It's the final countdown..♪

It's here... the final week of ICCT2 is upon us!  This month has been tough but it was so worth it! I am so excited to go back to school with all the new ammo I have after this course!  I think that most people in this course would say the same.  There are so many new tools and strategies that I want to use in my French program and throughout August I will be organizing and planning how I am going to do that. That being said, the one last thing to do is to reflect on the process to help me move forward in my learning.

Describe one significant idea or issue that has arisen for you, as you were engaging in the topics during Learning Experiences #3 and #4.

LE 3 & 4 have been interesting because they have really encouraged action.  The planning for staff development and training has been realistic and helpful in thinking about what my role will be in the coming years in my school. There are often AQ courses where the activities are not realistic or even really relevant to some teachers.  For me, being a French teacher, I found that all of the E-tivities were easily applicable to my job and they made me really plan real plans for the coming year.
One significant issue that arose for me was thinking about how to be a leader in technology when you are not the person with the most experience or knowledge on the subject? What I have realized is that as one of the qualities of a good leader is to know your limits and your strengths and weaknesses, I have other qualities and experiences that will help me to be a leader within the school such as the organization skills and being proactive, and the technical stuff can still be led by other leaders within the community.

Elaborate on how specific resources, ideas or experiences in these Learning Experiences have contributed to your learning. e.g. reading material, course activities etc.

I have done Webquests in the past, but they were very basic and were written step by step on a Google Doc.  Making a webquest using an actual webquest maker was really great for me because I now know how to go about making mine better in the coming years.  I realized that I really dislike Zunal, but I would definitely use www.webquest.org.

Another specific activity that contributed to my learning in the last two modules was having to create a parent night presentation.  I have never had to present to parents before and so I really had to think about my communication with parents because it is different than communicating and presenting for colleagues.  It made me consider my communication with parents in general and how I could improve it in the coming year.  I teach so many students and so I have only spoken to parents as needed.  I think technology and the idea of keeping a blog is a great approach to parent communication,  If I create a blog where I will write updates of what students are doing in class in each grade, and sharing that blog with parents would be a good way to open that line of communication.

Share how your participation in the discussion forums have contributed to your learning and connect this to your understanding of the Standards of Practice for the Teaching Profession.

As I stated in my last reflection, I think that my participation in discussions forums and also the collaboration with a peer in LE3 was a way of displaying my commitment to professional learning and being a leader within a learning community. Although it is an expectation in AQs, not everyone monitors their own posts and responds to questions as they come up and people often just put comments on other people's posts such as "I like your post" or "nice chart" whereas I try to make thoughtful responses that are specific, and I ask for clarification from others as needed.  That helps me to show leadership and commitment to my own professional learning. 

Discuss any outstanding questions and the steps you may take to further explore your interests as part of your learning in the course.

^{I plan to continue my learning in this subject area over the coming years.  I will do this by first, being more involved in the management or technology and training at my school.  I will hopefully be able to start a tech committee this year and I will also be  using more technology in my French program.  The first being that I will trial XpressLab with my grade 8s, the next being that I will have a blog for each grade level I teach to help students and parents stay on top of what's going on and what is due. The next step is that when I go back from my maternity leave in the 2018-2019 school year, I will take ICCT part 3. I don't think I will take an intensive as it would be a bit  much with two kids, but I will take it throughout the school year.} 

Final comments...
One final note about this course is that although I have said on many occasions that it was very difficult for me, it was absolutely worth it!  I think it was just the schedule I had for myself this month wasn't conducive to an accelerated AQ. I'm sure all the other teachers were in the same boat because once summer hits, we tend to book ourselves up. I am so happy we all made it through and that I got so much out of this course even though it went by in a blur of activity.  Thanks to Joe for being a great instructor!

LE3 - Another one bites the dust...

Well another module has come and gone and it's time to think back and reflect on the whirlwind that was this week.  I'm not sure if I am the only one who feels this way, but these intensives really do create a whirlwind in your life.  Maybe it's trying to balance this week's course load with a family vacation with my inlaws and my 1 year old and being pregnant ANT the CRAZY heat but MAN AM I GLAD THIS WEEK IS NEARING COMPLETION!!

To save myself time, I have just copy and pasted this week's reflection form directly into the blog.

1. Describe one significant idea or issue that has arisen for you as you were engaging in the topics during the Learning Experience:

The most significant idea for me this week was the idea that we have so much staff training in different technologies, but rarely any follow up.  How are we to know if what we are doing is making a difference if there is no follow up? Not even something so simple as a Google form to ask how many participants have actually implemented whatever they have learned in a PD session in their classroom.

2. Elaborate on how specific resources, ideas or experiences in the learning experience have contributed to your learning. e.g. reading material, course activities etc:

I liked having to think about the upcoming year in the calendar activity and finding ways that I could help further the use of technology at my school.  I would really like to form a tech committee and really start holding these sessions.  The teachers that I mentioned in my calendar are already using certain technologies really effectively in their classes and I think that other teachers could really benefit from teacher-led sessions. I also really liked using Google Forms.  I have taken Google Forms before but believe it or not I have never created one.  This is a practical tool that I will be able to easily use in French. Because I don't teach math at all (probably for the best) I have never actually got to play around with the resources we use at the school, and so trying out Tinkerplots and Geometer's Sketchpad was actually fun for me.  I found the Sketchpad a bit tough as it's not very user friendly for learning.  I ended up using YouTube to teach me.  I LOVED Tinkerplots though! What a great way to sort and manage data! The inquiry based learning opportunities here are endless.

3. Share how your participation in the discussion forum has contributed to your learning and connect that to your understanding of the Standards of Practice for the Teaching Profession.

