Space Camp 2015 Podcasts Posted!

Space Camp 2015 Group

Each year our fifth grade class visits Kennedy Space Center in Titusville, Florida. We call this trip Space Camp. Before we leave the classroom and head to Titusville we spend several weeks studying Newton's Laws of Motion. This helps us understand the physics involved in lifting a spacecraft off the launch pad. Our 2-day trip by bus to the east coast of Florida includes an "overnight adventure" in the Atlantis Shuttle Experience building where we sleep under the actual Shuttle Atlantis. The Atlantis is housed in a new building that was specifically built around the Atlantis. In the past we slept under a Saturn V rocket housed in the Apollo Saturn V building! Needless to say, this class trip is an awesome and unforgettable experience.

Our Podcast Workflow

When we returned we compiled our field notes taken at Space Camp. We sorted through all the pictures we snapped while there. This year we gathered 999 photos via DropItToMe and made them all available to the students via a shared Dropbox! Finally, student groups picked 5-6 key photos for their Google Slides presentation and created audio podcasts with Audacity focusing on various things we learned and experienced while at the Space Center. For podcast music we used the CCMixter site. The artists there have made their music available for podcasts and videos. In the final step we played the audio and video portions simultaneously while recording the audio-video with screencasting software Camtasia. The final .mp4 video file was then uploaded to a Dropbox Public folder and shared via the links below.

Curriculum Connections

The week-long podcast project is a culminating activity following several weeks of study in science and computer classes prior to the Space Camp trip. The podcast preparation involved reading, writing, listening and speaking (language arts), skillful use of a laptop computer (part of our 1:1 netbook program), online and hands-on research and experiences in science and, specifically, the space program, and much more. Students collaborated and shared in groups led by parent volunteers. All of this work before, during and after Space Camp made the podcast project a reality. 

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This year's podcast project is a 5-photo story that combines 5 photos into an audio-visual "story" focusing on a specific space theme. (Thanks to Wes Fryer for the inspiration for this project!)

Our 2015 podcasts are featured below. We hope you enjoy them! We would love to hear from you in the Comments section below. Your comments encourage us to continue our creative work online. Thanks in advance!

Mr. Schwan's Groups

• Awesome Asteroids
• Mars Stuff
• Shoot for the Suits*
• Super Suits

Mrs. Bell's Groups

• Apollo Team
• G-force
• Mission to Mars*
• Space Chimps
• SS4*

*password required to protect student's privacy. Students can enter password for parents, grandparents, but will not share the password with anyone.

5-Photo Stories About Sea Camp

Each year students in grades 3-8 at my school participate in a class trip. My fourth grade computer students attend Sea Camp on Big Pine Key in the Florida Keys. There, they participate in many hands-on activities to help them learn about the sea life of Florida Bay and the Atlantic Ocean.

Before they go, students prepare for their trip through various classroom-based learning activities. When they return they complete a 5-photo story as part of their computer class (thank you, Wes Fryer, for this idea!). The following presentations were created using screencasting software, a Google Slides Presentation, and the free audio editor Audacity. Creating this presentation is a multi-step process that begins when the students choose pictures, write a script, make a 5-slide presentation, give the presentation in front of their classmates, and record the audio/video presentation for publication on my class website. 

I hope you'll take some time to view a few of these 1-2 minute presentations. Please leave a comment here so our children know that someone besides their classmates and teacher are watching. Or, feel free to leave a comment on this blog (below). We'd really appreciate it!

• Alex

• Sydney

• Gabby

• Justin

• Dalvyon

• Haley

• Matt

• Vanessa

• Matthew

• Garrett

• John

• Michael

• Dakota

• Chris

• Kalani

• Marshall

• Kevin

• Justin

• Grace

• Hailey

• Kelsey

• Gavin

• Emma

• Matteo

• Elijah

• Chandler

• Thomas

Netbook Teacher Gets MacBook Air "Netbook"

I just love my new MacBook Air! Technically, it's not a netbook. I guess I'll need to expand my definition of netbook, or change the title of my blog! Either way, I still love this new laptop. I opted for the 13" model because this is my main computer. I use it all day long at school, then come home and use it some more. I thought I might feel cramped after a day of using a scrunched-down 11" model. Several reviewers said that, and I think I agree. At least for the way I use a computer. The vertical height would feel like 6 foot ceilings to me, and I'm 5'9" tall.

When I come home and want to get some heavy lifting done I plug in a 32" HDTV as a monitor (now, that's a BIG screen!), my Bluetooth keyboard and trackpad, my Wacom Bamboo tablet, and I can sit in front of the computer for hours. Oh, I do this in clamshell mode — laptop closed and tilted up against a bookshelf. It runs cool and quiet, best of all worlds. Who needs a "desktop" machine when you can take an ultra-light laptop with you that also runs as a desktop computer at home? Add an external hard drive and a few peripherals and you've got what I consider the perfect setup. At least for me.

Lucky for me, I got the "loaded" MBA with 8 Gb of RAM and a 500 Gb hard drive. This solid state drive is both quiet and fast! Did I mention that I love this thing?

I've had 3 MacBook Pros over the past 9-10 or so years. I started with a 17" model — too big. It was like a portable desktop machine, complete with all the extra weight. After the motherboard died and the battery swelled and bent the battery door I was able, under Applecare, to get a FREE 15-inch "loaded" MBP. Don't buy a Mac laptop without the Applecare warranty! After purchasing it for $183 per laptop under Apple's educator discount on 4 different laptops over a dozen years (less than $800 total) I more than made up the investment with a single replacement laptop that Apple gave me for this faulty MacBook Pro. The replacement model was worth well over $2000, and ended up being an upgrade for me, right before the warranty expired! Don't leave home without it!

