Digital Challenge You Can Do

We are doing it wrong and I want to issue a challenge. Let's use tech for what it has proven to be good at, and let's use the other resources and tools do what they are good at doing when it comes to educating (and dare I say, raising) our kids.

I don't say this lightly. I've written numerous blogs over the last few years trying to help myself wrap my head around everything that is happening right now in education. I feel like we are on a hamster wheel and even though we are doing a great job of running faster and faster, it's not something we can keep doing. 

I believe Jonathan Haidt has started the ball rolling with his book "Anxious Generation" and I don't believe too many believe are really going to put up a fight against social media needing to be postponed. Now we need to shift the conversation to doing what is right with technology in the classrooms. 

I have recently finished the book "Digital Delusions"  by Dr. Jared Cooney Horvath. Dr. Horvath shares a compelling argument that we need to pull back on the heavy use of technology. One of my most favorite lines in this book is "Not anti-tech. Pro-learning." When I read that, I thought, "YES! This is the exact shift we need to work towards! Let's do what is best for our students to learn."

Here's my challenge ... let's cut out the use of devices at indoor recess and aim for zero "free time" on the devices. I know there are a lot of teachers out there doing this and I hope they share how it is going in their rooms. We can do this! 

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Tech Conversations You Can Do

How often do you & your colleagues talk about technology? Is it more of a gripe session? Is anyone excited about a tool or program? Lately I've been having quite a few conversations involving technology. And most have had an element of frustration to them. 

Listen, I love technology. I think it can do some pretty awesome stuff, but I feel like we are moving away from using tech to enhance learning and toward using tech because it's available. Why? There is so much more pressure on schools and teachers than ever before. I also believe there is a growing misconception that technology has some sort of magical powers. But that simply is not true.

Here's a recap of the recent conversations I've been part of ... have you had any of them, too?

• One conversation revolved around kids finding ways around our filter.
• Another conversation revolved around upgrading our Google accounts. 
• Another conversation was about what LMS should each grade use and why.
• Yet another was about how old should the kids be when they take their chromebook home. 

None of these conversations are earth shattering. Nor are they "new". But I do feel like we are looking at it all with a different lense right now. We know that shoving tech at our kids is not the answer. We even know that tech can have some negative effects on our kids. But I feel like we are "resigned" to the idea that kids HAVE to have tech all the time. 

I'd like to start moving the conversation in the direction of when is tech appropriate and purposeful rather than just accepting it. I want to engage with our teachers that while the kids have a device, that doesn't mean everything must be done with tech. I want to ensure that our kids know we are putting every effort into structuring their education in a way that maximizes their opportunities.

I know one person can't move the needle, but one person can strike up a conversation and encourage others to give thought to these questions. Once the conversations start & keep flowing, you'll be surprised at what you can accomplish.

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INFOhio: Decodable and Phonics eBooks for Early Readers

WEBSITE ↬ INFOhio: Decodable and Phonics eBooks for Early Readers

AUDIENCE ↬ teachers

CONTENT ↬ ELA, early reading

GRADE LEVELS ↬ preK-3

I am an INFOhio Coach and I love their resources. I believe it is a very under used resource and I wanted to be sure to share this one out. With the focus on early literacy, these books and resources can go a long way to help your students (and yourself!) with supporting their early reading.

Not only does this share books for your early readers, it also shares professional learning ebooks to support YOU in teaching.  

HOW CAN TEACHERS USE THIS RESOURCE?

I can see teachers sharing the books with their students but also the ability to create collections to share with other teachers can be super helpful when you work as a team to support each other. While reading with physical books is super important, having access to quality ebooks is also a great classroom activity (or to share with home for times when parents ask what digital resources are available). 

Teachers can also take advantage of the professional resources included in this article.

*** Interested in more resources like this? Every Monday, I share a newsletter with a collection of Tech You Can Do resources. Interested? Sign up here!  ***

Supporting Each Other You Can Do

I'm writing this in the quiet morning of snow day #2. It's also brutally cold outside. There is a LOT going on right now, both in my little world and the bigger world beyond. And I'm not just talking about the weather. Politics, education, family life, social media, health, aging, etc. I was inspired today to write from a more personal perspective. We are ALL struggling in one way or another. You may not see it in others and you may not want to admit it about yourself. But we are. I am.

I read quite a bit. Not always books, but articles, emails, and blogs. I tend to be focused on educational resources. I enjoy them. I also try to share out when I find good articles and resources. This morning, as I was snuggled on my couch, I read "The #1 Reason My First Years of Teaching Were So Hard" from the We Are Teachers daily email I receive. The author, Kelly Treleaven, wrote this about 2 years ago, but what she shares is true today. It's a hard truth. And an ugly truth. Really ugly.

Reading this article where Kelly shares how hard her first several years of teaching were, has reminded me of how I felt my first years and also how I felt each time I stepped into a new teaching position over the last 20+ years. Overwhelmed. Scared. Nervous. Unsure. And the ultimate realization that I was reinventing myself. I was becoming a newer version of myself. Something so super scary at the beginning, but now looking back, necessary for me to be who I am today. I wasn't told or taught anything like this. I also didn't have all of the pressures that exist in 2026. Technology was vastly different. Support was wildly different, both inside and outside of school. Rules and requirements looked different. I could never have dreamed of being a district Technology Integration Specialist when I began teaching 5th grade at a little Catholic school in August, 2021. 

