of posts talking about technology that helps me try to stay on top of all this craziness! I am by no means an expert and I would also love to hear from others about what they use to help manage their chaos. :)

This week I want to talk about Evernote.  I just started using this program a couple months ago and I absolutely LOVE it.  I have it downloaded on my home computer,  my android phone, and on my school computer (YES.... it wasn't blocked by our filter!)  With evernote,  I am able to create all sorts of notes and categorize them.  For example... I have created folders for each subject at school.  I also have created tags for each student.  Let's say that Joey has done poorly on an addition math recording sheet in math stations.  He was supposed to use manipulatives to act out a subtraction problem then he was supposed to draw a picture of his manipulatives and record the subtraction number sentence that describes picture.  Instead,  Joey recorded an addition number sentence rather than subtraction.  Clearly Joey needs some small group or one on one reteaching.  In the past,  I would have either kept his recording sheet OR I would have to run to the copy machine, make a copy, send the original home, blah,blah, blah...  Not now!  with evernote, I take out my phone, snap a picture of the recording sheet, create a note, tag it with Joey's name and file it in the math folder.  Now I can search on any device that I have evernote on and my note with pictures and annotations will be available.  I can also add the reteaching evidence to the note when I am finished!  Super easy and convenient for paper phobic people like me!  I have used evernote to bring evidence to ARDs, planning meetings, and to make to do lists!  I absolutely love it and I hope to become more and more paperless.

www.evernote.com

Online reading homework! Help save a tree!

So, it is a beautiful Sunday afternoon and it is Earth day!  I just got done giggling at my students' weekly reading discussion question answers and I was thinking about ways to help the earth!   At our school, we are not allowed to send home leveled readers from our literacy library or our adoption.  This forces us to either print all of our homework books or send them digitally.  For a long time, I was printing the books but do to some budget restraints at my local campus this year,  I switched to a digital format.   I do this by assigning their reading books on www.edmodo.com .  Each week, I upload a pdf copy of their leveled reader and then I enter discussion questions into a short answer quiz.  They go on each night and read their book to someone and on Thursday, their parents help them read the discussion questions, type the responses, and submit the quiz.  I think this is a great way to get parents involved in discussing their child's reading rather than just listening to them read and signing off on it.  When I get the quiz,  I go in and look at each answer and it allows me to comment if I wish.  This is my favorite part.  I love to show them that I am giggling at their answer or to ask them follow up questions.  It also allows me to add the "grade" to my gradebook.  We don't keep numerical grades in kindergarten but it does help me see who is on track doing their homework.  If I don't want to assign discussion questions, I can upload a multiple choice quiz or some other printable like graphic organizer for them to fill out and return.  I also love that edmodo is available not only on a computer but also as an app for the iphone/ipad or android devices.  I have a few students who do not have a computer but their parents have an iphone or ipad...My answer to that..." No problem!  Have your child read their book to you from your phone!"  It allows me to create groups within my class and give only certain students certain assignments.  Perfect for differentiated reading and a way to go green!  Happy Earth day everyone!