Then, I got another 15" MacBook Pro (after a few years with the first one). Finally, I lost a few pounds (of laptop weight) and got this Air. I ditched my backpack of the past 14 years and went to a satchel that is only big enough for the Air and a few pieces of paper. I manage to also put in the charger, but I really don't use it much. I have one at school and one at home, and I can go all day without it — so far. 

I unplugged it when I left home at 7 am today, started using it around 7:20 am at school, and it just died at 6:30 pm this evening while I was typing in the recliner. I'm running on "shore power" again and will charge this thing overnight after I finish this article and close the lid. Tomorrow, repeat, rinse, and do it again. It went for 11 hours of nearly non-stop computing today. I close the lid only when not using it, and today I used it almost all day between the time with my students using this as a presentation machine, and the time when they were away at another class and I was reading their work on the laptop.

Oh, and if you're a Windows lover, this thing even runs Windows 7 or 8 with no problem. Even side-by-side with Mac OS. That little tidbit is what finally convinced my principal to allow me to be the only Mac-using teacher in our school. A few teachers have since converted and use Mac as their personal machines. I'm fortunate, and with a collection of cross-platform apps, I can use this as my main computer for home and work. If you can handle the $2K for a killer machine, go for the MacBook Air (less if you don't need the memory). It's worth every penny! 

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Disclaimer: I use several Windows machines at work and home for a variety of special purposes. I teach in a Windows school. Most of my 80 students in 4th and 5th grade run Windows 7 or 8 on their BYOD netbooks. So, I have a Windows 8 touch screen Asus netbook that I use when I must show them something in Windows. Otherwise, they look at my Mac screen (and the apps that run on it) all day long for one thing or another. 

The side benefit: most of my kids could probably sit down in front of a Mac or a PC and function just fine. I call that ambidextrous teaching and learning!

Google Classroom Used for 5th Grade Science

Over the summer of 2014 I spent some time with Google Classroom. I see it as a portal for managing all of the GAFE (Google Apps for Education) tools—gmail, Google Drive, YouTube, and more. It just makes my students' workflow management much simpler, and puts everything in one place for them. 

I started the year using Classroom with one course in my homeroom. After 3 weeks, I'm ready to move to my science classes where I use a blended approach for two different groups of students. They watch a video at home, answer some online questions (a Google Form). I grade the questions using Flubaroo, then I'm ready for the next day's class period where we discuss any of the questions students struggled with. After that, we have a hands-on demonstration of the science concepts, we work in small groups, check our understanding using tools like Socrative, and much more. I'm working to improve the "time on task" of my students, both in and out of the classroom. The idea of maximizing time on task is something I learned from my principal. Google Classroom helps me with this goal.

In Praise of Free Tech 4 Teachers

I just finished writing a thank you note to Richard Byrne of FreeTech4Teachers, and then I decided I should also add a note here. Over the summer of 2014 I sat down every morning with my Raisin Bran and iPhone, and read through Richard's half-dozen or so new articles offering "free tech tools" for teachers on his blog. I consider it his labor of love, I wondered (in my email to him) how he manages to find the time, and I simply offered a word of thanks for all the time-saving tools he's shared with me over the past couple of years. If you're reading this, do yourself a favor and click on the link to his blog. Subscribe via email updates and sift through his daily updates, using what you find helpful. I click on "share" and pass the best stuff on to Evernote for later reading and checking-out.

Over the summer I was able to add a few add-on tools to my Google Drive arsenal, making my assignment and project workflow move even more efficiently between me, my students, and back again. I can now give my kids an online quiz or offer them a few reflection questions after sharing a short video with them, and get the results of their answers delivered to me. Multiple choice questions are graded and delivered with "item analysis", so I know which of the questions gave my class-as-a-whole the most trouble. Armed with that data prior to my next class session, I can focus my attention on the area(s) most in need of my attention and move past those areas that the kids have already mastered. This is just one area of growth for me over the summer, thanks to the resources that Richard has shared with all of us.

Today, I made a Google Custom Search Engine after reading Richard's latest articles. Now, my students and their parents can search my website for the document or video they need. I also did the same for our school website which is in need of a facelift. In the meantime, at least I can find the stuff I need quickly and easily thanks to Google and thanks to Richard Byrne.

As you can see, it was a productive summer for me. Now, if I can just find the time during the school year to keep plowing through all this good and free tech!

Dropbox Public Folder Goes Away for FREE Accounts

In a previous post about my Netbook Teacher tools I mentioned Dropbox as part of my workflow. I've used Dropbox for years as a cloud-based method of backing up and syncing mission-critical files between my various computers and computing devices. I can get to these files from a Mac, a PC, my iPad or iPhone. It’s a great solution. I even spend $99 a year for a Pro account, which gives me 100 Gb of cloud-based storage in my personal Dropbox account.

However, I was disappointed to discover today that Dropbox has dropped the Public folder for all new and FREE accounts. They apparently did this starting back in 2012, but somehow I missed it until today when I tried to create and use a new Public folder on a new (FREE) Dropbox account. 

Why is this a problem? I’ve used this feature for years to host podcasts for very small audiences of users whom I serve as part of a couple of hobbies or work-related, but extra-curricular, activities in which I participate. For example, I host training session podcasts for a ham radio related project on a Google Site. I also post my audio recordings from sessions I attend at FETC, an educational-technology conference I attend annually. Dropbox provided a perfect place to store these files, then to share them with anyone who may be interested in the content I collect, store and share online.

