Digital Adventures and Lessons Learned

I am all about learning new things. Five years ago, I jumped into a new job after 20 years of teaching. Talk about learning curve...but that is what I need to do in order to stay excited and creative!

Last year, our school went 1:1 with iPads and as a science teacher and not a regular ed. classroom teacher I needed to find ways to incorporate digital activities as we embraced this new technology. I have to say, at first it was a bit overwhelming. Many districts, allow their teachers to download free apps or use Google Classroom...our district has a lot of restrictions on us so we had to use the apps that they allowed us to use.

All students were given the app Explain Everything as well as See Saw. Two great apps, however instead of Google Classroom, we were expected (still are) to use something similar, but certainly not the same, called ItsLearning. Because of that, it limited me on what I could make for my students...where I see teachers able use movable parts for activities...I have to use activities that are more locked into place. Using Explain Everything, I can then airdrop the activities that I make so that allows me to easily get a digital worksheet, digital slide activity, or even a quiz or test that can be housed in our ItsLearning site.

What were the biggest struggles?

I work with kindergarten through fifth grade...so I saw it all! Here are some of my top struggles...

1. When I started with the littles (K-2) I had to find age appropriate terms to refer to what they needed to do to get the sheet I needed them to download or get airdropped. I had to go very slowly, talk slowly, and walk around and reteach over and over...but it is worth it now...they will have background knowledge coming into this year. Slow and steady wins the race. I love when kiddos can help each other, they love taking ownership of what they know.

2. I had to teach them to airdrop and sometimes it doesn't always connect or their name doesn't always come up for them to get the drop. So, I taught them how to airdrop to each other. They were always willing to help and show what they know.


To go with that...we do a lot of picture taking. Let them take photo opportunities. It allows for them to have visual clues as to what they learned.

 Let them do an activity or take that picture then let them share what they did by airdropping their sheet to each other, walk and talk, find phony facts...all great ways to share what they did and to be held to accuracy!

3. When we used Explain Everything, I had to teach them how to find their airdrop in camera roll, upload it, resize it, and lock it as a background. So here is what I had to say..."Go to the plus button on the left. Find Existing Image/Video (which is now a red mountain , they fixed that so it is now color coordinated!), find the picture that was airdropped and now resize. Press the blue done button on the top. Now to lock it in so it doesn't move...find the i with dots around it. Press the picture you want to lock, go to the last thing to do, which is set as background. Press that and now you are done!" For those of you that have used Explain Everything...it is different now. The buttons are easier with less steps!

4. Littles don't always remember their email address...the folder they made for Explain Everything...

How do you fix it? You can use labels with typed out email address that I placed on each of their science folders. You can also place them on the back of each iPad. Email addresses can also be put on a ring binder with email address as well as passwords to other apps and sites.

5. Kids can't always remember where they put things. Use icon pictures of apps that can be on magnetic strips on your board, use the icon of the app on a smartboard, or even model it with your own iPad. If you are using Google Slides for example...have the Google Slides picture up on the board...or show them your iPad for help. They new visual clues.

6. As a specialist that has iPads brought to my room from over 22 different classroom settings...Do not tech sabotage your kiddos because it is something new or hard to learn. Find others that can help you learn one thing at a time, ask questions, or have kids help you! I knew exactly what teachers weren't using their iPads because their kiddos were not tech savvy or they could not follow the instructions as well as other classrooms. They spent too much time remembering each week how to use an app.

7. Make sure you have a system for charging your iPads! Often kids from certain rooms came in with their iPads not charged. We want kids to remember, but we have to also check for them, assign a charger coordinator as a class job, and have a system for organizing them. Whether that be in buckets per table group, dish racks, or a special container your district was able to get you...make sure you have an organized system for keeping them charged and ready to go.

8. Do not use them as punishment. Yes...I said it. Some of our teachers were taking them away if a kid talked, taking them away if they weren't focused, taking them away to teach a lesson about charging them...then we as specialists were punished when they student came in unprepared. If a child uses them inappropriately (bad site, inappropriate pictures...)then have a system in place to take it away unless they are monitored or have a buddy watching that they are on the right site. We now have a guided access app that helps us keep kids on specific sites as we work in class.

