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Dr. Bruce Ellis

Bruce specializes in leadership development and working with districts to tailor onsite professional development workshops. Bruce earned his Ed.D. in Curriculum, Instruction, and Supervision in Secondary and Higher Education and his M.S. in Learning Technology/Information Systems at Texas A&M University-Commerce. He earned his B.S. in Elementary Education at Dallas Baptist University.

virtual year
Good Teaching

Closing Out Your Virtual Year

by Dr. Bruce Ellis
written by Dr. Bruce Ellis

I think it is safe to say that this has been a very different school year than what we are used to. Social distancing, sheltering in place, last-minute remote learning, it’s enough to make everyone ready for summer. Even amid the chaos, though, here are some ideas to help you provide a meaningful closure for this virtual year to your students.

Personal Appreciation and Recognition for This Virtual Year

In my traditional teaching, I like to end the year by writing a note to each student. Yes, it takes time, but it is a very personal way to help solidify what you’ve invested in them. It’s not so much about the content, but is more about the person you tried to help them become throughout the year. Speaking your appreciation is good, but writing it down for them so they can reflect upon it (even years later) is a much more powerful method.

I remember having 174 middle school students and found that I had to start the process several weeks in advance in order to get a note written and ready to give to each student the last week of school. For a few students who enjoyed getting on my last nerve, it took longer to wordsmith an honest but encouraging message to them.

No, I’m not suggesting that you take the next few weeks to do this. That would be adding a LOT more stress to an already stressful spring. What I am suggesting, though, is for you to consider how you might craft a message, even if it is to a class as a whole. Maybe you aren’t writing to each individual student, but are instead reflecting on what you enjoyed about the class, ways you’ve seen them grow over the year, some good times, and some struggles that they’ve had to come through.

Fortunately, there are probably things that are true to share with each class so you are just tweaking it a bit to make it more personalized for each different class period. Consider sharing your thoughts on what you’ll remember most about the class and possibly ways that you’ve grown as a teacher (and a person?) because of them. Emphasize the “people” portion of the year and not the virtual learning that had to take place.

Encouragement for the Summer

virtual year

We remember what it was like being out for the summer. We weren’t interested in avoiding the summer slide (the decline in learning that happens over the summer). But as a teacher, we definitely want to encourage students to be mentally active over the next few weeks.

Consider curating a list of YouTube videos, websites, or even books available at the public library that you can share with the parents. Hint: As you share this with the parents, you may need to start by saying how much you enjoyed their child in your class and you look forward to hearing great things about them (or however you need to word it) and then share the resources as some ideas to consider sharing with their child(ren).

Fortunately for us, you may have already started including unique learning activities through remote learning. If not, think about how your students can be creative, explore, and create over the summer.

Goals for the Future

Click the image above to copy the template to your Google Drive

Send the following template to your students and ask them to write down some ideas about their summer and future. Encourage students to keep the document and refer to it often. You might be surprised at how it pops up in a few years as students come back to you and share what they wrote down and how it has helped them. The four areas of the template include:

  • This summer, Iโ€™d like to do the following…
  • This summer, Iโ€™d like to help others by…
  • When I grow up, I think I would find the following jobs/careers satisfying…
  • When I am grown, I would like to have the following character traits…

For the section on jobs and careers, MyMajors has a nice tool to help narrow down what might be an interesting tool. For each career, MyMajor shares details of an overview, what education is required, schools where you can attend to get the training/certification/skills, what skills are typical for that career, and the median annual and hourly salary, and how many are employed nationally in that career. On the overview tab, you’ll even find a Holland Code chart to help you see if that career is a good fit for you. Holland Code refers to a theory of careers and vocational choice (based upon personality types) that was initially developed by American psychologist John L. Holland.

Students may have a tough time identifying character traits they admire most and want to develop. A link is provided to a list developed by TeacherVision. This list includes values, morals, and beliefs character traits (i.e.: honest, brave, compassionate, etc.), physical and emotional character traits (i.e.: imaginative, tireless, joyful, etc.), and personality character traits (i.e.: thoughtful, humorous, helpful, etc.).

Make an Impact

Think of closing out your virtual year as one last chance to make a big impact on your students. Which of the three ideas above have you done in the past with your learners? Is there another way that you close out your year with your students to make it special? Let us know in the comments and share it with others. We’d love to hear from you!

Photo byย Frederick Tubiermontย onย Unsplash

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remote teaching
Educational TrendsGood Teaching

Five Resources to Help with Remote Teaching

by Dr. Bruce Ellis
written by Dr. Bruce Ellis

Remote teaching has its challenges. Though you may be able to tweak many of your classroom lessons to work in a remote learning situation, you may discover that the learning activities have to be completely rethought.

Here are several resources for ideas and support as you look to make learning for your students meaningful and fun without driving their parents crazy.

TCEA Community – Remote Learning Resources

The Remote Learning Resources group is focused on resources, ideas, and solutions for enhancing student engagement in digital learning. Share best teaching practices, websites, apps, tools, and creative ideas for helping students to learn with technology. Access to this online community does require TCEA membership. Other Community groups include Student Engagement, Ask Your Fellow Techsperts, STEM, and Robotics, as well as others.

COVID-19 Parent/Teacher Learning Resources (SplashCircle)

The Parent/Teacher Learning Resources group is a Facebook group that has lots of ideas and support to help teachers and parents manage the shift to remote learning. You’ll find answers to questions, learning resources lists, daily schedules, interesting links, tips, and updates related to PreK-5 learning.

Educator, Parent, and Caregiver Resources

Cartoon image of owl and books

The Ohio Department of Education has provided a nicely categorized set of Parent and Caregiver Resources to help support engaging students in learning during the school building closure period. A separate but equally organized set of Educator Resources is also provided. Consider exploring both lists for helpful ideas and activities.

Scholastic Learn at Home

Scholastic Learn at Home contains four weeks of activities to help your child with day-to-day activities to foster reading, learning, and growing. Besides the grade-level grouped resources, you will also find a section for families, teachers, and tips and tricks.

Teaching Ideas Group

The Teaching ideas is a closed group on Facebook and averages about 75 posts a day. Even if you don’t post, be sure to look through what others are asking and the resources shared. If you are a “specialty” teacher, then here are some groups that may be a better fit for you: Teaching Theatre thru Remote Learning, K-12 Art Teacher Group, Teaching Choir Remotely, Early Years Remote Learning, and Remote ASL Teaching.