The Public folder automatically makes any file inside both downloadable and playable within one’s browser. I can embed the URLs from .mp3 files inside this Public folder into my blog or Google Site and a visitor to my site can click and listen, right in their browser. These files can also be set up via RSS to stream to a podcatcher. I often listen to them on my iPhone via Bluetooth headphones while cutting the grass.

I understand why Dropbox did this. On their website they say they now have a new way to create links to files in a Dropbox account. I've used this "new way", but it only gives users the option of downloading the podcast (.mp3) file to the hard drive where you must open it with Quicktime or Media Player, or some other .mp3 player on your computer or other device. The "old way" enabled people like me to use multiple FREE Dropbox accounts to host podcasts indefinitely at a great price!

My discovery came when I was trying to upload the latest training session podcast from one of my hobby projects. The 55 minute podcast cut off at 43 minutes. I discovered my 2 Gb FREE Dropbox account was full, so that was as far as the uploaded file could go, apparently, when the 2 Gb limit was reached. No problem, I thought. I just created a new, FREE, Dropbox account and uploaded the .mp3 file there. However, that's when I discovered that the Public folder, normally created automatically when a new Dropbox account is created, was not there! A quick Google search brought me up to date with the Dropbox news.

So, no hard feelings, Dropbox. Thanks for all the FREE podcast hosting over several years. Fortunately, they included a grandfather clause and all my previous files are still working just fine. But, now, I must find a new place to host my podcast files—hopefully for free!

Google Classroom: My Preview Came Today!

When I first heard of the forthcoming Google Classroom I decided to apply for an early look. Well, my invitation came through today, and I've just finished my first look. So far, I'm impressed. Google Classroom will add some much-needed functionality and simplicity to our classroom workflow come August when we begin our new school year.

I hope you'll check out Google Classroom. Meanwhile, here's my contribution to the many "first look" videos and articles popping up each day on the Internet. There are many others, including one from Google Educast that I'm enjoying, too. Mine is embedded below. It's a quickie at 8:56. Enjoy!

Using Gmail +1 Email Addresses to Comply With COPPA for Student Online Accounts

Have you ever wanted to use an online technology tool with your students, but couldn't, because they're under age 13? That problem has plagued me for several years as I've attempted to find solutions for my fifth graders in a 1:1 netbook class. Thanks to a couple of ed-tech resource people I follow, I now have a workaround!

First, the citations:

Thank you to Richard Byrne who writes the Free Technology for Teachers blog. His article How to Register Students for Services When They Don't have Email Addresses got me started on the road to a solution.

Then, while researching COPPA and its rules, I found the FTC's Complying With COPPA: Frequently Asked Questions. If you're looking at the COPPA guidelines for classroom use of online technology tools, scroll down to M: COPPA and Schools. The key is to safeguard student identity and information, especially if they're under the magic age of 13.

Finally, to round out my understanding of how to create a Gmail +1 email address for each of my students, I ran into Stormy Cullum's Gmail +1 ~ Create Student Email (Survive Under 13 Guidelines - COPPA). Stormy does a great job of explaining how to use Google's tools to solve this problem. If you use (or would be willing to use) Gmail and/or GAFE (Google Apps for Education), read on.

The above citations, if you read the 3 articles, will show you the way. Here's my brief summary — the reason why you're reading this article...

So, I wanted to have my kids use ed.ted.com which would enable me to take any YouTube video and easily create some pre- and post-video watching questions and discussions online for my kids. I want them to engage with these videos, and I want a way to verify that they have done this online work. Since I "flip" some of my lessons, this idea is especially useful for when I assign a video for my students to watch and engage with. However, in order to comply with COPPA, ed.ted.com will only allow students to create accounts if they're over age 12. My kids are not. I even wrote to them to ask if they knew of a workaround. They suggested I have the students' parents create the accounts for the students. While this would work, I didn't want to ask parents to do this. I wanted them to know and give consent for their children to use this resource; I just didn't want to bother them to do the legwork of setting things up for me.

So, I started searching for a way that I could manage this sign-up process for each of my students and, at the same time, control the accounts and avoid having kids give personal information to the folks at ed.ted.com. That's when I discovered the Gmail +1 idea.

The idea is simple. I created a new Gmail account for my class. I also forwarded all the emails for this new class account to my own Gmail email address. I suppose you could do this with an email address even if it's not Gmail; mine just happens to be a gmail address. Then, for each student I use the +1 idea. It works like this: sign up each student for ed.ted.com using the class email address, but add +1 to the end of the email address. For example, if your class email is myclass@gmail.com, then you would use something like this as an email address for the first kid in your class: myclass+firstkid@gmail.com. The second kid's email address would then be: myclass+secondkid@gmail.com, and so on. Whenever any of these student email accounts (they're actually just aliases of the primary account, myclass@gmail.com) receive any email, they all go straight to the primary account which, you'll recall, forwards all email to my email address. I've created a filter in Gmail to bypass my Inbox and just file these emails in a certain "folder", so to speak, where I can deal with them when I'm ready. For example, for the ed.ted.com I will need to verify each kid's account by clicking on a link in an email sent to the kid's myclass+firstkid@gmail.com account. Other than that, though, I shouldn't need to do anything else to manage the ed.ted.com account. By the way, the primary class email account is not accessible to my students because I don't share the password with them. That's why they'll never see any of "their" email that may be sent to this made-up email address.