As a teacher, we make a commitment to ongoing professional learning, and I think that this is being accomplished through such rich discussion and postings from my colleagues in this course.  I think that even if people don't make a comment on your post or don't start a discussion about it, they are still learning just from reading what you have written.  We don't have time to learn it all or look at all of the resources (in the math activity for example), but by reading each other's posts, we can learn a bit about those resources and decide whether or not it might be something that could be useful to us in our teaching.  Teachers are coming together as a learning community, which is one of the best ways for us to learn and it aligns with the Standards of Practice.

4. Discuss any outstanding questions and the steps you may take to further explore your interests as part of your learning in the course:

I actually plan to use Google Forms when I go back to school as my introduction survey. Every year when I get new students I have them fill out a (paper) survey about their interest and experiences in French to get a read on how they are feeling about the subject in general.  This often produces a handful of students who write how much they HATE French and nothing will make them like it.  This is where I focus my attention for the first while is forming a bond with these students that has nothing to do with French but more about their personal interests (which is also a question on the survey).  I think this data will be much easier to compile and read online and much more engaging for them to complete.

Halftime reflection

1. Describe one significant idea or issue that has arisen for you, as you were engaging in the topics during Learning Experiences #1 and #2.

The most significant idea that has arisen for me was from both modules and it was the overarching idea of frontloading your work.  What I mean by that is that with technology, it takes a lot of planning and learning and preparing ahead of time, but once your pre-work is complete, it really makes your work a lot easier and more efficient and effective.  It's important as a teacher to maintain that ongoing commitment to professional learning especially in regards to technology.  It is always changing and advancing and you can't stay stagnant and use the same technology that will become outdated in no time. It's not only necessary to spend time LEARNING about new technology so that you are ready to made an educated decision on whether it is useful to implement for you, but you also must spend time UPLOADING content for a lot of the apps and sites that you will have your students using.

1. Elaborate on how specific resources, ideas or experiences in the Learning Experiences have contributed to your learning. e.g. reading material, course activities etc.

I really liked the activity where we had to alter our ALP.  I didn't have the opportunity to make one last year as I was on maternity leave, so this was a great opportunity for me to create my ALP for next year with the integration of technology in mind.  I liked that this was an authentic task which will actually serve me well for the next school year.  

Another thing I really  liked was learning about OSAPAC, and using that as a resource for finding digital resources available to teachers.  It's amazing that I had never been given a link to this site https://www.osapac.ca/dlr/ before, because it has a large list of digital resources free to use for Ontario teachers.  What this has shown me is that there needs to be more leadership in schools around technology and sharing information like this website so that teachers are more aware of the tools at their fingertips.

1. Share how your participation in the discussion forums have contributed to your learning and connect this to your understanding of the Standards of Practice for the Teaching Profession.

The sharing of information and ideas amongst the participants in this course has been a very enriching part of this course.  I think that this aspect of the course aligns directly with three of the standards of practice; ongoing Professional Learning - The participants are showing their commitment to this by participating in the discussion boards and completing the e-tivities, Professional Knowledge - participants are learning about new assistive and educational technologies which helps them to stay current in their professional knowledge, and leadership in learning commmunties - we are all being leaders by sharing our knowledge and experiences from different areas of the education system, different grade levels and subjects, and we are teaching each other what we know.

1. Discuss any outstanding questions and the steps you may take to further explore your interests as part of your learning in the course.

I would really like to explore some of the resources I saw on OSAPAC.  Specifically, I would like to try using XpressLab with my intermediates next year.  I have seen it in use, and have used it for tutoring, but I haven't used it in a classroom setting before.  I would also like to explore Comic Life because  I got an email saying Bitstrips would no longer be accessible in September, and I am looking for something similar to use in core French.

Reflections on technology for students with special needs...

Necessary for some, good for all

Technology in the classroom is the way of the future and I feel we are so fortunate to be teaching in this day and age because assistive technology is so readily available to  help us help those who are the most vulnerable of slipping through the cracks in the education system. I think students with special needs are getting a much better education now that they have such incredible tools at their disposal.  

I think that the best way to describe my learning in the last week on this subject is that I have had my eyes open to the technology that can help in a mainstream classroom as most of my experience with special education technology was in a school with only students with special needs.  I really like the idea of universal design, and using technology that is necessary for some and applying it to all.  I think it makes the job of teaching easier because you are using all the same technology for all even if you are having to differentiate the task. I think that the technology that is necessary for students with special needs is actually more engaging for the rest of the class to use too.  

I have learned about so many new things to use from my peers in this module! There are many websites that I can use in my French teaching that as the quote says are 'necessary for some' but that would be 'good for all'.

Reading my colleagues staff manuals were interesting too because the tools and technology that was described are mostly things that we already have in most schools, or would be able to easily access.

One thing I have never used but would like to try for my students on IEPs in French class is Google Read and Write. I read about it in this module and when I investigated further I realized that it could be used in French as well, you just have to change the settings.  

This has been a very engaging and interesting module for me, and I am looking forward to continuing my learning about staff training in the next module.

LE 1 - ICCT 2

                       

Well, my first module is complete in ICCT 2 and I just have to say I am SO glad I switched courses in the ninth hour!! I am already feeling like I am getting a lot out of this course!
The first part of the ICCT course ignited an excitement for technology and gave me a ton of new ideas, and so far this second part has been doing the same.  I love seeing all the new resources that people share. I feel like above all else, this course brings ideas and resources that are real world and can be used immediately.

I have loved reading my peer's posts over the past few days. I think that there are so many people with such different teaching experiences that we will all end up with a very broad list or resources from each other.

