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Create beautiful designs with your team. Use Canva's drag-and-drop feature and layouts to design, share and print business cards, logos, presentations and more.

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Design and share beautiful flyers just like this one!

Spread the word with an online flyer. They're easy to make and impossible to mess up :)

Try it now

Spreading a little New Year cheer with Tools You Can Use!

Brrrrr.......Can you feel the temp change?

Jack Frost is out on the hunt. If you haven't decided to purchase your updated winter gear you may want to. We are also approaching some slow times of instruction. You are now stuck in the post Winter break and pre-Spring Break lane. We have to continue to provide relevant, rigorous and engaging resources so that we don't see massive student achievement regression at the close of our grading periods. Extremely cold weather can wreak havoc in our day-to-day routines, likewise cold instruction has the same effect on young minds. I think I have a couple tools that you can use!

Tech Tools you can use - NOW!

Dotstorming

Website: https://dotstorming.com/

What is it? . Dotstorming is a a free real-time, group-sharing, brainstorming and decision-making web tool that can easily be used in every classroom. It combines elements of Padlet and most polling tools.

Who can use it? Any subject area, any student, especially helpful for voting or giving extended feedback on a presentation or idea. (No account creation req'd for students.)

Why is it helpful? Dotstorming is like having digital sticky-notes. Once the notes are posted, you can have people vote for their favorite notes. As a creator, you can restrict the number of votes each person can cast. You can sort the notes according to the number of votes received. This is perfect for brainstorming sessions or gathering information about a question or problem statement.

Visuwords

Website: http://www.visuwords.com/

What is it? It's an online graphical dictionary where users can look up words to find their relationships to other words. The website produces diagrams in a mind-map fashion that show associations between words.

Who can use it? Any teacher in any subject areas, especially those who are trying to get students to make connections between words and concepts. Try typing in "American Revolution" then continue double clicking words for deeper and deeper connections.

Why is it helpful? Making connections between words and concepts can be a challenging task for middle schoolers. This tool helps you tap into the minds of visual learners so they might be able to "see" the connections and, in turn, better comprehend the subject matter.

Problem-attic

Website: http://www.problem-attic.com/

What is it? a free service that allows you to quickly create practice tests, worksheets and flashcards for social studies, language arts, mathematics, and science.

Who can use it? Core subject teachers (heavy in Math and Science)

Why is it helpful? When you need additional, ready-made questions for content reviews, study guides, etc. The questions are standards-aligned and come from released exams. It's a short 4 step process to create teaching materials. Although there is a paid tier, the questions, exam/worksheet/flashcard creation (to pdf) is free!

Don't know what tool you can use to do what you need to get done?

I know many of you may be frustrated when trying to figure out what tool to use and expose to your students. Try this short list. I give all credit to my colleague Ms. Leigh Ann Little ( PLC). This is not an exhaustive list but a growing list of resources that you can use! We will pull a couple of these tools and go in more detail during upcoming PD sessions. Enjoy the pick of the litter! Click the titles below!
TOOL BUFFET!

Did you know........

You can contact Parents directly from Powerschool? I did not! I was schooled by Mrs. Kindermann (SEMS 8th Grade Math) and wanted to share on her behalf. If you already are aware of this great feature you can look away. Many times we want to sent out mass messages through tools such as Remind, ClassDojo, etc. Powerschool has all of the contact info (emails) already loaded. See the attached link to learn how. Hats off to Mrs. Kindermann!!!! Click on the title below for the instructions.

Need Help with a Tool, Planning, Co-Teaching? Just Ask!

I am available to assist you in multiple capacities. Those who have solicited my help can attest that I try to meet the desired need if possible. Why not set up a time for me to help you? I am generally available for appointments anytime I am in the building. Feel free to email me your request and we can set up a time. I am here to serve you!

Mr. Domieka T. Cantey

Your Friendly Neighborhood PLEF

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Updates from the World of Plefdom! - Spreading a little New Year cheer with Tools You Can Use! by Domieka Cantey | This newsletter was created with Smore, an online tool for creating beautiful newsletters for for educators, nonprofits, businesses and more

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https://www.smore.com/n9cy4

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Design and share beautiful flyers just like this one!

Spread the word with an online flyer. They're easy to make and impossible to mess up :)

Try it now

Bulldog Tech Times-December 2016

It's the most wonderful time of the year!

It's the most wonderful time of the year! Yes, there are holidays, time off from work, and so much more, but I love this time of year because optimism abounds! During this time many people stop and take a moment to reflect on the previous 12 months and optimistically await the next 12. While I no longer make traditional resolutions, I do take a moment to set a vision for the upcoming year and each day take actions that will help my vision come to fruition. As you rest this winter break, soak up some of the extra optimism in the air and use it to set a vision for the remainder of the school year. What do you see for yourself in the next part of the school year? Then also consider, what will you do to make it happen?

Have a GREAT break!

Digital Literacy

According to the University Library of the University of Illinois, digital literacy is defined as:

The ability to use digital technology, communication tools or networks to locate, evaluate, use and create information.

The ability to understand and use information in multiple formats from a wide range of sources when it is presented via computers.

A person's ability to perform tasks effectively in a digital environment... Literacy includes the ability to read and interpret media, to reproduce data and images through digital manipulation, and to evaluate and apply new knowledge gained from digital environments.

The reality is that digital literacy is another literacy that students should master prior to leaving a K-12 school setting. Some teachers may insist that students use too much technology or assume that students know how to use technology effectively; however, this is not the case. Students must be explicitly taught how to operate in a digital environment. As we move through the second half of the school year, when creating lessons and activities for students, let's consider how we are creating students who are digitally literate.

Read the article below for more information about digital literacy.

Cool Tech to Try

Powtoon is a great tool for students to use to create animated videos and presentations to explain what they've learned or present class projects.

Want to try it out but need help getting started? Let me know and I'll be glad to come in your classroom and assist in the process.

December Teacher Spotlights!

Olivia Brice, Digital Learning Coach

Proud graduate of UNC Greensboro and North Carolina A&T. Lover of books, music, gadgets, Carolina Panthers, smooth writing pens and the color pink!

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Design and share beautiful flyers just like this one! Spread the word with an online flyer. They're easy to make and impossible to mess up :) Try it now Bulldog Tech Times-December 2016 It's the most wonderful time of the year!

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Air Powered Vehicles - March 3 by Kylie Spencer | This newsletter was created with Smore, an online tool for creating beautiful newsletters for for educators, nonprofits, businesses and more

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NCTIES Highlights - some sessions that spoke to me by Tori Mazur | This newsletter was created with Smore, an online tool for creating beautiful newsletters for for educators, nonprofits, businesses and more

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https://infograph.venngage.com/p/230013/10-things-i-learned-at-ncties

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Classroom Management Info | Piktochart Visual Editor

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