Fresh Takes 4 Teachers
The Web Version of Google Earth Finally Gets a Measuring Tool
Distance measurement has been a feature of the desktop version of Google Earth for as long as I have been using it. So I was
The Short List of Physical Tech Products That I Recommend
From time to time I am asked for recommendations on the purchase of physical tech products. I generally don’t make recommendations for school-wide or other
Adobe Spark Post Now Available on Android
Adobe Spark Post is a free graphic design tool that has been available online and as an iPad app for a few years. Last week
Flipgrid, Forms, and Accessibility – The Week in Review
Good evening from Maine where the sun has set on a nice summer day. The week was full of great summer weather and none better
A Lesson for Beachcombers – How Seashells Are Made
If your summer plans include going to the beach, you may be interested in a new video from Reactions about how seashells are made. In
Use Scheduling to Blog Consistently
Earlier this week I hosted a webinar about creating and maintaining classroom blogs. One of the topics that I addressed during the webinar was the
Two Lessons on Cloud Types and Their Names
Meteorology is a science topic that affects all of us whether you like it or not. Look up at the clouds and you’re making a
Where You Can Follow My Work
If you’re reading this, the numbers say that you found my blog through one of the following methods: Facebook referral – Here’s the Free Technology
Vynchronize – Watch Videos and Discuss Them in the Same Window
Vynchronize is a new video discussion platform that I learned about through Larry Ferlazzo’s recent This Week in Web 2.0 post. Vynchronize lets you create
A Soccer Physics Lesson
If you watch the World Cup or any other professional soccer game you’re bound to see some incredible kicks that make the ball curve through
Plastics 101 – National Geographic Lesson
From the top of your coffee cup to the laptop or phone you’re using right now, our daily lives are full of plastic. How did
Google Sites Conversion Tool Now Available to More Users
A couple of months ago Google introduced an easy way to convert old Google Sites to the new version of Google Sites. Availability of that
Five Ways to Create Mind Maps and Flowcharts Online
Earlier this week Tony Vincent Tweeted an excellent graphic that he made to show the process of creating a flowchart in Google Drawings. Tony’s graphics are
Exciting New Features Coming to Scratch Later This Year
Thanks to a Tweet from Helen Maddox I found an announcement from the MIT Scratch Team about the new features that will be available in
Finding Old Maps Online
On Wednesday morning I shared a neat geography quiz that asks students to identify cities by looking at historic maps. In that blog post I
Common Craft Offers a Great Guide to Understanding the World Cup
Like many Americans, I don’t really understand soccer so when the World Cup rolls around every four years I have to refresh my memory about
Otus Adds New Features Including a Lockdown Browser
Otus is a fantastic learning management system (LMS) that I’ve watched mature from its early iterations as an iPad-specific tool to a full-fledged LMS. This
Identifying Cities from Historic Maps – A Geography Game
Late last year The Guardian published a challenging geography quiz. The quiz presents historic maps of ten cities. You have to identify the city by
Anchor Now Has an iPad App for Easy Podcast Creation and Publication
Anchor is a free service that makes easy to record, edit, and publish your own podcasts. In fact, you can record and publish your first
New Google Forms Customization Options
For years and years people have asked me if there is way to customize the fonts in Google Forms. And for years and years I’ve
Google’s “Be Internet Awesome” Curriculum is Now Available in Spanish
At about this time last year Google introduced Be Internet Awesome. Be Internet Awesome offers an interactive site called Interland. Interland is a game in
4 Fun Summer Science Activities
Now that summer is here in the northern hemisphere it’s a great time to go outside for a science lesson. SciShow Kids has four suggestions
The Myth of the Giant’s Causeway Explained
The Giant’s Causeway is one of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites that I have had the privilege to see in person. It can be seen
Add Voice Recordings to Maps
Over the weekend I tested an app called JoJo that lets you create short audio recordings and have them placed on map. For a myriad
Short Lessons on the Longest Day of the Year
The summer solstice is just a couple of days away. Many refer to this as the “longest day of the year” when they really mean
Grackle – Assess the Accessibility of Your Google Docs & Slides
Grackle is a service that will check your Google Documents, Slides, and Sheets for accessibility. It is available as an Add-on for Google Docs, for
Google Tasks to Become a Core G Suite Service
In late April Google launched a new stand-alone app called Google Tasks. Last week Google announced that at the end of June Google Tasks will
Huge Flipgrid News! – All Features Now Free
Flipgrid has been acquired by Microsoft. That’s good news for the founders of Flipgrid and great news for all of us who enjoy using Flipgrid.
