Discovery Education Experience: Instructional Strategies for Digital Learners

Learn what’s new with Discovery Education, including reading passages, lesson plans, digital interactives, virtual field trips, instructional strategies, VR, and more to share the world with your students and teachers. Rediscover the resources, strategies, and tools that help take your students anywhere – from the cities of China to the pen of a playwright. Whatever the topic, Discovery Education Streaming is the central hub for student engagement and achievement.

The Discovery Education Experience (DEXP) is a one-day no-cost experience for educators to immerse themselves in all things DE. The target audience is inclusive of ALL educators (teachers, principals, curriculum, instructional technologists, and many more). Together, all will explore and learn about the resources Discovery Education has available for them!

The day of interactive professional learning is brought to you by Discovery Education, in partnership with the REMC Association of Michigan and your local REMC 8.

Come join us on November 15, 2018 at REMC 8 – Kent ISD in Grand Rapids.  Click here to register and save your spot!  Seating is limited.  5 SCECHs are available for attendees with an application cost of $5.00

Contact Ron Houtman at ronhoutman@kentisd.org with any questions you might have.

 

#discovery, #pd

Announcing the 21things4students – Tech Boot Camp

• Are you an educator assigned to teach the 21things4students and want to know more about the curriculum and materials?
• Is your district using the 21things4students to teach 5th-9th grade technology but you’re not sure what resources are available?
• Do you need help getting started having your students create digital portfolios and build technology proficiency?

If you answered yes to any of these questions, then the 21things4students TECH BOOT CAMP is for you! Come experience two days of tools, resources, and THINGS in anticipation of the new school year!

For more information, download this flyer with all the details.  21Things4students_TechBootcamp 2015

#21things, #pd, #professional

The CUE Rock Star Teacher Camp is Coming July 7-9!

Looking for a great educational technology camp to attend in a wonderful destination?

The CUE Rock Star Teacher Camp hosted by MACUL will arrive in Saugatuck, MI from July 7 through 9, 2015.

All three days consist of two, two-hour sessions allowing attendees to “dig in deep” and really get to know their topic and build resources to use next year. Morning sessions are repeated in the afternoon so that attendees have two different opportunities to attend a workshop.

The CUE Rock Star events are built so that there is one presenter for every ten attendees and the events sell out at 60-70 attendees.

Check out the website for more information and registration and read some Tweets about the event here #CUERockstar

You really deserve a learning vacation with awesome people from across Michigan.

#cue, #educational-technology, #learning, #macul, #pd, #professional-development

Microsoft Teacher and Trainer Academies in Southfield

Here are a couple of good professional learning events for area educators and instructional technologists.

Microsoft Hands-on Teacher Academy | October 28, 2014 | Microsoft Southfield

This free 1-day hands-on professional learning day is geared toward K-12 educators hosted by Microsoft. Bring 21st century technology into your classroom including the latest skills by Microsoft Office 365, Microsoft OneNote, and Windows 8. By participating in the training you will receive a certificate for your participation and have the opportunity to become a Microsoft Innovative Educator. Learn more and register today.

Microsoft 2-Day Teacher Trainer Workshop | October 29-30, 2014 | Microsoft Southfield

Do you help train fellow educators in your district or school? If so, register to attend this 2-day hands-on learning designed as a train the trainer model, providing K-12 educators the opportunity to bring Microsoft training to your schools and communities. This in-depth training covers a range of Microsoft tools including Office 365, OneNote, Office Mix, and reviews the Microsoft training content and materials to leverage for your local training. By participating in the training receive a certificate for your participation. You will also have the opportunity to apply for the Microsoft Innovative Educator Master Trainer program. Learn more and register today.

#microsoft, #pd, #professional-development

Flexible PD at Kent ISD

Kent ISD is offering a couple online courses currently: Digitize Your Classroom and Essential Questions. These are comprised of short, focused modules designed to allow educators to access the learning at their convenience. You can click the  links to investigate further, but we are also seeking your input on what types of future offerings would be best. Please take a minute to answer the form by following the link below, and we thank you in advance.

Link to form

#onlinecourses, #pd

What does unlimited Google Drive storage mean for students?

Google Drive is already one of the best cloud storage services around, and last week it got even better— that is if you’re using a Google Apps for Education (GAfE) account. In an effort to further enhance its commitment to education, Google is offering both educators and students unlimited Drive storage at no cost.  As far as we can tell, unlimited means just that for as long as you have that GAfE account.  There is one small caveat though – you are “limited” to a single file size of 5TB.  I don’t think I even have a total of 5TB of storage in the many files I do hoard, let alone a single file of that size.