The student signs into his/her account using this email address and whatever password he/she used when creating the account. I can choose to provide a password or simply allow the students to create their own. It doesn't matter, because all correspondence for the ed.ted.com account goes straight to me, and not the student(s). That allows them to remain anonymous when creating or using these online tools, whether it's ed.ted.com or something else that may be off-limits to kids under 13. I probably wouldn't use this for all online tools; only those that would work while allowing kids to remain anonymous online and protect their privacy.

I should mention one last point. Each year I set up my students with a class number, usually from 01 to 25 (or however many kids I have that year). They use their number plus first name as an identifier for many things in my class. So, their email address will probably be something like: myclass+00paul@gmail.com. I always reserve the class number 00 for me, and my name is Paul, so I'm "00paul" in all my examples when I'm teaching kids how to identify themselves. This system has worked well for us for many years, so I'm planning to use it for this "fake" email system, too.

Pick One Horse and Ride It

A fellow blogger, Bradley Chambers, recently wrote an article about BYOD entitled The Promise And Failure of BYOD in Education. In it he does a great job of outlining why a school should never let kids bring whatever device they want to school and expect to do any meaningful projects or design any meaningful assignments that tie in with the school's curriculum. Why? Because the management of these varied devices will be an IT nightmare. I agree with him completely.

In our school we use a different approach with our BYOD laptop program. We prescribe a minimum set of laptop standards (notice I said laptop, not tablet, iPad, or other device), including the "horsepower" needed to run our short list of open source software that makes our program work. Most kids this year brought in Windows 8 touch screen 11.6" Asus netbooks. A few brought in either a MacBook Pro or MacBook Air. All of these options "work" in our setting because they all run the list of open source, cross-platform software we require.

A couple of students brought in the new Surface RT which doesn't work so well with some of our software requirements because Microsoft has locked it into the Windows Store. Most things work, but not all. These kids constantly have to either work around the limitations, or must go to our Windows 7 lab to finish projects or assignments. A few who tried to use iPads found even more limitations, eventually gave up and spent $300-400 on a new netbook. Finally, I have a few students who cannot afford a netbook. Our principal has amassed a whole inventory of donated netbooks, given to the school by students who've graduated and moved on (or up) to a full laptop for their high school years. 

Our school ends after eighth grade, and several students now have used their fifth grade netbook for four years, until they graduated and moved on to another school. Treated properly, a well-maintained netbook can give an upper-elementary and/or middle school student several years of service. Given the relatively low cost of entry ($300-400 or so), the fact that a netbook is a "real computer" that runs most Windows software with no problem — especially the list we give our students to download before school starts — we will continue using this computing option for the foreseeable future.

e-Portfolios Using Evernote and iX500 Scanners

In a surprising turn-of-events just before school started (2013-2014), our 5-8 grade staff began working with e-Portfolios for our students using Evernote and iX500 scanners. Since I ended up being the school's "admin" for the Business Evernote account (schools receive a nice discount for opening up a business account with at least 5 users: normally $120/year; now only $30/year per teacher), I put together a proposed e-Portfolio Cycle to be used in our 5-8 grade classes. My middle school colleagues will probably modify this workflow to suit their needs; I offer it here for anyone who would like to check out the ideas I'm using.

Teaching With Netbooks

Today while preparing for a presentation with my staff I remembered a resource I used back when I was starting my journey as a netbook teacher. I would be remiss if I didn't give credit to Brad Flickinger, an educator who lives and teaches in Colorado, for the resources he's shared over the past 4 years. I was able to participate in an online version of FETC where Brad spoke about Netbook Teaching in a very practical way. He later posted those 3 videos on YouTube:

Session 1

Session 2

Session 3

In January 2010 he led a session at FETC in Orlando. I recorded the audio and took some notes. This was one year before our school began its netbook program. His presentation is posted here if you'd like to give a listen.

Brad also wrote a book on Netbook Teaching, which is available on Amazon. His Teaching With Netbooks website was one of the first resources I found on the topic back in 2010.

Thanks, Brad, for all the resources and for sharing what you've learned along the way!

Using DropItToMe To Collect Student Work

In our netbook classroom everyone has their own netbook. We use them daily for multiple projects and assignments. When it comes time to turn in work done on netbooks I have my students do it electronically rather than printing them out and turning in paper. This has several advantages:

• saves paper and trees
• reduces paper clutter
• student still has his copy as backup
• teacher has a duplicate and can edit as needed
• teacher can do grading and feedback work on preferred device 
• the option always exists to print out the papers
• teacher and student can collaborate using email or another system

Dropbox for File Management

In the past, since all our students have Dropbox installed on their netbooks, I would share a folder with them and have each student place a copy of their assignment file in the appropriate shared folder. For example:

• book report turn in folder Q1
• beginning of year story turn in folder
• space camp podcast turn in folder

You get the idea. Each student had access to each of these "turn in" folders and simply copied-and-pasted their file into the appropriate folder. In turn, I would see all the files come in as students did their thing. Unfortunately, each student could see all the other students' files, too! Occasionally, someone messed up and we lost a few files due to student error or prank.

DropItTo.Me As In-between Step

Now, we use DropItToMe. My DropItToMe account is tied to my Dropbox account. Students log into DropItToMe, upload their assignment or project file(s), and log out. That's it from their perspective. They don't need to accept my shared folder invitations for each and every project or assignment "turn in" folder. They simply remember one thing: DropItToMe. In fact, I have a link to my DropItToMe account on my website. Take a look. You can't hurt it without my password!

