Createch-ing

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In the middle of the frenetic report card period, I had an a-ha moment today and I just had to share it. Every end of the week I usually create a big paper chart with assignments due and students' names so that they can check them off when they are done. That is nothing new, I know, but here comes Evernote and it's magic checklists. I created a basic checklist with students' names and four basic tasks , that I change depending on what I am doing. Today was just one of those busy days with a trillion tasks to finish and that every student is at a different stage. One of those days that they come to you to ask what's next at least three times because they have to finish little activities that are done in minutes.  So I gathered them up, opened on of my class checklists on Evernote, changed the headings for my tasks at hand, and ask the students to make a checkmark every time they finished a task using my funny hand(which they love to play with). It was like magic words...

I presented yesterday at SLIC Conference 2013 "iPads for bilingual education" in Canmore, Alberta. There was a lot of interest in the topic. It seems many schools are planning on purchasing iPads and teachers want to be prepared to know how to use them in a purposeful way.  This is a graphic that shows iPad content creation according to Blooms' Taxonomy. The creation would be the higher order thinking skill according to this classification.  All the stages are interconnected and according to the revised Bloom's taxonomy, they do not have to happen in a  determined order. But creation would be the most complex one. I advocate for the use of iPads as a tool, not as an end or as a repository of apps that substitutes teaching/learning time or that is understood as solely a game tool. I believe it is the task that generates the app, and not the other way round.We first need to think what do we want to do with our class, and then, think of the app that coul...

Last week I tried using "Aurasma" in the iPads. Aurasma is an augmented reality app that uses a trigger image to show a 3d object, video or whatever you want to appear. My goal was to make a worksheet alive. As we work in a bilingual setting and we teach math in spanish, explanations are very visual but not all the students pick it up at the beginning. Some of them need further explanation, of course , whether it is their mother language or not. But I was thinking about homework and that moment when you are trying to recall an explanation but you do not remember exactly what the teacher said. And here is when the "virtual teacher" in a form of video appears when you put the iPad over the worksheet.  The application could seem very complicated , but in fact, it was easy to deal with since it guides you al l the time. You can create use one aura form the database, but I created my own one. I first did a video using "Doceri" explaining the...

Last week we started with our evaluations ( it seems unreal but report cards are coming sooner than we think...) . One of our evaluations for Spanish was done using the iPad app "Showme" . Students first wrote in their notebooks six sentences using the verbs "ser" and "estar" and after they were corrected, they created a recording using pictures , their voice and also writing them on the screen. This technique known as "screen casting" is one of my favorite for content creation in a second language. It motivates the most reluctant writers to write well, because otherwise they are not able to go on the iPads... They used their creativity to the max, they were engaged and also they were collaborating to create their productions. And of course they're more knowledgeable about the difference in use of the verbs "ser" and "estar" in Spanish.  What more can I ask from one activity? Students using "showme" to demons...

CHICOS! Nuestra clase ha salido en la televisión de España! Ha sido muy cortito y no salís todos pero estoy contenta de poder haber compartido con mi país como trabajamos en Canada, mis alumnos, mi aula y mi escuela. I am thrilled to be able to see you on tv. I hope you enjoy it. http://www.antena3.com/programas/ciudadanos/momentos/cmo-hacen-pases-dnde-presumen-sistema-educacin_2013100800090.html

NUEVO CURSO, NUEVOS RETOS Hacía mucho tiempo que no escribía en el Blog, he estado haciendo algunos cambios y escribiendo en otros blogs. Este año he incorporado algunas técnicas para ir poco a poco , dejando el papel a un lado . Me he "evernotizado" y ahora voy haciendo todas mis lecciones en Blendspace ( antes Edcanvas) . Blendspace me parece un sitio perfecto para crear muros digitales donde guardar y compartir todos los recursos que se utilizan para un tema. He estado también probando varias apps para crear screencast en el iPad. Para los profesores, me gusta mucho Doceri. Para los alumnos, Educreations o Showme me parece mas fácil de utilizar, aunque estoy por ver cual permite compartir en nuestra wiki con mas facilidad. De momento ahí va un ejemplo de un screencast sobre el Redondeo con Doceri .

