TUIT: Connie Putnam and Dan Edelen (Clear Creek Elementary)

Last Friday, a principal had asked if I could arrange a tour of teachers who were doing some innovative things with technology in the classroom.  As it turned out based on test scheduling and other conflicts, the best place to visit multiple teachers was Clear Creek, so away we went.  One of the teachers we saw was Janice Bullard. I had given Ms. Bullard a #ShelbyTUITshoutout back in October, so the fact that she became CCE's Teacher of the Year for 2014-2015 was not surprising.  However, after this visit, I have to make sure Connie Putnam and Dan Edelen also have their moments in the sun for their own well-deserved shoutout.

First, we saw Janice's fourth grade classroom.  I already knew she integrated tools such as Padlet and Voicethread, but her students impressed us with their ability to do so many different digital learning experiences in the same space.  Some worked individually, some had a partner or worked collaboratively in a small group, but ALL were engaged.  We even saw some use Google Docs, which makes me have hope of how it can be integrated into the learning of younger students.

Next, we visited Ms. Putnam, a second grade teacher.  After the students worked together on a learning objective ("Today we are....so that we can.....I'll know I have it when..."), they quickly moved into learning centers to apply and practice their math knowledge. Some students had iPads, others used pencil and paper.  At the end of the lesson, Ms. Putnam used Plickers as a way to check for understanding as well as pre-assess what students may need her help on Monday.   However, I learned two ways to use Plickers that I didn't know before (and to think I considered myself an expert after this blog entry!); both involved the Smart Board.  The first is that a student who wanted to change their answer could go up and uncheckmark their box, which would enable his/her card to be scanned fresh.   Not only was that a helpful tip I didn't know, but I like how Connie had students take responsibility to make a do-over.  Second, after student answers were recorded and while still in Plicker's "Live View," Ms. Putnam asked for a volunteer to come up to the board and demonstrate their work.  Using the Smart Board pens, he did just that, writing in the empty space between the question and the student names. It was a clever way of integrating the Smart Board into the learning of the whole class.

Last but not least, we visited Dan Edelen, another second grade teacher who just passed his KTIP.  Dan and his students moved seamlessly through several tools: they started with a Kahoot (more about this tool in a previous entry), wrote reflectively in their KidBlog, and finished by sharing their work to Mr. Edelen's MacBook Air (which was hooked up to his Smart Board) via the downloadable program AirServer.  Like a virtual cloud-based AppleTV but without any need for special hardware, AirServer allows students to simultaneously share their screen with a main display computer.  There is a PC and Mac version, and the program has an one-time cost of $7.99 to $11.99.

Mr. Edelen showing his AirServer in action. Note the multiple shared student screens.

As the year draws quickly to a close, I was excited to see so many teachers in one building embracing a digital conversion of learning.  I should add that while all these CCE teachers check out school devices as often as possible, none have a class set full time.   Despite not having a daily 1:1 experience, they are still facilitating fantastic learning with their students.  Kudos to Ms. Putnam and Mr. Edelen (and a nod again for Ms. Bullard) for their #ShelbyTUITshoutout!

Lenovo Yoga: fixing your audio for HDMI connection

The new Southside Elementary, which just opened in August 2014, is unique in our district when it comes to technology.  As they built the school, they made sure that input plates to the new projectors reflected current standards.  Therefore, one of the ways you can hook up to the projector is via HDMI.

Yesterday, as I was preparing for some PD I will have here on Feb. 13 (topics include Google Forms, Augmented Reality, and SMART Board power tips), I plugged in my Lenovo Thinkpad Yoga device to a SMART board.  First, in order for the SMART Board to work as a touchscreen and use the Notebook '11 software, you need to plug the Yoga via a USB cord to the input plate.  Here's the first hurdle: you need to use the USB on the RIGHT side of the Yoga or you will get an error message.  Next, you need the display to show up on the screen. The Lenovo Yoga has a mini-HDMI port on the right side, whereas the wall plate has a normal size HDMI input.  This leads us to the second hurdle: make sure you pick up a mini-HDMI to regular size HDMI cord (one online store with good prices is here).

Now, I got the display on the screen, and the SMART board's touch capability was working fine.   However, I could not get my sound to come through the room's speakers!  So that leads us to the final hurdle: you need to update your Lenovo's drivers to get both video AND audio to output via your HDMI cable.

1. Go to the Lenovo Thinkpad Yoga driver website.
2. Look for the "Conextant CX20751 Audio Driver for Windows 8.1 (64 bit)" (see picture below).
3. Download and install the driver.  This will take a few minutes and require a restart of the Lenovo Yoga.
4. After a successful installation, there is nothing you should have to do; when your HDMI is hooked to a display, both video and audio should automatically work.

Two final thoughts before I end this entry:

• If you are having other issues with your Lenovo, check out some previous Edtech Elixirs entries.
• The driver fix above will need to be done regardless of what display device your Lenovo Yoga is hooked up to via HDMI.  For example, if you plug it up to your HDTV, you still need to update the driver or the sound will not come through the TV's speakers.

SMART Board Training Wrapup

Last week, Julie Webb, Karen Falkenstine and I attended two days of SMART Board training at Creative Image Technologies (or C-IT for short).  And you definitely have to C-IT to believe it (groan all you want, how could I resist?).  Visit Creative Image Technologies in Shelbyville when you can.  For now, you can get a preview tour below from a Story I posted via Storify:

Without going too far of a tangent, let me plug Storify for a moment as one of my favorite edtech tools.  Basically, this free service allows you to easily curate and bring together various places from the Internet in a rearrangeable order, thereby creating a "Story" told by multimedia.  (Places on the Web include Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, any Internet link, and several other web tools.)  Teachers could use this as a way of bringing together resources in one page and place; students could use it as on the fly research, exploring a current event, or creating a narrative (non-fictional or fictional). Your finished Story is easy to share with a URL, or embedded as I did above.

And since we are tangenting anyway, let me also say it was a pleasure and a privilege to train with two of Shelby County's finest.  I look forward to seeing Julie and Karen in my upcoming embedded tour.

But back to SMART Boards.  We learned tons about the devices.  I could write an entry just about maintenance alone (although I think I will handle that in a near-future video).  But let me share five of the favorite things I learned about the Notebook Software.

1. I always thought Notebook activities could only be accessed by a SMART Board in the classroom, which means parents or absent students would be unable to see them.  Not so!  Put the Notebook online and have the parents or students visit SMART Notebook Express to open it up for free.  (Sometimes the service may be temporarily down for maintenance or capacity problems, so be patient.)
2. Under the Object Menu, you can make an object an Infinite Cloner.  This is great for making manipulatives in an interactive game with students.
3. Under the Drawing Tools, you can hit the double arrow at the top right to move the toolbar down at the bottom of the screen; perfect for elementary students who may not be able to reach.
4. "Order to Reveal" under the Object Menu is a particularly helpful tool.  If you have several objects that initially are pulled apart but are supposed to be brought back together in a certain way (for example, bones, veins and skin), determining order can help.  In addition, if you make white text on white background but make the order of an object one layer underneath it, you can magically reveal the words when moving the object over the text!
5. You can easily embed a browser onto a Notebook page, and even pin a certain URL.  Not only does this mean you can surf the web without leaving the Notebook, but you can quickly go to a certain URL automatically in real time.  (Imagine setting up a saved Twitter hashtag search, which will obviously reveal new info every time you fire up the page.)

How do you feel about your SMART Board? Have a favorite strategy, Notebook, or tip you want to share?  Please Comment below.