Technology in the Classroom!

I hope you all are enjoying this HOT summer! I am so excited to be apart of the " Unshakeable Book Study"! Please follow us while we read this fabulous book by Angela Watson.

Today I had an urge to blog, and share some technology tips with you. This past school year I made a Donors Choose project to receive two iPads. The first week your project is up Donors Choose will match whatever you raise. If I received a donation of $50 Donors Choose would also give $50...in turn that led to a $100 donation! How amazing is that? I got my projected funded in just one short week. I didn't let my students know until we were close to having full funding...I didn't want to get them excited unless I knew it was attainable. When we reached our goal my students were SO EXCITED as was I! Here is one of my little cuties with our new iPads. Look at that smile!

My first order of business was teaching my firsties how to handle the iPad. I explained to them how fortunate we were to even be given iPad's and that they are a gift to help our brains. We all passed the new iPad's around, after I showed everyone how we are to hold them. I explained to my students that here is no running with iPad's, and they must be on a desk. The center helper will bring you the iPad's so there is no " I got it first!!".The second I saw any " funny business"  the iPad's will be taken away until we can control ourselves.I can tell you I have taken those iPad's away a few times, and my students straighten up pretty quick! :p I really loved these cases for my firsties because they were very kid friendly! Made me worry just a tad less...

My student's wanted to interact with these every second, and in turn there were some "arguments" about whose turn it was etc. I decided to incorporate the iPad's into our reading/ math centers. I have a pocket chart for these centers, and I just move each group down, this makes it easy so everyone is not doing the same thing twice. Adding the iPad's brought so much excitement. On each of the iPad's I found internet- free learning apps...I really didn't want my firsties on the internet without me monitoring them. My solution was to just get rid of the internet all together! I found some amazing apps that my kids loved! I made a folder on each iPad with " Reading Centers" and "Math Centers" students had to click on " Reading Centers" if that's what we were doing. My students absolutely LOVE the iPad's and I am so glad I get to use them again. I often used them for small groups to help with interventions.

At my school we also have Promethean Boards, and Doc Cam's. I don't know what I would do without these. I have the students always interacting with the promethean board, which they absolutely love.  I bought this people sticks on Amazon, which my students each decorate. They then write their name on each side of the stick. I call " sticks" for students to come up to the board. Once I pick a students I put their stick upside down so I know not to pick that student again!
Stick People Craft Sticks

Doc cam's are amazing for guided practice..they can also be used to have students do problems on the board...in front of their classmates. I love when my students can teach one another, often I would call on a student to solve the problem of the day on the Doc Cam. Students could see his/ her thinking, and how they arrived at their answer. My students loved comparing with one another, and having " math talk". I enjoy using technology in my classroom, and am so fortunate to have access to all of these amazing gadgets!

What's your favorite gadget in your classroom?!