If your situation is similar to many I have encountered in multiple school districts around the country, BIP tracking looks different in each school you visit, heck sometimes in every classroom you visit. There are charts, tally sheets, narratives, and every type of tracking mechanism under the sun, but if not every teacher is using the same method it is very hard to turn any of the data that... More →
Reading comes to life with interactive eBooks using the Storia app by Scholastic. Get five free books just for downloading the app. It's easy, just download and install the Storia app, launch, sign in and read. Teachers like that they get five free books and that they can use their Scholastic bonus points to buy eBooks. But what teachers really like about Storia, is the built-in book manager. Books... More →
One of the best things about the Xperia tablet is it’s versatility. Not only do you have a content consumption device with apps to interact with, digital reader functionality, and Internet accessibility, you also have a content creation device that can act as a still camera, a video camera, a sound recorder, and a productivity suite. The challenge in a one tablet classroom is finding ways in which... More →
So I have to admit, I came upon this idea thanks to a colleague of mine who was looking for a fun way to encourage creativity and reward good behavior. We got to talking about wedding receptions we had recently attended at which the hosts had provided a photo booth experience. You know what I’m talking about. You go into the booth, click the button and a camera... More →
The Idea One great way to use your Sony Xperia in the classroom is to create a class voting booth. This could be done in conjunction with an election unit or simply to instill a little bit of the democratic process into your classroom. While the act of voting via clicker or via webtools such as polleverywhere.com may be a quick way to gather class information, the act of... More →
I live in Minnesota where the weather can be extreme. Thank goodness there are weather apps so that I can stay inside. If I were planning a unit on weather in my classroom, the first thing I would do is round up resources that I have available, the resources online and the apps on my Sony Xperia Tablet. In my classroom I would have thermometers, a barometer and books. Then... More →
In my classroom I am constantly recording what my students are doing and putting it on my class Web site. Finding an easy way to accomplish this feat has been cumbersome at times because there have been too many steps such as loading video onto my laptop, editing the video, converting the video for the Web, and then uploading it to my site. Victory was... More →
There are a lot of apps out there… more than we can even begin to explore. The Google Play Store has tens of thousands… but how do we choose apps for learning? What are some criteria to help us choose apps for our students? Basic Criteria Curriculum First things first, the app needs to provide opportunities for students to learn or practice something we value. This could be... More →
I was a Facebook late-comer. I was teaching, I had a family and a life, and if I wanted to “connect” with friends and family, I would pick up the phone or email them. I eventually gave in, joined and it’s moderately useful for me, but the ways I’ve seen it used by other teachers is amazing to me. So, if you’re... More →
So you have one tablet, does it have any use in a busy classroom of learners with an already busy teacher? YES! Having a limited supply of any tool or resource means we need to be even more thoughtful and intentional about how we use that tool. Here are a few ideas for integrating your tablet into the teaching and learning in your classroom, even if you only have one... More →
There are lots of ways to create eBooks these days, using lots of different tools. This post focuses on one way to create eBooks that is simple, free, and takes full advantage of the tools available on your Xperia tablet. The Idea Have your students author content for a book that can be turned into an eBook, read on digital devices, and shared with others. The content of the book... More →
Many of us are in classrooms that do not yet have HD connections to our projectors or TVs. In my case, all the classrooms in the school are equipped with a ceiling mounted projector that shows the tv cable shows with the click of one button, and the connected computer with the click of another button but has a VGA cable as the input to the projector.. What if you... More →
Throughout the majority of most educators careers augmentative alternative communication devices (AAC’s) have been both limited in number and rather hefty in price. Rigid solutions such as Go Talks could range up to $300 and were toy-ish in appearance without the ability to customize very much at all. More Robust options could literally be thousands of dollars, and while well made, stood out as different from technology... More →