Reading Kelly's article, I feel my passion to support our newest teachers being reignited. I've already jotted down ideas I will take to my integration colleague in the hopes of building out a support structure for our district's new teachers ... not just our 1st years, but all new-to-us teachers. I want to delete the "assumptions" that "someone" is helping them. I am guilty of that quite often. Are you? 

Here are a few of my thoughts right now:

• assign every new-to-us teacher to either myself or my colleague
• identify a couple of staff in their building who've agreed to support them
• set up regular in-person meetings with them to help acclimate & ask questions
• prepare a notebook or collection of specific "helps" for the newbie in their position
• what programs are provided
• who is who in their building & district
• login information for our "stuff"
• links to our already built Staff Help Hub, highlighting key pieces of info
• an FAQ section
• place to write down questions or needs
• identify things we can do to help welcome them (work with building principals & Sunshine committee)
• reach out right now to our new teachers from this year to identify pain points they experienced & how we can help next years' newbie

Can you help me? What other things might YOU have wanted as a new teacher? What areas do we need to focus on specifically for our newbies - insurance? retirement? class management? Please help!

Teaching isn't easy. It never was. It still isn't. It's tougher than ever before. We can't keep losing those brave enough to choose teaching because they lack the support. We are teachers. At our core, we care. Not just for our students. We care for each other. Let's make it visible. Reach out to the newbies in your building. Check on them. I didn't make it this far on my own ... I have had so many wonderful people help me along the way. Let's return the favor. We will all be better for it.

P.S. I share out a lot of resources. Ones I create, ones others create, how to's, people I follow, etc. PLEASE share these. Time is a HUGE problem. Let's cut down the time we spend searching and instead spend out time supporting.

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New & Stressful Adventures You Can Do

I recently had a very "nerdy" and stressful learning adventure! Our middle school had decided to host a career day and I was asked for "spreadsheet" help. Little did I know what all that would entail! This is a true testament to having a PLN, confidence in my own knowledge, and quite a leap of faith.

I don't exactly remember thinking I knew the "answer" to figuring out how to schedule the kids, but I did offer to help make it happen. Weird, right?

Here was the situation - 569 students. 31 presenters. 4 sessions each. No more than 20 students per session. The students were going to be given a Google Form to request what presentations they see. How was I going to do this? Ultimately, we settled on assigning the presenters to one of 7 career categories, and allowing students to choose 4 of them. Then the real work began.

I turned to Google Sheets. I believed this was the only way to make the schedules. I researched but wasn't coming up with anything other than a manual assignment ... ugh! THEN, I turned to my PLN. I threw the question out. And I got THE response that confirmed an idea ... throw this scenario into Gemini! It worked!

I am still very much in the camp where AI isn't the answer to everything - only some things. And this is definitely one of them! I put the following prompt into Gemini: "I need to create a career fair schedule for 600 students. We will have 30 presenters who each have 4 sessions. The presenters are labeled into 7 themes and students will be allowed to select 4 themes total. Write me a Google Apps Script to schedule the students after they complete the Google Form with their selections. There can only be 20 students in each session."

It gave me back exactly what I needed to do to the Sheet that resulted from the students making their selections and it gave me the Google Apps Script to copy & paste into the Sheet to create the schedules. It was scary and wild. I wouldn't know if it worked until we had all the students fill out the Form. The afternoon we felt confident we had the vast majority of our students, I hit the "run script" button. And waited. And waited. It took roughly 10 minutes - and voliá! Two new tabs appeared - one with 4 sessions assigned to each student and one with the students who would be in each of the 4 sessions for the presenters. Holy cow! Mind blown!!!!

From there, I took a deep breath! It worked! And, because we actually had more spots that we did students, every student received their 4 choices. Now I just needed to make a schedule each student could read and a roster for each of the 4 sessions for our presenters. (Thanks, Google Docs + Auto-crat!)

Then came the next twist ... one presenter had to cancel and 3 more volunteered to come! Whaaaaat? We also found about 7 students that hadn't filled out the form, so we got them to do it ASAP and I had no other choice but to re-run the script. Yikes! I should have had more faith in the process, but I was incredibly nervous it wouldn't work. But it did! I just pushed the run script button and it overwrote the initial schedules and rosters. 

I am still amazed that it worked so nicely! This is the kind of problem I believe AI is built to help solve. 

Do you have a daunting challenge ahead of you? I strongly recommend trying out Gemini. I do believe the prompt is key ... knowing the parameters of the output your are looking for as well as asking for a Google Apps Script. And don't be afraid to adjust the prompt. Still need a little reassurance? Reach out! I'd be happy to help.

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Student Thinking You Can Do

I'm going to expand on a blog I wrote a year ago when I was back in the classroom as a Technology Teacher.  I shared "Project Breakdown You Can Do" about how I used John Spencer's video writing prompts in my 7th grade technology class. I really loved this project. It had student choice, creativity, a wide range of depth opportunities, and a lot of student driven aspects. I encourage you to read it along with this one.

I'm going to focus more on the student thinking aspect of this project. I was lucky enough to go to a workshop about Gemini this week and had a great conversation with a PLN friend from another part of Ohio. We got to talking about using AI in the classroom and he referred to teachers concern about students still DOING the thinking and how we tackle that. I shared an overview of the activity I did with John Spencer's writing prompts and how I feel activities like this can help teacher avoid AI generated content. 

