Tech Time

Harborfields - End of Year Edition 2022

End of the Year Activities

Ditch that Textbook (blog, website, and book) by Matt Miller, compiled a list of ideas to make the end of the year ROCK with Google. Click here to learn more!

Explore the resources page to download templates, view videos, and gain valuable ideas for your classroom!

I LOVE the free Google Slides Templates. Just make a copy! Click the picture below to download your own copy of 50 Free Templates for Teachers.

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New Features in Google Docs

Google just released a new update to Google Workspace. You can now add a dropdown menu to your Google Docs! I also love the Table Templates and checkboxes within Docs. Click here for a document to get started today.

Padlet for Collaboration and Communication!

One of my favorite tech tools is Padlet! You can sign up with Google for a free account. With Padlet, you can have your students and staff collaborate on a board. The posts pop up in real-time, or you can have the posts moderated before they appear on the Padlet board. The free version allows you to create three Padlet boards, but you can reuse boards as needed!

Check out the HF Summer Reading Padlet! Jot down your favorite books and enjoy some summer reading. Add a post by clicking the pink plus sign on the bottom right.

HF Summer Reading Padlet

Creativity and Engagement

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Nearpod

Have you tried Nearpod? Or, are you interested in seeing how Nearpod can transform instruction in your classroom? Click here and sign up with your Harborfields Google Account. Do you think your students will enjoy a Virtual Summer Field Trip? Click here to learn more!

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Google Earth Exploration

Turn your students into Global Explorers! Google Earth is an excellent way to bring excitement and cultural awareness into your classroom. Click here for 10 Google Earth Activities that bring the wow factor to your lessons!

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Screencastify for Students

As many of you know, we have a district subscription for Screencastify. With this, all staff and students can use Screencastify when logging in with an HF Google account. Click here to view resources on using Screencastify with students! You can even create podcasts with Screencastify! Check out Matt Miller's video below on using Screencastify to create Netflix-style learning.

Using Technology to Reimagine Curriculum Projects

Jennifer Thompson & Christine Vlcek’s fourth grade class at Thomas J. Lahey Elementary School teamed up with Linda Scarth the LEAP teacher for an enrichment experience to elevate their Iroquois Longhouse Model Project by making it interactive. Students used “Makey Makey’s” to design circuits that will connect their physical longhouse model to their Chromebooks so that their longhouse becomes an input device. The children created buttons on their models which will trigger code that they wrote in Hatch! (In the KIDOYO platform) to play the facts & information they wrote during Writer’s Workshop in class after finishing a unit on the Native Americans of the Eastern Woodlands. They recorded their writing into the program about the Iroquois objects on their project. Students tested and improved both their coding and their design as needed for optimum performance to make the museum an interactive success! Interested in getting started with KidOYO? Click here to find out more!

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Cybersecurity Corner

Think Before You Click!

More than 90% of successful cyber-attacks start with phishing emails. Phishing is when a link or webpage looks legitimate, but it's a trick designed to have you reveal personal and sensitive information. If you receive a link that you don't recognize, trust your instincts, and think before you click!

NEVER send personal information (banking, account information, passwords, SS number, etc) in an email.
District administrators will never ask you for passwords or account information over email.
When in doubt, send the email over to the helpdesk.

Click this link to view helpful information about strong passwords.