AACPS OIT Byte

 By: Samantha Wilkinson Images by Eric Curts, https://www.controlaltachieve.com/ I'm sure by now most of us know that chromebooks have a webcam option. When accessed by applications, the webcam allows students to record video or take pictures. They can also record their voice. We love this for digital projects in WeVideo, Wixie, Google Workspace, and more. But did you know that students also have the ability to record their screen, as well as annotate on the screen itself while recording?  Yes, it's true! I'm talking about a tool that is found on Chromebooks from the ChromeOS launcher button in the bottom left of student devices. *Screencast dramatically enters the scene.* Once launched, your dashboard will offer some "Getting Started" videos as well as list any previous screencasts the user has recorded. This is where you will find the NEW SCREENCAST button as well, to start a new recording.  Students have the ability to record full screen, partial screen, or a w...

  By: Samantha Wilkinson, OIT Teacher Specialist One of my favorite end-of-year activities was to have my students become the teachers. On the smartboard I would introduce this by simply projecting the words "YOUR TURN". They'd get excited to share their expertise and have the attention of the whole class, and I'd get excited to see them in a different role. The end of the year is the perfect time for this as we have established classroom community and learned a lot that they can pull from when picking a topic to teach the class. Not to mention, we know that teaching others is the ultimate level of understanding. And let's be honest, at this point in the year, it really should be their turn to show what they know! This project idea can be as basic or as complex as you choose but I'd usually give them a day or two to brainstorm topics they wanted to share about to the class. Topics that students chose ranged from tips on how to solve multiplication problems, Wo...

  By Koralina McKenna, OIT Teacher Specialist and Hybrid Science Teacher I don’t know if it’s fair to say the year is winding down because my students seem to be winding up! Nevertheless, summer is close enough to start the countdown and with that countdown comes my annual reflection. I like to take a little time at the end of each year to look back at how I tweaked my lessons and activities; did they go well? Should I have left them alone? What am I definitely doing again next year? One of my major changes this year was using Wixie. I had heard of Wixie before but had written it off as something elementary school teachers used [and loved] but it wasn’t for me, a middle school teacher. However, when I learned that it was available to all secondary students I couldn’t help but try it out.  I work (and have always worked) at an AVID school and since year one, one-pagers have been a favorite assessment option. I love the creativity of them, how students can’t Google or chatGPT al...