Digital Intensive Week 8: New Google Sites

Another amazing thing we learnt today is about New Google Sites which, is way easier to create and organise. Below you can see where New Google Sites is written, just need to click on it and then create a site by going onto Google Drawing - to name your site, import the name as a png and then uploading the image from the downloads folder. Then choose an image which you like or you can even insert an image.

This New Google Site is way easier compared to what we were creating before where we had to play around with the HTML codes so that it's user-friendly. 

Below is a snap shot of how we went about creating our classic sites.

Anyway, the exciting part is that before I left this afternoon I was successfully able to create my own New Google Site as you can see below. 

I even was able to link each Site so that it's easier for me when I am here on this landing page. See below as an example...

Also, I was able to finish take a snap shot of each of my colleagues Class Site, upload the image, write their names and insert the link. As you can see below:

By doing all this on one page/ site it's going to be helpful in my appraisal so that everything is on one page and I do not have to search whole my computer for important bits and pieces. 

Digital Intensive Week 8: Empowering Teachers and Learners

James Hopkins from CORE Education was with us whole day today. He took a session about various ways how we teachers can be connected to teaching and learners can be connected to learning. The key word he focused on was EMPOWERING. 

Empowering will lead to greater achievement. This is because the learners and teachers will feel connected and will learn better and faster from each other. 

There has been a huge shift in overall learning and achievement provided the teachers keep their work visible to everybody.

As a group, we gathered Learner & Teacher Voice and Learner & Teacher Choice. 

Refer to slide 21 for more Learner Voice & Learner Choice.

Refer to slide 22 for more Teacher Voice & Teacher Choice.

Below is the slide we used:

Digital Intensive Week 7: Google Keep

Google Keep is the way to keep all the important photos, notes, reminders etc.

Today I added the extension Google Keep onto my Google account. It's quite handy to have Google Keep on all the gadgets so that it's easier to manage life whether it's work related or personal from any of the devices.

I was successful at downloading the app on my iphone, take a photo on my camera and then upload it to Google Keep.

I also learnt that I can take a picture from a written text and just by using the picture I can retrieve whole text on Google Keep. 

Google Keep is just so amazing.

Digital Intensive Week 5: Creating a Multi Modal Site

Today I was successful at creating a simple site. We chose a text for the junior class - The Lion and the Mouse. After going through the text we got in small groups and used Padlet to plan how we can implement multi modal/ multi text approach to make our teaching and learners understanding easier. This was so that we can plan, share ideas or resources. 

We used the multi-text (Complementary Text, Scaffolding Text and Challenging Text) approach to meet the diverse literacy needs to meet learners learning style, interest and readiness. From there we created our own sites individually. 

Some of the multi modal modes we looked at were -

• Explain Everything - create or questions to answer
• Writing/ Books.
• Videos
• Photos/ images
• News articles
• Blogs
• Audio
• Podcasts
• Animations
• Gifs
• Physical experiences
• Recordings or
• Poems
• Other school blogs ...

The option given was either to focus on New Zealand Curriculum or Themes/ values such as:

• Being Helpful
• Size Doesn't Matter
• Everyone has different skills
• A Friend in Need is a Friend Indeed
• One Good Turn Deserves Another

Below is snapshot of the site I created considering Year 2/3 level.

Click on the link and see creative I was - The Lion and the Mouse.

Blogging: Connecting with an Audience

It was great learning that as professionals we need to constantly blog and on top of that we need to raise traffic for our blog so that people can come and utilise our blog the best possible way and then leave "Positive, Thoughtful and Helpful" comments. Keeping the threaded conversations going is one of the ways to connect with the wider audience as well.

Below is a slide show which gives more ideas how to can share and connect with other audience.