Sure, my students 100% could have fed the video into an AI tool and it would have spit something back out. BUT ... here's the key to where I believe students wouldn't reach for AI ... 

#1 - they had 100% choice in which prompt to respond to 

#2 - they had 100% choice over the tool/design they used for their final project

#3 - I required them to converse with peers about the expectations of the prompt

#4 - I required them to converse with peers about how they'd be graded, down to how many points each rubric element was worth

#5 - peer feedback was built in to the project timeline

#6 - they graded themselves with an explanation before I did and reflection was required

The student choice on their topic wasn't super new to them, but they struggled when they were allowed to choose their tool. We had an entire conversation around what tools are available and what might work or not work for each prompt. Talking through that helped quite a few of them ... some still needed more guidance, but it helped. 

I saw struggle - and perseverance - kick in with the conversations around the expectations. It was shocking to ME how tough it was for them to really understand what the prompt was asking them to do. I realized how little practice they have ever had with this. They are so used to being told exactly what to do and how to do it. 

THE toughest part of this activity was when it came down to them talking about the grading rubric. I told them this project was worth 50 points. THEY needed to decide where they felt these points should be assigned --> what was the criteria and how many points. Wow! The complete randomness they assigned points really opened my eyes. Either they think teachers have some magical training in rubric math or they have zero clue 😁 . 

I know a lot of teachers have students reflect on their work, but doing it in addition to them grading themselves was enlightening. They didn't just choose points, they had to explain their point value. Quite a few of them were harder on themselves than I would have been. 

When I think about this, it feels like a very overwhelming project, but honest and truly it wasn't. I posted links in our LMS for the prompts, had the conversations planned, provided the generic "what is required for your prompt" half-sheet, and the rubric worksheet ready, but otherwise, it was work and think time in class. If they chose to - or felt they needed to - they could work on it outside of class. 

Lots of student thinking - lots of AI proofing - but this was a project the kids very much enjoyed! I had to "close the chapter" on this project for a lot of them because they wanted to continue working on them ... while it made me very happy, sometimes we have to recognize we can fiddle and adjust and never feel "done". 

If you are interested in the student components I've talked about, I've added them to my Templates for Teachers blog where I share all the items others can make their own copies and use "as is" or make modifications and customize. You can find it here: John Spencer Writing Prompts activity

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3 Things You Can Do

During my long run today, it dawned on me that it has been a minute since I've shared. I know I have explained that I journal everyday. It's how I start everyday. Journaling grounds me, it provides quiet time where I can gather my thoughts and start my day with a clear head. 

One piece of my daily journal is my "Today" list. I used to have such a wildly long to do list for each day that most of the time, I'd end up feeling defeated because I never accomplished it all. It was impossible. Have you ever felt like your to do list had become a "never to be done" list? Overwhelming and frustrating. I've been there!

I changed things up in the last year and I feel so much more productive! I feel like I am accomplishing my tasks rather than failing and never getting things done. Here's what I changed ... I identify 3 things that are my top priority. Three. I aim to check those off. If I do - yay! If I don't, I don't kick myself, I will carry them over to tomorrow, or I might decide it's ok that I didn't do them and skip them altogether.

These 3 things always are personal tasks. The first is generally my workout goal for the day (running, strength, etc) but the second and third vary. It could be a bill I need to take care of or a task around the house that needs to get done or something I need to pick up. I really feel far more productive. Here's the kicker ... I have so much more on my to do list - activities for my girls, low priority tasks, family/friends birthday reminders, etc, but because they aren't my top 3, if I don't accomplish them, I don't kick myself.

That's all for my personal life - my home life. Professionally? I have attacked it the same way. This year, I am back in my beloved role and I am beyond thrilled! I am surrounded by people I love and doing the things I love. I have stepped back into doing so many of the same responsibilities from before and adding on new ones. So many new ones! Talk about an insurmountable to do list!

My to do list at the beginning of the year was quite unbelievable ... I didn't think I could ever dig my way out. But then I pulled my "top 3" idea in ... and yep. You guessed it. I identify 3 top priorities for the day and work really hard to check those off. I list all the rest below and as the week continues, I keep working to check them off. On Fridays, I set aside time to go back through the week and carry forward anything to Monday that wasn't done previously. 

Why did I pick 3 you might be wondering? I'm not sure - I didn't research it or anything - 3 just feels good for me. A different number might feel good for you. If you are looking to manage your to do list, really consider what is necessary. Don't overreach ... your to do list can always be more than your top priorities.

One last thing - where do I keep this? A notebook. A simple, regular, my girls didn't use all the pages in a notebook from school one year, notebook. I put the date at the top and use one page each day. I use the pens my husband got me for Christmas last year (a 32 pack!) and I write it down. This way, I get to see the collection over time, which is also a really satisfying feeling. 

And yes, at one point, one of my top 3 to do's is to get another notebook out of the hall closet upstairs and prepare it to be my next journal where I can continue to write my top 3's. It's an easy - but important! - one for me to check off. 

