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The Why’s and How’s of Student Badges

by Diana Benner
written by Diana Benner

All individuals want to be recognized when they learn something, and badges can accomplish that. Whether it is mastering a new skill, meeting a goal, or doing a good deed, students (and adults!) seek validation for their achievements.

At first glance, the word “badge” may conjure up images of a Girl Scout’s sash featuring material badges that demonstrate mastery. While the concept is similar, the badges of today have implications far beyond that simple picture. Today’s badges are credentials that represent skills, interests, and achievements earned by an individual through specific projects, programs, courses, or other activities.

Reasons to Use Student Badges in the Classroom

Badges celebrate learning and can motivate students to do well in school and beyond. Take a look at a few reasons why you should reward student learning with badges.

  1. Acknowledge Accomplishments

    student badges

    Click on the image to download a PDF.

Badges show accomplishments. They can be awarded to students for completing a difficult assignment, doing an act of kindness, or improving behavior.

  1. Promote Collaboration

Badges provide greater opportunities for student collaboration, cooperation, and interaction. Students will motivate and encourage one another, as well as compete with one another, to earn various badges in the classroom.

  1. Validate Progress

Badges can certify that students are meeting specific goals and showing progress in their learning. This will lead to visible improvements in the classroom.

  1. Expose Skills

Badges uncover students’ skills that a number or letter grade might not show. This might be empathy, entrepreneurship, leadership, cooperation, or  deep thought. They give students a way to share what they have learned in a public way.

  1. Surpass Traditional Assessments

Badges can be used as an additional assessment tool to assist in the identification of a student’s specific strength and weaknesses. Go beyond written tests, quizzes, and grades in order to identify areas needing improvement.

  1. Give Joy in Learning

Badges can add a fun element to the classroom as students are encouraged to compete against one another.  Show students that there can be fun in learning.

 

Types of Badges to Use in the Classroom

The type of badge you use in the classroom depends on what works for you and your students.

With digital badges, you can create and download a digital version of the badge and post it to a student portfolio or class blog page.  Some resources for making digital badges can be found at the Badges for Professional Learning blog post.

With traditional badges, you can download or create a badge that you make many copies of and distribute. You could even display them for a while on the classroom bulletin board before giving them to your students.

With button badges, you turn student badges into buttons using a button machine. Students could then pin their earned button on their jacket or backpack.

Have you ever used badges in your classroom before?  If so, what has worked for you?  Leave a comment and let us know!

 

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Educational Trends

Badges for Professional Learning

by Diana Benner
written by Diana Benner

This blog was updated May 11, 2016 with additional badge resources.

At the recent TCEA Campus Technology Specialist Academy, I presented on “Promoting Technology Use on Your Campus.” During the presentation, I mentioned rewarding teachers who come to training by giving them badges. The technology team at Lubbock ISD immediately stated, “Rewarding our staff with badges for completing staff development has really motivated them.” Focusing on positive motivation rather than a fear of negative consequences can really make a difference.

If you are looking for ways to motivate teachers to attend professional development, try incorporating badges. Below are a few resources for creating your own.

Resources for Creating Badges

  • Class Badges – This is one of the more popular badging platforms, allowing the teacher to easily award badges aligned with learning goals.
  • Credly – Credly helps teachers to create badges, upload their own designs, and give credit through the platform. It is available as a web-based version and an iOS app.
  • Create a Badge with Google Drawing – If you have ever thought of creating your own badges, Google Drawing is a great tool to use. Read Alice Keeler’s blog entry on how easy it is to do.
  • For All Badges – This is an iOS app that works in conjunction with For All Rubrics to align your rubrics with the badging system. The app also integrates with Mozilla’s Open Badges platform, and allows students (or staff members) to save badges to their “backpack.”
  • Open Badges – Open Badges lets teachers to create and issue badges that do not have to be tied to a certain platform. Take the Badges 101 Quiz to see how it works and to earn your first badge.

Stay tuned for the 2016 TCEA Campus Technology Specialist Academy happening in Austin on November 17-18. This innovative, hands-on event will feature more great professional development resources, including badging.

Teachers who take the time to learn now have a way to be acknowledged for that learning. And we all know that recognition from our peers is the sweetest reward. Encourage them to include their earned credentials in their email signature or print and post them in their classroom. You can even publicly honor them by “presenting” the badges at a faculty meeting.

Here is Lubbock ISD’s Digital Learning site, a great resource.

Micro-Credentials

Micro-credentialing is another way to reward staff for professional learning. These may be courses that are shorter than those for which badges or certificates are awarded, and are usually done online. There’s a nice infographic on micro-credentials from Taniya Knights here.

If you are incorporating a badging system into your professional development, we’d love to hear from you. Please let us know in the comment section below.

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Classroom ActivitiesGood TeachingLibraries

Ten Ready-to-Go Lesson Plans for Young Learners

by Mary Eldredge
written by Mary Eldredge

Do you struggle to engage your youngest learners? Never fear! Help is here!

Welcoming early childhood students to your library can add extra sunshine and sparkle to your day! You’re gifted a singular opportunity to introduce them to classic childhood stories, songs, and nursery rhymes, and rewarded with their marvel as they navigate access to a world filled with new materials. As librarians, we have the privilege of shaping their excitement for books and instilling a love for reading at their most formative stages. Need some ideas on how? Keep reading for ten ready-to-use lesson plans for young learners, plus a list of top tips!

The Magic of Early Learners: How to Captivate Their Attention

If you’re new to the world of young students, your keys to success are to exude confidence, emanate wonder, and embrace silliness and fun in your lesson plans for young learners! The delight and excitement you create will ensure your youngest students view your library as the Disney World of the school!

As you plan your lessons, here are some quick tips:

  • Keep a quick pace 
  • Create engaging and interactive activities
  • Use lots of props and visuals 
  • Plan active movement activities (action songs, fingerplays, games) between stories to expend energy and help focus
  • Search online for fingerplays that match your theme to reinforce concepts
  • Small props or visuals for students increase engagement and participation during songs or activities
  • For YouTube songs, consider using just the audio to encourage students to engage more actively with the song’s actions rather than being passive viewers of the screen.
  • Of course, being a bit silly, passionate, and dramatic never hurts 
  • Throw in a simple magic trick to amaze your eager students and you’re a hero! 