9. Find ways for your students to show what they know, share what they learned, or even create projects for class. Kids love to use ChatterKid, Book Creator, Scribble Press, Stop Motion, and Garage Band which are just a few fun apps to consider! I love SeeSaw for parent communication! Kids take pictures, write a caption and share with their families! You will need parent permission to have kids do that though.

10. Last but not least...find great activities and resources that help you continue to use your curriculum, but use digital resources to help be a vehicle for your standards and lessons! Last year, I made over 20 resources to help me in my science classroom! This year, I am focusing on stations, assessments, and activities that can check for understanding on their own after we do a science lesson! I will be making resources for everyone of my classrooms kindergarten through fifth grade so follow me on my TPT store to find out when I post a new Digital Science Resource!

Take a look at the Digital Resources in the Science School Yard {HERE}

STEM Road Trip Tips!

July is like the Saturday of summer! It is also a time to enjoy a great road trip with your family and friends... but it can also lead to "Are we there yet?" 
There are many ways we try to keep our kids occupied along the way, but you can only play the alphabet so many times.

Here are some engaging ideas that can help you pack for an easy car ride. 

Road Trip Tip 1:

Straws, Masking Tape and Scissors. These items are a great way to contain some fun have them build on the top of the plastic lid and you have an easy display.

Road Trip Tip 2:
Use an Altoid or 10 container to cut and place pipe cleaners inside. You then have a small little compartment for an easy and quick hands on engaging activity. 

Road Trip Tip 3:
Legos are always a fun and a great hands-on way to build something that they see out the window. gain In order to build it you can always use a lid of a box that you can bring along with a baggie of Legos. 

Road Trip Tip 4:
Another great activity to do is to bring along Beanie Babies that  they just had at McDonald's and some cubes. You can build something for those beanie babies inside that lid and then share it with the people sitting in the backseat with you. 

Now for the fire works! The finale...how about some stick pretzels and small marshmallows!!! Not only can you build with them but when you're all done building you can have a yummy snack.

 These are just a few quick and easy STEMtastic ideas for your next road trip! not only can you keep them from saying "hey are we there yet?" but you can also see how exciting it is for their brains to be working, thinking, and engineering along that way. 

Check out my FREE fourth of July Pack for engaging July activities for at home, on vacation, or in the car!

FREE FOURTH OF JULY ACTIVITIES PACK

Let's celebrate...this Fourth of July EVERYTHING in my store is 15% off!
Happy 4th of July!

School Gardens In The Summer: Tips For Maintaining

Our school has had a school garden for fives years! I am the lovely facilitator of that garden...I say that because it is not MY garden...it is the children's' garden! I often get asked how we can maintain a garden and second how it can last that long. Often times, schools want to get on the school garden bandwagon and then after a year find out that it is hard to maintain. If you are remotely interested in starting a garden at your school then here are some quick tips to get you "growing"...

Tip 1:
You NEED to have one person (or more if you are lucky!) that is truly dedicated to maintaining and advocating for your garden. That is me at our school. You then need your administration and your maintenance crew on board as well. Our garden has changed from its original state due to the garden beds being too hard to mow around...the herbs were placed in metal cans which can be unsafe (but we wanted to contain them so that they didn't get out of control...they can do that you know) We as a team, find ways to make sure that our district policies are being followed and yet still hold true to what our vision is.

You need your administration to be on board and part of your team. Whether that is support of your plan, seeing academic benefits, or getting down and dirty along with the kids as they learn how to garden, you truly cannot do it without them on your team!

And let's just say when your administration sees it as a benefit they can find ways to fund the project and sustain it for years to come. (I will get to that next)

Tip 2:
You will need to find funding, grants, and donations. Each year, I have been able to find "free" money that helps support our school garden. Whether it be the Anthem Watch Us Sprout Grant which provided us this year with soil, books, hundreds of free seeds to distribute to our families and students, as well as amazing banners that we display in our lunchroom that supports healthy eating habits!

Find a local greenhouse that might be willing to donate. If you have a composting business close by, call them to see if they can give a deal to a local school garden. People LOVE the idea of kids growing and may be excited enough to donate or give a product at a reduced price!