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Reflection: My year limiting my phone & watch

This one is going to feel a little different. It has literally taken me months to write this blog, not because it's difficult. It's because it almost feels silly. And it all starts with a law the state of Ohio passed last year. Thanks to House Bill 250, by July 2025, all Ohio school districts had to "establish an official policy governing cellphone usage during school hours and seeks to minimize student use of cell phones in K-12 schools." (link to article)

Each district needed to have a policy. A policy. Something showing how they were going to limit cellphones during the school day. My district chose to go with a no phone & no smartwatch during the school day policy. I was overjoyed! Phones and watches are a huge distraction. I knew that. I lived that the year prior when I was back in the classroom after 8 years. I read "The Anxious Generation" (Jonathan Haidt) and I agree with the research he has collected ... phones are harming our kids. Yes - I was pumped to see how this policy impacted our kids. I was worried not all of the teachers would follow it.

Then I started thinking ... I was in a unique position. I was the technology teacher, for peke's sake! I was newly back in the classroom and it was only in my 2nd year at this district. I did my best to balance offline and online activities in my room. I brought in the local police department to talk with the kids about being safe online. Everything I did had some kind of technology component to it. My whole job was about using tech better/safer/well.

I also saw my colleagues, friends, family, and myself. I saw how we all interact with our devices. As adults, WE can't help ourselves. Not allowing phones & smartwatches in the classroom was exciting! But then I thought about MY phone and MY watch. 

Sure - I'm an adult.

Sure - I "think" I'm good about managing my time on my phone.

Uhhh, well - I put a time limit on social media for myself.

... and - I'm still drawn to notifications ... so much so I didn't turn them back on after my last summer vacation so I DIDN'T feel that "need" to look at that red bubble. (It HELPS!)

Sure - I'm a good example.

AM I a good example? I thought long and hard about this. 

Does being an adult give me a "pass"? 

Right?

I thought about it for a looooooong time and I decided I was going to follow the policy, too. By choice. I decided I would live the same ban as the kids. I also thought it would be a great conversation piece with them and my colleagues. 

With each group of students, I started with the same statement. "You have to leave your phone & watch in your locker by district policy, per the state of Ohio. I am choosing to follow this same policy." I did clarify I would be putting them in my desk drawer because I don't have a locker, and I would check it at lunch and my plan period.

There was very little pushback and questioning. The #1 question they had for me was, "Mrs. Kiefer, what if your family needs to get ahold of you?" Easy, I responded, I gave them all the office phone number to call. The office can get ahold of me. (Plus, my 2 youngest daughters also had a phone ban at their school.)

It was shocking. Shockingly GOOD! Yes, it was hard at first. I had all the thoughts I'm sure the kids did. "What if someone texts me?" "What if I miss a phone call?" "My wrist feels naked." "Will I still close my exercise rings?" "What if there is an emergency?"

Guess how many phone calls I missed from my family? A couple. 

Guess how many were urgent. None. 

Did I miss text messages? Yep! I would check it at lunch and sometimes there were a shocking amount. 

How many of them meant I missed out on something? Not a single one. 

I survived. And I loved it!!! I had a new appreciation of being able TO TEACH. I didn't have buzzing on dinging on my wrist or in my pocket. I taught. I interacted with the kids. It was great! I believe my students were far less distracted. I did have to take a few phones and watches, but it wasn't anything like the year before. 

After a full school year of this, I find that it's a lot easier for me to put my phone down while I'm at home and walk away. I don't feel like I have to be glued to it. I have very few notifications on my watch. It has gone back being more of a watch than anything. (Ok, I'm a runner, so it tracks that for me and it's pretty awesome at setting timers when I need to remember something in 5 or 10 minutes.)

I share this because I know I'm not alone in feeling the same addiction to devices as our kids. I share this because being mindful of how we used devices is the greatest example our kids see. I share this because I'm 46 and I survived a year in the classroom without my phone in my pocket or my watch on my wrist. I share this because YOU CAN DO THIS, TOO! And I hope you see and feel the impact on YOU, so that you can work towards the same positive impact with our kids.

I hope you read this and try it. Give it a week. I promise you'll notice a difference. And then I hope you share a message here. How'd it go? How did you feel? Let me know below, or reach out on social media. I'd love to hear from you.

And if you are interested, I've written more on this topic. You can find it here: Phones + School ... What Do We Do?

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A New Take on Resources You Can Do

Happy summer! It has been a wonderful change of pace.  I love teaching - I love the kids, the connections, colleagues, challenging my brain in many different ways, the routine, etc. - but I also love the breaks. Kind of.

A day off here and there is like sneaking a little extra dessert. Summer for me can feel like I'm stuffing my face with chocolate. I need to keep a close eye on what I do so I don't overindulge. I always plan out projects and learning and activities. 

I need that routine. I thrive on it.

One of my favorite things to do is listening to podcasts or music while I fold laundry. It's a productive task (laundry) while I squeeze in entertainment (podcast/music). Recently, the podcast was Jennifer Gonzalez's "Cult of Pedagogy" episode 251: Holding Students Accountable in the Age of AI.  Her conversation with Tony Frontier was great and really got my thinking about one specific area. Asking kids how-who-what helped them with their work. Not in an effort to catch them cheating, but rather it's like a peek in their brains about how they are getting things done so we know where better to help them. If we encourage this honest & open sharing, I think we can get a better gauge on our students learning. 

