Tech Tools for the 1st Year Teacher

   Students have become digital natives, and it is our job as teachers to do the same and meet them where they are. Blogs, social networks, and google docs are great places to start integrating technology into a classroom, but there is so much more out there. There are apps and websites that can be used for all sorts of things, such as classroom management, assessment, or parent/student involvement.

For classroom organization, there are apps such as LearnBoost, MyGradeBook, and Haiku. With these apps, the teacher can create seating arrangements; upload lessons, videos, quizzes, and links; and parents can log on and see student’s grades. Haiku specifically, can be used during class as a mini lesson plan for students. The teacher can upload directions, links to videos, and other quizzes or assessments for the students to complete in order.

   For classroom assessments, there are apps such as GoFormative, See Saw, Kahoot, and Quizizz. GoFormative does away with the pencil and paper tests. Sudents can now do them completely online. See Saw is a digital portfolio app. Students can keep up with their own work and parents can view the work from home. Kahoot is an app that the students love. It is fun and interactive and gives real-time feedback. The students have an opportunity to compete against each other, and the winner is the person who answers the most correct answers the fastest. Quizizz is a little more interactive and provides the teacher with great data about the class. It has avatars, music, memes, themes, and leader boards for the students.

   For classroom management, there are apps such as Too Noisy, Stick Pick, and Cold Turkey Blocker. Too Noisy projects on the wall the level of noise in the room, letting the students know when they are too loud. Stick Pick is a randomized name-picker app. Cold Turkey Blocker is an app that blocks websites. Or, the teacher can turn the guided access on the iPads, which prevents the students from leaving that app.