Resources for a "blended learning classroom" in '11-12

A "Blended Learning Classroom" seeks to use technology to empower students to extend their own school day beyond the final bell. There are as many definitions of "blended classrooms" as there are blended classrooms. But usually they consist of a class that meets as part of a regular school schedule and uses that time to help students orient themselves to tasks and resources that are available to them any time of day. This post just shares a few readily available tools that could help you and your students move toward a blended learning paradigm.

1. Edmodo. Edmodo has become very popular over the past two years. Think of it like a safe and secure version of Facebook or Twitter wherein students can only interact with entire classes in which they are registered. You can post assignments, grade assignments (there's a built in grade book), carry on class discussions, flexibly and responsively create working groups, and post due dates and important dates (there's a calendar). Unfortunately, Edmodo doesn't integrate with Google tools (like Google Calendar)... yet! But supposedly they are working on that! If you need support joining up with the rest of the Bellingham School District, contact Cathy Gersich!
2. Moodle. Ever taken a class online using Blackboard? Moodle is kinda' like that. It lets you create and host classes online. Initial setup could require some support for you, but Ken Russell in our district can help you get started! The advantage of Moodle over Edmodo is that it lets you create a template of a class (assignments, links, discussions, projects, grading scales, etc) that you can use over and over or tinker with each time!
3. Google Apps: This is the big name that Google applies to their online productivity software. Google Docs includes a word processor, a spreadsheet, a presentation app, and a drawing app. Google Calendar is, well, a calendar; but it's a really good one you can get to from almost anywhere and that people can subscribe to. Google Sites is a website creation tool. Technically, it is a Wiki. But it lets you really easily paste together all these other Google tools into a website that could also support a blended classroom. Add an email link for students to submit their work and the communication loop is complete! If you need assistance, you can contact Brian MacNevin.

I know that there are lots of other options out there. I tried to just give you three to chew on over the Summer. If you have other resources to share to support a blended classroom, please share them in a comment to this post.

Back up your 2010-11 files to the cloud with Google Docs!

CD-ROMs are just unwieldy and get damaged easily. Flash drives get lost so easily! Dropbox (previously discussed in this post: link) is awesome; but at only 2GB for free use, that might not be enough space for your files. But there is another option for backing up the files from your h-drive: uploading and entire folder of documents to Google Docs!

Here's the process in 4 easy steps:

1. Point your browser to Google Docs.
2. Select the UPLOAD button and then select the FOLDER menu item.
3. Navigate to the folder name that contains the files you want to store in the cloud.
4. UNcheck the option "convert to Google Doc" if you want your word files remain word files and your excel files remain excel files (etc.) and then select OKAY.

And you're done! Your entire folder and its contents will be uploaded and stored for you to access anywhere you have Google Docs access!

Have an exciting and stress free last few weeks of school!