Tony's point was to ask for sources, not just on big assignments, but on ALL assignments. Not to "catch" AI use, rather getting students comfortable with citing their sources - all of them. Whether it was a family member at home, a Google search, an AI chatbot, an encyclopedia, a textbook, etc, asking students to identify what is helping them can go a long way with teaching academic honesty and integrity. (Thank you Tony & Jennifer!) 

I thought of how I could apply in my classroom of the last 2 years. Could an idea like Tony's give me an insight to their learning? Probably. Most of our work was done inside the classroom but we used resources often. They could share if they Googled something or asked a classmate for help. And if they worked on it outside of class, they could do the same by sharing whatever resources they used, whether human or digital or print. I see the goal to have students see, document, and share more insight to how they are doing their work.  

The more I think about this idea, the more I really like it! You could even set goals of using a variety of resources for different assignments/projects. Example, "In your paper, you need to use 3 different types of resources" and then have a list of resources to choose from. 

I hope I inspired you to contemplate this idea! Give Tony & Jennifer a listen and think about what this could look like in your class. If you try it out, will you let me know?

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My Next Chapter ...

I have been keeping a secret for a few months.

I am closing my Madeira Middle School Technology Teacher chapter. I am returning to my previous district ... and I am pumped! Elated!

Two years ago, I made the decision to leave Ross and start a new chapter at Madeira. That decision came with a lot of heartache and tears. It was the right move for me at the time and I do not regret it. This time, my job change comes without tears or heartache.

I am leaving a great district and a great building. I reunited with a great friend and met lots of wonderful educators. I was challenged to teach a variety of classes and connect with lots of students. I saw first-hand the challenges of being a "newbie", a classroom teacher, and a special area teacher. I had a lot fewer responsibilities.

I am going back to do the same job I left, this time with a colleague in the same role. I am going to see a lot of familiar faces and some new ones. I am going to miss seeing some faces that have also moved on in the past two years. 

I am going back to a new administration with a reinvented vision. 

I am going back home and I will get to write my Ross 2.0 chapter. I know this is the right move and I look forward to each new page.

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AI Learning I Am Doing

If you are in education, I'm sure you have been inundated with AI tools, resources, how to's, why/why not, do/do not's, and so much more. I know I have been.  ChatGPT was release on November 30, 2022. A little more than 2 years ago. I did a search on Amazon for "artificial intelligence books" and it returned over 20,000. Wow. 

I am not opposed to AI, but I'm super hesitate to just go all in. I have serious concerns with introducing AI far too early to our students only to find out in a few years that we've unintentionally weakened their educational foundation. I'd like to take a slower approach and be mindful with what and how I incorporate AI in the classroom.

I have been in the ed-tech world for at least a decade and I have my favorite resources so I have been sticking close to them in this world of AI discovery and learning. Catlin Tucker comes out near the top. She and Katie Novak have recently release a book, "Elevating Educational Design with AI: Making Learning Accessible, Inclusive, and Equitable". What I am most excited about this book is that it is not pushing a tool or prompts to feed o AI. 

In their own words, this book wants to  "empower teachers with an adaptable and rigorous educational design framework that embodies the best ideals of Universal Design for Learning (UDL) and blended learning". 

I have not yet gotten my hands on this book, but I have listened to a couple of Catlin's podcasts where she shares about the book and it really piqued my interest. I think they might be of interest to you, too. Here are the two I've listened to:

• 12/17/2024: Designing for Equity and Engagement: A Preview of Elevating Educational Design with AI (14 min) 
  
  
• 01/14/2025: Preview of Elevating Educational Design with AI (18 min)

I'd love to know if you have read Catlin's book. Is it helpful? Do you have other resources you'd like to share? 

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OETC 2025 Presentations & more!

I presented twice at Ohio's Educational Technology Conference (OETC) in early February. I haven't presented in quite some time - and thanks to the encouragement from my curriculum director, I put in for and was accepted. It felt really good to get back into the presentation world and I very much enjoyed going to OETC this year.

My first presentation was "Citizenship, Connection, & Collaboration in the Tech Classroom." When I began at Madeira Middle School, I felt it was important to infuse digital citizenship with my students. And I wanted to encourage a community infusion, so I asked the Madeira Police to join forces. They happily agreed and we are on year 2 of our collaboration. It has been a wonderful collaboration.

My second presentation was a collaboration with the art teacher at Madeira "Collaboration to Create a New Course". We were tasked with creating a course for our incoming 6th graders this year and we designed Digital Art. We shared our story of creating Digital Art and where we are going from here. It was great to co-present with Liz and share our success. I hope we can inspire you - or someone you know - to create a new course. Our students love this class and we do, too!

Finally, the day after I returned from OETC I did a super fast - 2 minute - demo slam for Book Creator. I've never done one of these before and it was great! In my 2 minutes, I shared how Liz & I use Book Creator for our Digital Art class' portfolios. They love using it and we love seeing them build them over the semester.

You can watch my 2 minutes here: 2025 Demo Slam. You can see the entire list of slams, from this one and previous ones here: Community Demo Slams

I hope you enjoy these!

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"Lifelines" You Can Do

I've noticed the many of the students I have right now are hesitant to work independently. I don't mind questions, but it's not so much about not understanding as it seems to be they want hand-holding. I wracked my brain to try something to encourage independence and inspiration hit! 

Big time!

Do you remember the game show, "Who Wants to be a Millionaire?" Do remember the lifelines each contestant was given? Bingo. 