What other resources would you add to this list? Be sure to let us know in the comments below. We look forward to hearing from you.

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Educational TrendsGoogle Tips and TricksMicrosoft

Creating Virtual Backgrounds for Zoom

by Dr. Bruce Ellis
written by Dr. Bruce Ellis

If you happen to be using a PC or Mac (not a Chromebook) to connect with Zoom, then you may have noticed that you have the ability to do virtual backgrounds (assuming it has been enabled in the settings). Other than using the background photos that Zoom provides, where can you find additional great choices that will set you apart in your next Zoom meeting? Continue reading to find out!

The Specs for Zoom Backgrounds

Before we jump in, we should clarify that photos for Zoom virtual backgrounds should be in 16:9 ratio with the ideal resolution of 1920 px by 1080 px. If you use a photo with a different ratio, then you can expect to have black bars appearing on the sides since Zoom will fit the photo in the 16:9 space. This will definitely identify you as a newbie.

GIF, JPG/JPEG, or 24-bit PNG images can be used. Be aware that, if you have a photo with any transparent pixels, these will show as white. Also, if you are planning to add a logo or text, don’t add them to the bottom of the background photo, as Zoom may superimpose your name over it while in the meeting.

Step 1: Find Good Photos

Having a great photo is the key. You don’t want something that is too busy or distracting and you do want something that is true to who you are. Be sure to check out the copyright to see what attribution is required.

Here are five websites to get you started with finding great photos.

Pixabay has so many great photos for you to choose from. Plus, they offer some fantastic ways of filtering through the photos so that you can find that perfect graphic quicker. After you search for the topic of background (i.e. wall, nature, sunrise, clouds, celebration, trail, etc.), set the orientation to horizontal and choose the most relevant category; I usually choose backgrounds/textures.

NOTE: If you create a free account with Pixabay, you don’t have to identify that you are not a robot each time; logging in with your username/password allows you to skip that step.

Pexels is another great tool for finding images that you can use with hesitation. Be aware that there is an overlap between Pixabay and Pexels so you will find some commonality in the search results. But there is enough difference to check out each. Similar to Pixaby, just type in the topic of interest.

Though Pexels doesn’t provide as many filters, you can set the orientation of choice as horizontal. You can’t specify the ratio or the pixel width/height, but you can choose the size (small, medium, or large). I recommend choosing large and seeing if you are satisfied with the results. You can always trim down a photo, but you run the risk of pixelating the photo if you try to enlarge it to fit the Zoom ideal.

A few other sites to consider include Unsplash, Reshot, and RawPixel. Each has its own interface, so you’ll have to explore each one and learn how to best search and filter to find the photo that you want to use.

Step 2: Edit Your Photo

You can use a simple online photo editor such as Pixlr, BeFunky, Fotor, or Adobe Spark if you need to work in the cloud to edit your chosen image. Here is how I go about creating Zoom backgrounds in Photoshop, PowerPoint, or Google Slides. The main thing to remember is that the end result should be a photo that is preferably 1920 px by 1080 px, but at least fits the 16:9 ratio.

Editing in Photoshop

Begin by opening your photo and select the Rectangle Marquee Tool. For the sake of instructions, we’ll assume we don’t know what ratio the photo is. With the Rectangle Marquee Tool selected, choose Fixed Ratio from the dropdown and set the width to 16 and height to 9 (refer to the image below).

Video demonstration for cropping a photo to 16:9 ratio in Photoshop.

You are now able to click and drag a selection area of the photo. If the photo is already 16:9, you should be able to drag from one corner diagonally to the opposite corner and encompass the whole photo. If the photo is NOT 16:9, you’ll notice that the selected area doesn’t fit perfectly. That’s okay since we can move the selection around to choose the area we want to use. Once you have a 16:9 area selected to use, click on Image –> Crop. If this photo is now the finished product you want, click on File –> Export –> Quick Export PNG. If you would like to continue editing to add a logo or text, save your file now as a Photoshop (PSD) file; this will allow us to continue editing it with layers which we are about to add.

Now to add text to our image. This could be your district or school name or it could be some other information that better identifies you and/or connects you with other viewers in the Zoom meeting.

Let’s begin by clicking on the Horizontal Type Tool and then click on the photo where you would like to start typing – but don’t start typing just yet. On the screenshot below, you’ll notice what appears when you are using the Horizontal Type Tool. Select your font from the drop-down list and set the size. Click on the appropriate alignment option and confirm the color of your text (indicated by the color box just to the right of the alignment options). Once you have these set, it is now time to start typing. NOTE: We can start typing before setting these options, but I typically find that I have to select the text and go back and change the options afterwards when I’m in a hurry.

Video demonstration for adding text in Photoshop.

You may have noticed that a new layer appeared when you click on the photo. Though it looks like you are typing on the photo, you are really adding text over the photo in a transparent layer. If you realize that your text should be moved some, then click on the Move Tool and then click and drag the text to the new area; be sure that your mouse is over some of the text itself as it will assume you want to move whatever is under the cursor.

If you are looking for fonts to use, my go-to sites include dafonts, FontSpace, and 1001 Free Fonts. You’ll find plenty of fun, festive, and even professional-looking fonts to use on your background.

Video demonstration for adding a logo in Photoshop.

In our final step, let’s add a logo. This could be a school mascot, your bitmoji, or other image. Open the logo in Photoshop as you initially did the original photo. Click Select –> All to copy the logo to the clipboard. Now go to the Photoshop tab with your Zoom background photo. Click Edit –> Paste. If your image does not have a transparent background, you may need to remove it.

You may also need to resize the image. Click on the image to the right to view the brief tutorial showing how to insert, remove the background, and resize the logo.

Editing in PowerPoint

Video demonstration for creating a simple Zoom virtual background in PowerPoint.

You don’t have to have a high end photo editing tool to get great results. And you might find that using more simplistic tools (or actually re-purposing such tools) may make the process much faster.

I prefer to start with a blank slide in PowerPoint – that is, no text boxes for the title or anything. Click on the Design menu –> Slide Size –> Wide Screen (16:9). We now know that the ratio will match that of the Zoom background. Insert your photo and resize to perfectly fit the slide. If it doesn’t fit perfectly and you don’t want to stretch part of it, consider centering the photo on your slide and adding a border to hide the gap, similar to adding a mat over a photo that doesn’t fit a picture frame perfectly.