We are very happy to have been selected to appear live on tv today in MUSIC MONDAY. Our music teacher , Mrs Sorensen and you have done an amazing job all the year. We are so proud of you! . Click here to watch the live webcast Follow the event on twitter  @ musicmakesus_ca   Music monday webpage CBC NEWS REPORT

Yesterday , around 100 teachers of Spanish form Alberta gathered to share experiences in our schools and celebrate Spanish learning. I presented some of the things we do in class with our technology. Here is the link to the presentation  Creación de Contenidos Digitales . Melissa Valdés , our Spanish Program advisor was there also representing the Embassy of Spain and the Ministry of Education and Culture of Spain . You will have the opportunity to meet her in June when you receive your award for having completed the bilingual program in an ISA ( International Spanish Academy) . I have to tell you that the audience was surprised with the things you do in class ( ebooks, podcast, your wiki pages, the videos....everything!) and I am very proud of the hard work that you do every day to learn Spanish. So pat yourselves on the back! You are amazing!

We are learning about times , practice these games in English and Spanish . Enjoy! Aquí tenéis juegos para practicar las horas en Español y en Inglés.

Mi investigacion de la trucha arcoiris por Jessie by Jessie Jensen . grade 4, Sra Molina - read or download the free ebook online now from ePub Bud!

Mia investigacion sobre latrucha arcoiris Mia by Mia Calmusky - read or download the free ebook online now from ePub Bud!

Los alumnos han escrito un e-book reflexionando en Español sobre como hicieron su proyecto de "La caja ". Este es libro que escribió K.Hoover, de grado 4. Mi Investigacion Sobre La Trucha De Arcoiris de Kyle by kyle hoover - read the free ebook now from ePub Bud!

Muy pronto vamos a presentar nuestro proyecto de "La Caja" . Hemos estado trabajando en ellas desde que llegaron nuestras truchas arco iris. La caja es el producto final del "inquiry" que los chicos han hecho sobre este animal y el ecosistema acuático de Alberta. Dentro hay varios mini-libros: un " Diary of a rainbow trout", un libro-acordeon : " What would happen if there were no more rainbow trout?" y un librito en Español " Los animalitos del bosque de Alberta". Finalmente, los alumnos han hecho también un ebook usando la aplicación CBB ( Creative book builder) . Os dejamos un avance de lo que va a ser la presentación durante los días 21 y 22 de Marzo en las conferencias de los alumnos. During the next Student-led conferences , we are going to present our "Box" project. Students have been researching and working on our inquiry project during the last few weeks, and the result has been compiled in the box. Inside the ...

I was very lucky to attend Sir Ken Robinson talking at Calgary Teachers Convention las February 14. It was very inspirational and I would like to share with you some of his best insights about creativity, technology and the ART of TEACHING.

EL REY LEON- EL CICLO DE LA VIDA

Alumnos del equipo Luna cantando el estribillo de "Me voy", de Julieta Venegas. me voy, julieta venegas at Escuela Canyon Meadows

ESTA SEMANA VAMOS A BAILAR EN PHYSED! ASI QUE...MUEVE TU CUERPO!! Source: youtube.com via Maestra de on Pinterest

OUR RAINBOW TROUT STARTED TO HATCH

En esta pagina puedes crear tus propias fichas de caligrafía , imprimirlas y hacerlas en tu casa.

Nuestro acuario ya está en clase y el jueves vamos a ser "papás"...siiiiii....nos traen los huevos de nuestros peces y vamos a ver cómo crecen. Our little babies will be "Rainbow trouts", we are very excited to learn everything about them. La primera misión que tenemos es cuidar el acuario . Y aquí os lanzo la primera pregunta...¿Cuánta agua hay en el acuario? ¿Cómo se calcula? Aquí os dejo algunos ejercicios para que practiquéis .

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