It's Time for a Little Chat

How is it that those words can sometimes strike fear in your heart when you hear them?  I can recall many times when I was teaching and my principal would stick her head in my door and say something as innocent as, "Drop by my office on your plan time. There's something I want to talk to you about.", which would leave me in a state of panic for the minutes, or sometimes hours, before my plan time finally got there.  Then walking with trepidation to the office...how did the building suddenly grow so large? The office was never so far away before.
Entering the office with heart palpitating, I could only imagine that I was going to be fired on the spot. Heaven forbid if she asked me to close the door before sitting down!  Nine times out of ten (or more, actually) I would be greeted by her with a smile on her face, and right away, my nervousness would melt away. Often, I would find that she just wanted to know if I would serve on a committee, stay late to help with a building function, or even if I wanted to take a look at some clothes that her sister had grown out of. 
Don't get me wrong, there are times when a principal and staff member must have hard conversations, but most of the time, conversations are about the business of school. I guess it's just human nature to question yourself when someone lets you know they "want to talk" without providing information about the nature of the conversation. Luckily, all the "little chats" I have ever been involved in, have ended on a positive note or helped me become better at my job, a better colleague, or a better friend.

Chatzy
Chatzy is a free private chat room that can be utilized without registration. Email invitations will allow others to join the chat room. 
On their site, Chatzy advertises:

Chatzy is a good alternative to Facebook, Skype, Windows Live, and other messengers because:


*Chatzy has no registration steps - your friends can join instantly

*Chatzy is free and has no popup ads

*Chatzy does not require Flash or any installation on your computer (= no spyware)

*Chatzy works on all major browsers, with any language and through corporate firewalls

*Chatzy is simple and easy to use

Other reasons I like this mode of communication and collaboration for students: 
  1. It is more up-to-date than email. Many kids think email is only for grownups.
  2. Students do not need to register.
  3. If the teacher registers (free), there are levels of control that allow for more privacy, such as creating a
     password to enter the room.
  4. Registered users may also set up multiple rooms...for various reading groups, etc.
  5. Students may be given the url in lieu of an email invitation.
  6. All conversations are monitored by the teacher.
Although it took me a few minutes to become familiar with the environment, I feel this tool is worth taking a look at, especially for elementary and middle school teachers.

21 Signs

I ran across this blog post today 21 Signs You’re a 21st Century Teacher.  I like this list and can think teachers in my district who are doing, or have done, most of the things on it.  Just last week I was invited to a school to present on wikis and blogs to the staff because they were looking for alternative ways to get information to students and parents about assignments (#3 on the list).  Monday a teacher asked about getting Skype installed on laptops so students could meet with students in another state (#1).  I caught wind of this post via my Google Reader (#19).
On reading the list of 21 signs, I'm sure you can think of other things you and your students are doing.  Why not add to the list and possibly win a prize for doing so?  Even if you aren't the winner of the EdTech Unconference pass or the I ♥ EdTech t-shirt, you will be a winner for helping others to discover fun engaging ways to help students learn.

Simplek12
Simplek12 is a blog I have been following on my Google Reader for some time now.  I find the posts relevant for staff in my district.  At the site you can also find professional development, student curriculum and other valuable resources.

New Year = Not-So-New Tools

After taking a year-long foray into the world of middle school library, I am back in the technology integration game.  I learned a great deal about the Dewey Decimal Classification and reference materials last year, but it feels so good to be here again, talking technology and learning.
Today the kids are out of school enjoying unseasonably mild mid-October weather, while we teachers are spending the day making sure that we are taking the right steps to help our students grasp content.  I am doing a late afternoon session on wikis, blogs and Google Docs at one of our middle schools.  In preparing for the session that will introduce (or reintroduce) teachers to these tools, I stumbled across a matrix that I have found quite helpful! I don't know who created it, but it is going to be my guiding tool for today.  Thanks to the person who put their time and effort into preparing this chart.

Blogs, Wikis, Docs: Which is right for your lesson?  A Comparison Table

Summer, I <3 U!

Ah, the lazy days of summer! If you are an educator or student, that is. At the end of the school year, I had every intention of writing posts all summer long. I actually wrote one just after school let out. However, a couch potato thwarted my attempts. She made me watch nine episodes of the first season of HBO's True Blood in one day. She forced me to lay in the sun reading books, not once, but three times! She cajoled me to take several long walks with my dog. Couch potato, if you and I were not one-in-the-same person, I would julienne slice you and fry you up with some sweet yellow onion.
But hey, isn't having the summer off one of the perks of being in education? I may not have to go into school each day during June, July, and August, but I still work all summer long. I spend a great deal of time surfing for good resources on the Internet, read books and education articles on the web, spend time networking with other educators on Twitter and Plurk, and occasionally play games on my computer to keep my brain sharp. You won't see me losing a half year of learning over the summer, nosiree!
Next week, I am conducting a workshop for teachers in a neighboring district on blogging, using wikis and podcasting. I have had force myself to put down the remote and hold off watching the last three episodes of True Blood in order to plan my session. The planning hasn't been a pain in the neck at all! It is also nice to focus without being interrupted.
What blog hosts and wiki hosts do you find best lend themselves to K-12 teachers and classrooms? What do you use for podcasting? What are some of the most innovative ways you have seen each used by teachers and students? All suggestions, links to great examples and tutorials welcome!

That's A Peach, Hon - Positive Feedback

I love the movie Caddyshack. I went to see it on one of my very first dates in the summer of 1980. I chuckle when I remember my date, Carl, calling me to ask me to see the movie. I told him I would go, but I had seen it the night before. He told me it was ok, because he had just seen it earlier that day! It was a fun date, and a hilarious movie that I still love to quote today. One quote that I use often is

I think that being a teacher, I tend to want to give people positive feedback when possible. It is a gift, or curse, that most teachers possess. In school, students thrive on positive feedback. It's purposes are many: to motivate, acknowledge, encourage,and reinforce, to name a few. Positive feedback need not only come from the teacher. Students can provide feedback to one another that can often be more powerful. Today's site shares a way for students to show their creativity and provide positive feedback to each other.

PhotoPeach
PhotoPeach is a very simple slideshow application that allows you to share photos in a story or spiral format. Simply upload or find photos on Flickr or Picasa, arrange them, and choose music. The slide show is automatically created for you. I really like the layout for adding subtitles to each slide. Once created, others can easily comment on the show. Free registration is necessary to create a show, but none is needed to comment. Check out my story and spiral below. They're peachy!

All in the Fam on PhotoPeach - Story




All in the Fam on PhotoPeach - spiral