We’ll use the border of a transparent rectangle placed over the image for our border. Begin by inserting a rectangle. With the rectangle selected (and sized to fit the slide), set the shape fill to transparent (Shape Format menu –> Shape Fill –> No Fill); you should now be able to see the photo. Now make the border coordinate with the photo by clicking on Shape Format menu –> Shape Outline –> Eye Dropper. As you move the eye dropper around, you will notice that a small color square is indicating what color will be picked if you click at that location of the photo. Click somewhere to choose a color.

Now let’s make the border thick enough to cover those gaps. We don’t want to add a border directly to the photo because it will just highlight the fact that it is a different ratio; adding the border to the transparent rectangle on top retains the 16:9 ratio and hides the imperfection. With the rectangle still selected, click on the Shape Format menu –> Shape Outline –> Weight –> More Lines. Increase the width until all gaps are covered. Don’t be surprised if the number is large.

You are now ready to save the slide out as an image. To do so, click on the File menu –> Save As and locate the folder where you want to save the Zoom background. For the file type, choose PNG Portable Network Graphics Format. When asked if you want to save All Slides or Just This One, choose Just This One. Your background is now ready to be used in Zoom.

Editing in Google Slides

Video demonstration for creating a simple Zoom virtual background in Google Slides.

Editing in Google Slides is very similar to the PowerPoint process. Begin by clicking on the Insert menu –> Image. You have several options as to where get your image (upload from the computer, search the web, Drive, Photos, by URL, or camera).

Once you’ve located your image and added it to your slide, resize the photo (making it larger or smaller) to cover the slide area. If you want a logo, locate that image and add to your photo noting that the ideal placement is most likely the top left or right corner but allowing a bit of a gap between it and the edge of the photo.

Since Zoom will have your name showing at the bottom (assuming that the host did not turn off showing names), any text that you add to your background should probably avoid the bottom third (where the name may appear) or the middle section (where you will appear). You may find it helpful to put contact information such as a phone number, email address, or social media identifier to encourage other users to connect with you outside of meeting times.

Knowing that these words may not be very legible if other participants are looking at a small stream of you, consider keeping the text to a few words at best. You don’t want the text to compete with you in the video stream, but you do want it to be readable.

Step 3: Enjoy

You are now ready to enjoy attending Zoom meetings with your fantastic virtual background. You may even find that other folks will ask you for a copy of your background or to create one for them. You don’t have to tell them how easy it was. That will be our secret.

twitter-bird-looking-at-laptop

So, what will you create? Will you use Photoshop, PowerPoint, Google Slides, or another tool to edit your image? The main thing to remember is to be creative without being distracting. We’d love to see what you create! Share your background via Twitter and use the hashtags #tcea and #zoombg.

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Zoom games
Content AreasEducational TrendsGood Teaching

Distancing without Disconnecting: Zoom Games

by Dr. Bruce Ellis
written by Dr. Bruce Ellis

Whether you are a teacher working with students or are just trying to work from home during this strange time, it’s important to social distance without disconnecting. Social and emotional support is a valuable resource to provide. Here are a few games you can play using Zoom to connect with students, friends, and peers. Though these are not necessarily content- or work-focused, you can easily tweak them to make them fit those needs.

Believe It or Not!

There are lots of sites that provide trivia knowledge and quizzes based on specific areas of interest. For this game, the host should identify the area of interest and then gather trivia knowledge from the internet. Change some statements slightly before sharing with your players. Players can then do thumbs up/down to indicate whether they believe the statement or not. Once everyone has voted, tell whether the statement is true or not. If it isn’t true, tell the true trivia information. For example, “Marco Polo discovered pasta. Believe it or not?” That’s actually false as found in the will of Ponzio Baestone, a Genoan soldier who requested โ€œbariscella peina de macaroneโ€ โ€“ a small basket of macaroni. His will is dated 1279, 16 years before Marco Polo returned from China. (REFERENCE) If the trivia information is written as a question, but not a yes/no question, consider rewording to to make it easier for players. For example, “How many stars are in the American flag?” could be reworded to “There are 51 stars in the American flag. Believe it or not?” That’s false; there are actually 50. Here are some locations to check out for interesting trivia knowledge:

Scavenger Hunt

If you have had the opportunity to watch daytime TV programming, you may have come across a show called Let’s Make a Deal. I don’t think they do it anymore, but “back in the day” at the end of the show the host, Monty Hall, would ask if someone has a _____ (and then call out a random object). Audience members would quickly rummage through their purses and bags hoping to be the first to pull out the object for him. If you were the first, you would win some money. This is a similar game except you aren’t limited to what you have in your purse or on the table. For this game, the host calls out an item. It can be generic (like a can of food) or it can be specific (such as a can of beans). Players have a designated amount of time to run locate the item at their house and bring it to show on video. Players that arrive back with the item before the time limit receive a point.

Pictionary 

Like the real game, the virtual game has one player that is drawing while his/her teammates are trying to guess what it is. Once players are put into teams, consider having them rename themselves with their team name and their first name. This will keep it easier to keep track of who is on which team. Here’s how players can rename themselves (scroll to the section CHANGING THE NAME INSIDE A ZOOM ROOM). As the host, private chat the person who is to draw first – this way no other players can see the word. Before the first drawer begins, have his team identify themselves to make sure they all know who is on which team. The team has 30 seconds to correctly guess what is being drawn using the white board feature. If successful, the team gets a point. Play moves to the other team. Here are lists of words to help you get started:

Going on a Picnic

This is a fun game to play with students. It is something like a twist on 20 questions. The player that is “going on a picnic” answers yes/no questions of everyone else. Players are trying to guess what rule was used to pack the basket. For example, the rule could be things that are red in which case someone could ask, “Did you pack strawberries?” in which you would answer yes. If someone asked if you packed bicycles, you would answer “It depends” since some bicycles are red. After players have had a chance to offer ideas of what was packed, you can either allow them to guess or send them to breakout rooms to discuss what they think the rule might be. Once everyone is back together (from their breakout rooms…if you are using those) call on someone to guess the rule or allow them to ask about more items that might be in the basket.