What stood out the most for me in this specific module was the importance of responsible use.  I think that idea underlies everything in the first module because it's about using technology responsibly and for an educational purpose.  Even when I think about the face that teachers have so much technology at their fingertips, and that they have to ensure that they use technology for a purpose still relates to responsible use. I think that it's important that everyone (not just students) use technology with a purpose and use it responsibly. 

I really liked having to think about what I would do with a $2000 for a technology budget.  I especially liked seeing what everyone else would do with it.  It allowed people to really put down what they through would be best for their students and for different purposes.  I never thought about using it to provide PD on the use of technology but I really thought that was a great idea.  That is probably one area where I wish we had more opportunity for PD!  I have to attend a lot of French PD on PD days, but none of it has ever focused on technology, and I think that with French being such a difficult subject to garner interest in, it would be really useful to have a session focused on technology in the French classroom.

I'm really looking forward to the next module as I feel it is right up my alley.  I spent 6 years as a teaching assistant in a Special Education high school, where I used assistive technology and software daily.  My passion lies in Special Education.  I would love to teach in the life skills program one day.  My undergrad is in Disability Studies.  I am excited to share my knowledge and to learn from my peers on this subject that is so close to my heart!

Why reflect? Why blog?

In 2013, I had the honour of meeting George Couros.  He did a full day PD at my school on re imagining the use of technology in our schools.  He is a GREAT speaker! I left feeling energized and motivated for the future of education, and I wasn't even a teacher yet!  I was happy to see him referenced as he was the first person to ignite that spark in my head for the integration of technology. 

I really enjoyed his blog post on blogging.  It is so true that you always feel like there is not enough time.  I have struggled with this, despite knowing that reflection should naturally be a part of my day.  Especially as a new teacher, as teaching can often be trial and error, you need to reflect on what worked and what didn't  in order to move forward and modify your practice to do better the next time.  I am guilty of not doing this in a written format.  I think it's natural for all teachers to reflect mentally on what they taught and how they taught it and then change their next lesson accordingly, but there are things that we forget from week to week ad year to year, which is where blogging could help.  I liked that George mentioned how helpful it was to tag his blogs.  That is something I haven't learned how to do, but that will help when looking back and searching for previous topics.

My personal challenge in the next school year will be to reflect AT LEAST once a week on my blog.  My goal for the next few weeks of the ICCT 2 course is to learn how to tag my blogs, so that I am ready to use that skill for September.

Reflection IS part of every teachers work, and I believe that we ALL do it just naturally to some extent when teaching (it's almost a survival tactic for new teachers especially), but the biggest challenge is to do it explicitly in a form that you can look back on later to see your progress and growth.

Why does it matter?

So here I am at the end of an AQ course about integrating technology into teaching and here are some of my thoughts...

I have to say, as a person who completed my undergrad through online education, I sill didn't see the full value until I started teaching and this course has just furthered my understanding and deepened my knowledge on the subject. 

So why does it matter? Why should teachers be learning more about technology and using it in the classroom?

And so in the style of David Letterman (who most of my students have never heard of).. here is my top ten list....

TOP TEN REASONS TO BRING TEACHING AND TECHNOLOGY TOGETHER...

10. They both start with 'T', so it makes alphabetical sense to bring them together :)
9. Students CHOOSE to spend their downtime on technology, so wouldn't it make sense that they would be more likely to CHOOSE to do their work on a computer or tablet vs. pen and paper?
8. Technology allows you the tools to reach a variety of learners.  There are apps and softwares to help you as a teacher create content that is good for visual learners, audio learners, musical learners etc.
7. Technology can help you to teach those students in your class with exceptionalities who otherwise couldn't learn in the same way as the other students
6. Teaching is more fun when you can find different ways to do it.  No one wants their job to get stale and boring.  Technology is ever changing and can keep you on your toes for the rest of your career if you put the effort in to learn to use it.
5. Teaching methods and ideas differ worldwide and the use of technology can connect professionals and allow them to share ideas and strategies and can enrich their teaching practice.
4.  Mastering technology can make your job more efficient.  There are many ways this is true, but one example is by having your own website, then schedules, content and reminders of due dates can be posted and students can go there to answer their questions as opposed to coming to you.
3. Knowing how to use technology to your favour could lead you to experimenting with different teaching models such as the 'flipped classroom' method.  Students will get to have more support when doing the actual hands on work, and most of the learning is done through online content that they access from home.
2. Technology can break down the barriers around and within your classroom.  You can see the world from the comfort of the class, talk to experts without leaving your seat and get a new perspective on learning.  The ability to contact other students and teachers around the world will naturally add a whole new layer to your teaching.
1. technology makes school more engaging for the digital generation.  They aren't interested in a teacher standing at the front of the class lecturing.  They need a dynamic lesson that mixes not just technology, but collaboration and action.  Technology is the future of Education.

So what's next?

For me, I have learned about so many new websites, programs, apps, softwares throughout this course, and I have already thought up lessons where they would come in handy.  I am going back to work from my maternity leave in mid-May, when kids are already checking out for the summer, and this will be my best strategy to keep them hooked in.  The students are getting their THIRD French teacher this year when I return, and in order for them to want to put the effort in, they have to be interested in what they are learning. I will be making a powtoon intro about myself and using that for a listening activity.  I will also be using pic collage for students to write about their summer plans, and I am trying to assemble a writing assignment using Gimp and other image manipulation softwares to create illustrations for a short story they write.

I think that I am a better teacher after taking this course and that I will be more effective at engaging my students and using technology in a purposeful and appropriate way to enhance my teaching.  As a personal goal, I would like to get more familiar with video conferencing so that I can make connections in other French speaking countries that I can then bring into the classroom, 

Hey! Look at you!! - Video Conferencing in the Classroom

Video conferencing is a very underutilized tool in todays classrooms.  Not all schools have the technology I'm sure, but those that do could be using this technology in so many ways. 

