Communication with students - Remind app

I use the app Remind. This is an app that can send alerts to the students via text message without actually giving out your phone numbers. You can also change the settings to either allow or not allow students to respond. This becomes very handy when I want to tell the students something that I may have forgotten to mention in class, or when you want to remind them of an upcoming test, quiz, etc.

Contributed by Ms. Matsunaga

Beginning of class review/relaxation

In light of a 90 minute class I have found that taking one minute to go through the goals/schedule for the class for that day that students are given a greater sense of what is coming, and thus more ownership of the objectives for the class. This is accompanied by some visual aid (outline on the board or smart board.) 

I also take one minute at the beginning of brain studies class to dim the lights and have the students take 6 slow deep breaths (4 counts in through the nose, 8 counts out through the mouth.) Compliance is amazing. It also allows me to start class quietly and them to be better focused on what comes next.

Both of these techniques are generic enough to be used in any class.  

contributed by Mr. Piskel

Read and Write for Google

Read and Write for Google is a great app for students and staff.  It offers text-to-speech supports in addition to a number of study tools.  It is available for all student and staff use in the Google Web Store.

contributed by Ms. Pearson

Edmodo - great way to communicate, grade, make quizzes, and much more

Fantastic tool for teachers.  Grades quizzes and tests for you, unlike Google forms where you have to take a few steps to grade things.  Easy for kids to recognize due to Facebook-type look.

www.edmodo.com

Use Symbaloo as a one stop shop web page

Put all your links you normally use on one page in small icons.

http://www.symbaloo.com