Charades

In this game, the group is divided into at least two teams. One member of a team goes first. His teammates try to guess what is being acted out before the time limit. As the host, send a private chat to him and give him a choice of two different things to act out. He chats you back which one he chooses and begins acting when you say begin. As the host, you are to listen for the team guessing to see if they correctly identify what is being acted out. If correct, that team gets a point and play goes to the other/next team. Here are some ideas if you need some help getting started:

Two Truths and a Lie

This is a great game to play to get to know everyone better. Each player makes up two truths and a lie about themselves. They may find it easiest to write these down so they’ll remember them when it becomes their turn. When it is a player’s turn, that player shares two truths and the lie (in whatever order they choose). Everyone else is to guess which of the three statements is a lie. Others can hold up 1, 2, or 3 on their fingers, say the number out loud, or type the number in the chat box. Once everyone has voted, the person identifies the lie…and usually clarifies why it is a lie. This game is a lot of fun and requires no real preparation beforehand or props for players.

Dictionary

This game has gone by several names throughout the years. In this game, one player is a dictionary and tells the group a word and then gives everyone else a minute to come up with what could be the definition. Each person is given a chance to share what the definition might be before the dictionary player reveals the real definition. This is a fun way to build vocabulary and introduce students to new words.

If playing with high school students or adults, then consider this twist. The dictionary player privately chats the definition to another player; that player will share the real definition (or a more believable way of saying it) as their guess. After everyone has had a chance to share their guess, they vote on which definition they believe is correct. Those voting for the correct definition get a point. Another player becomes the dictionary and play continues. You may need to establish the rule at the beginning that no one but the dictionary player can search the Internet. If you are not a logophile (a lover of words), then consider using these sites to help you:

Scattegories

Who doesn’t love a good game of Scattegories! Playing online through Zoom can be just as fun. The host needs to share her screen and go to https://swellgarfo.com/scattergories/. Once everyone has a piece of paper and a pen/pencil, the host needs to click the Restart icon; a random letter will appear along with twelve categories. When the host clicks the Play icon, the categories are revealed and countdown begins. When the time is up, have each person share what they have for each category. Players get a point for each answer that is not duplicated by anyone else, but is acceptable by everyone.

Share Your Zoom Games

These are just a few of the fun ways people are distancing without disconnecting. What other games have you played with your friends while on Zoom? We’d love to hear about them. Share your ideas with us in the comments below.

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working remotely
CTO/CIOLeadership

Supporting Staff While Working Remotely

by Dr. Bruce Ellis
written by Dr. Bruce Ellis

While it may be commonplace for finance or IT workers to work remotely, it is definitely not usual to have school teachers and district employees working remotely. That is, until now. Working remotely is a great benefit for some people, while others consider it akin to torture to endure what seems like solitary confinement.

So, what do you do if you are managing staff that are now trying to figure out this whole “working from home” thing? We have a few tips for you and would love to hear what additions you would add to our list. Let us know in the comments!

Set Guidelines and Expectations

If your staff has not worked remotely before, it is advisable to provide clear guidelines and expectations to them. Office rules that were once understood take on a whole new meaning when everyone is dispersed โ€” including supervisors. See what others in your capacity are doing and what expectations they are communicating. Tweak those to fit your district’s policies and your personality.

Just like in your work environment previously this year, your staff perform better when they understand what is expected, what success looks like, and have the freedom to ask questions and get clarification. Being in a forced remote working situation makes that even more critical.

Encourage Routines

“Routines” don’t have to be a negative word. Whether we realize it or not, we all most likely have routines at work each day. Routines provide predictability, which, in turn, can help us cope and adjust to new situations more quickly. If your routine when you arrive at work is to get a cup of coffee, talk with your coworker for five minutes, and check email before diving into the heavy lifting for the day, consider how that might translate to working at home.

Some routines may need to be adjusted a little to fit the new environment of working remotely. At the office, you probably don’t think much about your routines; you just do them. Pause for a moment and actually write down what your routine might look like now. It might even help to put start and stop times to tasks and activities on your schedule. Decide to try it out for a few days and examine it as you are going through it.

After a few days, examine what you wrote out and tweak as needed. Building predictability into your day will help you get in a rhythm of being more productive and satisfied with how you are managing the “new normal.”

Get Moving

If you are like me, you may do more walking at work than you realize. Trips to the printer, restroom, front desk, break room, etc. all add up to not being quite so sedentary while in the office. If I’m not conscious of it, though, I may realize (afterwards) that I’ve been sitting in the same spot on the sofa for several hours working.

While it’s great to get in the zone, we don’t want to neglect our body. Encourage your staff to take a fifteen-minute walk mid-morning and then again about an hour or so after lunch. Getting up and getting the blood pumping doesn’t necessarily mean doing cardio, but it does mean that your staff will most likely be able to think better and therefore work better.

Have Face-to-Face Communications

Even when we cannot meet in person for staff meetings, we can still meet online and try to emulate some of the practices that we benefit from in face-to-face meetings. Plus, changing to a quarantined environment with little transition time makes it even more beneficial to see others, and to be seen.

There are some reports and bits of information that can be effectively shared by email. And, in a normal office environment, it might be advisable to cancel a meeting if there was no real need to get together. That is, if everything could be handled via email and collaborative documents. But right now, even if you don’t have a heavy agenda, it is important for everyone to feel connected.

Now that we at TCEA are all working remotely, at least through the next couple of weeks, one of our rules is that everyone has their video camera on during meetings. We aren’t meeting high executives or CEOs and trying to win over million dollar accounts; we are meeting with each other in real life situations, which sometimes means an occasional kid or pet running through the background, the doorbell alerting that a package has been dropped off, or (gasp!) a house that hasn’t had a maid step on the premises in years (if ever).

Keep Things Light

Yes, these are serious times. Yes, we are all under a lot of stress. That’s why it’s important for leaders to find ways to make staff feel less frightened and more able to handle the situation. You can do that by putting some fun in their day.

At our first TCEA remote staff meeting, we played a Kahoot! game to get to know each other even better and to help us reconnect. At our next one, Executive Director Lori Gracey has said that it will be silly hat day for us all and we should come to the Zoom meeting with our best bonnets on. I’m sure there will be other surprises as this sheltering in place continues. But that seems less stressful because we are all in it together and able to laugh at each other.

Gauge Your Staff

You should already know your staff. You know those that do better when you drop in for just a minute each morning, those that think of being quarantined and working alone is better than a Disney cruise, and those that need your occasional reassurance that they are doing a great job. Working remotely doesn’t change any of that. So, as you think about your staff, consider how you can be that same great leader you are in person, but now via telecommuting.