Library Lesson Plans for Early Learners

Math Concepts:

Embedding young learner guideline skills in your lessons will delight your teachers. Include math concepts like numbers, positional words, measuring, sorting, graphs, patterns, and basic addition and subtraction. Create a graph showing 3 books you’ve read. Students add stickers to signify their favorite.

Phonological Awareness:

Incorporating phonological awareness skills such as listening, rhyming, alliteration, syllabication, onset-rime, letters, and vocabulary can be easily threaded throughout library lessons. Play alliteration games using pictures. Ask if the picture starts with the letter you choose. Read Goldilocks & the Three Bears, then clap the words Goldilocks, porridge, and bears for syllabication.

Themed Topics with Activities, Books, and Songs

To get you started, here are ten weeks of lesson plans for young learners, including fabulous books and engaging songs to sweep your students off their feet! Plus, discover some bonus songs at the end that are sure to keep your youngest students entertained and engaged!

Alligators

Activities: 

  • Alphagator Make an alligator & letters. Have students feed it letters corresponding to the story. 
  • Guess What’s Green: print pictures/make slides of green items (grass, peas, alligators). Give students clues to guess the items.

Books: 

  • The Watermelon Seed (Pizzoli)
  • Beware of the Crocodile (Jenkins)
  • Crocodile Hungry (Sumner)

Songs: 

Fireflies

Activities: 

Books:

  • The Little Squeegy Bug (Martin) – positional words
  • Among a Thousand Fireflies (Frost) – positional words
  • The Very Lonely Firefly (Carle)

Song:

Bedtime

Activity: 

Letter B Beginning Sounds Game – show pictures/slides of a variety of objects and ask, “Does this start with the letter B sound?” – alliteration

Books: 

  • Everyone Is Yawning (Bijsterbosch)
  • Llama Llama Red Pajama (Dewdney) – rhyming
  • The Squeaky Door (retold by M. Read) – patterns & sequencing
  • Are You Ready For Bed? (Saltzberg)
  • Froggy Goes to Bed (London)

Songs:

Sharks

Activities: 

Books: 

  • Shark in the Park (Sharratt) – rhyming
  • The Three Little Fish and the Big Bad Shark (Geist) – patterns
  • Chomp (M. Paul)
  • How to Spy on a Shark (Houran)

Songs: 

Pizza

Activity: 

  • Watch and discuss Acrobatic Pizza Making from 1:41-3:12 Make a giant pizza! Crust: tape white posterboard together. Sauce: red butcher paper. Cheese: cut lots of white paper in thirds lengthwise. Toppings: print full-page pictures. Sit students in a large circle. Unfold the crust, roll out the sauce. Give students handfuls of cheese to sprinkle on, then several toppings. Pre-teach to not really touch the pizza! Pretend it feels warm in the oven, smell it, hear tummies grumbling and the ‘ding’ – then pretend to eat it. – sequencing

Books: 

  • Pete the Cat and the Perfect Pizza Party (Dean) – alliteration & adding
  • Pete’s a Pizza (Steig) – narrated on Discovery Education by Chevy Chase – sequencing
  • A Pizza With Everything On It (Scheele)
  • The Little Red Hen (Makes a Pizza) (Sturges) – patterns
  • Hi Pizza Man (Walter) – positional words

Songs: 

Fire Safety

Activity: 

  • Print pictures of firefighter and police tools (vehicles, hats, badges, dogs, uniforms, etc) and play a ‘Who uses this?’ sorting game. – sorting

Books: 

  • Fire Drill (Jacobs)
  • The Wheels on the Fire Truck (Burton)
  • Five Little Firefighters (Graham)

Songs: 

Spiders

Activities: 

Books: 

Songs:  

Owls

Activity: 

  • Click on each ‘owl’ for an audio recording of their call. Pair calls with visuals. Discuss what the calls sound like. Not all owls whoo-whoo! – listening

Books: 

  • Owl Babies (Waddell) 
  • Wow! Said the Owl (Hopgood) – colors
  • Little Owl’s Night/Day (Srinivasan)

Songs: 

Dental Health

Activity: 

  • Print clipart pictures of a tooth – 4 per page, laminate, and cut. Glue a pom-pom on the end of craft sticks. Before the lesson, use a yellow dry-erase marker to color on top of the teeth so the students can use the ‘brushes’ to clean them.

Books: 

  • The Crocodile and the Dentist (Gomi)
  • My Toothbrush is Missing (Thomas)
  • Alan’s Big Scary Teeth (Jarvis)

Songs: 

Animal Baths

Activity: 

  • Search for pictures to print or create slides to discuss how animals bathe (pigs, dogs, tigers, elephants, horses) and animals who use helpers to get clean (sea turtles, eels, giraffes, chimpanzees) 

Books: 

  • Dog’s Colorful Day (Dodd) – colors
  • Hogwash (Wilson)
  • Ten Pigs (Anderson) – counting
  • Harry the Dirty Dog (Zion)

Songs: 

Plus, My Favorite Wiggle Songs:

For more interactive songs, check YouTube for Eric Litwin’s ‘The Learning Groove’ and you’ll be set for years!

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A whimsical little robot with the title "K-8 Coding and Robotics Activities with Teacher Clarity Questions" and an image of activity sheets for K-2, 3-5, and 6-8.
Coding/Computer ScienceCurricular Standards

A Scope and Sequence for Computational Thinking: Part 2

by Miguel Guhlin
written by Miguel Guhlin

You may recall that part one of this article shared a story. I had questioned a small private school about its coding curriculum vision. They had the tech but no clear plan. A curriculum map and content standards for computational thinking were absent or unavailable, and part one proposed a potential solution. In this follow-up article, we’ll delve into coding and robotics for grades K-2, 3-5, and 6-8. Keep reading to get activity sheets with digital tools, objectives, activities, and teacher clarity questions.

“Yes, you too can develop complex scope and sequences in a single bound through the AI magic of interactive prompt engineering. Come study with TCEA Prompt engineers and earn your ChatGPT for Educators and Artificial Intelligence digital badges, certificates, and CPE hours.”

