April 4, 2017

Issue 16

March 31 2017

with FREE Presentation Software Say your students just went on an awesome field trip to the aquarium.

They took tons of cool pics on tablets and want to present them at open house. Slideful is an online slideshow maker that takes out all of the guesswork. This platform is simple and ideal for a younger class or groups who are less technology savvy. After students upload up to 10 pictures per presentation, they are taken through a series of options and previews to customize it just the way they want. Accounts are free and easy to create.

PREZI Want to connect ideas and media together in a creative, out-of-the-box way? Try a Prezi! Your students will have fun with this too, and an account is free and userfriendly (a paid subscription will get you access to experts, and the ability to make presentations private). Show how ideas relate to each other in context by zooming in and out of a big canvas containing all of your presentation.

Experiment with fun transitions and effects to enhance your presentations as you go.

Remember when all we had to work with was a word document to make a digital poster? Try putting text and pictures where you want with enter, backspace, and resizing without going insane. PowerPoint was the next logical choice for a while, but now there’s an online platform that was made for digital posters! With a free account you can set up easy-touse student accounts and watch them easily add saved images, audio, video, and text anywhere on the page they want! Choose from a wide array of templates or start with a blank presentation to create a unique, engaging poster your students will be proud of.

Why not use a presentation software that you already have on your Office 365 waffle?

Sway is an online story board where you can add media, pictures, texts, social media, and other features easily with plenty of designs and layouts to choose from. Group pictures and videos in a stacked format or traditional slide show style. Highlight with text and graphics all in a simple drag-and-drop platform making your presentation unique, eye-catching, and effective! Try introducing students to this presentation platform by showing Mark Moore’s instructional video. http://tinyurl.com/zg9e8br

Have you planned your spring APPventures yet?

Audubon Guides

Don’t know if you’re going anywhere this spring? The Audubon Guides four-in-one app gives you a comprehensive look at nature in your backyard and beyond.

Meet the Insects

Did you know that insects probably are the largest biomass of the terrestrial animals? With this multimedia app kids can use the virtual magnifying glass to investigate images, journal, read, view videos and get up close and personal to learn about the insects all around them.

National Parks

Are you planning on visiting a National park this spring? National Parks is a comprehensive app that provides endless facts and photos of America’s national parks. During your visit you can use this app to interact with social media and collect stamps along the way.

Looking for adventure?

Take kids outside to explore Looking for anan adventure?

Take your kidsyour outside to enjoy exploring habitats through Disneynature Explore habitats through Disneynature Explore augmented reality app. augmented reality app.

Star Walk for Kids

Disneynature Explore

Have you ever looked up in the sky on a clear spring night and wondered what you were looking at? This app is for space explorers young and old. The Star Walk for Kids app is full of interactive learning and facts providing fundamental principles of astrophysics.

Scan the QR code to go to Common Sense Media’s list of family friendly Apps that will inspire kids and their families to get outside this summer! https://www.commonsensemedia.org/lists/apps-that-inspire-kids-to-play-outside

Standardized state testing is looming over our heads like a dark storm cloud. Every year we work harder for our students to make the grade. No matter what stance you take on standardized testing, we can all agree that it is very stressful for teachers and students. We give the same tips each year: eat a healthy breakfast, get plenty of rest, pace yourself, etc. What about the anxiety that develops a week before testing? Below, are some helpful tips recommended for students and teachers to help rid themselves of anxiety before test time approaches.  Exercise - A normal exercise routine helps to eliminate stress and improve moods. It can also help increase brain function. 

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Meditate - There are many benefits to meditating on a daily basis, but it can also be helpful on the day of the test. Allow twenty minutes to clear your mind and take deep breaths.

Be prepared - Before test day, have everything ready the night before. There is nothing more stressful than rushing around in the morning. Spend this extra time by taking a warm shower.

RELAX - Take a time out with a good movie or book.

Cuddle up with a pet or loved one to make the evening more enjoyable.

Endomondo—is a free app that acts as a personal trainer.

You

can create workout goals and track your performance. The audio coach is the most unique feature. Endomondo connects to a variety of sensors and watches.

MyFitnessPal– is a free app that includes a calorie counter and fitness journal. They offer access to food communities where you can share recipes. Premium services are available for a low price.

Sworkit -

is a great workout app that offers personalized video

workouts. It easily syncs to MyFitnessPal to track your progress and personalized workout plan. Free and premium downloads available.

