A Dash of Creativity

When I walk down the halls of my school, I always peek into other classrooms to see what students are learning. This school year, I was excited because every classroom was using technology. Teachers were using what learned in professional development about the Boxlight Interactive Board, Google Classroom, and iReady. Though it was great to see, I think how amazing the lesson will be with 
a dash of creativity.


Last year, I attended the 22nd Annual Powering Up with Technology Conference. In this conference, I learned technology should increase engagement, communication, and collaboration among teachers and students. We can do that but not with traditional methods or redundancy. We must tap into our creative sides.

Here are three creative ways to spice up the technology:

1. Screencastify:
Screencasify is a wonderful tool for blended learning. You are able to flip the classroom by making interactive video presentations. Every student has one-to-one experience with the teacher and can watch at their own pace. Also, it helps to easily explain concepts by cutting down on time. This is not only for the classroom, but Screencastify is also excellent for professional developments. Take a look at this teacher uses Screencastify

3. Flipgrid
This is a fun tool that can be used for teachers and students. Do you want to increase engagement and assess learning at the same time? Then, I recommend using Flipgrid. It is a video discussion board where you can pose topics and students can post videos as their response. This application is not just for students, this also can be used in professional developments for teachers. Flipgrid encourages creativity, communication, and collaboration. Check out these Flipgrid examples:

3. GimKit
Move over Kahoot, GimKit is here! GimKit is a live quiz learning game that can be used to introduce or review concepts. This is ideal for secondary students and adults. It is a combination of Kahoot and Quizlet. The best part of GimKit is that you are not earning points, you earn MONEY! (not real money of course). One more cool thing about GimKit, it was created and maintained by a high school student. Take a look at how to play.

Take some time to try some of these new ways to add some creativity with your technology. Let me know what you think in the comments.

Boost Your Tech Confidence

In 2017, PwC conducted a study that discovered out of 2,000 teachers, only 10% of K–12 teachers feel confident incorporating higher-level technology into student learning. Unfortunately, technology is on the rise in education but there are many educators uncomfortable using it. As educators, how can we effectively integrate technology into our classroom with confidence? We can't!

We want our students to be confident 21st-century learners. They should know the skills of technology literacy, media literacy, and information literacy. However, we have to lead by example. Let's get comfortable with technology before we start to integrate it into our classrooms. If we are effective then are students will be effective. So how do we boost our confidence?

You start with these four things I call ACAP:


1. Assess Where You Are

Before you start thinking about all the things you can't do, assess where you are. There are numerous teachers that believe they are amateurs when it comes to using technology. However, when they assess themselves they realize they know more than they thought. So take some time to complete a technology skills survey to know where you are.

2. Change Your Mindset

There is a powerful quote by Steve Maraboli that says, "Once your mindset changes, everything on the outside will change along with it." Education and technology are always changing. Therefore, it is essential to change your mindset when it comes to technology integration. When you develop a positive growth mindset, you allow yourself to be open and grow while learning new things. Read this wonderful article about building a growth mindset for teachers.

3. Attend Professional Development and Training

One of the best ways to build your confidence is to attend professional developments. Countless educators dread attending training because they are mandated by the school or district. Some of the best professional developments are the ones you take the initiative to attend. Technology training, conferences, or webinars help you develop a plan, incorporate, and execute technology lessons. They can provide you with countless resources and strategies that you will love to take back to your classroom. 

Check out these technology courses for teachers.

4. Practice
This a word that many educators use with their students. Practice your spelling words. Practice the word problems. Why do we tell our students this? We say this because we know with practice comes mastery and growth. Your confidence and effectiveness with technology come with the amount of time you are willing to put into it. So remember PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE!




Share your thoughts about tech confidence in the comments. 

Surf Safely

When our school received 1:1 device, I remember helping a teacher prepare the devices for her students. She stated, "Why does every kid have to have one? They are just going to do whatever they want." My reply to her was "You have to teach them how to safely use them." She looked at me like I was crazy and said, "It's the internet, we can't control anything they do on there!"


