STAR Camp

Tomorrow is the first day of the Dallas Diocesan Teacher Tech Camp. We call it STAR Camp for Stellar Teachers Aquiring Resources. This is our 3rd year and I have helped teach at each camp. The camp is a wonderful opportunity for teachers to learn about ways to integrate technology in their lessons. We have had some fantastic teachers come through and it is so exciting to see them work so hard. They are always enthusiastic and eager to learn about a tool that will help them engage their students in new and exciting ways. I am so excited and I love it!

So my link for today is the link to our STAR Camp wikispace. It is loaded with lots of information and links. It would be a great resource for anyone looking for tips and guides. Plus there is a link to our Delicious bookmarks. So check it out and maybe find something new.

Summer Hideout and a bit of ISTE

Well the summer is nearly over, I've returned from visiting family in Pennsylvania,my first ISTE and I realize I can't hide any longer! I am staring at a large stack of flyers, business cards, pamphlets and just generally a plethora of information that I gathered at the ISTE convention in Philadelphia. As an ISTE first timer, I am really glad that I was able to attend. There was definitely more to see than I had time to see or do. (I must say though that the Texas TCEA conference is a pretty darn good second to ISTE.)
I have been laying low this week, trying to unplug before I gear up for the coming school year. So I will begin to dig through the pile (and it is a rather disorganized pile)and try to sort out the good, the bad, the useful and the useless. After looking at 3 cards, I have a good one to share. With all the iPads that are coming into the classrooms we are trying to find ways to use them. Be sure to check out iPads in the Classroom Blog. Some wonderful suggestions and apps for use with your students.

So, I'm back. More to come!

June

I'm really trying. I think about writing all the time but I guess that doesn't get the words on the page does it? Well I keep coming back and when I do I try to bring something to share.
We started our third year for our Teacher Tech Camp in the diocese. Today seemed to go well. I don't think we lost anyone. We introduced them to Rubistar. Rubistar is part of 4teachers.org and you can create or find some wonderful rubrics to use. I really love rubrics and this site makes it super easy to make them.
We also shared what we called "talking tools". There was Voki and Blabberize. Both seemed well liked, especially Voki. And we made everyone create a wikispace to use in their classrooms. I worry about this one because we had them all create a K-12 account but they need to verify their emails to go on. I am afraid most of them won't remember to do that. We will know tomorrow when we try to embed something in their wiki. Hmmmm....
Okay, one more cool thing. I have been playing with the magazine covers on BigHugeLabs.com. Fun fun fun! We got a new golden retriever recently so I used a really cute picture of her and created a cover. Again, another fun site.

Edomodo and May

Blogging does not come easily and time is very hard to find. Thinking of things to say is not so hard, but the time issue is a challenge. I keep trying.

So I noticed some new highlights on other blogs about Edmodo and I am thrilled that others are finding this FREE tool. I have been using Edmodo for 3 years now and really love it for many reasons. Always on the top of my list when evaluating tech tools is the ease of use and the ease of the learning curve. I find Edmodo extremely easy and friendly to use. It does not take very long for even the less tech savvy to navigate through some very basic use of Edmodo. And students also find it very easy to use. There are five teachers on my campus that now use it and I would like to see all of our teachers on board by next year. I think it would offer them a great place to interact with families and their students. A teacher on another blog has suggested and reminded readers that you are able to embed many other web tools into Edmodo, such as wallwisher (which I love but is still blocked at my school) and fotobabble (another that is surely blocked) which I do not have much experience in but looks promising and fun. Simply put, if you have not looked into using Edmodo for your class, put double stars next to it and check it out. You will not be disappointed.

Speaking of blocked sites at school, my own blog here is blocked. Which makes writing all the more difficult as I am then only to write after hours or weekends. No brain storming during the day.

Trying a little fotobabble here with my dog Remi.