Four #GR8Finds #ThisWeek -- GAFE Guide, School Libraries, Social Media Usage Update, and Canva Design School

January 16

Notice that my finds may spill over from the previous week. Sometimes it takes a while for the news to get to me and these finds are just too good to ignore. Just so you know. ☺ 

1. Google releases new guide for educators, based on feedback it received from schools across the world.

One of the coolest things about Google is that it listens to its users.

2. School libraries shelve tradition to create new learning spaces, from The Guardian.

"What happens to school libraries when students find it more natural to turn to a computer screen than a book?"

IC: flickr

It's an extraordinary time to be a librarian!

3. Social Media Usage Update 2014

From Pew Research, via +Joyce Valenza. 
"The results in this report are based on the 81% of American adults who use the internet."


When Pew Research reports findings, I listen.


4. Canva Design School. Lesson plans for Canva, written by +Paul Hamilton, +Steven Anderson, +Theresa Eichholz, and +Vicki Davis.

You know how I feel about Canva ☺and now they're providing teaching materials!


Have fun exploring these terrific resources, and I hope you enjoy your weekend!

                                          

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Hour of Code in Hawaii's Classrooms -- So inspiring!

It's so inspiring to learn about how schools in Hawaii are participating in coding activities, not only during Hour of Code Week December 8-14, 2014, but throughout the school year!

So far, we've done two Google Rocks! Hawaii hangouts to celebrate Hour of Code in Hawaii, and, who knows, there may be more!

Teachers +Shane Asselstine of Momilani Elementary (21:58), +Steve Qunell of Iao Intermediate (33:14), and +Rachel Armstrong of Hale Kula Elementary (07:42) joined us for the first hangout in December, with K5 Affiliate Trainer for Hawaii +Evelyn Zayas (02:21) briefing us about code.org.

These links were shared by panelists (also available in the hangout Show Notes):

Rachel Armstrong

Hale Kula Coding Club Scratch Studio

Beyond the Hour of Code Hangout-on-Air

Shane Asselstine

Hawaii Public Radio Feature

Computer CraftEdu--a mod available within Minecraft Edu

Michelle Carlson Colte

Hale Kula Elementary Coding Rock Stars

Highlights: Hawaii’s Hour of Code by Hawaii Department of Education

Linda Lindsay

Hour of Code in our Library -- The First Day, according to Mac

Day #2 of Hour of Code in Our Library -- Scratch by Nick and Q&A with Milo

3 More Things to Share about our Hour of Code Week -- A Project, a Challenge,and a Presentation

Steve Qunell

Hour of Code Presentation at Iao School

Project GUTS (Grow Up Thinking Scientifically)

Evelyn Zayas

Code.org Workshop at Kihei Charter School, January 24, 8:30-3:00

Code.org Workshop at Iolani School Feb. 14, 8:30-2:30


+Michelle Carlson Colte invited technology facilitator +Melanie Ching of Waialae Public Charter School (03:16) and first grade teacher +Jake Lee of Punahou School (09:42) to come on GR!H, for Part 2. 

These are the links Melanie and Jake shared (also available in the hangout's Show Notes) :

Melanie Ching

Tynker website (good alternative/addition to Code.org): http://www.tynker.com/hour-of-code/

Lightbot website:  http://lightbot.com/hocflash.html

Jake Lee

Short Hour of Code Video 

Link: http://youtu.be/dEpVsT4i3DA

Longer Hour of Code Video Link: http://youtu.be/LDGHa4DcSJU

Badging and Creative Thinking: http://www.diy.org 

A Big Mahalo to all of these innovative Hawaii teachers who agreed to come on our weekly hangout to share about coding at their school.

Might there be another Hour of Code, Hawaii Style show in our Google Rocks! Hawaii hangout future to learn about how other Hawaii schools are coding? Now that would be fabulous! Please contact me or Michelle, or we may be contacting you. :)

Happy coding!

                                          

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Four #GR8Finds #ThisWeek -- Humility in Leadership, a Chromebook Guide, Globalized Classroom Resources for 2015, & Global Top 12 Teacher Blogs to Follow

Jan 9, 2015

#ThisWeek's #GR8Finds are exceptional IMO!

1. Ha'aha'a, the value of humility.

"We readily think of Ha‘aha‘a, humility, in servant leadership, when it’s actually in all leadership." From Rosa Say, "Managing with Aloha, Bringing Universal Hawaii's values to the Art of Business." 

Ha‘aha‘a, the value of humility http://t.co/u4uGkIEITd
— Celebrate Maui (@Celebrate_Maui) January 1, 2015

Humility is everything.


2. A One-Stop Chromebook Shop: Resource Guide for Educators

An extremely useful resource created by +Jennifer Scheffer.

3. The Globalized Classroom: 18 Key Resources for 2015

Post by Edudemic.