I decided to give my students 4 lifelines the first time I gave them a digital breakout to work on. Most students said they were familiar with digital breakouts, but when we got to work on it, most of them froze on what to do. I'm so glad I decided to use the lifelines!

The four "lifelines" I gave them were:

• ask a classmate
• help from Mrs Kiefer
• Google It
• Google It

I explained to them a digital breakout would take some work. They'd be challenged and may not find the answers right away. But they could use a lifeline to help them if they were really stumped. Ultimately, if they didn't use a lifeline, I'd reward them with a bonus point on their total score. They could earn a total of 4 bonus points. This really motivated them! (I also told them if they didn't write their name on their lifelines they'd lose any chance of the bonus points ... I'm also working to instill responsibility! I'm shocked at how many of them did NOT write their name on theirs!)

I'm not quite sure who had more fun with these lifelines; the kids or me? They would ask me a question and before I'd answer, I'd say to them, "Are you sure you want to use this lifeline?" The vast majority of the time, they hesitated and waved me off. It really encouraged them to think strategically about using each one.  And they were super honest about when they DID use one, even if I wasn't right there to mark it off - they'd do it themselves.

The second time I used them this quarter, I collected them from the students as they left the room. The social studies teacher across the hall from me noticed them and asked about them. I shared the story and he asked if he could borrow the idea - he had noticed the struggle, too, since we share the same kids. I laughed and said, "Of course! But you have to find your own bitmoji!"

I made mine in Canva and I would suggest you look at the assignment you want to use it with and think about what would be an appropriate number and type of lifelines and go from there. I also shrunk them down so they are about the size of a bookmark - 4 to a single sheet of paper - rather than an entire sheet. I ran off a bunch, so I always have a stack ready to go at any time. 

This is such a fun addition to ANY activity. It can be added to ANY lesson - ANY grade - ANY content.

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Google Sheets Teaching You Can Do

Google Sheets is one of my favorite Google applications. (I think I say that about all of them, don't I?) I have chosen to purposefully add Sheets to the curriculum I teach with my 6th graders. This quarter, I felt like I needed to step up the learning portion before I gave my students the Google Sheets Choice Activity to show off their learning. 

I turned to my favorite "tech extraordinaire"  ... Eric Curts! He has so many amazing Google Sheets activities. I had been using one of Google's Applied Digital Skills lessons previously, but I felt like it was a little dry for my 6th graders, so I collected several of Eric's Sheets activities and really looked at what skills I wanted to focus on and then chose Sheets that worked with the selected skills. I put together a teacher version and a student version to make it easier for me to see what skills should be focused on on which sheet.

I present: Google Sheets ... Teacher workbook & Google Sheets ... student practice! It's posted on my connected blog, Templates for Teachers, so you can also browse for other activities for your classroom. I don't dig into complex Sheets formulas - most of it is on the basic level. My students haven't had much experience with Sheets - most couldn't even remember ever using it.

Sheets doesn't have to be an overwhelming tool - it is a powerful tool, that with some learning, can be beneficial to have at your fingertips. The "Directions" tab was a great way to start and probably the tab we spent the most time on. Laying this strong foundation was a great starting point. I'm definitely using it again!

If you use it - will you let me know how it goes? I'd love to hear feedback.

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Unit Planning Overview You Can Do

One of the things I've struggled with the last 18 months is keeping my lessons organized in a simple way. This school year, I feel like I've got a bit of a system worked out that works pretty well. The process to get there has been a bit messy, but I feel good about it now.

Here's my situation:

• I returned to the classroom after 8 years
• I have formal observations from my principal
• I am teaching Digital Art, Coding, Communications, Tech Skills, & Tech Applications
• Digital Art, Coding, & Communications meet twice a week for a semester
• Tech Skills & Applications meets M-F for a quarter
• I have students in grades 6, 7, & 8
• I was given the flexibility to improve the curriculum for all of these courses

I started in the staff handbook, where a narrative of the districts lesson plan expectation was outlined. Last year I worked with a digital platform, but it felt clunky to me. I turned to Google Docs, where I create a template for my lessons. It has worked really well to help me organize my plans and thoughts and activities. I plan by "unit", so each Google Doc covers multiple days. I do not follow this strictly from class to class or even quarter to quarter. I am also a little "old school" in that I print it out to keep on my desk. I will jot notes on it as the unit progresses, then I transfer it into the digital version for future reference.

Interested in seeing this lesson plan template? I've shared it on Templates for Teachers - Lesson Plan Template. 

Since I teach 5 different classes, I needed a way to "track" them all and keep them organized. I also found that I had a few seasonal lessons or even lessons I could use as sub plans if necessary that I wanted to be sure to have easy access to. I realized a Google Sheet was the most practical way to keep my lessons together - yet separate for each class - as well as being able to add in links. (I'm sure a Doc would have worked, too, but I like the functionality of Sheets better for this.)

I made a template tab and then got to work building it out for my Tech Skills class. I had the name of the unit, projected number of days it would cover, the essential question, and the link to the full lesson plan. I realized as I was filling this all in, it would also be helpful to have a column for the programs I'd need to use and what skill I was focusing on. Simple - with some detail - and I've worked to keep it to a "one-pager" when I print. I love it!

