Our department is looking into writing our own digital textbook. Whenever we adopt a new textbook it seems like we rewrite it anyway. Why not write it ourselves. So we discussed the question: "What would you like to see in a digital textbook?" Please add to the list by giving a comment.
1. Levels of examples
2. Video examples
3. Video lessons
4. Assessment tool
5. Homework problems easily printable
6. Link for students to access SMARTBoard notes
7. Geogebra/sketchpad/fathom activities
8. Wikipedia like edits
9. Accessibility (all browsers, phones, etc)
10. Interactive Practice
11. Homework submission
12. Dynamic charts
13. Exploratory features
14. Tutorials
15. Plenty of practice problems
16. Online quizzes with built in mastery and explanation of correct answer
17. Test generator-choose questions by standards. Alternate questions
18. Students can highlight sections, annotate on-line, and drag and drop main ideas to make a study guide.
19. Targets generator with tutorial
20. Reference to Google tutorial topics
21. Aleks like account
22. Shows only the problems that the teacher wants to give.
23. Dynamic and up to date
24. Immediate feedback on practice
25. Printable Homework
26. Grades and inputs the scores into grade book
27. Interactive links
28. Dynamic Charts (up to date)
29. Easy to view on a Smartphone
30. Links to other help websites like Khan Academy
31. Lessons if they don’t understand a concept
32. Some type of self-assessment where they can see what their mistakes are
33. More practice problems at different levels of difficulty
34. Some sort of explanation or hint for practice problems that a student doesn’t know how to do
Please give some ideas that you have?
Wednesday, April 25, 2012
Tuesday, February 21, 2012
I Love the DropBox File Sharing System
I use dropbox everyday.
It is a file system that allows you to share your files with your colleagues.
I have a file that I share with other colleagues in my department. You could use it for all the Algebra teachers at in your department so that they all would have access to the files.
It is also a back up file system.
If anything happens to a file on my computer, it is backed up on the servers at Dropbox.com.
It is also a file system that can be shared with all your own computers. I can download the software so that any computer I own will have the files in my dropbox in them.
I can also login to dropbox.com and access my files from any computer that is connected to the Internet.
Best of all, you get 2 GB free of storage. That is a lot of storage.
Here is a short video that I made showing it's highlights.
It is a file system that allows you to share your files with your colleagues.
I have a file that I share with other colleagues in my department. You could use it for all the Algebra teachers at in your department so that they all would have access to the files.
It is also a back up file system.
If anything happens to a file on my computer, it is backed up on the servers at Dropbox.com.
It is also a file system that can be shared with all your own computers. I can download the software so that any computer I own will have the files in my dropbox in them.
I can also login to dropbox.com and access my files from any computer that is connected to the Internet.
Best of all, you get 2 GB free of storage. That is a lot of storage.
Here is a short video that I made showing it's highlights.
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
Use the Wireless Mouse from the BACK OF YOUR ROOM!
I learned a tip yesterday that most certainly will help my students. It is that I should use a wireless mouse in class. Here is what I mean. You just have your mouse with you while you are in the back of the room and then when you need to do anything on your computer you can just scroll your mouse on any available surface. The mouse I have works from any location in my room. The mouse I have works from any location in my room. So while still in the back of the room you can scroll your mouse on a free desk or even your pant leg and it will work.
Here is how I see it best used.
1. Helping students without "rescuing" them.
Sometimes I have to go up to the SMART Board to actually help a student out of a jam. This will help me to be able to guide them out of that jam without too much interference by staying in the back of the room and guiding them with the mouse in my hand. I will only have to move my mouse wherever I'm at to help them. If I'm at a desk in the back of the room, I can just scroll the mouse on the desk, or you could just scroll the mouse on the side of your leg. It is a snap.
Besides a direct help to the students I can advance a slide from anywhere in the room or I can point to something at the board without having to be at the front of the room. What a beautiful thing!
My daughter gave me the Logitech M215 wireless mouse for Christmas. I think it costs about $30. Although I just searched and found it at TARGET for $15. Someone else told me that it was on Woot.com for $5 at one time. As you can see in the picture the USB insert is very small. I really like that. Give it a try and let me know what you think.
Thanks goes out to my Naperville Central Colleagues Flint Collier and Dan Olandese for sharing this tip with me. I love it!
