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Education & Learning

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Teach and learn right where you are with Office 365

Connect remotely and access the tools you need with Microsoft Teams and Office 365.

Teachers, students, and parents

Introducing a help center for students

Stuck? Our tools are here to help. We talked to students, went through our best resources, and now we're delivering those insights straight to you.

Take a look

Featured topics

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Connect remotely and access the tools you need with Microsoft Teams and Office 365. Teachers, students, and parents Stuck? Our tools are here to help. We talked to students, went through our best resources, and now we're delivering those insights straight to you. Take a look Featured topics

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Inside each course, you'll find all the materials you need to facilitate a collaborative teacher training session. Selecting a course will take you to the Microsoft Educator Community site to learn more and download the complete course for free.

Additional resources for educators

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Inside each course, you'll find all the materials you need to facilitate a collaborative teacher training session. Selecting a course will take you to the Microsoft Educator Community site to learn more and download the complete course for free. Additional resources for educators

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Office 365

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Remote teaching and learning resources from Microsoft Education - Wakelet

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Whether you're within the walls of the classroom or connecting remotely, you can access the tools you need for classroom management and student engagement with Microsoft Teams and Office 365. Here are a some useful resources to get you started.

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Students use technology. Teachers use technology. Technology in the classroom has had such a positive impact on education. As humans we invented and developed technologies which are changing our lives every second. Technology has changed education and learning methods. Information and knowledge can be found so quickly and easily with the world-wide web. Today, because of technology, education is accessible to all through online courses, MOOCs, seminars, webinars, you tube, PLN's and just being present online!

Technology has improved the educational process; improved staff and student management methods, communication between teachers and students, easier methods to conduct assessments, students' performance reporting, real-world problem-solving assignments and projects.

It's important that we do not just use technology to make life easier but use technology to create for the future. Integrating technologies in the classroom needs to ensure our students are in an environment to engage and construct creatively their own learning. Primary education has such a crowded curriculum it is essential that students and teachers integrate technology across every aspect of school life. Challenging..... but teachers are super creative!

This semester I have been fortunate to witness immersion of the digital technologies and design and technologies curriculum in units of work from kindy to year 6.

Apart from students and teachers being able to access and learn through software such as; Maths online, Ziptails, Spelling City, PR1ME Hub and assessment (P-3), Stile (Science), Esmart, PIPS, BrainPop, Read Write Gold and a large selection of apps on iPads, the teachers and students were able to create their understanding and learning through hands-on creating, discovering, exploring and presenting with technology!
Some examples included:
Prep students designed a home for a pet out of recycled/collage materials. Students had to make sure the home provided the pet with basic needs - food, water, air, (shelter, warmth). Observations were recorded using an iPad and made into an audio QR code to stick on their diorama.

Year 2 students thoroughly enjoyed creating together their revision using Kahoot! They also played against their grandparents and special friends on GP Day! The girls have been working through the basics of computer science with Code-org and internet safety. At the end of the course, they created their very own game or story to share.

Year 2 HASS unit involved plenty of technology .....used Padlet to collaborate and share their understandings of primary and secondary sources of information when researching how St Aidan's has changed. They used Read Write Think's online timeline creator to share their research about how St Aidan's has changed over time. Then used ScratchJr to create an interactive presentation to share their research about St Aidan's history. The girls used Google Maps to create a new stage showing St Aidan's School and Ambiwerra sports field. They created themselves as an avatar (sprite) by inserting a photo of their face. The avatars were programmed to move, present text and record voice to share their research. Vivi was used to mirror their iPad screens so they could present their work to the class.
Probots+Learner+Cards
Girls in year 3 received their 'L' badge (learners) by completing a series of cards to learn the functions of ProBots....parts, sensors, programming sequences of moves, using the pen to draw polygons and finally having fun racing and exploring Kohville, a community built by Yr 5's.

Year 3 researched festivals and celebrations around the world. They shared their knowledge by videoing each other on the iPads, then creating and trigger picture and uploaded their video to create an aura in HP Reveal.

Year 4 used both digital and design technologies to solve a problem encountered in a class novel "Battle of The Galah Trees". Students needed to design a home suitable for a galah as the tress had been cut down. The design had to also consider the problem of cats getting in the nest. They used Little Bits to create a deterrent for the cats - buzzers, sensor pads and fans.

Using Canva, the Year 4 girls created a collage of their trip to Francis Lookout. The girls took photos of Eucalyptus trees and their features.

Year 4 students were introduced to Literacy Circles where they discussed in depth, sections of a book. These discussions were recorded on the class iPod. Students listened to their discussions and gave each other feedback on their contributions.