After that conversation, I realized one of our top priorities as an educator is ensuring the safety of all our students. We try to make sure to protect them from dangerous situations, on the playground, bullying from peers, and much more. But what about technology? The internet? Are we going to dangerously give our students devices daily? NO! We must diligently ensure the safety of our students with technology.

By simply giving them a list of do's and don'ts will not do the job. It is important to remember that we MUST teach our students about computer and internet safety.  Think about it! Did you learn how to drive by just reading a list of things not to do? I am sure the answer to that question is no. You were taught how to drive and practiced to gain experience. Now I am sure you're an excellent driver 😉. Well, it is the same for our students. We must teach them how to use to properly and safely use devices and the internet. Then, we allow them to practice to have experience.

There are two terms to remember when teaching students about safety on the computer: digital citizenship and netiquette. Digital citizenship is having the knowledge and skill to effectively use digital technologies to communicate, create, and consume digital content. Netiquette is the correct or acceptable way of communicating on the internet. These terms are a great start to helping our students safely use their devices.

Here is the good news, you don't have to try to figure out how to plan lessons to teach your students about digital citizenship. There are educators and tech experts like Kathleen Morris that have created wonderful lessons and content for educators. Kathleen has been highlighted for creating the four-layered teaching approach to digital citizenship and internet safety. Check out the poster below:

Keep in mind...technology is becoming apart of our students' everyday learning experience, we must protect them like we would with anything else. Show your students how to "Surf Safely"!

Here are some more resources to aid you in preparing lessons for your students:

12 Great Lesson Plans for Internet Safety

Internet Safety Lesson Plans

Digital Citizenship Lesson Plan: Digital Compass
Cool Cat Teach Lessons

Share your thoughts about internet safety in the comments. 

New Technology...HELP!!!

It is a new school year and you learned that each student will have their own device. According to your administrators, it is imperative to fully implement technology into your instructional practice. Instantly, you are frustrated because you have minimal training with the devices and do not know how you are going to incorporate the technology in your daily lessons.  So what do you do?
Well... a great place to start would be the PIC-RAT Model.

The PIC-RAT model is a framework developed for technology integration. In this model, it is imperative for educators to ask the following questions when students are using technological devices in the classroom.

• What is the students' relationship with technology? (PIC: Passive, Interactive, Creative)
• How is my use of technology influencing traditional practice? (RAT: Replace, Amplify, Transform)

When integrating technology into the classroom, it should not be used as a replacement of traditional practices. For example, the teacher uses a PowerPoint for student notes or students are taking a test and quiz on the computers. The use of technology should encourage students to tap into their creativity and critical thinking skills. They can create animated videos to tell a story or create an infographic to bring awareness to a topic. 

The PIC-RAT framework was created to help educators move the use of technology from just being a replacement to being transformative. Take a look at the PIC-RAT matrix.

 For many years in education, the teacher has always been responsible for the learning outcomes for students. However, the PIC-RAT model shows educators how to gradually transfer the responsibility of learning outcomes from the teacher to the student.  Students become in control of their learning experience and teachers become facilitators to guide students. 

As an educator, it is important to understand that technology is apart of students' everyday lives and we must use it to enhance their learning experience. To ensure that our students' are equipped with 21st-century skills, we all must become 21st-century educators.

To learn more about the PIC-RAT model, watch the video below:

K-12 Technology Integration by Dr. Royce Kimmons

Share your thoughts about integrating technology in the comments.

Teacher Tech Transformation

Hello 21st Century Educators!

Has your school recently become a 1:1 school? Do you know what to do with your new devices for your students? Are you trying to figure out how to integrate technology in your instruction?

If you have any of these questions, this is the right blog for you!

I am Brittany, a middle school educator at a K-8 academy. I have always had a love for and children and technology. So the classroom has been the best way to merge my love for both. With our school being a targeted one-to-one school in the county, I was selected to be a school-based technology coach. As a technology coach, it is essential to share with educators various ways to properly integrate technology into their practice.

In this blog, you will learn how to use technology to create a transformative and creative learning environment for your students. Let's TRANSFORM!!!!

Here are some extra resources for technology integration:

Top 5 Benefits of Technology in the Classroom
6 Pros & Cons of Technology in the Classroom in 2019
10 Reasons Today’s Students NEED Technology in the Classroom