APPsolutely SMASHing!

It amazes me that what I think I am going to blog about at the beginning of the week is totally different than what ends up being posted! I finally experienced the magic of AppSmashing! What is that you might ask? This is when you take combinations of apps to end up with a final product that couldn't be created with one application. For my students, we used Explain Everything, Nova Elements and Evernote to create their first digital portfolio entries. This week started off with an activity that I have done for years. We are in the midst of reviewing basic chemistry to prepare for organic compound mastery in the next couple of weeks. To bring some excitement to the practice of making covalent bond models, we use gummy bears for atoms and toothpicks for bonds. This is a fun way to keep kids interested, and sneak a sweet treat in on the side! To combine the technology with the traditional, I decided that this assignment would be the first activity that my students would complete and turn in using their digital biology portfolio. Before doing the lab, I had each student set up an account on Evernote using the iPad app. As with every class account we have, I make sure my students keep a log of usernames and passwords.

What I like about Evernote is that they can access their account from the app on the shared iPad. We do not need them to make any iPad account adjustments within class.  As long as they log out of the app at the end of the bell, it is ready for the next student to use.  I also like Evernote because students can access their work from any internet source at home or at school.  Once the accounts were established, we got started building molecules.  Each student had a list of required molecules to build. I encouraged students to work together as they figured out configurations and ratios. As students completed models they took pictures of the models directly into their portfolio documents. 

After completing the lab, students brought their lab entries to me to review pictures and models. As we noticed that some needed revisions, students asked if they could do something rather than rebuilding with the physical gummy bears toothpicks. This is where the magic really began! I decided to introduce kids to Explain Everything to edit and annotate pictures.  This was the best decision of the entire activity.  I worked with small groups to show them how to work between the apps and insert the corrected photos/diagrams back into their final paper.  What resulted was priceless. Not only did I feel like I could really understand my students' thought processes as we made corrections, but I saw them helping one another to find understanding.  They helped one another learn the new apps and learn the concepts.  What started out as an activity that I thought was predictable and familiar, turned into an experience where I was taken to new experiences in teaching and learning for both my students and me.  

Here are a few suggestions I have to offer when you decide to do adapt a traditional lab to the technology age of science. 

1. When deciding to go digital for a lab book/portfolio, choose a program that works for you.There are so many out there that work well. As with everything else iPad, there are hundreds of ways to answer a question and all are correct!

2. Take the time to walk your students through setting up their accounts and make showing their parents a homework assignment. You will not regret slowing your pace down to make sure everyone is comfortable.

3. Use an activity with which you are very familiar for your first digital assignment. You can anticipate where students will have questions with the concepts to give you more flexibility to address technology issues. 

4. Allow time for mistakes and "do-overs" with the activity you choose.

5. Expect surprises! This is the best part of all.

To learn more ways in which I am using technology in my classroom, follow me on Twitter @eglassman757. 

Knee Deep in Human Anatomy/Physiology

Regardless of the topic or conversation in my classroom, tradition always fuses with technology to get the job done.  My students are "knee deep" (pardon the pun) in studying the anatomy/physiology of the human body.

I remind my students that they must read, write notes, and study diagrams they color. Our brains rely on these traditional skills that need to used daily. One cannot replace the act of reading with anything else. Whether using a traditional textbook, e-text, or i-book for my course, students need to read the content. All that being said, I am covering the human body systems (we are currently focused on skeletal, muscular and integumentary systems) with an infused approach by exploring using the following items.

1. The Human Body Facts 1000 app is great for engaging students with random bits of knowledge about the human body. For example, did you know that if you put all of your blood vessels end to end, they would reach approximately 60,000 miles in length? This app could lend itself to some great dinner conversations, or problem solving activities.

2. In conjunction with using the Rover app, since iPads are not flash based, The Interactive Body by BBC Science is fantastic. This website gives students visual study guides, as well as interactive quizzes.

3. The 3D Human Anatomy Atlas website by Visible Body is a solid resource for giving students a rotatable view of almost every body structure known. This is pretty advanced, but offers visuals and quizzes and is much easier to use in study hall than a 6 foot model!

4. Using Quizlet is a great way to review organs with respective systems and functions.

5. Other apps that have proven helpful are Visual Anatomy Lite and Essential Skeleton which are both free.  I have really enjoyed Essential Skeleton for review.  It allows students to draw directly onto the diagrams to make their own practice quizzes. Anatomy 3D: Organs is worth the $3.99 cost. I look forward to using that app when the time comes for semester exam review. As a side note, be careful when looking through anatomy apps.  Many are designed for medical students and physicians.  The fact that they are extremely advanced could be frustrating for a high school biology student.

I am truly enjoing the freedom and flexibility that technology integration affords my students. Seeing them focused in groups or as individuals is fantastic.  I love the fact that I need to remind my classes that it is time to leave.  What a blessing it is that I teach a group of students who do not want to leave when the imaginary bell rings.

To learn more ways in which I am using technology in my classroom, follow me on Twitter @eglassman757.

Jumping Off With My Water Wings Fully Inflated

     I am sitting at my computer with a mind full of ideas, anticipation and excitement... much like the feeling of being on the edge of the pool, deciding if I should jump in or sit back and do a little more watching. Today is the day I have finally decided to put my water wings on like a big girl and jump into the deep-end of the blogging pool.  I am intrigued by this world of collaboration, and watch in awe, as other educators put their ideas out there to share with the rest of us. I never thought of myself as someone who should make a blog. What could I have to contribute to these other educators who are worlds beyond me in education technology adventures? The answer to that question started a couple of years ago when my colleague and I decided to apply to have a class set of iPads introduced into our classrooms. Our school (www.norfolkacademy.org)  believed in our vision and we started this current school year with iPads in our Biology classrooms. E-texts replaced hardbound textbooks, and iPads replaced the daily puzzle of having to find a computer lab to access our texts. I hoped that this transition would be smooth, but was realistic to know it would be challenging. To help me navigate more effectively, I was again, given an amazing professional opportunity to attend the Ed Tech Teacher iPad Summit in November.  To say this was life changing is an understatement. I quickly learned three main lessons: 1. iPads are for creating, not just consuming. 2. iPads do not replace me as a teacher. 3. Failure is expected.  So here I am three months later, after being encouraged by some amazing educators I met at the ETT iPad Summit (www.edtechteacher.org), starting a blog. Before I go any further, I owe special thanks to Beth Holland, Shawn McCusker, Autumn Laidler and Jennie Magiera for being my "swim coaches" in this blogging pool! Check out their amazing work by following them on Twitter!

     The major lesson I learned as I have been on this iPad adventure is that I have so much to learn.  I am a teacher, mom, wife, friend, coach.  I wear many hats, as we all do. In every facet of my life, I am constantly learning how to be better, more effective, more efficient... more understanding. I am not one to sit idle. I have realized that I will always have a thirst for knowing more. To know more, I need to ask questions and share answers. Thus finding the answer to the question of what I have to offer to the world of blogging. So, as I jump into this pool of discovery, I invite you to join me and understand why I will always be "The Forever Student."

To learn more ways in which I am using technology in my classroom, follow me on Twitter. @eglassman757