Professional Development
Digital Writing: Communicate, Collaborate & Create
In an era of texting, tweeting, Facebook updates, and blogging, digital writing is a necessary skill to success beyond the classroom. Learn how you can use Google.docs, blogs, asynchronous discussions, online journaling and more to teach digital writing. Foster collaboration and eliminate piles of paperwork while engaging higher order thinking skills.
3 Student-driven Projects: Using a Blended Learning Model
Not enough time to cover everything you’d like to do in class? What if you could increase the amount of material covered and easily facilitate student-driven projects using asynchronous, online discussions? In this session, we will cover how to group students online, facilitate focused conversations, and engage them in collaborative group work using an online learning platform. Learn how you can create more opportunities for students to work together explore, problem-solve, think critically and create! This presentation will present three different multidisciplinary project structures that can be facilitated in a blended learning model –combining work in the physical classroom with work done online – to increase student engagement.
Bring Shakespeare to Life with Online Discussions
Have you been looking for a way to shake up your Shakespeare curriculum with fun creative activities? In this webinar, we will show yu how to encourage students to enjoy the language instead of being intimidated by it. We will explore how students can pair their favorite music with scenes from Shakespeare’s famous plays with the Shakespeare Soundtrack Project, and s how students can vent their frustrations in original insult sonnets using the Bard’s witty wording. You will discover how to invite the drama into your classroom with modern re-writes, comic strips and dramatic re-enactments. These activities and more will help you bring Shakespeare to life for your students!
Teaching to Common Core State Standards Using Blended Instruction
Overwhelmed by the idea of transitioning to a new set of standards? Don’t be! Join me for a webinar that will discuss concrete strategies for how you can leverage blended learning, online discussions and group collaboration to address the Common Core State Standards. Teach technology and media literacy while providing students more opportunities to develop their reading, writing, communication, critical thinking and problem solving skills. More effectively prepare your students for life beyond high school!
Safe, Structured, and Free Online Book Clubs
In this session, you will learn how to create an online book club that encourages outside reading, active listening and reflective writing about topics they care about, while learning digital citizenship and Internet safety. We will discuss how to create new avenues for librarians to connect with students online and bring more students into the library through engaging follow-on events and activities.
Create a Safe Space Online: Online Discussions (Part 1)
Join high school English teacher Catlin Tucker as she discusses the importance of establishing a safe space online to ensure that online student conversations are respectful and supportive. She’ll explain how laying a firm foundation for your work online will ensure that your discussions will be more successful long term. (This is part 1 of a 4-part series on Integrating Online Discussions in Blended Learning.)
The Art of Asking Questions: Online Discussions (Part 2)
Join high school English teacher Catlin Tucker as she discusses strategies for designing questions that will support dynamic student driven discussions. She’ll provide example questions that will help guide you in successfully creating your own quality questions. This webinar will also explore the benefits of embedding multimedia into discussions and experimenting with a variety of question types. (This is part 2 of a 4-part series on Integrating Online Discussions in Blended Learning.)
Say Something Substantial: Online Discussions (Part 3)
Join high school English teacher Catlin Tucker as she demonstrates how to support students in saying something substantial in their conversations with one another online. She’ll discuss strategies for responding to a question so that the discussion moves forward, as well as cover intriguing exit strategies that encourage students to comment on each others’ postings. (This is part 3 of a 4-part series on Integrating Online Discussions in Blended Learning.)
Your Role, Weaving Strategies, and Assessing It All: Online Discussions (Part 4)
Join high school English teacher Catlin Tucker as she demonstrates why and how to define a realistic role for yourself as a facilitator. She’ll cover how to effectively weave online discussions back into your classroom to make your work online more meaningful. She will also explain how students will recognize the value of participation if it is used to drive instruction in class. (This is part 4 of a 4-part series on Integrating Online Discussions in Blended Learning.)
Flip Your Classroom with Online Discussions
Would you like to maximize your precious class time to more effectively engage students? Flip your instruction and present content online – video lectures, podcasts, documentaries, demonstrations, lecture notes – and pair that information with dynamic discussion questions and/or tasks to increase retention and drive higher-level thinking. Make your homework an interactive experience instead of a solitary practice. Free up class time for more hands-on practicum, collaborative group work, artistic projects, labs and experiments. Join high school English teacher Catlin Tucker to learn how to more effectively engage students both inside and outside of the classroom!
Inspired by Media: Creative Writing in the Digital Age
Would you like to spice up writing assignments for your students and get them energized about writing? In this webinar, we’ll cover how to embed media – photography, artwork, and videos – into creative writing tasks using an online learning platform to inspire short stories, poetry, articles, historical fiction and more! We’ll show you how to use creative writing to address the Core Common Standards for writing and literacy in English and history! We’ll also share how you can get students to write more, publish immediately and receive quality peer feedback.
Students Write More; You Grade Less!
Do you want your students to write more, but don’t know how you would grade it all? In this webinar we’ll show you how to use online discussions and group collaboration to support a variety of writing assignments and spend a fraction of the time grading. We’ll also cover how to use your Collaborize Classroom site to get students writing more to address the Core Common Standards across the curriculum.
Fighting Engagement Deficit Disorder with Blended Instruction
Getting and keeping your students’ attention can frequently be a challenge. In this webinar, we’ll explore how to re-engage students who have mentally checked out with fun, instructional strategies that blend work done online with the work done in the classroom to effectively put students in the center of the learning process. Your students are technology natives, so we will show how to use technology to maximize their interest and appeal to their senses. You’ll discover how online discussions, flipping your instruction, using mobile devices and assigning creative projects online can excite curiosity and increase engagement while teaching communication and collaboration skills.
How To Engage Students Online
In this 60-minute webinar, join SimpleK12 and honors teacher Catlin Tucker as they discuss the best ways to increase participation and improve discussions by getting started with engaging students in private online communities. This webinar will support you in adopting a blended learning model that combines the best of both worlds: the benefits of in-class instruction with the flexibility of online discussions. Explore strategies for establishing and maintaining a safe space in private, online communities to facilitate successful, and sustainable conversations that include all students.
