Apple Professional Opportunities

Apple Professional Opportunities and Options for teachers:

A once-in-every-2-years opportunity will be coming up next month: the application window to be an Apple Distinguished Educator.  Click here to read more details about what's involved.

 If you have not already done so, please send me a screenshot of your Apple Teacher certification.  This is a great resource at any time if you want to learn on your own about using Apple applications in your classroom.  About 70% of our teachers and admins have earned this certification.  Click here to get started.

There are plenty of opportunities for 'partner' support with learning, discovering, and using computers in your classroom in effective and engaging ways.  This can include working with your PLC team, requesting a coaching cycle with your building instructional coach, or requesting support from your district technology integrationist.  Also, this is our third school year to have an Apple Professional Learning Specialist come for 3-day visits to partner with teachers in the buildings.  

Please let me know if you have any questions. about any of these opportunities.  There are similar opportunities with Google Education, too.

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We all need a break, but there are a few little tasks that you may want to do between now and 2019:

** Update your laptop's operating system to MacOS Mojave.

 -> App Store -> Search for Mojave

It will take about 20 minutes to download and another 20 to install

** Connect your school devices to your 'managed' Apple ID.  Click here for details.

** For those looking forward to using the new Apple Schoolwork, we will be ready to begin another group right away in January.

** Take a risk and try something new in 2019.  Let me know how I can support you.

Apple Schoolwork - it works!

Thank you to Davis Elementary's Mrs. V for taking a risk this week as you continually work to create a rich learning environment for your students.  We took a risk in learning together with a new tool, called Apple Schoolwork.  It is an iPad application produced by Apple.  Click here to read more about it.

Groups of fourth grade students worked on the following learning objectives:

• Lesson 1:  Students practice lyrics to a song to be performed
• Lesson 2:  Students can read treble staff notation
• Lesson 3:  Students understand note and rest beat values

For each lesson, students were assigned a 'Handout' through Schoolwork where they were asked to create work to demonstrate their understanding and turn it in.  They were each distributed a Keynote template.  Each student was logged in to their school iPad using their managed Apple ID.

Here a submission from one student:

Students were excited to try something new.  They followed directions well and were generally patient if it did not go right the first time.  Some students needed support if they did not have one of the applications installed ahead of time or were not initially signed in to their managed Apple ID.

Students who were not initially signed in to their Apple ID on their iPad were still able to complete the work.  They were shared the same Keynote template using Apple Classroom.

A Managed Apple ID allows Schoolwork to distribute digital lessons.  It also makes our Apple applications collaborative, including Pages, Keynote, and Numbers.  It engages very well with many other applications already on our iPads, such as Clips or Kahoot.

Our school district issues an iPad to every elementary student.

Tools used included for these lessons:

• Apple Schoolwork - this was our first venture into using it
• Apple Classroom
• Keynote
• Accessibility -> Assistive Touch
• Control Center -> Screen Recording

Pitfalls to watch out for when using Schoolwork:

• All students need to be signed in to their managed Apple ID, even loaners.  These accounts were made with Apple School Manager, which is tied in to our Student Information System (SIS).  We use Infinite Campus.
• iOS 'Terms and Conditions' need to be agreed to for any recent updates.  This is a quick fix.
• Students need to have iCloud enabled - this is turned on, unless they happen to turn it off.
• Students will need to have the other complementary applications installed ahead of time, such as Keynote, Clips, or Kahoot, that will be used with the lesson.
• It is best to have the same updated versions of the applications, as well as operating system.
• There are times where a shared document does not open right away from Schoolwork, such as a Keynote presentation.  It will likely open directly through Keynote or even from Files.  If all else fails, try restarting the iPad.  We've had that work, too.

Robotic Rotation 1

Here is a class rotation that I set up for elementary students, with connections to robotics and coding.

A robot will only follow the commands it is given, no more and no less.
Clear instructions are an important part of completing a task.