-Miguel Guhlin, author

Breaking Activities Down Further

In grades K-2, 3-5, 6-8, you can see a natural progression for computational thinking through the use of digital tools that aid in coding. But generating projects and classroom activities can be an ongoing challenge. Luckily, AI tools can help. Let’s take a look at a detailed sampling of activities for K-8 generated through interactive prompt engineering and various AI tools.

K-2: Introduction to Coding

Digital Tools

Learning Objectives:

  1. Understand basic block coding concepts.
  2. Create simple stories and animations using Scratch Jr.
  3. Engage in basic robotics tasks with Sphero and Dash-n-Dot.
  4. Explore introductory engineering concepts with SPIKE™ Essential.

Activities:

  • Scratch Jr. Storytelling: Students will create a short, interactive story that includes characters moving across the screen, using basic block coding sequences. Questions for teacher clarity include:
    • What am I learning? You’re learning to make your own little stories on a computer. You’ll use blocks like puzzle pieces to tell the computer what you want your story’s characters to do.
    • Why am I learning it? It’s fun to tell stories, right? By making stories on the computer, you also learn how to solve problems and make your ideas come to life. It’s like being both a storyteller and a magician!
    • How will I know I learned it? You’ll know you’ve learned it when you can make a character move, jump, or even dance across the screen by yourself. If you can watch your story play out the way you imagined, you did it!
  • Robotics Exploration: Using Sphero and Dash-n-Dot, students will complete a series of challenges, such as navigating a simple maze, to understand cause and effect in coding. See teacher clarity questions below:
    • What am I learning? You’re learning to be a robot helper. You’ll use a tablet to tell robots named Sphero and Dash-n-Dot how to move around, like going through a maze.
    • Why am I learning it? Playing with robots helps you understand how things cause other things to happen, like how pressing a button can make the robot move. It’s important because it teaches you how to think step by step to solve a puzzle.
    • How will I know I learned it? You’ll know you learned it when you can make the robots go where you want them to, like through the maze without getting stuck. If the robot does what you planned, you’re a great robot helper!
  • Building Simple Structures: With SPIKE™ Essential, students will follow guided instructions to build simple machines or figures, introducing them to basic engineering concepts. See teacher clarity questions below:
    • What am I learning? You’re learning to build things like a young engineer. Using something called SPIKE™ Essential, you’ll put together pieces to make simple machines or figures.
    • Why am I learning it? Building helps you learn how things fit together and work. It’s like playing with your favorite building blocks but even cooler because you’re making machines that can move!
    • How will I know I learned it? You’ll know you learned it when you can follow the steps to build something on your own. If your machine or figure looks like the picture and can do something special, like move or spin, you did a great job!

Grades 3-5: Building Computational Thinking

Digital Tools

Learning Objectives:

  1. Develop problem-solving skills through more complex block coding projects.
  2. Introduce text-based coding concepts.
  3. Undertake intermediate robotics projects with SPIKE™ Prime.
  4. Apply the engineering design process in project development.

Activities:

  • Advanced Scratch Projects: Students will develop interactive games or stories that require logical thinking and sequencing, incorporating variables and conditional statements. Teacher clarity questions include:
    • What am I learning? You’re learning to create your own games and stories on the computer with Scratch. You’ll use coding to make things happen, like making a character move or score points in a game. You’ll learn about variables, which are like invisible boxes that can hold information, and conditional statements, which are like making the computer make decisions based on what you tell it.
    • Why am I learning it? Creating games and stories helps you become a better problem-solver. You’ll learn how to think logically, organize your ideas, and make your digital creations interact the way you want. It’s a fun way to learn how computers follow instructions and make your ideas come to life.
    • How will I know I learned it? You’ll know you’ve learned it when you can make a game or story that works the way you planned. If your character can move around and react to different situations because of the code you wrote, you’ve done it right!
  • Micro:bit Experiments: Introduction to simple text-based coding tasks, such as creating a digital thermometer or basic games, to understand inputs, outputs, and processing. A few teacher clarity questions:
    • What am I learning? You’re learning to program a tiny computer called Micro:bit to do cool things, like measure temperature or play simple games. You’ll write code using text, which is a bit like writing instructions for the Micro:bit to follow. You’ll learn about inputs, which are like the Micro:bit’s senses, and outputs, which are the ways it can respond or show you what it’s thinking.
    • Why am I learning it? Programming the Micro:bit teaches you how everyday technology works and how you can control it with coding. It’s exciting to see your code make something happen in the real world, like creating a gadget or a game. It also helps you understand how computers process information.
    • How will I know I learned it? You’ll know you learned it when your Micro:bit can do the task you programmed, like showing the temperature or playing a game you made. If it works just like you wanted, you’ve successfully learned how to program it!
  • SPIKE™ Prime Robotics: Design and program robots to complete specific tasks, such as carrying objects or navigating obstacles, emphasizing the iterative design process. Teacher Clarity questions:
    • What am I learning? You’re learning to build and program robots using SPIKE™ Prime. You’ll design your robot to do tasks, like picking up objects or moving through a course. You’ll also learn about the iterative design process, which means planning, building, testing, and improving your robot step by step.
    • Why am I learning it? Building and programming robots with SPIKE™ Prime helps you understand how technology can interact with the physical world. It’s a hands-on way to learn about engineering, coding, and problem-solving. You’ll see how your ideas can become real and work on improving them, just like real engineers do.
    • How will I know I learned it? You’ll know you’ve learned it when your robot can complete the task you designed it for. If it can carry an object or navigate an obstacle course because of how you built and programmed it, you’ve mastered the challenge!

Middle School (6-8): Applied Coding & Robotics

Digital Tools

Learning Objectives:

  1. Master text-based coding languages for app, game, and web development.
  2. Understand the fundamentals of computer science and software development.
  3. Design and implement advanced robotics projects that solve complex problems.
  4. Apply design thinking in developing technology solutions for real-world challenges.

