Thursday, June 10, 2021

Tech Tales: Teachers Infuse Technology to Transform Instruction

Last year before the pandemic, if I needed to be on a google meet I would quickly run to my colleagues room to join as a team. Once I had to, I quickly I need to learn. I hosted the first cluster meet in April of last year. I had to learn to bounce several kids from the other cluster! I was proud of my teaching last spring, I learned how to use the document camera, as teaching math is hard if you cannot show! I teach very visually.

Fast forward to the spring, the gift of time and the choice of presentations opened up more variety. In the spring, I made google slides for my geometry class in the fall I added pear deck. I also have transitioned from peardeck to more go formative. It allows ease in seeing what kids are doing. I feel as though I keep growing. I recently added whiteboard.fi so I could see my remote kids thoughts.

I also have always used Desmos, but now we have more choice. I have also learned how to pace, create snapshots of student work to highlight.

-Beth Ackley
Horace Mann Middle School Teacher





My newest toy is GoFormative. I am loving all the versatility it provides in the World Language classroom. I have transferred paper worksheet questions onto Go Formative. Instead of the previous rush through the worksheet, I can see my students (CP and Honors) go back and try a question over and over again until they get it right. I love being able to give a listening assessment and they can listen at their own pace and draw or write their answers- while I can grade quickly. I would definitely use GoFormative again next year! My old toy, which I still love, is PearDeck. I love how I can break down skills into tiny parts and have my students practice before going on to the next skill. I love that I can provide them with verbal feedback while they are working, so they can correct their answers and figure out the concept. I love that I can show "Good mistakes" to the class without showing a student's name and we can figure out how to fix them together. I love that I can allow students to work at their own pace so all students needs are met. Again, this is a tool I would definitely use this 4th quarter and next year.

-Leah Wahrhaftig-Jeri
Franklin High School Teacher





I use emojis to help label my topics in Google Classroom. I try to use emojis that correspond with seasons, holidays, or curriculum. In Google Slides, I create a teacher copy and then have my students
update their slides as needed. I especially like this for Book Clubs or slides that carry over from one week to the next.

-Sarah Wilmarth
Kennedy Elementary School Teacher


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