These activities are best done in small groups, perhaps in a student rotation in the classroom.

Activity 1:  Human Computer

Objective: The 'computer' will follow simple directions to place the small box into the tub. Setup: The robot shown is a VEX Clawbot kit, which comes with a remote control.  It has 4 motors: left side drive, right side drive, arm up/down, claw in/out. For the activity, the teacher or another adult is the 'computer'.  A small group of students provide the coding, or directions.  When the 'computer' receives many directions at once, it will not function.  When it receives a series of simple commands, it functions very well. We have 2 of these robots available.

Activity 2:  Light-Show

Objective: Students will use simple block language, such as that used with Scratch Jr. to identify the coding for each 'light show'. Setup: This is a simple 'robot' that was built with an Arduino kit.  It includes 6 lights and 3 buttons.  Each button push will show a different (simple) light show. This 'robot' is programmed with the free Arduino software, but once uploaded, just needs to have a 5V power supply.  A regular USB charger will do the trick.

Activity 3:  Emojibot

Objective: Build a simple 'robot' Setup: I bought a package of foam sticker emojis from Dollar General, 5mm LED lights and CR2032 batteries from Amazon.  A little transparent tape and a safety pin will give the student a wearable 'emojibot'. The leads for the light will need to be folded down flat on either side of the battery.  A slim piece of paper between one of the leads and the battery will even give it a switch.

Activity 4: Lockerbot

Objective:  Build a locker robot. Setup: Foam sticker sheets magnetic sheets or magnets LED lights Battery Googly eyes (optional) Wire Cut the foam sheets in pieces to create a unique robot.  These may be difficult to cut with scissors.  A utility knife may be preferred. I used some scrap data cable for the wire, stripping the ends for good contact. I am looking for better ways to make a switch.  This works, but is a little more primitive than I would like. These may be placed on the students' hallway lockers.

ISTE Standards 2018

Making a change in practice often requires a roadmap, some direction on how to change our routine.  This is often accompanied by some stress and anxiety, and is better facilitated with strong support.  This happens in our personal and professional journey.

We are a transformative school district, making great strides in how our students earn their education.  We work to celebrate and support our risk-takers who take the lead on transforming their classrooms for a digital age.  We work to effectively support all teachers and learners on this journey.


Most teachers have heard of the ISTE Standards.  They are a roadmap that many states have adopted in part or in whole.  There are actually several categories of standards that have been released, including:

• Students
• Teachers
• Education Leaders
• Coaches
• Computer Science Educators

ISTE is the International Society for Technology in Education.  Its members are leaders and educators from around the world.


A side note:
In June, 2018, the State of Iowa released its K-12 state computer science standards for voluntary adoption.  They were developed by the Computer Science Teachers Association  (the originators of Hour of Code).  Click here to explore these new standards.

The State also provided the opportunity for funding for schools to support teachers to earn a computer science teaching endorsement, something also new in 2018.  The first round initial application was due July 20, 2018.

Book Reviews for early readers

This just happened over the weekend...

The assignment for my 5-year-old:
    - Pick out a book, read it, and do a short book review.
    - Put a production together in a video using Apple Clips.

    Here is what she created on her own:

Just as she was finishing up, her little kindergarten buddy from down the street rang the doorbell.
She convinced him very quickly to make his own book review.

She mentored him on how to use the program and they worked together on reading his book.

Here is his final product.

Both kids practiced their sentences on each page and were challenged with sounding out new words. They took a picture of each page first with the Camera App and did a voice-over afterwards of the text on each page.   They deleted and re-recorded the video clips that they did not like.

He rang our front doorbell only a couple minutes before they started this.  You can see that his jacket is still on.  He had never used the Clips App before.

Students can quickly save their production and upload it to their SeeSaw journal to document their progress in reading. 

Creativity, collaboration, communication, and critical thinking skills...  Have we reached these targets?

How do you use Apple Clips in your classroom?

