Make your library the center of your school
Computer Science Education Week is the first week in December each year. This is a time when students around the world participate in the Hour of Code. I’ve been participating with my elementary library classes for several years now, but at first I was very reluctant to try it with my youngest classes. My lack of understanding about coding led to me feeling afraid to
Green Screen technology (or Chroma Key as it is known in more “techy” circles), used to be so complicated! I first tried the available technology with my fourth grade students about 20+ years ago. This post contains affiliate links. If you click through and make a purchase, I may earn a small commission at no cost to you. I remember setting up green bulletin board
I don’t read picture books to my upper elementary students very often, but I’ve found a pair of books that hold their attention and teach some valuable lessons about friendship and the role of technology in our lives and friendships. This post contains affiliate links. If you click through and make a purchase, I may earn a small commission at no cost to you. I
A friend shared a great idea with me for helping my fourth and fifth grade students focus on uplifting messages and positive thoughts using the quotes from the book 365 Days of Wonder: Mr. Brown’s Book of Precepts. She had torn out several pages from the book, let students choose one, and write a reflection on what the precept meant to them. I loved the
I started a Keyboarding Club for 4th and 5th grade students in my library because keyboarding wasn’t being taught at my school in those grades and I wanted to give students the option of sharpening their skills on the keys before they began the Smarter Balanced Tests in the Spring. I used free websites, and didn’t have my students create the free accounts offered,
Do you have students who find a favorite book series and then want to read all of the books in order? On any given day in my library, students come in asking questions like: “What’s Magic Tree House number 17?” “Which book is after Rodrick Rules?” “What’s the first book in the Underland series?” Now, I know it is relatively easy to look up the
About a month ago I received a surprise visit by a local television station and representatives from First Interstate Bank with a check for $250 – I had won their One Class at a Time grant!! I used the money from this grant to purchase 5 Ozobot Starter Kits, (which were on sale for $50 each). These tiny programmable robots will enable all of my
A short article in the September issue of School Library Journal caught my attention last month. At first I passed over it without reading it – augmented reality? That sounds too “out there” for me. But I’ve been trying to stretch myself and grow, besides I knew my students would be interested, especially with the newest Pokemon Go craze! So, I looked into it. Here’s
There is a fabulous freebie over at TpT that you won’t want to miss. This year’s edition of the Tech Tips for Teachers Ebook is “hot off the press!” It’s full to the brim with tips and tricks (and links to freebies!) for using technology in your classroom. Teacher creators Laurah J of Tools for Teachers, Andrea Crawford, and Utah Roots have done a
