Tech & Learning's Top 100 Sites & Apps of 2014

Tech & Learning's Top 100 Sites & Apps of 2014

Keep in mind, not all of these are free.

Plot.ly: graphing in education

Plotly for Educators

Finally: a scientific graphing tool for students and teachers. Import data from experiments or enter it manually into an online spreadsheet. Make scatter plots, bar charts, lines-of-best fit and much more.

Check out our quick-start to make your first Plotly graph!

Types of charts:

Plotly’s Learn page

This Will Revolutionize Education

http://youtu.be/GEmuEWjHr5c

I'm here to help support you to be the best teacher you can be!

How to Use Google Tools in Project Based Learning

Even if you're not doing project based learning, the infographic at the bottom of this article gives some good suggestions on different Google tools to use for different purposes in the classroom.

Password Protect a Google Form

http://youtu.be/_loEgcTAB1M

This is brilliant! 

AppSmashing with Thinglink

This article has taken App Smashing to a new level. 

No one ever said you are limited to one app per project. In the example linked in this article, image products were created through a variety of apps then brought into Thinglink where interactive elements were added. These were then added to a Padlet page, an image made of that and brought in to Thinglink and each one linked to the picture. 

See Penney Matos if you're interested in exploring App Smashing!

Storing Non-Google Files in Drive

http://youtu.be/bqLQR1E60EQ

Amy Mayer addresses your default upload conversion setting, uploading non-Google compatable files (like Photoshop, images, etc) and a Chrome extension that lets you edit Word, Excel and PowerPoint documents without converting to the Google format. 

GeoGebra

“GeoGebra is dynamic mathematics software for all levels of education that brings together geometry, algebra, spreadsheets, graphing, statistics and calculus in one easy-to-use package.”

It looks worth investigating more…

Website

Chrome Add-On

iTunes App

Google Play App

Windows Store

From today's Google for Education newsletter:

Rockin' around the Geome-TREE

Educator Tom Rose of Chowchilla High School in California uses Geogebra, a free web app, to bring complicated math concepts to life. “The app’s ability to move things around and dynamically see what changes and what doesn’t goes much further than the most well-written lecture notes,” Rose says. “Students love working with GeoGebra, and have no problem loudly saying ‘YES!’ when I tell them it’s ‘a GeoGebra day’ rather than another slideshow from Mr. Rose.”

10 Engaging Digital Education Sites for Any Social Studies Classroom

Check out this article on 10 Engaging Digital Education Sites for Any Social Studies Classroom.

ViewPure: YouTube without comments, ads or other distractions

When showing YouTube videos in class, consider using viewpure.com to get rid of the comments, ads and other distractions!

Google Drive: Adding Files to Multiple Folders

This video by Amy Mayer (friEdTechnology) addresses a few changes in the "new" Google Drive and also shows how to add a file to multiple folders at the same time.

http://youtu.be/A74Ynyp81TI

Mind Mapping Comparison

Free Tech 4 Teachers recently compared 11 free online mind mapping tools. 

Check it out! (use Chrome)

10 Terrible Tech Annoyances That Should Be Illegal

Just because you need a good laugh...

10 Terrible Tech Annoyances That Should Be Illegal

Best Educational Websites 2014

Check out Larry Ferlazzo's Best Educational Websites of 2014 list. It's broken down by topic or subject.

PhET Sims

The University of Colorado has an awesome collection of online simulations covering topics including physics, biology, chemistry, earth science and math called PhET Sims. 

Use the links on the left side of their page for helpful resources.

Check out this page for an up-to-date, downloadable list of simulation compatibility by device.

Google Forms Cheat Sheet

Shake Up Learning put together a handy little Google Forms Cheat Sheet.

Take notice of:
Form Add-Ons (page 2)
Form Settings: Only allow one response per person, Shuffle question order (page 3)

See your Tech Facilitator with questions!

