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Microsoft iOS Apps on Your iPad

by Miguel Guhlin
written by Miguel Guhlin

“We are an Office 365 school district. Our superintendent just bought iPads. I’m coming from a G Suite for EDU background. How hard is it to use Microsoft apps on the iPad?” asked Virginia, a district instructional technology coordinator in a Texas school district. Like Virginia, I remember early difficulties with using Google Suites for Education on the iPad. Students could create work, but how would they get it off the device? With Microsoft iOS apps, those difficulties aren’t present. Let’s explore the OneDrive workflow on iOS devices.

What OneDrive looks like on an iPad. Note that Scan, Upload, Take a Photo or Video options. These allow you to create and/or save content straight to OneDrive. This saves space on your iPad.

Where to Start

One mistake often made when working with Microsoft apps is not starting with the OneDrive app. The Microsoft OneDrive app serves as a username and password clearinghouse for all the other Microsoft apps on iOS. For example, while you can attempt to open the OneNote app and access your digital notebooks, you may find this workflow easier:

  1. Open OneDrive app.
  2. Navigate to the notebook you want to open.
  3. Open it.

The OneDrive app, after verifying your username and password, will open the appropriate Microsoft app (OneNote in this example). In a few moments, the OneNote notebook you selected will begin to synchronize (or save a copy) to your device. From that point forward, you can open OneNote instead of going to OneDrive to access the notebook. If you should close the notebook or remove it from OneNote on your iOS device, you can always re-open it via OneDrive.

Let’s take a moment to explore other documents and Microsoft apps.

Microsoft OneDrive

Folks may see OneDrive as only cloud storage (like Dropbox or Google Drive), but OneDrive can do much more. Some examples of how it can be used in the classroom include:

  • Showcasing student work
  • Sharing student work as examples via a OneDrive link
  • Creating web-based documents that are shared online
  • Enabling students to start work at home/school and then finish it on the go
  • Collaborating on the same document

One important idea to keep in mind is Create your initial version of a file using OneDrive, including OneNote notebooks. In the web version of OneDrive, you are able to create all sorts of documents, such as Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, Excel Survey, Visio drawing, and link.

Since OneDrive functions as a username and password keeper for other Microsoft apps, you want to make sure to choose the correct account to use. If you are using OneDrive (and Microsoft apps) as part of your work, choose OneDrive for Business. If you are using OneDrive with a free Microsoft account (think “personal”), then choose OneDrive.

One benefit of OneDrive that is often overlooked involves how it handles photos and videos. In the iOS version, you are able to take a photo or create a video that saves directly to OneDrive. Learn more about iPad possibilities with OneDrive. Read more about OneDrive, as well as see free online courses in the Microsoft Education Community (MEC).

What Microsoft Apps Are Available on the iPad?

Now that you have some background about OneDrive, you’re ready to dive into the other Microsoft apps. Some of the apps you can get on the iPad include Excel, Office 365 Admin, Office Lens, OneDrive, OneNote, Outlook, PowerPoint, Sway, Teams, Visio Viewer, and Word. Get them via email or a text message to your phone.

My Favorite Microsoft Apps

Hands down, my top Microsoft apps for iPad include the following:

  • OneDrive – Store tons of resources online in OneDrive. Use it to access and open any documents stored on iOS. OneDrive’s ability to save video recordings direct to cloud storage, bypassing the limited storage on my iPad, make it a must-have app. Learn more.
  • Office Lens – Need to digitize a whiteboard diagram or capture a digital copy of a picture? Then Office Lens makes that easier. For iOS users, you have the added bonus of a built-in optical character recognition (OCR) combined with Immersive Reader. That means your students can scan a page of text and then Office Lens can read it to them. You can snap a picture of a page of text, then convert that image to editable PowerPoint or Word file. Wow! Learn more.
  • Outlook – Looking for a great email program that works with all email services (e.g. G Suite, Gmail, Yahoo, Office 365), not just Microsoft? Then Outlook is your email program. Learn more.
  • OneNote – This is a must-have notes app on any device. The ability to draw with various color pens and insert audio, images, files, links, and more are beautifully executed. Learn more.
  • Teams – The latest version of Teams boasts many features for free. The EDU version makes access to assignments, files, notes, and OneNote Class or Staff Notebooks a click away. You can even blend Flipgrid topics into the available tabs. You can create channels within a Teams’ space to organize adults or students. Learn more.

Office Lens and Immersive Reader in Action

Shown below, you will see use of Office Lens to scan a news article for use in Immersive Reader. The latter component can read the scanned document to the student:

Description: Office Lens can send a scanned page of text, including newsprint, to any of the options shown in the image above. Send it to Immersive Reader, and Office Lens will read the text to you.

Description: Ignoring illegible characters, consider the quality of the newsprint. In this screenshot, Immersive reader is reading the text aloud.

Microsoft iOS Apps

Now that you’ve had a chance to get answers to your question, what are your preferred Microsoft apps on iOS?

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Content AreasEducational TrendsGood Teaching

Five Ways to Succeed with Personalized Learning

by Miguel Guhlin
written by Miguel Guhlin

Ready to bring about transformation in your school district? As principal or department head, you’ve embraced personalized learning (PL). But now, you need to learn how to speed up its adoption and full integration. In this blog entry, we’ll revisit personalized learning. You will see successful strategies aligned to the research and best practices. See how technology can make adoption of PL faster.

Defining Personalized Learning

PL is not one-size-fits-all learning. It represents a diverse program encompassing a wide variety of instructional approaches. The strategies seek to address students’ individual needs. All educational programs, learning experiences, instructional approaches ,and academic support strategies are available. It’s all about whatever works best for enhancing student-centered learning.

What Is Best for You?

The role of educators in personalized learning environment has shifted (Source: iNACOL). The shift puts educators in the roles of mentors, coaches, and learning facilitators. More to the point, students take ownership and assume control of their learning, which means that learning becomes grounded in students’ interests and passions. Approaches like differentiated instruction and personalized learning plans become critical. What’s more, project-based learning and eportfolios aligned to standards-based knowledge and skills predominate.