On my end I receive students' work, nicely organized by student number as follows:

• 01george math17
• 02sam math17
• 03sally spelling22
• 04mary science43
• 04mary spelling22

I can control-click on all the spelling, for example, and highlight the whole batch at once. Then, I drag those files into my spelling folder. Next, I control-click (command-click on a Mac) on the math, and so on, until all my files are organized in an appropriate folder, leaving my DropItToMe folder empty until a new student file comes in. Sometimes I also move certain folders out of my Dropbox to save space. That happens with audio or video files that may be quite large and use up my limited Dropbox space.

The process above is similar to what we do with paper, except I do all the sorting with electronic files. With paper I have a bin for each assignment due that morning and students self-sort their work into the appropriate bin. With electronic work I found it safer and easier to do the batch selection and sorting myself. Plus, if a student files his work with the correct filename, it's easy to do a quick SEARCH for anything that comes up missing. This system hasn't eliminated missing student files, but it's made my job easier when I need to track down a file. Once again, if a student has followed directions and has the original file still in his dropbox folder, he can simply re-send it via my DropItToMe account. We do that all the time, since students do forget. The biggest problem is mis-named files. My policy is to not even open files named "untitled" or "book report" since I don't know at a glance whose file it is. Often, even opening the file will yield no information about student identity. So, I've simply told my students to re-submit the files and check your filename first. As a last resort in a few cases I've opened up "untitled" and discovered it was Johnny's missing assignment. Of course, he also neglected to keep the original, so this was the only way to retrieve his work. Fortunately, this happens only occasionally. As I often say to parents of students in my computer classes: learning to use a computer is as much about listening and following directions as it is about learning to use Windows or Open Office. If you teach children (or adults) you know what I mean.

Give DropItToMe a try. It's a great addition to your Dropbox workflow as a teacher. It works great for any project—even projects unrelated to teaching, learning, teachers and students — where you must collaborate with others and collect their digital project files into one central place for further work to be done. 

A Netbook Teacher Sets Up A New Netbook

As a netbook-using teacher working with a class full of netbook-using students I try to keep up with the technology times. That goes for the latest netbook technology.

The other day I was surprised and delighted when my principal gave me a new netbook for the 2013-2014 school year. This 11.6" laptop is much snappier than my 10" model with half the memory and a slower processor. When I asked him "why" he gave me a new netbook to use he told me he wanted "our fourth and fifth grade teachers to have the same netbook that we recommend to our student families". I thought that made sense, so I brought the netbook home and began the unpacking process.

It occurred to me that I should document the process and share it with my students. We ask them to set up their own netbook at home before coming to school in the Fall, but every year someone needs help with one or several of the steps. So, I spent today creating little videos with Screencast-o-matic and posted them on my website. The actual video files are stored in Dropbox, which works perfectly for this purpose. Take a look at the post on my website where all the videos are linked, and share a comment if you think I forgot anything.

Why Use "The Cloud"?

At my school we use several "cloud" services — apps that reside on the Internet and allow us to share or collaborate with one another. Two of them are Dropbox and Google Drive. Watch and listen to why and how this all works.

If You Want To Really Learn, Teach!

   Our annual educator's conference is months away, coming in September, 2013. It's only March, but I just learned that my proposal to make a presentation at the upcoming conference was accepted. Our principal encouraged us to put in a proposal, since most of us have been learners at this conference for years. I've been going annually since 1984! I guess that makes me a veteran. So, it's about time I put something together to share with my colleagues.

1:1 is a Hit!

   I decided on the topic A One-to-One Laptop Model Using BYOD. I think this Spring makes 3 years since I piloted the use of student-purchased netbooks in my fifth grade classroom. Now, our 5-8 graders all use them as part of their regular school day, plus at-home for assignments and projects requiring homework. During the 2012-2013 school year I piloted a "flipped model" of instruction in my two science classes which relied heavily on these netbooks for at-home instruction via prepared video presentations. I hope my preparations for this workshop will serve as a reflection of the best practices I've learned over these past 3+ years. As with so many things one may call a success—and that's what I call our 1:1 BYOD program—our road to this point has not been a bed of roses. Instead, we've learned many things the hard way.

   By the time I'm finished I hope to have a series of articles, all indexed below, that I can use as a post-workshop resource for my workshop attendees and colleagues at my school. The theme of our conference encourages this kind of post-workshop learning and collaboration. Connection Power 2.0 is a continuation of our 2012 conference with a similar theme. Both conferences were designed to give participants hands-on professional growth experiences we can continue to enjoy while we're all apart from one another in-between conferences. 

   Here's hoping that by the time you are reading this there are several additional articles linked below which you can follow at your leisure!

1:1, BYOD Index of Articles:

• Our History With 1:1 and BYOD
• Why 1:1 (Digital vs Analog Learning Tools)?
• Using Digital Tools To Their Maximum Benefit
• Our Wireless Infrastructure
• Tools We Use, and Why We Use Them
• Tools I Use As A Netbook Teacher
• When Digital Natives Act Like Foreigners
• When the Natives Get Restless: Monitoring Student Internet Usage
• Carrot vs Stick For Classroom Management
• Keeping Parents In the Loop In 4 Easy Steps
• Why Did We Pick the Netbook As Our Hardware Platform?

Why Did We Pick the Netbook As Our Hardware Platform?

Occasionally I am asked why we chose netbooks as our hardware platform. As I think back, the original proposals I gave to my principal involved a 1:1 laptop program. When the first netbooks came out we were intrigued by them for two main reasons. 