Nearpod FREE Content

Nearpod allows teachers to construct presentations using the Nearpod website and deliver instruction to students by pushing content out to multiple devices at once. The teacher controls the presentation from a master device or computer, while students follow along on their own devices or computers. It's compatible with any mobile device (iTunes, Android, Windows), Chromebook, Mac or PC.

Nearpod has a gallery of pre-mad content that you can download, modify and use. Many, but not all, of this content is free.

24 Examples of Using Hashtags for Teaching and Learning

I know Twitter is blocked for students in FISD, but our students know what they are and they can be a fun way to engage students in classroom discussion.

Check out Stephanie Echeveste's 24 Examples of Using Hashtags for Teaching and Learning at EmergingEdTech.

Shake Up Learning's Guide to Using Google Drive Offline

Check out Shake Up Learning's The Guide to Using Google Drive Offline. 

Very handy.

Edutopia and Common Sense Media's Digital Citizenship Pinterest Board

Edutopia paired up with Common Sense Media to create a Digital Citizenship board on Pinterest. 

Take a look through their collection of infographics, posters and more!

TCEA's List of Recommended Chrome Apps and Extensions

Check out TCEA's list of recommended Chrome Apps and Extensions. 

If you would like any of these pushed out to students at our campus, please contact Penney Matos.

New Periodic Table Song

Check out this article from Te@chThought.

The video is near the bottom of the page.

Password Do's and Don'ts

Carroll ISD recently posted a good list of Password Do's and Don't.

Check out their recommendations!

http://dragonits.blogspot.com/2014/11/data-breaches-and-vulnerability-data.html

Polleverywhere's New Question Library

Polleverywhere has partnered with Boundless Learning to offer a high level Question Library including questions from 22 different subject areas. 

Find a question you like, select it and go!

5 Ways to Use Remind (101) with Your BYOD Class

Remind (formerly Remind 101) can be used during class to engage your students!

Read the article here.

10 Ways to use Google Drawing in the Classroom

Check out Kasey Bell's (Shake Up Learning) infographic on 

10 Ways to use Google Drawing in the Classroom.

LOTE/Fine Arts Social and Library/Tech Expo Invite

 (If you don't see this video <---, use Chrome)

You are ALL invited to this year’s LOTE/Fine Arts Social and Library/Tech Expo!

Where: CHS Library

When: Friday, October 31^st during your conference period

Stop by during your Conference Period to vote in the Monster Maker contest, check out a few library/technology tools and eat lots of yummy food!

Check out this short video invitation.

Monster Maker contest (optional) Awards will be given

Create a 2D (flat) monster on either a half or a full sized piece of paper:

From a Website:

Monster University: Monster Creator (download profile or full body)

The Troop: Monster Creator (print to Cute PDF Writer)

Old School: use printer paper, construction paper, pencil, crayons, paint, etc.

Submit: Put a full or half sheet sized version in Penney Matos’s box by Wed, Oct. 29. (Email the digital version to her to print in color)

Vote in the Library on Fri, Oct. 31:

• scariest
• silliest
• friendliest
• most bizarre

Going Google Earth

Google Earth, because it's been around for a while, may not be as exciting as other Google tools, but it's still a powerhouse for the classroom. Here are a few tips and tricks to get the most out it.

One of Earth's newest features is the ability to view images of the world at different times. When looking at a particular location, check to see if there's a date at the bottom left of the screen. If you click on the date, you can drag a slider between the historical date and the present day. This can be great for looking at deforestation, effects of World War II on cities, and more.

Make sure you're taking advantage of all of the different layers available. See city lights from NASA, view live weather systems, discover shipwrecks, and much more by selecting different layers. If you haven't looked in a while, Google continually adds new layers for you to discover.

Remember that Google Earth isn't just about land features; you can also use it to explore underwater. You can travel the oceans by zooming in and then use various layers to find new things like expeditions, dead zones, and National Geographic facts.