I’ve always felt that one of the goals of a teacher is to help each student feel like a rock star. Thanks to an observant colleague who saw a couple of kids playing with Songify, I think I have the next tool to help realize that goal. What Is It? Songify is a simple and free app that you can use on your Xperia tablet to record students... More →
When rolling out the Google Apps for Education Suite to educators, Google Drive is easily in the first three application shared. And why not? It’s different yet familiar, it’s collaborative and you can do some neat tricks with it. Like a puppy. But with less mess. Google Drive is great to show teachers and they will come up with some great plans to use with their... More →
Welcome to your new Android device. When you pull the Sony Xperia Tabletout of the box you will quickly find all hardware buttons you will need. The power/sleep button is located on the upper right hand corner above the volume rocker button. On the opposite side of the device you will find the headphone jack and a little cover. To access the cover find the little notch at the... More →
I love homescreens; I am comfortable admitting it. The thing I love most about homescreens is that I can customize them with apps, app folders and widgets. The one thing that can be a plus and minus is that you get five, no more, no less. If you love widgets and you can’t get enough, then having only five homescreens might be a problem. But what I think... More →
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One app that comes with your machine is Movie Studio (please excuse my busy background). If you're looking for the Xperia equivalent of Premiere, this ain't it. That said, if you need a quick way to bring together a few clips, pictures, and music, Movie Studio can do the job. The app allows adding any of the items mentioned above, as well as taking pictures and video from... More →
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Ask a 6th grader how many different jobs there are, and you might get, "Well there's (what my mom does), (what my dad does), teacher, police officer, football player, movie star, and the president of the United States. Did I get them all?" Hopefully not, but more to the point, there are remarkably few opportunities in most curricula to explore lots of different careers in any kind of efficient... More →
What Is It? Class Dojo is a robust behavior tracking and management application designed for teachers and parents which allows a teacher to create a customized icon for each student. These icons can then be used to attribute either positive or negative behavior marks towards individual students or even the entire class. As a I stated previously, this app can be highly individualized, but let’s... More →
Widgets are just awesome. You heard me mention this before in the post about homescreens. In my opinion widgets are one of the great things that make the Android operating system stand out. Widgets allow you to customize your homescreens with useful information and or functional apps not just shortcuts to an app. Want to see your Google Calendar agenda without launching the app? Just install the widget on one... More →
Techsmith's Coach's Eye app may have been designed for coaches and athletes to analyze athletic performance but it harbors a lot of potential for any teaching situation. It is also one a very select number of apps on the Android platform that can be used to annotate video or flip learning. I have been looking long and hard to find an app on the Android platform that... More →
If you are in the classroom like me, then you know that getting a one-to-one reading assessment completed without interruptions is a miracle. I have perfected the art of peripheral vision scanning of the other students as I conduct running records, and my frantic hand gestures to those that would interrupt are unmistakable. What I have not perfected is the art of completing the forms... More →
Newton’s laws of motion help us understand how objects in the world move around us. Through these apps students of all ages can understand the basics of physics and the comprehension skill of cause and effect. First I would allow students to time to explore and play with the apps. Several are listed below. Then I would introduce Sir Isaac Newton and his laws of motion. I... More →
I recently came across a handy app on the Sony Xperia that was already there right out of the box. The app is called Scrapbook. If you don’t already see the Scrapbook app on your home screen, press Apps & Widgets in the top right corner to locate the Scrapbook app. To add an app to your home screen, just press and hold on it until you are... More →
So you're a teacher putting together a video or a slideshow, and you want to add some music. What's okay to use? The rules surrounding copyright are complex, but help is out there. You can find all kinds of good music you can use. Legally. For free. You just need to know where, and how, to look. Let's start by assuming that you want to be able... More →
As a former speech teacher, I can’t tell you how jealous I am that today’s teachers have the ability to provide their young rhetoricians with the tools that the big boys use. When I discovered that tablets like the Xperia can be used as teleprompters, I thought back to all of those student hours spent writing notecards and designing cue cards. I remembered with pain the... More →