A Splash of Cold Water: New Research Findings

However, a new research report reveals challenges about making personalized learning a reality. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation funded a study via CRPE. The results splash cold water on successful adoption of personalized learning in schools. The study focused on two questions:

  • How do teachers and principals go about designing and implementing personalized learning approaches?
  • How does the organization’s environment support or impede school-level innovation and its spread?

In the report, the authors assert:

  • Personalized learning implementation efforts were not systemic or systematic. These efforts were not blended into the existing system.
  • Teachers and principals lacked what they needed to install PL-motivated classroom practices.
  • Principals failed to provide coordination to convert teacher innovations into replicable, campus practices.

Cooperation stimulates the human brain. (Source). “Human beings have evolved to get pleasure from cooperation,” says Dr. Robert Sussman. Achieving personalized learning, therefore, must involve cooperation.

Make PL a Reality

Are you ready to make personalized learning a reality? Take these report recommendations to heart. To assist you, find specific tips below. Each will help amplify your awareness of the necessary steps. Follow these steps to make personalized learning a reality on your campus. Let’s get started.

1-Embed Coaching Supports

Read the research on coaching? If you haven’t, you need to move to adopt coaching at your organization. Here are a few TCEA resources to get you started and moving in the right direction.

  • The Power of Video Coaching: Video coaching for professional learning is much easier. Learn how to put in place coaching to transform teaching and learning.
  • Coaching Made Less Difficult: Embrace the power of collegial coaching and set up mentees and coaches for success.
  • Effective Peer Coaching Tips and Resources: Peer coaching is a growing trend. It can help teachers integrate technology to engage students. Take advantage of these tips and resources to get started at your campus.

These three coaching resources provide all you need to embed coaching supports. With these supports in place, you can begin the journey towards personalized learning.

2-Change Management Support

Managing any new system can be dangerous as leaders face tough challenges. Being grounded in change management theory remains critical. Personalized learning represents a destruction of the old system. Here are a few TCEA blog entries to scaffold your change efforts:

3-Adopt Knowledge Management Strategies

Knowledge sharing remains a key tenet of successful organizations. The knowledge management process focuses on creating, sharing, using ,and managing knowledge and information. Often this information and knowledge is only in the heads of one or two people. Externalize that knowledge for longevity.

Most schools lack continuity of purpose. Embrace these simple practices and technologies to make knowledge sharing do-able. Technologies include:

Tools abound. Make the commitment to engage in meta-thinking about school and district practices.

4-Establish Communities of Practice

Creating communities of practice can be easier with today’s tools. Two reliable tools include:

  • Microsoft Teams: This provides one-stop shopping for all your meeting needs from live video/audio chat and text on your computer and smartphone to embedded content. You can even create professional learning communities (PLCs). Combine PLCs based in Teams with a OneNote Staff Notebook.
  • Google Classroom: Use Google Classroom within the Google Suites for Education.

Extra, free tools like Microsoft Forms or Google Forms can make data collection easier.

5-Seek Out Innovation Partners

Ready to expand your personalized learning initiative? Partner with individuals and organizations that are adept at personalized learning. Here are a few to start with:

Embrace Innovative Learning

Be sure to join us at the Innovative Learning Strategies conference for a learning experience focused on the intersection of strong pedagogy and technology integration. Sessions will share the best teaching practices and research-based strategies around innovative technology trends will be elaborated on.

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TCEA Responds: OneNote with Google Classroom?

by Miguel Guhlin
written by Miguel Guhlin

Dear TCEA Responds:

Do you have any resources for a few elementary teachers that teach at a Google school, but want to use #OneNote and Class Notebook? Does each student need an Office 365 account? All our students have Chromebooks. Any help would be awesome!

Thanks, Vander

Dear Vander:

What an exciting set of questions. In my work, I often encounter organizations that have embraced a wide variety of technologies. While this can be beneficial, single sign-on (SSO) often causes problems for educators and students alike. Let’s explore some problem scenarios you want to avoid. Afterwards, I’ll share some workarounds for your situation.

Update 07/23/2018: OneNote Class Notebook + Google Classroom

Please be aware that as of 7/23/2018, the Windows 10 OneNote app supports Google Classroom. Great news that comes to us via Mike Tholfsen. Mike had shared this feature was coming a few weeks ago via Twitter. Now, the wishes and desires of educators around the world has come true. OneNote’s Class Notebook supports learning management system (LMS) integration with Google Classroom. This makes it possible to use Google Classroom as the virtual classroom space, answering the need of many educators who work in both Office 365 and Google Suites for Education environments. What’s more, this functionality is enabled for OneNote Online and OneNote on iOS as well. Chromebooks can access OneNote Online. Don’t forget that Microsoft offers free Office 365 accounts for students and/or staff. You can see a screenshot below:

Image Source: Mike Tholfsen (@mtholfsen)

Video Walkthrough of Connecting OneNote Class Notebook to Google Classroom

Note: As of Friday, July 27, 2018, the functionality is now missing in Windows 10 OneNote app. You will see that in Part 1 of the video series I was preparing to showcase the Google Classroom Connection in OneNote. Part 2 of the video shows the working connection to Google Classroom. It works well.

  • Part 1: In this video, I provide a little background and walkthrough. Unfortunately, this video documents my failure.
  • Part 2: In this video, I share a late-breaking announcement that changes in Google Classroom has broken the Windows 10 OneNote app’s connection to Google Classroom. However, OneNote Online’s Class Notebook connection to Google Classroom works great, so I recorded a quick, rough walk-through.

Screenshots:

Problem Scenarios

Here are a few common scenarios schools and organizations find themselves in. Avoid them, alone or in combination.

#1-Single Sign-On (SSO)

The organization adopts a variety of technologies (e.g. Apple, Google, Microsoft) without a single sign-on solution (SSO) in place. This requires students and staff to keep track of multiple usernames and passwords. In the end, no one knows where to go or what login to use when creating, collaborating, and sharing.

