iPads Mania

This is only day one, but is a one example of how we "do math" in our classroom.

Students used multiple apps in their creation process...

• Skitch
• Scribble Press
• Pic Collage
• Whiteboard

We are using Flashcardlet as a way to create review problems throughout our chapter.

I have been asked many times the size of iPad that is used by our students.  We use 16 GB iPads.  With the ability to control and update the contents on your iPad easily, it should be the only size you need to buy.

See how you can easily control the amount of available space you have on your iPad.

Students provided a list of apps that could be great for quick creation on the iPad.

Their list included:

• Whiteboard 
• Noterize (Notes)(PaperPort Notes) All the same
• Tactilis
• Skitch

The following reflection outlines the process of my math class yesterday while introducing a new concept and new algorithm.

I have utilized movement in my class room (up to 4 times in one class period) as a method for stimulating learning.



Students moved back to the "direct instruction" area to direct self learning in finding information on the web or in an app related to the "Zero Product Property".



After students had time to discover, they became the teacher.  I am always amazed as to the information that students find.  Equally amazing is how well students listen to students teaching.  Of course, my questioning guides the students to produce additional, relevant information.









After the presentation of information by students, I provided direct instruction with all the steps to complete ONE problem.  Following this, students watched one video of ANOTHER video that I created.  I have never tried this, but the response was overwhelmingly positive from the students.  The reason?  Students were able to stop, rewind, and review the process of completing a problem.  This was incredible as students received more direct instruction, but the students that understood immediately could move on to group work, while students who needed more information could watch the video as many times as they wanted.



This became a great use of teaching through video!

Before this year, I would have students correct their own daily assignments in class.  I then had them come to my desk and show me their score while I plugged the score into the grade book.  The process of students coming to my desk took approximately five minutes of class time.  Multiply that by five days and 25 minutes a week was spent having students walk to my desk, waiting in line, and telling me their score.

WAIST OF TIME!

This year, I have students enter their score via a Google form on the iPad.  Whole process takes less than 1 minute which is five minutes per week.

Translation:  I gain 20 minutes of educational time each week via a Google form and an iPad.

See how it is done!

I believe this lesson typifies how my classroom instruction has changed in the last year.  Our scope and sequence called for an introduction to parabolas.  If an iPad with searchability features and creation apps didn't exist, our students would have been stuck with their textbook and me for information about this topic.

Instead, multiple tools were used to obtain detailed questions on parabolas.  This provided students a great opportunity to become self directed learners, questioners, and creators all in a 45 minute class period.

My role revolved around questioning students so that they discovered the answer on their own, they discovered what tech tool would be the best to use to find the information, and they decided how they wanted to create a product that proved they knew the information.

The multiple videos are below in sequential order.



Graphing Calculator App


Pic Collage and Whiteboard App



Dictionary App (with audio) & Searching for features of parabola


What student knows...


Picture of vertex after search


Notes and Skitch App


Phoster App


Photo Mess Whiteboard


Creating


Summarizing through blogging and labeling

Our staff visited our model classrooms on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday of this week.  As they visited, they were asked to observe the following items for discussion on Friday.

As you implement iPads or any device consider giving teachers the opportunity to implement a total change of teaching!

Today we discuss the following...

THE ITEMS

As a long time math teacher with first year iPad experience, I find myself still using some drill and practice for certain math concepts.  I have been able to use some of the old math drill and practice problems by photocopying them on our copier.  Instead of paper, I choose email option and email the pdf to myself.  I then download the pdf attachment and upload it to Google Docs.

This provides the option for me to create a publishing URL and post it to our blog.

See the process...

As I have mentioned before, tech tools are not the only thing allowed in my classroom.  This was a great example of our students using:

• Calculator app
• Paper & Pencil
• Tic Tac Fractions app

I wish Google forms would allow embedding with images.  Since they don't and Safari now has tabbed browsing, I have modified it this way!

Students become providers and teachers.  This student shows a great map that I never found.


Really impressed with the creativity that students demonstrate while processing the information they find.

This week our school district is providing opportunities for staff who will be obtaining iPads for their classroom to view class periods that demonstrate effective integration of the iPad.

I created a list of iPad uses with our lessons in one of my math classes.

Having whiteboard groups was a great tool for this problem as more than one answer was available.

As we watched a 10 minute video on the stock market crash, (we used the quiet tube extension) students were encouraged to use their iPads to join in on a backchannel conversation.  Today's Meet was used.

What the student found...


Tutorial to place Emoji Keyboard on you iPad/iPhone/iPod Touch

Students completed their "Affects of Westward Expansion on Native Americans" study by forming an opinion on whether the treatment of Native Americans was an example of a holocaust.

