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Are you still coding? Beyond the Hour of Code

12/23/2014

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Computer Science Education week was December 10th and kicked off with President Obama writing a line of code as part of the Hour of Code.  The Hour of Code is designed to be an introduction to coding in a simple and fun way to show that anyone can be a coder.  There were 77,000 different Hour of Code events happening around the world.  At one point, the traffic to the server reached its breaking point from all the excitement when the website went down due to so much activity! 

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Excitement for coding was high here in Iowa, especially for one of our area districts, English Valley, who won $10,000 from Code.org!  At last count, 82 million people have tried the Hour of Code and have written 4 billion lines of code.

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It has been great to see the excitement build for computer coding.  At Grant Wood, we hosted a teacher training from Dr. Ben Schafer, professor from UNI, for Code.org's new K-5 curriculum.  The free curriculum is designed to have unplugged (or computer-free) lessons blended with plugged lessons to support even the youngest students while they discover the world of coding.  We know that young students need to be up and moving more and this curriculum recognizes and supports this.  The photo on the right showcases our code dance, a lesson designed to show how dance and coding can connect.  The curriculum has many other real-world connections and usually has a video lesson that introduces new concepts.  It was created as part of the Creative Commons and aligns with Common Core, ISTE, and CSTA standards. 

Twenty-three local teachers took part in the free, one day workshop to learn more about this curriculum.  Dr. Schafer's energetic spirit for coding makes this not the typical sit-and-get workshop.  We experienced lessons from the student's view and gained experience teaching some of the tougher lessons.  There was a great dialogue amongst the group and on follow-up teachers resoundly said that there were planning on implementing the curriculum.  Dr. Schafer will be conducting more workshops across Iowa throughout the spring.  Click here to find a training near you to take advantage of this experience!  

The new curriculum brings up a good point - it takes more than an hour.  The curriculum is meant to build student's capacity for skills related to coding.  Critical thinking, perseverance, problem-solving, and creativity are the skills we want to encourage in our students.  The Hour of Code was created to get coding's foot in the door of schools.  So, where is your school at?  Have you celebrated an hour? Or has your school continued to support coding by implementing any of the great, free curriculums out there?  Let us know where you are at or if you need any support in the coding process.

- Amber Bridge, Technology Consultant
@abridgesmith

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What is Aurasma? Ideas for the Classroom

12/19/2014

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Aurasma is an augmented reality app available for iOS and Android devices.  Recently, I used this app in a technology course that we offer at Grant Wood AEA for classroom teachers.  What is augmented reality?  A popular example of augmented reality is Google Glass.  Google Glass changes your normal visual reality. It is overlaid with information or other media.  The Aurasma app accomplishes this by overlaying video over what your device is pointed at by the use of a trigger.  This can be difficult to verbalize, so the following video will help with an explanation of Aurasma.
Pretty cool, right?  How can I use this in the classroom?  In the C21 course with Amber Bridge, my co-instructor, and I created an Aurasma scavenger hunt at the Cedar Rapids Public Library.  We then took our C21 class there on a field trip.  The class scanned items in the library with their mobile device and a video of us speaking appeared.  In the video, we highlighted the area they were in and pointed them to their next location.  If you are ever at the Cedar Rapids Public Library, you can follow our public aurasma.  Search for jasonelliottmarshall in the aurasma app and then follow the Cedar Rapids Library Scavenger Hunt.  


If you are not able to take your class on a field trip, here are some ideas for using Aurasma in the classroom.


  1. Back-to-school night art walk - Create videos of students talking about their artwork.  Hang the artwork around the building, and parents will be able to use the artwork as a trigger to hear the artist describe their work.  

  2. Parent / teacher conferences - Similar to above, during a parent / teacher conference when showing student work to the parent, use the work as a trigger for the parent to view an Aurasma of the student describing what they are seeing.

  3. Library book reviews - Create Aurasma book reviews for the library collection.  Students can watch the review by scanning the cover.

  4. Homework solutions and assistance - Give video assistance or solutions to homework by using the problem as a trigger.

  5. Building tours - Showcase areas of your building by using building features as triggers.  You can even brand the Aurasma or in-bed the functionality inside your own app.

  6. Many companies are using Aurasma’s as part of marketing campaigns.  Jostens has added the functionality to yearbooks they produce for schools.  


Here is a link to the Aurasma home page.  

http://www.aurasma.com/#/whats-your-aura

You can create your Aurasmas on the fly from your device or set up an account to use their Aurasma studio.  I hope you find Aurasma’s take on augmented reality as exciting as I do.  


~Jason Marshall, Technology Consultant
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Mystery Skype Just Got An Awesome Upgrade!

12/16/2014

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Are you a fan of Mystery Skype? Thousands of teachers use it as a way for their classrooms to connect and establish greater cultural understandings. It's like a game of 20-questions. The teachers arrange the Skype call ahead of time so they know where each other are located, but the students do not. Each group of students takes turns asking the other class a question that might give them a clue as to where they might be.