Solution: Get a single sign-on account management solution. This will allow students and staff to use ONE login and password for all district systems, including Microsoft, Google, and Apple. There are quite a few available you can take advantage of. Several to consider include ClassLink with OneRoster, Encore Technologies’ Enboard, or Rapid Automation.

#2-Split Domains

Some school districts opt to put students on Google Suites for Education accounts, but then keep teachers on Microsoft (or vice versa). This isolates teachers and students on different communication networks, forcing them to work with variety of tools. While some may favor this approach, the end result is often confusion, isolation, and mass abandonment of district tools.

Solution: Pick one and standardize across user populations (e.g. staff, students) to ensure that everyone has access to the same tools. Also, make sure everyone knows what digital tools will be used.

#3-Hardware-Ecosystem Mis-Alignment

The district decided to buy iPad carts for every classroom, then switched to Chromebooks. On top of that, it wanted to continue to use Microsoft for all users. This left people trying to sort out what device they need to use, what account, and trying to figure out whether their Microsoft OneNote Class Notebook will work with iPads and Google accounts for students.

Solution: If you own a lot of hardware, decide what’s the optimum ecosystem (e.g. Office 365, Google Suites for Education, Apple Classroom, or free tools). Your biggest investment is in the hardware, so unless you are going to pay to switch (not a wise use of funds), then align your hardware and ecosystem to each other. If you have Microsoft and want to see everyone adopt MS Teams and OneNote, then take a hard look at getting a hardware solution provider that supports Windows 10. If you are Chromebook rich, then adopt Google Suites for Education. Trying to mix and match pieces only results in confusion, isolation, and lack of usage.

Aligning Solution to the Facts

As you point out, Vander, you are in problem scenario #3, hardware-ecosystem mis-alignment. Let’s review some of the facts revealed in our email exchanges:

  • Teachers and students lack Office 365 accounts.
  • Students rely on Chromebooks.
  • Teacher(s) want to use Microsoft OneNote after attending a one-day Microsoft Innovative Educator (MIE) Teacher Academy.

Given your situation, the least expensive and less difficult solution involves using Google Classroom with Google Drive with students and staff. But they may need professional learning. Here are two resources that may help you get started.  (Note: If you log in to Google Suites first, clicking on the link will make a copy of the document for your use).

For others who need Microsoft OneNote resources, be sure to check out the Microsoft Educator Community (MEC) for free online courses that generate digital badges and certificates for participants.

Detours to O365 Account Roadblock

Still keen on mixing Chromebooks (which can’t run the free OneNote Windows 10 app which provides great functionality)? Let’s explore what happens with teachers who DO have Office 365 accounts, as well as those that do not.

Worst Scenario

With teachers who do have O365 accounts, while working with students who lack O365 accounts for students, it is a bit more difficult. The easiest approach is for a teacher to set up a OneNote notebook using a free Microsoft account. They would share the notebook with students’ G Suite email accounts with rights to edit content. The teacher would manually set up a section for each student, copying and pasting content into each as needed. Once each section was created, the teacher would apply a password. That password for each section would only be shared with each student. This would create a safe space for both student and teacher. Loss of the password would result in the loss of all data stored in the section. This approach is NOT recommended.

Better Scenario

With teachers and students who do have Office 365 accounts, the teacher can use the OneNote app on Windows 10 with the Class Notebook built-in functionality. They will be able to create class notebooks for each of their students. Students will then access the OneNote Online version of the Class Notebook. They won’t have all the functionality, but they will be able to do quite a bit via the OneNote Online interface on a Chromebook. To the best of my knowledge, this is the only way OneNote Online would work with students using Chromebooks. Students could also access the Class Notebook on their other devices (e.g. Android, iOS, Windows, and Mac). The best scenario would have students using low-cost, high quality Windows 10 tablets with keyboards. Google Classroom and OneNote Class Notebook now work together, so educators and students can enjoy the best of both worlds.

Amazing Updates

What’s even more exciting, the Windows 10 OneNote app now supports Google Classroom for teachers/educators who want to connect OneNote Class Notebook to a Google Classroom. This works for OneNote Online and OneNote on iOS as well.  Isn’t that amazing? Special thanks to Mike Tholfsen for providing this insight. See screenshot below:

Image Source: Mike Tholfsen (@mtholfsen)

Final Thoughts

As you consider the best way to deploy technology, avoid the mis-alignment of hardware and ecosystems. Instead, plan ahead, aligning the strengths of two matched systems.

 

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Lesson Planning: 5E Model + Tech with the ISTE Standards (Part Two)

by Miguel Guhlin
written by Miguel Guhlin

In Part One of this 5E Model plus Technology with the ISTE Standards blog, we explored the Engage, Explore, and Explain aspects of a 5E Model lesson plan. For fun, we took a look at blending the 5E Model with technology from the perspective of the Dust Bowl. In this blog entry, we’ll continue our journey through the Dirty Thirties, focusing on the Elaborate and Evaluate aspects of the ISTE Standards.

Get a copy of the Google Slides version of this infographic

ELABORATE

  1. How? Activities that capture the students’ attention, stimulate their thinking, and help them access prior knowledge.
  2. Technology? Some example activities appear below.
    _ Forum (Google Classroom)
    _ Product creation
    _ Virtual field trip
    _ Ask an Expert video chat
  3. What Success Looks like?
    1. Students develop a solution to a real problem that incorporates their knowledge, communicating that in a variety of media formats. Students would rely on a combination of audio/video creation tools to articulate their perspectives and then express those online, soliciting feedback from the community and knowledgeable parties.
    2. Students could rely on VOIP tools like Skype, Google Hangout Meet, or Appear.in to connect with other teams of students exploring the Dust Bowl in other classrooms around the district or globe as appropriate.
    3. After self-selection of a design process such as the Engineering Design Process, use video documentary creation tools and/or virtual world (e.g. Minecraft: Education Edition) to create their representation of the problem faced. Then they would offer solutions from various stakeholder perspectives pertinent to their own group. These would be incorporated into their digital representations/creations.

