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"Last year I taught third-grade math in a whole new way. Combining elements from the wildly popular sandbox game Minecraft, I had students thinking visually and creatively about mathematical models and theories that went way beyond a typical third-grade curriculum, transforming math class into what I like to call Mathcraft. Why Minecraft? I could say I am using Minecraft for a number of reasons, like how I find Minecraft enhances metacognition by increasing students' memory storage capacity. The game itself creates a relatable enjoyable experience that can be internalized and shared in a community of learners. The limitations on the working memory are minimized because the gameplay itself is an extension of our visual sketchpad. Working with students they always say, "I can see it," and when they see it they share it."

"While it feels like we just wrote 7 Apps for Teaching Children Coding Skills, it's been a year, and as we know, that's a couple of lifetimes in the technology world! Over the past year, we've discovered even more fabulous sites for teaching coding. With programs like the Hour of Code and other sites, it looks like many children have been exposed to computer programming, but we feel that we still have a long way to go. Graduates with programming skills are in high demand, and it's clear those numbers will only increase. In addition, the skills acquired through programming, like logical thinking, problem solving, persistence, collaboration, and communication, can be applied to any grade level, any subject area, and in every part of life. Programming isn't just limited to computer science majors in college. Like we said a year ago, kids can code -- we have the sites and resources to make it happen. And it's never been more important to provide students with opportunities to be exposed to programming, especially girls and minorities. In the interest of space, we've limited our list to resources for coding with elementary students (ages 5-11), and best of all, free resources!"

"BioMan Biology is the fun place to learn Biology! Here you will find learning games, review games, virtual labs and quizzes that will help you to learn about cells, ecology, genetics, physiology, and much more! Note: If you are a teacher, please check out the teacher section for ways to use the site to increase student engagement and learning. Remember, everything on this site is completely FREE to use!"

"This summer, I was introduced to sketchnoting and challenged to incorporate  the concept of sketchnoting as a means of note taking.  Sketchnoting is the process of creating a personal visual story while listening, reading, or recording an experience as it happens or on a later date. Sketchnoting brings in a variety of cognitive processes, increasing the connection between speaker and listener due to the engagement needed to listen intently while synthesizing the spoken word into drawings and short narratives.  I decided to to take the challenge seriously."

"Where is the evidence that this assessment strategy actually supports improved teacher practice and increased student achievement? Why should teachers "do" digital student portfolios in the first place, since they are not required? How do performance and progress portfolios "mesh"?"

"It's becoming difficult to read the news in Los Angeles these days without running across yet another article about the problems faced by the sputtering LAUSD iPad initiative. Finally, LAUSD Superintendent John Deasy announced this week that they were suspending the contracts with Apple and Pearson amid increasing scrutiny and investigation of the bidding process. According to Deasy, "it will also give us time to take into account concerns raised surrounding the project". There were always valid questions surrounding a bidding process that granted enormous contracts for digital courses that had not yet been developed. It's unfortunate however that an investigation into the bidding process became the catalyst for the project's suspension when it was the planning and implementation that fell woefully short in so many areas. Hindsight may be 20-20 but many were already pointing out substantial flaws in the plan at its initial announcement. As educators we know that failure is the breeding ground for learning and adapting. With that in mind, here are 5 lessons that can be drawn from the LAUSD iPad experience."

"It just might be that in a society where information is abundant, thinking habits are more important than knowledge. Somewhere beneath wisdom and above the "things" a student knows. Laws of economics say that scarcity increases value. It's no longer information that's scarce, but rather meaningful response to that information. Thought. And thought has a source-a complex set of processes, background knowledge, and schema that we can, as educators think of as cognitive habits. And if they're habits, well, that means they're probably something we can practice at, doesn't it?"

"As a result of the advances in technology and an increase in Wi-Fi access, schools have slowly begun to respond to this trend. The realization now is that many students possess devices and it only makes sense to harness and leverage their immense power. For many, even the most stubborn school districts that have fought this trend for years have begun to change course. All one has to do is look to the largest school district in the United States, the New York City public school system, to see that they have just lifted a ten year ban on students bringing their cell phones to school. The potential is there for schools and educators to empower students to take more ownership of their learning. This has resulted in a growing trend of Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) initiatives being adopted. This has been the preferred option as opposed to 1:1 initiatives due to overall cost. However, many schools and districts that have adopted BYOD have done so without proper planning and support."

"By definition, an avatar is a figure or character that you can create and customize the way you want. You can use this character to interact with other friends online . Users have the full control of what they want to feature for example the kind of background, accessories, clothes...etc. There are several reasons why you need to consider using avatars with students some of which include: Students can use avatar images in their profiles instead of their real pictures Avatar-creation provides students with hands-on activities in identity building Using avatars can increase students engagement and keep them focused and on-task Students can use avatars in their multimedia projects Below are some very good iPad apps that you can use with students to create avatars. Here is the link to access and download the chart in Google Doc version. "

"The Great Kindness Challenge is one school week devoted to performing as many acts of kindness as possible, choosing from a checklist of 50 suggestions. Help create a culture of kindness on your campus! It's free, easy to implement and has the power to increase tolerance, unity and respect for all grades Kindergarten through High School."

"Teacher collaboration is among the cornerstones of school improvement. When teachers connect-for the right reasons-good things happen. The ability to connect is increased exponentially through technology. Digital collaboration by teachers has an infinite numbers out possible outcomes, from formal teacher improvement, to informal connecting for people that get you. A global teacher's lounge, if you will. Social media-based professional development is another possible outcome when teachers connect. In contrast to sit-and-get, impersonal training, self-selected and self-directed PD has the potential for just in time, just enough, just for me qualities. The following infographic Mia MacMeekin takes these kinds of ideas and itemizes them, coming up with thirteen strategies for digital collaboration by teachers. She has a few ideas on the graphic, and we've added our own below."

