Fresh Takes 4 Teachers
Writing With Emojis
Yesterday I wrote about Tony Vincent’s new page of free Shapegrams. As I mentioned in that post, Tony has always had great ideas for using
Free Shapegrams from Tony Vincent!
I’ve known Tony Vincent for at least a dozen years. In all that time he’s always had awesome graphics on his website and in his
Three Tools for Building Your Own Online Games That Aren’t Kahoot-like
Earlier today I fielded a question from a reader who was looking for some suggestions for tools he could use to create some online games
Lumen5 – Quickly Turn Your Writing Into Videos
ChatGPT might be the first thing you think of when you read AI today, but there have been plenty of other AI tools before it.
How to Search Within Desktop and Mobile Pages
How to search within documents, web pages, and spreadsheets is one of the first things that I teach to students at the start of a
Three Self-paced Courses You Can Start Today!
Throughout the year I host a variety of live Practical Ed Tech webinars. Many of you have joined me for them this year and in
Two Ways to Use Pictures in Formative Assessment
When I taught a computer repair class for high school students there were two ways that I consistently used pictures and diagrams in formative assessment.
Concise Explanations of DNS & IP
One of the things that quickly became clear when I started teaching an introduction to computer science course for high school freshmen was that while
Science, Math, and Philosophy Lessons for Valentine’s Day
Valentine’s Day is just a couple of days away. If you teach primary grades, your students may be excited about exchanging little cards and candies
More Than 19,000 Teachers Get Their Tech Tips This Way
At about this time nine years ago I created the Practical Ed Tech Tip of the Week newsletter as a way to provide a summary
Feedback, AI, and Language – The Week in Review
Good morning from Maine where it is roughly 50 degrees warmer than it was at this time last week! One thing that hasn’t changed since
25 Gmail Tips for Teachers and Students
As part of my on-going quest to bring some organization to the more than 1,500 videos on my YouTube channel, I’ve created a new playlist
How to Quickly Turn Padlet Notes Into a Slideshow
Earlier this week Padlet launched a new feature that lets you quickly turn the multimedia notes on a Padlet wall into a slideshow. If you
25 YouTube Tips for Teachers
A couple of weeks ago I shared directions on how to start a YouTube channel. Yesterday, I published directions on how to add end screens
A Quick Tip for Sorting Gmail
Here’s a little tip that I shared with a friend last weekend and I figured a few of you might appreciate it as well. When
29 Google Sites Tutorials for Teachers
Yesterday afternoon a reader emailed me to ask if I had any resources she could reference while building a website with Google Sites. The first
New Padlet Feature! Present Padlet Walls as Slideshows
Padlet has been one of my go-to tools for more than a decade. That staying power is due in large part to the flexibility of
How to Set Expiration Dates for Google Docs
Setting access expiration dates is one of the many “hidden” or frequently overlooked features of Google Documents. This is a feature you can use when
Learning About Languages and The Mysteries of Vernacular
Last week I wrote a blog post titled Two Lessons for a Wicked Cold Day. After publishing that post it occurred to me that readers
Three Tools for Detecting Writing Created by AI
If you haven’t heard, AI writing tools are the hot edtech topic of the year so far. Your students are probably using them whether you
Lesson Plans for The State of Union Address
Tomorrow night President Biden will give the annual State of the Union Address. C-SPAN Classroom offers more than one hundred resources for teaching and learning
50% Off 50 Tech Tuesday Tips
In late 2021 I published 50 Tech Tuesday Tips. A huge thank you to everyone who purchased a copy. Sales of that eBook helped me
How to Add Video Playlists to Google Sites
In this week’s Practical Ed Tech newsletter I wrote about preparing for some workshops that I’ll be leading this spring and summer. Creating resource pages
How Birds Stay Warm in Winter – And How to Help Them
For the last few days it has been exceptionally cold here in Maine. Birds and squirrels keep showing up at our bird feeders despite the
How to Use SVG Files in PowerPoint
Last week a reader reached out to me for advice about how to design slides and PDFs so that the images in them didn’t get
Groundhogs, AI, and Cold – The Week in Review
Good morning from Maine where the it’s -17F and windy as I write this blog post. Even by Maine standards it is exceptionally cold. How
10 Tools for Gathering Real-time Feedback From Students
Chat tools and polling services provide good ways to hear from all of the students in a classroom. These kinds of tools, often referred to
How to Use Canva to Create Custom Valentine’s Day Cards for Kids to Share
Now that Groundhog Day has come and gone, Valentine’s Day is the next holiday that my daughters are looking forward to celebrating. Yesterday, both of
Two Lessons for a Wicked Cold Day
Over the next two days here in Maine we’re expecting some of the coldest temperatures and windchills of the last 50 years. As we say
GPTZero – Another Tool to Detect Writing Created by AI
Yesterday, I shared a brief overview of AI Text Classifier which can be used to determine the likelihood that a article was written with ChatGPT.