An excursion to the Mt Coot-tha Botanic Gardens, the Year 4 class took the class iPod along to take photos of how indigenous people used rainforest resources. Students uploaded the photos to the iPads and created Pic Collages to demonstrate what they had learnt.

Year 4's, used recycled materials, created a small machine that they could use to collect an 'egg'. The girls attached their machines to the Spheros and used their coding skills to steer the machine to the egg, knock the lever and catch the egg.

Collecting and representing data was enjoyed by Yr 4's, using smarties and categorising by colour and entering it into Excel spreadsheet to make a chart, used Spheros to record time and distance relationships, created a glyph to identify their own characteristics and used Micro:Bits to collect data from playing 'Scissors, Paper, Rock'.....just loved the fingers being used!

As part of the Year 5 HASS curriculum students in 5K analysed the characteristics of places in the local environment. Studying local maps and how the built environment is represented, the girls created a 3D map with roads ways and buildings. After planning and designing a community called Kohville, the students were able to program Spheros to navigate the environment and demonstrate a variety of functions in their code. They designed, modified and followed simple algorithms involving sequences of steps, repetition, controls and sensors. Using a Mambo mini-drone the students were able to video the community and take aerial photographs. Kohville also provided a fabulous background for Year 3C students to photograph in ScratchJr and then code avatars to explore the community. While Year 3R programmed ProBots to discover Kohville!

Yr 6 students were asked to evaluate and recommend a picture book to K-3 students in the Junior School. Students selected and located a picture book of interest using Orbit, browsing or teacher recommended. They then read the picture book. The girls partnered up and discussed themes of each book, characters, setting, message/moral, illustrative style and if they enjoyed their book and why. They took a photograph of each other holding their chosen book on the iPads and emailed these to laptops. Inserted the photograph into a Word Doc. The girls used https://vocaroo.com/ to record book recommendation and create an audio QR code.

To complement their studies of World Religions, the Year 6 students created an artefact to symbolise the religion they were studying. Once the religious icon was created, the students photographed and imported their photograph of the religious icon into Scratch software. Symbols were then designed on the Scratch stage with information (text or voice) demonstrating facts and information each student had researched about their religion. Following this, the students programmed their icons to interact with Makey Makey to demonstrate their understanding of the interaction between Makey Makey and Scratch. Finally, the students shared their interactive multimedia presentation with an audience.

These are just some of the wonderful ways technology enhanced teaching and learning this semester and how it was integrated across the curriculum.

Previous article TechMate Evening

Jackie Child has been teaching primary aged students for 40 years in a number of countries. She is passionate about how children learn through constructivist pedagogy. She is a Teacher Librarian at St Aidan's Anglican Girls' School and a sessional tutor at Griffith University for pre-service teachers. Jackie doesn't believe in standing still, there is always plenty to 'do' and learn!

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Integrating Technology Across the Curriculum - TinkeringChild

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Students use technology. Teachers use technology. Technology in the classroom has had such a positive impact on education. As humans we invented and developed technologies which are changing our lives every second. Technology has changed education and learning methods. Information and knowledge can be found so quickly and easily with the world-wide web.

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More and more classrooms are gaining access to digital technology. And that's a good thing. In a world that is increasingly reliant on digital tools, students need to have opportunities to learn with access to technology. Schools are adding Chromebooks, iPads, and other devices more than ever. Some are simply inviting students to bring their own devices (BYOD). But either way, access to devices is only growing in schools.

But the availability to devices doesn't automatically result in more learning or better experiences for students or teachers. In fact, the addition of devices presents new challenges for educators to consider. When our school added Chromebooks for every student, we quickly learned we would need to address some new challenges. These obstacles can derail learning in classrooms where the potential pitfalls aren't addressed or avoided.

If you are an educator who is fortunate enough to have access to digital devices for all your students to use, be ready to take steps to teach the procedures and routines that will help create success for using these tools in learning. It's important to establish and maintain boundaries. And it's also important to never make assumptions about what your students may or may not know about using the devices.

1. You can't assume students are tech savvy just because they are digital natives.

It's true that students in today's classrooms are digital natives. They've grown up around technology and tend to have some skills that are helpful in navigating the digital world. However, it's a mistake to think they are proficient in using any tool you might throw at them. For the most part, kids have used technology for social media or entertainment. Using technology for learning, productivity, or creativity might be new to them. So, when you plan for using a new tool in class, plan to spend some time orienting students to how it works.

