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"Even though it's October it still feels very much like the beginning of the year. One of the first thoughts that many teachers have about their students is "they look so little!" It's true. Those tall confident students that left us have gone on to be "little" to next year's teacher and we have our own new crop of "little" people to educate. This becomes even more pronounced in a technology classroom. Everything takes longer, typing, starting, opening, finding, searching. Whatever it is they need time to figure it out. Patience is key. So what can we do?"

In teaching it is often the little things we do on a daily basis that have the largest cumulative effect. While the events, festivals, camps and more spectacular lessons may stand out in our memories these moments have less overall impact across the time that our students spend in our company. Getting these little details right however is a complex business that demands we bring our best to every interaction, every lesson and every opportunity we have to shape the minds and dispositions of our learners. The result is that there are no easy lessons, no easy days.

"If you have opened Google Forms lately, you've probably noticed that things are looking a little different! Don't worry, this Google Forms does everything the older version did… and a few more cool things! If you get a little annoyed with it, you can always go back to the old version. Just click the little the man in the bottom left corner and you will be back in your familiar territory. However, if you're feeling creative, check out the new tools! Here are five of my favorites!"

"Elementary school has always looked a little bit like training for a traditional office job: You show up at 8 or 9, sit at your desk, and fill out paperwork for most of the day. An average third grader might spend as much as six hours sitting in the classroom--only a little less time than the average office worker spends sitting at work. But as more offices realize that sitting all day long is actually pretty terrible for health and productivity, how long will it take schools to catch up? While some elementary schools no longer have recess, and people like New Jersey Governor Chris Christie argue that school days should be even longer, a few schools are already moving in a different direction. Some are testing out standing desks, and realizing that a little bit of activity can actually improve attention spans. Others, like Ward Elementary in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, are starting to fill classrooms with exercise bikes, so students can work out while they learn."

"Top 100 little-known sites Everyone should know about"

"Parents and teachers who trust little Muffy and Junior with their shiny iPads don't have to worry about how access to shoot-'em-up video games will rot their precious little gifted and talented program minds. Instead, they can download some of the following alternatives to help them build up their brilliant brains that will totally go on to win Nobel Prizes someday."

"There is an ever growing number of teachers and students using iPads for creation projects. Little by little, people are understanding that the iPad is not just a consumption device for reading emails, watching YouTube and checking FaceBook and Twitter. The iPad is a powerful creation device. But an issue arose during the year at my school: How does one share large student videos and other projects with parents? Read ahead to find out."

"A computer coding game is a really fun way to introduce the basic concept of computer coding to young kids. Even better if you make it a superhero computer coding game! Plus you don't actually have to have a computer, so it's a cool tech-free idea. This homemade coding game was pretty easy to set up and can be played with over and over again with any type of pieces. Use superheroes,LEGO, My Little Ponies, Star Wars, or whatever you have to learn a little about programming."

"Last month I was busy visiting local schools ready for when Little N starts reception next year. One thing that really stood out was when a headteacher of one of the schools was talking about their use of technology, and how our children would grow up to do jobs that hadn't even been created yet, because technology is moving and developing so quickly. Even now Little N is learning about coding and he is only in nursery!  I sometimes feel like I am way behind when it comes to technology and the things our children learn, but there are lots of wonderful educational toys available nowadays that can help your children learn these skills, even if us parents haven't got a clue! One of the latest is the Cubetto from Primo, which hit the UK last month, and we were lucky enough to get our hands on one to review. It's the award-winning coding toy that children can use to learn computer programming and it's suitable for ages three and up."

"I have a confession to make.  I hate meetings. Maybe that is not entirely true. I hate bad meetings. You know the ones where you spend a lot of time going round and round in circles, yet seem to accomplish little at the end of the day.  One of those main staples of these meetings has been "brainstorming".  This process is one that has been heralded in not only meetings, but also for "Design Thinking" (here is a document on the techniques os brainstorming in design thinking from Stanford University, Institute of Design). So out of sheer curiosity, I googled "brainstorming is bad" to see what I found (not biased at all I know).  Here are a few of the articles that I read with little snippets from each."

Increasingly we aim to teach dispositions but some care in the use of the term is required as it is easily oversimplified. While teaching for dispositions is encouraged it will have little effect if it means doing little other than engaging with the terminology. If we are to encourage the expansion of the desired dispositions, we must be sure to adequately unpack them and understand the implications in store for our culture of learning. 

"Even the maximum volume on the iPad can sometimes seem a little quiet, which has prompted many of us to perform thet tried-and-true 'cup your hand over the speaker' trick that gets us a little more sound -which works really well for a quick video clip but isn't terribly practical or comfortable for more than a few seconds."

"NOVA Elements is a free app from PBS all about the periodic table, its unique set of properties, and how elements combine to make things you use every day. That coffee you're drinking? Yeah, it's made up of elements. You're ingesting tiny little molecules every time you take a sip, and they're interacting with other tiny little molecules in your stomach. Science is amazing! "

"The key to learning to code is learning to think like a computer--which is a hard thing to do. "It requires structured thinking, ability to abstract details away, and there's little margin for error--one little typo and your program might do something entirely different from what you wanted," says game developer Rui Viana. "

"Search by Color? A Little-Known Trick to Find the Right Image"

"I am completely impressed with the "Little Story Maker" App by Grasshopper Apps. (Thank you to Karen Lirenman, a first Grade teacher from Surrey, BC, Canada)"

"These are the best TED Talks for any educator because they make us laugh, warm our hearts, break down barriers, and always inspire us to dig a little deeper and push a little harder."

"These are the best TED Talks for any educator because they make us laugh, warm our hearts, break down barriers, and always inspire us to dig a little deeper and push a little harder, challenging your educator perspective. 50 Inspiring TED Talks For Teachers: Updated For 2014"

"Here is a wonderful little visual I came across through Edudemic which outlines the 8 skills students need in order to live up to the expectations of the future job market. These skills which are highlighted in the recent report "The Learning Curve"  by Pearson are a big departure from the conventional literacy skills : Reading, Writing, and Arithmetic.That being said, the report also underscored the fact that for kids (in developing countries) to get a grasp of the 21st century skills, they need to first master the basic literacy skills. Developing countries must teach basic skills more effectively before they start to consider the wider skills agenda. There is little point in investing in pedagogies and technologies to foster 21st century skills, when the basics of numeracy and literacy aren't in place."

"We've talked about the definition of intrinsic motivation in the past. We've also talked about some basic ways to improve student motivation. This time, it's Mia MacMeekin's turn to speak to you about the same, but through gridded, blocked, and easy to read infographics. The graphic starts with a definition for both intrinsic motivation and extrinsic motivation, then offers 27 verbs that can help promote that magic stuff that is characterized by curiosity, effort, engagement, and academic success. Some were a little iffy-"praise" and "milestones" seemed a little closer to extrinsic motivation. But the vast majority are useful to consider as you design units, lessons, and activities this school year."