Blog

Creating a Learner Mindset at Home: A Caregivers Guide to Remote Learning

“Parents are the first teachers!” Parents/guardians do not need to be told how to teach their own children, they do it every day. Caregivers are just wearing a new title these days, “classroom teacher.” As professionals in the field of education, we just want to embrace that partnership more than ever, to support everyone involved -- ourselves, the parents/guardians, and the students! Here are some tips on building effective relationships and establishing routines wit...

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Building Community and Connectedness Remotely

After months of shelter in place and limited opportunities for social engagements, students have been isolated in their homes and many have experienced different versions of trauma. We know that when students feel connected to their classroom community, then they have an increased level of engagement, retention, participation, and motivation. Therefore, now more than ever, it is important to plan ways to create a connected classroom community. Last spring, when educators shifted to remote i...

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BluePrint for Building a HyperDoc unit for Remote Learning

At the time of writing this, there are so many questions up in the air. Will we return to the classroom full time this coming school year? Will it be a hybrid model where students come for a couple of days and learn remotely for the rest of the week? Or will we continue distance learning with the idea that it is no longer an emergency situation, but one where grades now count? Download the, "Blueprint for Building a HyperDoc Unit" here. While so much may seem out of your contr...

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Is My HyperDoc More Than a Worksheet?

Have you ever come across a HyperDoc and really couldn’t see what is so great about it? Does it seem like it's just a doc with links? There is no one right way to design a lesson, it is all about the choices you make. Like any lesson you create, they are personal to your curriculum objectives, to the needs of the students you work with, and may include layers of additional tasks to align with learning goals you are working o...

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Great Things Happen on The Internet - June 2020

BIG NEWS AND SHOUTOUTS! Congrats to Karen Sutherland (@kesutherland777) on her new book! Watch for Strategic Social Media Management: Theory and Practice (Palgrave Macmillan) coming out in Aug/Sept 2020! Congrats to Team @jenallee1! New OneNote breakout resources for the Microsoft Educator Community website, featured speakers at TCEA Elementary Conference this month, and working on their first book! Check out their Live Jenallee Shows at https://thejenalleeshow.com/! More h...

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5 Steps to Create a HyperDoc Lesson

by Sarah Landis Feeling overwhelmed with all the sudden shifts in education? Regain control with HyperDocs: digital lesson design that you create for your own students. Why digital lesson design? When was the last time you sat down to think through all the steps of a lesson plan? After years of implementing the curriculum in a classroom, this likely becomes natural to you...

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Making the most out of summer learning opportunities!

Are you used to attending an educational conference over the summer to learn new ideas and to develop professionally? Are you anxious about what school will look like in the fall and not sure where, to begin with, planning? Do you want to continue learning this summer and make plans for the fall, but you are not sure where to begin? Maybe it is time to dive into learning all about HyperDocs digital lesson design. As we reimagine learning in 2020, we need to consider all the options for futur...

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End of the Year HyperDocs: Bringing Closure for All

Endings matter. And this might just be our craziest one yet. Teaching is a unique profession because we have a very clear beginning and an ending. This year feels like a blur. We are in the process of reimagining what the end of the 2019-2020 school year will look like. And as always, the teacher is at the center of creating that experience. You did not say goodbye to your students. You did not get that final chance to say, “I’m proud of you.” You did not get to plan for what t...

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Different Ways to Apply - “Show What You Know” Assessment

Have you been thinking about how to report on students’ progress during distance learning? Have you wondered about how to avoid cheating on assigned tests, how to ensure that assessments are completed by students without outside help, or how to collect a fair assessment of student understanding of essential learning objectives? Maybe you are required to give credit/no credit, assign grades, or provide narrative comments reporting on student performance. If you are looking ...

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Getting Going with HyperDocs

Starting anything new can feel both exciting and nerve-wracking -- your first day of kindergarten, your first day in a new city, your first day of teaching. As educators, we are constantly in a state of “newness,” or new beginnings. We take on new standards, new curriculum, new students, and new expectations on a regular basis. As teachers of technology, we are often flooded with new tools and ideas. Learning to design HyperDocs and deliver instruction using digital lesson plans can ...

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