Through this HOMAGO process I have learned more about interactive apps that have allowed me to build better relationships with my students virtually. I chose to focus most of my attention on Google Jamboards and have been pleasantly surprised with the mastery I have seen in my 4th graders during our Remote Learning time. I have attached a video below of my presentation describing what Google Jamboards are, as well as an activity I have done with my class to explore all that Google Jamboards has to offer!

HOMAGO PRESENTATION

Before this class I had never even heard of the term HOMAGO but after going through the process I realized I do this almost every day. I found that being able to hang out with different apps allowed me to see what was quality and what was trash. There are a lot of advertised classroom apps that seem super helpful, but as I had the opportunity to mess around with them, I found some of them to be hard to operate or very costly. While I was exploring Google Apps more in depth, I realized that a lot of really cool tools were accessible to me for FREE and had been there all along. There is a lot of negative that has come from this pandemic and change in teaching, but I will see I have grown so much as an educator in my use of technology in the classroom. 

When I think about using HOMAGO in my own future teaching, I think it would be a great experiment. I think that kids are often driven by choice and using a process such as HOMAGO would allow the students a lot of choice. I do think it would be hard for them to understand that the cost of something doesn’t always mean something is better, but that is another teaching point I would be able to reach. I don’t think my students use HOMAGO very much on their own in my classroom as they usually just try whatever is easiest and linked for them. But, with the students using their devices more frequently, I think it could be a great time for them to broaden their knowledge by allowing them time to hang out, mess around, and geek out with something new! I think that if I ever do use it in my classroom I would start small, allowing them to each explore 3 different math apps. As they explored, I would have them fill in the pros and cons of each of the apps to support their findings. After they had chosen their app, they could share it with the class and we could have a couple of days of messing around with each other’s apps. I would closely monitor their exploring of apps with the help of Hapara and a daily check-in with me to see what apps they have chosen. 

Moving forward, I believe I will be more purposeful in app searching. Through the process of HOMAGO I have learned a lot about myself as a teacher, but also as a learner. I have learned what I like and what I don’t like in terms of app usage, and I believe that in the future I will be able to choose apps that are effective and efficient for my students.

The other day I spent some time explaining Google Jamboards to my students and they seemed to catch on really quickly and well. At the end of the lesson I asked them what they thought about the use of Jamboards and they all said they really liked them. As I think about future use of this app I am going to start incorporating it daily in my morning check ins. Right now, the students fill out a Google Form, but starting the second semester, I am going to have them fill in their space on the Google Jamboards instead. A teacher I follow on Instagram (Miss West Best) shared her idea of posting the student’s picture on the Jamboard and they put their stick note on top of their picture. That will allow me to see which students filled in the prompt for the day or “checked-in”. I think that this will personalize their Jamboard experience even more. Another plan I have for Google Jamboards is to use them with my 5th grade class as a spot for them to fill in their number talk explanation for the day. This will allow for interaction with both remote and in person learners and show me if their thinking is cohesive or more all over the spectrum.

Throughout my time hanging out with different apps, I have found both simple and more advanced apps that I feel would be very beneficial for my class in building relationships. Before this week, we were hybrid and I was able to see the students 2 times a week. Now we have unfortunately switched back to full remote which has not only brought up challenges in my teaching, but also altered my choice of my app. I have now chosen to Geek Out with Google Jamboards. I chose Google Jamboards because I think it will be a carefree and easy way for students to check in with me DAILY. It should only take them a few minutes, and it is really convenient  for me to see all of their responses in one place. I personally feel it is going to transform my students learning by allowing them to express themselves through their responses in the prompts. Being full remote means that students are asked to attend Google Meets, but we all know that I will never have 100% attendance. I believe that Google Jamboards will still allow all students to participate in discussion and prompts and foster connections with not only me, but their classmates whether they are on the meets or not. I plan to start rolling out more of these Jamboards this week throughout SEL instruction. I am going to post a question and then have students respond on it. We are also going to take this week to once again go over Jamboards expectations. After this week, I am going to also use it with my 5th graders. This will allow for me to have a different kind of interaction with them and a more interactive approach to their math content learning. I envision Jamboards to be a support for my teaching, but not the backbone. Full Remote learning is so different than it was in the spring, so I think  that rolling out this tool in a simple way at the beginning of this transition will allow for something new and exciting for the students and hopefully excite them for this new adventure we have upon us!

“Acknowledge that this “new normal” and challenging for all of us- parents, students, and teachers!”

I picked out this quote from a blog post by Christina from Mrs. Winter’s BLISS. I loved it as the center of my reflection for this week because as I continue to search through ways that I can build relationships with my students through technology, I am constantly finding helpful tricks about how to do it remotely due to our current circumstances. It’s obvious that this year has been nothing short of “new” for all of us, and it’s all been extremely taxing. But then we add one more thing to our resume- teaching completely remote, or in some cases remote AND in person.  We as teachers are relationship builders my nature, but personally I have found it extremely hard to do so to the degree I used to in the past. Between the alternating days, or the missed Google Hangouts, it’s been very hard to connect to students without starting the day with a high five or fist bumping after a correct answer in the classroom.  I thought this quote, and the additional articles added to my Padlet did a great job of reminding me that this is NEW to all of us alike, and that it’s acceptable to take a step back, not overthink it, and go back to our second nature of building relationships the best way for us and our students. Maybe things aren’t the same, but things also don’t have to be overly new either. These links helped to give me some insight and ideas on how I can take my old way of building relationships and digitize or alter them to best fit our regulations now, and I hope it can do the same for you!

Padlet Link here: https://padlet.com/starkeramy/k69asjaerpvm1kg8

This week I took some time to search for the “perfect” video that encompassed everything I wanted to know about building relationships through technology. I quickly found this was a very daunting task. I did stumble upon this video that was recorded back in March when we were all virtual. Although some of her ideas don’t necessarily pertain to the setup of my day to day classroom work now, I found her ideas to be great reminders to me. This year has been a STRUGGLE. By the end of the day I am exhausted,and I only have 9 kiddos in my class this year. Kayse (the woman in the video) reminded me that school is some student’s safe zone. It made me remember that I need to do a better job of stepping away from the content just for a bit and work harder to make learning fun, as this year is not only challenging for me, but it is also challenging for them. The video is linked below!

I thought the easiest way to show my findings would be through a Padlet. If I come across more articles in the future, I can continue adding to this page. Check it out if you are interested in ideas on how to build meaningful connections with your students through technology like I am!

https://padlet.com/starkeramy/k69asjaerpvm1kg8

For my first day of hanging out with a new technology feature, I decided that I want to try and find a new app/program that connects to my pedagogical focus which is to create more meaningful connections with my students both in person and from afar. I have talked to my group of teacher friends to pick their brains on “must haves” they would want for a new app. Below I have listed out the main wants from both general education and special education teachers.

1. Easy to use for both students and parents
2. Compatible with Google
3. Connects to content
4. Engaging for students, yet purposeful

As I reflect on these top four wants the one that sticks out to me the most is simplicity! We teachers are OVERWHELMED. Between the constant planning, parent emails, and students NOT knowing what to do (even though you spend 3 hours after school the day prior making a “how to” Loom, we have found that one more thing would just be a lot to handle. That is why on my quest for a new app/site I want to find something that is simple! I want to find an app that allows my students to create a new connection with me, all while staying engaged and connect it to my content I am teaching in class. Wish me luck