Activities:

  • App Development: Using Swift or JavaScript, students will create a simple app that addresses a community need, focusing on user interface design and basic functionality. Teacher clarity questions:
    • What am I learning? You’re learning how to create an app using programming languages called Swift or JavaScript. This involves designing how the app looks and making it do things, like helping people in your community through technology. You’ll focus on the user interface, which is how users interact with your app, and the basic functions that make your app work.
    • Why am I learning it? Developing an app teaches you how technology can solve real-life problems. By focusing on a need in your community, you’re learning to think like a developer who not only codes but also considers how technology impacts people’s lives. It’s a way to combine creativity with technical skills and make a difference.
    • How will I know I learned it? You’ll know you’ve learned it when you’ve created an app that works — one that people can use to do something helpful or important for your community. If your app’s design is user-friendly and its functions perform as intended, you’ve successfully learned app development.
  • Game Development with Python: Design and code a game that incorporates complex logic, player scoring, and multiple levels. Teacher Clarity questions:
    • What am I learning? You’re learning to design and code a video game using Python, a powerful programming language. This includes creating the game’s logic, like how players earn points or advance through levels, and making sure the game is challenging and fun.
    • Why am I learning it? Game development with Python introduces you to complex programming concepts in a fun and engaging way. It helps develop critical thinking and problem-solving skills as you figure out how to make your game work. Plus, it’s a creative outlet that lets you bring your ideas to life.
    • How will I know I learned it? You’ll know you’ve learned it when you’ve built a game that others can play, with rules, scoring, and multiple levels that you designed. If players can interact with your game as expected and enjoy the challenge, you’ve mastered game development with Python.
  • Advanced Robotics with VEX: Simulate and build a robot that performs tasks in a virtual or real environment, such as environmental monitoring or assisting in daily tasks, using coding for control and automation. Teacher Clarity Questions:
    • What am I learning? In this adventure with VEX Robotics, you’re stepping into the role of both an engineer and a programmer. You’ll learn how to bring robots to life, giving them tasks to perform in both simulations and the real world. These tasks could range from keeping an eye on environmental changes to lending a hand with day-to-day chores. By writing code, you’ll be the brain behind the robot’s movements and actions, teaching it to think and act on its own.
    • Why am I learning it? Diving into advanced robotics with VEX Robotics isn’t just about building and programming robots for fun. It’s a powerful way to see firsthand how technology can be harnessed to address challenges we face every day, from monitoring our environment to making our lives easier. This journey equips you with a blend of critical thinking, creativity, and technical skills that are vital for innovators and problem solvers of the future.
    • How will I know I learned it? Your moment of triumph comes when your robot accomplishes the mission you’ve programmed it for. Whether it’s successfully navigating an obstacle course by itself or accurately collecting and reporting data about its surroundings, if your robot can carry out these tasks smoothly based on your instructions, you’ve nailed it. This shows not only your mastery of coding and robotics engineering but also your ability to turn ideas into real-world solutions.
  • Design Thinking Project: Identify a real-world problem, brainstorm solutions, prototype a technology-based solution, and test it, applying coding and robotics skills. Questions for teacher clarity include:
    • What am I learning? You’re learning the design thinking process, which is a way to solve problems by understanding the needs of people, brainstorming ideas, prototyping solutions, and testing to see what works. You’ll use your coding and robotics skills to create a technology-based solution for a real-world problem.
    • Why am I learning it? Design thinking teaches you to approach problems creatively and empathetically. It’s a valuable skill not just in technology, but in any field, because it focuses on finding innovative solutions that meet people’s needs. By applying this process, you’re learning to think like an inventor and an entrepreneur.
    • How will I know I learned it? You’ll know you’ve learned it when you can identify a problem, come up with a creative solution, build a prototype, and test it to see if it solves the problem effectively. If your solution works and meets the needs you identified, you’ve successfully learned and applied design thinking.
Get fun ideas for K-8 computational thinking activities, like making games, creating stories, programming robots, and solving problems!
Get the K-8 Activity Sheets

Get the PDF version of the Activity Sheets

In the end, these computational thinking activities do more than teach coding or building. They turn students into creators, thinkers, and solvers. Whether it’s building an app, crafting a game, making a robot, or solving real problems, students learn to make a real difference. They see how technology solves problems and brings ideas to life. A worthwhile endeavor, no?

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Ribbon stating "TechNotes Top 20 – 2023" with a page being turned to reveal blog featured images for some of the top 20 articles.
Uncategorized

Top 20 TechNotes Articles of 2023

by Sara Qualls
written by Sara Qualls

As we bid farewell to the year 2023 and eagerly step into the possibilities of 2024, it’s essential to acknowledge the remarkable insight and posts of the TCEA team and our guest contributors over the past year. Amidst crafting numerous innovative learning experiences, they dedicated their efforts to producing valuable resources, tools, and ideas readily applicable in your classrooms, as highlighted in the TechNotes articles. Join us as we unveil the most impactful 20 blog posts, the TechNotes articles that resonated with you the most, in 2023. The countdown to these influential insights begins now!

20. EduProtocols: Workflowing Amazing Lesson Design

ALDO becomes WALDO! Explore a lesson design outline with lots of resources for mixing and matching strategies, EduProtocols, and digital tools.

19. Two Ready-to-Use “This, Not That” Jamboard Bellringers

We’re back with two more “This, Not That” Jamboard bellringers. Use them in class right away, or edit them as templates!

18. How to Easily Convert Quizzes Between Platforms

"How to Easily Convert Quizzes Between Platforms" TechNotes article featured image

Need to get a set of quiz questions from one system (e.g., Quizlet, Kahoot!) into another? Find out how to convert quizzes easily! 

17. Five Techie Things to Try This Summer

TCEA’s Peggy Reimers keeps a running “Check These Out” (CTO) list of things to try. Here are five things to add to your summer CTO list! 

16. MagicSchool Offers 40+ Time-Saving AI Tools for Teachers

"MagicSchool Offers 40+ Time-Saving AI Tools for Teachers" article featured image

If you’ve not tried MagicSchool yet, you’re in for a treat. Explore more than 40 AI tools specifically designed for teachers!

15. An AI Tool for Generating Higher-Order Discussion Questions

Heard of Parlay Genie? This new AI tool generates discussion questions to spark deeper thinking for students in grades 5 through higher ed! 

14. How Reliable Are AI Detectors?

Do AI detectors really work? You may be surprised. See how seven popular tools fared when put to the test with AI-generated text.

13. Two Canva Tools That Will Amaze You

"Two Canva Tools That Will Amaze You" TechNotes article featured image

Want to save tons of time by auto-generating editable designs and quickly translating content? Learn more about two magical Canva tools!

12. How to Differentiate Texts with ChatGPT

Need an adapted or translated text? Use ChatGPT to generate differentiated texts and better accommodate varied reading and language levels! 

