Diary of a Digital Learning Coach

Lately I've been exploring different ways to share projects from different apps into our digital portfolios.  This week, please enjoy this work in progress playlist of videos discussing different ways to add artifacts to Bulb.   Sharing to Bulb Playlist Do you have ideas for more videos?  Leave me a comment with what you need so my team and I can add to the playlist! Subscribe to the  Coppell DLC channel  for more digital learning videos!

Usually at this time in December, the only bulbs I am thinking about are the ones I am putting on my Christmas tree.  This year, however, it is year 1 of our digital portfolio initiative through the tool called Bulb and visions of digital reflections have replaced the sugar plums dancing in my head. As we have gotten started with our portfolios,  my team and I have learned a couple of things worth sharing.  Think of these tips as the trim on your portfolio “tree” aka simple tips for you and your class to help make your portfolios “sparkle”! 1. Cook up some creative images for your Bulb  As our learners personalize their portfolios, consider letting them get creative with the images they create.  Why not have them create an avatar of themself using the drawing and shape tools in Keynote? Exported as an image, drawings can easily be added to their profile picture, providing an extra layer of safety and uniqueness. Creating an avatar in Keyn...

Computer Science Education Week and #HourOfCode are almost HERE!!! This year CISD will be celebrating the week of December 3rd-9th. Our Digital Learning Coach team has worked to create some awesome resources all included on the CISD Hour of Code website . K-2 educators will find a collection of resources that can be used with learners including unplugged activities, vocabulary and more. 3-12th grade learners can go directly to self-directed Hour of Code using Learner Choice Menus on the site . On the choice menus, learners may select one of four topics. Each topic has a learn, do, and reflect portion to complete. All reflections will be shared via a districtwide Flipgrid so we can all celebrate our learning together! 3rd-5th Grade Resources 6th-12th Grade Resources Once your learners have participated in the Hour of Code, we encourage you to celebrate and award them their Hour of Code Certificate of Completion . A digital version of this certifica...

Happy almost Thanksgiving, friends!  I encourage you to take the time you'd usually use to read this to go show someone some gratitude.   In the meantime, I can't leave you hanging on a Tuesday so enjoy this visual on how to use a really awesome screencast Chrome extension.  I love that it is a one click way to create and share screencasts! Click here to interact with the image below! Who knows?  Maybe you'll love Loom so much you'll send me a link to your screencast in the comments!

This week, I facilitated a refresher training on Bulb, the platform my district is in the process of implementing for digital portfolios.  It was great to have time with my campus to reactivate what we know and work toward the next steps.   The thing about initiatives is that while they are exciting and move us forward, they can also bring up challenges to our need for certainty. For me, this means breaking things down and taking one next right step. Sometimes it is starting with a micro-step, as slow steps are still steps. Sometimes my next right step is asking for help. Sometimes it is researching and learning, other times it is taking a few minutes to breathe by putting it to the side.   No matter where you are with implementing digital portfolios, your DLC is on your side.  We want to help you regardless of what your next right step is.  Here are a few ideas: tinyurl.com/gotbulb 1.  Take a few minutes to ...

The  Digital Learning Coaches are pleased to offer a variety of learning experiences in November/December.  All of the offered events will explore ways our learners can use technology to think critically. We hope you'll join us! Check out the graphic below or  click here  for more details!

When I was a kid, nothing was more fun than trick or treating at this time of year.  We knew which neighbors had the best candy, which ones to hit up twice and how to trade when we got the dreaded boxes of Good and Plenty. Learning from a PLN is a lot like trick or treating.  I love that you read this blog and all its "treats" showcasing what I am learning and reflecting on, but if you only read mine, how will you ever know what other delicious bites you might find at the other DLC blogs?   After all, the only person who owns the teaching or learning in your growth journey is you . Which is why this week, we are going blog trick or treating to see what some of my DLC buddies are sharing.   Will you stop by Trisha's blog for a BYTE of learning on Explain Everything? http://bytesineducation.blogspot.com Will you visit Megan's Learn Together post on Schoology, including her "quick wins" for using Completion Rules? https://megankozar.weebly.co...

Hello from Apple Training! I am so lucky to be in a district that values learning for all - even me.  My team has spent the last couple of days working with Nelson Taylor, a trainer for Apple.  As I reflect on my learning, I keep thinking about how technology can assist us in reaching ALL learners in a deeper way.   Here are a few techno treats I have learned! Using drawing features, line animation, and audio in Keynote can help learners use modes of learning that are meaningful to them! Check out the  Elements of Learning  multi-touch book to learn more about deeper learning in the classroom! So many accessibility features that are underused in Settings! A couple of great reasons to use Safari on your iPads! What techno treats are inspiring YOU this week?  Teach me in the comments!

Last week, I had the opportunity to take part in an amazing connection coordinated by my teammate, Monica Champagne , with the Surana School in India.  The webinar we hosted with them may have spanned multiple time zones and countries, but because of technology, it felt like we were right next door. Connecting that far away can be overwhelming with potential for hiccups. It was a good thing that our topic was about stress management through yoga and meditation in the classroom - a hot topic in this stress-filled world. As learners from the Surana School modeled breathing and yoga, I had the realization that distance and culture are no longer barriers to learning.  The world is as open as we choose it to be. Our campuses have been exploring the brain and how stress can inhibit learning as well.  It was exciting to see our educators and counselors discuss via the chat of the webinar how this topic impacts their classrooms.  Special thanks to Allison Moore and th...

The Coppell DLCs invite you to celebrate Digital Citizenship Week by joining us for a Slow Chat on Twitter starting Monday, October 15 and wrapping up on Friday, October 19. A question will be posted at 7:00 AM each day from  @coppelldlc . Please feel free to answer each question at any point during the day. Make sure to use #cisdchat and #digcit so others can follow along in the conversation.     If you have never participated in a Twitter chat,  here are some helpful tips!   We look forward to learning about digital citizenship with you!