Tech Institute 2013 Sessions & Postach.io

We just finished three days of faculty professional development at the school where I work. About 17 faculty members and 10 student leaders designed, planned, and facilitated a variety of workshops. The first two days focused on current research and how we apply it to our technology integration choices. The third day focused on giving the brain a break from the norm and trying out experiences that otherwise might not be available or accessible to participants. If you want to see descriptions of the sessions in which over 70 faculty members participated, scroll down.

I recently learned about Postach.io from @gregkulowiec and found that it provided a great way to quickly share artifacts during the workshop while also allowing me to add to my existing repository in Evernote.

You can view all of the shared artifacts here: http://reshanrichards.postach.io.

Screenshot from my Postach.io blog.

Communication Breakdown
Feedback should be nuanced, layered, and developmentally appropriate. Come explore and create types of feedback that students can (and might actually) use. Examine tools such as Evernote, Word/Acrobat, TurnItIn, NoodleTools, and SoundCloud for providing timely and useful feedback.  

LibGuides: It's Not Just for Research Projects
Thoughtful scaffolding for lessons, projects, and units can be incredibly powerful for the learning experience. Become familiar with and create LibGuides to unlock new affordances and opportunities that are different than other tools we have access to.  

Organizing Student Media for Assessing the Big Picture
Students are creating more and more digital media (photos, movies, presentations) as representations of their understanding. How do we as teachers collect and organize these artifacts to be able to assess the big picture of where a class is in their collective learning? Explore approaches such as AirDrop, Email, Evernote, Dropbox, and more for making collection and organization more accessible, and access to collective student resources more meaningful and useful.  

iPad Workgroup
For MS and US iPad Pilot participants as well as all interested PS Faculty members.  

Collaborating in the Cloud
We'll look at three levels of using Google services - Docs for collaborative writing and collection, Drive for file sharing, Hangouts for video conferencing - to promote collaboration among students, faculty, and leadership.

Lemmings or Detectives
Ever wish your students questioned more and readily accepted less? Explore a few easily-integrated strategies to create a questioning atmosphere in your classroom. We’ll use Padlet and commenting features in Adobe as a springboard for helping your students become positive skeptics and serial questioners.

Blended Learning: Promoting student mastery
How do you use technology tools to help students master material outside the classroom to free up time in the classroom? This session provides time to discuss and explore tools to help support this type of learning environment, and it draws connections to the Blended Learning session offered in the afternoon.

Blended Learning: Flipping the Classroom or Restructuring it?
The flipped classroom is all the rage these days. This workshop would be a forum for discussing how to best use the time in the classroom, if you're using a flipped model outside the classroom. What sort of things can/should students be doing that require physical proximity?

Making the Most of your Mac: Efficient Shortcuts for Your Computer
This session is for anyone who wants to become more comfortable with their keyboard and mouse through shortcuts to find ways to speed up their everyday computer use. Shortcuts range from the basic to the obvious: things like two finger scrolling to switching between apps to pulling up reminders with your trackpad.

Postach.io and Evernote
Learn how to use this tool to create a dynamic blog using only your Evernote account. This is the tool that was discussed during the morning opening.  

Prezi
Learn how to use this popular web based presentation tool that lets you create non linear presentations with sophisticated templates, tools, and navigation options. Prezi recently updated their editing interface, so this session provides people familiar with the tool time to explore the new version.

Creating Educational Media Using Adobe Photoshop CS6
The MacBook Airs have the newest version of the Adobe Suite. Learn how students can use Adobe Photoshop to create class-related media, such as an informational poster.

Skitch & Fluid
This session combines two very different apps. Skitch is an app that lets you annotate photos and documents with a simple interface that also can directly sync to your Evernote account. Fluid lets you take any website and turn it into an application with a custom icon and a clean and focused interface.

Google Apps: Basics and beyond
If you have a Google account (Gmail or one associated with another email address) you may not be aware of the amazing tools and features you have free access to. Explore Google Docs, Presentations, Google Drive, and more.