11. 10 Free Generative AI Courses Offered by Google

Google now offers 10 free courses in a Generative AI Learning Path. Take the courses and earn completion badges! Check them out.

10. Proven Classroom Discussion Strategies for Deeper Learning

"Proven Classroom Discussion Strategies for Deeper Learning" TechNotes article featured image

Discover six powerful discussion strategies to boost student engagement, encourage deep thinking, and enhance learning outcomes! 

9. Prompts for Lesson Planning with ChatGPT

Get an editable ChatGPT prompt for lesson planning and see prompt examples for activities, ideas, and differentiation.

8. Five AI Tools to Try (May 2023)

This month’s AI roundup features slide decks, storytelling, sarcasm, flashcards, and more. Check out these five AI tools for educators!

7. May the 4th Classroom Activities and Resources

"May the 4th Classroom Activities and Resources" blog featured image

Are you a Star Wars fan? Are your students? If so, here are some fun activities of all kinds to incorporate this Star Wars Day! 

6. Five Fun End-of-the-Year Classroom Activities

As the end of the year nears, it’s important to unwind, have fun, and reflect. Try one of these fun end-of-the-year activities.

5. 80 Graphic Organizer Templates for Active Learning

"80 Graphic Organizer Templates for Active Learning" TechNotes article featured image

Did you know that using graphic organizers can promote active learning? Here are 80 free and fully customizable templates for you to explore!

4. A Free and Open-Source (FOSS) Geographic Information System

Explore a popular K-12 geographic information system and check out a free and open-source alternative, QGIS.  

3. How ChatGPT Can Help with Grading

"How ChatGPT Can Help with Grading" article featured image

As a potential grading assistant, ChatGPT can help streamline the feedback and grading process, but you’re still in charge! Find out how…

2. How to Create a Rubric with ChatGPT

Get an editable prompt template and create a rubric with ChatGPT in less than one minute! Watch it work its magic in an example video. 

1. Chat GPT Prompts for Busy Educators

Take a look at ChatGPT prompts for educators! Learn how to craft your best prompt to maximize your results and get what you’re looking for.

While 2023 has concluded, the dawn of 2024 brings a fresh start! TCEA’s dedicated team is already hard at work crafting insightful TechNotes articles for the upcoming year. Additionally, stay tuned for an array of engaging Lunch and Learns, events, and numerous exciting offerings that will unfold throughout the year!

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Professional LearningTCEA Convention & Exposition

Why the TCEA Convention & Exposition Is a Must-Attend Event

by Emily Horn
written by Emily Horn

As an educator, one of my favorite things is good professional development. I remember attending a conference and learning the Text Talker strategy, which I used the very next day with my second graders. I quickly saw major gains in my students’ ability to gather text-based evidence, thanks to presenter Jen Jones! In my various roles as a gifted education teacher, tech integrator, and school principal, I can recall at least one workshop or conference that left me energized. Who doesn’t love walking away from PD with hands full of resources and ready to grow in their work? And at the TCEA Convention & Exposition, that’s the kind of experience you get.

Why I Love the TCEA Convention & Exposition

When I first attended TCEA’s Convention & Exposition, I remember thinking, “If I attended TCEA every year for the rest of my career, I could get meaningful professional learning no matter how my role changed over time.” It’s pretty incredible. It was more than impressive how TCEA was able to offer impactful learning for every possible role in education— all in one place! That said, here are a few reasons I’d encourage every educator to attend the 2024 TCEA Convention & Exposition.

1. Targeted learning for your role, interests, learning style, and goals. 

I know. I already mentioned that TCEA has something for every role in education, and it’s true. But don’t take my word for it! Let TCEA’s 800+ sessions speak for themselves. To the right of the search bar on the schedule page, you can:

Filter sessions by role:

Filter TCEA's Convention & Exposition sessions by these target audiences to find sessions targeted for your role.

Filter sessions by topics of interest:

Filter TCEA 2024 sessions by these topics to find sessions targeted for your interests.

Filter to get a recommended schedule based on your role or a primary topic of interest:

Filter TCEA's Convention & Exposition sessions by these recommended session lists to find sessions targeted to your interests, goals, and role.

Filter by format type based on how you learn best:

Filter TCEA 2024 sessions by these format types to find sessions targeted to your learning style preferences.

Additionally, this year, TCEA is offering three intensive role-based sessions exclusively for educators in librarian, instructional coaching, CTO, or similar roles! These are special 3-hour sessions that offer learning from experienced educators. They also provide the opportunity to meet and collaborate with others who are in your role!

“I was extremely impressed with everything associated with TCEA’s Convention & Exposition. From the setup and the sessions and workshops to the presenters, it was probably the most incredible conference I’ve been to in my 15 years of teaching. Definitely a positive use of my time.” -Eric

2. Free microcredentials to show your expertise. 

TCEA 2024 Microrcedential Badges

Another new offering at the 2024 TCEA Convention & Exposition? Free microcredentials! This year, once you’ve expressed interest in a microcredential during the registration process and registered for TCEA 2024, you’ll receive an email to sign up for one of six options. Then, attend six hours of sessions off the suggested list for your microcredential at TCEA 2024. 

After TCEA 2024, submit a form self-reporting which sessions you attended, and get your microcredential badge by email! 

3. Relevant information for equipment planning and budget-saving purchasing decisions.

One of the most thrilling and impressive things about TCEA’s Convention and Exposition is the Exhibit Hall. I had honestly never seen anything like it. It’s brimming with technology tools and 450+ vendors buzzing about products and services. It’s a delightful experience perfect for testing new devices and tools and talking with vendors about your needs. If you’re required to plan for classroom, school, or district technology purchases, it gets you face-to-face with exhibitors. So, you gain valuable insights into services, costs, budget-friendly solutions, and more. Plus, the in-booth presentations and exhibitor showcases can be eye-opening, highlighting solutions you didn’t know existed!  

