Guiding Question: Which hardware tools for the task?
Tips of the Week:
Mark- I like to take handwritten notes, but I also like things in a digital format. I was so excited when Evernote bought Penultimate, because suddently, you can have the best of both worlds. Penultimate is a great app for IOS that feels almost like writing on paper with a stylus on the iPad. When you link your Evernote account to Penultimate, each notebook you create in Penultimate is automatically uploaded and saved in your Evernote account. Beware, though, if you delete a notebook in Penultimate, it also is deleted in Evernote.
David- Racing the iPad in K12 Education comparing hardware choices for schools going 1:1. The article compares the iPad to several laptop choices including the Chromebook. It also looks at the $300 CDI Android UnoBook. Cost is a big factor for school systems as well as note taking especially for classes that rely on teacher delivered instruction. One telling point is that the hardware choice to some extent can tell one how shifted a school is. At my son’s high school they note that most of the students have laptops as they are better for taking notes for paper and pencil assessments which is the nature of most of their classes. The MS students at ACDS have iPads to connect to a curriculum that is moving towards individualized product creation assessments. Definitely a difference between a HS and MS but this example does offer some insights. A follow up tip of the week originates from USA Today that was published after we recorded the podcast. It reinforces our point from the podcast that the iPad with all of its creative tools really supports the constructivist, student-centered classroom. Chromebooks and other style laptops often adopted for MS and HS often tell the story of more teacher centered and direct instruction classrooms where students need a tool to take notes.
Examples of student projects from Alexandria Country Day School where David works. They are mostly generative projects using various hardware devices but some involve skill/drill work. Technology literacy to some degree of fluency really come into play.
MS classes all using Haiku LMS- laptops, iPads, phones and desktops
8th Grade Mini- Documentary- iPad
8th Grade Group Project Newspaper- iPad and Computers and smart phones
8th Grade Noodle Tool
for research- iPad and computer
7th Grade Group Project video on Temperate Forest- camcorder and iMac
7th Grade Prezi Presentation on Amazon- computer
7th Grade Noodle Tools for research- iPad and computer MS Spanish class screencasts- iPad
MS Spanish class research VoiceThread projects- iPad and computers
6th Grade Blog for Festival of Learning on global warming- iPad and laptops. Do go to each grade level to learn about the research the students did.
6th Grade Noodle Tools for research- iPad and computer
5th and 2nd Graders Art and Tech field trip- iPad
5th Grade Noodle Tools for research- iPad and computer4th Grade Social Studies Glogs- computers || Keyboarding software on network via computer
3rd Grade WebQuest on US regions- computers || Keyboarding software on network via computer
2nd Graders Online Science book & screencasting- computers & iPad || Xtramath, Raz Kids and our Web Resources on computers
1st Graders making thinking visible by screencasting- iPad || Xtramath, Raz Kids and our Web Resources on computers
Kindergarten artwork- iPad
Kindergarten shapes in the school project- cameras
Shifted Practice: Here is the link to Sara Stein’s presentation page.