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"I'm very excited about the new learning journal app Seesaw which can help teachers and parents connect with students and keep track of their school work.  Seesaw is a simple way for students as young as 5 to independently document what they are learning at school.  It empowers students to take more ownership of their learning."

"This infographic paints a very interesting picture on the relationship between social media and our students. This provides more justification on why we need to teach the proper ways of using social media to our students."

"I've shared some of the reasons why I think News-O-Matic is a great choice for integrating informational text into your everyday instruction.  Not only is nonfiction reading an important skill, but students can learn how to become informed citizens by interacting with news stories on a daily basis.  News-O-Matic has developed a list of different ways to use this tool in the classroom, check out their top seven:"

"Surveys and polls can serve a wide variety of educational purposes. As a teacher, you can use them to initiate quick formative assessments, gather informal feedback on your students learning, run mock exams, learn about students interests and learning pace to mention a few. You can also use them to evaluate your own teaching strategies and gain an insider look into your instruction. Upon your request, we have compiled some of the best iPad apps you can use to create  surveys and polls. Check out the list below and as always, share with us what you think of it."

"Students can now show every line of their math work on iPad and other tablets, writing all their steps by hand on screen. Mathspace digitizes each handwritten line and grades it automatically, giving students immediate, formative feedback at every step of the way - like having a teacher at their side. This is a huge step forward from multiple choice or single-input response math questions that most students and teachers are used to seeing on digital platforms."

"This year at ISTE in Atlanta, I shared with teachers one easy way to add QR codes to three-dimensional shapes.   The app Foldify lets users create a template for a variety of three-dimensional shapes.  Instead of drawing a picture or adding family photos, I used a QR code generator on my iPad, saved the pictures to the Camera Roll, and placed them on my Folidify creation.  They are easy to assemble after your print them out and great for having students roll a dice for a mystery writing prompt or math problem."

"YouTube is a terrific resource for teachers looking for content to share with students. There are tons of videos that will reinforce key concepts and help kids get excited about what they are learning in the classroom. Since there are plenty of videos on YouTube that are not kid-friendly, YoouKids has developed an iPad app that helps teachers organize which clips they want to share with their students."

"Primary source documents, especially photographs, are powerful tools for grabbing the attention of students.  Sometimes it's challenging to find the right picture to connect to a historical fiction literature circle or to support a Social Studies lesson.  I'm a big fan of Google Image searches but another option is to check out the LIFE photo archive hosted by Google.  You can search over a hundred years worth of photographs by typing in a keyword or choosing a specific event or time period.  This is a terrific resource for teachers who work with students of any age!"

"I love using current events with students as a high interest informational text.  There are tons of video and print news stories that can be accessed from terrific websites and iPad apps.  Here are a few of my favorites, add your picks in the comments section below!"

NowComment lets you annotate documents in same way as Google Drive, but works in two panes that scroll separately, and multiple users can annotate a document with comments hidden from one another until a specified time; perfect for class use.

Might help create a blended classroom, even when you have to share the blender.  Common sense advise for the real world of underequipped classrooms and stretched thin teachers.

"Recently, I've also been fascinated by the way the human mind interprets visual symbols. From doodling to reading and writing text, the brain is wired with a proclivity for visual sensory ability. In order to help students harness this power, we have been trying our hand at visual notes and sketchnoting in class. Then I decided to try some lessons with infographics."