A Quick and Easy Way to Create Printable Mazes
Maze Generator is a free site that does exactly what it says on the tin, it generates mazes. To make a printable maze on Maze
Games, Screencasting, and Ducks – The Week in Review
Good evening from Maine where we had a great day exploring the Maine Wildlife Park. My older daughter loved feeding the ducks! And we all
Educational Games for Elementary School Science Lessons
Educational games can be useful in helping to reinforce concepts and content. A good game can keep students engaged while also helping them develop some
Camp GoNoodle – Four Weeks of Fun and Educational Summer Activities
Camp GoNoodle is a summer program offered by the folks at GoNoodle. The program is designed for elementary school age students to complete over the
The Most Important Search Skills and Attitudes According to SearchReSearch Readers
Dan Russell’s Search ReSearch blog is my go-to resource for learning new strategies and for ideas on teaching search. His search challenge blog posts always
How to Duplicate a Google Site
A couple of weeks ago the option to duplicate a site was added to the new version of Google Sites. Duplicating a Google Site will
A Conversation With Dr. Keith Westman from Otus
Last month I thought to myself that I didn’t have enough to do so I set about launching a podcast. I failed. It turns out
Ten Search Strategies Students Should Know
If you have ever had a student tell you, “Google has nothing on this,” you know that students need help formulating good web search strategies.
Britannica Insights – A Chrome Extension for Encyclopedia Britannica
Britannica Insights is a Chrome Extension that will show you entries from Encyclopedia Britannica in the right-hand margin of your Google search results. The way
Now You and Your Students Can Create Quizzes in Kahoot’s Mobile App
Kahoot has released a major update to their free mobile apps. As of this morning you can now create a Kahoot game within the free
An Easy Speech-to-Text Option for Word, OneNote, and PowerPoint
Word, OneNote, and PowerPoint users have a new speech-to-text option. A new dictation option has been added to Office 365. The dictation tool will transcribe
Adverbs, Themes, and Labels – New Immersive Reader Features
Immersive Reader is a free add-in for Word, OneNote, Outlook, and Edge enables students to have articles read aloud to them at pace that meets
Crayon – Super Simple Collaborative Whiteboard
Update: May 2020. This tool is no longer available. Crayon is a new service in the collaborative whiteboard market. You can use Crayon without creating
Three Ways to Use Screencasting In Your Classroom
Creating videos doesn’t have to be a complicated process. Screencasting is one relatively easy way to get started making videos in your classroom. Screencasting is
Updated – 5 Online, Collaborative Whiteboard Services
Online, collaborative, whiteboards can be great tools for hosting quick review sessions for your students. Your students can also use these tools to conduct online
A Spreadsheet of Phones That Do and Don’t Support Google Expeditions
Yesterday, I answered an email from a participant in my recent Intro to VR & AR webinar. She was having trouble getting Google Expeditions to
If You Want to Create Polite Digital Citizens…
Warning! This post is a bit of a rant. The sleep-deprived state that I exist in as the father of two kids under age two
Three Good PowerPoint Add-ins for Math Teachers
PowerPoint has many features that students and teachers often overlook. That’s bound to happen with any program that has been around as long as PowerPoint
Free Alternative to GooseChase
This morning I received the following email from a reader who wants to create a digital scavenger hunt for an upcoming conference. “GooseChase has the
Three Ways to Digitize Your Physical Sticky Notes
Last week Padlet added a new feature to their free iPad and iPhone apps. That feature is the ability to snap a picture of a
Ten Types of Notes You Can Add to Padlet Walls
As I wrote yesterday, this week Padlet added a new feature to their iPad and iPhone app. The new feature is called Catscan. Catscan lets
How to Automatically Forward Your G Suite Email to a Personal Gmail Address
This is the time of year that I always get a bunch of questions from folks who leaving a school and want to take some
Cheese, Teams, and Games – The Week in Review
Good morning from Maine. By the time that most of you read this I will be fly fishing on my favorite lake in Maine, Kennebago.
