New Free Apps from ISTE 2015

Well I made it to day 3 of ISTE 2015.  Yes, I am already trying to figure out how to get to Denver next year for this conference again.  Since this is the first time I have attended ISTE, I can say it has been amazing as well as overwhelming.  The parts of the conference I have enjoyed the most are the playground areas, poster areas and the sessions that share free, yes FREE apps that I can use in my classroom.  I am going to tell you about two that you might have heard of before or not but I definitely think they are worth sharing.

1.  Aurasma:  

This is an amazing augmented reality app that brings kids work and ideas to life.  I have linked the website to this post, but it is used with and iPad device or on Google Play. One of the ideas that was shared during the session for this app was when you have students work hanging in the hall, record a short video of the student telling about the work and put the students picture under their project.  Create a sign that says "Best viewed in Aurasma" and tell the parents/adults to download the free app to their phone/device.  This will enable them to hear the students explain the work that is posted outside your classroom.  Please go to the website for a better explanation of how to create Aura and what all this wonderful app can do for you and your kids.

2.  Seesaw:  

This is a wonderful app that works like a "Learning Journal" for your kids.  Yes it is another FREE app.  What happens is the kids have six options to record/create their work on the iPad.  They then can submit it to the teacher for review and the teacher can write or record comments to the student about their work.  Alright for what I think is the best part is that it is SUPER kindergarten and first grade friendly.  You know those kids that aren't writing complete sentences yet or have a learning issue that makes writing words more challenging.  Well this wonderful app allows them to record their work with audio.  They can just talk about what they are turning into you instead of writing the words.  No worries when they are able to do the writing they are able to do this as well.  I just like the fact that we can give them options.  Okay here is the best for last:  The parents can create an account and view their students work.  How WONDERFUL is this feature?  So not only are you giving kids options for turning in their work you are also enabling parent communication on what the children are doing in class.  Go check it out.  I am already super excited to use this wonderful app next year in my classroom.  

Thanks for stopping by my blog.  So far so good with one of my goals of blogging more.  Yea me!!!!

I hope that you are able to use these apps and that maybe at least one of them was some new information for you.

Chat soon,

Leslie

Where Oh Where Have I Been and What Have I Been Up To?????

Well those of you that follow my blog might be wondering where I have been and what I have been doing since I have not blog since March.  I promise it was not by choice.

1. Grad School: I have been steadily working on my Educational Specialist Degree in Instructional Technology over the last two years.  I would love to do what some do and finish in a year or year and a half, but when you are a classroom teacher without a second pair of hands (meaning NO para) time is not always on your side.  So during the year I take one class a semester and during the summer I try to take two classes.  This summer I was ready to register for class only to find that the classes that I have left to take were not offered.  I decided to take it as a sign from above and take the summer off.  I have three more classes, but I really needed a break from always having something on my plate.  It has been the best decision I have made in a while.  I have used this time since getting done with my job (I don't like to use that word, I usually say school) to recharge, help my brother with the house we are renovating together, and just catch up on that looooong list of things that haven't gotten done.  Well things on that to do list are getting done and I am starting to feel recharged.

2.  Life: Things have not been bad just busy here as you can tell from number one.  I had to make some choices and this blog had to go on the back burner for a little while.  

3.  Blog:  Since things are getting accomplished and I am feeling more rested and creative I have give some serious thought to how I want to recharge this blog, get it going and share more ideas.  (This can count as Goal Number 1: revive this blog and write my daily or weekly reflections about teaching).

4.  TPT: Yes believe it or not I am a TPT author.  No I don't have in my store nearly what I want to but again refer to number 1 and 2 on my list.  (This can count as Goal Number 2: revive my TPT store and hopefully become a premium seller).

5.  Classroom: Even though I don't feel I have let my classroom drop like I have this blog or my TPT store I haven't really had the energy each day that I want with the kids.  (This is Goal Number 3: Add more life back into my classroom and show the kids that learning can be FUN and EXCITING).

6.  Back to the Grad School Thing:  Finish my last three classes.  (This is Goal Number 4:  When the classes I need are offered I will be finishing the degree)  (Secretly God knows best and I am glad for the break.  When the classes are offered I know it will be a time that I am ready to finish).

Well that is it in a nut shell.  Where I have been and What I have been doing- in front of a computer in school with either 5 year old kids (which is fun) or with adults in grad school (which I love learning but more stress than fun.)