Shopwell -

is a free nutrition scanner. Get fast and easy help in

the grocery store to see what’s in the foods that you buy. This is also a great app for people with food allergies or other medical conditions.

Fooducate - acts as a food coach and nutritionist to help you maintain a healthy lifestyle. The coach will suggest what to eat and how to prepare it. Community members serve as an extra support system. Fooducate is free with in-app purchases.

Zombies, Run! - What’s more motivating than running from zombies? This free app involves interactive game play while you workout. You will have fun with this app while you complete missions and attempt to outrun these terrifying zombies.

I love technology because I have made it work for me. Throughout my experience in technology classes, creating publications, designing handouts for classes, I have never, ever, not even once, downloaded a font.

That is until I happened to be “Pinteresting” (is that a thing?) and saw the cutest post that appeared to be written in chalk. Since that day, three days ago to be exact, I have been trolling our infamous internet in search of fun, free, fabulous fonts. It has been kind of like shopping, with absolutely no money being exchanged!

This particular font (in case you thought it was super-duper cool) is called Pea Nancy and came from Kevin and Amanda’s website. You can download all of their fonts in one folder and there are like a thousand (well, more than you could ever use).

I also stumbled upon an article on Edutopia that pointed out some very interesting tidbits about using different fonts in class. I have always appreciated a good font and carefully chose from the standard Microsoft fonts, giddy when they added a few new ones with updated software. The article in Edutopia states that carefully selecting your font can help to reinforce key points in your lessons (there is a bit of irony here, he wrote his article in the plainest font out there). I totally get that and I now have a PLETHORA of new fonts to help students retain what they read.

Even if I don’t like to admit it on a personal level, in classrooms and on any type of job, presentation is everything. Maybe a

new font is just what you need to give your classroom or lessons a boost. I like it when something is well-designed and I can see that thought went into overall aesthetics.. I even like it when it’s in the form of a… dare I say it….a worksheet. Our students like it too.

If you decide that you would like to look into downloading a few fonts, here are some places to get fun, free, fabulous fonts:

* Dafont (this one is Fish and Chips) * Where the Smiles Have Been (links

to chalkboard fonts including this one, called Orange Juice) *

Here are some things to remember when downloading and installing new fonts:

* I trusted the Edutopia guy and

blindly downloaded fonts– you may want to do a little more checking.

* If you download a font at home, it will only be available on your home computer. You will need to save your work as an image or pdf file if you are going to print something at school.

* Downloading fonts at school can be tricky.

There may be firewalls, or administrator rights that have to be circumvented.

* Sometimes the fonts don’t appear to

have capital letters (I typed a capital “s” at the beginning of this sentence and it looks very lower case), punctuation can be hard to discern, and letters can run together – use caution when choosing your font so that you don’t lead your students astray of proper grammar!

* Be safe, have fun, and be fabulous!

Cindy White is a Reading Specialist at ODTP facility Davis Stuart Learning Center in Greenbrier County. She earned her undergraduate and master’s degree from Concord University. This Is White’s seventh year of teaching. When she’s not wrangling teenagers, she’s spending time with her 2 kids and husband, reading, or dancing. She looks forward to using her new TIS knowledge to help her fellow teachers integrate technology more.

Wendy Lee is currently the Computer/Technology Teacher at Back Creek Valley and Inwood Primary Elementary Schools in Berkeley County.

She attended Shepherd and West Virginia Universities to obtain her current West Virginia Teaching Licenses/Certifications in the areas of Elementary Education K- 6, Library Media and National Board Certification as an Early Childhood Generalist. In the past she has taught PreK, 2nd and 3rd Grades. Lee is married with 2 children. Her son and daughter both attend schools in Berkeley County. She often feels like a taxi driving them around town to their activities, but she wouldn’t have it any other way. They enjoy traveling to new places and spending time with family and friends.

Kaila Hardin is a TIS candidate for Mercer County Schools. She currently works at Ceres, Princeton Primary, and Spanishburg School. Hardin graduated from Concord University in 2010, and has since taught a variety of grade levels and subjects. She loves reading books, exploring the great outdoors, and sharing new technology with students.

Sherry Hardy is deeply enmeshed in her fourth full year of teaching. She obtained her Master's Degree in Education, specializing in Special Education, in 2013 from Fairmont State University. Generally busy with teaching, raising a daughter, making home improvements, traveling whenever possible and writing, Hardy likes to spend her time coming up with creative solutions (especially if they require arts and crafts). Becoming a TIS has been the highlight of her year and she looks forward to using technology to enhance the educational experiences of her students.