You don’t want to micromanage, but you do want to help each staff member in a way that is meaningful to them. Unfortunately for you, though, this will probably take more time on your part and require you to be more conscious of your actions. But you can do it. You are a great leader and that is what great leaders do.

Thank Those Going the Extra 1,000 Miles

While what the teachers are doing with distant students is absolutely amazing, there are other staff members who are also going above and beyond. The cafeteria workers, the bus drivers, the other admin members of the team — all of them are putting the needs of the children first, sometimes even about their own health or family. Be sure to let them know how much you appreciate them for that.

And don’t forget your tech staff. While we’ve been talking about digital learning for years, being thrown into the deep end of the pool like this without preparation or training time is scary. They believe that this remote learning can be a true boon for student empowerment and achievement. But they are stressed beyond belief right now as they try to solve issues like digital equity, parents who don’t understand how technology works, log in and software problems, and more. Give them a virtual high five to show that you’ve noticed their very hard work.

At times like these, your leadership skills may shine even brighter. Those things that were taken for granted by you and others will more likely be noticed when done with intention. As you support your staff and fellow administrators, consider these tips to help make it an easier transition in a chaotic time.

I know this isn’t an exhaustive list that I’ve shared, so I’m asking you to add to it in the comments below. What tip or activity that you’ve thought of has helped you and your staff? Do you have a boss that has done something well to make this time easier to manage? Give a shout out in the comments below. This is the place to pay it forward so other leaders can implement your ideas and further everyone’s success.

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Raspberry Pi
AndroidCoding/Computer ScienceRoboticsSTEM/STEAM

Resources for the Raspberry Pi Enthusiast

by Dr. Bruce Ellis
written by Dr. Bruce Ellis

What can be better than a computer designed to inspire children? That was the motivation for creating Raspberry Pi even as early as 2006 when it was just a concept. At the end of 2011, 25 Raspberry Pi boards were assembled and tested for market. The next year, these were auctioned off on eBay with official sales to the public starting in February of 2012. The board with the serial number 01 was the last to auction off and sold for ยฃ3,500 (approximately $4,508.70 in today’s dollars).

Fortunately for educators, we don’t have to vie for limited quantities for historical purposes. We have choices today, such as the smallest and simplest of the boards, the Raspberry Pi Zero, for just five dollars, to the newest and most robust microcomputer, the Raspberry Pi 4 with 4GB of RAM, for only $55 โ€” with none being much larger than a credit card.

With such a low entry point, it is clear why many educators are introducing their students to microcomputers. These boards allow students to learn algebraic thinking and reasoning, coding, basic hardware/software interfacing, and physical computing by incorporating sensors, motors, actuators, LEDs, speakers, and more. Many students have found Raspberry Pi to be an entry to programming using languages such as Scratch, Python, Ruby, C, and C++. To help you introduce Raspberry Pi to your students (and possibly to yourself if you are a n00b) or extend the learning possibilities, here are a few resources that I’ve curated for you to enjoy.

Books

Excited About Coding! – An Introduction to Coding Using Scratch 2 Software on the Raspberry Pi 4 Computer
Author: Grant H. Williams
Age Range: 9 and up
Paperback: 162 pages
Publisher: Grant Williams (November 22, 2019)
ISBN-10: 0692197281
ISBN-13: 978-0692197288

Raspberry Pi Projects for Kids: Create an MP3 Player, Mod Minecraft, Hack Radio Waves, and More!
Author: Dan Aldred
Paperback: 288 pages
Publisher: No Starch Press (December 2, 2019)
ISBN-10: 1593279469
ISBN-13: 978-1593279462

Sensor Projects with Raspberry Pi: Internet of Things and Digital Image Processing
Author: Guillermo Guillen
Paperback: 157 pages
Publisher: Apress; 1st ed. edition (December 19, 2019)
ISBN-10: 1484252985
ISBN-13: 978-1484252987

RASPBERRY PI 4 PROJECTS FOR THE EVIL GENIUS: A Comprehensive Guide to Setup & Developing Raspberry Pi 4 Projects
Author: John White
Paperback: 150 pages
Publisher: Independently published (September 13, 2019)
ISBN-10: 1692743295
ISBN-13: 978-1692743291

The MagPi Magazine – The Official Raspberry Pi Magazine
Published by the Raspberry Pi Foundation, you’ll enjoy monthly tips, tricks, how-to’s, and projects for you to get the most from your Raspberry Pi. You can subscribe and get a discount from the price you’d pay if you bought if off the magazine rack.
NOTE: You can download the magazine as a PDF for free, going all the way back to Issue 1, May 2012!

HackSpace Magazine cover

HackSpace Magazine
This magazine is also published by the Raspberry Pi Foundation and has lots of ideas not limited to just Raspberry Pi. At the time of this post, Issue 28 has been released and covers adding audio to Raspberry Pi projects, as well as how to design a vase in Fusion 360, making things with toothpicks and getting stronger prints with your 3D printer.
NOTE: Issues of HackSpace can also be downloaded as PDF files for free!

Websites

Instructables – Though you will need a login (which is free) to access the Raspberry Pi projects, this site is known for its wide variety of crowd-sourced ideas and projects. You will also find great contests and classes to challenge you and extend your learning. You can even take a short class to learn how to write your own Instructable to share with the group.

Hackaday.io – With over 1,000 projects tagged with “Raspberry Pi,” you are sure to find some interesting things to spark your own creativity. More than 23,000 projects are shared at the time of this post, so you are definitely looking at having any free time filled. You are sure to find interesting projects for kids, by kids as well.

Top 20 Raspberry Pi Blogs, Websites and Influencers in 2020 – Be sure to look this list over and explore some great resources that you didn’t realize existed.

Top 20 Raspberry Pi 4 Projects That You Must Try Now – Seeed Studio put together a list of great and fun projects for you to try with your Raspberry Pi 4. Some are definitely more involved, but are still worth the effort and time to create. Which will be your favorite?

Raspberry Pi Resource Guide – Mitch Allen created and maintains the DesertBot website in order to share his love for robotics with other hobbyists. In this post, he shares various resources for you to consider if you are interested in Raspberry Pi … and possibly robots.

Groups

Meetup – Here is a list of search results for various meetups around the globe that have Raspberry Pi User Groups or Raspberry Pi-related events. If you don’t see one close to you, then touch base with one of the many groups clustered around programming languages or makerspaces to see if they will be planning one soon. Or, start your own Raspberry Pi User Group!

