How to Make Forms, Surveys, and Quizzes in Google Docs and Spreadsheets or Google Apps Want to find out what your coworkers want for lunch? Need to get feedback for your training session? Want to find out which movie your friends want to see on Saturday? Do you need a database of your club member's phone numbers? Forms in Google Docs are easy to create. Forms feed their results directly into a spreadsheet in Google Docs.
The Inclusive Class: 25 Easy Ways to Improve Executive Functioning Skills How do we help our children or students who are perpetually losing things, often running late and seem completely disorganized? Do we reprimand them for being lazy? Do we keep them in at recess because they forgot to do their homework? Do we let our frustration and angst get the better of us and completely give up on helping them with anything at all? Or, do we wonder if there is a reason as to why this child just can't seem to pull things together? Teachers and parents often spend an inordinate amount of time supporting children with weak executive function skills. However, in a carefully planned and organized school day, there are 25 easy ways for teachers and parents to help strengthen weak executive functioning skills in kids: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. 21. 22. 23. 24. 25.
Coding the Curriculum: How High Schools Are Reprogramming Their Classes There are no lockers in the hallways at Beaver Country Day School. Instead, backpacks and tote bags line either side of the floor while students step over them during the mid-morning rush to class. Nearly everyone is carrying a laptop. "There used to be lockers, but nobody was really using them," a passing staff member tells me with a shrug. The private school, for grades six through twelve, sits in a quiet nook of Chestnut Hill, Mass. — a suburb sandwiched a few miles between, and directly below, Cambridge and downtown Boston. Two weeks ago, Beaver became the first school in the United States to implement computer coding into each of its classes. It's a new, albeit eccentric experiment. It's a new, albeit eccentric experiment. True, Beaver may be the first of its kind to experiment with coding in every class, but the idea that more high school students should take STEM-related courses — particularly in programming and coding — isn't new. "This is our seventh school day of the year.
'Auti-Sim' Game Simulates Life With Childhood Autism In a playground filled with gleeful shouts, you approach a group of children. Suddenly, your vision turns blurry and pixelated. The echoing screams become raucous. It's the experience of sensory overload, according to a new game called Auti-Sim. The closer you get to loud and active children, the more overwhelming the situation becomes. Taylan Kadayifcioglu (who goes by Taylan Kay), one of the game's programmers, says he was inspired by an excerpt from a documentary called Inside Autism. "It was striking how an ordinary, everyday environment could pose significant challenges," Kay tells Mashable. "It was striking how an ordinary, everyday environment could pose significant challenges," Kay tells Mashable. After posting the demo on indie game site Game Jolt, Auti-Sim received generally positive feedback. "We have had quite a few people with autism thanking us for giving them a means of communicating what they are going through," Kay says. Screenshot courtesy of YouTube, Taylan Kay
12 Things Students Should Never Do on Social Media The last thing young people want is another set of rules. But these days, social media comes with great responsibility, whether you're just starting high school or finishing up college. The fact is, irresponsible social media conduct could potentially ruin your education and negatively impact your career, not to mention hurt others in the process. (And we're not just talking kids, either.) But most of those consequences are preventable, often with just a little foresight. We've pinpointed 12 social media mistakes that students should avoid at all costs, because after all, it's never as simple as "be responsible." Please head to the comments below to add your own contributions and advice for young adults on social media. 1. Granted, high school and college students experiment with many activities and substances. Once or twice per year, perform a thorough review of the information and content accessible on your social media profiles. 2. Check your school's policy on bullying. 3. 4. 5. 6.
The Inclusive Class: 10 Easy Changes Teachers Can Make to Facilitate Inclusion "Over, under, around or through find a way, or make a way" is a quote by Paula Kluth that recently reminded me of how I found ways to include all my students in a classroom activity, regardless of their ability level. While I am speaking with Dr. Cheryl M. Jorgensen about this topic on an upcoming podcast, I wanted to share one of the most successful ways that I used as a classroom teacher to facilitate inclusion. In order to have students aquire the same learning experiences, teachers have to be prepared for the differences in their student's abilities and learning styles. Here are 10 easy changes teachers can make to facilitate inclusion: r Time - change the time of day the activity is planned for, the duration of activity, the time of week or even the month. r Space - change the physical seating arrangement in the class, change the environment (turn off the lights, shut the door or open the windows), change the workspace or even the room (go to the library or sit outside).
Safe search engines for kids? Reader Q+A at Cool Mom Tech What’s the best search engine for kids, in your experience? -via Twitter Keeping kids safe online should be a huge priority for parents. Safe Search For Young Kids There are some great search engines that you can bookmark as your kids’ own versions of Google. Kidzui (above) is a great resource for pre-K through early elementary school-aged kids. Another kid-friendly search engine is Kidrex. Safe Search For Older Kids When you get into the tween years and beyond, I’d really recommend using Internet filters to ensure that when your kids are using the same search engine you use, they are still protected from the creepy stuff out there. On top of that, we have covered smart internet safety options for kids here before, like Net Nanny which works on both tablets and PCs. We’ve also looked at safe browsers for tablets, and recommend Mobicip. But as far as safety goes, really the most important thing you can do is monitor your kids’ usage–at least for as long as you can. 9Share
The Inclusive Class: Top 10 Websites for the Inclusive Classroom Teachers love a great resource! Especially a resource that is free and at their fingertips - literally. That's why I put together a list of 10 outstanding websites that teachers can use in the inclusive classroom (or any classroom, for that matter!). It was difficult to narrow the list down to 10, given all the websites that are available on the internet! However each site listed was chosen for content that I feel is unique or more substantial than what others had to offer. Do you have any to add to this list?