Interested in seeing this unit planning template? I've shared it on Templates for Teachers - Curriculum Map.

Some improvements I've made since I first started using this - I separated out the Digital Citizenship lessons I do with each class a few lines down from the last lesson. I like to keep these separate so I can easily find them. I also separated out "other" lessons below the Digital Citizenship lesson. These might be "one-day-ers" or sub plans or even holiday themed lessons. This is especially helpful when I switch quarters and I won't re-use that lesson.  Finally, I added in a link to the detailed lesson plan template in the upper right corner, so when create new lessons, it's easy to find. 

Even though I love tech, I do print these curriculum maps. I carry these in my planner so I can plan when it's convenient for me & I'm not dependent on internet connection. I've also begun writing the dates in the far left margin. 

Is this helpful? I hope so. I always figure I'm not the only one out there that is looking for something. My solution my not be yours ... but maybe my solution will inspire you and give you a place to start. Good luck!

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Google Sheets Your Students Can Do

I believe spreadsheets are a necessary skill for today's world. I can hear the groans. When most teachers hear spreadsheets, I know they groan. They think data and analysis and blech. Don't worry! That's not the point of this spreadsheet activity for your students! (You might have fun working with it, too.)

One of the units I cover with my 6th graders is Google Sheets. Most of them have had very little exposure to Sheets at this point. I totally understand - Sheets isn't the easiest tool, not is it the "prettiest".  Using Google's Applied Digital Skills - Sheets, Part 1,  we do a few days of the basics with Sheets - vocab; inserting & resizing rows & columns; sorting; formatting; and a little bit of data validation. I tell my students up front, that this part isn't flashy, but it's necessary before we see Sheets in a different way.

Once we cover the basics, I give them the Google Sheets Choice Activity. The first tab contains the directions and the descriptions of the 6 activities. I crafted 6 different activities that should appeal to a variety of interests. I assigned point values to each activity and then I challenged the students to complete enough activities to accumulate 25 points. This is meant to require them to do more than one, but also to keep this activity within a 2 class period timeframe. So far, they have loved it! We didn't cover every single thing they might need to do - so there are times where I get to do a little more with various students. 

I've added this activity to my partner blog - Templates for Teachers - to keep all my templates in one spot. If this activity appeals to you, I encourage you to make your own copy and share it with your students. Even better, if you want to make changes to the template by adding activities, changing the requirements, or removing an activity, go right ahead! Make it your own and make it work for your students!

If you use it, I'd love to hear about it! 

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AI You Can Do - but ...

I was lucky enough to attend my first conference in awhile this past week. It was the Schoolwide AI Conference. It was a good one & I'm going to share my thoughts here as a way to help myself process it, but also capture and share them with you. AI is definitely a hot topic these days ... including in education. 

Matt Miller - of Ditch That Textbook - was the keynote and boy did he have a great keynote! Matt had a lot of great ways to use AI as a teacher. He shared some pretty cool tools, including image generators that really made some amazing images. AI can help make several teacher tasks much easier and save us all some time.

But ...

Matt also shared some drawbacks to AI. Since I subscribe to his newsletters, I'd just read the recent news stories he shared. You can read his newsletter about this topic here --> "🗑 AI, students, relationships and manipulation". It's more than eye-opening. 

It's shocking. 

It's wild. 

It's sickening. 

It's troublesome. And it needs to be shared. 

And it needs to be discussed.

I went to the conference in the hopes of learning more about AI. I recognized a lot of names of presenters. I was excited. And I saw some great sessions. Quite a few of the sessions shared how AI can help create lessons, provide prompt suggestions, assist creating rubrics and assessment questions, and help with differentiation. They were good.

My favorite session was with a lawyer who shared about Ohio's AI Toolkit. He also shared the Federal Governments newly released guidance, "Empowering Education Leaders: A Toolkit for Safe, Ethical, and Equitable AI Integration". I know for sure I want to dive deeper into this toolkit.

The final session of the day was pretty enlightening. It was a student panel. There were four high schoolers and one 8th grader. They all shared ways they've used AI. A few use AI more than the others. They don't seem afraid or intimidated by it. They all wish their teachers taught them more how to use AI. The 8th grader said he believes he will definitely be using AI more as he gets older.

Wow.

I have to say, walking away from the conference that day, I was a bit disappointed I didn't see sessions that focused on my biggest concerns: 

• At what AGE is AI developmentally appropriate? 
• At what AGE "should" students begin using AI?
• WHY would a teacher use AI with a young student?
• Do the benefits of using AI outweigh the risks?
• AI has only been around for a couple years (for the general public) ... what are long term ramifications of using AI with students? 

I know these aren't questions that have "easy" answers. They probably don't HAVE answers, truthfully. And I'm sure there are teachers on all sides of these questions. This is the dialogue I want to have. These are the areas I want to learn more about. 

Do you have resources I can read or learn from? Articles? Podcasts? People to follow? I'll take it all. I have a Wakelet for things I've collected - AI in Education. Please share if you have more that I can learn from. Thanks!

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Project Breakdown You Can Do

Year 2. 

Overhauled master schedule. 

2 new courses for me: one is brand new; co-taught class. The other existed, just now on my plate. 

Still teaching the classes from last year. 

And study halls. 