However, it is more than just random guessing. There are a lot of really great conversations that go towards the final deduction. Students will be pouring over atlases and maps as they engage in collaborative thinking to narrow down the possibilities in an attempt to be the first to discover the secret location of the class they are connected with. You can see an example below:
This week, Microsoft unveiled a new Skype app that takes this activity to a whole new level. It's called the Skype Translator app, and it does exactly what you might think an app with that name would do. It translates a Skype call, in real-time, so that you can communicate with people that you do not share a common language with.

Modern foreign language classrooms have been communicating with dual languages for some time, but for other teachers, this opens up a whole new world of possibilities and the opportunity to connect your class with parts of the world that you many never have thought possible before.

The app is still in an early beta phase, (Microsoft call it a Preview), but you can sign up to be one of the first to try it and registering your interest today. In the meantime, check out the demonstration below and be prepared to say "Wow!"


~ Jonathan Wylie, Technology Consultant
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Thank you PLN #sharingiscaring - 3 Tools for Social Learning

12/7/2014

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With Thanksgiving in our review view mirror and 2014 quickly coming to a close, I took some time to reflect on things I am thankful for this year. Towards the top of that list is my PLN! Technology is rapidly changing. I frequently get asked, "how do you keep up?" or "how do did you know that?" It's a huge compliment for folks to think I have all of this knowledge, I try to keep up the best I can, but really I'm only as smart as my PLN and who I am connected to (and I'm a pretty good Google searcher). I have been fortunate to get to form relationships and friendships with some amazing educators to help provide solutions, suggestions and challenge thinking. I try to return the favor because together we are smarter and can't know everything about everything.

I was reminded again by Jeff Utecht this fall, "learning is social" and by Rob Mancabelli, "educators need to be 21st century learners." Social media can be a means to accomplish both of these things! Here are three of my go to places for seeking advice, to ask questions or for new learning and challenges! I use each tool a little bit of a different purpose. There are others out there too, like Facebook and LinkedIn, but here are my top three at the moment. 

Twitter

Twitter is an oldie, but a goodie for me. It was a new year's resolution that stuck! I follow a number of educators, professional organizations and conference hashtags to see what others are sharing and talking about. I share when I come across a new blog post, resource or idea. I have a core network I follow. I take a look at Twitter when I know I have a some time to spend reading and exploring. It may not be part of daily in my routine, I try to get on a few times a week. I don't read every tweet that comes in, but use my lists to check out what others are saying and follow the #chats. The audience widens when you throw in a hashtag. I was looking for a classroom to connect with, threw it out there with #edchat and in no time was able to find a few!
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#comments4kids - See Gina Roger's blog post to learn more about how to use this hashtag to get feedback on students' blogs
#iaedchat - Sunday evening conversation
#edtech
Here is a list of some Educators to Follow to get started 
Matt Townsley's List of Iowa Educators to Follow

Google+

Google+ has a much different feel than Twitter because sometimes you may want to share more than 140 characters and have a visual thrown in there. A component of Google+ are Communities. These can be open or private groups you can post to. There can be events shared as well as resources, ideas and you can track a threaded discussion with responses on a post. An example of the power of this one... I'm no Google Apps Dashboard expert, but there are over 1000 members in the GAFE Admin Community, I was having an issue posted my question and within an hour I had three different ideas about what I could try to fix it. There are a wide range of Communities out there to take a look for some to join.
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Blended and Personalized Learning
Google Education Group Iowa (GEG)
Chromebook EDU
Instructional Technology Integrators and Coaches
GWAEA Significant Disabilities Link

Voxer

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I've been using Voxer for a couple years now, but it is kind of the new kid on the block. This is a free app for mobile devices. Think grown up walkie talkies! I first started using it to connect with individuals because it was easier than texting, but there is power in numbers and I am now in a few group Voxes! I am in a group with other instructional technology folks who for the most part are flying solo (like some content area teachers) in their districts all over the country (#respecttimezones), so with a tap of a button can reach out with others and get some advice. I was in a meeting and got asked a question about an app or how to do something on an iPad, threw it in the chat and came back with ideas and a discussion evolved on how we could mashup a few apps to accomplish our task!  

The beauty of this app is the ability to discuss a hot topic or brainstorm. You can't always participate live, but because it is stored, I listen to conversations on a drive when I have time. We had someone visiting a classroom and instead of waiting to get somewhere to compose an email summary, he just threw it in Voxer and we were able to respond. Huge time saver! Another great idea for using Voxer was shared with me by Jimmy Casas, principal at Bettendorf High School. He uses it for teachers to discuss a professional blog post, kind of like a virtual book study! It is a great way to have staff connect when they may not otherwise have time and build a culture of learning!
Voxer in iTunes
Voxer in Google Play

My challenge to you is try to pick just one format and give it a try. Educators are some of the best people I know who will help and share with others, all you need to do is ask. Then when you are ready, return the favor! You won't be disappointed with how much you can learn!

~Stacy Behmer, Coordinator of Digital Learning
@sbehmer      +StacyBehmer      sbehmer23 
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