Do you ever get the feeling that you just want to escape? Spice up any content with a fun way to get students collaborating and problem solving! #BreakoutEDU, a platform for immersive learning games, has made its mark on classrooms all over and now you can join the fun! In this session we will explore ways to make your own #BreakoutEDU puzzles so they can be tailored to your students’ needs.

Audience members will learn about an online formative writing assessment program called PEG Writing (i.e., PEG). PEG utilizes automated essay scoring technology to provide students with immediate essay ratings and targeted feedback to improve their writing. Audience members will learn more about automated essay scoring, view a demonstration of PEG Writing, and learn about results of research studies showing the effectiveness of PEG Writing for improving writing outcomes for elementary and secondary students.

Looking for ways to enhance your curriculum with technology? Looking to keep students engaged? Then I would love to introduce you to Apps and Websites which will do just that!!!! This session will show you many wonderful websites and apps which are available to enhance your curriculum, manage classroom behavior, and have students engaged in learning!

Does “writing enhancement” software give students an inflated (and false) confidence in their academic writing? Or does this software simply reflect how the power of the internet betters the experience of twenty-first century students? In this session, I will survey several online grammar checkers (Grammerly et al.) that offer tips and tools to improve student writing. In addition to detailing the features of these checkers, I will compare how each of them addresses grammatical mistakes found in a common student paper. The presentation will end with an open-forum discussion that focuses on the implications for classroom assessment (especially formative assessment) and school policy. Teachers and administrators will discuss their impressions of the software and whether or not there is a need for school policy to address and govern the use of the software.

Why do we expect our teachers to personalize learning for our students, but administrators are still doing whole group, non-differentiated instruction on Professional Learning days? What if that wasn’t the case? At WPHS, our teachers influence the PL sessions we offer, self-select the PL sessions most meaningful to them. Even better…our teachers share their expertise and lead the PL sessions. Come see what WP is doing to foster increased collaboration and teacher buy-in for our technology-focused PL sessions.

We are two library/technology specialists within the Colonial School District who teach technology tools to students from Kindergarten to fifth grade. We have presented the topic of this green screen tool on three seperate occassions and it has been a huge hit among teachers of all grade levels. We show and teach how to use two different green screen applications and leave time for exploration and implentation. Our presentations have been informational, engaging and fun!

Want to create a class website but not sure where to start? Join Dr. Monica Burns as she shares how to design a website with the totally free Adobe Spark tools for iPads and Chromebooks. With now experience in HTML or coding necessary, teachers who bring a device to this session will leave with their very own class website and ideas for student projects.

This session will introduce Spark Page as a tool for creating digital newsletters. Dr. Monica Burns will share strategies for getting the word out about the great work happening in your classroom with this free, web-browser based tool. You’ll hear how students of all ages can contribute to a digital newsletter and see how easy it is to share student work with this iPad and Chromebook friendly tool.

One of the most daunting tasks as a teacher is differentiating to meet the needs of each and every student. It is often time consuming and seems impossible with the other tasks required of teachers. In this session, two special education teachers and a regular education teacher who teachers in a Team Approach to Mastery setting team up to highlight the tools and strategies used to address the specific needs of special education students.

This class will take you bottom to top (hope you enjoyed the pun) in virtual reality (VR).  We will discuss what it is, why it works and what you need to get going on both exploring and creating your VR.  We will also explore the different types of VR and the types of VR headsets available.  We will then take a “heads” on look at some of the most impactful VR applications available and finish with an overview on how VR is making real world impacts as well.

Readworks.org is the solution to reading comprehension. ReadWorks’ reading articles create an extremely strong foundation for improving students’ reading comprehension. Readwork articles can be used for independent reading, whole-class close reading, and for read-aloud. And now, Readworks has gone digital! Improve your students reading comprehension. access thousands of high-quality, FREE K-12 articles, and create online assignments. They’ve also added the Article-a-Day feature, an amazing resource that promotes reading,writing, and vocabulary in a personalized format, every day! Article-A-Day builds important background knowledge, vocabulary, and reading/listening stamina. If you are looking a easy to use digital format for K-12 that provides quizzes in Multiple Choice and Constructed Response format, interesting articles, read alouds, leveled reading and more, Digital Readworks is what you and your students are looking for.

Virtual Reality is a brand new medium that will forever change the way we learn. The presentation will go over the various benefits of virtual reality and how it will be included in the future of education.

I will showcase video from various places that I have utilized Virtual Reality in education environments as well as the software platforms that I have used. I will also show off mock representations of what the future will hold.

I’ll also have a real time demonstration of virtual reality in education that participants can try out throughout the day (if there are booths) or that they can try during the presentation. Please see my website at www.vrwheatley.com for more information.

Have you heard about the benefits of using the Scratch programming language with students, but you have no idea where to begin? Do you wish someone would guide you through getting started? Do you keep saying “Someday I am going to sit down and investigate Scratch.” but you never seem to have the time?

Now is the time! Come meet Scratch in this fun, stress-free, hands-on, introductory session. You will be introduced to the Scratch programming language, from the very beginning, just as I introduce it to my students. You will create an account, and do a few beginner activities to help you get the feel of the Scratch environment. I will show you how to see the programs your students have created, and then I will offer you a couple of avenues to explore for those who want to know more. Finally, we will discuss a few strategies and resources for integrating Scratch Programming in your classroom.

NOTE: Scratch runs on desktop or laptop computers. The off-line, downloaded version runs on Linux, Mac, or Windows. The online version also works on Linux, Mac, Windows, or Chromebooks. Scratch does not work on tablets or phones, although there are other, similar programs, which do run on tablets.  Laptops will be available during this session, or you can bring your own.

Come to this interactive event and explore the key features built into Apple products for students with special needs. You’ll see how iPad, iPod touch, and Mac offer a rich set of accessibility features that can be customized to help diverse learners succeed. Discover the accessibility features included on every Mac and how they support a wide range of sensory and learning disabilities. Experience the accessibility features of iPad, and see how these tools can break down barriers to learning. Explore apps that can help students overcome individual learning hurdles.

What a fantastic time to use technology in the classroom!  The amount of free, affordable and downright cool solutions is amazing! This class will introduce you to some of the top websites, apps, and tools that you can start using in your classroom tomorrow.  We will also take a peek into the future at some technology that might be part of your future classroom.