Did You Know?

TCEA offers teams of educators, as well as individuals, certification in the ISTE National Education Technology Standards (NETS).  ISTE Certification is a new competency-based, vendor-agnostic educator certification based on the ISTE Standards for Educators. This digital credential recognizes educators who understand how to use edtech for learning in meaningful and transformative ways. Find out more.

EVALUATE

  • How? Students, with their teachers, review and assess what they have learned and how they have learned it. Students can be given a summative assessment to demonstrate what they know and can do.
  • Technology? Some example activities aappear below.
    • Video feedback on product
    • OneNote notebook with feedback
  • What Success Looks like?
    • Students create a OneNote notebook (or Google Slides/Sites) with embedded videos reflecting on content.
    • Students’ creations are notated from a perspective of real life usability rather than teacher satisfaction with a transitional student product.

ISTE NETS Considerations

The primary ISTE Standards addressed include the following. How would you extend these?

  • Innovative Designer: Students use a variety of technologies within a design process to identify and solve problems by creating new, useful or imaginative solutions.
  • Creative Communicator: Students communicate clearly and express themselves creatively for a variety of purposes using the platforms, tools, styles, formats and digital media appropriate to their goals.
  • Global Collaborator: Students use digital tools to broaden their perspectives and enrich their learning by collaborating with others and working effectively in teams locally and globally.

Digital Tools

Curious about some of the digital tools available that could be used to facilitate this lesson? Here are a few ideas to get you started.

  • Intended Use: Empower students to  create a digital memory box to better capture resources needed for digital stories expressed as video documentaries or Minecraft virtual creations:
  • Tools:
    • OneNote + Office Lens: These two free apps, which work on a multitude of mobile devices, allow you to store text, audio, images, and embed videos and could easily be used to collect information. The Office Lens app lets you digitize content, snap a picture of paper items or photos, and save them to OneNote, a digital notebook. With OneNote’s built-in digital ink, students can easily fill in the chart and storyboard their digital story. The teacher can take those student creations, combine them with the final products, and publish them on Docs.com as a OneNote Notebook (which is free for everyone and works great on iPads, Chromebooks, Windows/Mac computers, and Android).
    • Google Photos + Google Drive:  With these two apps, you can save photos or videos taken with your device to Google Photos, saving content online.
    • Assorted Image Apps: Collecting images can be straightforward with mobile apps like Camera Awesome (iOS and Android), Camera MX (Android), and Google Camera. Image annotation becomes easy with Annotate (iOS), Photo Editor by Aviary (Android and iOS), SnapSeed (iOS and Android), as well as EyeEm Camera and Photo Filter (iOS and Android). Don’t be afraid to take advantage of green screen apps (DoInk for iOS and Green Screen Pro for Android) to further enhance photos, making your own green screen with a $1.00 Dollar Tree store green plastic tablecover.
  • Intended use: Video Documentaries
    • Tools:
      • Mobile Apps like Shadow Puppet EDU, Adobe Voice, and Storymaker 2, as well as MS Office Powerpoint (Windows/Mac) and iMovie
      • Screencasting tools such as Screencastify or PowerPoint Screen Recorder
      • Google Slides/PowerPoint plus Gifmaker.me to create animated GIFs that can be incorporated into video documentaries
      • Green screen tools
  • Intended use: Virtual World Construction and Digital Architecture
    • Minecraft: Education Edition
    • Office 365 accounts for students and teacher(s)

Final Thoughts

Students have a wide variety of technologies available to them at no cost, as well as others that tap into the Windows laptops, mobile iOS tablets (e.g. iPads), and/or Chromebooks that allow them to interact on both small and large screens. This interaction is collaborative given the nature of built-in collaboration options available to Google Suites for Education, Microsoft OneNote with Class Notebook and Microsoft Teams. Remember to start your engaging 5E Model + Technology lesson with a problem scenario and/or emotional hook. Then set up collaborative activities that facilitate solution development.

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Lesson Planning: 5E Model + Tech with the ISTE Standards (Part One)

by Miguel Guhlin
written by Miguel Guhlin

“How do you blend technology into a 5E Lesson Plan?” The question motivated me to write the blog entry, Lesson Planning: 5E Model + Technology. In conversation with a colleague just this  week, we reflected on the power of collaborative lesson planning. Co-planning lessons, including those that blend technology, enhance the actions and impact on students. In this blog entry, we’ll explore a portion of the 5E Model plus Technology in the context of the ISTE Standards, Universal Design for Learning (UDL), and TPACK.

5e model
View this as a Google Slides Infographic Template You can Adapt for Your Own Use

The Value of Co-Planning Lessons

“Lesson planning is too important, challenging, and time-consuming to try to do ALL of it on your own…It’s wonderful to utilize the experience of other teachers and time-tested instructional strategies so you don’t have to spend as long planning out your lessons,” says Angela Watson in her blog entry, 6 Ways to Make Co-Planning Lessons More Efficient.

My first experiences as a first year teacher included trying to figure out how to best introduce a lesson to students. For me, the emotional hook, like the lead of a blog entry, had to be compelling. I often failed my first year. What saved me was taking the time to create a lesson planning template. Today, 5E lessons can take the shape of hyperdocs. If you must plan alone, remember there are many websites that offer suggestions. Let’s check out 5E Model plus technology in the context of the Dust Bowl.

Did You Know?

TCEA offers teams of educators, as well as individuals, certification in the ISTE National Education Technology Standards (NETS).  ISTE Certification is a new competency-based, vendor-agnostic educator certification based on the ISTE Standards for Educators. This digital credential recognizes educators who understand how to use edtech for learning in meaningful and transformative ways. Find out more.

About the Dust Bowl

Not familiar with the Dirty Thirties? This time came to be known as the Dust Bowl due to intensive plowing on the Great Plains that removed the deep-rooted grasses. These grasses trapped moisture in the soil during periods of drought and high winds. When drought plagued American prairies during the 1930’s for eight years, high winds kicked dirt and dust into the air. “The drought and erosion of the Dust Bowl affected 100,000,000 acres,” states a Wikipedia entry.