Focusable – Fitness Tracking for Your Mind
Focusable is a free app and website that I started using at the start of this school year. It’s a tool that anyone can use
The Makers of ChatGPT Have Launched a Tool to Detect Text Written With AI
In this week’s Practical Ed Tech newsletter I included a video overview of a tool called AI Writing Check that detects whether or not an
Three Things You Should Know How to Do With TinyURL
I’m not 100% certain of this, but I’d make a substantial wager that TinyURL was the first URL shortener I ever used. I know I
Get Ready for Groundhog Day With These Short Lessons
Tomorrow is Groundhog Day! Those of you who teach pre-K or early elementary grades you may have some students who are as excited about it
The Most Popular Posts of the Month on Free Technology for Teachers
Good evening from Maine where the sun has set on the month of January. It was a busy and fun month for me. I hope
How to Remove Apps and Files from Your Android Phone
A couple of weeks ago I wrote about why you should remove unused apps from your Google account and from your Android phone. One reader
75 Google Documents Tutorials
Last week I published a new tutorial about how to add footnotes to Google Documents. After publishing it I decided that it was time to
Terry Freedman’s Article Planner and Writing Prompts
Last week I published a video about creating writing prompts with Spinner Wheel. Terry Freedman took that idea and ran with it to start the
How to Map Spreadsheet Data on Felt
Felt is a multimedia mapping tool that I started using late last year and it has quickly become one of my favorite mapping tools. With
Skeletons, Slides, and Snow – The Week in Review
Good morning from Maine where there is a lot snow covering the ground. We had two big snow storms this week that cumulatively brought about
How to Add Footnotes to Your Google Documents
When it comes answering tech support questions it is often easier to show the solution with a screencast video than it is to write directions.
How to Create a YouTube Channel
If you’re looking for a little weekend project, starting a YouTube channel could be a good one for you. Whether you make a YouTube channel
Create Writing Prompts With Spinner Wheel
In reviewing my Google Analytics earlier this week I noticed that “writing prompts” was one of the most frequently searched terms on FreeTech4Teachers.com in the
How to Add Checkboxes to Tables in Google Docs
Earlier this week when I was looking back at The Super Book of Web Tools for Educators I noticed that Google Docs was still a
How to Find the Source for Images in Google Slides
A couple of weeks ago I published a video about using the explore function in Google Slides to find images to use in presentations. Since
AI Writing Check
AI Writing Check is a free tool created by the collaborative efforts of the non-profits Quill.org and CommonLit. AI Writing Check is a tool that
How to Clean-up Image Backgrounds in Canva Designs
Last week someone reached out to me after watching my original video about using Canva’s image background removal tool. She was having a little trouble
45 Digital Mapping Tutorials
This month I’ve been spending some time organizing the tutorial videos on my YouTube channel. To that end I’m creating playlists that are organized thematically.
The Practical Ed Tech Newsletter
Between social media and email it can be hard to keep up with everything going on in the world of ed tech throughout the week.
