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Google Tips and TricksWeb 2.0 Tool

Free Jamboard Templates for Elementary Students

by Lori Gracey
written by Lori Gracey

Jamboard, like many of Google’s other products, is an amazing tool. It’s easy to use, powerful, and integrates into any content area or grade level. What makes it even better is that there are LOTS of great educational templates that are readily available for teachers and instructional coaches to use. Let’s take a look at a few of those now.

Using Jamboard

Before you can start copying some fabulous templates, it’s important to remember a couple of things. First, you can use the wonderful trick of typing “jam.new” into a browser address bar like you can with almost all of the other Google tools to start a new Jamboard. Or, if you want to spend more time, you can go into the Google Apps waffle from any Google tool in your browser. Then, scroll down until you see the Jamboard icon.

Second, to use one of the templates below, you’ll be asked to make a copy of each one to your Google Drive. That way, you can edit them as you like and use them with your elementary students.

Cross-Curricular Templates

  • I love this morning meetings calendar. It features a place for the weather, seasons, and counting practice. And it’s colorful!
  • Using this See, Think, Wonder template will help students develop thinking routines. And with the emojis, it’s just cute!
  • Take a poll using Jamboard. Divide a into several parts and have students vote on their choice by placing a sticky with their name on it in the part. This can be great for selecting the next book to read, the next activity, and more. This site offers lots of other great ideas, too.
  • This Question of the Day (or week) is great for getting students thinking. Write your question in the center and have students post their thoughts and ideas around it.
  • Eric Curts offers 12 different rainbow scratch-off templates that are fun and beautiful. Use them to reveal vocabulary words or math problems for students to solve.

jamboard

Jamboard Templates for ELA

  • Alice Keeler has five different handwriting templates that work great for younger students. One way to use them is demonstrate how certain letters should be made and then have your students recreate them themselves.
  • Next, check out the magnetic letters Jamboard template. This works great as a center for spelling and vocabulary words.
  • Help your students develop editing skills by working with their peers on this Glows and Grows Jamboard.
  • All students can learn with a Sentence Maker template. But it’s especially effective for ESL students. You also find several other Jamboard ideas at this site.
  • Vocabulary words must be learned in lots of subjects. And having the students play word detective to learn them is a fun way to go. This template will help.

Templates for Math

  • While actual base 10 blocks are most effective with young learners, virtual ones can be good, too. Check out this set.
  • This place value grid allows students to move digital sticky notes around the board. You can change the notes out as students learn different numbers.
  • Help your students develop their word problem skills with this free equations template from Teachers Pay Teachers.
  • Check out the pattern building and math modeling templates for primary students here.
  • There are a number of math jams available here broken out by grade level (kindergarten, first grade, second grade, and grades 3-5).

If those aren’t enough Jamboard activities for you, then take a look at this Wakelet of even more templates and get your jam on! And, if you want to learn more about how to best use Jamboard with students of any age, check out TCEA’s online, self-paced course Google Jamboard. Priced at just $29, the course will help you master unique ideas for using Jamboard, how best to share boards with your students, and collaborative ways to foster engagement and learning. Finally, this blog will showcase how you can use Jamboard to help with social-emotional learning.

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podcast logo
Podcasts

Highlights from the Elementary Technology Conference | Podcast Ep. 90

by Andrew Roush
written by Andrew Roush

We’re marking our 90th episode by sharing some thought-provoking and useful clips from our most recent TCEA Elementary Technology Conference.

Homework

Every kid needs a champion | Rita Pierson

Extra Credit

Check out TCEA’s professional learning courses.

Learn more about the 2022 TCEA Convention & Exposition.

Send your questions and ideas about future episodes to podcast@tcea.org.

Facebook: facebook.com/tcea.org/

Twitter: @TCEA

Instagram: tcea_org

Pinterest: tceaorg

Music by Unicorn Heads

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elementary
Educational Trends

What We Learned at the Elementary Technology Conference

by Andrew Roush
written by Andrew Roush

Elementary education comes with unique challenges. Because young learners are in such a formative time in their lives and their lifelong learning journeys, elementary teachers take pride in keeping up with the latest tools and best teaching practices to make those tools work for students. That’s what our unique Elementary Technology Conference, June 13–15, was all about.