“I felt so confused about the process for implementing a 1:1 Chromebook rollout at my school. But because of the information I received and the people I met during TCEA’s Convention & Exposition, I am now so excited to get started moving towards this new goal!” -Celine

4. Power hours that are both inspiring and informative. 

TCEA 2024 will have Power Hours on Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday from 10-11:30 a.m. What I love about these is the balance between inspiration and information. Here’s what’s on this year’s lineup: 

  • Todd Nesloney will offer up practical strategies for building stronger relationships and school culture to transform campuses and increase student outcomes. 
  • Jorge Valenzuela will provide tools and strategies for guiding students to discover their passion and purpose by aligning their strengths, values, and interests with meaningful careers.
  • Leslie Fisher will showcase new, fun, and productive gadgets for home, school, and beyond! 

5. Continued learning with a free TCEA membership.

TCEA Memberships Laughing during a learning session

Registering for the TCEA Convention & Exposition provides more than just access to all the benefits of attending. You’ll also receive a forever-free, auto-renewing TCEA membership with your registration. This membership unlocks a wealth of helpful resources, including free weekly Lunch and Learn webinars, free ebooks on current topics in teaching and learning, access to the TCEA online Community for support and idea sharing, and the extensive TCEA Community PD Library archives. Your membership means you can continue your professional learning journey long after TCEA 2024 ends.

“I feel the overall focus of TCEA’s Convention & Expotions is on teaching and learning. It is not about the greatest tools. It’s about helping equip educators to be all that we need to be for our students. I heard it said the success and failure of student learning is about what we, as teachers, do or don’t do. TCEA is empowering teachers to be the necessary change agent.” -Cherie

Bonus: Drum Cafe!

This year, TCEA 2024 has something special planned as an opening event for Saturday, February 3! To get everyone’s convention kicked off right, TCEA will host Drum Cafe for a special session led by professional speaker and drummer Dale Monnin. He’ll be speaking and leading the group in a powerful experience featuring the rhythm of TCEA attendees drumming in tandem. This experience will highlight the common language of music in finding alignment, celebrating success, and tackling challenges as a community of educators. No musical experience is necessary!

Have you been to TCEA’s Convention & Exposition before? Share what you love about it in the comments. Will you be attending TCEA 2024? Leave us a note to tell us your reasons for attending! We’d love to hear from you. Not registered? Not a problem. Register before January 13 to get $50 off a full registration badge!

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2023 Google Resource Roundup
Google Tips and Tricks

2023 Google Resource Roundup

by Diana Benner
written by Diana Benner

Every year, I gather all the fabulous Google resources from our TechNotes blog and put them all in one place for you. This year, we’ve had some amazing posts on everything from Google’s new AI tools to Google experiments. Check out this incredible list of Google articles from 2023 categorized by topic/tool.

Google Add-Ons

You Can Do That with Autocrat blog detailing the Autocrat add-on as a Google resource.

AI

Blog outlining three tools to use with Sheets to help write formulas.

Announcements

Calendar

Blog article outlining how to teach students to use Google Calendar.

Cybersecurity

Google Docs

12 Google Docs Features to Try blog article

Google Drive

Experiments

10 Google Experiments to Explore

Sheets

8 More Google Sheets Tips

Various Google Topics and Tools

Article outlining how to organize and clean up your Drive.

In addition, don’t forget to check out our Google resource roundups from previous years. Happy New Year, everyone!

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Artificial IntelligenceGoogle Tips and Tricks

10 Free Generative AI Courses Offered by Google

by Miguel Guhlin
written by Miguel Guhlin

Want to learn more about Generative AI? Google has you covered with their recent announcement of ten free courses! Come along and take a quick tour of these amazing courses that can build your capacity for using artificial intelligence. These are a part of the Generative AI Learning Path offered in Google Cloud Skills Boost.

Why Learn About Generative AI?

Many educators are moving fast to learn about AI. They’re asking critical questions, such as:

  • How can AI streamline my workload for lesson planning, grading, and content creation?
  • How can I create images and pictures with AI?
  • How can I model the responsible use of AI for my students?
  • What are some concrete prompts I can use with AI?

And, of course, there are more fascinating questions to consider. Google offers its courses as a way to address core questions such as:

  • What is Generative AI?
  • How could I use it?
  • How is it different from what is available now?
  • What are Large Language Models (LLMs)?
  • What is the importance of responsible AI, and how is Google using it in its tools?

Google’s Available Courses

Google’s AI courses are microlearning courses. Their goal is to get you familiar with the content, and once you complete the course, you get a digital completion badge.

You can find a list of Google’s courses below, along with a link to each:

  • Introduction to Generative AI. Get an explanation of what Generative AI is, how it is used, and explore the Google Tools you can use to develop your own Gen AI apps. It also discusses how this AI differs from traditional machine learning methods.
  • Introduction to Large Language Models (LMM). Explore what LLMs are, how you can use them, how you can tweak prompts, and how to enhance their performance.
  • Introduction to Responsible AI. Earn a completion badge on the topics of responsible AI and how Google implements AI. The focus is on Google’s seven AI principles and tools.
  • Generative AI Fundamentals. Complete the Generative AI, LMM, and Responsible AI courses and pass a quiz to earn this Generative AI Fundamentals skill badge.
  • Introduction to Image Generation. Focusing on diffusion models for generating images, this course provides an introduction. You learn about the theory behind the models and how to train and deploy them on Vertex AI.
  • Encoder-Decoder Architecture. This course provides an overview of machine learning architecture for sequence-to-sequence tasks. This includes text summarization, question answering, and more.
  • Attention Mechanism. This course introduces you to a technique that allows neural networks. These networks focus on specific parts of an input sequence to improve performance.
  • Transformer Models and BERT Model. You will learn what these terms mean, their main components, and what tasks you can complete with them.
  • Create Image Captioning Models. When you finish this course, you’ll know the basic components of an image captioning model, how to create one, and how to generate captions using it.
  • Introduction to Generative AI Studio. You’ll become familiar with this Vertex AI tool, how it works, and you’ll explore it.

That’s a quick bird’s eye view of the courses. Are you ready to dive head-first into the world of Google’s AI? You will have to watch a few videos, explore links, and take quizzes throughout the courses.

What Should I Know?

To take advantage of these courses, you will probably need to know:

  • Python
  • Machine learning background

With that in mind, build some background knowledge in these areas before enrolling. Be sure to give these courses a try and get your feet wet if you have these prerequisites under your belt!

