Safari Montage available!

We’re putting the  finishing touches on for…  Safari Montage, which provides access to thousands of educational videos and resources for staff and students.

Check it out at: http://safari.wdmcs.org

Q1. Is it available yet? to whom? and how do I get to it?
A1. It is available now at http://safari.wdmcs.org to all district staff and students.

Q2. How do I get an account? How do I log in?
Q2. Use your existing network user name and password – the same one that you use to log into the computer network at school.

Q3. I’m being asked to install some type of plug in – is that ok? should I do it?
Q3. Yes…  there is a safari montage plugin that must be installed the first time.  Once its installed it won’t be needed again.

If prompted by this – click Continue to install the Safari Montage plugin

Q4. Can I access it at home or just at school?
Q4. The educational videos are available at both home and school.  The select TV stations are only available at school.

Q5. I’ve heard that some folks have complained about the quality/playback of the videos?
A5.  They are all high quality videos – however, if your machine has a problem with QuickTime, then problems can occur.  If the playback of a video is bad, the solution is to uninstall QuickTime and then re-install the latest version, or if its a computer at school – submit a ticket with the techs and we can assist.

Q6.  Will the techs be pushing out the Safari Montage plug in to district machines or will it have to be installed?
A6.  We’re looking into pushing it out, but so far it has not panned out.  We’ll continue to research it, but for now, you’ll have to install it manually

Q7. Are TV channels available? I tried them out – and some are working and others are not…
A7.  If you login from school – then yes,  a few TV channels are available.  Yes, it is correct that not all TV stations are working yet, we’re having sporadic problems with the VCR/TV tuners that we’re using, but we’ll be working on that issue in the next few weeks.

Get BIG results from just a few iPads!

Adam Nidey, 3rd grade teacher at Crestview Elementary. Twitter: @mrnidey Email: nideya@wdmcs.org

Adam Nidey, 3rd grade teacher at Crestview Elementary recently presented “Get BIG results from just a few iPads” at the Nebraska Education Tech Conference (NETA).  The basic premise of the presentation is to address the challenge related to having only a few iPads, but yet a classroom full of students.

Download the complete presentation: (pdf format) Get BIG RESULTS results from just a few iPads!

The three main discussion points from the presentation…

1) Rotations

The key to getting results from just a few iPads is to create a classroom structure where the teacher can meet with each student in a small group setting every day. This is accomplished through rotations, which were demonstrated through the following video…

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The presentation also included his classrooms most used iPad apps, including…

Top apps for practice during literacy rotations…

* Bluster

* Word Monkey

* JibJab Books

Top Apps for creating during literacy rotations…

* ScreenChomp

* Tools4Students

* ToonTastic

* iMovie

* Twitter

* KaBaam!

* UPad

2) Communications

Mr Nidey discussed different ways to use the iPad as a communications tool, including:  specific examples of how to use a classroom twitter account to:

* allow students to share their writing with a larger audience

* allow the class to share information with parents (24 out of 26 parents follow their classroom twitter account)

* connect with other classrooms to share ideas and collaborate, including a recent blogging project where students reviewed writing from students in a classroom in Pennsylvania.

3) Assessments

He discussed many ways to use the iPad for collecting and recording student assessments, including:

* Fluency Checks

* Running Records

* EveryDayMath Assessments

* Word per minute

* Fast Facts

* Comprehension Checks