A plethora of great places to explore.

4. The Global Search for Education: Our Global Top 12 Teacher Blogs from Huffington Post

More interesting people to follow. :)


I hope you find #ThisWeek's #GR8Finds useful, and have fun learning!

                                          

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Three #GR8Finds #ThisWeek -- multimedia textbooks, longhand, unroll.me

Finding stuff makes me HAPPY!

Sharing stuff? Even HAPPIER!

Sooooo, I've decided to add a little structure to my sharing.

I'll be blogging every Friday about my #GR8Finds #ThisWeek. There, I said it in writing. No turning back. ☺

My list will always be very v-e-r-r-r-y selective -- my own crème de la crème curation. Generally, three to five #GR8Finds. (I find a LOT of good stuff in a week.)

What kind of content, you ask? #EdTech, mostly, with #inspiration, #surprise, and #booksandreading thrown in. And of course, #current. I'm aiming for all to be #HELPFUL.

So, without further ado, here's my first list.

#GR8Finds #ThisWeek - Jan 2, 2015

1. Five Tools for Creating Multimedia Textbooks

Handy: Five Tools for Creating Multimedia Textbooks - A Comparison Chart http://t.co/i7b7R8sWTg @rmbyrne #TLChat #edtech
— Linda Lindsay (@mauilibrarian2) December 26, 2014

2. The Lowdown on Longhand

Thought-provoking: The Lowdown on Longhand: How Writing by Hand Benefits the Brain | @Edutopia http://t.co/FROGcnraGt #TLChat
— Linda Lindsay (@mauilibrarian2) December 27, 2014

3. Unroll.me

Unsubscribe from unwanted emails & combine the rest into a single daily digest with @Unrollme. https://t.co/UzbQwNdIV9
— Linda Lindsay (@mauilibrarian2) December 30, 2014

Want to come along for the ride? I invite you to subscribe to this blog.

Happy New Year! May 2015 be all you hope for and more.

                                          

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P. S. Per usual, I'll still be writing other aiming-to-be-helpful #edtech blog posts, whenever inspiration strikes.

Five Apps That Enchanted Me in 2014 and I'm Taking with Me into 2015

I'm a Google Apps Gal through and through, from way back. So even though I explore a lot of non-Google apps for people, only a few actually make it into my personal toolkit.

These are the five apps that grabbed my attention this year, stuck, and enchanted me. I'm taking them with me into 2015!

I invite you to try them.


1. Canva 

I've said it before. Canva makes me feel like an artist!

Here's my favorite design that I created for our Google Rocks! Hawaii weekly hangout. The torn paper effect cost $1, which was well-worth it for me. This was the only time I paid for a design (so far). There's so much free stuff to choose from!

2. Flipgrid

My librarian friend +Michelle Carlson Colte invited me to try Flipgrid in April.

And this happened!

6th graders sharing their original poems in Mrs. Martelles' class

I'm planning to purchase a library subscription so other teachers can try it. Thanks, Michelle!


3. Instagram

Although I had installed Instagram on my iPhone a while ago, I began experimenting with it in earnest on January 1, uploading photos with the #365grateful hashtag.

This is one of my favorites:

Upcountry Maui #rainbow #imu Kalua turkey Mahalo Kumu Kukini & Hawaiian Class #HappyThanksgiving #365grateful #nofilter

A photo posted by Linda Lindsay (@mauilibrarian2) on Nov 11, 2014 at 8:43pm PST

And I followed Hōkūle'a Worldwide Voyage (hokuleawwv).

Thank you to our #Maori brothers & sisters for the humbling hospitality when we arrived in #Auckland earlier this month. #MahaloNui!

A photo posted by Hōkūle‘a Worldwide Voyage (@hokuleawwv) on Dec 12, 2014 at 5:13pm PST

Hōkūle'a and the people making the World Wide Voyage happen are changing the world for good and it's a joy to watch it all unfold.


4. Nurph

EdTech buddy +Michael Fricano II suggested this Twitter-taming gem. TLChat moderator +Nikki D Robertson is using the app to the fullest. ( TLChat = teacher-librarian chat )

#TLChat past chats

Such a clean interface, great analytics, and the archive is just a click away. Thanks, Michael and Nikki!


5. Wunderlist 

(Apple's App of the Year for 2013)

Seabury colleague +Moka Brown mentioned Wunderlist in her "Tech Tools to Reduce Teachers' Workloads" presentation at our school and I decided to try it.

I haven't used the collaborative features yet, but so far I enjoy accessing the app across my devices, its clean interface, the bell of completion ( Fun! ), and the ability to sort by Today and Week. Thanks, Moka!

Yes, I'm happily taking these apps with me into 2015!

What about you? What does your enchanted list look like?

Signing off for 2014 and eagerly awaiting 2015,

                                          

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IC: Apps Pixabay