This was TCEA’s second year hosting this event online. Despite missing the sunny beach in Galveston, it was a vibrant, fun, and useful event. And, as we’ve all learned in recent months, sometimes meeting digitally has its perks. On-demand and recorded sessions mean registered attendees can enjoy sessions all the way through July 12, and live chat, kickoff sessions, and discussion boards allowed attendees to socialize, share ideas, and even win prizes during ETC.

One thing that was clear during the event is that elementary teachers are ready to keep pushing, keep learning, and keep improving. In sessions led by both experts — including TCEA’s terrific PD team — and in-the-classroom educators, there was lots of positive energy, lots of sharing, and of course, lots of good ideas to put into practice in the 2021–22 school year.

Below are some themes that caught our eye at this year’s Elementary Technology Conference. 

Learning Is Personal

We know that everyone learns differently. We also know that it’s difficult to learn when you don’t feel comfortable and supported. That’s why one trend that’s unlikely to go away is social-emotional learning. CASEL defines social-emotional learning (SEL) as “SEL is the process through which all young people and adults acquire and apply the knowledge, skills, and attitudes to develop healthy identities, manage emotions and achieve personal and collective goals, feel and show empathy for others, establish and maintain supportive relationships, and make responsible and caring decisions” (source).

This was highlighted in sessions like Integrating Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) in the Classroom with TCEA’s own Diana Benner.

SEL Resources from TCEA

Tech and Reading Go Hand-in-Hand

One content area where ed tech can help expand the ways elementary students learn is in English and Language Arts. Obviously, elementary grades are a vital time for language learning, so it’s only natural that this would be a highlight. And notably, a number of digital tools now exist to help students read, hear, see, and speak words as they develop literacy skills. This is also useful for the large number of students who are English language learners (ELLs), who are learning English in addition to their native language.

This theme came through in sessions like Slide into Digital Libraries with Natalie Pearson and Valeri Shaw of Fort Sam Houston ISD, Supporting All Language Learners with Book Creator with Jon Smith of Book Creator, and many more.

ELAR Resources from TCEA

Going Further

If you’re looking to build up your skills, find new ways to engage young learners, or even boost your hireability, and, of course, earn some PD credit hours, consider TCEA’s self-paced professional learning courses, starting at just $29.

These expert-developed courses are easy to engage with on your own time, and give you proven ways to accelerate learning. Elementary educators may be interested in these courses:

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Elementary Technology Conference promotional image with smiling fruit characters using a computer
Professional Learning

Why the Elementary Technology Conference Is So Special

by Andrew Roush
written by Andrew Roush

This summer’s most exciting elementary learning event is just around the corner. The 2021 TCEA Elementary Technology Conference is online beginning June 13. We’re bringing fun summertime vibes and plenty of useful, research-backed ideas to help advance teaching and inspire young learners when you get back into the classroom.

Here’s some of the highlights you can expect from this year’s event.

Solutions for You

There are lots of professional learning opportunities out there (including some great ones from TCEA!), but not many are tailored specifically for elementary educators. ETC is all about technologies and teaching practices that are most relevant to elementary educators. We’ll cover topics like social-emotional learning, Google tools, podcasts and video, and more, all with an eye to their effectiveness in PreK–5, rather than across all grades. Getting together and sharing with other elementary educators can be a powerful thing in a world of grab-bag PD.

It’s not just for classroom teachers, either. Everyone involved in elementary education can benefit from this event, whether you are an administrator, librarian, instructional coach, or technologist. Creating connections across specialties can help you amp up your teaching this fall, or help you stay connected with your classroom teachers.

Connecting for Education

Of course, getting so many engaged elementary educators together also means you get the chance to connect, chat, have some fun, and be inspired by your peers. That’s why we have social networking events each day, June 13–15. 

Enjoy interactive networking rooms with dedicated sharing time each day, live morning kickoff events with TCEA speakers, and an evening networking game of Shazingo (think Bingo meets Shazam). You’ll have a chance not only to catch up with old pals and make new friends, but also to spend time sharing ideas, stories, and tips.

Join Us at #ETC21

That best thing of all? You can still register for ETC! Get all the details and learn more at the link below.

Register Now!
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Boddle
Content AreasSTEM/STEAM

Increasing Student Engagement Through Gamification with Boddle

by Clarence Tan, Guest Author
written by Clarence Tan, Guest Author

Did you know that video games have been shown to aid in memorization? According to the Journal of Learning, Media and Technology, technology-enhanced learning (TEL) has shown to stimulate an increase in midbrain dopamine. This is what helps us store and recall information more efficiently!