Price

The price point was very appealing. Most laptops were priced from $500 or more, median price somewhere around $1,300. The first netbooks were introduced from $300-400. This price point probably helped us begin our 1:1 program when we did, using netbooks and BYOD—bring your own device— as our approach. 

Parents often spent $300 and more for Christmas presents on devices like iPod Touch, Nintendo, and Wii; personal computing devices for entertainment and gaming. We took a chance and began our 1:1 BYOD program with netbooks just before Christmas. We suggested the idea of buying a netbook as a Christmas present and bringing it to school in January when we would begin using netbooks as learning tools. Of course, they could still be used during free time for gaming, audio-visual applications like iTunes music or YouTube videos, and other entertainment applications. The response was overwhelmingly positive, and our 1:1 netbook program began.

Standardized Software

We wanted to use a set of standardized software in our 1:1 program. To use software effectively and efficiently, students need to learn the computer's file management system. This was something we wanted for our students. I had been teaching Windows File Management as part of our lab-based computer classes in grades four and five for several years before we started our 1:1 program. Kids learned how to save files, to back them up, and to find their files saved earlier. Our students learned things their parents often did not know how to do. Parents often expressed their delight at seeing their children learning these skills.

Our standardized software list is completely cross-platform and FREE. This means a student can easily migrate from the Windows operating system to the Mac operating system if they like. Why do this? Many families own a Mac at home. The children learn to use Windows at school and may already know how to use the Mac. They can do their work at home on a Mac and at school on their netbook. The files can be opened and edited on either operating system. In my classroom I use a Mac and the kids are exposed to the Mac OS. They also learn the Windows OS. They leave my class with the skills they need to work with several software programs on both major computing platforms in use today.

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Since we started our 1:1 netbook program I've done a lot of research on some of the other hardware platforms used by 1:1 schools. One that's gaining a lot of traction is the iPad. Let's face it, and iPad is a very handy computing device, easy to use, small and lightweight. Why not base a 1:1 program on iPads or something like the Galaxy tablet based on the Android mobile operating system? Again, there are several reasons why we don't move in this direction.

Cost

I own an iPad. It's maxed-out at 64 Gb, has a cellular radio, and I have a Verizon plan that enables me to get online anywhere, often with 4G LTE speeds that exceed what might be available via WiFi. However, this package cost me $830! The least expensive full-sized iPad costs a minimum of $500 unless you purchase an iPad Mini at about $320. Now you have only a 7.9 inch screen compared to a 10 inch netbook. In other words, the low-end iPad Mini compares in cost to a 10 inch netbook, both coming in at around the $300 price point. So, now you must look at what each device can do.

Keyboard

We do a lot of word processing in our 1:1 program. Our students learn to touch type in fourth grade. They are very productive on the keyboard and can write for every one of their core curricular areas. Our objective is to increase the amount of writing they do for subjects like science, social studies, and of course, language arts. We want them to produce content on their computing device, and much of this involves writing. An iPad or other tablet is not designed to be an efficient keyboarding device. Sure, there's a virtual keyboard. I use it on my iPad. I use the keyboard on my iPhone, too. But, I wouldn't want to type a 3 page research paper on a virtual keyboard. Sure, you can add a Bluetooth keyboard (I have one). Now your minimum-priced ($320) iPad Mini costs an additional $30-60. We wanted to keep our device costs as low as possible since we were asking our school families to buy them.

Architecture

The iPad file system is very appealing. It's simple. My four-year-old grandson can navigate around my iPad by pointing to icons of his favorite apps. In essence, you don't really see the behind-the-scenes file structure very often. When you do, as when you're looking for something you typed in your favorite word processor, you just point to the one you want. Apple has made the operating system easy to use for everyone, and that's appealing for an elementary or middle school classroom. With minimal file management requirements we could focus on the core curricular work we want the children to do on their computing device. Why wouldn't we want to use something like this? The simple answer is that we want our kids to learn a major file management system. By design they wouldn't be able to do so on an iPad.

Flash

We have our kids install Adobe Flash on their netbooks. Although I do not have it installed on my Mac, I use Google Chrome which has Flash included. I rarely have a problem on my Mac, never on my netbook, but I still have occasional websites that don't work on my iPad because they use Flash content. Apparently, even a modern Android tablet now comes without Flash installed. I think one day we'll see websites developed in HTML5 or maybe something new, and Flash will no longer be an issue for mobile operating systems. However, today it still is an issue for tablets like the iPad.

Overall Productivity

I recently gave some thought to the question, "Which single computing device would I want if I could only have one?" I surprised myself by deciding that I'd keep my iPhone! The pocket-sized iPhone is the most versatile device I own. Now that my Bluetooth keyboard can be used with it, I can type just as fast on my iPhone as on my Mac. It's hard the beat the portability, the camera, all the apps (there's an app for almost everything), the GPS, and the list goes on. However, for productivity as a school-based computing device, many of these functions are unnecessary and distracting. For what we do in school, what we assign as homework, and the projects we do collaboratively, it's very hard to beat a low-cost netbook. One day, when all of our textbook material is available as a web app, that will be even more true. You've heard it said that you should buy the computing device that will do what you want to do. That's how we decided on the netbook for our hardware platform. It does everything we want to do with it.

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Why Windows-Based?