Media Resources

There are several great media resources that our teachers and students can access that Central Rivers AEA subscribes to.  The login information may be found from your building media specialist.

This may be a challenge if you don't happen to remember the login details or if you would like students to be able to access these resources from home.  We really can't publicly share the username/passwords.

I have a solution with ClassLink:

I added a folder called Media Resources to your ClassLink dashboard.  It may look a little different depending on whether you are using the iPad App or the website.  I added 14 of these media resources to this folder.  A single click with automatically log any student or teacher to the given resource. For students, I only included those resources that are age appropriate.  For example, Bookflix will only show up on younger students' dashboards and SIRS Researcher will only show up on high school devices.

NEW as of 10/29/18:  Britannica online has several new features.  Read about them at this link.



BONUS nugget of information #1:

ClassLink may be customized.    Click on the edit icon in the upper right of your screen.  You can organize your icons, add and customize folders, and even add your own websites.  This feature is available for all teachers and students.  I can quickly add other web resources to all of your students' dashboards, as requested. ClassLink can be a useful way to 'remember' website passwords.  Click here to read my post on August 8th, which has more introductory details about the service.  In your Settings, you will find a 'Password Locker' where passwords may be updated as needed.

BONUS nugget of information #2:  New login features

There are new ways to log into a ClassLink account.

Many students have been using the QuickCards this school year, but had only been able to use the front (selfie) camera on the iPad.  The back camera may now be used.  This will be very handy for cards that are fastened to a table, pencil box, etc.
Facial recognition may also be used to log in.  Let me know if you want to try this.  I don't know if it works any better than the QuickCards. Here are the directions to setting it up -> ->

ClassLink can provide reports on how much it is used and how it is used. In the first third of the school year, Samantha Hoven, GMS math teacher, has the most teacher logins.  Check out the swag she received for this honor.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Two Quick Wins: ClassLink and Books

I have 2 quick wins for you today.....

Signing in to ClassLink just got easier.  

The back camera on the iPad now works when signing in with the Quickcard (QR Code). Before today, only the front camera worked for the quick sign-in.
Just tap on this icon to switch from the front (selfie) camera to the back camera.

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Having students create their own books just got easier.  

Student-created work that is shared with an authentic audience is an important part of learning. The free version of the Book Creator app worked all right, but is limited to only one book and had a very limited audience.  Check out what you can do with Pages...

The Pages app will do the same thing, but with many more features.  You can quickly have students create their own books for an authentic audience.  We can even publish them on the iTunes Store.  Ask me how and I can get you started. There are Book templates now available which are meant for creating interactive books.  Students can quickly make it interactive, too, with their own pictures, audio or video. Invite me and I will come in and support you or your team to get rolling.

Bonus quick win....   Apple recently rolled out their #EveryoneCanCreate series of project books.  These are free on the iTunes store and are geared specifically towards iPads. It is a wonderful book study of how to leverage creativity in your classroom in lesson design.

Follow me @TechTeach3r on Twitter for more

MobyMax for students

MobyMax is used in our district up to the middle school grades as a support resource in many different subject areas.  558 students have logged in so far this school year.  I have a couple quick related items to share.

Regarding Logging in to MobyMax through ClassLink:

I have worked through many classes to clean up any log-in issues.  Please let me know if I need to do a run-through check with your class.  Every student should be able to Tap/Click on their MobyMax icon and go straight to their MobyMax account without having to type anything in.  I've been able to fix every issue so far.  Hit me up with a challenge if you think you have one.  I'm game.

Every K-12 teacher and student has a ClassLink account through this link.

Regarding 'shared' students in MobyMax:

I had an AHA moment when working recently with Karen Fausett.  We realized that any teacher could 'share' their roster with another teacher, but could not build their own roster with students from around the building.  I found and changed the setting for this....

So... if you are a specials teacher, WIN teacher, ELP, resource room, or need to be able to 'share' a student, you now have that capability.  Students will retain a single log-in, but can be easily shared among several teachers.  Click on Roster to find these settings.