As a special educator one of the most easily addressed disabilities I've encountered is visual impairment; however, it is also one the most overlooked. This statement is in no way intended to minimize the challenges students with visual impairments face. It is simply intended to point out the wide range of magnification and access tools available to students in today's technologically advanced world. Despite this, I... More →
Pictures Pictures Pictures. I love taking pictures, looking at pictures, and showing off pictures. Kids love to take pictures too, but quick viewing can sometimes be a hassle in the classroom. None of the desktops in our classrooms have built in card readers, so they have to be checked out from the computer lab. That’s where the Xperia tablet comes in and one of the reasons I love... More →
In an earlier resource, I discussed how you could use your Xperia tablet as a wireless microphone in order to dictate to text with Dragon. This is still a fabulous speech-to-text program, but it has two distinct drawbacks. First, you can not dictate directly into the tablet, rather it remotely transmits to a desktop or laptop computer which has Dragon Dictation installed on it. Second, Dragon is... More →
If you have spent any time at all in recent professional development sessions for teachers, you have almost certainly run across the term Universal Design for Learning (UDL). The term applies to reaching and engaging all types of learners through the use of innovative and a multi-sensory approach. It’s a great idea that I feel all educators should strive to achieve, but it can be a... More →
If you teach third-grade boys you know that in their independent reading bag they will at some point have a graphic novel like the books by Dav Pilkey in their independent reading bag. This is not to say that the girls do not appreciate this genre too. As third-grade teacher, I have observed first-hand how ears perk up whenever... More →
Not all tablets and computers are created equal. And they don't always play nicely with each other. As an educator, this can be infuriating. I'm trying to teach our kids and their teachers, and I'm constantly running into blockades that prevent me from being able to seamlessly present cross-platform products. I just want to teach and for my students to learn. Thankfully, I was able to find... More →
Most all tablets and smartphones have cameras in them. In fact, many of them have nicer/better cameras than many of our regular digital cameras. With such a visual society, it is great to be able to snap a picture or quick video clip to post on-line or use in a class demonstration. With the Sony Xperia S tablet, I was intrigued to find the time lapse feature of the... More →
Many teachers love the collaborative nature of documents in the Google Drive system, but have difficulties keeping what is shared with them organized. I have some recommendations on how to handle that, and hope this will help you take advantage of all that collaborative documents make possible. Note that if you are brand new to Google Drive, this post may be confusing. I am assuming an understanding of... More →
Google Drive allows students to write collaboratively. This falls in the Big Whopping Deal category, as students tend to be far more interested in producing higher quality work when the audience expands beyond the teacher. Student work can be reviewed, commented on, and discussed by peers in order to improve it before "turning in" the final draft to the teacher. In Part 1, I described an approach to keeping... More →
I love challenges. Someone asked me if it was possible to get a Google Drive and a Box.net account to work together. I accepted this challenge and got to work figuring it out. I found that I can use both together. I already had Google Drive on my laptop and the Google Drive app on my Sony Xperia Tablet. I also had a Box.net account, Box sync... More →
This is an introductory activity to get to know the features of the Sony Xperia Tablet and a few of the apps. You can do the activities with a partner or by yourself. Tasks can be completed in any order. All answers should be written down on the Sony Xperia Tablet. What app would you use for that? Find the telephone number for the... More →
Any one that is familiar with the Orton Gillingham approach to teaching reading would greatly question how using a tablet is at all relevant. Orton Gillingham is a multi-sensory, sequential approach to teaching reading, spelling, and writing for individuals that have difficulties often associated with dyslexia. The key part is that it is multi-sensory and combines visual, auditory, and kinesthetic approaches. When learning a letter and... More →
Colleagues often ask me where I find new tools and ideas for enhancing learning with technology. Obviously, I always learn from and share the great resources available from my fellow Sony Education Ambassadors, but beyond that, with so much content available on the web and so few hours in the day, I try to be as efficient in my learning as possible. As a result, I’ve gradually assembled... More →