If I had had my way we would've gone with Macbook laptops. I've used Macs since 1986 and find the Mac OS superior to Windows. Why didn't I get my way, and why do I support our netbook choice? Again, the answer is simple: price. We ask our parents to spend around $300 for a device that their child will use for 4 1/2 years in grades 4-8. That averages less than $35 per semester. An 11-inch MacBook Air starts at $999 which more than triples the cost for our families. The small amount of pushback we receive from our netbook purchase requirement would most likely increase more than three-fold if we had gone this route. It's likely we would not have a 1:1 BYOD program if the hardware requirement was most costly. 

True, the Mac OS has everything we need: keyboard, a file system for the kids to learn, easy production of written content, plenty of creativity apps like iMovie and iPhoto, the same standard set of software we use on our netbooks, Flash. Plus, it's an easier OS to learn, there's less security issues or virus worries. 

However, it costs three times as much for some of the additional benefits. When you're spending, in a sense, other people's money you must aim for the best bang for the buck you're spending. The netbook wins, hands-down.

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Why Not Open Up the Hardware Choice To Allow Any Device?

This question is being debated online as I write. There seems to be a movement to allow kids to bring their own devices—any devices—to school to receive their benefits for learning productively.  

I think this will happen eventually. We are already receiving requests from students and parents to allow them to bring Macs, iPod Touches, iPhones, and iPads to school to use with our WiFi infrastructure. At present we have a one device per student policy because of limits in our WiFi bandwidth. When everyone uses WiFi simultaneously to get online and to do their work our Internet "pipe" is stretched to the limit and everyone's computing experience seems to slow down. We have about 200+ students and 25-30 staff members using our WiFi infrastructure, and sometimes it gets bogged down. However, we continue to evaluate and improve our systems. Our WiFi is under regular scrutiny, too.

Another issue is support. While an iPad requires little support, there are several workarounds that must be used to get some of our assignments completed on an iPad. We have some kids who bring their Macs to school. We allow them to do this, although we encourage them to go with a netbook because that's the hardware/software system on which we've trained our staff members to give assistance. As you might imagine, some teachers are more able and willing to do this than others. When we standardized on the Windows 7 operating system on a netbook we enabled our staff, all of whom have their own netbook, to at least be moderately proficient in problem-solving on behalf of their own students. If the hardware/software platform was opened up we would potentially have a support shortfall.

As mentioned earlier, anything other than a Mac or Windows-based laptop suffers from certain shortcomings when used in our learning environment: lack of a keyboard, simplified file system, no Flash support, and the like. This is not to say that real schoolwork cannot be done on an iPhone. However, there will come a time when an assignment is given that an iPhone or iPad cannot handle. This would require flexibility on the part of our teachers and our curriculum, and a willingness to consider alternative ways of completing the requirements of the assignment and/or curriculum. This is possible, but not on our current list of goals and objectives for our 1:1 program. I do predict that we'll eventually modify our approach, however, to accommodate the many different devices children will want to bring to school with them. It's hard to say to the parent of a child who already owns an iPad, "No, you MUST bring a netbook to school and spend an additional $300 so you can do this particular project".

We've had parents of graduates from our school donate their child's netbook back to the school. Our principal seems to have an unending supply of these re-worked netbooks to loan to children when the need arises. I've sent several children whose netbooks were being repaired, and they always come back with a loaner from the principal. One student in particular, who came to school with an iPad, was offered a loaner to use for the projects that required one. She used her iPad for almost everything, but eventually came to school with her own netbook so she could participate fully in our current 1:1 curriculum. Another student I know used a loaner all year because his parents refused to buy him a netbook. Purchases in the $300 price range were not on this family's Christmas list, and the parents refused on that basis. We supported them in their parenting decision. Their child was allowed to use his family's computer at home, and used the loaner at school. It worked, and he was very productive with this arrangement.

Finally, we spend class time teaching and learning a particular file system. Those few students who don't own a netbook are somewhat at a disadvantage when we spend time practicing what we're learning. This creates a minor burden for both the student and the teacher, but we've managed to work with this in the few cases where we had no other choice. Usually, a loaner netbook solved the problem, and parents usually see the benefits of investing in a netbook for their child(ren). When they don't, or can't we work with what we have. 

All in all, our current approach with netbooks is working. We have our occasional situations where we've had to be creative, and that has worked so far. Eventually, I predict we'll open up the hardware/software platform options and emphasize what can be done on any device we may find on our campus. That's probably several years away, and we'll see it when hardware and software is improved to the point where every device available can help us realize our curriculum goals.

Keeping Parents In the Loop in 4 Easy Steps

I use an app called Remind101 as a way of keeping my parents and/or students informed of our classroom events and activities. You may enjoy this workflow I've created. I use it with only an iPhone to send my parents quick reminders, updates, or messages on their cell phones or computers as email. It's also possible to send them a picture of your class at work on a special project. This helps keep your parents in the classroom loop with very little work on your part, and it requires only a few seconds for your parents, too. Imagine sending a note like this: 

"Our class is hard at work on Back in the Day research. Remember to help your child find 3 sources tonight!"  (add link to picture here)

This is my 4-step workflow for sending notifications, news, reminders, and even pictures to parents via my iPhone and/or laptop. This works on any Mac or Windows computer:

Step 1: I had a single-sided paper-based document I wanted to share with my parents. It was already typed up and printed out. So, I snapped a picture on my iPhone. Using Apple's iPhoto app, I chose the photo, then "Share", then "Open In..." and Dropbox. This assumes you've already installed the iPhoto, Dropbox and Remind101 apps on your iPhone.

Please note that you cannot get your photo directly into Dropbox from Apple's Photos app because it doesn't offer an "Open In..." button. 

