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Promising Practices to Accelerate Learning for Students with Disabilities Summary/Thoughts

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Loom | Free Screen & Video Recording Software

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Promising Practices to Accelerate Learning for Students with Disabilities Summary/Thoughts

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Promising Practices to Accelerate Learning for Students with Disabilities During COVID-19 and Beyond - Introduction

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Promising Practices to Accelerate Learning for Students with Disabilities During COVID-19 and Beyond - Introduction

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https://www.visiblebody.com/

Visible Body: Human Anatomy is an exploration and discovery app that allows students to view 3D diagrams of the human anatomy. All diagrams are created by experienced biomedical visualization experts to ensure that quality displays are consistent with real human data collections. Rather than read a textbook, students have the freedom to explore different parts/functions of the body guided by their own curiosity. This website enables students to conduct both critical and creative thinking.

Too often I found in school that topics in Science that should fascinate us were muddled down by the ways they were delivered to us (old textbooks, oof). In order to both appreciate and understand Science, we should implement websites like Visible Body to encourage student curiosity. After all, it was curiosity in the beginning that pushed the bounds of Science and what we know today!

Ethan Fischer 10/7/21

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https://www.worldometers.info/

If you want to have your mind blown, as well as fascinate the students, this is a great website to utilize! Worldometers falls into the real-time recorded data websites as it displays live statistics on population, government, economics, society, media, environment, and so much more. Students instantly become involved observers of ever-changing statistics concerning different elements of living. There are so many observation/prediction related questions that can be designed around this experience.

One of the big words that comes to mind for me is "correlations" as students can connect certain trends to the statistics being revealed.

Ethan Fischer 10/7/21

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https://loc.gov/services-and-programs/

The Library of Congress website falls under the archival and primary source website category. The Library of Congress manages the largest collection of books, recordings, manuscripts, and photographs in the world. Needless to say, its website does not falter when it comes to accessing vast amounts of information. This website enables students the ability to conduct historical investigations by analyzing primary sources as well as archived sources. The website also offers virtual student workshops, a teachers paradise, when it comes to lesson planning. One of the projects involves Rosa Parks, "The program draws on the personal papers of Rosa Parks and other multimedia items held at the Library of Congress".

Ethan Fischer 10/7/21

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https://www.youtube.com/teded

TED TALKS, specifically TED-ED is a wonderful student-to-expert communication website that dissects almost any type of topic you can think of. The videos are accessed through YouTube and designed to teach students information concerning different time periods, all the way to learning a science formula. There are also videos with several guest speakers who breakdown different thoughts, opinions, views, and everything in-between. With such a vast array of topics to discuss, the lesson possibilities are endless!

A video I watched recently covered the cognitive research behind procrastination and how to work more efficiently. There is an interest discussed for everyone!

Ethan Fischer 10/7/21

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https://www.khanacademy.org/computing/pixar

Pixar in a box is a series of lessons created by khan academy to introduce students to all the different things that go into creating something that our students most likely love.. Pixar! Creating pixar movies involves sculptors, painters, drawers, coders, computer scientists, and so many more occupations then we would think. A lesson like this allows students to see how different subjects that they are learning all come together to create something amazing like a movie. Not only does this lesson show them how professionals come together to make a movie, but it also teaches them some of the skills that these professionals are using, and has activities for the students to try as well. This is an awesome section of khan academy, but it is also important for me to note that khan academy is amazing and could be used for so much  more than just Pixar in a Box, they have so much content on their website.

Dan Jaenecke 10/6/21

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https://phet.colorado.edu/

phET science simulations are free online physics, chemistry, earth science, math, and biology interactive simulations. This website is just another opportunity for students to visualize what they are learning. I believe that for most subjects, especially math and science, being able to visualize what is being taught is a powerful tool. In the past it was very hard for teachers to have the ability to show students real life situations of what they were teaching, but with access to all the simulations this website has to offer, we have so many more opportunities now as teachers. THis website has simulations for balancing, fractions, arithmetic, number lines, ratios, proportions, motion, sound and waves, and so much more (but I really like the math part). Another amazing thing about this website is it has accessible simulations as well. This website has built in accessibility features for many of the simulations, including alternate inputs, sound and sonification, interactive descriptions, pan and zoom options, and voicing options.

Dan Jaenecke 10/6/21

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HubbleSite from the Hubble Space Telescope

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HubbleSite from the Hubble Space Telescope

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https://hubblesite.org/

HubbleSite is a website that follows the Hubble Space Telescope on its journey through the universe. This website provides access to real-time images and videos of what the telescope is capturing on its journey. The images that this telescope is able to capture are astounding, and the different types of stars, nebulas, planets, and other cosmic wonders it captures is enough to interest most people. This website also provides a vast amount of history about this telescope, since it has been in orbit since 1990. This website is also full of different resources for learning, including images, videos, articles, timelines, telescope statistics, and even hands-on activities. After viewing this amazing website, they provide you with the tools to create your own miniature version of the Hubble Telescope, out of either paper or PVC pipe!