Tip 3:
Find ways to integrate the garden into the curriculum. We have a unique situation at our school...I teach each and every student. That means over 400 students come to me for Science, STEM, Gardening. You name it...I teach it! The beauty of this model is that I then can work with each grade level to take part in gardening. (Watch for this week's series for ideas on how to grow plants with kids!)

Kindergartners plant a kinder"garden" which is pumpkins, zucchini, and gourds.
First Graders plant flowers to learn about insect pollination. Sunflowers are great to grow as well as daffodils.
Second Graders plant potatoes and then gold mine for them in fall to tie in Social Studies and the Westward Movement as well as lettuce, spinach, kale, and peas. We use the FOSS Plant unit to start us off, but then I deviate.
Third Graders plant an egg roll and coleslaw garden. We plant cabbage which is sponsored by Bonnie Plants (free cabbage plants for the annual cabbage contest. Find the Link here: http://bonniecabbageprogram.com/ ) We also plant carrots for our coleslaw and egg rolls!
Fourth Graders plant the Three Sisters Garden which ties in native american history. That includes Beans, squash, and corn.
Fifth Graders plant a victory garden as they learn about WWII. They plant kohlrabi, tomatoes, peppers, and anything else we want to stick in the ground.

I know that this may not be how your school teaches science so here are some ideas....
-each grade level can be assigned special vegetables and an area to plant them in
-someone that is interested can have a container garden that they watch and learn from
-facilitators can teach lessons, plant seeds, start them at school and send them home
-interested teachers can work together to grow a school garden, it can be part of an after school program, or even a summer school class.

Tip 4:
Just do it. I cannot tell you how many people I talk to that want to start a school garden and then just sit and wait for everything to fall in place just perfectly....nothing is ever perfect. We learned from our mistakes, changed them as we went, and continue to learn as we go!

 Your team, whoever it is that is part of your plan, can find an area for your garden, create a design, decide what to plant, figure out who waters, weeds, picks, and shares the harvest.  (In this week's series, I will share with you different ways to use your bounty!)

Tip 5:

How do you keep it growing? Summer weeding, watering, and picking and then what do you do with it? All things to think about. In the past I have tried a lot of different methods. Here are a few ideas for you...
-Americorp volunteers. They always need hours.
-United Way. If they weed and pick ...they can keep some of the harvest.
-Parent and Family volunteers. I used Remind 101 after a digital sign up link went into our school newsletter. It is sometimes hard for them to remember to I send a reminder with this app.
-I use my summer school program to tie gardening into the STEM based curriculum that I developed. We use STEM Little Red Hen to teach teamwork and hard work come first before the reward. We then weed and then eat!
-I have an underground irrigation system that I wrote a grant for...so watering is not an issue for me, however utilize your helpers, custodians, school programs that can help with this chore.

This week, I will be sharing more tips, epic fails you can learn from, as well as celebrations! I will always say...a seed is magic. You just have to get "growing" to find that out!

This pack has been worked on for over three years. I now use this pack for my kindergarten though third graders.

Here is a link to a free portion of this pack...Let's just call it a "FREEBEE"! FREE-BEE For You Found HERE!

Summer School Can Be Cool!

Summer is now here and I am just got done with school... now it's time for Summer School Community Connections. This means I get the kids after they are in the morning session and now it is the afternoon. For me my Community Connection is STEM garden club. In the past I have taught strictly  Garden Club, but after seeing their exhausted faces after not only going to school 9 months out of the year with such rigor, I could not put them through any more let's learn a ton from a book or go outside for an hour and connect to nature. That is when I see discipline issues...when they just can't take anymore learning. 

 Let's just say this Monday, I was a little nervous because I saw these kids goofing around and not focus in the gym as I went to get them. It was kind of scary they weren't my students from my school...they were at MY school...and they were not having any of the I am going to be a listener thing!

 These kiddos are  not used to STEM activities so the test was going to be whether or not they could handle calming down and focusing and using their brain to build something absolutely amazing...absolutely summer centered... and garden connected!

Summer STEM Station Fun

Is it summer yet? Many teacher friends are almost done. Some of my teacher friends are all the way around the world and the cold weather is approaching! Where ever you are...whatever is slowing your kiddos down from that 100% effort that you need them to still have.