For a French teacher, there are many ways to use video conferencing.  Here are just a few ideas;

* Have a virtual meet and greet with a class from a French speaking country
* Interview a French professional
* Collaborate with another French class in Ontario on some kind of creative project
* Have a professional take you on a virtual field trip somewhere
* Have a class language exchange with a class of Francophone students - they will teach you something in French and you teach them something in English. (Maybe a song?)

The benefits of video conferencing for teachers and students are numerous.  For students, it can open their eyes to the world.  It's a reminder that there is a big world outside of their small ones.  It gives them the opportunity to develop empathy, understanding, an inquisitive mind, and it allows them to explore a world that is otherwise out of their reach.
For teachers, it can be an opportunity to learn from other professionals and also to reach out and deepen their understanding about what they are going to be teaching.  Video conferencing as a means of professional development could be a great opportunity.

Presentation options

I love using presentations in French when introducing new topics or proposing a challenge to my students, but I also love it when students use creative tools to present projects.

Here are some of my top pics for presentation tools:

1) Microsoft Powerpoint - http://www.microsoftstore.com/store/msca/en_CA/pdp/PowerPoint-2016/productID.323916900?tduid=(4dee93a30b35824e774b05c569b541e7)(240780)(2316686)(SRi0yYDlqd0-eeafnBXmvW6Naojgd.Pu7A)()

This is the old faithful of presentation tools.  I have been using this for years as have many adults, but for our students, this will not feel like the familiar friend it does to us.  Although this can make a good basic presentation, it is a bit boring compared to some of the other presentation tools available today.  What I do like about Powerpoint is the straightforward layout where you can see all of your slides to the left as you work and that they are easy to drag and drop and reorder.  I would probably have a student who lacks focus use this because it's got less flashy options than the other tools.  If possible I would have them use the desktop version because it doesn't have a direct link to the internet to upload content.

2) Prezi - www.prezi.com

This is one of my favourites as an alternative to Powerpoint for a basic presentation.  It does all the same things but in a different way.  Instead of boring static slides switching one to the next, it allows you to create a presentation map which zooms in and out of each slide circle.  The slide circles can also be layered to create a tunnel effect when you are delving deeper and deeper into a subject. The animation is a step up from Powerpoint, but I have heard some people say that the animation makes them feel a bit sick.


3) Powtoon - www.powtoon.com

I love Powtoon for elementary school students.  It allows you to make animated cartoons with audio, text and images.  There are also choices of background music to underlay on your presentation too.  I really enjoy this tool, however the one drawback is that you can't insert links that you can click on.  The videos are exported to YouTube (you can send it to a private channel) once completed.

4) Google Slides - https://www.google.com/slides/about/

Google Slides is like Powerpoint 2.0. It has the familiarity of Microsoft Powerpoint, but it's an online service, so everything saves online automatically as you create it.  The best part of that is that there are no excuses from your students that their work didn't save :)


__________________________________________________________________________________

What are the benefits and pitfalls of using presentation software as a teaching tool?

The benefits of using presentation software to teach is that it breaks up the monotony of the traditional classroom where the teacher stands at the front and teaches.  It is also beneficial because it is digital teaching and can be used as part of a flipped classroom.  Students are used to learning about all sorts of things online in a digital format, so using presentation software is teaching the way that they are used to learning. The pitfall however is that it could be too distracting for some types of learners.  Sometimes we might tend to overuse technology also thinking that it is best but there may be an easier and more succinct way to present your information.

How can you use these programs to enhance collaborative learning?

Because these programs are so easy to use, students can create wonderful presentations without much support.  They can also share them with ease, which allows students to digitally interact. Not all presentations have the collaboration capabilities needed for multiple students too work on the same presentation, but Google slides is an excellent option for this type of collaboration.

Can you incorporate this in your own context?

Presentation softwares are GREAT for French! I have used them a lot when it comes to the culture expectations.  It allows me to easily show them different aspects of French cultures, adding voice overs from true francophones so that they can hear how the accents differ.  I also have my students create digital presentations for the 'speaking' expectations.  This works especially well for French because it can be really hard for students to feel comfortable presenting live in another language in front of their peers.  I even use presentation apps like software 'Sock Puppets' for students who otherwise would not present due to high anxiety.  That app specifically alters the students' voice so that it isn't recognizable.  I am still able to hear the accent and pronunciation but the voice sounds like a cartoon.

I highly recommend that language teachers explore presentation software and apps to make the teaching of French a lot smoother, with more student engagement and less student whining!

GREEN SCREEN FUN!

In French I am always looking for ways to make my lessons and tasks more "techie" so that I can get the students more engaged.  The use of a green screen app is something I have yet to investigate, but I can already see the places I would have used it in previous lessons.  I had a task where students were to do a weather broadcast after we learned about weather, clothing and time of day.  This would have been so much more fun if they could use a green screen app to make it a live on location weather broadcast!!

I researched a few different ways online to do this, but the most user friendly way I saw was by using the app called Green Screen by Do Ink. https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/green-screen-by-do-ink/id730091131?mt=8

Here is a short tutorial on how to use it;

1) First, use your iPad to film all of your clips and to save all of your background images/video.
(you can film live through the app but people seem to prefer having pre-filmed clips)

2) Click on the plus sign in the top right corner to start your project.

3)  You will see your preview screen (the black box) and the timeline along the bottom.  The three lines on the timeline break down as follows:  bottom is your background layer, the middle is the video that you are uploading. Click on the right side of each layer on the plus sign to upload your image or video.

4) To change video clips or backgrounds during your video, line up the red playhead line where you want the new clip to start then click the plus sign again and upload your next clip.

