AACPS OIT Byte

By: Samantha Wilkinson, OIT Elementary Teacher Specialist Lumio by SMART is my recent app obsession. While I enjoy all of our apps, and they each have something special, Lumio has grabbed my attention recently. Why? Well, I love that I can record up to 5 minutes of audio per slide so students can hear the directions over and over without me sounding like a broken record. I love how I can change it from teacher paced to student paced at any point in the lesson. I love the ability to upload a PDF, or existing Google Slide and make it and independent activity, group activity, or even whole class whiteboard. I love that I can share ad-free YouTube videos with students. And obviously, I love the templates, graphic organizers, manipulatives, and dozens of pre-made resources. Pre-made and low prep is just working smarter. But the thing I love the MOST, my favorite thing, is Lumio's ability for teachers to edit ON THE FLY! I recently presented in Lumio at a school and I realized I wanted t...

By Kerri Lambert, Teacher Specialist, AACPS Office of Instructional Technology This is the fifth post in a series about the Maryland Digital Learning Standards. The fifth Maryland Digital Learning for Students focuses on a key topic in education: Computational Thinking. While most people consider computational thinking to be a part of Computer Science, in actuality it’s a key component of all content areas and life in general. Here’s the standard as it’s written: 5. Computational Thinker Students develop processes and employ strategies for understanding and solving problems in ways that leverage the power of technology. Students: a) identify problems that can be solved using data analysis, abstract models and/or algorithmic thinking; b) collect data or identify relevant data sets, use digital tools to analyze them, and represent data in various ways to facilitate problem-solving and decision-making; c) break problems into component parts, extract key information, and develop descriptiv...

 By Patrick Malone, Online Campus Specialist, AACPS Office of Instructional Technology Telepresence robots are an intriguing integration of advanced robotics and communication technologies, and have gained significant attention and adoption across various fields in recent years. These robots enable remote interaction and participation in physical environments, offering a plethora of benefits. Let us explore the variety of ways they have impacted some of the various sectors of society. Telepresence robots have found applications in healthcare, education, business, and even personal use. In healthcare, they allow medical professionals to conduct virtual consultations, monitor patients remotely, and perform rounds in hospitals, improving access to healthcare services and reducing the burden on healthcare facilities. Telepresence robots enable doctors to interact with patients in real-time, discuss medical conditions, and prescribe appropriate treatments, enhancing healthcare delivery...

 by Kerri Lambert, teacher specialist, AACPS Office of Instructional Technology Can you believe that Google Earth has been around for almost 20 years? Since debuting in 2005, hundreds of millions have pulled up that spinning globe, packed with all the wonders of the world…. and immediately looked up their address. (If you’ve never watched the comedian Michael McIntyre’s riff on this, do yourself a favor and Google it). As fun as it is to walk through your neighborhood in Street View, my favorite thing in Google Earth is the “I feel lucky button.” Simply click on the search box, and  below it pops up a little spinning dice beside the words “I’m feeling lucky.” Select it, and Google will automagically take you to some random place in the world. Once you’re there, you can view images of the location, zoom into Street view, and read about that location.  What’s so great about this is that it exposes students to a wide array of places and cultures that they may not have though...

Ready to discover a game-changer that turns video editing into a breeze for both students and teachers? Enter WeVideo- your ticket to hassle-free and creative project making.  If WeVideo is a Classlink app you have not yet explored with students, I highly encourage you to give it a whirl. Or if you have dabbled in WeVideo, I want to make you aware of some new ready-made lesson plans that can be used in LITERALLY any classroom.  We are all about no prep/ low prep activities because we know teachers are busy, but we also know the value of high-quality projects that allow students to have choice and showcase their voice. Below is a collection of my TOP 5 easy, minimal prep, MD digital learning standards aligned ways to use WeVideo with students. Note: Open WeVideo from Classlink before clicking on any of the links below. 1.   Me in 3 : This project helps build classroom community while students learn how to use WeVideo. Students create a 3-clip video to tell about themselves...

  By Kerri Lambert & Samantha Wilkinson, Anne Arundel County Public Schools Office of Instructional Technology This information was also shared in a YouTube Webinar Power outages & no water & snow days, oh my! What do all of these have in common? They are a few of the reasons behind our district’s decision to close schools. But learning doesn’t stop in these scenarios anymore. In order to support our teachers in these situations, and to help our students make the most of an at-home learning day, we decided to create some example lessons. We wanted it to be easy for teachers and students to access the learning material with minimal frustration and with as few clicks as possible.  We also knew we wanted the lesson “package” to be comprehensive and include all the essential components of a day at school: math, reading, writing, and science or social studies. In some cases, we opted for a social emotional component instead of science or social studies. Every lesson pac...

By Kerri Lambert, Teacher Specialist, AACPS Office of Instructional Technology This is the fourth article in a series of posts focused on the Maryland Digital Learning Stands for Students. Innovative Designer. Those two words just scream creativity and imagination- and kids. After all, how often have you been greeted with “But why?” or “What if?” or my 6 year old's current favorite “Just imagine if??” The fourth Maryland Digital Learning Standard looks to harness that imaginative quality of children and focus it to solve real world problems using the design process and technology. Here’s the exact wording:   4. Innovative Designer Students use a variety of technologies within a design process to identify and solve problems by creating new, useful, or imaginative solutions. Students: a) know and use a design process for generating ideas, testing theories, creating innovative artifacts or solving authentic problems; b) select and use digital tools to plan and manage a design process...