12 in x 12 in whiteboards
One way to enhance high-tech learning with low-tech tools is to utilize the typical whiteboards that students would use in school. I have my students use them to show their work in gallery view in Zoom, because the dry erase writing looks much bigger and bolder than paper. All students took theirs home to use virtually, but if they do not have one at home, Anita Archer has great tips for items that can be used in her recent webinar.
Jamboard Google Extension
This is a great tool for student collaboration when they cannot have in-person group work. Students can be assigned an individual sheet to do their work on, or the students could collaborate on one sheet. The teacher can flip through the sheets and facilitate the conversation around different pieces of student work.
The sheets can also be divided in half and assigned with structured partners, which is another great tip from Anita Archer.
Chat function
Seems simple, but the chat function in any virtual platform can be a great tool for collaboration. For example, you can provide sentence stems and questions that students respond to in the chat and keep a record of responses. And, you can create your own system to indicate if students answered and how they answered. Not only will it help create small groups of students who might need additional support in a concept, but it will also help you be equitable in who you are calling on so that all voices in your classroom are heard.
“Explore It” Google Extension
This tool is terrific for older students who are writing papers or doing a research report. They can open a document in Google and then open “Explore It.” When they type words into the search they can find additional information, links to sites, and citations. It can even turn the citations into APA form.
This year has taught us a lot, including new ways tech tools can be used to engage students. As educators continue to innovate, hopefully tips and strategies such as these will help keep the motivation and engagement going as we finish the school year strong and resilient!
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