Newsela

Newsela is an awesome literacy tool that many of our teachers are using.  Teachers can create a wide range of subject-specific lessons for their students.  Students can personalize their reading according to their reading level.

There are two great options to access Newsela content:

Option 1:   The Newsela website

Newsela is all set up in our Classlink Launchpad so that all students can just tap on the icon and it will log them into their students account without having to type anything in. This works on both iPads and laptops.  The quick login is very nice.

Option 2:  The Newsela iPad App

This is available in Self Service for all students and should download very quickly.  Student will need to log in using their school Google account.  Once logged in, if students do not 'quit' the App, it will keep them logged in. This may be preferred for iPads since the content is more touch-screen friendly.  If the iPad has any other App already logged in using a Google account, then this is very easy.  Otherwise, a password will be needed.

There are many instructional resources available by iPad App, laptop App,  or website.  For iPads, some of them only work with an App (such as SeeSaw) and others can use both (such as Newsela).  Let me know if you need support getting either up and running in your classroom.

Creating Student Voice with FlipGrid

Teachers,

You can give students a voice in their learning by using an awesome tool called FlipGrid.  Students can quickly post video responses and reflections, and, if enabled by the teacher, can post responses to each other.  It's like the big brother to SeeSaw.

Flipgrid is free and can be used easily in all content areas K-12, and works on a laptop, iPad, or smartphone.   The FlipGrid iPad App should be available in Self Service for all teachers and students.  It works really well with Google Classroom, Canvas,  Apple Schoolwork, and other LMS.

Teachers and students will log in to FlipGrid using either 

• their school Google account (preferred)
  
• a QR Code
  
• a class code
  
• or their ClassLink Launchpad - click here to read more

Please check out a grid that I built at this link. Whether you are new to the District or have been around a while, please consider completing these two tasks on my Grid: Task 1:  Introduce yourself and share something that makes you smile Task 2:  Share a personal goal that you have.

These short videos will be shared will all collaborators.

Please let me know if you or your team have any questions or need help implementing this in your classrooms.

A little note:  on the laptops, the Adobe Flash plugin will be required.  You can download it from this link OR it may be downloaded from Self Service, which is in your applications folder.  

ClassLink Launchpad

One impairment to instruction can be the large number of accounts and passwords that our students need to use on different websites.  There are often times where valuable class time is spent getting every student logged in to a site when it would be much better spent using the intended tools.

To help this, our District has a subscription to a service called ClassLink

ClassLink allows a single sign-on for staff and students for the many websites that require a username and password.  In other words, you don't have to remember, or forget, all of those accounts.	All teachers and students can log in using their school Google account:
All K-4 students can log in using a QR Code.  These are printed on cards for every student.	Here is a very short video of what it looks like for a K-4 student to log in using a QR code: Step 1:  Open the ClassLink App Step 2: Tap on the Scan icon Step 3: Hold your QR Code in front of the camera
For the accounts that are specific to you, such as Infinite Campus or Aleks, you only need to log in the first time through ClassLink, and it will do the rest. Click here to get started. This link will give you a Quick Guide that you can use or share with your students.
Video Tutorial 1: Getting started with ClassLink
Video Tutorial 2:  How to customize your screen

Google Boomerang Extension

Do you find yourself occasionally sending emails at odd times of the evening or night?  Sending numerous email late at night can sometimes cause undue stress on the recipients.  If you are like me, replying to emails can often be easiest to do though as the day is winding down.

Let's say you have that email all ready to send out, but it's pushing 11:00 at night and it will be just as important at 7:30 the next morning.  Instead of putting it in your drafts, where you may end up forgetting it, what if you could schedule its delivery whenever you want.....

There is a gmail extension called Google Boomerang that allows you to schedule your emails.  

Click here to get started with Google Boomerang.  It's easy to install.  If you try it out and decide that it's not for you, it can be quickly removed.  This is installed as a gmail extension in your Chrome web browser.