Total = 12 different groups of students. I got this. I think. 🤣

I'm taking the best of what I did last year and modifying or substituting to make it better. I had my 7th graders last year, so I know what we covered AND I know them. After giving them a day to do some digital organization, something I feel is important to make time for, we moved right into a project. Smart move.

These kids have skills and they aren't afraid of tech. They need very little direct instruction as far as tools go, but I feel they could use practice making choices, explaining their choice, and interpreting what needs to be done. Rather than give them a specific "recipe", I wanted to leave the door open a bit for them. We are now done with project and I'm very happy with how it went! Here's a recap ... you can absolutely replicate this!

I chose two of John Spencer's video writing prompts. I kept in mind the students I had and tried to choose two I thought had wide appeal. I also chose one that needed more creativity when responding, "You Woke Up Inside of a Video Game," and one that was more straight-forward, "What would you put in a time capsule?"

Day 1:

• Short explanation of project ... choose the writing prompt AND choose the tool to create your response. I did not restrict them on tools. They could choose the one they felt was best.
• Watched the prompts together - YouTube gets overwhelmed if they all try at them same time. Allowed for questions.
• In Schoology, I created a folder with completion rules to help sequence student work:
• #1 - I had a 2 questions assessment: Which prompt are you choosing & why? 

• #2 - a discussion question: which tool are you going to use
• Students may start to work on their project

Day 2:

• With the hope that conversing and discussing the prompt in terms of what to DO would help the students drive their own ideas, I wanted them to talk about how they were interpreting the prompt.
• Before getting to work, I had students make groups of 4 with others who are doing the same prompt. Both prompts received the same questions. The paper they filled out asked several questions:
• What are you responsible for "answering" with your response?
• What are the REQUIRED pieces to your response?
• Is there anything you should NOT do as or in your response?
• How might you go BEYOND the requirements?
• After several minutes, I collected their papers and had them make a different group of 4 and repeat this exercise.
• Rest of class was time to work on their projects.

Day 3:

• Started class with the complied answers to the questions from yesterday. I have to say, they were more or less all on the same track with the answers. 
• I also allowed for questions. 
• My favorite was, "Mrs. Kiefer, can you leave this up? I think it's really good for me to look at as I keep working." [You betcha!!!]
• Work time

Day 4:

• Began class with a "Glow & Grow" peer feedback. I took their compiled answers and created a short feedback sheet. Only 3 outcomes to focus on:
• Content - Is student answering prompt appropriately?
• Soft Skills - does their tool fit the project well?
• Media Skills - project is answering the prompt creatively?
• One on side of each criteria, the peer is expected to write a positive. On the other side, a suggestion or idea for improvement.
• We covered boundaries for this and how to "take in" the feedback. It's all meant to be helpful, but changes should only be made if the creator agrees and feels it would be an improvement.
• Today, they were pairing up with another student that did the SAME prompt. Turn in paper.
• Ultimately, they will need to have 3 total peer feedbacks before turning their project in.
• I tracked this as an assignment in Schoology.
• Rest of the class was work time.

*** The feedback portion took a bit longer than I'd thought it would ... NOT a bad thing at all! ***

Day 5:

• In Schoology, I asked students to share the link to their project. This was a big topic we covered last year - ensuring the correct sharing privileges - so I wanted to be sure they all did this early on, so I didn't have to keep asking for it at the end when I went to grade it.
• Full work day.
• Recommended to do at least one more peer feedback. Only rule is it cannot be the same person. 

Day 6:

• "Temperature check" ... are we feeling good and getting close? Up to this point, I'd not mentioned a due date. Students said they were getting close. We decided to aim for tomorrow at the end of class. If they felt they needed more time, I asked them to talk to me.
• I went over how many pieces of feedback were still needed.
• Work day.

Day 7:

• Final work day.
• Turn in when finished in Schoology. Basically they copied and pasted the link again in an assignment with the rubric for me to grade it.

Whew! I have to say, I'm SUPER pleased with how this project went. My students really did seem to dig into it - didn't matter which prompt they chose.  The time capsule one did appear to go a bit quicker, but I pushed those students to really dig in and try to be creative. Off-task behaviors were limited during this project and I was thrilled.

I would really love to bring all of these projects together in one spot. I was thinking a website created by the students? However, I do feel like we need to move on. I don't want to let them get bored. Possibly at the end of the quarter, it can be a self-chosen project that a few of them decide to take on? Who knows? 

What do you think? Areas to improve? Anything to add? I know I probably won't call them "Glow & Grows" again ... they didn't scoff at it, but it felt a bit juvenile. I ended up just referring to them as their "peer feedback". 

** Update ➤ I added the Docs I created for this project into ONE cohesive Doc. It includes the questions students had to answer as a group who had chosen the same prompt in the hopes of ensuring they were interpreting the "ask" properly AND the activity I had them work through to create the rubric for their prompt. I did also include the rubric we designed for each of the 3 writing prompts as examples. Please do not feel tied to them - my students helped design them - yours might interpret things differently. The "work" in this is that THEY are identifying the requirements. 

You can find the Docs on my sister blog - Templates for Teachers. John Spencer Writing Prompts activity  

Next up ... credible sources. What are they? Where/how do we find them? How do you know it's credible? Can we crowdsource? I'll share about this, too. I'm super excited about this. We expect our students to do a LOT of research and while I was collaborating with an educator in another district about a class we both teach, I have a very exciting addition to add to this project!

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