From a special education perspective, two of the largest challenges to student academic progress that teachers face are engagement and age appropriate material. I would also step out on a limb and say these are major challenges to all teachers. For instance, if you want one of your middle school students to improve or master his punctuation usage, providing him handouts with See Spot Run excerpts is neither... More →
The other day, I visited the classroom of a friend of mine. She is an amazing teacher who is very creative and is constantly finding ways to create a sense of wonder and joy in her high school language arts classroom. Given her artistic talents, I am never surprised to see something new and unique in her room. Over the years, she has furnished her classroom with chairs and tables... More →
Thank you to all the teachers for your dedication, time and energy. Our learners need your passion and expertise to guide their learning. Your work is inspiring and much appreciated! As a teacher for over 35 years, I know that teachers love, and need, free stuff. So I was on a mission to find stuff for you. I haven't read all the fine print and haven't requested all of... More →
So I’ve been meaning to write this post for a while, but other posts have taken precedence. Still, I want to make sure I share this. In January, I had the opportunity to attend the FETC conference in Orlando, Florida. It’s a great conference, and it was made even better for me because I had the opportunity to hangout with some of my fellow Sony... More →
So, you likely know about Android devices, and you probably have some experience with Google Docs (aka Drive). If not, check out these posts from other Ambassadors. However, have you considered all of the possibilities of using Google Drive on an Android device? If not, read on for all you’ve ever wanted to know about Google Drive for Android. First, the basics. With Drive, when... More →
The new Z tablet hit the market here in the US the end of May and boy has it made a splash! There have been some big changes since the S tablet release but what are those big changes, and do they really matter in the education world. 1) Waterproof - as soon on the advertisements and demos at conferences and exhibits, the new Z tablet can be fully immersed in... More →
As any seasoned educator will tell you, formative assessments are key to steering instruction in the right direction. They provide valuable insight into what concepts need to be reviewed or even re-taught. Many believe though that using formative assessments to routinely check for understanding can take away from valuable class time. Socrative is a free and easy way to develop and administer exit tickets and quizzes to your students regardless... More →
It's that time of year for educators. The Summer is vanishing infinitely faster than any physics teacher ever thought naturally possible, and we are faced with planning the daunting number of lesson plans, professional growth goals, and student learning targets necessary to succeed in the upcoming year. For the facilitator/administrator the feeling of being overwhelmed, especially early on in the year, is all too real. ...; More →
The future doesn’t always deliver on the promises it makes to us as children, but video chats are one place where The Jetsons didn’t let me down. I may not be able to travel by pneumatic tube to school, have a delicious steak delivered to me in seconds at the touch of a button, or rely on my robot to clean up my messes, but I... More →
Sony now has an MHL- HDMI Adapter that allows you to hook the Sony Experia Tablet Z to an HDMI port on a television, monitor, or projector and mirror your tablet's screen! Of course, this is great for the classroom! It connects to the MHL port on the Sony Experia Tablet Z and has an HDMI port on the other side. It also includes a charging port on... More →
Improvements in technology continues to allow for enhanced communication between people, ranging from quick text based chats to face-to-face video calling. Google has chosen to take a leading role in developing this technology. A recent update to the company’s Hangouts application attempts to create a seamless integration between both forms of communication and continue to make multiple user discussions easy, engaging, and uber fun. With an increasing... More →
The first step to welcoming the new addition of the Z tablet to your classroom is to learn your way around a bit. Hover over the targets on the image to learn more about the basics of the home screen. ... More →
I first met the amazing Jenny Magiera in 2011 at a summer tech camp in Arizona. The connection has produced a wealth of learning, but one of the most practical pieces of information I have learned from her surrounds using a device's background as a management tool. All of the laptops and Sony Xperia tablets I use in my Infotech program have been customized with unique backgrounds. We would love... More →
