https://padlet.com/rachaelbrickson/44r6qvx5g4s4 ED 473 en-us 2017-01-21 17:21:46 UTC 2017-03-15 11:07:50 UTC hello@padlet.com https://padlet-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/icons/Apple.png rachaelbrickson https://padlet.com/rachaelbrickson/44r6qvx5g4s4/wish/148523858 Hello and welcome to my Tech Springboard! ]]> 2017-01-21 17:33:03 UTC https://padlet.com/rachaelbrickson/44r6qvx5g4s4/wish/148523858 rachaelbrickson https://padlet.com/rachaelbrickson/44r6qvx5g4s4/wish/150023218 ESOL Bilingual Sites
1.) Kindersay: This website is ideal for younger children, around pre-school to kindergarten age. There are hundreds of fun online activities! http://kindersay.com/
2.) Lit Language: This website might be better suited for older students. It appears to be a fairly interesting resource for teachers. Teachers have the ability to create lesson plans and make exams for IB or AP prep. They are also able to provide feedback. http://lingtlanguage.com/
3.) Grammaropolis: A bright user friendly and kid welcoming site. Students can navigate the site for various parts of speech. They can read, listen or watch videos on the website. There is also a place for teachers or parents to track their student's progress. https://www.grammaropolis.com/
4.) News in Levels: This website provides news for students who are emergent bilinguals. The site includes articles with multiple levels of vocabulary for the students. http://www.newsinlevels.com/#
5.) Oh Noah! PBS Kids: Another friendly and interactive site for students. Students have watch videos, play games, and other activities. http://pbskids.org/noah/

Professional Development
1.) Colorin Colorado: From their About Us page, this website is a national website for educators and families of English Language Learners. There is a multitude of free researched-based information, activities, support for parents, support for schools, and communities. http://www.colorincolorado.org/
2.) Teaching Tolerance: This site is designed for any teachers, kindergarten or high school level. There are resources, articles designed to build a strong community in the classroom. http://www.tolerance.org/
3.) TESOL International Association: Another resource site got teachers. Teachers can read journals, news articles, and other publications. There is also an option to join and become a member. http://www.tesol.org/
4.) Oregon TESOL: A similar more local site for the state of Oregon. There are conferences and workshops and past conferences and workshops have been archived. http://www.ortesol.org/
5.) Nik's Learning Technology Blog: This website is different from the other websites. It is a blog someone created for English Language Teachers. https://nikpeachey.blogspot.com/

Tool Box
1.) Word Sift: What a fun website! This website will give the audience a visual of what is being said. I first tried typing a quick sentence. It wasn't too visually interesting or appealing. Then I went and copied and pasted a Wikipedia article about Abraham Lincoln. The sift generator pulled the words that were used the most and made them larger and more defined than other words. If you hover over a word, the website will tell you how many times the word was used in the text. I could see this as a beneficial and fun way for students to visualize a challenging article. They can pick out the most important words from the text. https://wordsift.org/
2.) Word Hippo: This website is an excellent tool to help someone find a words that they may or may not know. There is a drop down menu with suggestions, synonyms, antonyms, pronunciations and more! http://www.wordhippo.com/
3.) Flashcard Stash: A visual and interactive way to study. Words, definitions, and pictures provided. This website appears to be a valuable tool for students and teachers alike. http://flashcardstash.com/
4.) Storyboard That: This website might take a little more planning and preparation. I have not tried creating a storyboard, it may be pretty straight forward and user friendly. Either way, it is another way to communicate and teach. Teachers are able to create visuals, similar to comics to teach their students. https://www.storyboardthat.com/
5.) Lexipedia: Another fun website. Type in a word and it will create a web with that word. You can select or unselect synonyms, antonyms; the site will also tell you if the word is a noun, verb, adjective, or adverb. http://www.lexipedia.com/ ]]> 2017-01-28 07:15:05 UTC https://padlet.com/rachaelbrickson/44r6qvx5g4s4/wish/150023218 rachaelbrickson https://padlet.com/rachaelbrickson/44r6qvx5g4s4/wish/151733870 Educational Content Sites
I chose to look at some Math, Science and The Arts sites because I was interested to see how these subjects were used to teach, include, and engage emergent bilinguals.

1.) Math -- Prodigy: This is a fun website. The link from the website was broken, but we do use this website in my CT's class. The site offers a multitude and variety of math exercises and problems in an interactive game form. The students love it. They have the opportunity to play on this website as a reward. It is a valuable incentive to get work done. They enjoy playing the games and they are practicing their math skills. http://whentechmeted.weebly.com/math.html
2.) Science -- Kinetic City and USGS: This took a little more time to explore. I tried clicking on one of the game websites: http://www.kineticcity.com/. The game looked fun and interactive, however, the games I clicked on to try out were awfully wordy. I wonder how this would impact an emergent bilingual. I was turned off by the amount of instructions and directions required to play the game. The next website I tried was the https://education.usgs.gov/. While this website has some valuable information, it does't hold the appeal that a more "kid-friendly" website might have. Instead, I could see the USGS website as a great website for educators. Finally, I found the Earth Cam website, http://www.earthcam.com/, neat. Students can click around to different places and see a live feed on their screen.
3.) Art -- Google Art Project: After much clicking on various websites, I landed on the Google Art Project. https://www.google.com/culturalinstitute/beta/. This website I could see being best suited for older grades or a resource for instructors. There are timelines of art and how art and culture are intertwined.

Assessments
1.) Quizizz: One of the websites I liked was Quizizz. Teachers and instructors can create quizzes for their students. It might be time consuming to get started and create quizzes, but once you have them, it seems like you can keep using them. The website appears to be user friendly and easy to navigate to create your website. https://quizizz.com/
2.) Fresh Grade: Another resource that had appeal was Fresh Grade. It is advertised as a portfolio and assessment platform. There is a place for teachers to sign up as well as schools and districts. I also liked this website because it has a parent link. I think it is important to include and recognize parents in work and in the classroom. It helps to keep a connection between the classroom and home and it allows for parents to be in the loop.
https://www.freshgrade.com/
3.) Rubrics: There were several websites offering assessments and rubrics. One I liked was rCampus. This website would require an account and login. After that you can build rubrics or modify rubrics. It appears to be a valuable tool for assessing information.
http://www.rcampus.com/indexrubric.cfm

Return to Toolbox
1.) Spiderscribe: Spiderscribe offers a user friendly site for educators to create mind maps. This can be beneficial for organizing thoughts and information as well as daily lessons. The website even has a two-minute video explaining and advertising the site. This could be a valuable took for teachers in the classroom.
https://www.spiderscribe.net/
2.) Popplet: Popplet is an app you can download to an iPad. That is one large Con and Pro to the site/app. You need to have an iPad to use the site. If you do not, then this site is not an ideal resource for educators or students. However, with an iPad there are ways to create maps and notes.
http://popplet.com/
3.) Infogr.am: Infogr.am requires the educator to create an account. Once you have created an account there the site allows you to make charts and infographics. This could be a valuable tool for teachers teaching science or math and graphing. It could also be a user friendly site for older students to create charts in class.
https://infogr.am/

Philosophy of Integrating Technology with Emergent Bilinguals Statement
There is incredible value to integrating technology with emergent bilinguals. Technology is a valuable tool for any student, but it can be especially beneficial for emergent bilingual students. 

• Technology has the ability to incorporate the modes of language: listening, speaking, reading, and writing. 
• Technology can also meet the four c's: critical thinking, collaboration, communication, and creativity. 
• Technology supports academic language as well as content. 

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