Applying gamified learning to your students’ education ensures that students with diverse learning styles are receiving and retaining the information, too. 

Using Boddle Learning

Boddle Learning is a gamified education platform for grades K-6 that implements game mechanics to keep students engaged while learning math. It takes a personalized learning approach that ensures each student is presented with problems that are just right for their level of knowledge. 

  • Boddle runs constant diagnostics when students start playing the game which gets students to the right level after a series of assessment items.
  • Through differentiated learning and continuous assessment, students build confidence and skills, and reduce test anxiety without getting discouraged or feeling left behind. 
  • Boddle provides real-time reports to educators to gauge students’ learning and easily identify and address learning gaps. 

Classroom Implementation

By gradually advancing the students who are on or above grade level and re-teaching missed skills to students who need extra support, Boddle is a resource that allows for all students to feel confident with the knowledge they have while also pushing them to keep learning.  Educators can easily differentiate learning for individual students using the “Change Curriculum” feature, as well as through “Assignments.”

Work Boddle into your classroom in a variety of ways; it’s your classroom, so you get to choose the best fit! With the ability to create assignments, Boddle can be used to assign homework and exit tickets, or can be implemented during learning stations. 

To see how to get started through the teacher portal, check out this short video.

Accessing Boddle

Boddle is available for free to educators and can be accessed via the web browser on Chromebooks, laptops, and desktops. For educators who use iPads in the classroom, Boddle’s free app is available on the iOS AppStore. You can learn more at Boddle’s website.

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nearpod
Content AreasGoogle Tips and TricksWeb 2.0 Tool

Pre-Made Nearpod Lessons for Elementary Educators

by Andrew Roush
written by Andrew Roush

Nearpod is a popular way to run virtual and in-person lessons. With this tool, teachers can provide quizzes, polls, share videos, create interactive boards, and more. But often it’s a challenge to set up new lessons, even using this convenient tool.

That’s where Nearpod’s Lessons Library comes in handy. Just browse through dozens of pre-made lessons, all easy to find with powerful search and filtering capabilities. Let’s take a look at some pre-made Nearpod lessons across subject areas that will help engage your young learners. 

But First, What Exactly Is Nearpod?

Nearpod is an interactive student engagement platform that lets you turn your existing resources (Google Slides, PowerPoints, and .PDFs) or their pre-made lessons into transformational learning experiences. Once students access these resources, you’ll receive formative assessment data from every student in real-time.

The Silver version of Nearpod is completely free (and, according to the company, always will be.) That offers up to 100MB in storage and the ability to have up to 40 students per session. The Gold plan is just $120/year and it provides for greater storage, more student access, and the use of Immersive Reading for Google Slides.

Engaging Kindergarten Students

These Nearpod lessons are designed specifically for kindergarteners.

Other Elementary Grades

As mentioned above, you can sort Nearpod lessons by subject or grade level. Explore various lessons sorted for all K–5 grades here. 

Even More for Elementary Educators

If these lessons appeal to you, you’re sure to find tons more easy, actionable ideas to boost learning at TCEA’s virtual Elementary Technology Conference, the summer’s hottest event exclusively for PreK-5 educators. Check out the details here.

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digital citizenship
CybersecurityDigital Literacy

Digital Citizenship for Elementary Students

by Andrew Roush
written by Andrew Roush

In a world defined by information, and the technologies that store and move that data, understanding how to interact in a digital space is nothing less than a requirement for today’s students. These skills needed to safely use the internet and to think critically about sources of information are known as digital citizenship.

All students should work to develop these skills, and that goes for elementary students especially. There’s no doubt that the social questions, careers, and everyday life of today’s students will be defined by their activities online.

Defining Digital Citizenship

With much of our social interaction occurring on devices, online, and otherwise in distanced situations, it’s important to understand how digital citizenship prepares students not only for the careers of the future, but for the society and culture of the future.

According to Applied Educational Systems, digital literacy includes the “responsible use of technology by anyone who uses computers, the Internet, and digital devices to engage with society on any level.”

In addition, though, teaching digital skills requires an emphasis on social skills and social-emotional learning. 

Good digital citizenship engages young students and shows them how to connect with one another, empathize with each other, and create lasting relationships through digital tools.