Some of the most fun you can have while learning with colleagues is through organizing a media safari. While at the humungous International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) conference in San Antonio this past summer, Sony Educational Ambassadors Rushton Hurley and Courtney Steffens joined me one evening for a media safari around downtown. A media safari is an informal gathering of video or photography enthusiasts who set out to... More →
The possibilities for tablet and application use for teachers is virtually endless. The very act of designing and delivering instruction lends itself to the integration of technology, but for many former classroom educators now in administrative and support roles this does not always seem the case. For an administrator, technology almost entirely becomes about efficiency and preservation of valuable time. Between teacher observations, disciplinary referrals, finance,... More →
Let’s face it, we our classroom day is jam-packed and taking time out to teach your students how to use a tablet separate from the curriculum content is not feasible. This is the dilemma I faced in September when I got the great news that each of my students would be able to use an Xperia tablet for the month. ...; More →
So, you just got a new Android tablet (Hopefully, it was a Sony Xperia Z) and you have no idea which apps to load on it. The page linked below is a list of 102 (yeah, I added a few extra...) Android apps to get you started in your Android experience. This list doesn't delve much into specific content areas, but has more general purpose and content creation... More →
One of the most amazing things about tablet technology is its ability to take on so many different purposes. Tablets like the Xperia Z are truly the Swiss Army knives of educational technology. Not only do they offer a wide variety of types of tools for learning, they offer a wide assortment of options within each category. Nowhere is this more true than in the category of musical instruments. With... More →
If you have read my post about the Cool Designs Video Contest, you may be thinking some ideas related to the rules could help get you and/or your students going. With any contest, a few hints can help. Below are a few for optimizing your chance to earn an Xperia S tablet as part of the Next Vista for Learning Cool Designs Contest. There are all kinds of details... More →
Digital storytelling projects can work at every grade level and across the content areas for students. There are many reasons why one might want students to create digital stories as a formative or summative assessment. OVERVIEW Jannette Ortega provides us with some of the benefits of digital storytelling in the classroom. It encourages collaborative learning as students problem-solve and bounce ideas off one another. Students get to share work for... More →
The Sony Xperia tablet Z has some amazing dust and water resistant qualities, but the device isn't invincible. With a little care, you can capture great adventure shots and insure the device has a long and productive life. I love bundling up in a Michigan winter and spending as much time as possible outside. Whether it is sledding, snow shoeing, playing pond hockey or ice fishing I try to... More →
Introduction An infographic is a visual representation of information. You find them everywhere from the front page of major newspapers, to the back pages of edtech journals. The process of creating an infographic includes multiple literacies-- there is the information literacy component of searching, collecting, and citing information to be used in the infographic, there is the media literacy component of deciding what type of infographic to create to... More →
I’m always interested in simple and free tools that can give students voice. Tellagami is an excellent example of this type of tool. It is free, easy-to-use, and it is so versatile that it can have applications in any classroom. What Tellagami Is Tellagami is a digital storytelling app that be used to create animated avatars that stand in environments that the user selects, and that... More →
Comics Head is a comic-based storytelling app that is available for both Android and iOS tablets. It is full featured and easy to use, and the items can be shared almost anywhere! There is both a free lite version (which has a watermark) and and a $3.99 full version available in the Google Play Store. How it works Your first pick a blank panel template or templates that are already... More →
In a perfect world, every student would have their own personal device to customize and use how they saw fit. Beginning with a custom wallpaper, then apps, bookmarks, and media; each tablet would be as unique as the individual wielding it. Unfortunately, not all schools or districts have the funds or the infrastructure to support a 1 to 1 ratio of devices to students. The good news is with the latest update... More →
Life just gets easier and easier the more I investigate what is available for teachers. Don’t get me wrong, life was good when all I had was my Xperia Z and the Easy Voice Recorder app. I was able to record my students while I conducted informal reading inventories and then send these files to Google Drive. Recently, I ran into a problem... More →