ISTE NETS

The infographicabove addresses three of the relevant NETS. Those include Innovative Designer, Creative Communicator, and Global Collaborator. The infographic shares activities that address each standard.

5E Lesson Plan

Let’s review some of the main points of the 5E Lesson Plan, as well as explore the technology connections possible. You can find the 5E + Technology Lesson chart in this companion blog entry. You will also find an infographic depicting some of the main ways the ISTE National Education Technology Standards (NETS) are represented in the lesson.

ENGAGE

  1. How? Activities that capture the students’ attention, stimulate their thinking, and help them access prior knowledge.
  2. Technology? PBL component, creation of video/audio explorations of a topic
  3. What Success Looks like?

“Quick, Jennie-girl,” cried Grandma, “cover the beds!” The clouds appeared on the horizons with a thunderous roar. The turbulent dust clouds came in from the North and dumped a fine silt over the land. Mom, Dad, Grandma, and I stayed inside the house. Sheriff Marcus would always come by afterwards–“How you farmers doing?”–to check on us after a dust storm. Each of us wore a handkerchief over our nose and mouth. When Pa went outside, he wore googles over his eyes because the wind was so hard. My job was to plug up all the holes, ripping up cloth and sticking them into cracks in the walls, doors and windows. It didn’t make much of a difference, though. The silt, like Ma’s talcum powder, found its way into everything. During a storm, Ma waved wet gunny sack through the air and tied damp sheets over our beds so the dust wouldn’t settle into our sleeping sheets. Pa’s face was gray; the wheat crop was dead. “Oh,” I cried, “how can we stop this from happening?”

Get a copy of the Google Slides version of this infographic

EXPLORE

  1. How? Enable students to explore their ideas, singly and in groups, in the classroom or at a distance. Provide students time to think, plan, investigate, and organize collected information.
  2. Technology? Students are guided through the PBL process, composed of the following steps:
    1. IDENTIFYING HUNCHES: WHAT WE KNOW, WHAT WE NEED TO KNOW
      Ask the following questions and have students work to identify their responses to the following:
      What hunches, or guesses, can we make about the problems, the people in the problem?
      What do we know for certain about the problem? Be sure to explain to students that these are certainly in the text kinds of answers rather than extrapolations based on what they have read.
      What do we need to know in order to help Jennie?

ONLINE ACTIVITY – To get this activity going, use a wiki page (or Google Doc/OneNote/Word Online) for each area with the titles above. Group students and encourage them to fill in this information.

  • IDENTIFY AND EXPLORE STAKEHOLDER ROLES
    Now that we know what we need to know, what stakeholders can we identify in the problem? Some sample stakeholder roles for this problem include the following:
    Farmers
    Local authorities, like police
    Crop buyers
    The government
    Children/Spouses of farmers
    Local business people
    Note: As the lead learner, I would not provide this list to students. They should tease it out of the problem engagement.

TPACK, Anyone?

You can also make TPACK connections for PBL models:

Content: In this lesson in particular, the required content knowledge is science, specifically the causes of weathering. Students need to develop a strong understanding of weathering, identifying what farm practices turned grasslands and wilderness into dirt and dust.

Pedagogical: The required pedagogical knowledge is the best practices for middle school students. PBL research studies at middle school indicate that this approach enhances group dynamics, student collaboration, critical thinking, and problem solving. It also increases students’ motivation and engagement (Sources: BIE, TFO, ASCD).

Technological: Students work in collaborative teams to develop documentaries that present the Dust Bowl problem from a stakeholder perspective and offer a relevant solution (Model to Follow, NonFiction Documentaries). Students also have the option to re-create physical spaces in virtual space using tools like Minecraft: Education Edition a la Block by Block approach. Students would also be encouraged to explore a variety of creation tools, ranging from WeVideo, Toontastic, or iMovie, and are invited to incorporate green screen technologies.

EXPLAIN

  1. How? Students acquire opportunities to connect their previous experiences with current learning and to make conceptual sense of the main ideas of the topic being studied.
  2. Technology? Giving this a Universal Design for Learning (UDL) spin, consider the following connections possible:
    • Multiple means of representation:
      Encourage students to organize their data gathering–and illustrate through multiple media–about their problem, stakeholders, and solution, as well as plan their documentary video (e.g. traditional or Minecraft-based screencast or blend per student choice). The organizational tool would be Microsoft OneNote, which provides ample ways to students to interact with content. Both students and teacher(s) can create visual guides students can interact with (e.g. semantic webs) with audio/video narration embedded. OneNote would facilitate decoding of text, mathematical notation, and symbols. Although students are not working with many other languages in this scenario, they could rely on tools like Google/Microsoft Translator apps to promote understanding across languages.
    • Multiple means of action and expression:
      Given a combination of available apps and software tools, students would have the opportunity to rely on multiple tools for construction, composition, and communication. Students could also rely on teacher-created rubrics for virtual space design (e.g. recreating the Dust Bowl situation and factors that led to it in Minecraft: Education Edition). Rubrics would assist student groups in self-monitoring progress.
    • Multiple means of engagement:
      Students will work in collaborative groups self-determined from their interest in stakeholders embedded in the PBL scenario relevant to the Dust Bowl disaster. They will work together to develop problem solutions that consider various demands and resources. The success of their solution development, whether as a documentary or virtual world, will be evident and defined by the rubrics they develop to assess their success.

Wrap-Up

We’ve only covered the first three “Es” of the 5E Model. Elaborate and Evaluate remain to be shared in Part Two (read it now).