There are other features to this app such as the third layer, which allows you to add in extras such as animations, but for now this is a basic tutorial.  PLEASE NOTE: this app does cost $2.99.  However you can work on and save multiple projects on the same device, so students could share the same iPad.

Have fun!

Imagine your images differently

Have you ever wanted to get creative with your photos or have your students create their own digital art? Here are some fun free options for creating and manipulating images online:

1) www.gimp.org

This is a great alternative to the expensive photoshop.  It has many tools that are the same as Photoshop and has all of the basic tools your students would need to create beautiful images.  There are some advanced features that Photoshop has that Gimp does not , however for student use, it's actually probably more than what they would need.  I just bought Photoshop two months ago and had I known about Gimp, I might have held off!!

2) Artweaver

This downloadable program allows you to make art using all sorts of mediums and tools online.  I like this for one big reason.. more than one person can work on the SAME piece of art at the same time!! I know this sounds challenging, but what an exercise for the students to have to work together, plan an execute something creative.  I think it could be really cool!

3) Pic collage app

This app is something I have used a lot in French.  I have it on my phone, but we also have it on the school tablets. It is an app that allows you to make collages of pictures and then add text and embellishments.  I have had students use it to create French poetry, to create presentation visuals and also as a way to have them just write in French to describe a picture.  They love it because it is SO easy to use!


I hope these options help you and your students get creative!

When your voice needs to be heard.....

Have you ever wanted to record a lesson online for your students? Maybe re-state instructions? Post clips of dialogue? Language comprehension assessments? The possibilities are endless when you are able to upload audio content for your students!
Here are three of my favourite sites for uploading audio:

www.soundcloud.com

This site is really easy to use for both teachers and students.  It's free and really quick to make an account. The site stores all of your audio and it can be easily organized.  What I really like about this is that it can be shared publicly or you can share it privately by giving the link to your students.  You can also embed the audio file into your blog.  You can upload audio that's already made or you can simply press record and make your clip on the spot.

www.podbean.com

This is a podcast website. It's a bit more difficult to navigate than soundcloud, but it will host a podcast channel for you for free with 49MB of space for free.  I might use this for a weekly recap of French lessons for all of my classes. What we learned and what students should be practicing for each grade.  What I don't like is that you have to upload audio that you have already made. There is no recording capabilities on this site.

www.podomatic.com

500MB of storage makes this website a slightly better option for podcast hosting than Podbean.  This site is also more user friendly. There is also no recording capabilities on this website.  You can upload any media file you like.  The process for publishing your podcast is easy.  It leads you through one step at a time.

Personally I think it is limiting to just upload audio files.  Adding a visual layer to your audio would help keep more students interested. Consider putting a bit more effort in and making a powtoon cartoon with your audio overlay at www.powtoon.com or creating an avatar to do the speaking for you using voki. (there is a free version that gives you 60 second audio recording clips, or a paid version for teachers that does great presentations).  Voki is something I would have my students use to do short 1 minute presentations for those who are afraid of presenting in front of the class.

Google or Microsoft 365???

                                                            GOOGLE vs. OFFICE 365
                                                             The epic battle has begun.

Personally, I have grown up using Microsoft and so I have a soft spot for the familiarity of tools like Office, Excel and Powerpoint, but as a Teacher, I have seen the value of the browser-based tools that Google offers. Our school is Google focused and I have been working with the Google tools more than Microsoft over the last two years.

They may offer similar programs, but that doesn't mean they are the same.  People still have personal preferences for different reasons.  I will write a short comparison of the two and then share my opinion of what I prefer as a teacher.

Both are cloud based services, so all work gets saved to the cloud and can be accessed online.
Office 365 also offers desktop programs to be used offline (which can be a definite advantage at times).

Both offer a program for:

Writing (Docs/Word)
Spreadsheets (Sheets/Excel)
Presentations (Slides/Powerpoint)
Email (Gmail/Outlook)
Storage (Drive/ Skydrive)
Video conferencing (Hangouts/Lync)

The both also have an app for note taking.  I have been using Keep on my phone for years and didn't even realize it was a Google app, but One Note I just learned about and after exploring it a bit, I think it is actually a better program if I wanted to take notes of lectures.  It has a better system of organization and tabs that you can name yourself and it's just a more organized overall app.

When I started the comparison, I thought Google was the only one with a social media app (Google +) but as it turns out, Microsoft has a MUCH LESSER KNOWN social media network called So.cl.  I would say that Google plus is the leader in that department after just discovering that so.cl exists!

Now after familiarizing myself with Office 365 a bit, I will declare the winner of this battle (in my books anyways).

Although I have a natural inclination towards Microsoft Office mainly just because it's so familiar to me and so I think that it's 'user friendly'.  But when I started to look at it again, I started to remember my old frustrations when I used Word for example, and I just wanted to change simple formatting and I had to sort through what felt like hundreds of menu options to find the right tool.  There was a lot of Office that I never did learn how to use.  Google on the other hand was relatively easy to learn when I started a couple of years ago, and  I don't seem to have as many annoying problems to troubleshoot.  I also use MORE of the options than I ever did with Office.

I know personally, out of habit, if I had a desktop version of Office, I would use that out of convenience when at home (instead of opening the internet browser first) and undoubtedly forget to save my work and then kick myself for not using the online cloud version when at work the next day and unable to get the work I did the night before.  I think that making a habit of using Google's cloud based service has been really great for me because all of my work is at my fingertips from anywhere, and not sitting uselessly on my computer at home.

You do get more storage with Office 365, but I have used Google for 2 years and have not used it up.

Overall I just think Google is simpler, better organized and easy to learn.  I also find it very quick.  I haven't dealt with any saving lags like I have with Office 365.

