Google Classroom Feeling a Little Too Drafty for You? Try Scheduling Your Assignments Instead.

NEW FEATURE!

Up until now Google Classroom only gave users two options to sending assignments, announcements,  and questions to students those being immediately or "Save" as a draft. Thankfully Teachers now have a third option, "Schedule".  My favorite Google Classroom blogger Alice Keeler provides and excellent description on how to get it done.

For users familiar with Google Classroom, look for the option to Schedule as you are  about to finish posting your assignment.

STEM EDU.SYMBALOO

I've started an EDU.Symbaloo with links to resources from our growing STEM collection. Our collection is still very much a work in progress and would welcome any suggestions of any great resources your think should be included.

Pssst...What time is it? Have you used your clock to help students with angles?

Full disclosure, I am not a math genius. I have never taught math long term but with my position as Innovation Specialist I have had the good fortune of being able to work with some excellent math teachers. At the risk of sounding obvious, I've noticed that the best math instruction connects new concepts and constructs to those students are already familiar.

That being said, I'd like to share out a math tool that overlays angles on an analog clock. This whiteboard/SmartBoard friendly tool also works on student devices so they can explore on their own. It has many different settings to help demonstrate all manner of angles, fractions and time.  The tool is also available at my favorite price, FREE! So, how cool is that? Every time a student looks up at the clock they could have a visual reminder of a powerful math concept. I only wish that it was available when I was first learning about angles.

The tool is just a small part of Visnos Interactive Math Tools. The site has many tools for you to use that are whiteboard/SmartBoard friendly as well as individual student devices.

Visnos

Please let me know if you would consider this a useful tool in your classroom.

Did someone say they needed online protractor practice?

Well, look no further. Online protractor practice is just a click away. With online state testing approaching, many teachers are looking for ways to familiarize their students with using online tools for math. While taking the practice test is fine and appropriate, there are only so many times one can take the practice test and still maintain interest. Knowing this I did a search for the teachers in my buildings and came up with the following great tools to help their students gain needed online skills.

The top of my list is from Visnos Mathematics. They have developed a suite of online math tools that work on nearly every platform and device. They also have some great free Chrome apps as well. You can find some of those along with other apps in an earlier post. But the beauty of Visnos is that you don't really need the apps to use them; they just work. Some of the math tools include a fraction wall, interactive protractor, and times tables. Check it out to see much more.

Another one I like for protractor practice is found at MathIsFun.com The site is more like a self-guided tutorial on how protractors and how to use them. It has short videos along with interactive reviews where students need to move the protractor and lines to answer questions.

Want even more protractor practice (along with  ruler and compass tools)? Check out the Geometry Toolbox from Emaths.co.uk. It allows students to draw their own lines. While I was checking it out, for the life of me I couldn't figure out how to erase the entire page with the exception of refreshing the page. If you figure out a different way, please let me know. It is also useful to know that it won't work on iPads due to Flash but Chromebooks worked just fine. It's worth a look.

What is your favorite tool to use? Let others know by adding your comment below.