Bad digital citizenship, on the other hand, entails cyberbullying, irresponsible social media usage, and a general lack of knowledge about how to safely use the Internet.

Chris Zook. “What Is Digital Citizenship?” Applied Educational Systems.

The good news? There are plenty of robust digital resources available to help you build good digital citizenship skills with your students. 

Using Common Sense

Common Sense Education is a nonprofit dedicated to vetting materials for children, including educational tools. They produce a number of resources you might use with your elementary students.

  • Check out their digital citizenship poster, designed for elementary schools, here.
  • Choose from 10 fun digital citizenship videos (or use them all), all designed for K-5 classrooms, here. 
  • Looking to get students active and engaged? Look into these quick, packaged activities, perfect for elementary students learning remotely.

Other Digital Citizenship Sources

Once you dig into the wealth of digital literacy resources available, it’s clear that there’s plenty to choose from. Here are a few great places to start.

  • Learn more about the social aspects of good digital behavior in this piece from Edutopia. 
  • Browse through resources from Google, BrainPOP, Nearpod, and more in this blog from The Techie Teacher.
  • And don’t forget to pick up the latest strategies, tools, tips, and big ideas from TCEA’s own virtual 2021 Elementary Technology Conference. Learn more here.

More from TechNotes

Photo via Pixabay.

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elementary library
Good TeachingLibraries

Libraries for Young Learners (PreK–5)

by Andrew Roush
written by Andrew Roush

It’s important to develop a love of learning in young students. Libraries can help pave the way, giving students places to explore, connect with their passions, learn how to gather and analyze information, conduct research, and more.

But where do you start with the youngest learners? Below, we’ll examine some helpful tips to introduce the youngest learners to the power of libraries.

Making Introductions

Each school year, librarians, teachers, media specialists, and teacher-librarians all endeavor to introduce their students to the bounty of and potential in their own school library. And so, over the years, many librarians and libraries have developed tips, tools, and techniques to help littles navigate the library. Let’s look into some ideas.

Eye-Catching Features

One way to quickly engage first-time library visitors is to include spaces, activities, and learning tools and tech that grab students’ existing interests. 

Today, digital tools are important parts of a functioning library or media center. Common Sense Education, known for vetting digital products for young learners, has a collection of high-quality digital tools that can help you engage PreK–5 learners right from the start.

You can also check out these suggestions for cards, games, activities, and other fun, tactile ways to get comfortable in the library from Finding Dulcinea (who recognizes that reference?).

Looking for great library tips and activities to get you through this semester? Dig into these suggestions for when you’re feeling frazzled from ReaderPants.net.

Classroom Libraries

For elementary educators, a classroom library is a great way to introduce students to the concept of a lending library, making it easy and accessible right in the classroom.

The articles below outline dozens of ideas for organizing and using your classroom library, setting procedures, and introducing students to the joys of independent reading, writing, research, and other vital ELA/R skills.

Going Further

Looking for more ways to engage your learners? Don’t forget to check out TCEA’s online Elementary Technology Conference, the summer’s hottest event just for elementary school educators, including librarians. Check out the details and register yourself or your team here.

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Good Teaching

Choice Boards for Elementary Learners

by Lori Gracey
written by Lori Gracey

Empowering students to own their learning, allowing for student choice and voice, individualizing learning activities — all of these are important goals of specific learning activities. And they can all be accomplished through the use choice boards, especially in the elementary classroom.

What Is a Choice Board?

Because of the value that choice boards provide to student learning, TCEA has written about them previously in our blog. Here are some that offer what a choice board is and why we should be using them:

Elementary Choice Boards

Let’s take a look at some already-created, easy-to-use choice boards that are perfect for the elementary classroom.

  • Tic-Tac-Toe Choice board – A 3×3 grid with activities for math, reading, and coding, all done in Google Slides
  • All About Dinosaurs – Done in Seesaw
  • Choice Boards from Blue Valley Schools – This group of teachers has the most amazing collection of choice boards for grades kindergarten through grade five. Select your grade level and then you’ll see two week’s worth of boards, one for each day. They are available for general education, special education, and for ESL students (Spanish, Portuguese, and Chinese). Each board includes reading, writing, math, science and social studies, well being and SEL, and specials. Everything you need is here!
  • Battlefield Primary School has posted what they call “digital learning day” choice boards. These are designed to be used for those students in grades PreK-2 who are learning at home. They also offer boards for speech, language, fine and gross motor skills, and social skills.
  • Variety of Boards – Here are choice boards for eight weeks for grades K-5. Below each board are the accompanying worksheets and handouts.
  • Choice Boards in the Library – Available for grades K-5 in Google Docs (so that you can change as needed)
  • Templates from Kasey Bell – The Google Guru Kasey Bell offers several different templates for elementary students, including a novel study. And she has another template available here.
  • Coding for Grades PreK-3 – “Learn and create code through stories, music, games, videos, and more.” The site also offers a 3-6 coding choice board.

