Let's talk bout ClassDojo!

ClassDojo: The Classroom Management App!  

     As teachers, sometimes we find somewhat difficult to motivate students to engage in good behaviors and make good decisions in our classroom.  Some of us, give "behavior grades" but how is an A, B, C... motivating our students to participate and make good decisions?  ClassDojo is great for teachers, students and parents. Teachers can manage the behavior skills they want to reinforce.  There are 2 sections:  the positive skills and the needs to work skills.  You can adjust these skills to your likening.  On the other hand, you can invite parents to join your class and they can see how their children are behaving. You can post activity pictures, their work and even send messages to parents. ClassDojo is also adding another feature where you can add your student's work to a portfolio.  

     This app is free for all.  Once you assign points to students, both parents and students can see the children's behavioral growth... In fact, it gives immediate feedback to students if you choose to use the mobile app with the sounds (it makes one particular sound for positive and a different sound for the needs to work).  Notice that the app doesn't use "negative skills" but it uses "needs to work" instead.  I believe this is very important since it gives the child an opportunity to make a better decision later on.  The app gives hope to the students to get a better grade and it shows them that after all, a day has 24 hours, and the next day is a brand new day to make a great decision. 

      Another great feature is that you can also add other teachers from your community/school and create a network where you share your status, pictures and feedback in general. 

Want to know more?  Ok, This is how ClassDojo works: 

1. Open a free account at www.classdojo.com or download the app on google play or itunes. 

2. Once you set up your account, Create/Add a new class.   Your class can be any grade level from pre-k to 12th grade and it even gives you the other option. 

3.  Then you have to add your students.  You can write their first name or their complete name.  When you add your student, the app gives you a cute icon that looks like a little monster.  You can also assign a different monster to your kids. I find this so cool and cute! You can also edit your list as many times as you want.  

4.  Once you create your class and you add your students, on the right side of your class screen, you can edit your students, the skills, the class name or you can even archive a class. 

** A new feature for ClassDojo is that you can also take the attendance and even mark them late.  This is great because parents can know when their children are late or if they skipped the class (for whatever reason because your know HS kids never skip classes LOL).  Another cool thing is that if you are editing from your computer, you can copy the skills from one group to the other and save time.  

     This is how my ClassDojo looks like:

 My students will have a +1pt for the folloring skills: 

1. Helped others -- If they helped another peer (copying or lending work to copy responses is not helping others - haha!)
2. Made a good decision (This is something that I reinforce a lot in my class.  It is also a BeGlad strategy) 
3. On task (They are doing what they are supposed to be doing)
4. Participating (They are participating -- even if I ask them to)
5. Persistence (The results might not be as good, but c'mon! they are trying)
6. Showing Respect (another important aspect of my class -- update* This will be +2 instead of +1)
7. Team Work (They are working efficiently in a team)
8. Using Technology in a Smart Way (Technology as a tool; using an app or using their phones as an aid and not to play or snapchatting) 
9. Working Hard (This is basically a mix of on task and persistence with a drop of team work and positivity).  **Update: This will be +2 instead of +1

My students will have a -1pt or -2pts on their needs to work sention on the following areas:

1. Disrespectful  (This is one of the classroom rules -- Respect should prevail at ALL times.)
2. Off task (They are fooling around or not doing what they have to do for no aparent reason)
3. Refused to participate (Sometimes they just refuse. They don't lose but they don't earn).
4. Talking out of turn/too loud (For this one, I always tell them twice)
5. Unprepared (No pencil, no notebook, perhaps no textbook or handouts)
6. Using their phone as a toy (facebook, snapchat, twitter, instagram, whatsapp.... you name it! They are just playing with their phones --- or even the Chromebooks).

Hope this review helped you to understand ClassDojo and that you will find great ways to use it.  You can also go on Pinterest to find new ideas or you can contact me and I can help you to brainstorm or give you a couple of mine.  

Have fun!

SeeSaw: The Learning Journal

  




  
     Seesaw is a free, multi-platform (You can use I-pad, phone, Chromebooks, website) application that allows students to express themselves in a closed forum.  It works as a journal and students can do a variety of things on it. It is very engaging because they can post or comment on any given topic and their classmates (and whomever the teacher allows) can give feedback. 

 "See saw empowers students of any age to independently document what they are learning at school"

 This is how it works: First, create a free account, then a class. You have two options: Students can  create accounts by entering a code or QR code (you will have to enter their names prior to their sign in) or you can have them sign in with their google accounts. If your school has google, this would be ideal option but using the code is better if they are sharing devices and if you already know your population.
 Once they create their account, you write a post and make it public for them. You can also select who do you want to see that particular post. 
     The beauty of Seesaw is that students can capture their learning in different ways: video, link, text, drawing, picture... Isn't that amazing!?
Another advantage of Seesaw is that, as a teacher, you have the power to accept or deny an entry.  Let's be honest! Kids are kids and sometimes they might want to post things that are out of topic or they want to be "funny".  With Seesaw, you can approve or disapprove a post. Not only that but you can also invite parents to be part of their children's learning process. 
      Seesaw goes along with the 21st Century Skills framework and that, by itself, is great.  Students learn and express themselves by using technology and by having fun. They showcase their way of thinking in creative ways to their parents and to their community.  With this app you can definitely reinforce values as well as language skills.  

This app happens to be my favorite so far!