Or, if you prefer for students learn the tool on their own, provide time for them to experiment with the tool and share out their learning to others in the class. It can be a good idea for students to "teach themselves" a digital tool. New tools and apps are being developed all the time. It's great practice for students to be able to adapt to new tools and work on the intuitive thinking and problem solving required for "clicking around" and figuring it out. You might want to provide them with a list of tasks they should be able to do with the new tool. And it's great for the teacher to model what to do when getting stuck. The ability to research solutions via Google or YouTube search can be very helpful.

2. Don't just teach digital citizenship, embed digital citizenship.
It's never a good idea to hand students devices without also supporting safe, responsible use. Many schools create their own digital citizenship curriculum or buy one to use with their students. There are also some excellent digital citizenship resources available for free online, from Google or from Common Sense Media for instance. Try to anticipate the problems your students might encounter in using the digital devices in your classroom. Be proactive and have discussions up front with your students about what is appropriate to share, how to judge validity of resources, how to respect content ownership and fair use, and how to report something that is threatening.

While it is important to teach digital citizenship up front, it's also very important for teachers to monitor student use of technology and use teachable moments to address situations that may arise as students utilize tech. Often the most valuable lessons occur as opportunities arise to discuss relevant issues in authentic context. Digital citizenship should not just be a scheduled lesson. It should be part of everything we do related to the use of technology in the classroom. It's something educators must model and discuss regularly. Moreover, it's part of the bigger issue of developing good citizenship in the broadest sense. How are we helping students contribute as positive, productive members of communities online and in physical space?

3. Plan to manage distractions.

One of the most common challenges of implementing devices in the classroom is dealing with the potential distraction technology can present. While technology open up a whole new world of possibilities for learning, it also opens a world of possibilities for diversion away from classroom learning priorities. This prospect is very frightening for many teachers. How will I make sure my students aren't wasting class time? How can I make sure students are watching content that is not appropriate for school? Will the presence of a screen take away from learning instead of accelerating learning?

Keep in mind distractions are nothing new in the classroom. Keeping students attention has always been a chief concern for teachers. Even in a class without devices, students can find a plethora of things to occupy their attention besides learning. The key to alleviate boredom is to stimulate curiosity and plan engaging lessons. Device distractions are no match for an amazing lesson! At least I think it pays to think like that.

Some schools also choose to purchase classroom monitoring software that allows teachers to view and even take control of student devices. This type of system typically allows teachers to monitor an entire classroom from the teacher's computer. You may not have this type of software available, and I actually prefer not to utilize it. It's better for the teacher to be able to move around the room and interact with students rather than being tethered to a computer monitoring students like Big Brother.

Here are some solid tips for managing distractions with no software required.

-Clearly communicate times when students should and should not be on devices.

-Clarify when it is okay to use earbuds and when earbuds should not be used.

-Set up the classroom so you can easily move around and behind students using devices. You need to be able to easily view student screens.

-Require students to only have one browser tab open at a time. This prevents switching tabs when the teacher is not watching to games or media that might be distracting.

-When transitioning from devices to whole group instruction or another activity, wait until you have everyone's attention before you move on.

-Give specific instructions about which apps or sites should be used during a particular activity. Hold students accountable to use these tools only unless they ask permission to access another site.

These considerations are an essential part of establishing a strong culture of learning in the digital classroom. Other issues will also arise like caring for devices, dealing with tech questions, managing battery life, etc. The most important thing is to work with students to establish classroom expectations and revisit them consistently. It works best when teachers can develop a shared responsibility with students for using devices responsibly and productively. Just like any other classroom behavior, it's not enough to proclaim a rule and never discuss it again. Students will need reminders and guidance to be successful.

Ultimately, the opportunity to develop digital learning skills is invaluable to students. Students will need to be able to successfully use devices for learning and productivity for the rest of their lives. Although there are challenges with implementing technology in the classroom, with the right approach, teachers can help students become strong digital learners.

Question: What other tips would you share about creating a safe, positive, and productive culture for digital learning? Leave a comment below or respond on Facebook or Twitter. I can't wait to see what you've got to add. Together we are stronger!

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3 Classroom Tips for Stronger Digital Learning

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More and more classrooms are gaining access to digital technology. And that's a good thing. In a world that is increasingly reliant on digital tools, students need to have opportunities to learn with access to technology. Schools are adding Chromebooks, iPads, and other devices more than ever.

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Read age-appropriate app reviews for kids and parents written by our experts.

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Classroom resources | eSafety Commissioner

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Discover resources designed to help schools and other educators teach online safety lessons.

