Integrating Technology

 Gen Z & Y Statistics  Image Source: mccrindle.com     Hi Everyone! In today's blog I am going to be talking about statistics pertaining to the generations of Gen Z and Gen Y. I used an article produced by McCrindle, which is a social research company. Click HERE to access the article I will be discussing. The first statistic that stood out to me was, "Almost half of Gen Z turn to TikTok (48%) and Instagram (46%) to teach themselves new things daily." According to Google, there are about 2 billion Gen Z's in the world; that means that about 1 billion people are using TikTok or Instagram everyday to learn new things. My initial thoughts are how impactful and educational social media can truly be. I know there are plenty of cons when it comes to apps like TikTok or Instagram, but they also can be beneficial and are teaching people every single day. Even with this high statistic, I am not completely shocked. As a young 26 year old high school teacher, I can see f

Personal Learning Network- Twitter Image Source: Author Follow me! @MaggieStimac Click HERE to see my page!      One education resource I found on Twitter is the work and publications done by Dr. Jackie Murawska. Her Twitter handle is @murawskamath. I recommend giving her a follow! Murawska is the former president of Illinois Council of Teachers of Mathematics (ICTM) and is now a STEM coach who has her own website where she offers her resources and publications. Click HERE for her website. On this website, there are different techniques and strategies that can be used in the classroom. She has done presentations all over the world about productive struggle, math skills and critical thinking problems to get the entire class engaged. One of my favorite problems she talks about is called, " The Seven Billion People Problem ." When solving this problem with the class she discusses how to promote productive struggle and implementing a plan. This type of problem relates to real wo

  1.  What are the 1 - 2 most important things you learned in this course? How will these things be part of your future work as a teacher or librarian?      One of the most important things I learned in the "Coding for Educators" course was the significance of integrating coding and computer science into my math teaching curriculum. This not only makes the learning experience more engaging and relevant for students but also helps them develop problem-solving skills that are crucial in both mathematics and computer science.      Another key takeaway was the use of Scratch as a powerful tool for teaching coding concepts to students. Scratch's block-based programming language is user-friendly and visually intuitive, making it an excellent platform for introducing coding to students. Learning how to create interactive projects in Scratch and understanding the pedagogical strategies for teaching it will be valuable in my future work as a math teacher.      These learnings will

 Active Learning  Image Source:  https://stearnscenter.gmu.edu/      Hi Everyone! In my blog today I will be talking about my Padlet I created, which is linked below, and this discusses a blog about active learning at Coonley School. In the blog I read, it talks about an activity that 1st through 7th graders did and the assignment was to answer questions about the past school year in a total of 6 words. The responses from the students were then recorded in a slide show and 3 of the responses were selected per day to be shown on the school's Twitter page. In my Padlet, I described an overview of the blog, examples of active learning, suggestions and additional resources.     This activity in the blog has students answer different questions in a total of 6 words. This exemplifies active learning in a few different ways. It allows the students to use creativity and promotes student engagement. Allowing students to answer from select questions and having them use the 6 word restriction

My Digital Mapping     Let's talk about technology... Nowadays, our lives revolve around technology. Our daily routines are shaped by professional and personal digital platforms. Below, I created my own mapping of my digital space. This gives me a clearer perspective on how and where I spend my time on the internet. This digital space consists of the following quadrants: professional, personal, visitor and residential. Professional is used more so for work related events and personal is used for your own recreational purposes. Then, visitors pertains to those who use the digital platform as a tool, instead of socially. On the other hand, resident, is those who use the digital platform for socializing and create a community with others online.  Image Source: Author     Looking at my digital map above, I was not shocked to see which platforms landed in each quadrant. I am someone who has a strict routine and follows the same schedule everyday. With that being said, I repeat my action

  SAMR Model Image Source: Powerschool.com Hi again! In this blog I am going to do a self-evaluation using the SAMR (Substitution, augmentation, modification, and redefinition) model. In this specific model I will judge what level of technology I integrate into my classroom.  For starters, I will discuss what the SAMR model is- Substitution: At this level, one uses technology instead of a traditional tool. For example, using an electronic copy of an article, instead of a paper copy. Or, using a computer instead of a typewriter.  Augmentation: Within this level, similar to substitution, one uses technology instead of a traditional tool, but now with greater improvement.  For example, when tying a paper on Google, you use the spell-checker to check your work.  Modification: Here, at this level, technology changes how the instruction is done in order to make the lesson the most effective as possible. This level of technology enhances the lessons. For example, using the online tool of Des

Desmos  Image Source: Desmos.com  Creativity and Innovative Learning  Hi, again! Welcome to my latest blog post that is all about  Desmos . I personally love to use Desmos in my math classroom and think you all will love it as well! The best part is you do not have to be a math teacher to use it! It can be used for just about any subject.  Watch the following presentation to learn all about the education technology tool of Desmos :  Library | Loom - 5 September 2023 - Watch Video Using the  blog post by ISTE (International Society of Technology in Education) , the technology tool  Desmos falls into the category of, "Creativity and Innovative Learning." Desmos falls under this category because students get to interact with the problems and it is great for visual learning. It allows the students to see immediate feedback so not only do they get to work on their procedural skills, but their conceptual understanding for each topic. Desmos also allows customization and collaborat