Using Technology to Teach Math

I've decided to focus this week on using technology to enhance lessons for particular subjects.  Today we're going to take a look at math because I am teaching my formal lesson for my math internship this morning.  Wish me luck!

Anyway, a requirement for the internship lesson plans is the integration of technology.  While looking for online activities I came across the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics website Illuminations.  You can search for lessons that align with Common Core.  I liked looking through lessons because it really got the gears going in my head.

The activities section has some really great online activities for students.  I think I would use this for enrichment to give students extra practice.

Calculation Nation is a section of online games where students can challenge other students from all across the world.  It is free though students would have to register to play.  The games are designed for upper elementary through middle school students.

I am bookmarking Illuminations because I can see myself using it in the future.  Students can play the games and do the activities at home.  It would be awesome practice when students have been out of school for a while for breaks....yeah, yeah, hopeful thinking, I know!

Evernote

My instructor recently shared Evernote with the class.  I've used Evernote before for compiling recipes (before I had Pinterest :) but not much beyond that.  It's so helpful that you can access the information from your computer, iPhone, and iPad.  This would be useful for saving information and not having to worry about backing it up.  I started thinking about how I could use Evernote in the classroom.  I really like the idea of creating portfolios of students' work, but I want to be able to give work back and don't want to organize a ton of paper.  With Evernote I can scan work in and keep each student's work in their own notebook.  One paper problem solved.  I want to be continually assessing my lessons and adapting and improving them along the way.  With Evernote I can take pictures of whiteboards or anchor charts and the program can identify handwriting and make it searchable.  Amazing!  I'm finding so many awesome uses for Evernote I'll have to keep a list of it in Evernote!  Needless to say I am going to use this tool.  I just need to get more practice with it and find out all what it's capable of.

LearnBoost

I recently stumbled upon LearnBoost while googling gradebooks.  I like that once you input grades the software will give you statistics on students so you can see if your students are meeting short-term and long-term goals.  Teachers can also give access to parents and students so they can see their student's personal grades but access can be revoked if need be.  Attendance can be recorded and it's easy to review throughout the year.  There's also a lesson plan section where teachers can attach Common Core Standards to the plans.  Overall I'm really impressed with this application.  If I am teaching in a school that does not have a system for everyone to use I would definitely consider using LearnBoost.  The best part?  It's 100% free!