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Showing posts from May, 2015

5 Google Chrome Noteworthy Extensions

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I know what you are thinking. Chrome? But we were told not to use it because it sucks up your computer performance and battery life. Ok, it may. But if you are doing a lot of stuff on Google then your still better off to use Chrome since it is Google's browser and their stuff works best where they want it to be. Makes sense, right? Knowing that, I thought that I'd assemble a list of five extensions that you may want to check out. 1. The Great Tab Suspender One of the reasons that Chrome sucks up your performance is that users often have a gazillion tabs and windows open. While convenient, each one is putting a load on your system trying to keep the content flowing. That's where The Great Tab Suspender comes in. It allows you to suspend tabs that you haven't been using recently. What makes it different than the one I was using before today is that it does all of it automatically based on an inactivity timeframe you set (from never to 20 seconds to 3 days) and then

New Goo in the Loos Near You!

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I have FINALLY updated all of the Goo in the Loos in both the middle and high schools so you have fresh reading material to enjoy. Like the first time I posted them, each faculty restroom now has a different Google tip. So change up your chosen location and you'll find something new! I've heard positive feedback about the Goo in the Loo. If you have any feedback to share, send it my way!

Infographic from May 6th PLAYDATE

Last week we held our final technology training of the 2014-15 school year during the late arrival days. Over the course of the year, each school had at least one morning (the HS had 2) with all of the technology integrators from the district as well as other technology leaders. I kicked off the year with the HS staff with the PLAYDATE model of PD time based on the limited amount of time we would have and how I thought the staff would most appreciate the time being used. I made changes to the final session of the year based on the feedback I received and tried to make the combined MS/HS session more successful. I will be providing more specific response to the questions and comments that were raised in the feedback I received. However, I wanted to share an overview of the PLAYDATE with everyone so you knew that I looked at what you shared with me. I use Piktochart to create this infographic looking at the data.

Creating a Slideshow Movie in Photos 1.0

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As a follow up to my last post on using images from Photos 1.0 in iMovie, I wanted to give folks a way of creating a slideshow movie right in Photos 1.0 without having to export, import, and make it more complicated with iMovie. It's that time of year when many are wanting to make slideshow looking back on the past year, so check out this super simple way to do it.

Using Images from Photos 1.0 in iMovie 10.7

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With iPhoto going away and Photos replacing it in Yosemite, many teachers have become a bit lost. One recent question on Staff Talk was how to take the images from Photos 1.0 and use them in iMovie 10.7. Although exporting isn't required, this method does make it easy to find all of your images in one place to easily add them to your movie. Keep in mind that Photos now enables you to create a slideshow movie right in the application itself (without using iMovie). So, if you are just creating a slideshow, stay tuned for my follow up post about that aspect of photos.

Engaging Writing with Google Story Builder

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Google Story Builder has been on my list of sites to check out for a while now and I finally got to it today. What a fun tool! The idea is that you can craft a script or piece or writing in the Story Builder site with as many "speakers" as you want. It creates the final video as a Google Document with the typing, deleting, etc. as the text changes in your script. I could easily envision creative writing, ELA, and theater students getting really into it. You don't even need to create an account to use Story Builder either! Click on the image below to see my super short example Story Builder project.

24 Free Lessons on NearPod for Teacher Appreciation Week!

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Nearpod has been creeping under the radar since last year and it hasn't been on my list of frequently chatted about tools. But it is really handy for building engaging lessons and presentations online. I just got an email from them and they are giving away 24 of their top lessons FOR FREE ! It is worth checked out their list and grabbing any that have to do with your content area before you run out of time. Need to create a Nearpod account to grab them now? Go to this link to create an account first ! Nearpod Loves Teachers!