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7 fascinating bots - crazy but interesting https://t.co/koJyrCMaL2 #edtech #ai #machinelearning #elt #tesol #esl… https://t.co/YjjJ5cmVmk

"One area that I don't have time to explore very often during the school year is creating music on my iPad. It seems with all the day to day activities of teaching that I totally loose touch with musical explorations and composing. I've been taking more time lately to do this and I am floored at what I can do with an iPad and a few apps. I am not going to give you a history lesson here but I will say that at one time in my career I dreamed of creating a wonderful MIDI lab outfitted with computers, keyboards, speakers and mixers for my students to use. That dream never happened because of the crazy cost involved. My dream has been reshaped. Here is what I've found…."

"Teachers may offer up a killer classroom library and carve out class time for silent reading, but these two things do not guarantee prolific reading, or even moderate reading from your students. One of my goals when I was teaching high school was this: to have students fall in love with reading while they were in my classroom (or at least like it a little more). So how do you motivate secondary students in a deeper, lifelong reader way? It's not just about helping a student find that right book, as teachers often see as the ultimate mission, but it's about giving reasons for reading -- and really good ones. Because let's face it, there's plenty of stuff we all have to read that we may not be crazy about, but we know it's good for us. The following motivators are inspired by educator Kelly Gallagher's book, Reading Reasons: Motivational Mini-Lessons for Middle and High School."

"As the school year draws to a close, many reflections are running around in my brain. The biggest one though stemmed from a question I have asked myself about our school mascot, the penguin. Why a penguin? They are cute, and fun to observe; but where is the value in having this little formal wearing bird as a mascot? After much reading and many discussions all via twitter chats, I have come to discover that being a penguin is an amazing feat...maybe even more amazing than one may realize. I have observed and interacted with my students in new, scary, unchartered, and sometimes crazy fun waters this year (Genius Hour, Maker Space, STEAM, getting ipads, etc.) and through it all have come to  realize what it means for my students to Live Like a Penguin. I am sure many of you educators out there have heard of the author, Dave Burgess, who wrote "How to Teach Like a Pirate", "How to Learn Like a Pirate", etc. In his books he assigns term to each letter of PIRATE that encourage innovation, risk taking, and determination.  Taking inspiration from him, I have come up with an acronym for our mascot, the PENGUIN that seems to truly fit how my students and I lived this year of teaching and learning and how I hope we both continue to so in our futures. ​Live like a PENGUIN:"

"You've no doubt read countless blogs and articles about the incredible impact makerspaces can have in schools. You may even have started rearranging your space, or perhaps you've created an Amazon wish list. But after being a maker-librarian for nearly two years, I can assure you that you should really stop thinking about starting a makerspace ... and just do it.  I spent a solid year planning my makerspace. I developed a vision statement and set goals. I made an infographic for my administration, listing standards that would be addressed. I weeded my library like crazy and made mock-ups using Google Drawings to help them envision the new space. At conferences I went to everything with the word "maker" in the title. I set up a filter on TweetDeck to see everything posted on #makered and #makerspace. And while I learned a ton and met a lot of amazing people, I really regret not having my own space already established before going into all these learning experiences. Which is why I strongly recommend you stop thinking about starting your makerspace and just get started."

"If you're like me, you can't believe that June is already here. And despite the craziness of assessments, reporting, awards day ceremonies, field trips, and impending good byes to students, my thoughts are already turning to my favourite season of the year. Summer! Bikinis and beaches, airplanes and backpacks, golf clubs and green grass, patios and cool drinks, and professional learning. That's right-professional learning. It's not only students who can experience summer learning loss! The glorious months of July and August are a rare opportunity for relaxation and adventure, but summer holidays also gives educators a chance to engage in self-directed professional learning. With ten months of busy schedules and mandatory professional learning days, pursuing our own educational interests is an indulgence many of us we feel we can't afford. This summer I challenge you to choose a topic you are passionate or curious about and pair some professional learning with your favourite summertime activity. Put a few of these summer learning hacks into action and avoid the summer slide!"