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First things first. It's never just about the apps. End of. That said being guided around tried and tested apps from the classroom can be really helpful. With that in mind, back in 2014 I created my first periodic table of iPad apps. Little did I realise how popular it would be with more than 7 million downloads in those two years. As with most things to do with technology, times move on and apps change, new technologies bring new ways to use technology to enhance learning. What has been interesting in the process of creating the periodic table has been looking at the apps which still work really well at doing what they do best. Interestingly, many of the apps on this updated table were on the original table too but there are plenty of new ones to look at too. Overwhelmingly, the majority of apps shown are free too.

The last periodic table was taken by a number of schools and rebranded, removing my name and having their name put on by them in replacement. Please note that this is unacceptable. If you are interested in having a copy of the table rebranded for your school, please get in touch. There is a link to a higher resolution version of the table below. Please respect the license on this image.

For those that are interested, I made it using Photoshop. It has more layers than anything else I have ever made. The font used in various weights, is the brilliant Myriad Pro.

If you'd like a higher resolution version of the image, please download it from here or share this link >> http://bit.ly/periodictableofipadappsvol2

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First things first. It's never just about the apps. End of. That said being guided around tried and tested apps from the classroom can be really helpful. With that in mind, back in 2014 I created my first periodic table of iPad apps.

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Series of videos produced by code.org

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Bill Gates kicks off an introduction to the series How Computers Work. Start learning at http://code.org/ Stay in touch with us! * on Twitter https://twitter.com/codeorg * on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/Code.org * on Instagram https://instagram.com/codeorg * on Tumblr https://blog.code.org * on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/code-org * on Google+ https://google.com/+codeorg Help us caption & translate this video!

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Practical ideas for incorporating digital technologies into other curriculum areas.

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Ideas for Digital Technology integration for P-6

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Ideas for Digital Technology integration for P-6

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Create Presentations and Reports with Microsoft Sway

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Create Presentations and Reports with Microsoft Sway

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Sway: Create and share interactive reports, presentations, personal stories, and more.

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Sway is an easy-to-use digital storytelling app for creating interactive reports, presentations, personal stories and more. Its built-in design engine helps you create professional designs in minutes. With Sway, your images, text, videos, and other multimedia all flow together in a way that enhances your story.

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ThingLink: Create unique experiences with interactive images, videos & 360° media

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Easily create interactive and immersive visual experiences for online communication and learning. Start a free trial!

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Storybird - Read, write, discover, and share the books you'll always remember.

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Become a better writer with Storybird's creativity tools. Online courses, challenges, and reader feedback will help you improve your writing.

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Effective Literacy Teaching and Learning for all Students

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First things first. As I started in my last periodic table post, it's never just about the apps. End of. That said being guided around tried and tested apps from the classroom can be really helpful.

This new periodic table looks at #STEAM apps, namely those that can link through to Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Maths. My massive thanks go to Brett Salakas, Cathy Hunt, Dean Pearman and Rachel Smith for letting me run the table under their gaze and for feeding forward some of the app ideas too.

My first periodic table was taken by a number of schools and rebranded, removing my name and having their name put on by them in replacement. Please note that this is unacceptable. If you are interested in having a copy of the table rebranded for your school, please get in touch with a purchase order. There is a link to a higher resolution version of the table below. Please respect the license on this image.

For those that are interested, I made it using Photoshop. It has so many layers! The font used in various weights, is the brilliant Myriad Pro.

If you'd like a higher resolution version of the image, please download it from here or share this link >> http://bit.ly/periodictablesteamapps

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Periodic table of #STEAM iPad apps - ICTEvangelist

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First things first. As I started in my last periodic table post, it's never just about the apps. End of. That said being guided around tried and tested apps from the classroom can be really helpful.

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OneNote in Education - Interactive Guides

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OneNote in Education - Interactive Guides

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Learn the basics of Microsoft OneNote, and then dive into specific scenarios for teachers, students, and school administrators with these interactive guides.

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STEM is everywhere. Have you thought about how often our students come across something STEM related in their day? Science is found in their natural world - the trees, plants, butterflies, erosion...

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10 Reasons Today's Students NEED Technology in the Classroom

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With an increasing emphasis on personalized learning and mobility, using technology in the classroom is a must for schools today. Here are 10 reasons why.

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Scratch is a free programming language and online community where you can create your own interactive stories, games, and animations.

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In case you haven't been paying attention, computer science skills are vastly becoming some of the most in-demand skills of the twenty-first century. In fact, some call it a new " superpower."