Super PDFs
Learn how to efficiently scan papers with the copiers, archive documents in Evernote, combine PDFs with Acrobat, and create electronic forms from a PDF.

Haiku Deck & Class Dojo (for iPad)
Haiku Deck is a presentation tool for iPad with a simple interface and access to millions of creative commons licensed photos. THough Class Dojo bills itself as 'behavior management' software, the feature set can be used to create engaging opportunities.

Classtools.net - Fakebook, FakeTweet, FakeText
What would Shakespeare's Facebook page look like? If Caesar was tweeting, what would he say? Play with fun and dynamic templates for creating mock Facebook pages, Tweets, and Text Message conversations which many young people may relate to.

Apple TV, Airplay, and Wireless Projection
Learn how you and your students can wireless transmit audio and video from the Macbook Air laptops to the Apple TV in the classrooms. In addition to hands on practice, we'll also discuss the decision making factors for when to use the wired connection vs. when to use AirPlay.

Book Creator and Strip Designer (for iPad)
iPad Creation Tools

Evernote: The Basics
If it's been a while since you used Evernote or you would just like a refresher on how it works and can be used with students, this is the session for you.

Care and Feeding of Your Laptop
Back by popular demand, learn ways to optimize and maintain Mountain Lion for better day to day performance and a better overall experience.  

Mountain Lion 101
Follow up to morning opening - Notifications, Messages, Apple ID, Gestures, and Features of the MacBook Air

Open Work Time
Use this supported time to explore an idea or play with a tool that you learned about today. Work individually or ge ta a group of colleagues together to plan a lesson or project.

3D Design and Printing
Sketch a simple 3-dimensional object, create a digital 3D rendering, and print it out on a 3D Printer.

Acting Games, Exercises, and Improvisation
Many of the exercises used by actors to warm up, to connect with scene partners and to hone their craft can also be easily applicable to other subject areas. In this session, we will play each game and do certain exercises and then discuss ways they can be shaped to work in other units of study. At the very least, all of what you will experience are great ways to get a class to 'change thinking gears', get their 'creative brains moving' , work well in a group project or just wake up!

DIY Healthy Eats
Hungry, but pressed for time? Worried about your carbon footprint in the kitchen? How can one prepare quick, healthy, more wholesome meals that don’t break the bank..and STILL taste delicious?

Feel the Pulse (for non-musicians)
Experience and refine the art of collaboration using the senses. Explore how music and time play together and how a pulse keeps music alive. We will use a variety of percussion instruments to experience how musicians communicate, assemble music and share it with others.

Feel the Pulse (for experienced - or former - instrumentalists)
Experience the fun and wonder of making music with others by remembering how musicians communicate, assemble music and share it with others. Create a common pulse, divide and expand it, create "color" combinations of sound.

The Jewels of Montclair: Nature Walk + Picnic
Take a 3 mile (mostly downhill) walk visiting 4 parks along the way.  Enjoy a picnic lunch in Brookdale Park.  If you like, participate in a nature scavenger hunt.

Learning to Code
We use computers every day, in school and out, but have you ever wondered how the sites and services you interact with actually are built? No programming or computer science experience is necessary for getting started in building your own simple interactive experiences.

MakeyMakey & Scratch 2.0
"MaKey MaKey is an invention kit for the 21st century. Turn everyday objects into touchpads and combine them with the internet. It's a simple Invention Kit for Beginners and Experts doing art, engineering, and everything in-between"
"With Scratch, you can program your own interactive stories, games, and animations" 

Minecraft
In this session, participants will get a firsthand chance to explore the incredibly popular game/design environment of Minecraft. MinecraftEDU is a modified version of Minecraft created by a teacher in New York City.

Printmaking
How did we get from there (cave paintings) to here (Mac, Internet,Video, 3D Printing)? We will be using "found" and constructed/modified objects to make prints using inks, dyes and paints.