"It's not hyperbole to say that we're in danger of losing a generation of children to a world that, at the moment, cannot find its way forward without violence, conflict, and despair. It's not just war and violence that threaten, but a crumbling of the infrastructure of good thinking. That sounds vague, but we witness its impact daily. What we see around us is an increasing inability to collectively define and outline a satisfying vision of the future. Fear is rapidly replacing hope-and that's not a good formula for growing up whole. The news is particularly poignant as we transition into a new year, when much of the world aims to turn love and good will from slogans into reality. So here's a question for educators to consider: How do teachers help heal the world in 2015 and beyond?"

"The concept of a Personal Learning Network (PLN) is a familiar concept these days. Yet, the nature of Personal Learning Networks is evolving as the range of tools available to support them increases, and our rapport with those tools becomes more sophisticated. The aim of this post is to outline the changes that appear to be taking shape, and to offer some practical strategies for teachers to supercharge their Personal Learning Networks."

"The National Geographic Society was founded in 1888 "to increase and diffuse geographic knowledge". Its mission, to inspire, illuminate and teach is a very noble cause, and a cause that few National Geographic Channel viewers would be aware of. Staying true to its founding principles National Geographic has embraced digital extremely well and in turn provides a huge set of versatile and engaging resources that can be used to inspire, illuminate and teach students about the world around them."

"It's a controversial topic: do you introduce social media in the classroom or ignore it? Whether you use traditional social platforms or social-focused tools, many educators find that this technology helps increase engagement and excitement with students, many of who are already very familiar with it. "Students communicate, research, collaborate, create and publish online with or without the help of parents or educators. These same students then hop on social media to promote, discuss and share their thoughts with the world. The digital environment is offering us some of the greatest learning opportunities that young learners have ever had," says Gail Leicht, an 8th grade teacher. Bringing social networking into the classroom gives quiet students a chance to shine; sharing their voice online is often easier than speaking out in class. It also opens the doors for collaboration and communication between peers, both inside and outside of the classroom. Not to mention, it gives teachers another opportunity to connect with students. Despite the benefits, many educators still shy away from using social networking in the classroom because they are unsure about how to integrate it successfully. In fact, fewer than 20 percent of U.S. teachers use social media in the classroom, according to USNews.com. Luckily, the process isn't quite as daunting as it seems. Not to mention, you don't need to use traditional social networks to take advantage of social networking in the classroom. Follow these simple steps and watch as your students start sharing, commenting and publishing while learning important lesson material."

"Some are calling Oyster, the Netflix of e-books, and upon opening the app, I was pleasantly surprised by the number of books available. I even found the titles of several books on my reading list that I've been planning to read. Oyster, gives you access to book titles for a monthly subscription fee of $9.95. Right now, I am using a trial of the service, so I am personally undecided whether or not it's worth my while to pay the month fee. It also remains to be seen whether the e-book service can provide access to an increasing number of titles, but the idea is appealing, especially to someone like me who enjoys access to a book any way I can get it."

"The value of computer programming has been rising exponentially for decades. To the point where now coding has gained traction in mainstream media. TV shows like CBS's The Big Bang Theory or HBO's Silicon Valley are good indicators of computer science careers are taking center stage. The domino effect created by the demand for amazing technology is likewise leading to a demand for skilled workers to engineer and program. Whether training comes through a high school certificate program, or a degree in computer science, the need for project-ready coders is only increasing. The bottom-line: All schools at all levels are kicking coding into overdrive."

"Disruptive behavior continues to be one of the most challenging issues that schools face today. Even one seriously incompliant student can threaten teaching and learning for the rest of the class. And though exceedingly rare given the large number of schools throughout our country, incidents of deadly violence shake our confidence in school safety. In the 1990s, amidst similar circumstances and fears, schools adopted "get tough" philosophies of discipline: increased suspensions, expulsions, school arrests and zero tolerance. By cracking down on all transgressions, school leaders hoped to send a message to students that misbehaviors would not be tolerated, and also make classrooms safer for learners that remained."

Handing Assessment Over to Students I have been giving a lot of thought about how to give my students more of a voice in their learning and in our classroom. Initially, I was focused on increasing their presence on our classroom blog through podcasts, videos, and blog posts. I even gave thought to asking my district IT to unblock Twitter so that we could create a class account (which I am still going to do). But never would assessment have crossed my mind. Fortunately, I took my thoughts to my PLN. Janine Campbell (@campbellartsoup) responded to my tweet about amplifying students' voices with rich insights and a couple articles that got the cerebral wheels turning. If you like what you read here, be sure to follow Janine on Twitter. Assessment for learning is a pedagogical golden nugget. No one ever said that the teacher had to do it alone. Why not give your students a voice in how they are assessed? It might tell you more about where they are at than assessing your class conventionally. Rubrics are my favorite way to assess student projects. I'm even pretty good at creating them. By doing so, I completely understand the assignment and learning outcomes for any given project. But do my students? Is there a way to better utilize rubrics as assessment of learning where students' voices are intensified. Yes! Allowing students to create the criteria for assessment does just that. It doesn't just serve the purpose of better summative assessment. Student-created rubrics also provides a medium for formative assessment as well. If my assignment is for students to analyze the effects of the assassination of Abraham Lincoln on post-war America, I will be able to formatively assess the class' understanding of the main points of this event by the criteria that they suggest this assignment should be graded on. I will know that I need to reteach aspects of this event in American history if students believe that including a description of John Wilkes Booth's escape from Ford's The

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