Issuu is Making Big Changes to Free Plans
Thirteen years ago I used Issuu to publish The Super Book of Web Tools for Educators. It was an eBook written in collaboration with some
A Classic Search Lesson from My Archives
The “memories” feature is just about the only thing I like about Facebook these days. This morning Facebook reminded me of a memory from my
Using Google Slides to Organize Research
Like many of you, when I was in middle school and high school I was taught to create index cards to organize our research. After
What Are Carbohydrates and How Do They Impact Your Health?
One of my goals for early part of 2023 is to set a new personal best time at a bike race that I’m entered in
eSkeletons – Digital Comparisons of Mammal Skeletons
eSkeletons is a great website produced by the Department of Anthropology at the University of Texas at Austin. eSkeletons features interactive models of mammal skeletons.
Slides, Apps, and Adventure – The Week in Review
Good morning from Maine where yesterday’s snow storm has coating the ground with about eight inches of fluffy snow. Everyone in my house is excited
Short Lessons on Stocks and Bonds
A few nights ago I had a long zone 2 ride on my indoor bike trainer. Whenever I have one of those workouts scheduled, I
A Webinar and an eBook for Your School
When I published the first edition of 50 Tech Tuesday Tips I made the offer of hosting a free webinar for any school or group that purchases ten
A Virtual Owl Pellet Dissection Activity
For the last couple of weeks my oldest daughter has been eagerly anticipating the opportunity to dissect owl pellets at school. She was supposed to
Physical Phonics Games
I have been a fan of the online learning game called Teach Your Monster to Read for many years. The game is designed to help students
A New Felt Mapping Tool
A few days ago I shared a neat map of gray whale migration patterns. That map was created on the Felt mapping platform. Felt was
Design a Mobile App With Google Slides
Yesterday I published a post featuring three tools for creating mobile apps. I should point out that while those tools are helpful, students still need
Three Ways to Create Your Own Mobile App
Since the start of the year I’ve answered about a dozen emails from readers who are interested in creating mobiles apps either by themselves or
Tools for Teaching Adventure – A New OPEN Phys Ed Resource
OPEN Phys ED is one of my favorite websites because they offer great lesson plans and other resources for getting kids active in more than
New and Notable Microsoft Forms Features
Mike Tholfsen is my go-to person for all things Microsoft Edu. This week he released a new video highlighting nine new features in Microsoft Forms
27 Google Drive Tips and Tricks
I’m in the process of organizing my YouTube channel to be more than just two big playlists of Practical Ed Tech Tips and Google Tutorials.
Why You Should Clean Your Phone
When was the last time you looked at your phone? According to my site analytics there’s at least a 55% chance that the answer to
Gray Whale Migration and More Felt Mapping Ideas
Felt is a multimedia mapping tool that I started using late last year. It has quickly become one of my preferred tools for creating multimedia
Dozens of PowerPoint Tips & Tricks
On Saturday I shared my playlist of Google Slides tutorials. This morning I have a PowerPoint tips playlist to share with you. Over the years
Forms, Games, and Images – The Week in Review
Good morning from Maine where the sun is rising on what should be a nice winter day. It’s nice to see the sun after a
Dozens of Google Slides Tutorials
Earlier this week after publishing An Important Tip for Using Image Search in Google Slides it occurred to me that I should probably start to organize all
How to Use Voice Typing in Google Slides
Google recently improved the voice typing function in Google Docs and Google Slides. The tools work in the same way as before, but the voice
A Quick Tip for Using the Same Color in Multiple Adobe Express Projects
A couple of days ago I shared a tip for duplicating colors in Canva design elements. A similar thing can be done in Adobe Express.
BookWidgets Adds a New Video Quiz Option to Use in Google Classroom and Beyond
At the end of last year I highlighted the collection of more than thirty activity templates from BookWidgets that can be used in Google Classroom.