But there's a problem. There are approximately 587,000 computing jobs nationwide, which is growing at 2x the national average, but only about 38,000 computer science students graduated into the workforce this year. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts that by the year 2020, there will be one million more computer science jobs than graduates prepared for these jobs.

Computer science is a primary driver of the U.S. economy, yet it does not (yet) play a significant role in K-12 education. Did you know that only 27 states allow students to count computer science courses toward high school graduation? But there's a way schools can help--by getting involved in Computer Science Education Week (CSEdWeek).

CSEdWeek and Hour of Code arrive December 7-13th, and this annual event is bigger than ever. Below, you will find a resource guide for CSEdWeek and Hour of Code, in order to help all of you K-12 educators bring coding into the classroom.

What are Computer Science Education Week (CSEdWeek) and Hour of Code?

Computer Science Education Week or CSEdWeek is an annual program designed to inspire K-12 students to take an interest in computer science. The program was originated by the Computing in the Core coalition, Code.org, and is supported by partners and educators worldwide. The philosophy is simple but significant: every student deserves the opportunity to learn computer science.

Hour of Code is a global movement in over 180 countries, and is a quick way to introduce coding to students or anyone. Anyone can learn the basics of computer science in a fun and easy way! By spending as little as one hour, you can spark coding interest in your students with one-hour lesson plans, tutorials, interactives and games.

How to Run an Hour of Code

Ready to get started? Running an Hour of Code doesn't have to be complicated. The resources are abundant and easy-to-follow.

No matter what grade level you teach, or what devices you have available, every student can participate in the Hour of Code and learn the basic principles that apply to all programming languages (like sequencing and looping). There are even options to go "unplugged" if you do not have access to devices in your classroom, because students can learn computer science principles with something as simple as a deck of cards.

Coding Resources & Lessons

There are hundreds of free resources, lesson plans, tutorials and events that bring the power of coding into the K-12 classroom. Below is a list of nine of my favorite options for anyone of any age to learn computer science skills. If you'd like to see more, click here to view my full list of coding resources.

Other Programming Languages

Computer Science Unplugged

No computer? No problem. As mentioned earlier, you can still teach and learn the basic principles of computer science without any computer or device at all. Try CS Unplugged, which is a collection of learning activities that teach computational thinking concepts without the need of a computer or device.

Moving Beyond the Hour of Code

Jumpstart Your Curriculum

The Hour of Code is just a starting point. When you and your students are ready for more, explore these fantastic resources, or give your teaching a boost with one of the following curriculums. (Keep in mind--most of these curriculums are tied in with the tools of the companies that created them!)

Professional Development and School District Partnerships

And for you district administrators, listen up! Code.org offers district partnerships to bring computer science to your entire district. Apply now--it's totally free!

Girls and Coding

The gender gap in the computer science industry is astonishing. Women today represent only 18% of all computer science graduates. In 1984, women were 37%. Encourage girls and young women to get started with coding using these inspiring programs.

Get Involved, No Matter Your Position!

No matter what your role, be it classroom teacher, administrator, parent, or community member, there are multiple ways to support CSEdWeek. Preparing students for the future, and equipping them with essential skills for success is always the end goal. Every student deserves a chance to learn computer science! Get started this week with the Hour of Code!

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A Beginner's Guide to Bringing Coding Into the Classroom - EdSurge News

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In case you haven't been paying attention, computer science skills are vastly becoming some of the most in-demand skills of the twenty-first century. In fact, some call it a new " superpower." But there's a problem. There are approximately 587,000 computing jobs nationwide, which is growing at 2x the national average, but only about 38,000 computer science students graduated into the workforce this year.

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Understanding DT

Engage with the Digital Technologies curriculum to plan, implement and assess effective lessons.

Plan and prepare

Guidance and support to develop and implement a whole-school plan.

Teach and assess

Students can learn to code and create using digital technologies, and find out about relevant careers.

For families

Find out about Digital Technologies to support your child to learn skills, create digital solutions and find a related career.

Programming

This series of three infographics provide an explanation of 'Programming' with relevant examples for each Year band and 'I can' statements

Algorithms

This series of three infographics provide an explanation of 'Algorithms' with relevant examples for each Year band and 'I can' statements.

Data representation

This series of three infographics provide an explanation of 'Data representation' with relevant examples for each Year band and 'I can' statements.

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Support for the Australian Curriculum: Digital Technologies with lesson plans, case studies, advice for school leaders, activities for students and for families. See links to the digital technologies industry events and programs. Get support with the development of computational thinking and coding skills in Australian students.

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Learn computer science. Change the world.

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Every student in every school deserves the opportunity to study computer science.