Best,
Dave
How do you see it helping you?
Friday, December 9, 2011
Find all the Conics that you can in this 1 minute Video
Conics are EVERYWHERE. I just took a flip video and taped of a few clips of some conic sections around town and then put them in a 1 minute video. I asked the students to remember as many of the images that they could. They were to try to identify the shape (parabola, ellipse, hyperbola, or circle) and what the object was. It was very interesting to hear the discussion.
The Taco-Bell clip looks like the bottom of the bell is an ellipse, whereas the top part looked like a parabola. There were some arches that looked like a semi-ellipse.
Someone pointed out the circle that is the steering wheel and the tires on cars.
The tower was a parabolic dish.
McDonald's had two parabolas.
The gas station had an elliptical sign.
There was a big argument about the wires on the sidewalk. The only thing it was not called was circular.
The stone arrangement looked like a semi-circle. Since the video is from an angle it almost looks like an semi-ellipse.
The bridge had some discussion as well between a hyperbola and a parabola.
The last clip was simply a nuclear plant shaped like a hyperbola.
Most of all, it created some great MATH discussions. Give it a try.
Dave
Some observations the students made.
The Taco-Bell clip looks like the bottom of the bell is an ellipse, whereas the top part looked like a parabola. There were some arches that looked like a semi-ellipse.
Someone pointed out the circle that is the steering wheel and the tires on cars.
The tower was a parabolic dish.
McDonald's had two parabolas.
The gas station had an elliptical sign.
There was a big argument about the wires on the sidewalk. The only thing it was not called was circular.
The stone arrangement looked like a semi-circle. Since the video is from an angle it almost looks like an semi-ellipse.
The bridge had some discussion as well between a hyperbola and a parabola.
The last clip was simply a nuclear plant shaped like a hyperbola.
Most of all, it created some great MATH discussions. Give it a try.
Dave
Tuesday, November 22, 2011
13 Reasons I'm THANKFUL for being a TEACHER!
Here are some reasons why I'm THANKFUL for being a teacher!
1. Every Day is Different
Actually every class is different, every student is different, every parent is different... and so on. I love the fact that the activities are always varied, and thus always fresh.
2. I get to answer questions.
There is a certain amount of pride in answering questions. If students ask questions, I know that they want to know something more.
3. My Students.
I love the energy of young people. I thrive working with students and the fresh ideas they bring. Spending time with young people keeps me young.
4. I get to use new technology daily.
SMARTBoard, Flip Videos, Laptops, Tablet Laptops, Computer Lab, and of course MY CALCULATOR.
5. Problem Solving.
Teaching gives me a chance to problem solve on a daily basis. I find the challenges engaging. They give me a sense of accomplishment. How do students best learn? How can I make the material engaging?
6. My Colleagues
I love working with the people in my department and my school. They are so supportive and downright fun to be with.
7. Coaching
Coaching gives me a chance to work with my students in a different way. I love working with a team to try to accomplish something you can't alone.
8. Our new facility
1. Every Day is Different
Actually every class is different, every student is different, every parent is different... and so on. I love the fact that the activities are always varied, and thus always fresh.
2. I get to answer questions.
There is a certain amount of pride in answering questions. If students ask questions, I know that they want to know something more.
3. My Students.
I love the energy of young people. I thrive working with students and the fresh ideas they bring. Spending time with young people keeps me young.
4. I get to use new technology daily.
SMARTBoard, Flip Videos, Laptops, Tablet Laptops, Computer Lab, and of course MY CALCULATOR.
5. Problem Solving.
Teaching gives me a chance to problem solve on a daily basis. I find the challenges engaging. They give me a sense of accomplishment. How do students best learn? How can I make the material engaging?
6. My Colleagues
I love working with the people in my department and my school. They are so supportive and downright fun to be with.
7. Coaching
Coaching gives me a chance to work with my students in a different way. I love working with a team to try to accomplish something you can't alone.
8. Our new facility
Our school finished the renovation project this year. It is gorgeous. Check out my room in this video.
9. Math
I love math. I love numbers. I get to work with numbers everyday.
10. Stories
First of all, I get to tell my family stories about my adventures in teaching. Secondly, I realize that I need to find out each student's story.