Dan Jaenecke 10/6/21

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Illuminations from the National Council of Teachers  of Mathematics (NCTM)

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Illuminations from the National Council of Teachers  of Mathematics (NCTM)

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https://illuminations.nctm.org/?gclid=CjwKCAjwzOqKBhAWEiwArQGwaO3Sx9fFr4AF5WlF0aVKQgIDg9K8vNqb4alrcIT1xkj5hdxoeikNahoCLIgQAvD_BwE

This website is awesome. It allows students to view math scenarios on the screen, but be able to manipulate the scenarios to view how it works in a mathematical sense. For example, it allows students to click and drag a point on a ferris wheel, while simultaneously seeing a graph being formed on the height off the ground when traveling on a ferris wheel. Being able to click and drag and watch a graph being created in real time is a very effective way to present math concepts. The amount of material this website has to provide students with an interactive opportunity to learn math is amazing. This website also provides lessons for all different grade numbers, but that is a premium membership access portion of the website.

Dan Jaenecke 10/6/21

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https://kahoot.com/
Kahoot is an app that takes the basic quiz format and makes it a fun and interactive experience. Teachers have the power to pick topics for any content area (math, history, etc.). The teacher generates quiz questions and displays the app on a projector. The technical quality emerges as students join the room via a unique PIN code. The competitive format and animations progress throughout the quiz as students can earn points for not only the right answer, but how quickly they submit a choice. This app is very safe as it was built with the focus of kids in mind. Security measures such as a specific PIN code ensure that only students with the displayed code will be permitted to join the room. Student names can also be unanimous and swapped out for a nickname or character. The assessment element for Kahoot comes at the end of the quiz as point totals are displayed and 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place are rewarded by a cartoon animation. Teachers can generate a grade from this app or simply use it as a review game before a big test.

What made me pick this app is that it takes a simple evaluation process that has been used for ages and gives it a modern twist. Kahoot is a prime example of how new technology can be used to reinforce original ideas and teaching strategies, while adding an innovative perspective.

Ethan Fischer

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https://www.desmos.com/
Desmos is a wonderful website that provides students with the ability to complete math in a hands on way through their desktop. It brings graphing to a new level and allows students to manipulate problems in a way they would be unable to with a pen and paper. This website can be used for any student, but would probably be extremely beneficial for students in algebra or geometry. This website allows teachers to make full math lessons for students to participate in one screen at a time, or they can have access to the graphing calculator and graph to give students free access to graphing calculators at any time.

Another cool feature of Desmos is it allows the teacher to make students names randomized so if the students are ever viewing the teacher screen, they will have some anonymity. Another cool feature is that although this allows for teachers to track students progress as they are completing it, there is no need for cameras or microphones so students don't feel the pressure of being watched, even if the teacher may be watching them. Lastly, desmos does not sell or use student data which can relieve some students fear of being hacked.

Dan Jaenecke

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https://jamboard.google.com/
Google Jamboard is a great way to post interactive powerpoint type presentations to students through google, which is free! I think this is a great website for students of all ages and abilities because it is a blank slate. It is all up to the teacher what to create, but it allows for so much creativity on a free website that almost all of out students will have access to.

Dan Jaenecke

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https://padlet.com/dashboard
Padlet is another great interactive tool that can be used for so many different things. One of my favorite things about padlet is the ability to have students all be able to answer and have access to all their peers answers in real time. As long as the class is interacting, this can lead to some very powerful discussions.

Dan Jaenecke

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This post it dives into the evolution of technology from the most basic stages to the complexities of the modern day. It is great to navigate where we are going by analyzing where we have been ! A student could see what classrooms were like before all of the technology was implemented that they use currently.

Ethan Fischer

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https://www.edutopia.org/article/10-teacher-picks-best-tech-tools

Technology moves pretty fast. You don't stop and look around once in a while, you could mi....wait that sounds like a mixup. To put it this way, technology is always getting better and finding new ways to help aid the classroom setting. This article assists teachers in finding some of the best tech for their classrooms!

Ethan Fischer

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Teachers and administrators from pre-K through 12th grade named these tools their top picks for this year and beyond.

If there was ever a year for teachers to beg, borrow, and steal good ideas, this is it. All good teachers know this is how we get better, and this is a curated list of tech tools that I have begged and borrowed from others-and I didn't have to steal any of these as there has never been a year when teachers were more generous.