5 Ways to Make Stop-motion and Time-lapse Movies
Creating a stop-motion video or a time-lapse videos can be a good way for students to tell a story in the style of Gumby. Making
Flipgrid Password-protected All Grids This Morning
This morning all teachers using Flipgrid were sent an email about privacy updates that they made to all accounts. Those updates included automatically password-protecting all
Not Going to ISTE? – Join the “Not at ISTE” IGNITE
Going to the annual ISTE conference can be a great way to learn about new and emerging trends in the field of educational technology. It’s
Turn a Set of Physical Sticky Notes Into Digital Ones With Padlet’s Catscan
Padlet has added a new feature called Catscan to their iPhone and iPad apps. Catscan’s purpose is to let you take a picture of a
10 Good Templates for Science, Social Studies, and Language Arts Lessons
Earlier this week I published a post about Read Write Think’s theme poem online activity. Obviously, that activity is a great fit for a language
Changes Coming to the Google Sign-in Screen
This morning Google announced that the sign-in screen you see when signing into your account is going to get a small change next week. Beginning
Notion – Project Management & Reference Wiki Now With New Mobile Apps
Notion is a service that I described in March as being part project management and part reference wiki. The service provides a place for teams
New Layout Controls in Google Slides
Back in April Google added some handy rulers and guides to Google Slides. Those tools make it a little easier to ensure that elements on
Join Me Tomorrow for an Introduction to Using AR & VR in School
Thursday at 4pm ET I am hosting a Practical Ed Tech webinar all about using augmented reality and virtual reality in your classroom. In Introduction
Quizalize Introduces New Differentiation Tools
Quizalize is an excellent platform through which you can create and distribute online quiz games. Your students can play the games as a group in
Microsoft Adds New OneNote and Teams Features for Teachers and Students
This week Microsoft announced a handful of new OneNote and Teams features. These new features were all developed for the purpose of improving collaboration and
PBS Kids Summer Adventure Math Lessons
Summer is here (in the Northern Hemisphere) but that doesn’t mean that the learning has to stop. PBS Learning Media recently published set of resources
Theme Poem Lesson Plans and Interactive Module
Read Write Think is one of my all-time favorite resources for free language arts lesson plans and interactive activities. I’ve written about and published videos
Five Things You and Your Students Can Make With Canva
During the weekend I received an email from a reader who was looking for advice on host to make a logo or graphic for her
Forms, Augmented Reality, and Games – The Week in Review
Good morning from hot and humid South Paris, Maine. The warmth and rain have made our flowers bloom which is a nice sight to see
Now You Can Duplicate Your Sites in New Google Sites
The “new” version of Google Sites (it has been out for two years now) has seen a steady increase in features over the last six
Three Good Resources for Learning About the Science of Baseball
Watching a Red Sox game or listening to one on the radio is one of my favorite things to do on a warm summer night
Turning Milk Into Cheese – A Science Lesson
Reactions is a fantastic YouTube channel that science teachers should bookmark. Reactions is produced by PBS Digital Studios and the American Chemical Society. The purpose
Why Do We Itch? – A Science Lesson
Summer here in northern New England brings long and sunny days that make us forget about the short and frigid days of winter. Those sunny
Reminder – The End is Near for TodaysMeet
In case you missed the news at the end of April, one of my all-time favorite services is shutting down on June 16th. On that
Forms, Videos, and VR – The Month in Review
Good evening from Maine where the sun has just set on the month of May. It was a busy month for me as I worked
Try These Google Forms Options to Organize Responses
I love using Google Forms to collect information from students and or their parents. Forms are rather easy to create and share. But if you
Kaizena Now Offers Rubrics to Go With Voice Comments on Google Docs
Earlier this year Kaizena released an updated Google Docs Add-on that streamlined the way that you can add voice comments to your students’ Google Documents.