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Tips and Tricks for MS Word

by Dr. Bruce Ellis
written by Dr. Bruce Ellis

graphic saying, "Focus on being productive instead of busy. Tim Ferriss"There are so many different tasks that I do which involve using either Microsoft Word or Google Docs that I have picked up a few tips and tricks over the years to help make using Microsoft Word even faster so I can get to other items on my to-do list. And isn’t that our main goal anyway? As Tim Ferriss, author of The 4-Hour Workweek, said, “Focus on being productive instead of busy.” I was training this past week on Microsoft Office and had that startling realization that there are things I know how to do in Office that I take for granted and just assume that everyone knows the same things and makes use of various tools to speed up their process. So, here is a shortened list I would share with someone if they use Word, but want to be more productive.

Customize Word Options

Word comes with many preferences and options that are available to tweak. To begin, click on FILE →Options. The Word Options dialog box appears with a navigational menu on the left and options to edit on the right. I have found the following changes to be beneficial.

Save Section

  • Auto Recovery – Initially set at ten minutes, I dropped mine down to five. Whether I’m on my laptop on the go or plugged in at the office, if something happens and my computer shuts off, the worst case scenario is that I have only lost five minutes of work.
  • Embed Fonts in File – If you are like me and enjoy a variety of fonts, then you will want to select this option especially if you share your Word files with others. When enabled this feature embeds your TrueType font within the document so you can edit/view it on a computer as intended, even if that computer doesn’t have the font installed. BTW, my favorite font sites include 1001 Free Fonts and DaFont.

Advanced Section

  • CTRL+Click URLs – I found it much simpler to deselect this option. Now, when I click on a URL that is a Word document, it automatically opens in my browser. Otherwise, I have to hold down the CONTROL key and click the link.
  • Copying/Pasting – When pasting from other programs, I typically want just the text (not the formatting), so why not set it here? I also have my pictures inserted/pasted as Tight…which is what I would change them to most of the time. The few times I want an image inserted in line with text or in front of text, I can easily change it on the fly using the Wrap Text button on the Format ribbon tab.
  • Recent Documents/Folders – It seems like I am always needing to find a Word file that I used a while back. To help make that easier, I increased the preference to show the 50 most recent documents (to quickly access them) and 50 unpinned recent folders.

Helpful Tools

While there are many tools in Word to make use of, here are the ones that help me be more productive when I am in a time crunch.

Home Tab

  • Format Painter – I cannot believe that everyone doesn’t know about the Format Painter tool! Click in the text that contains the format you want to paint somewhere else. Then, click the Format Painter tool once if you are only going to apply it once or double-click it if you want to apply it to multiple pieces of text (or graphics) in your document. If you double-click the tool, then you will need to click it again to turn it off. This tool is especially handy if you have multiple locations where you want to bold, resize, change the font, and the color!
  • Styles – Instead of being forced to use the styles that are listed across the Home tab ribbon, consider updating them to be what you want. When your cursor is in the text that contains the formatting you want to keep, right-click on the appropriate style and select “Update…to Match Heading.” This is equivalent to boosting the Format Painter tool in that I don’t have to go and find the format in my document to click in and then grab the tool. Updating the styles makes it even easier.

Layout Tab

  • Margins – I have noticed that when I start a new document, I typically want 0.5 inch margins all around. So to make it easier, I’ve updated my margins and clicked the “Set as Default” button. You can also specify the orientation, paper size, paper source (if you have a nice printer with multiple trays), and other settings. Setting as default will save the preferences in the normal template that Word uses each time it start a new document.

Favorite Shortcuts

Some folks are mouse people and some folks are shortcut people. I am a shortcut person. I would much rather learn a shortcut if available instead of moving over to use the mouse and then jumping back on the keyboard. So here are a few of my favorite shortcuts.

  • CTRL+m – This shortcut will indent the margin by 0.5 inch. And when you are ready to jump back to typing at the original margin, just do SHIFT+CTRL+m. If you are just wanting a hanging indent, then try CTRL+t.
  • CTRL+k – This shortcut is handy to use when you are typing a website and it doesn’t automatically convert or you want to add a link to text.
  • CTRL+e – Use this shortcut if you want to center align the text you are in. You can also use CTRL+r (right justified) or CTRL+l (left justified) (hitting the CTRL+l again will full justify the text).
  • CTRL+] – This shortcut applies to the text where your cursor is (or the selection if additional text is selected) and increases the font size. To decrease font size, just use the neighboring key to the left (CTRL+[).
  • ALT+click/drag – We know that you can click and drag to select text. This shortcut is like that only on steroids! While you hold down the ALT key, click and drag to select the columns of text you want to delete. Once selected, just his the delete key or backspace key.

Let me know which feature or shortcut you find most helpful and/or most used. You can tweet to us at @TCEA and @DrBruceEllis. Or, if you need more characters, share via the comment section below. If you would like TCEA to come to your location and train your staff to be more productive with Office products, including Microsoft Office 365, you can drop me an email at bellis@tcea.org with preferred dates and I’ll get back in touch with you regarding details.

 

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Teams
Microsoft

Microsoft Teams Updates

by Miguel Guhlin
written by Miguel Guhlin

Want to learn all about Microsoft Teams? Perhaps you want to differentiate assignments for students in your class. Or manage your virtual classroom space. Then Microsoft Teams may be the tool for you. Take a moment to review some of the latest updates for Microsoft Teams, a classroom collaboration tool that facilitates lesson management, easy sharing of resources, and more.

Did You Know?

Have you signed up for the 2018 TCEA Microsoft Academy? If not, you can do so online.

Let’s explore my top three favorite Teams updates.

Update #1 – Differentiate Assignments

Differentiating instruction involves making adjustments for “student’s learning style, readiness, and interest” (Source). They allow you as teacher to connect with all learners while tailoring assignments for each student’s learning style. You can use Microsoft Teams new feature to create tiered levels of assignments that address individual students’ needs. This means you can create an assignment, customizing it for various students who may need either a simplified or more advanced task.