Reddit – There are several different groups to check out on Reddit that address Raspberry Pi. Consider joining each group to stay current on what others are doing, as well as having a lot of like-minded nerds available to assist you with troubleshooting. Groups to check out include:

Twitter – Follow the #RaspberryPi hashtag to get numerous ideas of how Raspberry Pi is being using around the world. This is great if you have students with languages other than English, since there are people in many other countries tweeting their ideas, projects, questions, etc. Be sure to check out the photos and videos link as well to get more ideas.

Facebook – Don’t overlook Facebook as a source of relevant groups to check out. Here are a few groups to get you started.

YouTube – And let’s not forget all the folks who share via YouTube. Here, you’ll find the videos posted this year, curated playlists, and channels dedicated to Raspberry Pi. Here are a few to check out.

Your Recommendations

Have I left anything off that you would recommend? Post in the comments below and share what other resources you have found helpful, and what types of projects you enjoy working on with your Raspberry Pi. We look forward to hearing from you!

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flipgrid
Educational TrendsGood TeachingProfessional Learning

Four Features to Make Better Use of Flipgrid

by Dr. Bruce Ellis
written by Dr. Bruce Ellis

You have probably already heard of Flipgrid and perhaps even started using it, at least to some degree. It definitely seems to be the perfect tool to support students in many ways, not to mention using it as a way to provide peer- and content-support to teachers.

As I have worked with teachers and administrators, though, it seems that most folks using Flipgrid aren’t making the most of some great features it offers. I usually hear from educators, after sharing Flipgrid as part of a larger training, that they wish they knew about the features sooner and are stoked to start using it in even more engaging ways. You could say that they caught #flipgridFever!

Update Your Profile

Begin by making sure that your profile is updated. Don’t be shy. This will allow others to better connect with you. Click on your image in the top right and select Profile. Select a photo or avatar for your profile picture. If you have a picture that has a busy background or you want to use a quick editing tool to remove the background (as I did on my bitmoji image), go to remove.bg, upload, and edit your image as needed.

Once done editing, download your image and upload it for your profile by clicking on your current Flipgrid profile image. For your account information, be sure to choose all the grades and subjects that you have experience with. Complete the most current bio description of who you are and what you do within the 256-character limit. Lastly, share how you would like to connect by providing any social media information or links. When done, click the Update Profile button. Now, let’s jump into some useful tools.

1. GridPals

GridPals is, as you may have deduced, Flipgrid’s version of pen pals. It’s a super easy way to connect with other educators and enthusiasts to further learning and improve education.

Begin by clicking on the #GridPals link at the top of your Flipgrid screen (assuming you are on a computer). Change your status from Hidden to Active so that you and others can find each other and connect. A window will pop up allowing you to edit your profile and add the location where you are. For mine, I entered Austin, Texas, United States. Click the Next button to continue. You are now able to give permission for other GridPals to contact you. Plus, Flipgrid never shares your contact email with them until you reply, so you have complete control. Edit/add any social connections if you would like and then click the Join GridPals! button. Woohoo! You are now in the GridPals group!

So, what do you do if you don’t have students? Why would you want to be a part of GridPals? Even if you don’t have students, you might be asked to share with a group of students because of your job or area of expertise. It also helps you stay up-to-date on how others are using Flipgrid in the classroom, from early childhood up through college!

2. Disco Library

Yep, Flipgrid has a disco library. Well, in layman’s terms, it might better be called a template gallery, but “disco library” is so much more hip and exciting!

In the Disco Library, you can access templates that other educators have created to spark new ideas of interacting with your students, as well as jump start your process. No need to start a topic from scratch if someone else has already created it for you. Flipgrid also lets you know the following when you enter the Disco Library:

  • No student videos will be shared when a Topic is added to the Disco Library.
  • You can edit Topic information before or after you share. Topics can be removed at any time.
  • Other Flipgrid educators will not see that youโ€™ve added their Topic template and vice versa.

Using Weekly Hits

The #FlipgridWeeklyHits shares 50 topic templates that you might be interested in. You can scroll (left-to-right) through the list of thumbnails or click on the View All link to jump down to the list as a set of search results. Scrolling through the list, I have found several that spark creative ideas of how I can support students that I haven’t thought of before using a specific student standard, or support teachers with a unique area to share on a particular topic that is meaningful to those like-minded teachers. It’s almost like a PLN (professional leaning network) in Flipgrid!

After clicking on the View All link, you will drop down to the list and be able to see who the topic template creator identified as the audience, the subject area, how many times it has been used, and how many favorites it has. Just click on the topic template to get more information about the topic. If you want to use it, just select which of your grids you want to add it to.

Featured Disco Playlists are sets of topic templates provided by various organizations such as code.org, Wonderopolis, Hacking for STEM, and more. When you find topic templates that you like, either as part of a playlist, a weekly hit, or ones that you find by using the search feature, click the Add to Favs at the top of the descriptive window about the template. This will allow you to begin creating your own playlist of favorites to share with others.

Using the Disco Library

The easiest way to add one of your topics to the Disco Library is to go to the list of topics within the grid you want to share. If you want to share multiple topics to the Disco Library, you’ll need to share each one individually. And remember, no student videos currently in your topic will be included in the template.

Right-click on the Actions button of the topic you want to share and select Add to Disco Library. Your topic will be submitted to the Flipgrid team to review for appropriateness and value. You will notice your stats near the top letting you know how many topics you’ve added (once they are accepted and added), how many times they have been used, and how much video engagement (hours/minutes/seconds) has been generated.

3. MixTapes

No, this isn’t creating mixtapes on cassettes like we might have done back in the ’80s and ’90s to give to someone special. This is a whole new way of sharing โ€” but based on the same principle.

A mixtape is a compilation of any videos that are in any of your topics, in any of your grids. Begin by adding a new mixtape, which really means creating a folder for the videos you want to add.

Once a mixtape is created, go into the various topics and locate the videos you want to add. Right-click on the Actions button of the video to add and select Add to MixTapes. Select the specific mixtape to add it to and click the Add button. Voilร ! You are now on the way to being a mixtape master. Now all you need to do is go to the specific mixtape and click on the blue Share button. You can easily share you a specific mixtape via url, QR code, embed code, Google Classroom, and via Remind.

Using MixTapes

Consider making a mixtape as a study aid or glossary for your students as they review information for a major test. If you work with teachers, then consider creating a mixtape of them sharing ideas of how they are making a difference in their classroom or how they are implementing a particular strategy in their classroom that the whole campus (or district) is working on.