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revamping labs
CTO/CIOLeadershipTechnical SupportTesting

TCEA Responds: Revamping School Computer Labs

by Miguel Guhlin
written by Miguel Guhlin

Dear TCEA Responds:

I am planning a major revamp of our current elementary school computer labs. Aside from one goal being to update the space for students, there’s another: Create an alternative learning space for teachers. With that in mind, we are considering the following:

  • Adding approximately 15 desktop computers around the perimeter
  • Providing 15 laptops for checkout
  • Offering flexible seating options
  • Including a 3D printer
  • Offering VR sets
  • Adding makerspace kits

What would you include at the elementary level? Do you know of a district that has a similar space for their teachers and students?”

-Pete

Dear Pete,

Thanks so much for your question. As I reflect on what I would say to you, I realize that my response has changed over time. When in a large urban school district fifteen to twenty years ago, I would have had one response. Then, a few years later in a suburban district, I would have had another. In fact, my response has evolved and that’s an important thing to ponder before answering you. Why has my response evolved, and how does that mirror ed tech changes?

How Ed Tech Is Evolving

Evolution happens in the face of competing needs and priorities. Those include:

  • What is popular technology?
  • What do teachers know how to use in classrooms? At home?
  • What are students willing to use in the classrooms and at home?
  • What is the budget available?

The interplay of your organization’s responses impacts what you can do. Let’s look at possible responses for each.

A Process to Follow

No doubt you have a process for getting things done and collecting insights. Here are my steps, learned after years of project planning and implementation.

  • Seek approval and support through district channels; invite collaboration in planning.
  • Form an organization-wide community of stakeholders. Include teachers, students, parents, district-level staff, and admin.
  • Speak in a tentative manner. Develop a canon of books, articles, and podcasts you can all process together.
  • Remember that this act is political, and there may be repercussions whether done right or wrong.
  • Draft a memo of understanding. It should address what the goals, vision, and resulting product/actions will be. Ask: “How will this affect each of the stakeholders?”
  • Present your findings and resolutions to the school board or governing agency. Be prepared for failure (non-adoption of materials). Also, plan for success! Seek out community businesses that can fund the program. Get or craft feedback on implementation steps.
  • Implement in small, measurable steps. Meet on a regular basis to process results. Share those results in video/audio format in positive ways online.

This process works well. Cultivate an attitude of curiosity. Nurture a sincere desire to assist the committee in finding the best way forward.

I love these action steps and use them for major projects.

Think It Through

If your school thinks Chromebooks are the rage, but you have Microsoft 365, there may be a bit of a problem. Or if you are 100% Apple iPads but want to use Google Workspace for Education, you might run into a problem. The best alignment of tools puts the digital in line with the ecosystem.

Read Five Steps to Leading Campus Tech Efforts.

For example, if I wanted to deploy Microsoft SurfaceBooks, this would happen first:

  • Professional development on Microsoft 365 tools like Teams and OneNote Class Notebook
  • Set up screen projection tools that match SurfaceBooks

If budget limits are in place, then you may opt for less expensive options. Some districts might argue that Chromebooks and Google Workspace for Education cost less. Others may say you get more bang for your buck with Mac desktops for design and Chromebooks for on-the-go needs. It all depends, and you don’t want to make that decision alone.

Instead, take a moment to gather data and form a district-wide committee. Avoid making this decision alone in your office. When you’re asked how you could have decided this, you want to say that you:

  • Assessed needs (focus on what people would do in the space).
  • Formed a district-wide committee that informed the choice.
  • Explored solutions.
  • Researched what other nearby districts/schools were doing.
  • Formulated a solution that best aligned with the needs of the situation.

Your job is to ease this journey for the people who:

  • Know the community better
  • Are going to use the tools in real life
  • Do everything possible to meet the needs of stakeholders

To get you started, I took a moment to ask a few colleagues and friends some questions.

Gathering Data

It’s important to ask other districts around you, “What would you do given XYZ?” For example, I asked several technology directors and CTOs your question. Here are some of the responses, edited for readability:

Response #1: Troy Patterson

Troy Patterson is a Director of Educational Technology. He works for Cape Elizabeth Schools in Cape Elizabeth, Maine. Find him online via social media (@troypatterson@scholar.social).

Interesting. We’ve moved away from the concept of a Computer Lab (a special place where technology happens). Instead, embed technology into the classroom.

Skip the VR sets, 3D printer, and get mobile computing devices. Evaluate your options.

Response #2: Mark Gabehart

Round Rock ISD’s Chief Technology Officer, Mark Gabehart, says:

“We’ve moved away from computer labs. These provide the campus with an additional classroom. Some elementary campuses have a makerspace or robotics lab. That lab comes with chromebooks and 3D printers. Now, we are piloting an eSport MiniLab. A YMCA/Dell Foundation grant makes the pilot at five elementary schools possible. It includes an eSports MiniLab of five computers.”

Response #3: An Infrastructure Administrator

Others echo this point of focusing on mobile computing devices:

We have completely done away with any desktop related hardware. We have a mix between Chromebooks and tablets. 3D printers are a fun have, but they need quite a bit of care and feeding. (Source: Network staff, Toot via Mastodon social media)

Response #4: District Technology Director

TCEA member, Kory Prince (Technology Director for Bullard ISD), makes these points and offers a suggestion:

“At the elementary level, we separate out the lab from the STEM/STEAM stuff. In general, the STEM lab is treated more as an elective (like art or music) with an elective teacher instead of the primary teacher using the space with their students. We’re 1:1 with carts down to 3rd grade (each teacher has a Chromebook cart in their classroom), and have stand-alone Chromebook labs for grades lower than 3rd.

He goes on to say that the contents of the STEM Lab includes:

  • LEGO wall
  • Lite Brite Wall
  • 3D Printers (they use TinkerCAD on the Chromebooks)
  • 3D pens
  • Various flexible seating options
  • Robotics kits (LEGO Spike Prime, Osobots, Dash robot, Cubelets)
  • Various structure building sets (LEGO, Superstructs, KEVA Planks, consumables like paper plates, straws, construction paper, etc)
  • Oversized versions of games like Connect 4, Jenga, etc
  • Osmo (iPad + learning apps)

Response #5: Director of Technology

Scott Laleman points out the following:

My questions on that would be around the different experience for students, especially at the lower elementary levels, between using a desktop and a laptop. Do they have external mice available for the laptop users, or are they expecting the students to learn how to use a trackpad? What types of teacher learning would be expected to go on in there? What are they planning to use for full room display? Interactive panel? Projector?