To each their own though with these opponents. Each has their strengths and in the end I think it comes down to personal preference.

Resources to learn, practice or present something in French

This week I thought it was important to put together a post for those who need more than what I can offer in class. There are many resources available for home use as well as many that are available on the computers at school. All of the resources I include here are compatible with French and unless otherwise stated, you are able to put in French accents. I teach mostly intermediate with some junior, so most links are geared towards this age group.

I have divided  them into five categories; learning, practice, presentations, work checking and collaborating.
________________________________________________________________________

LEARNING - All sites in this category are for learning French (conversational, grammar, verbs etc.)  Sometimes there may be something you are still unclear on after class and these sites can help you to learn the concepts in a different way.

http://www.education.vic.gov.au/languagesonline/french/french.htm  -  This site will be helpful for students who are looking to learn a specific lesson and practice using worksheets and animated activities.  The great thing about this website is that the instructions are in English, so parents and students can know how to complete each lesson and activity at home.  I might even use this in class to support the learning of students on IEPS or students who are very visual learners.  The drawback to this site would be that the printable worksheets don't always have clear instructions as to how to complete them. I would probably use some of the worksheets as handouts for students to review terminology because they have good images.

https://www.youtube.com/user/sduckworth100/videos - Although some of her videos are geared towards primary/junior grades, they are great for review as needed.  She has  hundreds of videos on her channel and they are very well organized into categories.  The only drawback is that at times on certain videos the audio is poor quality and it can make it difficult to understand the words being said. The really neat thing about her videos is that she makes them using a large variety of websites and apps (Tellegami, Puppet Pals, Powerpoint, Powtoon etc,)

___________________________________________________________________________

PRACTICE - These sites are to practice what you've already learned.  They might have quizzes or practice conversations, or French videos or text to work on comprehension

www.quia.com/shared/french - this site is a fun site where teachers and other have created fun review games (battleship, tic tac toe, jeopardy etc) to review a variety of French concepts.  The user will have to search for the concept they wish to review and then check out the links below. Many games are wonderful but some not so much.

http://www.hello-world.com/languages.php/?language=French/ - This site has a page to learn main concepts and then practice them, but it also has 700 games and activities and songs in French to practice comprehension.  I like that all of the links are easy to use and don't freeze up, but some of the culture presentations are quite dry and I wouldn't recommend them.  There are great images and animations for many of the concepts.

http://www.tfo.org/fr/jeux - These games often don't require use of the French language, but the instructions are in French, and so this is good incentive to work on listening comprehension.  I would use this as a reward in class for students who are finished early.

https://quizlet.com/subject/french/ - Much like Quia, this site allows teachers to upload their own activities and review quizzes, and therefore the quality of each varies significantly, but there are many great review activities which are searchable by subject at the top of the page.  What I like about this is that you can preview each activity to the right of the page to see if it's right for you.  What I don't like is that the page itself is a bit boring and it might be difficult to hold the attention of younger students.

https://getkahoot.com/how-it-works / https://kahoot.it/#/  - Kahoot is game based review which is entertaining and fun for young students.  The first link is for a teacher to learn about and create a Kahoot and then the second link is where students would go to play and enter the pin number of the game the teacher created.  I have used this in the classroom with students on a weekly basis and they LOVED it. They actually ask if they can play Kahoot.  I recommend any teacher to use it, but it especially helps to engage the students in French.
_____________________________________________________________________

PRESENTATIONS - Many times in French you will be asked to share your work with your peers and the sites listed here will help you do this in a fun and creative way.

                                              

www.prezi.com - Prezi is a free website where students make a presentation map for the system to follow.  It's more dynamic than Powerpoint, but has the same idea, where the presentation moves from one 'slide' to another.  This is a great presentation option for French because it accepts the ALT codes to create French accents.

www.powtoon.com - Powtoon is a free, user friendly cartoon maker with the option to animate.  Students will love the presentations you make using it and they will be excited to try it out for themselves. This site also accepts ALT codes.  I have used this to create introduction videos to a new unit.  I have also had students use it to create conversational cartoons.  The students can record their voices into the presentation.

Microsoft Powerpoint - This is the old standard for presentations.  It's easy to use, but perhaps a bit dated now and boring when you know what else is available, but it's widely available and good for people who don't have time to learn a new presentation program in time for a due date.  It's not available at my school computers though as they don't have Microsoft office on them.

Google Presentations (part of Google Drive) - This is a great presentation alternative to Microsoft Powerpoint because it saves automatically as you work and has many tools and templates to customize your presentation.  Your presentation will be accessible from anywhere because it is based in your Google drive.

Keynote (on school iPads) - This presentation software is available on a handful of  iPads at my school (the board doesn't have any special license for it, so it came at a cost to the school).  It's an alternative to a traditional Powerpoint presentation for Apple users. It's a great presentation too that is easily projected from the iPad (or even an iPhone).  The French characters can be inserted using the option button plus other keys in combination, or by inserting each from a dropdown menu. 

Corkulous (on school iPads) - This is available on all school iPads.  It's a free download, so students who have a personal Apple product can download it for home use.  This is a neat way to create and present an idea board.  You can really organize your ideas well. I haven't used it yet, but I would use it when students are starting a French project, they can organize their ideas then present to a peer for feedback. The one drawback I have heard from some teachers is that some students have had the app crash and have lost their work.

Pic Collage (on school iPads) This free app is on all school iPads and it's a great tool for presenting something brief.  It's an app where you can collage pictures together and add embellishments and text.  I have used it to have students collage pictures of them in different weather conditions and then describe what they are wearing. They are allowed to write keywords on the collage to help them with their presentation.  I love this because it's SO easy to use.