For example, if I’m working with ELA teachers across the district, I may create a topic in which they share how they are implementing the new ELA standards, tips or tricks they have to share for other teachers, or ways they are implementing something they learned while in our district professional development time. I could then make a mixtape of several of the videos to create a synopsis of great things that are going on, and I might share this mixtape with principals so they can get an idea of how ELA teachers at other campuses are setting an example.

4. Shorts

Shorts are brief videos, no longer than three minutes, that you (as the teacher) can create to share how-to’s, introduce a lesson, provide a video note to parents, or just share an update.

Once created, you can share in a variety of ways: by url, embed code, QR code, Google Classroom, via Remind, or download and share via Google Drive or YouTube as you might normally share a video. As when students are creating a video, you can add a filter, stickers, text, draw on the video, and even make use of Live Inking on a whiteboard or blackboard.

Live Inking is great when you have a digital pen or slate (so your writing is more legible) to use and need to create a quick tutorial video on something such as how to solve a binomial equation, explain in a simple manner what cloud computing is, or some other situation where it is helpful for the person to see you illustrate the concept or skill while hearing you talk; in this instance the video isn’t on you but just the white/blackboard is being recorded. And if you right-click on the More icon (the three dots just to the right of the record icon), you can upload a sticker, which could signal to the students the topic or subject area or could be used as simple branding of your videos.

How Do You Use Flipgrid?

So how do you use Flipgrid? Which feature(s) have you found to be the most impactful? Even if you haven’t had a chance to use Flipgrid, have you come across an innovative way to incorporate it in the teaching and learning process or in professional development? We’d love to hear from you!

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Social Studies

The Martin Luther King, Jr. Fliphunt

by Dr. Bruce Ellis
written by Dr. Bruce Ellis

A fliphunt is a type of activity, designed by Kathi Kersznowski, that creates a scavenger hunt using the Flipgrid app. It is a fun way of having your students get out of their seats, participate in the learning, and demonstrate their understanding and application.

fliphunt task list
Screenshot by author

The Martin Luther King, Jr. Fliphunt

Use this fliphunt to learn more about Martin Luther King Jr. and celebrate what he stood for. For each response, use the Task Title hashtag as the title of your video. For each task, students have up to 90 seconds to share their responses.

Go to Fliphunt

More MLK Day Resources

Digital Resources for MLK Day

Teaching and Celebrating Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

MLK Jr. Digital Breakout

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MLK DaySocial Studies

Digital Resources for MLK Day

by Peggy Reimers and Dr. Bruce Ellis
written by Peggy Reimers and Dr. Bruce Ellis

The third Monday in January is Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, a commemoration of the life of the civil rights leader on the occasion of his birthday. Signed into law in 1983 and first observed in 1986, today it is a federal holiday celebrating the enduring power of the civil rights movement and one of its most prominent voices.

For those looking to integrate this national celebration into the classroom, there are a number of great digital resources available. Let’s explore a few.

The Martin Luther King, Jr. Fliphunt

A fliphunt is a type of activity, designed by Kathi Kersznowski, that creates a scavenger hunt using the Flipgrid app. It is a fun way of having your students get out of their seats, participate in the learning, and demonstrate their understanding and application.

Use this fliphunt to learn more about Martin Luther King Jr. and celebrate what he stood for. For each response, use the Task Title hashtag as the title of your video. For each task, students have up to 90 seconds to share your response.

An Engaging Digital Breakout

Digital breakouts are an interactive way for students to explore any number of topics. The process involves using knowledge and reasoning to solve a series of clues that “unlock” digital locks, just as you might with a physical breakout box.

With this MLK-themed breakout, students can learn about Dr. King’s family and early life, his influences, and the achievements he gained over the course of his celebrated career. Give it a try yourself. You can find our MLK Breakout here.

A Day of Service

This year marks the 25th anniversary of the day of service that celebrates the civil rights leaderโ€™s life and legacy. The Corporation for National and Community Service has been charged to lead this national day of service. All Americans are encouraged to volunteer and spend the day improving their communities. The motto for MLK Day is โ€œa day on, not a day off.โ€

If you are planning a classroom, campus, or district project to better your school or community, register your project here. 

Primary Lesson Plans from Scholastic

Explore Scholasticโ€™s How Do You Celebrate Martin Luther King Jr. Day. This page has several real teachers sharing their favorite ways to honor the life and legacy of the civil rights leader. Geared for first, second, and third-grade students, the page includes craft projects, reading suggestions, posters and printables, and suggestions from other educators.

Free Printable Resources

Old-school printables are still valuable, and the internet provides endless opportunities to develop, share, and find handouts, worksheets, and other printables you may find useful in the classroom. Check out studenthandouts.com for free printable activities: biographic outline, crossword puzzle, geography map, word search, and more for Martin Luther King Jr. Day. 

MLK Videos 

Looking for videos to show to your class? Check out these listed below.

The Life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. by 88 brains

Martin Luther King Jr. by BrainPOP

martin luther king

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Biography for Kids by Educational Videos for Students

Looking for More?

Check out our list digital resources for teaching and learning about the U.S. civil rights movement here.

unsplash-logoPhoto: Brian Kraus
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patent illustrations
STEM/STEAM

Let Patent Illustrations Upgrade Your STEM Classroom to STEAM

by Dr. Bruce Ellis
written by Dr. Bruce Ellis

You may not think of patent illustrations as a way to connect students to content they are learning. But they might actually help some of your students who otherwise might not be interested in STEM. Accurate and detailed illustrations of inventions are critical in the application of a quality patent. As STEM educators, we already promote students thinking of themselves as inventors, creators, and designers, but you may have students who are reluctant to claim one of these three labels for a variety of reasons. These students may include those that consider themselves more artistic and drawn to doodling (pun intended) than those students who seem to excel in science or mathematics. Using patent illustrations is a great hook to include those students. It can also help you expand your STEM offerings to become STEAM (science, technology, engineering, ART, and mathematics) focused. Before we jump in to locating patent illustrations/art online and ways for students to create their own patent art, let’s have a quick history lesson.