As I watch my kindergarten through fifth graders come into the science room, I can see their focus dwindling, so to help them get excited for learning again, I have an instant cure....STEM!

Third Graders learned about Food Chains knowing that they were going to be able to create a frog catapult to connect how frogs protect themselves from predators!

Thanks For Hopping Over Here: Science is "Toad"ally Fun!

This week was tadpole week for the kindergartners. Let's just say, I showed the first through fifth graders, too! They are always mesmerized by real animals! When we are done with them this week, my third graders will be using the water to do pond study and habitats! They are taking a trip to a local pond where a real live scientist will be working with them on not only habitats, but food chains and animals found in the pond.

How can you make your learners "HOPPY"? Here are three easy steps to doing just that!

1. Use interactive Google activities. My littles love to go up to the smartboard and move the pieces around. Their behavior has also improved as I call on "good listeners" first.

2. Bring in live specimen when you can. That could mean crickets to teach insects, goldfish to teach about fish, or worms that you find in a garden. They are quick learning tools to get kids excited as well as learn how to care for animals in and out of their habitat!

3. Find engaging resources that help teach the BIG ideas of science. I use this pack to teach:
 habitats, life cycles, food chain as well as language arts and math! When they are all finished we even throw in a STEM project! It is perfect for this time of year!

Frog STEM Grab and Go

Now...a SECRET...

Thanks for hopping over here to the Science School Yard! It's Teacher Appreciation Week and I have a"Toad"ally awesome news...Tuesday, May 9 through Wednesday, May 10th Teachers Pay Teachers is giving an extra 8% off everything in my store...and everything in my store is going to be 20% off already!!!! That means 28% off everything if  you use the magic code...ready...

It's ThankYou17

I also want to thank you by giving away a $10 TPT gift card. All you have to do is follow my blog or sign up for my newsletter as well as leave a comment below sharing one thing that I could do to help you make science easier or a product that you would LOVE to see in my store. I will post the winner here on my blog Wednesday Morning!

I appreciate you! Thank you for stopping by and letting me be a part of your School Yard!

Hate To Bug You: Insect Lessons for Littles!

Insects...those creepy...crawly animals that the kids just love! What a great time to add an insect unit when the trees are budding and the insects are coming out to play!

I just got meal worms in the mail. You know those worm like larva that go through a metamorphosis and turn into darkling beetles!

I need to bring some potatoes and a bit of corn meal so get them ready for my littles. Here are some quick and easy tips to add some insect fun into your lessons without having to spend a ton and yet let your kiddos have some fun!

Here are some great insect videos for you to use...I use the song first to let them see that insects aren't that icky!

Time for another video...this one that gives a lot of great facts!

Here are some affordable and fun ways to bring insects into your classroom!

1. Use crickets found at a pet shop along with dollar store plastic containers for a fun and easy insect exploration! Poke holes in the top with a pin...get some egg cartons in the container with some moist sponges and a bit of apple or orange and you are good to go! Females have the little stick like thing on the back called an ovipositor.

2. Find some lady bugs hanging around your house right after they wake up from a  long winter's nap...this is what happens in our sun room...get them in a cup with a lid and let the kiddos observe!

3. Mealworms can often be picked up at a pet shop and go through a metamorphosis from egg (which you don't see)...to larva...then pupa...and finally adult! Give each child a vile with  a mealworm, potato slice, and a bit of corn meal and each of them has an observable cycle!

4. Up for ordering painted ladies? There are many different venues for purchase. You will need a butterfly house once they turn into a chrysalis...then you can tape them to the top and wait to watch them come out as a butterfly. It is our highlight to have a release party!

5. Short of funds? Go outside and observe ants! Read a fun picture book about ants and then try to locate a worker ant, a guard ant, and if your lucky a nurse ant! Finding different colored ants is also fun!

Want a quick and easy pack to help you with the sheets you need to work with any of these insects and more? Find it in my insect pack! This is one of  my favorite packs because I just print and go with it!

 I won't bug you anymore...time to bug out of here! Thanks for letting me help you make science child's play!