Tellegami (on school iPads)

__________________________________________________________________________

WORK CHECKING - It's really important in French to double check your written work and fix the mistakes that you can on your own before handing work in.

www.wordreference.com - This is a GREAT online dictionary because unlike GOOGLE TRANSLATE it can tell you what the correct word is in context to what you're saying.  It will give you many word options for what you are trying to say.

www.bonpatron.com - This free site checks your work for you and finds all the grammar and verb errors for you.  It won't correct them for you, but it will tell you why it's wrong and that way you know how to go about fixing it. You just copy and paste your text in the window and click the 'Vérifier le texte' button.

http://www.alt-codes.net/french_alt_codes/ - This is the place to go to learn how to make the letters with accents on them. You do it by pressing and holding down ALT and then typing the numbers listed.  This is essential for typed French work of any kind.

_______________________________________________________________________

COLLABORATING - Group work can be difficult when the work isn't completed in class.  These sites make it easier for groups to work together from home or even from different computers in the school.

Google docs - This free online tool is ideal for students to work together on the same document.  I have found that at times when too many people are working on the same document in different sections at the same time, the page sometimes jumps around, but for the most part, it's the perfect tool for collaborating on work inside or outside class.

www.chatzy.com - Chatzy is a site where you can open up a private chat room and chat with people via invite only. The great thing about this site is that the rooms aren't searchable, so random people won't join the chat. The chat is also printable and can be saved. As a teacher, I would use this to have students have a chat dialogue in French and them have them save it and send it to me (or print it ... but let's save trees). You are able to use ALT codes to type accents. This is also a great accountability tool because if you expect students to discuss their project, their chat history can be sent to you to ensure that they did the collaboration work.

www.todaysmeet.com - This is a 'backchannel' chat website, so the teacher (or a student) would create a chatroom and the students join it  (there are a few ways to do so, but the coolest is a QR code that you scan with your phone to join).  The chat window has the option to be projected while the lesson is happening and students can chat and ask questions as they come up or the room can be opened right after a lesson for students to talk about concepts and help each other.  The rooms can also be created and used by students.  This site also allows you to print the transcript.

I hope some of these resources can be of use to you in your French endeavors!

Blended learning for all

Any 21st century teacher should know what blended learning is and just how many ways there are to accomplish it.  Personally I still find it all a bit intimidating.   Am I the only one?  It just seems like a whole lot of work and without having tried it yet, it is still a bit daunting to think about managing 30 students both online and in class, and planning lessons in both, not to mention the stress of making the technology available for all your students at the same time! Making lesson content online takes time, and as a new teacher I felt like time was the one thing I never seemed to have enough of. 

My background in education and my work experience are focused around people with disabilities and special education, so blended learning is intriguing to me as to how it might help enhance learning for those with special education needs.  My husband is a special education teacher in a high school and I have seen his program shift over the years to become more and more blended and technology based over the last few years.

Blended learning is quite useful for students with special needs or English language learners for many reasons. Firstly, you can design it so that students work at their own pace. One of the biggest challenges for ELL students is keeping up because they are learning the language at the same time as the lesson.  The ESL teacher has the ability to add links to help with the language development at the same time if they collaborate with the classroom teacher.  The internet offers so many translation and online dictionary and thesaurus tools that can really help an ELL student to progress through a lesson.  Secondly, there can be alternate tasks set up online.  Students don't have to do the same task to acquire the same knowledge, so by offering parallel tasks online, students can choose what works best for them. Lastly, the internet offers the ability to deliver content in audio, visual and multimedia ways.  We know that not all students learn in the same way (multiple intelligences) and so delivering content in multiple ways will reach multiple learners. 

Here are the examples that I found inspiring in each division:

Primary: At the Milan Village Elementary School in New Hampshire, students are equipped with their own computer and throughout the day they flip back and forth between online and in person lessons.  The teachers guide the students through the curriculum in an individualized way so that each student is learning how they learn best.  The assigning of online lessons will depend on individual progress and learning needs.

Junior: At Acton Acadamy, their school is focused on blended learning.  Students are given the opportunity to take charge of their own learning.  They use technology for lessons and for projects and also for feedback and assessment. What I loved was that they said that they know that even though something is online doesn't make it appropriate for everyone, so for their math program in elementary, they offer choices of programs and sites (ie. Khan Academy, DreamBox etc.) and then they let their students choose which works best for their learning.  The school blends their learning between technology and real life and often will have hands-on learning experiences in and out of the classroom. They ever have students as young as middle school going to apprenticeship style job placements.

Intermediate: The grade 8 science department at Hamilton Middle School has mastered the flipped classroom model of blended learning. Two teachers, Mr Alkire & Mr. Wandell work together to flip their classrooms.  They have created their own Google classroom : https://sites.google.com/site/hms8thgradescience/home as well as their own YouTube and Vimeo channels.  They upload video lesson content and student will work through the video lessons at home on their own time (or in school on breaks if they don't have internet access at home).  When they come to class, they have a checklist of activities to do to correspond with each video lesson.  The classroom according to them looks like organized chaos because students are all working on different things and the learning is so self directed, but the kids are all on task (even though they may be on different tasks).  The teachers are in class to help students on a more individual basis, to solidify concepts when needed and to inspire further thinking.

After doing more investigating tonight and reading a lot of success stories, I can really see how your investment of time can make such an incredible impact on student learning and it will make your job EASIER in the end because your students will be engaged and learning in the best way they can.