Google Expeditions Updated With New Augmented Reality Content
Since its launch Google’s Expeditions app has been a hit in many schools. What started out as a somewhat canned teacher-led virtual reality experience has
Three Google Sheets Add-ons That Can Help You Get Things Done
Google Sheets has a lot of features baked into that can help you organize things and get things done efficiently. Start exploring the Add-ons for
New Common Craft Video – Digital Footprints Explained
As adults we know that everything we do online is a part of our digital footprints. Even those things that you post on your “private”
SpeakPipe Has New Customization Options
SpeakPipe is a great little service that lets you collect voice messages from visitors to your blog. I used it for many years on a
inkleWriter is Shutting Down – Try These Alternatives for Writing CYA Fiction
For years inkleWriter has been one of my go-to recommendations for tools to create choose-your-adventure stories. Unfortunately, this morning as I was planning a workshop,
Using Google Forms to Track Professional Development
Last week I had the pleasure of working with teachers at Sigsbee Charter School. In doing so I gained a good idea from their librarian
WriteReader Is Now Available In Spanish
WriteReader is a fantastic tool for elementary school students to use to create multimedia ebooks. I have been impressed by it since the first time
How to Embed PowerPoint Presentations Into Your Blog or Google Site
Last week I published a post about including slideshows in your blog or website. More than a few of you wrote to me with questions
Purpose Games – Create and Play Educational Games
Purpose Games is a free service for creating and or playing simple educational games. The service currently gives users the ability to create seven types
Five Options for Creating Animated Videos on Your Chromebook
Creating animated videos can be a great way for students to explain a science concept, to tell a history story, or to bring to life
A Timeline JS Timeline of Wall Street
Timeline JS is one of my favorite tools for social studies teachers and students. It’s one of six excellent storytelling tools produced by Knight Lab
Geography, Portfolios, and Programming – The Week in Review
Good evening from Maine where I’m home after spending a few days in Key West, Florida where I had the privilege to work with some
Turn CSV Files Into Heat Maps
Heat Map Tool is a tool for easily creating heat maps or incident maps from a CSV file. To create a heat map all you need to
Google Forms & Sheets for Beginners – Practical Ed Tech Webinar Next Week
From creating and scoring meaningful formative assessments to organizing school events, Google Forms and Google Sheets are powerful tools to help you get things done.
Discover Primary Sources by Browsing the World Digital Library Maps
The World Digital Library hosts more than 19,000 primary documents and images from dozens of libraries around the world. Hosted by the Library of Congress and sponsored
How to Include a Flickr Slideshow in Google Sites
This afternoon I spent time working with teachers to develop new websites through Google Sites. One of the things that many wanted to include was
How to Embed Your Slideshows Into Your Blog
Yesterday’s post about Speaker Deck prompted a few readers to ask me about other options for embedding slideshows into blog posts. The options are different
Where Is That Summer Paycheck Going? – A Lesson for High School Students
Summer is near and for many high school students that means it’s time to start working at summer jobs. For many students the first real
An Interactive Story Building Lesson
Word Tamer is a site for learning the process of developing characters, settings, and plots. Word Tamer is set up as an interactive journey through a
Google Offers a Sites Conversion Tool – Domain Admins Take Note
Whether you like it or not, Google is slowly pushing everyone who uses the old version of Google Sites into the new version. For some
Speaker Deck – A Simple Way to Share Your Slides
Google Slides, PowerPoint, and Keynote all have options for embedding your slideshows into a blog post or other webpage. But there are other methods for
ClassDojo Introduces a New Digital Portfolio Option
For the last couple of years ClassDojo has offered a digital portfolio feature called Student Stories. This summer ClassDojo is introducing a new portfolio option
Three Ways to Develop Programming Skills This Summer
Summer is almost here and it’s a great time to learn a new skill that you can bring into your classroom next fall. One of
A Quick Google Docs Formatting Tip
Google Docs has lots of handy features that are “hidden” in plain sight. Many of those features address common formatting needs. For example, in the
Three Ways to Keep Track of Students’ Blog Entries
One of the questions that I often field during my workshop on blogging is, “how do you keep track of what students are writing?” The