Step 2: In Dropbox I created a Remind101 folder for the picture files I wanted to share. I save the picture file in that folder. 

Step 3: When I use my computer I navigate to the folder inside my Dropbox folder, right-click the file, and choose "get link". On the iPhone's Dropbox app I also navigate to the Remind101 folder, find and tap on the picture file, choose the "Share" button; then, choose "Copy Link to Clipboard".

Step 4: Moving to the Remind 101 app I compose a new message to parents, either on my laptop or iPhone. I've already created an account and given parents an opportunity to opt in to email or text notifications from me. Then, I paste the Dropbox link, copied earlier, into the message. Finally, I send the message to my subscribed parents. It shows up as a text on their phone or as an email, or both. It's their choice. They can click on the link and the photo/document pops up for them to view and/or download to their device.

The total time required to do this on an iPhone or computer is about 2 minutes. It's quick and easy, using 3 tools I use often throughout my week: the iPhone (or laptop), Dropbox and Remind101. Check out these apps and see what you think!

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Carrot vs Stick For Classroom Management

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When it comes to classroom management, I try to use a combination of "the carrot" (positive reinforcement) and "the stick" (consequences for negative behavior). One of the carrots I use to motivate and enthuse children is Class Dojo. My stick of choice in fifth grade, believe it or not, is a "timeout" using the method described in 1-2-3 Magic and managed with an iPhone app by the same name <available on iTunes>. Here, I'm specifically talking about the iPhone apps I use to help manage my fifth grade class. It should be said, however, that Dojo isn't inherently positive while 123 is negative. They both take a very positive approach to classroom management. Class Dojo, by its very nature, keeps me positive and focused on the positive things children say and do all day long. The way I use 123 Magic, I'm tracking any misbehaviors and responding with a simple "take 5". That means the child spends 5 minutes in timeout. Surprisingly, 10 year olds don't want to be in timeout and most avoid this experience by responding to the first or second warning. The third warning (hence, 1-2-3) results in the consequence.

Class Dojo

This app, available on an iPhone, iPad or any computer via a web interface, offers teachers an opportunity to "catch them doing something right". When I do, I give the student a "point" which is recorded on whatever device is closest to me -- iPhone, iPad or laptop. Usually, it's the iPhone in my pocket. The nice thing about this is that you can choose a list of things to watch for ahead of time. Then, when you give those points, an open browser on any classroom computer emits (if you choose) an audible sound to indicate that someone just got caught in the act of a positive behavior. When I award a point on my iPhone it's automatically synced to the laptop connected to my projector and speakers, so everyone knows that someone just earned a point. Plus, the running points are tallied throughout the day. We brainstormed and created a class list of rewards that can be earned after a certain number of points are accumulated. We did this for individual and class points. What a motivator!

In my pilot year using this system and software, my most recalcitrant student responded the most to this positive approach. Needless to say, he's used to having much more negative attention. My emphasis on the positive side of his behavior fostered more positive behavior almost immediately.

1-2-3 Magic

When students choose negative behaviors and need to be brought back to the positive side, they get a "count". I only have to say, "Johnny, that's a ONE." Everyone knows that means Johnny has received his first warning about misbehavior. Usually, Johnny says, "Sorry, Mr. Schwan", I respond with "thank you", and we leave it at that. 

What I added this past year is a record-keeping system so I wouldn't need to remember who had what "count" in my system. I open the 1-2-3 app on my iPhone and click a "1" next to Johnny's name. Again, an audible beep is emitted (if I choose) and Johnny knows I've recorded this infraction. Class Dojo has room for undesirable behaviors, too, and it would be just as easy to keep track of them within the Class Dojo app. A "count" (negative behavior) subtracts from the "points" (positive behavior) already accumulated. If your philosophy includes this sort of thinking (adding and subtracting points for positive and negative behavior), then just use the one (Class Dojo) app. I've done it both ways. 

When a student gets to a "count" of THREE, I say, "That's THREE, take five" -- which means a five minute timeout in a chair designated for the purpose. The student must take with him whatever work materials he needs to continue participating in class, and the timeout chair has a table next to it for that purpose. The difference is that I don't call on a student who is in that chair, he isn't allowed to make any noises or distracting movements, and we basically ignore him for 5 minutes. The 1-2-3 app has a 5 minute timer to help me remember to say, "Your 5 minutes is up, Johnny. You may return to your seat." Surprisingly, fifth graders (and certainly younger kids) don't like to be in timeout. For most, it's a BIG DEAL, even though I rarely contact parents about the timeout unless it becomes a chronic situation and happens often. The 5 minutes are served, and we move on with our day. We emphasize repentance and forgiveness in our classroom.

I mention this here in the context of writing about our 1:1 netbook program because Class Dojo offers the option of sharing the class points with either students, parents, or both. Students can keep track of their own points on their personal netbooks if I share the link with them. Parents, too, can follow along and a daily or weekly report can be sent home either electronically or via paper. This report was met with very positive comments the first time I sent one home. Even students with negative behaviors during the week received praise from their parents for how they received a majority of positive praise reports at school (Johnny had 95% positive behavior this week!). Mom and Dad tend to emphasize the positive, too, when Johnny brings home his report.

In conclusion, it turns out that carrots work better than sticks to shape positive behavior and to encourage more of it in the classroom! I use a combination of both, and use Class Dojo primarily because it keeps ME honest, looking for the many positive behaviors exhibited by students throughout the day. We now do a lot of celebrating because we have a lot to celebrate in our class!

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