There are many other extensions available through the Chrome Web Store.  Not all of them are worthy of trying out.  If you are looking for some feedback about an extension, let me know.

Project Lead the Way Launch updates 2018-2019

PLTW Launch

The Project Lead the Way Launch curriculum is currently being taught to all of our K-4 students.  Teachers use an APB Instructional Approach  (Activity-Project-Problem) with each unit of study.  Knowledge is scaffolded towards solving a real-world, open-ended problem in each unit.  Critical thinking is embedded throughout the process.  PLTW Launch applies towards much of our science curriculum and aligns with significant math, ELA, and computer science standards.  

Teachers:

Refill Kits

All of the refill kits for the classroom modules for the upcoming school year have arrived, and have been sorted and labeled in a room at Bailey Park.  These are intended to replace the consumable items in your lesson kits.  I will deliver them to your buildings when requested.  (Last year I delivered them to your building libraries for pickup). I was surprised to come upon 5 unopened boxes from last summer and never used during the school year.... This means we ordered some kits unnecessarily.  As this year rolls along, please make a note of the items that genuinely have to be replaced.

Mystery Science
All teachers will have full access to Mystery Science curriculum materials this school year.  It includes lessons that satisfy Next Generation Science Standards which are not met by PLTW Launch.  I shared details about this back in the spring.  Let me know if need any help getting supplies.  Here is a link to the supply list for your grade.   This link, provided by the AEA, should answer most common questions that you may have.

PLTW Launch Classroom Teacher training
Ms. Dodds and I attended the PLTW Launch Classroom Teacher training in July at Iowa State University.  This is a prerequisite for all teachers before they have access to PLTW Launch materials and is also available online. 

We currently have 6 trained 'Lead' teachers in the District, who act as mentors for new Classroom teachers:  3 instructional coaches and 3 classroom teachers. 

Fusion 360
Autodesk stopped supporting its old Inventor Publisher iPad App that give you a 3D model of the Vex kits that our 3rd and 4th grade students use in their units.  However, bring on Fusion 360 !! - the website version.  Rotate, turn, zoom, move, and view step-by-step directions.... use this web application to see how the example machines are made.  This short video shows briefly how it looks.



PLTW Launch Resources

There are many ways to find answers to your questions and support in teaching the PLTW Launch modules.  Take advantage of these resources to improve your understanding of the lessons and student learning in your classroom.
As a PLTW Launch Classroom teacher, in addition to the teacher resources within your Inkling account, you will also always access to the support resources in your my.pltw.org account.  There are many short videos and help resources shown for every unit in the course that you teach. IF you have any questions or are in search of a little clarity, it will likely be found there.

Teacher Feedback
At the end of each unit this year, please consider providing feedback for PLTW.  This feedback has resulted in several changes/updates being made for the upcoming school year.

Google Classroom 2018 Big Changes

Are you a Google Classroom user?

All teachers should have some form of digital learning management system (LMS) for their classroom.  There are many options available that our teachers are frequently using.  It includes SeeSaw, Canvas, Edmodo, Schoology, Google Classroom, and more.  For iPads, Apple just rolled out the new Apple Schoolwork App:  I will share details about its features very soon.

There are some long-awaited changes and updates to Google Classroom coming in August, 2018.

Would you like to check out the big updates before it's rolled out to the general public?
Click on this link to sign up.

The new updates include: Organize lessons with the new Classwork feature by unit or topic This includes expandable rows Create posts and questions from the top-left of this page A new grading workflow will make it easier to provide feedback on student work A new People page to provide a single location to manage students, co-teachers, and guardians Settings page to take more control of the class description, course code, and other features Create Quizzes within Google Classroom Locked mode for Quizzes - this works only on the Chrome web browser. The Stream page  can now be 'collapsed' for easier viewing.