Final Thoughts About Choice Boards

While it is easy to spend a lot of time of making the choice boards “cute,” that is not completely necessary. Focus in on ensuring that meaningful, learning-focused activities are included and that student choice is truly there. (In other words, don’t make all of the activities basically the same so that choice is negated.) Try to include different ways for student brains to think by including choices that involve creativity, writing, drawing, the fine arts, and more. And finally, once in a while, change the choice board up by having them pick a different number of activities to complete, having them pick activities that match a certain pattern, or activities that all tie together around a them.

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elementary
Web 2.0 Tool

Eight More Electrifying Elementary Web 2.0 Tools

by Peggy Reimers
written by Peggy Reimers

I am back with more electrifying resources for elementary teachers. Please check out the eight below; I am sure you will be able to equip your toolbelt with one or more of these little gems. 

Celebrate with Confetti!

Inject a little fun in your day or celebrate with your class with this extension. If you use Google Chrome for your browser, add the Confetti extension. When you press command + B, confetti blasts out on your screen. You will lose the shortcut for bolding words by using this; but if you are like me and forget, the celebratory surprise is worth it.

Trigger your confetti with:

  • Windows: Ctrl + B
  • Chrome OS: Ctrl + B
  • Mac: Command + B

YouTube Audio Library screenshot.
Screenshot by author.

Free Music and Sounds for Elementary Projects

Looking for free music or sound effects? Audio Library from the YouTube Studio is my go to because no attribute is required. Check out my favorite sound effects: Muscle Car Rev and Cartoony Bounce to Ceiling. For the music, you can search by several genres. When creating my introductions for the TCEA online courses, I have used the beginning seconds of Calimba, Jigsaw Puzzle, and Good Morning. You will need to log in to your YouTube account and find the audio library.

Math and Emojis

Solvemoji is a free website that makes math puzzles using emojis. There are ten levels of difficulty in classic, grid, or word types. You can create an account to join the leaderboard or just solve puzzles on the website. Solvemoji puzzles are great for math warmups and bell ringers. You can also follow @slovemoji on Twitter. Note, there are ads throughout the website. 

Remembering the Old Days

If you remember the MECC computer game The Oregon Trail, you probably recall the saying, “When I was a kid, I walked 12 miles to school in the snow?” Now the saying goes, “When I was a kid, I played computer games with big pixels and the return key.” Access this classic game from the Internet Archives’ website. The fun is still here, along with the threat of dying from dysentery. 

For Your Elementary ESL Students

Games to Learn English has 20+ free games to help students practice grammar, vocabulary, pronunciation, and more. A student can play the games from the website or the teacher can create an account. The website has detailed information about each game. The GTLE site also gives information on their updates. It’s a great site for your ELL or young beginners. 

Games to learn English.
Screenshot by author.

Get Busy Rhyming

If you are looking for rhyming words, this site is exactly what you need: Rhymer.com. (You just have to love the name.) Type in a word and the site generates word groupings in one, two, three, four, five, and six-or-more syllables. You can also find rhyming words by beginning and first-syllable rhymes. I did try a few BAD words to see what might happen; duck and spit are safe. But if a students keeps trying, he may succeed.

A Bitmoji Buddy

If you are a Bitmoji fan, you can now include a buddy on your Bitmoji. This only works on your phone and is based on your Contacts. In order to make this work, you might need to update your app. To get started, in the open right hand corner, tap on your settings gear and select “invite friends.”

Would You Rather Math

Would You Rather Math is so awesome! The two-statement scenario spurs debate, discussion, reasoning, and writing in the math classroom. The questions are separated into four grade levels: K-2, 3-5, 6-8, and 9-12. Did you figure out what gift you would rather receive?

Would you rather receive a gift with a piggy bank.
Screenshot by author

Featured image created in Canva by author.

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