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"There's no doubt that students find making to be a creative and engaging activity. But as they tinker, design and invent, are they actually learning anything? Making is too young a phenomenon to have generated a broad research base to answer this question. The literature that does exist comes from enthusiastic champions of making, rather than disinterested investigators. But there are two well-established lines of research within psychology and cognitive science that can inform how we understand making and help us ensure that making leads to learning. Taken together, these two strands of empirical evidence provide the best guide we presently have for maximizing the learning potential of maker activities."

"So, then, what does it really take to be a modern teacher? This term has been cropping up since the general consensus seems to be that the term '21st century teacher' is outdated and a bit awkward. Some make the same argument for the 'modern teacher' mind you but that's about semantics. You want to know what it takes to be a progressive and always-learning teacher who knows how to get students to think, contemplate, and explore. Well, here goes!"

"One of my favorite parts of being a part of Maker Faire is sharing all our amazing Makers with teachers who come from all around the Bay Area-really from all over the world!-and then hearing from the teachers why this is such a special part of their year. We're delighted to welcome teachers to the event, whether they are coming with a whole classroom to our special open hours during the new Friday@MakerFaire, riding in style to Maker Faire on one of the buses generously sponsored by Google, or just attending on their own on Friday, Saturday, and/or Sunday. (Click on the flyer at right to print a poster to get your school to come Friday 1-5pm. Parent-organized groups of 10 or more coming after school are very welcome too!)"

"Coding is having it's 15 minutes of fame. Journalists regularly quote facts about the shortage of computer programmers in the US, entrepreneurs fund coding camps for low opportunity kids and even the President has given learning to code a thumbs up. For many parents and teachers this new focus on learning to code feels like an overhyped fad that will be replaced any day now by "learning particle physics" or "learning solar energy storage." And does anyone really believe that turning a whole generation of kids into programmers would be a good outcome for society? What about artists, doctors, musicians and mechanics? What about chefs, writers, electricians and plumbers? Why exactly do kids need to learn to code?"

"Yes, as a parent or teacher you might feel you are in a constant fight and you may win some and loose some battles but if we are careful, I believe we will win the war. With some thought and a positively mindset, this screen time might create a generation of thinking, creative and collaborative people. By setting up structures to help the children self-manage their screen time, I am hoping that I can already see the benefits of what these apps have to offer transferred to 'real-life' with two girls who are happy to help, keen to solve problems and create projects of their own design. Make sure you make some time to showcase the results of their more productive device use and it will encourage more."

"Differentiated instruction is not necessarily a new approach to meeting the unique learning needs of all students, but it has certainly been enhanced through assistive technologies. The advancements with assistive technologies have been astronomical in providing teachers even more ways to reach out to their students (Dove, 2012) and differentiate the way they learn, practice, and explore concepts (Ciampa & Gallagher, 2013). As a researcher studying assistive technologies and a program facilitator for the Learning Disabilities Association of Niagara Region, I have gained valuable insight to help support educators with high-tech assistive technologies. For the most part, my experience with assistive technology has generally revolved around using Apple iPads and Chromebooks. With this in mind, the following tips will be coming from the perspective of a teacher very passionate about mobile devices in 21st century learning spaces."

"Homework: effective learning tool or waste of time? Since the average high school student spends almost seven hours each week doing homework, it's surprising that there's no clear answer. Homework is generally recognized as an effective way to reinforce what students learn in class, but claims that it may cause more harm than good, especially for younger students, are common. Here's what the research says:"

"As someone who primarily taught math and science when I was a classroom teacher, I associated robots, robotics curriculum, and robot apps as things that were only used in those subjects. However, this past year my school received a robot grant that provided ten robots for us from the company Sphero. Sphero emphasizes the power of play in education and has a variety of lessons that are aligned to the Common Core and Next Generation Science Standards on their website. They also have a number of STEM challenges  in the form pre-designed engineering projects designed for collaborative group work with students and are helpful for teachers using the robots in their classes. Sphero is a robotic ball that can pair with an iPad, tablet, iPhone, or smartphone through Bluetooth, and getting started is relatively easy. Once you are ready to use Sphero, you take it off the charger stand and give it a "tap-tap" to "wake it up." When the robot wakes up, it starts to flash three different colors until it pairs with the device you are using it with via Bluetooth. Once it turns blue, then you know that it is paired and ready to go. There are at least 14 different education related apps that are available with Sphero: some of them use augmented reality technology, some of them teach the basics of coding, while others allow students to draw on a tablet to manipulate the color and movement of the robot. During the last week of June, I did a presentation at the ISTE conference with many other educators from all over the country who also received the robot grant. What amazed me was that people who taught subjects like language arts and social studies found incredible ways to integrate robotics into their curriculum to create some really engaging lessons for their students."

"Explore STEM education in settings beyond the classroom walls, and see how opportunities to learn science, technology, engineering, and mathematics are all around us. From science-based internships, to student-run makerspaces, to after-school activities, STEM is everywhere.  The videos in this series were produced by Mobile Digital Arts, and were made possible through generous support from the Noyce Foundation."

A few years back a dear friend introduced me to the concept of Augmented Reality and I have been fascinated by it ever since. Augmented reality is when technology is used to create a  live view of an alternative, augmented world by generating sensory information through a computer or tablet. (This was the first video I saw that demonstrated Augmented Reality and I was awed by it!)  I have found it to be an effective tool to encourage deeper thinking and maximise instructional time in my classroom. The kids love it, other teachers are awed by it and you will have fun experimenting with it. There are many ways you can approach the application of Augmented Reality in you classroom. I have found the simplest to be Aurasma. Aurasma is an app for iPhone or iPad that can allow for augmented experiences to be embedded simply in your day-to-day teaching. 