Check out a video preview here:        Length 6:51

In most classes the 'Stream' easily gets out of hand, that is, becoming very long and be very difficult to muddle through.    Classwork will help make that easier.

Classes in Google Classroom may be transferred from one year to the next and also from one teacher to the next, as long as they are still in the same district.   It still does not connect to Infinite Campus like the purchased versions of Canvas or Schoology do, but the improvements do make it more attractive.

Google Classroom works very well to connect students to learning opportunities through web links and it's Google products.  They are working to have better integration with web tools, such as Socrative, Flip Grid, Quizziz, Padlet, Kahoot, and more.

All teachers and students in our district that have gmail accounts have access to Google Classroom.  It is available for MacOS (laptop) and as an app for iOS (iPad).  It pretty much works on any device that has an Internet connection.  With that, we have to keep in mind where Internet connections are not readily available.

Let me know if you have any questions about using Google Classroom with your students.

ALSO

There is a new feature with Google  Forms called Locked Mode.  This feature prevents the student from navigating away from the form until the Submit button is clicked.  However...  this only works with Chrome and it does not prevent a student from using Safari while on that locked screen.  This is really directed towards Chromebooks.


Be Internet Awesome has Google's new classroom resources for safe and responsible use of online resources.  It appears to be directed primarily towards upper elementary and middle school students.  Check it out.  It includes some great material.

Do you want to learn more about what Google has to offer for your classroom?  Their suite of resources has grown enough that it was time for a redesign, especially to make it user-friendly for teachers.  Check it out the new Google Teacher Center here at this link.

Managed iCloud Accounts

All teachers and students now have 200 Gb of free iCloud storage space available with 'managed' Apple accounts.  This is a big change from the 5 Gb that had been available for several years.

The tech staff will be signing in all K-4 students into their iCloud accounts on iPads ahead of the 18-19 school year.  All other students will be given login information.

As a staff member, you can choose whether or not you want to use this 'managed' account.
Please let me know if you need support navigating this.

Why use iCloud?

For classroom use, here is the best reason:  This allows all Pages, Numbers, and Keynote documents to be collaborative in the same way that Google documents are.

Also,

• This 'managed' iCloud account has 200 Gb of storage.   (The free accounts have 5 Gb of storage)
• Back up your school iPad or laptop.  (You may not want to back up Photos though)
• Synch files and projects between your devices (iPad, laptop, iPhone)
• Store files in iCloud to clear some space on your device.
• Open/edit Pages, Keynote, Numbers, and more on Windows/Android devices through iCloud.com.
• For our teachers using iPads, you will need to sign in to this 'managed' Apple ID in order to use the new Apple Schoolwork iPad application.  We have had great success with its use so far.

How to get started:

1.  Get your login information.  This begins with an email that includes a temporary password.

Even though this is a 'managed' account, only you will know the password that you create.  For your personal security, you can connect your account to your cell phone.  It means that you will get a text when your account gets signed in to a new device.  The G-N tech staff cannot look up any passwords, but can reset it to a new temporary password at your request.

2. Log in to your new iCloud account either by iPad or laptop:

Using a laptop: Go to System Preferences -> iCloud Sign in using your 'managed' iCloud username and password. The username will either be your Gmail address or something very close to it.  The password is temporary.  You will select your own password on your first login You will be able to select what type of files that you would like backed up.  I have everything backed up except my photos.  I especially like that my Desktop and Documents folders are automatically backed up.	Using an iPad: Go to Settings.  Tap in the upper left corner of your screen to log in. Here is how my school iPad is set up:
For staff members:  when you sign in, it will authenticate with your cell number.  This is for your personal security.  You will receive a text if anyone else tries to sign in with your account. After signing in, everything stored in iCloud may be accessed from your web browser at iCloud.com OR on your school device. Use iCloud Drive to view the files that have been backed up from your computer.  Add additional folders to upload any other files as desired in the same way you do with Google Drive.	There are many choices in deciding what is backed up to iCloud.  You may choose different settings that I did. Here is a continuation of the same page:

We are just scratching the surface with these directions.  Coming up yet will be directions on how to create collaborative iWork documents (Pages, Numbers, Keynote, and more)

This managed account will not let you log into iTunes for purchases, free applications, or iBooks.  You would still use your own personal Apple ID like you always have.  This will not affect Self Service either.  It will still be available.

