Daily Weather Check

First grade students will be studying weather and record the daily temperature and cloud coverage for a particular city to track its weather.  At the end, students can compare various weather patterns from cities around the world with their classmates. 

Daily, students will:
1.  Choose a city  
2.  Click on its 'globe'  
3.  Click on the link to find out that city's weather for the day
4.  Record the weather on their monthly weather calendar

Fantastic Films

Today we had thirteen second grade students work together with the PS Tech Coaches to create three short videos highlighting the importance of our SAS Core Values. We had an hour to brainstorm and plan in the morning and then an hour to film and edit before lunch.  The link to the playlist is below:

Click here for the SAS Core Values Video Playlist

QR Code Book Reviews

Students in first grade are going to make QR Code Book Review Posters!

Kelli's Weather Report

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The new clip-n-clip feature in iMovie is amazing! Here is a short sample I made quickly for our first graders who will be studying weather in January...can't wait to try it with them.

Google Teacher Academy

I have just returned from the Google Teacher Academy in London.  It was an honor to learn with such positive, open-minded educators who are Google Apps for Education leaders in their community.  One of the most important take-aways is the connection you build with inspiring people from around the world who are life-long learners.  It definitely broadens the  horizons of my personal learning community, which I can share locally.  Some awesome Google Tools that were discussed are:

• Google Cultural Institue
• The Google Cultural Institute brings together millions of artifacts from multiple partners, with the stories that bring them to life, in a virtual museum.
  http://www.google.com/culturalinstitute/home
• Tour Builder
• Tour Builder is a new way to show people the places you've visited and the experiences you had along the way using Google Earth. It lets you pick the locations right on the map, add in photos, text, and video, and then share your creation.
  https://tourbuilder.withgoogle.com/
• MapsEngine
• Google Maps Engine makes it easy for you to create beautiful maps and share them with others.
  https://mapsengine.google.com/map/
• Annotating YouTube Videos
• Video Annotations is a new way for you to add interactive commentary to your videos! Use it to:
• Add background information about the video
• Create stories with multiple possibilities (viewers click to choose the next scene)
• Link to related YouTube videos, channels, or search results from within a video
• All of the above!

• You control what the annotations say, where they appear on the video, and when they appear and disappear.

  How do I get started?

  Please visit our Help Center for more information on Video Annotations.

Peer Teaching with Kid Techxperts

When making iMovies from the first grade field trip to Little India, two students in Mrs. Clark's class were excellent examples of peer teaching and became the Kid Techxperts.  I taught them how to record the Bollywood music from my iPad onto their movie.  Then, while I was working with other students, Woojin and Yoonseo were able to teach their classmates how to record their music.  The next step will be teaching a few Kid Techxperts in Mrs. Derksen's class!

    

John Burns Visit

Over the past four days, John Burns, the Director of eLearning at Shekou International School, has been at SAS in the Primary School.  John brings a wealth of experience in the field of iPad integration and doing so in an authentic way.  He led workshops with the PS teachers sharing valuable apps, tools, and insights to enhance our program.

Mandarin SpeakingTours of SAS

Ms. Yang's 2nd grade classes have been busy making iMovies of SAS.  Check out their wonderful work!
  

Mai Laoshi's 2nd graders explored the new clip-n-clip feature on the iMovie iOS.  They have done an excellent job giving a tour of SAS in mandarin!
 

Speak Selection in iBooks

First grade students in Ms. Goldhammer's class learned how to use the 'speak selection' function in the app, iBooks.  After listening to the book about different December holidays, they made a Pic Collage poster about two of the holidays.

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Book Creator

Book Creator is our app of choice at the moment in first grade.  Students are learning how to 'write' a book using SIRI then emailing the book to each other so they can open it in iBooks and read what they have created!

Little India iMovies

First graders are using the app iMovie to share their field trip experience to Little India.

Going Places Safely Online

First graders will begin learning how to be good digital citizens this week.  Their first lesson will be about going places safely online.

iMovie Exploration

Students in Ms. Kumar's and Mrs. Derksen's classes explored the app iMovie.  They introduced themselves, spoke about their favorite subject, and included their favorite special.

Building Connections with Skype

       Zhang Laoshi's class is building connections with students in HKIS and   
    practicing their mandarin!  They sang songs for each other via Skype today.
                             

Life of Pablo Picasso

   In Spanish, some grade 1 students are making Storyrobes                          about the life of Pablo Picasso.
                  

Tens Frames with Popplet

First graders used the app Popplet to show what they understand about tens frames.

Publishing Small Moments with Storyrobe

Ms. Analu's class used the app Storyrobe to publish their Small Moment writing pieces.  They were so proud of their hard work and the idea of being able to share their stories with family members and relatives.

Retelling in Mandarin

Some of the world language students are using Doodlecast to narrate their stories.

Reading Responses with Pic Collage

First graders used the app, Pic Collage, to create a poster.  They typed a reading response to a book they have read during Reader's Workshop.

Explain Everything for Just Right Books

Mrs. Clark's class evaluated if their reading books were 'just right' by applying the IPICK strategy.  Watch the videos below to hear their explanations (made with the Explain Everything app).

Doodle Buddy in Math Class

Mrs. Quick's class used Doodle Buddy to make part/part diagrams in math class!

One student picked a number between 5-9 and drew a part/part diagram for it.  The other student had to find the missing part and fill in the rest of the part/part diagram.  Finally, students worked as a team to write addition and subtraction number sentences to match the diagram.

Our Community Posters in Pages

Ms. Goldhammer's Class used the app, Pages, to make a poster about the people in our school community.

 

My Favorite Book

Students made a video talking about their favorite book and then emailed them to their class' student-run blog!

Talking about Our Favorite Books

Some first graders worked with a partner to video each other talking about their favorite book.  They said the title of the book and why they like it so much.

iLearn iPad Rules

For our first technology lesson, students were introduced to iLEARN iPad Rules to ensure that we are being safe and responsible learners.

iLEARN iPad Rules

Today, students learned some key rules to using iPads responsibly. Then, they chose one of the rules to illustrate using the app, Doodle Buddy.

Leave the iPad Stationary

Exercise Good Listening Skills (turn off the screen when a teacher is talking)

Remember to Use 2 Hands (when carrying it to put away)                                                                                                                                                   No Food or Drinks Near the iPad

Welcome to our Tech Blog!

Check out Mrs. Buxton's Tech Corner blog for tech integration ideas, samples of student work, and useful links.