Should you try Seesaw? DEFINITELY! Seesaw (in MY opinion) is fantastic for ALL levels, -- and I venture to say-- even for college level.  It is also suitable for ALL subjects... from Social Studies to ESL to Science.  Once you try this tool, you will LOVE IT ♥.

Click HERE to try Seesaw (Plus) for one month then you can continue with your free account which is simply marvelous. 

What’s Draining Your Android Battery?

Awesome article if you, like myself, struggle with your phone's battery life. 😑📱🔋🔫

Click here: What’s Draining Your Android Battery?

Duolingo: A Great App for Language Learners

Cost: Free

    Duolingo is a popular language program 100% free of cost.  This program was first launched in 2012 by Luis von Ahn, a professor at Carnegie Mellon University in Pennsylvania, and Severin Hacker.  They wanted to find a way to learn languages on their smartphones without paying the inordinate amount of $270+.  According to US TODAY, in 2013, Apple chose Duolingo as the app of the year with approximately 25 million users.  Duolingo is currently available at Google Play, Apple Itunes, Windows Store and on their official website, making it accessible to anyone with a smartphone, a computer or an Ipad.  This program is not only good for any individual but it is great for any language or ESL teacher.

    Duolingo has 27 language courses for English speakers.  It also has 8 language course for Spanish speakers including English, which makes it a great app for ESL teachers.  This platform also offers an opportunity for teachers to track the student’s progress with its Duolingo for Schools dashboard, in which the students create an account that is linked to the teacher.  The teacher can see how many times the student is consistently logging in, how many lessons and vocabulary stages they passed and the student’s level of proficiency making it a great blended learning tool.  So, how does it work?

    Once the app is downloaded into the individual’s smartphone or the website is accessed, they will have to create an account and they choose the language that they wish to learn.  It is recommended to take the placement test; however, they can start from the beginning, that is Basics 1. This level is for individuals with no previous knowledge in the target or desired language.  Duolingo offers immediate reward for those who use it.  It gives them gems and they can “buy” new vocabulary sessions with it.  It also has a nice balance between listening and speaking exercises.  

    Like many programs and platforms, Duolingo has its flaws.  Since this program is by levels, individuals are not exposed to natural sounding conversations and sentences until they reached advanced levels.  You are only exposed to phrases and sentences, which means that it has no natural sounding conversations or accents.  Last but not least, Duolingo does not offer any explanation of grammatical structures as part of its platform.  This can be somewhat confusing for the language learner.  

    To summarize, Duolingo has its bad side but, to me, has a great amount of rewards.  First, it’s free and easy to use.  It provides instant feedback and it is personalized.  It also gives you the opportunity to learn a new language and practice.  Additionally, it gives teachers an opportunity to provide students with a blended learning experience and space to track and assess their student’s progress.  

Try it:  www.duolingo.com

Teacher's dashboard:  https://schools.duolingo.com/

Google Forms in the Classroom: Less grading time

     Cost: FREE

          Google Forms is an extension of Google Drive, a file storage and sync service, to make surveys and web forms.  This tool allows anyone to easily create a form or a survey without the need to have any programming skills. It gives users the ability to choose from a variety of pre-designed templates or to customize the forms to their liking. Creating a form is very similar as creating a Google document.  The forms can be sent to anyone and you can see the results in a spreadsheet.  This tool is web based and completely free. It can also be very helpful for teachers.

        Google Forms is not only good to create questionnaires or web forms but it is a great tool to create tests or quizzes.  If you are a teacher who cares about the environment, Google Forms allows you to go paperless in your classroom; however, you can always print the assessments or surveys.  You may include multiple selection, grids, scales, time and/or questions where students have to write a paragraph or a small text. Google Forms also allows you to correct the assessments faster than hard copy tests, and you can actually download an add-on, create and assign a

 key, and the program correct the answers by itself (flubaroo).  This will definitely save time for any busy teacher (meaning ALL of us!).
   The tool is web based, which means that you can only use it through a web browser.  Since it is a Google tool, it works best on Google Chrome but it also works good on the rest.  I-pad users may download the Drive App and access the previously made forms; however, in order to edit them, they must access it through the web/browser (same with androids, etc.)  You have a variety of settings that you can manipulate, such as required questions, or skip questions, among others.  Once you create a form, you can edit it, you can change the settings and you can even deactivate the form.  You can also enable the form so the respondents can change their answers or see the results in a public link.  Google Forms also allows you to insert pictures, videos, URLs, time, dates, etc and you can also set up notifications.  Once the form is ready to share, you can send an email with the link or post the link and students (or other individuals) only need to click on the link to complete access it.  
          Teachers can introduce google forms to students by simply creating a short survey about the class, then have them complete a longer and/or complicated assessment as the marking period advances.  On the other hand, students can take more time completing the assessment because they can always go back to it.  They can also make the font bigger, which in a way gives them more freedom.  Students can answer the assessments through their Chromebooks, I-pads or smart phones which makes it easy to administer any assessment.   
          To summarize, Google Forms is a good tool to administer tests, quizzes and surveys in the class.  It is not as fancy as other tools but it is very helpful.  It is a web based tool that can be customized and it is easy to use.  Forms are online but can also be printable, which can also be helpful.   This is a simple tool that can be used in the classroom and can save a lot of time for teachers.

cons:  Students might be tempted to share the test with other groups or peers, or simply go online to
 try to find the responses but this is a quality (honesty) that you can promote in your class. Another con is that the new Google Forms format might be very simple and easy to use but the old format is more customizable.