So can I keep up with my goals (especially Goal 1, 2, and 3) I am going to give it every effort, because as I am sitting here typing this blog post I realized how much I miss reflecting, writing for myself and sharing ideas.

Thanks for listening to me vent.  Also, thanks for letting me put my goals out there.  Hopefully now that they are public I will be held accountable to them.

Chat soon,

Leslie

P.S.  Just remembered the most important and exciting thing I have going on over the next two weeks.

1.  Starting Sunday June 28 I will be spending 4 days at the ISTE (International Society for Technology in Education) Conference.  Yes I will be blogging about what I learned and sharing pictures and ideas that I get from the conference.

2.  Sunday, July 5 I will be leaving for a week is exciting Las Vegas.  I am attending the I Teach k/1st Conference from SDE.  (If you have never been before-GO-it is exciting and another great way to recharge with lots of other wonderful teachers).  Yes I will also be blogging about what I learn at this conference, sharing pictures and ideas.  (Shshsh-don't tell anyone but I also plan on getting in some more well needed relaxation time with a drink by the pool).

March Currently

Wow it is March Already!!!!

Well I know this is a miracle, but I actually have posted two days in a row.  Today's excuse for posting is that we have a ice day and school was cancelled.  I am also avoiding getting started on my graduate school project for the week.  My goal by the end of the day is to have a good start, we will see if it happens.  Think positive!

My posting is pretty self explanatory, but I am betting some of you are wondering about how I am loving an ice day.  Most people are ready for warm weather and don't get me wrong I could use some warm weather as well, but things have been so crazy lately at school and home that having a down day or off day is going to be very much appreciated.

Well that is it for today, who knows what tomorrow will bring with a new post.

Have a great March and I hope everyone who has Spring Break in March is able to rest and relax some.  Every teacher deserves the time.

Talk soon,

Leslie

Checking In with Dr. Seuss Week

Hi all,

I am just checking in quickly since it has been 6 weeks since I paid any attention to this blog.  Between daily school happenings and graduate school this little blog is getting less and less attention.  I am trying to keep in mind that all I am doing now has a purpose and I will be able to get back to what I enjoy doing which is creating for my classroom and posting the activities here.

Anyway let’s move on to my weekly plans.  This week like so many of you we are going to be reading Dr. Seuss books and completing classroom activities around this theme.  Below are my lesson plans and after that I put a picture of one of the art projects my kids will be completing this week.  Hope you can find some ideas and information.  

Click on the picture below to take you to the lesson plans.

Here is the cute art project the kids will be working on this week.  I promise to take pictures of how they turn out and post again next weekend.

Thanks for stopping by and I promise to have more links and pictures next week.  I just didn't want to go another week without a post.

Leslie

Weekly Plans-Polar Bears

Hi all,

Well we made it through another week and survived.  My class for graduate school started back this week so by Friday I felt a little more tired than I did the week before, but still was able to go out to dinner with a friend and relax with a fruity drink.

This past week in class we read books about mittens and worked on retelling the story.  It was amazing how well most of the students did and by Friday they acted like real pros with their retelling.  Also, in my small RTI group the kids started using the boogie boards and you would have thought that was the best thing since M & M's were invented.  We used the boards to practice the daily sight words that the group needed to learn.  Here is a picture of them and their boards: 

Well enough about last week here are my plans for this week.  We are going to learn about polar bears.  We are going to do a close read with a polar bear informational book and hopefully learn lots of interesting facts about polar bears.  In our work areas we are using polar bears to help with our math skills and some reading skills.  

Here is a picture of the plans, you can click on it and download the pdf which contains some links to the activities I am using.

Thanks for stopping by to check in on what we are doing.  I am hoping to blog some this week about my RTI group.  If you click on the link in my plans it will take you to the resource that I am using.  I am seeing results and that is what we want.

Thanks again,

Leslie

Here is the link to Mrs. Wills' Kindergarten where you will find more wonderful lesson plans and ideas.

Liebster Award Nomination

Why and How long ago did you start blogging?

I started blogging in two years ago.  I began this blog for my team members at school.  I was always creating activities for our classrooms and it became easier to post them and then my team mates could print and use what they wanted instead of always getting emails from me each day.

What one word sums up the heart of your blog and why?

Sharing!  I have been following blogs for a long time now and once others (besides my school team) started following mine I realized that all the ideas I got from others I could pay forward.  So I like sharing ideas and activities as a way to pay it forward for all I have found on other blogs.