History Lesson on Patents

patent illustrationsThe first patent in the United States was issued on July 31, 1790 to Samuel Hopkins for his improvement on the process of making potash as used in fertilizers. Since then, over ten million patents have been issued. The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) issues patents to inventors and businesses for their inventions and exists in order to maintain the objective outlined in the United States Constitution in Article 1, Section 8: “To promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts, by securing for limited Times to Authors and Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective Writings and Discoveries.” Inventors apply for a utility patent which protects the unauthorized use and sale of their invention for typically 20 years after the application date. Many utility patents include schematics or drawings to help illustrate the unique design of the invention. 

Finding Patent Illustrations Online

patent illustrationsFinding patent illustrations online can be easy and complicated at the same time. For example, if I want to find patent diagrams for an iPhone, the logical idea would be to search for iPhone in the patent title. If I use USPTO’s search engine, I only end up with five results (projector housing for IPhone, IPhone separate clip mobile power supply, IPhone slide rail with a mobile power supply, and Computer display with an iPhone window). When I look at the images associated with each, I find that they are rather boring. If I use Google’s patent search engine, then I end up with 43,600 hits – um, that’s a few more than I want to investigate to find a cool graphic for my classroom. So how do I get better search results that are more relevant and meaningful? Here are three strategies:

Strategy 1: USPTO’s Full-Text and Image Database

Begin by going to http://patft.uspto.gov and clicking on the Quick Search link. Here we can use two terms to search. A term can be a single word, a date, an inventor’s name, or a phrase. For each term, we can restrict the field to search. Instead of using “iPhone,” which was too limiting, let’s see what we find when we search for “smart phone” in the title field. Here we find 241 patents…some of which are clearly not what we are interested in (example: smart phone screen cleaning pad, security and surveillance system based on smart phone devices, etc.). Let’s take a look at number 226 – “Smart phone with lens.” 

patent illustrations

From here we can see that it is United States Patent number 8,190,021 which was issued on May 29, 2012. Scrolling down this page, we find out more information about the invention. We find that several figures are referenced in the summary section, so scroll to the top or bottom of the page and click on the “Images” link to view the illustrations (and other information) on this specific patent from the image database. Here you can download the document (right-click -> Save as…). To navigate to different sections, use the gold navigational arrows on the left-hand side or click on the “Drawings” section link to jump to the first drawing. We can now scroll through and see the three illustrations that are provided.

If we want to combine this into one page, we can create a Google Doc or Microsoft Word file and take several screenshots of the different pages and paste them on the destination page. With just a little tweaking, we can come up with a final product to display that looks like this.

Strategy 2: Using Google’s Patent Search Engine

Begin by going to https://patents.google.com. Initially, we’ll use it as we would when we search Google. Because there has been a lot of talk this past year about foldable displays on smart phones, let’s see what we can find. Begin by searching for these three words – flexible, “foldable device”, phone. Be sure to put quotes around foldable and device since you want foldable device to be a single search term. When you have that typed in, hit the Enter key. Let’s narrow our results down by doing the following:

  • Enter 2017-01-01 as the beginning date (meaning we want any patents that have been filed AFTER January 1, 2017).
  • Click on Patent Office and choose US.
  • Click on Language and select English.

When done, you should get the following search results.

On the side of the search results page, a graph has been provided showing percentage of search results for Assignees, Inventors, and CPCs. You can use that list to also narrow your results. Click on Samsung Display Co., Ltd. and notice that our results have dropped to two. Click on Foldable device and method for controlling the same to review the information of that patent filed by Samsung. If you scroll left-right on the image thumbnails, you can see that this document has several good images that will work well for illustrations in our classroom. Yeah! To get the full size images though, you will need to click on the Download PDF link in the blue table. Tada! We now have the document with the images. You may (and probably will) find that these pages don’t look as interesting or as artful as you may want, so we’ll do as we did above and screenshot the images we want and piece them together to make the single page patent art that we want. When done, we should end up with something like this.

Strategy 3: Let Others Do the Work for You

What?! You might be asking yourself if you read that correctly. Yep, you did. Let others do the work for you by finding the patent numbers of items that are interesting to you. The downside here is that you are limited to what others have found and shared. Plus, you can’t just take their work. You may find several folks who have done as I did above and took various images from different pages and then compiled them onto a single page…thus making patent art from patent illustrations. You can, however, make note of the information they have (patent number, inventor name, published date, etc.) so that you can more easily look up the patents for yourself.  If you do an image search for patents, you will find many locations willing to sell you a fine print of patent illustrations. Some have been made to look more blueprint-ish by printing them in blue and white while others want to express a vintage look so they are offered on a tan or burnished paper. Regardless of the image, see if you can locate some identifying information that will help you search in one of the two (or both) of the databases previously covered.

How to Use Patent Illustrations/Art in Your STEAM Classroom

Your students may have not encountered patent illustrations or even realized that for something to be patented, it may need multiple, detailed drawings/illustrations. After looking at various patent illustrations, you quickly get the idea that there are lots of different f looks: simple, mechanical, or even almost-childish scribbles. Here are some suggestions for using patent illustrations or artwork in your class:

  • Identify things that your students enjoy and look for patent drawings that you can display as visual interest.
  • Consider adding a “Patent illustration” option to your choice boards or choice menus for students to demonstrate their understanding of a piece of equipment.
  • Make quasi-patent illustrations. These are real patent illustrations, but may be more like patent-like illustrations. They might be used, for example, when illustrating the parts of a cell, a cross-sectional view of a volcano, important objects of a story (and their value to the writing, mood, plot, etc.).
  • Have students sketch out patent drawings to go along with their inventions.
  • Work with the art teacher at your school to incorporate patent illustrations (or at least the concept) in their class and tie it to your content area.

What About Patent Copyright Issues?

Quoting from USPTO’s website, “Patents are published as part of the terms of granting the patent to the inventor. Subject to limited exceptions reflected in 37 CFR 1.71(d) & (e) and 1.84(s), the text and drawings of a patent are typically not subject to copyright restrictions. The inventors’ rights to exclude others from making, using, offering for sale, or selling the invention throughout the United States or importing the invention into the United States for a limited time is not compromised by the publication of the description of the invention. In other words, the fact that a patent’s description may have been published without copyright restrictions does not give you permission to manufacture or use the invention without permission from the inventor during the active life of the patent. ” 

Freebie Patent Art for You

Here are a few patent art pieces that I put together to share with you. Feel free to print them out for your classroom or even possibly your home. 

1948 Baseball Glove

1961 Lego Brick

patent illustrations

2003 Apple iMac

2018 Google Device
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