Please let me know what questions you have.  I'm sure there is more I can do to clear up these directions.

Thanks

BG
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Common Questions:

I am signed in to a different iCloud Account.  Will I lose anything if I sign out of it and into this new account?

No.  You will not lose anything that is backed up on your computer.  You can check and see what is saved on that 'old' account by going to iCloud.com  If you have items saved there in iCloud Drive, you may download  them to your computer and then transfer them to the new account.  When you log in, you will see a screen that should look like this:

Can I purchase free or paid Apps with this Apple I.D?

No.  The stores (App Store and iTunes Store) are different than iCloud.  Purchased and free applications can be 'pushed' out using Self-Service.  If you 'purchase' free items or use your own money to buy an application, then you personally own the license for it.

For now, I would recommend using a personal Apple ID for the Store if you want to test out free items.

Google does this same thing.  With our school accounts, we have access to gmail and other Google products with school-owned accounts, but cannot purchase anything from the Google Play store.


Why is this account different that my school email address?

IF you already created a personal Apple ID that is your school email address, then it is already taken.  We cannot create another account that has the same login.  What you created is a personal account that will give you 5Gb of storage and may be used for purchasing.   This managed account is school-owned and will give you 200 Gb of iCloud storage.

IF there is already an account named firstname.lastname@grinnell-k12.org, then firstname.lastname1@grinnell-k12.org is generated instead.  Both are still connected to your school email address.

Click here to view a document created by Apple that describes with more details the difference between a personal account and managed account.


Will all of my documents be backed up?

Yes, sort of.  IF you have upgraded to High Sierra on your laptop, then you can select to have your entire Desktop and Documents folders automatically backed up to iCloud.

All Pages, Numbers, and Keynote projects can be set to automatically backed up.

All items in your Desktop and Documents folders may be also accessed on your iPad in the Files Application that looks like this:

Can I just use Google Drive instead to back up my files?

Yes.  You may download Google Drive to your computer at this link.  There will be a folder on your computer called Google Drive.  Anything in that folder will be automatically backed up.

You may select to have your Desktop and Documents folders automatically backed up to your Google Drive.  Look for the checkbox when you do your installation.

Keyboards for Kiddos

Here is an update to a post from 2018:

I would suggest the following iPad settings for your early learners:

I had some time in a Kindergarten classroom today and noticed a keyboard setting that you may want to adjust on your student iPads.  Students in this class were working on very nice presentations for a science lesson using Keynote.  They sometimes typed words that the iPad automatically changed, often in a very unhelpful way.

Phonetic spellings are an important part of the developmental process of young writers.  However, our student iPads may be set to 'fix' words, often changing a misspelling to a very different word with a very different meaning.

Here are a couple suggestions that you may want to consider on your student iPads:

There are many settings that can help student learning.  For little fingers that have troubles taking screenshots, I would suggest turning on Assistive Touch.  It may be customized in  Settings -> General -> Accessibility -> Assistive Touch.  This can be customized so that screenshot and many other tools can be completed with a single tap. To adjust your student iPads for your phonetic writers, go to Settings -> General -> Keyboard

Turn OFF Auto-Correction so that your phonetic spellers do not have their words 'fixed' by the iPad Prediction has been a surprisingly nice feature for students that are reasonably good spellers .  For most students, you will want to leave this turned ON. Split-Keyboard is a feature you will likely want turned OFF for younger writers.  It should also fix the odd feature that sometimes puts the keyboard in the middle of the screen. Enable Dictation is a speech-to-text accessibility feature that allows the user to speak words that will show up on the screen.  A quick Internet connection is needed for this to work well.  There is often a delay.  You may want to turn this ON.