Let there be no doubt the strategy from the search giant to build their user base by getting people hooked on ubiquitous access at a young age.

Something that we should all think about beyond the ever present talk about privacy issues, which are both ongoing and debunked is: What happens to your files when you leave an EDU organization?

Since our students may move from district to district, and will eventually graduate – what’s your plan for data portability and to help them take their digital artifacts with them?  Google has a relatively unknown utility which allows anyone to make a backup of most of their Google product files, to include Drive data. Formerly called Google Takeout, now Data Tools – this service creates a downloadable .ZIP file of your content.

Having a statement on data portability might be a great addition to your student handbook and might be a good topic for a short staff professional development topic.

If you ever have any questions about your organization’s Google Apps for Education accounts, please feel free to contact the expert Kent ISD Educational Technology Team at: educationaltech@kentisd.org  – We’re always willing to provide professional learning for you and your staff around technology integration into the classroom.

 

 

#cloud-storage, #drive-storage, #gafe, #google, #google-apps, #google-takeout, #pd

Tablets with Google Play for Education Workshop –

Kent ISD along with CDW-G and the Google for Education team will be hosting a “Tablets with Google Play for Education Workshop” on Monday Oct 13th from 11am-3:30pm. Lunch will be provided.

Google will give an overview to the tablets program, show a live demo, give you a chance to hear from your peers, and play around with the tablets and some apps.

The event is designed for technology and curriculum directors and administrators, so please feel free to forward this invite to others in your district.

Please see the attached invite with RSVP link to register. Please let your CDW account manager know if you have any questions..

Register here —  http://goo.gl/OCpk5N

#assistive-technology, #kent-isd, #pd, #professional-development, #remcam

Creating Digital Rich Classrooms – The Kent ISD Digital Learning Summit

This one is filling up fast even though it’s not until October 23rd!

The Kent ISD Digital Learning Summit will draw together the Kent Learning Collaborative, Kent Technology Advisory Committee and the Kent Technology Integration and Media Specialists.  Participants will explore how to promote learning using technology.  Come and experience interactive classroom technology in hands-on sessions that will help you increase student engagement and achievement.

Please see the attached PDF for details on how to register for this free event: Digital Learning Summit Flyer 2014

#kent-isd, #pd, #summit

What are you learning this summer?

Professional Learning doesn’t have to end when you turn your keys in at the end of the school year.  If you know where to looks, you can find hundreds of opportunities for professional growth and development.

First, take a look at the Kent ISD Professional Development Hub where local PD sessions are listed. Next, you might even find some nice courses listed in the MDE Statewide Catalog of PD in a neighboring district or county.

Would you rather sit on a beach and learn?  There are plenty of opportunities there too – check out the free Coursera Teacher PD: Courses on instruction, emerging technologies, and more. Courses run all summer and are free.

If you are looking for something in particular, drop us a Tweet or email and we can see what other things we can track down for you.

 

#pd, #professional-development

FREE Apple Professional Development in Jenison

Our neighbors in Jenison are hosting several FREE Apple Professional Development opportunities in June.  Please take a moment to review the sessions and consider signing up for one or two.

Each session is a full day, running 8:45-3:45 with an hour off for lunch (on your own). Seating is limited to 20 participants, so don’t delay in signing up. Seats go to the first 20 signed up for each session, and all sessions will be held in the Jenison High School Learning Center, 2140 Bauer Road.

Wednesday, June 11 – iOS Devices
Description: Participants gain experience using iOS devices such as iPad or iPod Touch. They learn basic navigation and explore key accessibility features and apps as they apply to teaching and learning.

Wednesday, June 11 – iOS Productivity
Description: Participants gain fundamental skills with iOS productivity apps (Keynote, Pages, and Numbers).

Thursday, June 12 – Math (iOS) Focuses on Secondary Level Math
Description: Participants use apps, digital content and Apple technology to create and build math lessons. They will develop their own lessons, share ideas, and explore a variety of math learning and teaching tools.

Thursday, June 12 – Science (iOS) Focuses on Secondary Level Science
Description: Participants explore how to integrate iPad or Mac resources in science curriculum, using a variety of apps and resources as they learn about gathering, analyzing, and sharing data.

Click here to sign up.

#apple, #pd