Wait, How Did You Do That?
Giant Ed Tech
This is the instructional technology blog for HPHS Staff.Tech Tool Tuesday posts can be found here every Tuesday.
Monday, March 18, 2024
Monday, March 11, 2024
"What Will You Dream Up Today?"
Adobe Firefly
Get Started With Adobe Firefly
To get started, go to firefly.adobe.com. That will take you to the main dashboard.
From there, you can go ahead and type text directly into the image generator, or you can scroll down and experiment with the other tools like generative fill (above), text effects, generative recolor, text to template, or text to vector graphic.
One thing that is really nice about Adobe Firefly is that it gives you samples and sample prompts that you can use to start with. I am someone who struggles when starting with a blank screen so this feature is really beneficial to me.
This is the text effects tool:
Once you are happy with your creation, you can click the share icon in the upper right corder of your design. Hover your cursor and it will appear. From there you can choose to download it, copy it, edit in Adobe Express, or save it to your library.
When you go to download your design, you will see a message that pops up explaining how Adobe is promoting transparency in AI. Content credentials are applied to let people know your image was generated with AI. There is also a link to learn more about content credentials.
This is a text image I created. The prompt was: woven thread in shades of blue. I had it match tightly to the shape.
Here is an image that I created in honor of women's history month and international women's day, using the text to image generator. I then edited it using Adobe Express to add the text.
What will you and your students create using Adobe Firefly?
I can't wait to see! Want some help getting started? Let's connect and talk about how you can unleash your students' creativity using Adobe Firefly.
Monday, March 4, 2024
Google Tips And Tricks
1. Docs.New
4. Snooze an email message
5. Easy Format With The Paint Roller Tool
Monday, February 26, 2024
Save Your Energy For Where You Shine Best!
MagicSchool AI
@LisaBerghoff
In my 28 years as an educator, the phrase "teachers have too much on their plate" has been stated, at least in some fashion, every single year. Not that it wasn't true before, it was, and it still is. It really really is true! Our roles in and out of the classroom continues to expand and grow, but not really evolve. More and more things get added to our to-do list each, and the lists from the previous years have not changed much. I am skeptical, leery even, of shiny new technology tools that claim to fix everything in education. Teaching is hard work. Learning is hard work. Both teaching and learning are complicated, nuanced, and fraught with misinformation.
That said, I do appreciate it when there are tools that I can use that may chip away at some of the more tedious and time intensive tasks that make being an educator less fun. Basically, I'm talking about anything that keeps me away from students.
Magic School AI is one of those new tools that is designed to help manage all of the tasks that eat up our time when we are not with students. Need to write a rubric for an upcoming assignment? Formatting that rubric is going to be a real pain, so is coming up with the wording. How about creating questions to go along with a YouTube video? How many times will you need to watch the video before you get the questions just right? Need to write questions that align with the four Depth of Knowledge levels? These are all examples of what Magic School AI can do to help you.
What Is Magic School AI?
Magic School AI is an educational technology platform that harnesses the power of artificial intelligence (AI) to help teachers personalize learning experiences for high school students. Developed by a team of educators and AI experts, Magic School AI offers a diverse range of interactive lessons, activities, and assessments across various subject areas, including math, science, language arts, and more. According to their mission page, the folks at Magic School AI are "here to lighten the load, so teachers can save their envery for where they shine best-in the classroom, in front of students." They believe that relationships are at the center of everything and that Magic School AI can help save teachers time so they can devote their energy to working directly with students. They indicate that there are some things teachers don't need technology to help with, and so they have created tools to streamline tedious tasks that only educators would recognize. From the mission page: "Instead of only creating tools that address commonly understood aspects of teaching, we’ve drawn from research-based best practices, feedback from educators, as well as our own experiences in the classroom, to create tools that will save time on repetitive, tedious behind-the-scenes tasks that only teachers understand require tons of effort… things like generating relevant content, writing IEPs, differentiation, creating assessments, and supporting school discipline. That way, teachers can spend their time on the uniquely human, creative aspects of their work."
How to Use Magic School AI:
1. To begin using Magic School AI, simply sign up for an account on the platform's website here. Once registered, you'll have access to a vast aray of resources and tools designed to support your work with students. You can also install the chrome extension which lives at the bottom right corner of your screen. You will then have easy access to all of the Magic School AI tools.
3. Take advantage of Raina (chatbot). Raina is your AI instructional coach. Ask any questions related to best practices or work in a school. You can ask for ideas, advice, strategies, and more.