Update #2 – Resubmit Assignments

“The mastery of how to think requires trial-and-error learning,” says Professor James Pennebaker from the University of Texas at Austin (Source).”When people are trying to learn new skills, they must get some information that tells them whether or not they are doing the right thing. ” Students can now submit assignments and then receive feedback from the teacher. Afterwards, students can resubmit the assignment. Providing feedback becomes more effective if teachers do the following:

  • Provide specific feedback. Teams makes this much easier since it allows for the teacher to enter detailed feedback that the student needs.
  • Give immediate feedback. Teachers can review student work just-in-time and then respond as quickly as possible or necessary. Teams make fast feedback possible.
  • Set growth in a larger framework. Students need to understand how progress on specific tasks translates into overall movement toward overarching goals. Teams makes organizing tasks and goals easier with its integration into OneNote Class Notebook.
  • Empower student ownership of their learning. Students learn best when they own the process rather than perceive it as teacher-directed.

Update #3 – Schedule Assignments

“Am I able to create and schedule assignments in advance?” asked Molly, a teacher in one of my Microsoft Innovative Educator (MIE) sessions. Microsoft Teams has now made that possible. As the teacher, you can share assignments with students to match your scope and sequence.

Teams Updates

These Microsoft Teams updates empower teachers to do more with assignments. Stay tuned for more updates that enhance the functionality of this amazing tool.

 

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MicrosoftProfessional LearningSTEM/STEAM

2018-2019 TCEA Microsoft Professional Learning Opportunities

by Miguel Guhlin
written by Miguel Guhlin

Are you an Office 365 school district and wondering how to maximize professional learning opportunities? Then bookmark this blog entry so you can check what exciting professional learning opportunities are upcoming this spring and summer. In this blog, I’ll share some of the events taking place that you will want to attend. Remember that in addition to these activities, you can always request a dedicated session, like Area 2 has done for a two-day Minecraft: Education Edition Academy.

Did You Know?

Want to sign up? Go to http://ly.tcea.org/attend to register for Lunch and Learns! TCEA Lunch and Learn events do require a TCEA membership ($49). If you have one, then the event is free.

Benefits of Attendance

What is in it for you? Attending TCEA Microsoft workshops and academies garner several benefits, including:

  • Membership in the free, Texas-wide community of Microsoft Innovative Educators (MIE). You get to interact with educators in public/private schools, as well as Microsoft, who are committed to accelerate your learning. Come learn with us!
  • Earn digital badges and certificates via the Microsoft Educator Community (MEC). All workshops, academies, and events earn you points that enhance your status in the MEC. And those certificates and badges can be easily printed to share with your employer.
  • Share your insights with others about using Microsoft products in your work. How are you using Microsoft Teams to transform communications in your district? Assist others as you learn more yourself.

If those aren’t enough reasons, you will also get access to a wealth of professional learning via TCEA, a non-profit education association dedicated to advancing teaching and learning through the use of technology.

Did You Know?

Join the TCEA MIE Facebook Community and connect to Texas educators from all around Texas, as well as Microsoft folks.

2018 Upcoming Professional Learning Opportunities

Attend these regional events in Fall, 2018. Registration is open now. Click links to access information form and registration link for each session.

October, 2018

November, 2018

Questions about content?

The facilitator for all sessions listed above is Miguel Guhlin, MIE Certified Master Trainer. Reach him via email at mguhlin@tcea.org or on Twitter @mguhlin

Professional Learning for Summer 2018

Robyn Hrivnatz, Keynote Speaker, 2018 TCEA Microsoft Academy

An amazing amount of TCEA learning opportunities abound. Let’s focus in on a few where Microsoft professional learning will be available.

Webinars

Not able to join us for face to face sessions? Then be sure to jump start your learning with online professional learning offerings via our Lunch and Learn series as well as other offerings. See you soon!

Did You Know?

TCEA features a team of MIE Certified Master Trainers, Certified Minecraft Trainers, as well as Google Certified Trainers and Administrators. They are ready to help you learn, whether that involves a technology audit or amazing professional learning experiences.

But wait, there’s more! Check out this collection of one hour, free webinars from Microsoft on a variety of popular topics. Topics include the following:

  • Six Steps for Building a Collaborative Classroom with Microsoft Teams
  • Bring the World to Your Students with Skype in the Classroom
  • Build a Digital Classroom with OneNote
  • Authentic Assessments with Forms, Sway, and More
  • Ten Things You Can Do with Office 365 Online that You Never Knew

Don’t wait. Time to get busy learning.

Past Events

  • 9/27/2018 – 1-Day Physical Computing and Its Role in Education – FREE EVENT
     Location: Arlington, TX
  • 9/13/2018 – MIE 1-Day Office 365 Teacher Academy (BYOD) – FREE EVENT
    Location: Arlington, TX
  • 9/1/2018 – MIE 1-Day Office 365 Teacher Academy (BYOD) – FREE EVENT
    Location: Edinburg, TX
  • August 2-3 – Two-Day Minecraft Education Edition Teacher Academy: This exciting two-day event, closed to the public, will be available for Burleson ISD teachers. If you would like a similar event for your district, please let us know. Location: Burleson, TX
  • July 12-13 – 2018 TCEA Microsoft Academy: The keynote speaker will be Texas educator and Microsoft Fellow Robyn Hrivnatz. In addition to sessions that will have an immediate impact on your classroom and use of Microsoft tools, attendees at the Academy will also be able to earn badges. Digital badges will be available in the Microsoft Education Community. Two  six-hour academies will be available. The first is the Microsoft Innovative Educator (MIE) Certified Trainer six-hour session. The second is the Minecraft: Education Edition Certified Teacher. Location: Austin, TX
  • July 17-18 – Minecraft Teacher Academy: Attend one of the all-day Minecraft: Education Edition academies being held at the Denton ISD Technology Integration Academy (TIA). You can register online at the TIA Conference website.
  • July 24-26 – Technology Learning Extravaganza: Come join us for three days and gain a wealth of knowledge and first-hand learning experiences in our Technology Learning Extravaganza in San Angelo, July 24-26. The sessions will provide educators learning opportunities to enhance knowledge in a variety of Microsoft-related areas such as Office 365, OneNote, Minecraft, Makecode, and more. Location: San Angelo, TX
  • July 31 – MakeCode for Micro:bit and Minecraft: Education Edition: The micro:bit is sweeping the globe as an accessible, inclusive approach to computing education that combines the magic of making with the power of code. The maker education movement has proven to engage and interest girls and other nontraditional CS student populations through creative, personally meaningful projects. Learn how combining the maker mindset with computational thinking can result in transformational learning experiences for all students.By the end of this session attendees will know how to construct and download simple programs to their micro:bit, and they will know where to find curriculum & resources for their classrooms. You will also learn how to use MakeCode to control the Agent in Minecraft: Education Edition. This is a Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) hands-on session for all levels (no prior computer science experience required). Location: Austin, TX
  • June 4 – MIE 1-Day Teacher Academy: Ready to begin your journey as a Microsoft Innovative Educator (MIE)? You will get certified as an MIE and receive support and guidance on this journey. Location: Laredo, TX (Area 1)
  • June 10-12 – Elementary Technology Conference: Read more about this conference online. There will be several Microsoft sessions offered at this event. Location: Galveston, TX
  • May 9 – PBL in the Minecraft: Education Edition Classroom: In this session, you’ll learn how to design Problem/Project-based Learning (PBL) experiences in virtual worlds like Minecraft: Education Edition. Participants will also experience PBL lesson-based design opportunities. They will develop a lesson plan, build a sample student product, and engage in world building. Location: Amarillo, TX (Area 16)
  • May 15 – Productivity Tools for Administrators: This conference will feature a variety of Microsoft tools that can enhance your productivity as an administrator, an administrative clerk, classroom teacher, or docent. Sessions offered will allow you to earn MEC points and/or digital badges and certificates. Location: Austin, TX (Area 13)
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ChromebooksGoogle Tips and TricksMicrosoftProfessional Learning