If funds have been cut for field trips, travel the world virtually with Earth. Explore landmarks, parks, museums, and important world cultural spots with your students. With over 5 million miles of road in over 40 countries with 360-degree, street-level photos, your students can explore the world without leaving the classroom.

Tutorials
Gallery

Explore:
3D Buildings
Mars
Moon
Sky

From the 10/07/2014 edition of TCEA TechNotes newsletter.

Discover Educations's FREE Streamathon: Sat, Oct. 25

October 25th, 2014: Free Day of Professional Learning Coming to you LIVE from Discovery Headquarters in Silver Spring, MD, we present the Discovery Education Streamathon! We're taking you back to the 70's with a telethon-style, day-long virtual professional learning event. Join thousands of educators across the world for this free "idea-sharing" marathon where we will get you diggin' some new, groovy ways to integrate Discovery Education into your instruction. Host a 70's bash at your district pad to watch live-streamed presentations by the Discovery team, cool videos and other edu-tainment. How to Participate ·         Register to attend the Streamathon LIVE from your own home. ·         Browse the current list of Streamathon viewing parties below to find a location in your area. ·         Don't see an event in your area? Host Streamathon at your own district pad! ·         Share the love! Tweet about the event using the hashtag #DEStreamathon. Let other educators in your district know about it so they can participate too! Out-of-Sight Presentations Streamathon's mission: to educate, inform and inspire you with ideas, knowledge, and instructional strategies that you can put right back into action. Tune into our variety show of presentations, from "50 Ways in 50 Minutes" focused on creative ways to use Discovery Education to "Whose Board is it Anyway?" focused on student use of the popular Board Builder tool. We'll sprinkle in edu-tainment intermissions and audience participation throughout the day. Visit DiscoveryEducation.com/Streamathon for more information, including a schedule of presentations, guest speaker information, and how to host your own Streamathon viewing party! education_info@discovery.com | 800-323-9084 | Follow us online:

Discovery Education's "My Hero Is" Contest

Discovery Education in partnership with American Heroes Channel and the National Military Families Association present the My Hero Is Contest. 

Join Discovery Education, American Heroes Channel, and the National Military Families Association in honoring our military members and families by recognizing their service and bravery through the My Hero Is Contest. 

Get your students involved by using our free resources and classroom activities around Veterans Day. Then, have them honor a current or veteran military hero or military family member in their lives by creating and submitting 30-second tribute videos. The school with the largest number of videos submitted will receive a special school assembly honoring local veteran heroes. 

To support Veterans Day and your students in creating tribute videos, we are providing a number of classroom resources including a Veterans Day classroom activity, videos, and tip sheets on storytelling and interviewing.

Learn more and help your school win a special school assembly honoring the brave veterans in your community. 

Chrome Extensions

What are Chrome Extensions?

Helpful Extensions:

• 1-Click Timer A simple, slick and practical timer for Chrome
• Evernote's Clearly Makes blog posts, articles and webpages clean and easy to read. Save them to Evernote to read anywhere.
• Save to Google Drive Save web content or screen capture directly to Google Drive.

Search for Chrome Extensions

Google Educator Training

If you're interested in learning more of what Google can offer your classroom, check out Google's Educator Training. It includes some great training tools and even certification!

Google Street View Treks

Google Street View Treks (use Chrome) are an awesome way to "journey beyond the road" and explore places around the world. Select the location you wish to explore, scroll down the page and click on items you want to learn more about. 

Treks currently include:

Pyramids of Giza

Angkor Wat

Colorado River

Churchill

Taj Mahal

Venice

Galapagos Islands

Eiffel Tower

Mt. Fuji

Buri Khalifa

Iqaluit

Mr. Everest

Grand Canyon

Great Barrier Reef

Amazon Basin

Kennedy Space Center

October: National Cyber Security Awareness Month

As educators, it's our responsibility to talk with our students about cyber security and digital presence. Below are helpful resources and formal lessons that you can use in your class, but not all discussions about cyber security and digital presence need to be formal ones. Even reminding students to be careful and think before they post something counts!