An Important Tip for Using Image Search in Google Slides
The Explore function in Google Slides can be a good tool to use to find images to use in your presentations. The images found through
Lesson Plan – How to Spot Fake Screenshots
In his recently published Next Vista for Learning newsletter Rushton Hurley mentioned a cool lesson plan from PBS Learning Media. That lesson plan is titled
I’m Feeling Lucky – Around the World With Google Earth
Google Earth is one of my all-time favorite tools for teaching geography and history lessons. Two of my favorite ways to use Google Earth in
A Quick Tip for Using the Same Color in Multiple Canva Designs
Canva has lots of helpful design tools for students and teachers. Some of those are fairly obvious while others are a bit hidden and easy
How to Remove Google Forms Add-ons
Last week my Android notified me that I had 22 apps that I hadn’t used in the last 30 days. I took that as a
Ask Two EdTech Guys
At the end of 2022 Rushton Hurley and I brought the curtain down on our series of live webinars titled Two EdTech Guys Take Questions
Create a Snowman Word Game
Earlier today when I picked up my daughter from preschool she proudly showed me the snowman artwork that she had made during art class. A
Students Can Create Their Own Video Games With Construct 3
Construct 3 is a video game creation platform that students can use to develop their own games. The games students can create with Construct 3
How to Convert Google Forms into Microsoft Forms
Yesterday I published separate collections of tutorials for using Google Forms and for using Microsoft Forms. But what if you are transitioning from a Google
Dozens of Tutorials for Getting Started With Google Forms
In a video that I made last week I mentioned that the vast majority of my videos don’t get more than a few hundred views.
Eight Tutorials for Getting Started With Microsoft Forms
This post was inspired by a former colleague of mine who reached out to me for some help as she transitions from a school that
Contests, Maps, and Drawings – The Week in Review
Good morning from Maine where normal winter weather has returned. It’s cold and clear as I get ready to head out to our local ski
Create Your Podcast This Year
If you’ve been thinking about creating a podcast, this is the time to do it. If you’ve been thinking about having your students create podcasts
Why I Keep Making Videos That Nobody Watches
If you’ve been following my blog for a while, you’ve probably noticed that I make a lot of videos. On average I publish about 25
5 Google Docs Features You Might Have Overlooked or Forgotten About
Google Documents has been around so long now that some of us who have been using it from the start may have forgotten about some
How to Sort Microsoft Forms Entries by Completion Time
A couple of days ago I helped a reader who needed a quick way to sort Google Forms responses so that the most recent submission
More Than 25,000 Teachers Get Their Ed Tech Tips This Way
Last month I wrote about going back to basics with email and RSS. The main point of that article being that email and RSS are
How to Spell “No One” and Other Fun Lessons from Drawings Of…
Lillie Marshall is an English teacher, writer, and artist whose work I’ve seen on social media for many years. So when she reached out to
How to Use Custom Backgrounds in Animate from Audio Videos
In this week’s Practical Ed Tech Newsletter I featured a fun tool from Adobe called Animate from Audio. Based on the responses that I received
How to Include Google Maps in Your Google Documents and Canva Documents
Canva’s new documents tool has a bunch of great features that I highlighted in a video last month. One of those features is the ability
How to Sort Google Sheets and Forms Entries in Reverse Chronological Order
Last week a reader reached out to me for some guidance on how to handle a Google Form that had more than one hundred submissions.
A Cool Tool for Uncluttering and Saving Online Articles
Unclutter is a free and open-source Chrome and Firefox browser extension that anyone can use to remove the clutter from a web page. That’s not
How to Create a Podcast on Your Android Phone
The new year is here! If one of your goals for 2023 is to finally start that podcast you’ve been thinking about, Anchor offers an
A Memory and a New Course
Just about the only thing keeping me on Facebook these days are the memories reminding me of where I’ve been. Back in December one of
StudentCam 2023 – Only Three Weeks Left
When it was announced back in September the entry deadline for the 2023 C-SPAN StudentCam contest seemed so far away. Now that 2023 is here,
How to Collaborate on Canva Documents
The new Canva Documents tool has a lot of great features for teachers and students. Not the least of which is the ability to collaborate