"What if the most underrated skill in school is thinking? I know, that sounds crazy. But how often do we tell kids what they are going to learn, tell them what to make, tell them what tool to use, tell them when to finish, tell them what questions to find the answers to. What if we stopped telling them things? What if we realized that knowing everything as the "teacher" and being the "expert" in the room is overrated. Because thinking? Asking questions? Growing? Developing ideas? Creating? Solving problems by digging in and pushing through the hard stuff that lies between a problem and a solution? That's learning."

"Teachers are always looking for ways to educate and engage. I read, observe, listen and try to integrate meaningful platforms and experiences into student learning so that my students are drawn to the event. I'm no different than any other teacher; we know that engagement matters. So with that in mind, let's talk about Minecraft. Children are crazy about it--they collaborate and create for hours. They LOVE it and want it at school. They are always talking about it, asking for it, and relaying stories about it. I've tried it a few times, and must admit I've yet to understand it well, but my son assures me that as soon as I get the hang of it I'll be hooked."

"Legacy Google Forms if you had a whole list of options you wanted students to choose from you had to copy and paste each item separately No more! The new Google Forms allows you to copy and paste a list right into a multiple choice, choose from a list or checkboxes question type."

"Summer and vacation go together like, well, two of the best things in the world. Parents have time off from work, kids have time off from school, the weather is nice, the sun is shining, and travel beckons. Whether it's a day at a local fun spot, a trip across country, or an adventure half-way around the world, memories will be made. Amazing memories, crazy memories, shared memories. No matter how great a vacation is, however, you can never be there forever, nor can you take everyone you love with you. What you can do is bring the vacation home for you and for them! With your iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad, not only can you take videos and pictures of those magic travel moments, but you can edit and share them right in iMovie, even right away if you want to. Best of all, for kids (of all ages!), iMovie's trailer templates make it incredibly quick and easy to put together something short, sweet, and fun!"

"I was 11 the year my summer camp director transformed the regular schedule, procedures, and lingo that we were used to-into the most memorable, enriching experience I had ever encountered at that point in my life. I had no idea that he had 'gamified' the week; I just knew that it was the best summer ever. Instead of grouping us by numbers, we were named after the Greek alphabet. We competed daily against the other groups in volleyball, softball, kickball, and on the final night -a chariot and Olympic flame opened an epic Olympic Game contest at midnight. The director, or 'game master' as we were inclined to call him, even made everyone reset the clocks and watches-so we never knew what the real time was, the entire schedule was set on some sort of crazy alternate schedule. Now I realize that it probably allowed him to sleep in and us to stay up later, but we were none the wiser. Daily we played games, wrote skits, went swimming, and competed for cleanest cabins. We did all the regular stuff, but it was more fun because there were rules and boundaries and points and collaboration and competition and a clear, mutual understanding of goals and performance and criteria for success. As a student, I got to learn more about the power of 'gamifying' something, and what effect it had on learners."

"As I look back, it has been a crazy and wonderful learning experience in CEP 811 over the last few weeks. With a focus on the Maker Movement and maker education, I have read articles, blog posts, sections from books, and even watched videos to learn more about the Maker Movement. I even had a chance to try my hand at making by creating a Lego robot using the NXT program and then turning my project into a great lesson about slope I can use with my math students. In addition, I considered what inspires a maker and how I might be able to turn my own classroom into an inspirational and supportive makerspace. This week, I organized all of the ideas I have gathered about the maker movement and maker education into a helpful infographic using easel.ly that addresses two important questions: What is the Make Movement? Why should math teachers start incorporating it into their classrooms? "

"You bought your iPad new three years ago, and now it's getting a bit long in the tooth. Opening apps can take forever. Sometimes they crash, stop responding, or won't open to begin with. If you want to extend the life of your little glass rectangle-and make your iPad faster in general-the following tips can help. And all of these tips are simple(ish)-nothing crazy like jail-breaking or changing hardware."