Turn ON Assistive Touch

Navigate to the Internet

Navigate the Internet....

In creating meaningful lessons, we often have our students use web resources to access information.  Here are some quick ways to help direct your students to meaningful web resources:

Write it down.

I need to start with the obvious.  It does have its limitations though. This works when you're traveling to short url's like google.com or grinnelliowa.gov, but is not practical with most web addresses and also not with young learners. And notice that I didn't include "www." It's really not necessary any more.
Apple Classroom This already works on our K-4 iPads and will soon be available on teacher laptops for the iPads, as well. Tap on Navigate and send your entire class anywhere that is bookmarked already on your iPad. The Apple Classroom app should be installed already on your teacher iPad.  It is not needed on the student iPad.
Share Arrow   or   Sharrow This little command is usually used to Air Drop files, but in Safari can be used to also Air Drop a website.  It looks like a little square with an 'up' arrow in it.  It is a quick way to share digital resources. Share to an iPad, iPhone, laptop one at a time OR to an entire Apple Classroom class, if you have it set up.
QR Code These little squares are a really quick connection to web resources. You can quickly create a QR Code for any website.  I use qrstuff.com for all of mine. On an iPad, simply open the Camera App and point it at the QR Code.  Many teachers will either print this out or display a large version on their classroom projector from their computer.
ClassLink Many teachers have been using Symbaloo for several years.  It is a social bookmarking tool.  This has been used mostly in the elementary buildings.  Symbaloo has a really nice iPad App and can be easily customized. A new tool our District has subscribed to is called Classlink.  This can do everything that Symbaloo can, but will also auto-log a student into a password protected website.  This includes resources like BookFlix, Canvas, Google Classroom, and many more.  It has been used heavily this year with MAP and FAST testing at the elementary and middle school buildings. All of our K-12 students and staff already have a ClassLink account.  Send me a note if you would like to learn more about ClassLink.
URL Shortener I use tinyurl.com most often for this.  Some addresses that appear to be about 8 feet long can be quickly shortened to lengths that are easier to remember or type, if needed. I would use one of the methods above, if possible, instead.  No typing is needed then.  Use whatever means flows best in your classroom.  Do what you can to improve learning through engagement in a collaborative and creative environment.

Google Expeditions

Take your students on an adventure with Google Expeditions.

There are two distinct roles with Expeditions: Teacher and Student

This can be done either with an iPad or the Google headsets.

	Install Google Expeditions on the teacher iPad and every student iPad.  It should be available in Self Service. The teacher iPad and all of the student iPads will need to be using the same WiFi account - 'Student' is preferred.  (make a tech person your friend to get this set up, if needed)
	Select Lead to set up your classroom as the teacher. When your students reach this point, they will select Follow As the teacher, you will need to sign in to your Google Account to get started. Students will need to select your class to get started.  They will not need a Google Account.
	Teacher:  Using the magnifying glass tool, you may choose your adventure.  You may want to select something like the Washington Monument.  (This particular location may be found under the 'Landscapes' category) All adventures will need to be downloaded ahead of time by selecting the icon in the lower right corner of each.  If you see a check mark, then it has been downloaded. These adventures may also be found by navigating through the categories shown. In the upper right corner, you will see how many students are enrolled in your 'class'.
	Each adventure will have several scenes to choose from.  Swipe to see each one. Tap on Start to let your students join in the fun.  Tap Pause to bring them back to your classroom. Tapping on the scene title in the lower right corner will give you details and guiding questions about what you are looking at. Students may swipe any direction to explore the scene.
	Here is the student view.  The student will need to select the class and wait until the teacher to Play a scene.
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Other national landmarks to consider downloading:

Lincoln Memorial,

Mount Rushmore,

The Alamo,

Gateway Arch,

The Grand Canyon,

Golden Gate Bridge,

Statue of Liberty