"It really all started with the 20+ iPads we loan out to educators. Those suckers are constantly in demand and constantly in need of charging. They're each firmly encased in Fintie Kiddie cases, which, laugh all you want, those things can stop a bullet. And they stand up. And they recline, have carrying handles and come in neon colors, perfect for locating 20+ loaned out units during the chaos of an event, but that's a whole other blog post. Anyway, we've been loaning these iPads out in tote bags, and just tossing the chargers in higgledy-piggledy. Mainly because if you have done any shopping around for charging carts you likely have needed to be resuscitated at least twice when looking at the prices. The cheapest we could find that works with our beloved Fintie cases started at $399.00, and there was no guarantee everything would fit. We've borrowed another department's iPad charging tray a couple times, but a) it cost them closer to $1,000.00, b) weighed close to 25 lbs and c) had no wheels, thus entailing that their tech guy** lug it four blocks each way. The thing about the Fintie cases is that part of their magic durability is that they surround the iPad in thick molded foam rubber - perfect for tossing in bags and bike panniers (guilty!) but problematic for trying to buy a pre-made charging cart, as the slots in those are generally cut for slimmer, uncased iPads. Plus can we get back to the whole cost thing? Are school districts really running around with so much cash? I know I'm not. And thus, with no more rambling, I present: How to Build Your Own iPad Charging Cart Out of Office Supplies"

"Though iPhone and iPad apps are generally very stable, sometimes you'll encounter an application that crashes at random. In iOS, a crashing app usually presents as an app that seems to quit itself immediately, returning back to the Home Screen of the device without user intent. An app crash can happen immediately upon launching the app, crash randomly in the middle of using the app, or sometimes a crash can even be triggered predictably by a particular action that is attempted within the application. Regardless of when the iOS app is crashing, we're going to review a few solutions that nearly always work to remedy the problem and should get you on your way to a trouble-free app usage experience again."

"The more and more I think about changing my classroom practices, the less and less I consider technology. Perhaps I should celebrate how embedded in practice it has become since I no longer consider it an event. It takes times for this natural fit. Time and energy. Two things teachers don't have much of during the week - time and energy. Between raising families, coaching sports teams, planning lessons and marking at night (forget having a social life), it can be challenging to learn about new tools an technologies. Trying a new app with a full class of kids generates a lot of anxiety and fear. What happens if the technology fails?"

"The iPad is a great device for assistive technology and text to speech is one of the most often used accessibility feature by teachers in special education and general education classrooms. Many teachers are not aware that it exists, but it does, and it has evolved to become a very usable solution with lots of valuable options to customize it to meet your needs. Here's what you need to know to get started with text to speech functionality on your iPad."

"From an electricity-generating soccer ball to a doll that chats and remembers previous conversations, a sampling of new tech toys take play beyond the screen and into the real world - all while augmenting education and play. Just when many parents feared they'd lost their children to the screen, concerned that their growing brains might be stunted from too many hours crushing gumdrops, tech toy developers have come to the rescue. Capitalizing on recent advances in technology, developers are now creating toys designed to build brain power and skills. Unsuspecting children - Shhhh! - continue to believe it's all fun and games."

"Minecraft first came out in 2009; but just a few weeks ago it debuted on the current console generation. What makes this game endure, 5 years later - with over 15 million licensed players on the PC/Mac alone? It's awesome, that's what. If you're late to the party though, don't worry - this extensive beginner's guide has you covered."

"Maker education (often referred to as "Maker Ed") is a new school of educational thought that focuses on delivering constructivist, project-based learning curriculum and instructional units to students. Maker education spaces can be as large as full high school workshops with high-tech tools, or as small and low-tech as one corner of an elementary classroom. A makerspace isn't just about the tools and equipment, but the sort of learning experience the space provides to students who are making projects. Maker Ed places a premium on the balance between exploration and execution. Small projects lend themselves to indefinite tinkering and fiddling, while larger projects need complex, coordinated planning. Often, small projects can organically grow into larger and larger projects. This deliberate process strengthens and enriches a learner's executive functioning skills. Additionally, communication and collaboration are two of Maker Ed's fundamental values. Making allows learners to practice their social communication skills in a variety of groupings, whether affinity-based, role-specific or teacher-assigned. It's important for all different groups to be present in student learning spaces so that all students can practice their social skills in multiple settings. Lastly, Making presents unique opportunities to generate flow learning and allow the teacher to leverage high-interest projects and activities and turn them into learning objectives within a curriculum. Maker education provides space for real-life collaboration, integration across multiple disciplines, and iteration-the opportunity to fail, rework a project and find success. The benefits of a cooperative learning environment are well documented in a makerspace. If you are wondering how to connect these projects back to the Common Core Standards, check out PBL Through a Maker's Lens and Woodshop Cowboy."

"Those who follow my blog know that I have jumped into and am loving the current emphasis on the Maker Movement and Maker Education. As I was flying back from a recent conference, I noticed a film on the screen embedded in the plane seat in front of me. I was immediately intrigued by the animated film and watch the 10 minute short animation in awe of its brilliance. No sound was needed. Upon further research, I discovered it is called "Me + Her", a Sundance-nominated short film set in a world made entirely out of cardboard."