I’ve seen libraries going this direction, since they have larger spaces to begin with and seem to have more flexibility in how to use that space. For a lab, though, I think it needs to cater to the students first, and in our situation, it needs to have the ability to convert to a regular classroom if needed, since we’re running out of space quickly.

Given this, the question shifts, doesn’t it? This allows you to make the argument for a less attractive tech-rich space. Instead, you focus on the functionality of what people would need and use. Also taking advantage of space is essential and that varies from campus to campus.

The Student Testing Angle

One of the reasons I focused on building a traditional computer lab at campuses was testing. In my most recent post as a technology director, testing had a big influence. Every campus had purchased a different set of technology (e.g. iPads, Chromebooks, desktops), or nothing. That meant that testing was a mixed bag at each campus.

As a result, ask: “What is your primary platform for testing?” Pick the one that is most reliable and put in enough devices to get the job done.

What Do You Think?

By now, you know I wouldn’t give you a straight answer. I could tell you what I would decide if no other factors were in place. But that would certainly be wrong. That said, here’s my take. Divorced from the important variables custom to your situation, it’s not that valuable:

  • Create a testing center at each campus that reflects a standard for set up for every campus.
  • Put the least expensive platform there for testing and have a plan for maintaining it.
  • Create a productivity area (“Design Center”) with a few iPads.
  • Put high-end desktops running a variety of easy-to-use tools. My recommendation is free, open source or free, web-based tools.
  • Provide professional development with digital badges on how to use the Design Center.

What I did in my district was get the standard set of equipment aligned to testing requirements. I asked, “What is the easiest set of equipment to manage and support for the lowest cost?” My focus was to get the best and most for what the organization could afford. Then, for the Design Center, ask the campus principal and site-based committee, “What would work best for you?” Then, I took the whole program forward to the Superintendent’s Cabinet for review.

To the Superintendent’s Cabinet, and then to other stakeholder groups, I said, “This is the organizational need we have. This is what we can afford with the budget provided.” I included the results of my research as an addendum to an executive summary (one page), as well as what campuses requested.

Whether that will work for you is another question. Regardless, I hope you’ve found the information in this article helpful. CTOs and technology staff out there reading this post – how would you answer this question? Leave us a comment.

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Google Tips and TricksSTEM/STEAMTechnology Applications

How to Create a Digital Badge Leaderboard

by Emily Horn
written by Emily Horn

TCEA Area 15 Director, Sherry Hall, has an excellent idea for creating a digital badge leaderboard to enhance student engagement. You can create your own spreadsheet and badges or edit this template that Sherry has already created! This template is ready to go with badges, tabs, and formulas– it just needs your customized class list, skills, and badges. If you want to get creative and make your own, let’s walk through how Sherry does it. Watch the video and/or check out the steps outlined below!

How to Create a Badge Leaderboard Worksheet Using Google Sheets by Sherry Hall

Create Your Tabs

Type sheets.new in your Chrome search bar to open up a new Google Worksheet, and follow the steps below to get started.

Tab 1: Open Google Sheets and create a “Badge Leaderboard” tab. In Sherry’s example, she has her class list in the first column, a title and image in the first row, and the tools students are working on mastering as titles in row two (Drive, Docs, Slides, etc.). Here, we can see she is working on skills in Google Workspace.

badge leaderboard spreadsheet example

Tab 2: Make a copy of the leaderboard tab by right-clicking on the tab and selecting “Duplicate.” Name this tab “Teacher,” because it’s just for you. Place checkboxes in each cell under the skills for each student name by highlighting the cells, clicking “Insert” in the menu bar, and then clicking “Checkbox” in the drop-down menu. Checkboxes will appear in all the cells you’ve selected.

badge leaderboard teacher tab

Tab 3: Make a copy of the “Teacher” tab and name this tab “Badges.” Remove the class list column and the row one image, so only the tools appear. Insert the badges you’d like each student to receive for mastering each tool. To do this, select the cell, click “Insert” in the menu bar, click “Image,” and select the “Image in cell” option. We can see here that Sherry has inserted coordinating badges for each tool.

virtual badges

Set Up Data Validation

  1. Go back to your “Teacher” tab, and click on “Data” in the menu bar.
  2. Then select “Data validation” in the drop-down menu.
  3. A pop-up box will appear, and you will need to make sure the criteria says “Checkbox,” the “Use custom cell values” box is checked, and set checked boxes to be “TRUE” and unchecked boxes to be “FALSE.”
  4. Once these are set, click “Save.”
data validation Google Sheets

Protect Teacher and Badges Tabs from Student Editing

  1. Under “Data” in the menu bar, click “Protected sheets and ranges,” and a menu will appear on the right side of the screen.
  2. Select the “Sheet” tab, and click “Set permissions.”
  3. Click “Restrict who can edit this range, and select “Only you” from the drop-down menu.
  4. Click “Done.”
  5. Click on your “Badges” tab and do the same!
Google Sheets Tab Permissions

Insert the IF Formula

I promise this isn’t as hard as it seems! You will only need to do one row of formulas, then drag the row of formulas down to fill the page, and Google Sheets will magically take care of the rest.

  1. On the “Badges Leaderboard” tab, you will need to insert an IF formula in the first student’s row for each skill. Note: You can copy and paste the one I provided below and edit it as needed.

2. To do this, you will structure your formula like this:

IF Formula
Copy this formula to edit and use in your Google Sheet—> =IF(Teacher!B3=TRUE, Badges!$A$2, )

3. Once you’ve inserted the formulas in each row one cell for the first student, select all the cells in row one for that student, click the blue box in the bottom right corner of the last cell, and drag down over all the cells, like this:

Watch to learn how to quickly fill cells with a formula in Google Sheets!

4. As students master each skill, check the boxes in the “Teacher” tab, and the “Badge Leaderboard” will auto-populate with badges! Pretty neat.

Badges Leaderboard
Example of Badges in the Badge Leaderboard Tab

Sherry offers several free resources:

You can also download the entire folder of resources here. Thanks to Sherry for this fantastic idea! I can see this being used in a variety of ways at any grade level. How will you use a digital badge leaderboard? Leave us a comment to let us know.

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