Where's Crystal

This past week I had an invitation to the Googleplex in Mountain View California! So, thanks to my school district, I went out there for training. I hope my writing can do justice to what I experienced. As I arrived on the scene I found myself parking in a lot full of cars and Google bikes. Yes, red, yellow, blue and green bikes that are just one perk of the Google employees. The campus is full of bikes for their employees to ride around on as a fast mode of transportation. I walked up to the Googleplex through a sculpture garden, then past their own vegetable garden. They do grow their own food, yet another perk to their employees. FREE FOOD, the campus has 18 cafes and many micro kitchens for their employees to stay fueled for their work day! 

Welcomed by a small group of educators, we were off to our meeting room. We had a full day of training, sharing, and learning with each other. I had a chance to learn from my colleagues as well as the experts themselves at Google. Their work environment speaks to how 21st century learners work. Most of the employees were very young and work for one of the fastest growing companies in the world. Collaboration and communication encompass the work environment of Googlers.

Even though my time at the Googleplex was short, I am still constantly connected to the group of trainers. Now that I am back home I plan to do many trainings on Google Apps for Education in my school district and possibly others. Here are a few photos from my trip! I had a great time!

I'm SMART

Assessments. Enough said, right? Teachers, you know what I'm talking about. We are formally assessing and informally assessing students on a daily basis. This past week I was able to assess my students using the SMART Response clickers that are designed for pre-k students. 

I asked the children what the clickers looked like as an introduction to using them for the first time. Without question, they all said it looked like a T.V remote. All of the students know how to use that (as you know from my previous post-watch t.v.-learn English)! The clickers have several colored buttons each with a different shape on them. The clicker also has a small screen on it that gives feedback in the form of a clapping bunny. Cute for children, right. 

So, I created a lesson to find out if the children were able to identify items that began with the letter T. On the SMARTboard I had a picture of a turtle with a green button next to it, a picture of a dog with a red button next to it. I asked the children which picture began with the letter T sound. They then pushed the red or green button to answer the question. This was a little mini test for them. 

The best part was that I could see when all students had answered the question. The results of the answer were also displayed instantly for me to see in a pie chart form. I was able to see some telling information about my students ability and learning that week. This has been a great tool for me as a teacher to see where my students are at after a week of learning. Watch for more posts about the clickers!