IHMS Tech Tips

Deck Toys is an engagement platform to make learning more interactive for your students.  You can use content that you've already created (Google Slides, Powerpoint, etc.) to create decks to review content, teach new learning, or enhance your lessons.   Here are two example decks created by Laura Ballard: Vocabulary Review Flowers for Algernon To create a deck, first sign up for free with your Google account.   A Deck is a canvas where you can create an interactive lesson to engage students. You may add Activities and Paths to encourage students' progression. Explore the   Deck Gallery   for decks made by other teachers.   Once you've created your first deck, you can share the Deck Toys classroom address with your students by posting the URL in Skyward or Google Classroom. Students will then work through the deck at their own pace.  You will see their avatars as they progress through the deck.  You ca...

The concept of hands-on learning is not a new one, however adjusting to the idea that when your students are playing PokemonGo they could be meeting objectives might be.  Using games (board games, online games, apps) to teach students is a concept that will engage your students in a way that more traditional classroom games (math war, Oregon Trail) have in the past. Common Sense Media discusses three strategies for using games in your classroom: 1. Use the games your students already play. Start with the games your students (and you!) already like playing. Use after-school play as a litmus test for engagement, and consider titles with the potential to drive deep, critical thinking. 2. Treat games like experiences, not instruction. Prep just like you would for a field trip or film screening. Set some context, then explore with your students. Resist the urge to offer instruction too soon; help students reflect and unpack the experience afterward. Even if stude...

Many of you are probably already familiar with Quizlet , a site where you can create flashcards for studying.  Recently, Quizlet has come out with a new feature called Quizlet Live that I'll highlight today, and I'll also mention a few of its other components you may not be aware of yet. The basis for Quizlet begins when you create a study set for your students.  Anything that can be visualized on a set of flashcards can be made into a study set.  You can type each word and definition into Quizlet, or you can import from a saved document.  This set will be utilized for all of the other games and features within Quizlet.  You and your students can get an account using your Google information.   You can then create a class for your students to gain access to your different study sets, or share what you've created with other teachers. There are several different features within Quizlet, other than the standard flashcards (though that is wher...