Take a virtual field trip!

How about taking a field trip that doesn't require permission slips, transportation requests and a post to the field trip forum?

With virtual field trips, your students can explore places all around the world.  One great resource is Google Expeditions.  This spreadsheet has a list of all of the current offerings.  These are best experienced on mobile devices, but many can be viewed on a computer, as well.  To find these, look at the ones on the VR sheet that have a link.

Here are two recently added examples:

Katmandu


Makaibari Tea Estate

Read and Write for Google

Have you used Read and Write for Google lately?  Were you aware that all students at CVSD have premium accounts and that all teachers can get one, too?

Read and Write for Google is a UDL (Universal Design for Learning) tool.  Here are some features (copied from their web site).

• Hear web pages and documents read aloud to improve reading comprehension, with choice of natural voices
• Understand unfamiliar words with text and picture dictionaries
• Develop writing skills with word prediction and a grammar, spelling and confusable words checker
• Support independent student research with valuable study skills tools
• Offers bilingual support for a growing number of languages and more.

I just used Read and Write myself the other day to listen to a passage I needed to read for a course I'm taking.
Another great feature is vocabulary lists -- Read and Write will take words you've highlighted in a document and generate a vocabulary list, which you can then edit.
Finally, speaking of the highlighting tools, you can highlight in four different colors, then combine your highlights (by color) into a new document.

So, if you haven't used it in a while (or ever), why not give it a try? I'd love to help.

What to do when a web app isn't working

We've all run into those situations where a web app stops working.  Maybe it's not responding to mouse clicks, or it's just "spinning" or in some other way not performing how it should.

I was just chatting with Nick in IT about this, and here's a set of steps we recommend taking.  Do these in the order listed (i.e., start with #1).  If you get to the end of the list (or to the point of frustration!), it's time to get help.

Image from terimakasih0 at pixabay.com

1. Exit (close) the app and then reopen it (note: if you've entered a big chunk of text that you're not sure saved, first copy it and paste it somewhere safe).
2. Close the browser (e.g., Chrome) and restart.
3. Update the browser. Like any software, browsers like Chrome need frequent updates.  Here's how to update Chrome. And here's Firefox.
4. Shut down and restart your device.
5. If you are on a device with multiple browsers, try a different browser (e.g., switch from Chrome to Firefox).
6. If none of the above solves the problem, see IT.

Dynamic Landscapes 2019

Here's a "save the date" for Dynamic Landscapes 2019.  May 20-21.  Past attendees (and presenters) from CVU have found this to be a useful and enjoyable conference.  Let's get a group together again this year! 

And why not consider presenting at the conference? Recent CVU presenters have included Annie Bellerose, Corinna Hussey, Peter Langella, Troy Paradee, Amy Wardwell, and yours truly. Talk to any one of us to learn more.

Please let me know if you're interested in going this year. Don't register yourself-- I'll put a list together so we can apply at once for a group discount.

More info here.

VoiceThread PD

I got an email today about free workshops for VoiceThread training-- pasting below.  Anyone interested?

Are you looking to improve your VoiceThread skills? VoiceThread has a variety of professional development opportunities to help you accomplish your goals in 2019! You can learn more about our courses and workshops and register using the links below.

Free Workshops

These workshops are completely free. The sessions are led by our instructional designer and online educator George Haines.  George will share his expertise to help you get the most from VoiceThread.

VoiceThread Advanced Skills
February 5th at 7:00pm ET - Register here

In this workshop, participants will learn about more advanced VoiceThread features. We will demonstrate how to integrate Google Drive content via our Media Sources, how to change language displays, adjust playback settings and more. Portions of the workshop will be hands-on.

VoiceThread and Universal Design for Learning (UDL)
February 12th at 7:00pm ET - Register here

Participants will learn how VoiceThread can help educators provide multiple means of engagement, representation, action and expression for their courses. Participants will learn how to use VoiceThread’s multi-modal communication platform, the new closed captioning features, and VoiceThread Universal to design accessible lessons.

Using VoiceThread for Student Portfolios
February 26th at 7:00pm ET - Register here

If you are interested in learning how to use VoiceThread as a portfolio tool to showcase student work or to provide feedback for their work in progress, we can help. In this workshop, we will showcase a variety of student portfolio examples and collaborate on a shared brainstorm discussion.

 

Courses

In our VoiceThread Certified Educator course, you will gain hands-on experience using all of the VoiceThread features, analyze lesson ideas from actual courses, and connect with other VoiceThreaders from around the world. Click the button below to learn how the course is structured and register for cohort 33.

VCE Course

If you are a language teacher, our Teaching Languages with VoiceThread course will equip you to create dynamic lessons and assessments. In this course you will be able to see how our facilitator Dr. Crystal Marull uses VoiceThread with her students, create your own sample lesson, and discuss examples from other language courses. Click the button below to learn how the course is structured and register for the cohort.

Teaching Languages Course