Listen as bring your own device (BYOD) experts discuss best practices for classroom management.  Special guests Jill Hobson @hobsonjill, Michelle Luhtala @mluhtala, and Jason Suter @JKsuter all currently work in BYOD environments and share insights about the following topics:Getting started with byod management.Preventing distraction. Fostering trust in students who are using their own devices.The role of students in classroom management.Explaining this will work to administrators.Getting parents to support responsible use.  Watch the video below then check out the collection of Tweets on Storify filled with insights and resources. I want more »

It’s not uncommon for today’s children, brought up in a fast-paced, digital world, to become bored and uninterested when visiting cultural institutions. It doesn’t have to be that way though. Sometimes the first step to enjoying art is to look forward to a museum visit as something that is fun. Social media can provide a great way to engage young people during a trip to museum, landmark, or other cultural institution. At the same time, it might just connect them to a new community of others who share a love of arts and culture that they didn’t know they had.Here are some fun and innovative ideas for teachers and parents to try on their next field trip. I want more »

"The only difference between smartphones and laptops is that cell phones are smaller, cheaper, and more coveted by students" (Richtel & Stone, 2009). Students, parents, teachers, principals, and elected officials know it is time to lift restrictions and embrace these tools for learning. Below is their wisdom and the research to support it.StudentsIn general, 95% of teens use the internet and 74% are "mobile internet users" (Pew, 2013).  With or without us, students are using cell phones for learning despite the perception by some parents and teachers that cell phones are distracting to kids. A national study shows that 1 in 3 middle schoolers are using their devices to complete homework and learn better (Tru, 2012). "... with cell phones tucked in the book bags and pockets of three-fourths of today's teens, many high schools are ceding defeat in the battle to keep hand-held technology out of class and instead are inviting students to use their phones for learning" (Malone & Black, 2010). Nationally, just over half (52%) of teachers of upper and upper-middle income students say their students use cell phones to look up information in class, compared with 35% of teachers of the lowest income students (Pew Research Center, 2013).  More than half of the world’s population now owns a cell phone, and children under 12 constitute one of the fastest growing segments of mobile technology users in the U.S. according to the The Joan Ganz Cooney Center at Sesame Workshop (Shuler, 2009).  I want more »

Do you have students who love inventing, experimenting, and computing? Then check out my article on Answers.com which features quality, free or inexpensive places you can turn to help your students discover, explore, and develop his or her inner inventor. Visit "Help your child get inventive with these resources" to find out about more about resources like Super Awesome Sylvia, Tynker, and Makey Makey.  

Google Summit attendees in Vermont.Whether it’s Docs, Earth, Glass, Translate, Voice, Hangouts, Blogger, Chromebooks, and more, Google provides some of my favorite tools for education.  If you feel the same way or are just intrigued, you may be interested in a Google for Education Summit.  Here’s why.  1. Try out shiny new tools like Google Glass, Chromebooks, and Android devices Do you want to experience the world through Google Glass? Did you know Chromebooks are instant on? Summits have a dedicated classroom where you can drop in any time to demo Google products and learn more about using Android tablets in Education. 2. Become a speaker and raise your profile in EdTech circlesPresenting a session during summits is a fantastic way to highlight your expertise and raise your profile in the Google for Education arena. Many educators who have attended past summits have grown their practice and experience and are coming back as speakers.I want more »

Cross-posted at Smartblog on EducationMany educators are aware of education Twitter chats and some have even participated in one of the hundreds of chats that take place each week. The reason Twitter chats are great is because they let you dive quickly into an issue with others around the world who share your passion. The people whose input you find valuable are ones that you can follow and connect with in the future. For those who don’t know what a Twitter chat is, it is a way to bring together people from across the globe — tweeps — at a set time to discuss a topic of interest in a fast-paced format using an agreed upon hashtag. It can also give tweeps access to experts they otherwise might not be able to connect with. It gives experts a great vehicle to connect with others who care about their work.I want more »

I had the opportunity to speak with a few hundred librarians today to discuss how we can get to the uncommon core of our work using social media.  You can see the presentation below and visit it at this link. It is made available for others to view and copy if there is something you want to share with others. Highlights include:What is social media (from a dog's point of view)?Why we need social media to prepare students for college, career, and citizenship success?How does social media help us meet the common core standards?The new rules of social media. I want more »

Mozilla, the non-profit that created Firefox, has created tools and resources to educate and empower people to understand the architecture, culture and citizenship of the web. The effort stems from a framework of skills and competencies-known as the web literacy map that addresses everything from basic web navigation and writing code to understanding the consequences of sharing data online and collaborating with others. You can see the map below.Visit the map at https://wiki.mozilla.org/Learning/WebLiteracyStandard I want more »

If you are interested in discussing how to prepare preservice teachers for the realities of today's digital classroom, then I hope you’ll join me at 9 p.m. EST tonight for  #TeacherEdChat. The topic is "Social Media in Teacher Education Programs." Here's a description of #TeacherEdChat:The focus of #TeacherEdChat is on teacher preparation and connecting higher ed with Prek-12. The intent of #TeacherEdChat is building bridges with PK-12 to help align those enrolled in teacher education courses, undergraduate and graduate, with teachers and educators in the field. The chat provides a forum to help higher ed faculty and educators gain additional insights into the teaching field as well as help those in the teaching field get a better sense of what Schools of Education are doing. Check out tonight's questions and start collecting your ideas and best links to support what you have to share: I want more »

Onalytica put out their list of bring your own device influencers (BYOD) and The Innovative Educator was at the top of the list. You can see the top ten influencers below and the top 100 here. RankTwitter HandleNamePageRank (Normalised)1@MaribelLopezMaribel Lopez1002@MindShiftKQEDTina Barseghian75.253@coolcatteacherVicki Davis74.974@NMHS_PrincipalEric Sheninger60.835@mssacksteinStarr Sackstein43.176@InnovativeEduLisa Nielsen35.917@RossCoops31Ross Cooper28.068@mluhtalaMichelle Luhtala22.639@andycinekAndrew P. Marcinek21.9610@jksuterJason K. Suter21.93I want more »