Roxi Thompson

This week I tried using the new Google Sites feature that allows you to add custom links. This was actually perfect timing because I have been trying to build a website that can be a resource for other teachers at my school who are trying to integrate tech into their classrooms.  One link I wanted to add was my Twitter page. I have been retweeting ideas that I think would be useful for the teachers in my district by using a new hashtag (#DVUSDTech). I knew I could embed my Twitter feed, but what I really wanted was to add a link to a new page that would actually link to my Twitter page. I'm super excited that there is now a way to do it! To add a new page, you need to click on the "Pages" tab. When you hover over the "+" sign at the bottom of the page, you'll see two options pop up: (1) New link and (2) New page. To create a custom link, you'll want to click on "New link." Once you click on "New link," a new box w...

This week I tried Edpuzzle for the first time. I have seen multiple blog posts about how great it is, so I finally decided to test it out in my classroom. I chose a day when we were using stations to get ready for a new unit about climate change. I wanted to make sure students understood the difference between weather and climate, so they were rotating through stations that included reading and annotating text, generating questions based on pictures, and interacting with a video. I used Google Slides to create some very basic instructions with screenshots of Edpuzzle. I was really excited that students were able to join the class and complete the lesson so easily! I didn't have to help a single student figure it out! Moving forward, I will definitely be utilizing this tool more often. I also want to spend some time looking at lessons that other teachers have created so that I can improve the quality of the questions that I'm asking in my own lessons.  ...

Earlier this week, Meagan Kelly wrote a great post in which she described the new blogging challenge she had created for herself. Her goal was to write a blog post about one thing she learned every week. She called it the #OneNewThing challenge. ( Click here to read the blog post .) I really like this idea because it reinforces the importance of educators as life-long learners. So, I'm writing my first #OneNewThing post about a new Chrome extension that I learned about this week: Toby. I found out about this from a Twitter post from Jen Giffen. She shared a resource full of super helpful Chrome extensions, and Toby was on that list. Toby allows you to organize your tabs into a visual workspace by dragging and dropping them into "collections." You can also easily create a "session" that will save all your open tabs with just one click. I'm still exploring all the cool ways I can use the tools in this extension, but I'm already loving it! I can ...

Lately, I've been thinking a lot about what motivates people to learn. This happened to take center stage in my thoughts for several reasons during the last week. One of these reasons has to do with this blog. I've noticed that some people have blogs that include a thumbnail picture when you share them on Twitter. Some do not. I wanted my blog to include a thumbnail picture when I shared it. I assumed this would be an easy thing to accomplish. A simple Google search, check a checkbox somewhere... Easy peasy, right?  It was not easy. First of all, I realized I didn't really even know how to search for this. It took a while before I even used the term "thumbnail." It was this term I had learned at some point in my life, but I hadn't really used it in a while. Once I knew that was the goal, I was able to search more effectively. I eventually stumbled (hours later) onto the term "Twitter Card." It took me several blog posts, multiple scripts tha...

So, this is my first blog post! I've been wanting to start this for the last year, but I always found an excuse to put it off until later.  Well, later is today! What changed? To be honest, it seemed like the perfect alignment of several (EDU)planets.  I was accepted into a semester partnership with Arizona State University that supports mentor teachers in their efforts to incorporate Problem-Based Enhanced Language Learning (PBELL) in the classroom. This is basically PBL with a focus on English language learners. I participated in their iTEACHELLs STEM camp this summer, and it was amazing! I am really excited to be part of this and learn more about how to use PBL in the classroom! I registered for the EdTechTeam Teacher Leader Cohort. I spent hours watching the webinars, Q&As, and reading through the syllabus. All the topics are ALL the things I want to learn more about and I love that it is a cohort of other motivated teachers! Sometimes it can feel lik...