Students used their Draw Smart Venn Diagram app to create a one minute video on whether they believed or didn't believe that it was a holocaust.

The process of recording a video was enhanced by the options on the PowerCam HD app.  Students had fun choosing an effect to be incorporated with their video.

We used Dropbox to upload it to a folder in which we could view the video.  Some students even had time to email their video to their parents using the public link feature in Dropbox.

Finally we used a Google form placed on our iPad to use while watching the videos.

If you follow the blog regularly, the past two days have been spent reviewing concepts from our math Chapter 6. Our students used the Explain Everything App which is detailed here.

Below are links to the public Dropbox links that students uploaded.  The whole process has been engaging for students and revealing for the teaching.  Students truly can "do more work" and it is totally worth the time!

• Student 1
• Student 2
• Student 3
• Student 4
• Student 5
• Student 6
• Student 7
• Student 8
• Student 9
• Student 10

Students will be comparing two main ideas today in class. We used the Draw Smart Venn app ($.99 or $.49 if VPP) which is detailed below.
Draw Smart Venn App Tutorial

After students took a screen shot, they went to the photos section of the iPad to crop the picture.  Students posted the picture to their professional blog.
Students using the Venn App




Not just circles.


Locking items in place.


Student blogs became a source of resource for students as they created their Venn Diagram.

Today students will be completing an Explain Everything creation.  Students will upload the movie to a public Dropbox folder.  Then, students will use the Dropbox app to obtain the public folder link of their creation and paste it into their blog.

For the first time, we will be able to upload a video to their blog.  (We will be doing this with 1 minute videos that students will upload to the public folder in Dropbox in the near future)

Note*** Once the link is uploaded in blogger, it needs to be copied from the blog (it is not a clickable link) and placed into the URL address bar in the ROVER app.  Additional Rover Post

Not easy, but it works!

The DiaMath app was used today.

Today, students started using the Explain Everything App to review concepts.  See their instructions. The problems refer to places in our textbook that give specific instructions on topics.  Students will be sharing the creations through the classroom Dropbox account.

Just showed students this feature while they were researching on iPad.

I've always struggled with the best way to provide positive, individual feedback for assessments.  For the most part, students complete assessments quite well.  With the four or five students that struggle, giving them positive, constructive feedback is crucial.

Today, I created a video that discussed in detail steps to solve particular problems from the assessment.
I used SMARTboard notebook software, Camtasia, and a mouse.



Students watched at their own pace.  After they changed the answers on their paper, I conferenced with them individual about specific questions pertaining to the concepts.


I believe this to be a better method than large group discussion with all 26 students.  It doesn't force students who understand the concepts to view demonstrations of information they already know.

Students created an Explain Everything production based on the mathematical terms from our recent unit of study.  Having the Explain Everything app in the students hands again worked wonderfully.  As we have used it in Social Studies quite extensively, the learning curve for the tech tool was zero!  This allowed for the students to dive right into creating.

I am amazed at how engaged the students are while performing this task.  I asked numerous students whether they liked this or if they felt it was a waste of their time.  All of them said they liked it.

I did assess them on their knowledge of the information.  This will be included with their written assessment as a final evaluation of their knowledge from Chapter 7.

After students complete the creation, they will be emailing me the production.


As the video states, I will either need to open these email files with a Mac or use a video converter as the files do not have sound on a PC.





After the students emailed me their movie, I downloaded all of the productions.  With YouTube's uploading ability of more than one video in a single click, the whole process did not take long.
Student videos are included...

In the old days, I would teach the review the entire quiz with the entire class.  Even if students would have a perfect paper, they would need to sit through explanations of items they already knew.

Using iPads, allows for a video to be created with helpful tips to solving problems of the day.  In the mean time, students receive one on one instructions to reteach items that were not understood on the quiz.

Works perfectly!

The discovery and use of the Reflection App has allowed for a new set up in my classroom.

I tried something slightly different yesterday.  I had the students complete a paper copy of their math quiz.  After their quiz was completed, I allowed them to access a Google form that presented the math quiz in digital format.  This format contained places to enter their answers.

I felt that with this group of students, having the iPad present while they completed the test was a distraction.  Having all the focus on the assessment followed by students entering their answers digitally allowed for more concentration.

The process still allowed me to gather data so that I can see through numerous data sheets the level of understanding and direction for reteaching.
 

This activity really didn't involve the iPads, but it did involve problem based learning on a small scale.

Thanks to Tony Vincent's Learning in Hand, I learned about the Reflection app for Mac.  I decided to try to use this app for monitoring student use on iPads.  It works, but only up to 3 at a time.  As soon as I click on the fourth iPad, the Reflection app crashes.

Three iPads are the maximum!

See how it worked.