Resources:

http://www.eschoolnews.com/2014/06/03/blended-learning-competency-826/2/

https://youtu.be/-jotk4mhQOU

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aBLgVRsb7_Q

https://sites.google.com/site/hms8thgradescience/flippedclassroom

https://sites.google.com/site/hms8thgradescience/home

The Why and When of Creative Commons Licences in Class

Hrmmmm.... why would you possibly use a Creative Commons License with your students?  Here's what I'm thinking...

I think it's important for younger students to understand the basics of copyrights and plagiarism and I think the Creative Commons license fits nicely into that discussion with your students.  It's important that by the time students get to high school that they know how to use sources without copying them and how to give credit.  They should also know where to find things that they can use for free and with permission such as music and images.  This will continue to help them in post secondary also.

Whenever you ask your students to complete a project where they will need to add images to something or music or video, encourage them to use the Creative Commons tools to find what they need.  You could even encourage them to license their own work in some cases.

Tech enhanced teaching

This may have been made when I was a teacher candidate, but I still believe everything I said about technology enhanced teaching, and Animoto is an interesting tech tool for creating presentations.


Make your own slide show at Animoto.

The Standards of Practice and Me

I would like to think that everyone who becomes a teacher naturally lives by these standards of practice without even looking at the list, because I believe that these are things that should simply be a natural part of a good teacher’s personality and personal goals.  When I first saw the standards of practice in Teacher’s College, I thought they were very common sense.  Now that I have been teaching for a year, I am able to look a bit deeper into each of the standards and reflect on how closely they have related to my teaching. As an educator, I feel it is important for me to uphold these standards because I believe that in a workplace, an example can set a tone.  In the same way that if a few people at a workplace are laid back, that attitude spreads, I think that if you show your dedication to the professional standards, then it influences others to do the same.

I have always considered myself to be a lifelong learner, but I never realized how much I would be learning in just my first year of teaching.  Ongoing professional learning was demonstrated through my NTIP sessions last year, through my work with colleagues and I even invited a French Instructional Coach to work with me for two weeks.  I made an effort to learn as well as just learning through experience, but I would say that there was one area for improvement. I worked in two different schools this year, one where I was one of three French teachers and the other where I was the only one.  I definitely learned so much from my French colleagues at the first school, but at the second, I felt a bit like an island.  It was hard for me to get to know my division colleagues because I came halfway through the year, and for the first time, I had my own classroom to set up (and sequester myself in) and because of that, I think I missed an opportunity for growth and learning from those colleagues.

Teaching in the 21st century does introduce a whole new layer to the profession, but I don’t think that the standards need to change to accommodate that layer.  The standards can be adhered to using all of the new things that have broadened our teaching world.  Commitment to Students and Student Learning - Instead of just teaching students about being contributing citizens, we now also teach how to be a good digital citizen.

Professional Knowledge & Ongoing professional learning - Teachers can enhance their professional knowledge so much easier now through e-learning, digital conferencing, e-books, educational videos online, even things like pinterest can be a great resource!

Professional Practice & Commitment to Students and Student Learning - These two go hand in hand, and show that the 21st century teacher can use new tools and resources to put their professional knowledge into practice to enhance student learning. An example of this is delivering course material online (in a powtooon, or other visual format) as an accommodation for a student with special needs.

Leadership in Learning Communities - I believe this to be easier because there is simply so many more avenues for seeking out learning communities with the internet.  With more communities, there is more opportunity for leadership.

I wouldn’t say that these standards encourage innovation and risk taking.  If you’re an innovative person who is driven and takes risks, then naturally you will interpret these standards in that way, but for many teachers, the standards inspire them to do their job to the best of their ability, and in the end I think that is the best way for the professional standards to be interpreted.

Dear parents and guardians...

Dear Parents and Guardians,

               This year in our French program, we are going to be doing some exciting work with social media sites.  Some of these may already be familiar in your household such as Instagram and Twitter, but we will also be exploring sites like Google Docs, Google Plus, Blogger, Celly and Pinterest. Using these sites, students will increase creativity, develop new communication skills and learn how to safely navigate the online world. It's my hope that using these programs will also help to make French class fun for students while showing them how French can be used in their everyday life.

               I assure you that safety is my priority while using social media and technology in my program.  I will teach your child how to stay safe online, and I will hold them accountable for their online actions.  I ask that you read the agreement at the bottom of the page with your child and ask that they sign it then return it to me.  It's important for students to make a commitment to keep themselves and others safe and to use the internet appropriately.

                There IS technology available at the school for students to use, but the Halton District School Board's 'Bring I.T.' policy invites students to bring their personal devices (phone, iPad, tablet, laptop) to school.  It is only to be used in the classroom, under teacher direction, during class time.  If your child would like to bring their personal technology to school, please note that the school is NOT responsible for any lost, stolen, or broken items and all the same rules and expectations for internet use apply.

             Throughout the year, you will be able to see what we are doing in class and how we are using social media and technology by checking my class website (ADD LINK HERE). 

                 If you have any questions or concerns, please don't hesitate to contact me (blackmores@hdsb.ca or 905 878 1556). 

Thank you in advance for your support.

Stephanie Blackmore

Intermediate Core French Teacher
Sam Sherratt Public School
___________________________________________________________________________________
                                                              PLEASE SIGN AND HAVE YOUR CHILD SIGN THEN DETATCH AND SEND BACK

I _____________________________________________(print name) agree that when I am online,

        I WILL  * use it only for school purposes
                      * follow the teacher's instructions
                      * respect myself and my classmates
                      * tell the teacher if I see anything inappropriate on the sites I visit.

I WILL NOT * share personal information (last name, address, phone number)
                       * bully others in any way
                       * use the internet for personal messaging or texting that isn't related to the lesson
                       * communicate with strangers

__________________________________              _______________________________________
                         STUDENT SIGNATURE                                                                                                PARENT OR GUARDIAN SIGNATURE