11. Former Students
It is so rewarding to have former students stay in touch with me. I recently saw a former student of mine and she is currently a teacher herself. It was terrific to see her passion for her students and for her profession.
12. I get PAID for doing something I love!
13. I'm also very thankful for vacations. Thanksgiving, Holiday Break, Spring Break, and SUMMER!
What are you thankful for?
Happy Thanksgiving,
Dave
Sunday, November 6, 2011
Sum of Three
I got this activity from my brother-in-law and really like it. It is called "Sum of Three". In essence you have students in groups of three each doing a different problem. Then you have them add the answers together to be the sum of the three answers. They will bring this number up to you and ask if this is correct. If they are correct, then they get to move on to the next problem set. If they are incorrect, then they must decide how to go about getting the correct answer. This is the best part of the activity. When the students get the problem wrong, they automatically think it is somebody elses mistake. They then will systematically go through the process of how to do the problem with everyone. It is a great group activity. Here are my directions. I have given a couple examples as well.
1. Get your class into groups of three. I always do this on a random basis. Let's say you had 26 people in your class. Take 26 kids divided by 3 and you get 8 full groups of three. Count students one, two, three, and so on till eight, then start back at one, two, three and keep doing this until you run out of people. In this case, you will have 6 groups that have 3 in it and 2 groups that have 4 in it. Now the ones get together and the twos get together and so on.
2. Hand out a problem set A in paper form to each group. This will have three problems in it. A1, A2, and A3. Each student will work on a different problem. The group will then add the sum of all three answers.
3. When a group thinks it has a sum, they bring up THEIR PAPER to show you their answer. Don't have the students SAY the sum. This might give it away for the other students. If they are correct, give them the problem set B in paper form. If they are incorrect, then they must go back and find out where they made a mistake.
4. I have my students do all their work on a separate piece of paper to be turned in. This creates a little accountability as well as a place for them to work.
5. You will have to decide how many sets of problems you will want. I typically have 3 to 4 sets. I have the last set as extra difficult.
Here are a couple of examples of the "Sum of Three" activity.
1. Get your class into groups of three. I always do this on a random basis. Let's say you had 26 people in your class. Take 26 kids divided by 3 and you get 8 full groups of three. Count students one, two, three, and so on till eight, then start back at one, two, three and keep doing this until you run out of people. In this case, you will have 6 groups that have 3 in it and 2 groups that have 4 in it. Now the ones get together and the twos get together and so on.
2. Hand out a problem set A in paper form to each group. This will have three problems in it. A1, A2, and A3. Each student will work on a different problem. The group will then add the sum of all three answers.
3. When a group thinks it has a sum, they bring up THEIR PAPER to show you their answer. Don't have the students SAY the sum. This might give it away for the other students. If they are correct, give them the problem set B in paper form. If they are incorrect, then they must go back and find out where they made a mistake.
4. I have my students do all their work on a separate piece of paper to be turned in. This creates a little accountability as well as a place for them to work.
5. You will have to decide how many sets of problems you will want. I typically have 3 to 4 sets. I have the last set as extra difficult.
Here are a couple of examples of the "Sum of Three" activity.
 |
| This is a problem set for multiplying fractions in Intro to Algebra |
 |
| This is the answer sheet that I use when the students come up to give me their SUM. |
 |
| This is an Algebra "Sum of Three" problem set. I have the students add the y-intercepts of the line. PDF of the FRACTIONS "SUM OF THREE" ACTIVITY PDF of the EQUATION OF A LINE "SUM OF THREE" ACTIVITY |
Wednesday, November 2, 2011
Awesome Color Graphing Calculator ONLINE
Now I really like this one. I like it because it is very easy to use. It can graph my lines in color. It can graph an inequality. It is absolutely free. Just go to the site below and use away. It doesn't have all the bells and whistles that a TI-84 would have. I think I like it for displaying multiple graphs at once. This makes it so much easier to see the different graphs. You can say "Where the green function and the red fucntion intersect". Let me know what you think.
Best,
Dave
http://my.hrw.com/math06_07/nsmedia/tools/Graph_Calculator/graphCalc.swf
Best,
Dave
http://my.hrw.com/math06_07/nsmedia/tools/Graph_Calculator/graphCalc.swf
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