Productivity Tool

 Today's subject is all about productivity. I will be informing you about an online tool that can help educators design and implement lesson plans or associated activities into their classroom. The online tool I explored is Padlet. Padlet is a tool that allows collaboration on a given subject through documents, videos, images, links, polls, or voice recordings. Not only can the teacher add information,

Productivity at its finest!

but students can as well. The tool is free to download and available on your desktop, mobile device, or tablets. The free subscription comes with 3 Padlets to create, 20MB of space to upload, and one user. You can also upgrade to the platinum plan for $9.99/month and get unlimited Padlets and more storage. The classroom plan, for $199/year has even more storage and allows 2 teachers along with 50 students. Lastly, the team plan includes all other upgrades and up to 50 users for $14.99/month. 

Using this tool was a breeze. Right when you create an account you have the option to watch a video taking you through all the steps and features of creating content on the site. I used it to create a slideshow on weather. I used pictures, videos from YouTube, links to weather related websites, and I included a link to a timed quiz for the students to take at the end of the slideshow. This tool is wonderful because it allows you to include many different types of media to present information to the students. It keeps them engaged because they can also add their own content of their choice. I had fun just creating the slideshow, so I know educators will benefit tremendously from this tool. 

This tool would definitely be used in my classroom. I love the layout, I love how customizable it is, and I love how simple it is to navigate. Although it does cost more for the feature where students can contribute as well, I think it is worth the price. Students like to have a role in how they learn, they love to have some type of responsibility. This tool would allow them to express what they know, in a creative and fun way. I would recommend teachers collaborate together and use this tool as a team to bring some excitement to the classroom.

Communication Tool

 Hey everyone! This week I explored the communication tool called 'bloomz'. 'bloomz' is a communication tool that can downloaded on your phone from the app store or Google Play or can be

Communicate with ease!

accessed online by going to bloomz.com. 'bloomz' allows the teacher to post class updates or instant message parents or students, schedule conferences, create calendars & events, post parent resources, create student portfolios, monitor student behavior, and have volunteer sign-ups. You can also upgrade for $10 a month and be able to print even history, caption photos, premium support, unlimited text messages, bulk media downloads, and more. The teacher can contact parents or students through email or text on this communication tool. 

To use this tool, I created my class by searching for my school, naming my class, and adding my students by name. Then I created my first message and added parents by phone number and email. I was also able to customize if I wanted communication to be only with myself and students, myself and parents, myself with students and parents, or I could allow communication between students, which I did not allow. The parents I sent the message to received the message promptly and was able to download the app on their phones so they can always respond even on the go. 

I would definitely use this tool in my classroom. It is very easy to navigate and it allows me to not be tied down to my computer to communicate with my class. I also love that I can track and allow parents to also monitor student behavior. Many parents are busy and on the go these days and a tool like this allows flexibility and thoroughness with its many features.