Coming Soon! Magic Student
Magic School AI is a powerful tool that has the potential to change how we spend our time as educators. . By leveraging AI technology to personalize learning experiences, engage students, and provide valuable insights for teachers, Magic School AI can empower educators to create dynamic and effective learning environments that meet the needs of all students. So why wait? Dive into the world of Magic School AI today and unlock new possibilities for teaching and learning in your classroom. If you are new to generative AI, Magic School is a great place to start.
Want some help getting the ball rolling? Reach out! I'm always happy to help.
Monday, February 19, 2024
Need Visuals?
There's An Icon For That!
FLATICON
There has been quite a bit of research about the benefits of visuals on teaching and learning. Our brains really connect to visual stimuli and that can also help with memory and recall. Sometimes I find myself spending way too much time exploring visuals to use with my students. I do Google image searches, I have even tried some of the text to image generators in the search for the perfect image to go with my content. In reality, the perfect image is not what will help students learn and retain information. Often, all that is needed is a simple icon. An icon is a simplified picture that represents a concept or an object. Even though it is simple, it can have a big impact on students. Think about all of the icons that we now know for our Google tools, commonly used websites, or our own HP logo. When we see those, we know exactly what they mean.
There are times when it may seem like an icon does not exist for the topic at hand. What does an icon for collaboration look like? What about analysis? Or historical? The thought of making my own icons for peer mentoring feels daunting.
Flaticon is a website that allows you to search and find icons, stickers, animated icons, and interface icons. You can filter by color and shape and you can sort by time or by trending. These are designed for you to use digitally but you could certainly incorporate them on print material.
Sometimes you just need a digital sticker of a happy chicken.
Chicken stickers created by stickerfolio - Flaticon
The icons are free for you to download as a png and use as long as you give the proper author attribution. The premium version, which is listed at $8.25 per month allows for unlimited downloads and no attribution needed. They also have some icon packs that were created by third parties and attribution is not needed for those even with the free version.
Idea animated icons created by Freepik - FlaticonMonday, February 12, 2024
Bring Aquaman To The Classroom!
The Achievery
@LisaBerghoff
Anyone can make a video and post it online these days. Finding the right video for your content, that has good quality AND is entertaining can be a huge challenge and a massive time suck. The use of videos for learning is certainly not new but finding really good video content for classrooms is getting more and more challenging as there is so much content available. I did a Google search for videos on forces of motion and got 30,600,000 results. I then filtered for high school, medium length, and high quality. That narrowed it down some but not enough. I don't have the time or the motivation to watch that many videos before I will decide that it's not worth it and won't use any video for my class. Or, I will settle for one of the first ones that I find that gets close and then have to explain to my class that the video is mostly relevant but misses the mark in several ways.
I was thrilled when I found out about The Achievery.
The Achievery is a collaboration between AT&T and Warner Bros. According to their website, it's a free online platform that is designed to connect k-12 students to digital learning through stories that spark curiosity and content that entertains and teaches. The platform offers seven subject-categories and over 5- videos, including clips from some of the most popular movies and shows. Lessons are available for download, but I think the videos are what makes the platform worth checking out. The lessons are common core and ISTE standards aligned. They also have collaborations with many well known companies like Cartoon Network, CNN 10, Code.org, Common Sense Media, NASA, NBA, and more.
To get started, go to theachievery.com. From there, you can enter a title or description of what you are teaching. You can also filter and sort by grade level, category, subcategory, collaborator, and common core standards. The categories available are Digital Arts, Digital Literacy, English, Language Arts, Math, Science, Social Emotional Learning, and Technology and Engineering. Within those categories, there are many subcategories which should make it easier to find what you are looking for.
I did a quick filter for all high school content from Warner Bros. Here is what it looks like:
Currently, The Achievery is approved for use in the classroom for teachers to show the videos. It is under review on the LearnPlatform for SOPPA compliance. Once that is approved, students will be able to log in and view on their own.
That said, I would rather show these short video clips to a whole class. There is so much to connect and unwrap together.
Here is what I like about The Achievery:
1. The video clips are high quality and for the most part engaging. I did find a few that I would not use, but that's when I decided to filter by collaborator and then I knew I was going to find great content.
2. They are standards aligned so you don't have to figure out how you're going to fit them in to what you are teaching. They already fit.
3. They are short. Who has time to watch a whole movie in class? These are short clips that get to the point. You don't have to waste 45 minutes of a movie to get to the heart of the matter.