Summer Academies to the Rescue!

by Dr. Bruce Ellis
written by Dr. Bruce Ellis

Now is the time to start thinking about how you can recharge yourself after a long school year. At TCEA, we have the perfect opportunity for you: summer academies. You’ll find that everything is designed to get you the information you need to get you further ahead of the curve for next year AND take your skills deeper. For each academy, we have a superb lineup of talented presenters, relevant concurrent sessions, opportunities to mingle and expand your professional learning network, and good food. You’ll leave with great resources and ideas to share with your district/campus as well as implement in your own practices as a skilled educator who’s using technology to impact students.

Adobe Academy – June 19-20

Adobe users unite! You’ll find this the perfect academy if you use any of the Adobe products yourself or if you teach your students how to use them. Innovative uses, clever work-arounds, and new features will be shared to give you the solutions and steps you need. And, if you are new to Adobe, you will find several sessions that will help you get up to speed and boost your confidence. Adobe pros haven’t been left out; our presenters have clever ideas that are worth listening to and taking note of.

Microsoft Academy – July 12-13

Make a point to attend our first annual Microsoft Academy to boost your skills in Microsoft products including Office365 and Minecraft. This is going to be a great gathering! You’ll also be introduced to mobile coding with Creative Coding through Games and Apps and gain a deeper understanding into Microsoft Makers projects and 3D Builder. You will definitely find this packed full of topics that you can’t get at other learning opportunities.

Chromebook Academy – July 26-27

Even if you don’t have a Chromebook, but use Google Suite for Education, you will find these sessions filled with new and great ideas that you can take back to transform the way your students learn. Be sure to bring a friend so you can divide and conquer on the sessions and then share with each other at the end of the day!

As you can see, there are several great ways to recharge this summer. Whichever way (or ways 😉 ) you choose will inspire you for another year of making a difference as well as enhance the skills that you use on a daily basis. If you have more questions, or are interested in group discounts, contact Ashley Weiler at 512-450-5450 or aweiler@tcea.org.

 

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Office Mix
Microsoft

The Demise of Office Mix

by Miguel Guhlin
written by Miguel Guhlin

In a few short weeks, the demise of Microsoft Office Mix will be complete. Office Mix is “a free extension to PowerPoint that makes it easy to turn your PowerPoint presentations into interactive online lessons and share them” (source). While Microsoft has incorporated many Mix features into PowerPoint, there are various elements educators will miss. Because of this, in this blog entry, we’ll explore a few alternatives to Office Mix.

Did You Know?

The 2018 TCEA Microsoft Academy will feature amazing educators sharing their best ideas for the use of MS tools in the classroom. Won’t you join them? Register now for the July 12-13, 2018 event.

The Demise of Office Mix

Consider this recent announcement about Microsoft’s Office Mix:

“[Microsoft is]…excited to share that we are bringing the best of Office Mix directly into PowerPoint, Microsoft Stream, and Microsoft Forms for Office 365 subscribers on Windows PCs.

This new integrated experience in PowerPoint will remove the need for downloading an add-in. You’ll be able to easily access the feature via the Recording tab in PowerPoint after you turn on the feature by customizing your PowerPoint toolbar ribbon.”

While Microsoft encourages us to use Microsoft Stream, that option may not be available in your particular situation. Let’s explore a few alternatives to Office Mix for creating and sharing videos.

Screencasting Alternatives to PowerPoint with Mix

Here is a short list of screencasting alternatives. This listing includes browser-friendly tools, as well as those you can use on your computer.

Free Tools

Purchase Required

  • SnagIt ($29.95) for Mac or Windows
  • Camtasia Studio ($179.90) if you need higher end video capture and editing on Mac or Windows.

Note:Windows 10 has built-in screen recording.

Five Easy Screencasting Steps

  1. Develop an outline or map of where you want to go.
  2. Develop your presentation.
  3. Pick your recording tool.
  4. Screencast using shortcut keys.
  5. Publish/share your video.

Take some time to explore these tools and create your own screencasts. While many will miss Office Mix, try combining PowerPoint with some of these screencasting tools. You can, as Microsoft points out, place your content in Microsoft Stream. But you can also use other video sharing services such as YouTube, Vimeo, and TeacherTube.

Other Screencasting Resources

 

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