Based on my own teaching of college students as well as the responses of 1,461 virtual learning academy participants-pre-K to 12 teachers and administrators-to survey questions on impactful tools that I conducted from May to December 2020, and over 70 webinars and virtual learning sessions I've conducted in that time, these are the top teacher-tested tech tools I have identified. My learning has happened with my own students and through my own mistakes, and I received great ideas from educators across the U.S. and around the world.

I will continue to use these tools and recommend their use regardless of student level or how we deliver education moving forward.

Top Tech Tools for Educators

10. Parlay: For those of us who like to discuss rich texts with students, Parlay lets us connect with students remotely, facilitate discussion, and track how the dialogue builds. As students respond, Parlay shows who is contributing and where the conversation is moving as the software visually tracks student responses in a discussion web. Teachers can use built-in tools to assess the frequency of students' answers in real time even when students are not in the same room. Teachers can then spend their time on deeper level assessment of the depth of student responses, which can also be recorded.

9. Flip: One of the most popular tech tools in schools, Flip won praise from teachers across the country because of the flexibility it gives students to submit digital projects and how it effectively supports peer and teacher feedback.

8. Edpuzzle: I've used Edpuzzle for a while, but it became much more vital as more of my content shifted online. Teachers use Edpuzzle to make video clips interactive by requiring student responses, which are easy to collect and assess.

7. Pear Deck: Pear Deck does to Google Slides what Edpuzzle does to videos. Slides become interactive, and teachers are able to collect feedback immediately.

6. Prezi: I've used the virtual presentation software Prezi for years, and I appreciate a recent update that allows me to be on the same screen with the graphics, creating a more engaging presentation. Prezi offers teachers another tool to capture short lectures, explanations, or other content in a more visually appealing and personal way than as a disembodied voice or thumbnail in the bottom corner of a screen.

5. Screencastify: Every student can be Sal Khan working out problems with explanations. This tool was first recommended to me by a teacher in Kenya, who explained how Screencastify transformed her math assessments by allowing students to show what they're thinking from wherever they happen to be working. Screencastify is also valuable for reducing cheating as teachers can observe students working and explaining problems instead of just recording answers.

This has been a lifesaver for virtual collaboration. Mural allows teachers, students, and other contributors to write on virtual sticky notes and then organize and reorganize them in real time. The best in-person meetings are always the ones where the collective expertise of the room can be captured visually, and if we can't be in the same room with students-or colleagues-Mural is the next best thing. Even better, there's no need to go back and summarize or clean up evidence from the meeting. The Mural is the artifact. Many teachers are now using Jamboard in a similar way.

Created by a high school student who thought he could improve upon Kahoot!, Gimkit allows teachers to create question sets that students can answer over and over again while competing against each other, which is great for surface learning and review. Because Gimkit allows for repetition of answers and has a variety of ways for students to earn points, students remain engaged as they work at their own pace.

2. Mentimeter and Slido: These are both excellent for collecting feedback from groups, so I've ranked them together. I use these almost weekly for professional learning and in my classes. Slido allows participants to ask questions and then upvote others. There are many similar tools, but Slido is easy and free. Mentimeter allows students and teachers to collect real-time data on questions they have, in the form of word clouds, rankings, and various scales. These are great discussion starters that allow everyone to contribute to the collective wisdom of the group.

1. Learning management system: A good LMS is key to reducing stress for teachers, students, and parents. A list like this one would be counterproductive if it left your educational delivery fragmented among disparate tools, and a good LMS helps you organize everything into a one-stop shop.

I personally love Canvas and Schoology, but I know many teachers have worked miracles with Google Classroom, which is "free." I use those quotes for a reason: Google Classroom is only truly free if it is not requiring significantly more human capital in the form of time and energy than a fee-for-service platform like Canvas or Schoology. The most significant asset for managing learning in the chaos of this school year has been staying organized, and Canvas has been a lifesaver for me.

I have taught virtually, led professional learning across many time zones, delivered content asynchronously, and taught students in masks with others Zooming in due to quarantine, Covid, or personal preference. For me, nothing will ever replace in-person teaching and learning, but like many other teachers and administrators, I now know how to effectively facilitate learning in a previously unimaginable set of circumstances. This school year's desperation has driven us to explore a wide range of tools, and we can be better because of the firehose learning we have done this year. We just need a few tools to create some space for us to breathe.

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Teachers and administrators from pre-K through 12th grade named these tools their top picks for this year and beyond.

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https://padlet.com/dashboard

Where it starts! With this tool we are able to utilize many important features all in one space. Sharing knowledge is just the tip of the iceberg!

Ethan
Fischer