Helpful websites:
StaySafeOnline.org's Middle & High School
Common Sense Education's Digital Literacy & Citizenship
Stop Think Connect guide
StopThinkConnect.org
YouTube's Copyright resources

Handouts and video:
9-12 Grade Tip Sheet
NET CETERA's Guide to Chatting with Kids about Being Online
Cybersafety video

Lessons (10-20 minutes each)
Go to... Eduphoria's Forethought
Scope & Sequence (#1)
High School: Digital Citizenship: Digital Citizenship Lessons (#2)
Select the topic (#3)
Select the related resources (#4)
Look through the lesson and attachments (#5)

Vintage...

Vintage Smartphone

Vintage Social Networking

Google Form Settings change

Google Forms has changed the settings on the top of the "edit form" page again, but the new options look like helpful ones! 

"Require FISD login to view this form" = This used to mean staff only or students had to be logged in to their account before opening the form; this is not the case anymore! This option requires a login into either a staff or student FISD account to access the form.

"Automatically collect respondent's FISD username" = If the first option is selected, this can be selected too and it will automatically collect their email address in a column (usually following timestamp) on your responses spreadsheet.

"Show progress bar at the bottom of form pages" = Helpful if your form has multiple pages; not so helpful for forms all on one page.

"Only allow one response per person" = Keep students from resubmitting! Helpful for quick assessments. Downside, if a student accidentally hits submit before they're finished, they can't go back and do it again.

"Shuffle question order" = Awesome for assessments!

For additional support, see Google's Forms Help.

Insert a Special Character with Sketching in Google Docs

When using a Google a Google Doc you are able to insert special characters such as a star, heart math symbols, and many others. What is really neat is that instead of searching through menus to find that special character, Google allows you to sketch the symbol you want and it will search for similar symbols for you to choose from.

Check out this article for more details!

Convert PPT to a Movie

Microsoft has put together these instructions on how to turn a PowerPoint (created in Office 2010) into a video file. This video can be uploaded to your YouTube channel to easily share with others.

Educational Technology and Mobile Learning

Educational Technology and Mobile Learning is a fabulous resource for all things Educational Technology.

New in iOS8

Check out Tony Vincent's article and video highlighting helpful tips for teachers and students in Apple's new iOS8.

YouTube in Education

YouTube for Primary & Secondary Education is a collection of videos and channels that have been vetted and are recommended for use in education. If you find a channel (collection of videos) that you like you can subscribe to the channel for easy access. In your settings you can also set it to send you email notifications when new videos are added to the channel.

11 Great YouTube Channels for Teachers by Educational Technology and Mobile Learning

Bloom's Revised Taxonomy with Verbs

From this article. 

15 Most Popular Social Networking Sites

Check out this list of the Top 15 Most Popular Social Networking Sites - September 2014.

www.ebizmba.com/articles/social-networking-websites

Apps on CHS iDevices

We have sets of 15 iPad2s, 5 iPad1s, 15 iPod Touch Gen 3 (no camera), and 4 iPod Touch Gen 4 available for checkout through Eduphoria's Factilities & Events. The set of 15 iPads are picked up from Penney's desk in the South Workroom and all other devices are picked up from the Library.

See http://bit.ly/chsapps to view a list of apps that are already accessible through our CHS iDevice account.

See this handout for tips on evaluating apps for classroom use.

Single or Double Space

When typing in a web-based program (like the Learning Hub) and <Enter> gives you a double-space, use <Shift><Enter> to single space instead!

FISD's Secondary Tech Facilitator's Pinterest Boards

The Secondary FISD Technology Integration Facilitators maintain a set of helpful Pinterest boards. They are broken into categories where "apps" means iTunes apps and "tools" means websites.

pinterest.com/techtators