4. They include digital literacy and social emotional learning.
Many of the lessons contain multiple clips and you can disperse them throughout your teaching cycle. Here is an example of a lesson on momentum and impulse. There are clips from Scooby Doo and Craig of the Creek.
Then, the lesson plan has the academic connection. Here is the one on momentum from Scooby Doo.
This is just one example.
I suggest you check out The Achievery and see what it has for you.
If you would like some help getting started, let me know. I'm happy to help!
Tuesday, February 6, 2024
Encourage Engagement!
Curipod
@LisaBerghoff
Artificial intelligence is pushing the boundaries of what we previously thought possible in many fields. From healthcare to finance and of course, education. When I am looking at a new tool that uses AI I generally look for three things. First, the interface. If it is simple to understand how to use it, that means a lot because we are busy. We don't have tons of extra time trying to figure out how to use the thing that supposedly is going to save us time. Next, the mission, or goal of the tool. Does it say it's going to basically do your entire job for you so you can sit back and do nothing? That is impossible and also unrealistic. I am leery of anything that claims to do too much. I am more interested in tools that have a clear and practical use that can be added to my list of go-to gadgets that I can pull out when I need it. Finally, the outcomes. We all know by now that writing a solid AI prompt is much more likely to yield a response that you are happy with and can use. However, some AI tools are more flexible and usable than others. I prefer a tool that gives me outcomes in an obviously ready to use format for the classroom.
Curipod checks all of the boxes.
What is Curipod?
Curipod is an AI tool for education that creates interactive slides for classroom use. The founders say that they are on a mission to spark curiosity, discussion, and critical thinking in the classroom. Instead of recall, memorizing, and remembering, the folks at Curipod have a goal of helping teachers create lessons that are interactive and engaging.
At the surface, it seems that Curipod is just another way to create interactive slides, but the AI powered tool will actually generate entire lessons that you can edit and adjust to meet your needs. If you have slides already created, you can certainly use their "curify my slides" tool to automatically create some interaction. But, if you are starting a lesson from scratch, Curipod can really save a lot of time and help you create something that can be utilized right away in class. Students join by going to curi.live and entering a code or scanning a qr code.
How Do I Use Curipod?
To get started, go to Curipod.com and log in using your school Google account.
The Curipod homescreen will have many suggestions for you to try. This is to help you narrow your focus and think about the learning goal for your lesson. Instead of using one of the suggestions, you can also click the "Create Lesson" button.
The "Create Lesson" button will give you a full lesson, based on the grade level and prompt you enter. If you don't want to use the AI generator, you can also click on "Create Your Own" and you can build your lesson directly in Curipod.
Start by narrowing by subject and grade level, then type in your prompt. If you have a specific lesson standard, you can copy and paste it directly into the generator.
Then, click the "Do Magic" Button.
What you will get is a slide deck with content as well as interactive slides. Each deck starts with this statement. I really like that they call it a "lesson draft".
You now have a whole deck that you can edit, adjust, and use in a way that makes sense for your students.
What Types Of Interactive Activities Can I Create With Curipod?
You have five options of interactive slides.
- Poll- Give choices, have students select one
- Word Cloud- Students write short answers (up to 30 characters) and the results are shown as a word cloud on the big screen.
- Drawings- You can add a background, like an equation or a diagram or a map, and have students draw on it. You can also enable voting so students can choose a top answer.
- Open Question- Students answer the question in longer sentences and can also vote for the best answers. Results will be displayed on a podium.
- AI Feedback (limited in the free version to 1,000 characters) This will enable AI to give students feedback on their answer. You have an opportunity to test the feedback before assigning. Answer character limit is 1,000 characters for students to enter.
Other settings that you have in your control:
- Set time for interactive slides.
- Add your own background for drawing slides
- Enable or disable voting
- Poll allows up to 10 options for students to choose.
- Open answer and word cloud slides have a setting where you can decide how many times students can submit an answer.
- Translation for all slides or just specific slides.
- Curi-Quiz: Designed for students to pair up as a team! they need to write in as many right answers/words as they can in 2 minutes. Every correct answer gets 1 point. Scores then earn students ranks. Just enter an open question that has many right answers. For example, write all the prime numbers you know. This is a wonderful activity to practice vocabulary and concepts.
- Feedback from a historic figure: Ask a question and let students get feedback from a historic figure of your or their choice. Students then get to reflect on the feedback and think about whether or not the historical person's opinion might impact the feedback they got.
- Write, Feedback, Repeat: Students get AI generated feedback on their response to a writing prompt. They then get a moment to reflect on the feedback they received before attempting to answer the prompt again. This is a great way to model AI use!