Is there something you learned late in your blogging journey that you wish you had known before?

Linking up with other blogs.  Recently I have been trying to do this more and found that I am getting more followers.  I wish I had started this earlier in my blogging journey.  Followers mean that I am hopefully paying it forward more.

What is your favorite pastime other than blogging?

I love playing on my computer, reading and crafting.  I have been in graduate school for the last year and a half and my blog along with other pastimes have not been a main focus.  I try to keep telling myself to get this degree completed and I can pick back up my fun pastimes.

How many hours per week do you dedicate to your blog?

As I stated earlier I am back in graduate school so I have had much blogging time but I am hoping to manage my time better so I can spend at least an hour or two a week on my blog. 

What category of blog posts do you enjoy the most?

Teacher blogs are the ones I follow most but I also love DIY blogs and art blogs.

Where does your blog inspiration come from?

My inspiration comes from other blogs and my classroom.  I have found lately since I am trying to blog more that I am looking at areas in my classroom that I can share with others.  I would like to write blogs about how I set up different areas in my room and how I teacher different concepts to my students.

Which post that you’ve written are you most proud of?

Probably the posts that I am most proud of are the ones I have done lately where I have been linking up with other blogs to share items.  One that I have done a couple of times is sharing my weekly plans with a linky from Mrs. Wills’ Kindergarten.

Is there any post that you’ve been planning to do but you’ve been postponing?

The two that I have been thinking about doing are a classroom reveal and a blog post about how I run my reading and writing work areas (I call them work areas others call them centers).

What is your favorite aspect of blogging?

Reflecting!  I have found that when I do a blog post I reflect more on what I am doing in my classroom, how I am doing it and why I am doing it each week.  This reflecting makes me feel more successful with my classroom children and more prepared each week.

Which recipe, project, or idea from my blog would you like to try yourself?

Linking up with other great bloggers to learn more and grow more professionally.

I now nominate the following 11 bloggers for the Liebster Award!

Casey @ Keeping Up With the Kindergarteners

Brandy @ Kick Starting Kindergarten

Margo @ Mrs. Adams’ Kinders Learning with Laughter and Love

Julie @ The Teaching Bug!

Christina @Krazy in Love with Kindergarten

Mrs. R. Mathis @Mrs. Mathis’ Homeroom

Amy @ Albuquerque Amy and Academics

Meredith @ Sunshine, Sand and Scissors

Michele @ Krazy in Kindergarten

Stephanie Ann @Sparkling in Kindergarten

Mrs. Johnson @Mrs. Johnson’s Little Prowlers

Now that you’ve been nominated, you must do the following to receive your award:

      1.  In your post, link back to me, the blogger who nominated you, as a thank you and a ‘shout out’.

2. Answer the 11 questions I answered above.

     3. Nominate 11 bloggers that have less than 200 followers.  You         many give them 11 questions or they can answer the same questions you did.

   4. Let your nominees know they’ve been nominated and provide them with a link back to your post so that they can accept.

  5. Send your nominator a link to your post so (s)he can learn more about you as well. (You can just put your post link in the comments below.)

Thank you Chris from The Scoop in Second Grade for the Nomination.  This is a great way to learn about new blogs.

Post soon,

Leslie

Weekly Plans-Wonderful Winter Mittens

Well I just want to start by saying I am super excited that I am able to link up with Mrs. Wills Blog two weeks in a row.   Now that I have said that the question comes can I keep it up.  My graduate class starts tomorrow and it is a class dealing with research and literacy review which is a lot of writing.  So I am going to do my best to keep my blogging going for the next couple of months.  I have really enjoyed this week because I have found my self putting more thought into what I am planning and doing in my class.  The reason is because I new I was going to share it with all of you.

Thanks for the motivation.

Well enough about that here are my plans.  You can click on any picture and it will take you to a PDF of the lessons plans.  In the plans are some links to the items I am using this week.  I am working on creating more links each week.  Thanks for your patience as I continue to improve.

As you can see I am using mittens this week to motivate my class in their learning.  

I have five books about mittens and we are going to be working on comparing and contrasting some of the stories and sequencing the other stories.

In math we are finishing our math unit on greater than and less than with sets and numerals.  

I hope you were able to get some ideas from these plans.  I always enjoy looking at others plans for new fresh ideas.

Thanks for stopping by my blog,

Leslie

PS  Next weeks goal is to include pictures of my kids at school doing the activities.  Can I do it?  We will see.