HOTSpot - Sean - Survive and Advance March Madness

It’s that time of year when I can’t remember winter break break, and I can’t see spring break. It’s the dog days of winter, just trying each day to survive and advance. Luckily, “survive & advance” is right around the corner w/ the NCAA tourney. I enjoy using this tourney to have a little competition in class with our content. Let me show you an example of a contest activity and tool I use in my classes to create our own tourney and spice it up a bit to help get us through this second half of winter. Click here for a link to the spreadsheet that you can make a copy of and use for yourself.

HOTSpot - Cory - Grading With Your Voice

Google Docs provides a variety of ways to make comments and highlight information in order to give feedback to your students, but sometimes it is nice to dole out a little advice without having to type at the same time. With a simple idea and the advancements in Google’s voice typing, it is easier than ever to add a few in-document thoughts without aggravating any arthritis. Be thinking of ways your students could use this one, too! Check out this link for more things you can do with Google Voice.

Quickly identify where email is coming from with Gmail Sender Icons

Technology blogger Amit Agarwal recently released a neat little extension, Gmail Sender Icons, that takes the domain favicon (usually their logo) that the email is coming from and adds it in front of the message in your inbox. This makes it even speedier to scan your email and see who/where your email is coming from. You can download and install the extension from the Chrome Webstore. The extension icon sits in your extension bar in chrome and looks like two little squares layered on top of each other.  The user can easily to show just the domain icons or domain text or both.

HOTSpot - Shona - EdXHighlight

The EdX conference held yesterday was a great way for D128 staff to showcase what they are up to and share their knowledge on an incredible variety of topics. If you were torn between a few sessions, you are definitely not alone. You can always visit the EdX website to view the resources from the presenters. I’d like to highlight a session that used some incredible new technology for our IEP students- Audio Exam Creator. It allows teachers to read their test questions and answers for students who need a reader for tests and quizzes. This allows the student to stay in the classroom during tests instead of being pulled out. This app is best used with the teacher recording the questions because it allows the students to hear a voice that is familiar to them. Check with Lindsay Wilson and Allison Ferrell for use of this awesome new app. They also highlighted a great new extension called OpenDyslexic that changes the font of articles and websites. The weighted font allows dyslexic readers to differentiate letters and keep readers from flipping letters. It is easily turned on by one click.

HOTSpot - Chris - Google Classroom Notifications

Google Classroom has been a game changer in my classroom in how it easily manages documents and due dates seamlessly with other Google Products. Well, Google just came out with an update that made it even more functional. With the newest update to their mobile app, the people of Google really improved the device notifications you can receive both in classes you teach and classes you are enrolled in. These device notifications don’t clutter your email inbox yet still allow you (and your students) to stay on top of things in Classroom. One of the best new notifications they rolled out is the reminder on almost-due work. When enabled, this notification pops-up when an assignment is due in 24 hours. I will definitely be showing my students this one.

HOTSpot- Sean - To Do Tool For All Platforms

Juggling our lives and all the things we need “to do” is a daunting daily task. My favorite way to keep things moving forward is a great little tool that syncs real time across all platforms. I love using this because no matter what device I’m on, my list is just one click / touch away. The tool, Any.Do, is free and easily installed as a smartphone app, chrome extension, or just simply logged into on a webpage. Check out the video for a quick view of what it looks like and how you can leverage it for yourself.

HOTSpot- Amanda - Insert Videos from Google Drive in Google Slides

One frustration I had when using Google Slides is that you were only able to insert videos from YouTube. However, last week they rolled out an update and now you can insert videos that are saved to your Google Drive! You can also edit the videos to play automatically when you click and set start and stop times. The ability to crop the video for what you need is a great feature and I can’t wait to use this feature and teach my students.

3 Ways to Automate Email Tasks Using Gmail

Too much email cluttering your inbox? Check out these 3 tips on how to automate email tasks in Gmail from BetterCloud Monitor.

HOTSpot - Chris - Engage Every Student with Nearpod

After using Nearpod for 3 years now, you would think I would have made a TwosDay video on it, but it was a comment from a student just last week that finally pushed me over the edge to make one. It was a simple comment really, “Mr. Wolf, these Nearpods really help.” Normally, with new technology, kids are excited for the first few times and then the excitement fades. After running over 120 lessons in the past year (Nearpod gives you great analytics btw) it hasn’t lost its luster. To me, it has been well worth the work in developing lessons for the lasting impact it has had on my students. What keeps me using it as my go-to lesson building tool is its ability to engage every student. It allows for 100% participation by students with 0% anxiety of having to share their answers in front of the class. From the beginning of the school year, I have noticed students who were too timid to share their thoughts and have started participating more in class. I think it is partially due to them realizing that they have good answers, and my class is all about learning, even if it means growing from mistakes and wrong answers. If you want to get all your kids involved in class and want to really engage everyone, give Nearpod a try!

HOTSpot - Cory - Scale Up the Student Feedback/Reflection

There are plenty extensions, sites, and apps that would love to help you get more feedback from your students, but they certainly can become more of a hassle than a help. I have enjoyed simply using a scale that can be added to almost any assignment to garner another piece of reflection from the students. It’s a small addition and a flexible idea that can be used as needed.