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Mrs. VazquezI’m addicted to learning new things! I love DARK chocolate, need more coffee than sleep, tech-crazy, and deathly afraid of frogs. I’m a die-heart Warriors fanatic, mom, wife, and math/science coordinator. And I’m loving all of it (except the frogs)!

How to Embed Google Slides to Introduce Class

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Looking for a creative way to spice up your class blog? Follow these simple steps to embed a Google Slide show to introduce your class.

STEP 1: Give your students a template

Click HERE to get your own copy. Share this template with you students. I use Google Classroom and allow my students to “edit” the presentation. Each student has a number, and they are only allowed to work on that assigned number. Are there hiccups? Of course! Sometimes slides get deleted or backgrounds get changed. It’s a risk that we are willing to take, and we learn a lot in the process. Here’s a tutorial by Alice Keeler.

PLAN B: If that seems too risky for your class, try option 2. It’s a little more time consuming on the teacher’s part, but just as effective. Instead of giving the whole class access to edit the entire presentation, just share one slide with them via Google Classroom and merge all of them together in the end. Whoalah! (It’s always best to give them a template to start).

Tip: My class always uploads a screenshot of the avatar. That way we don’t need to bother with downloading and uploading from the sites. That can get tricky.

STEP 2: Create a title slide 

You will notice that I have the title slide at the end of the template presentation. There is a reason for this! My students each have a number that they identify with all year long (1-30; depending on the number of students I have). If number 1 starts working on “slide 1” then that cannot be the title slide. (I’m expecting a light bulb moment now.) Before you post your Google Slideshow, just click on the title slide (last position) and drag it to the top! Boom!

STEP 3: Post presentation to blog 

It’s time to share our masterpiece! The cool thing about this is that students can continue to edit and finish their slides even after it is posted on your blog. Follow these steps to introduce your class!

In Google Slides:

  • Go to File, and “publish to the web…”
  • Click “Embed” next to “Link”
  • Choose a slide size (I like medium) Here’s what my settings look like

  •  Click “Publish
  • Highlight and copy the embedded text

Now head on over to your blog!

On your blogging platform, you will want to {paste} this embedded code when inserting media. Here’s a quick tutorial if you are using Edublogs as your platform. If your are using a different blogging platform, please check with the relevant help guide.

Here is a link to my “Meet the Class” post.

 

Please comment below if you have any questions! Keep blogging!

Zoom Out!

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Let’s play the “Zoom Out” game! It’s fun, easy, and collaborative! Just take a look at the picture below. What do you think is happening around this fella? How did he get there? What challenges might he face? I just need one commenter to get the story going, and the rest of us will continue to add ONE comment until his story is told. Just follow these simple guidelines to contribute to our mysterious story:

  1. First commenter starts the story in the comments below by writing one sentence (include subject in photo).
  2. The next commenter copies the sentence, pastes it in their comment, and adds onto the story by writing the next thing they would see if the picture was “Zoomed Out.”
  3. This process continues until the story ends.
  4. I will update blog and let everyone know when it has ended.
  5. Be creative and have fun!

Aldabran Tortoise by Darren Lewis via PublicDomainPictures

Here is an example of a “Soda Can Zoom” by abbeymathgirl9

 

Leaving a Comment

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Hello Readers!

We LOVE when our readers leave comments on our blog posts! Here are some simple guidelines to remember when commenting. Hover over the blue circles to see examples.

Vista Eagle Photographers

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I am so proud of the students in my photography elective. They have taken some breathtaking photos and impress me everyday! We have learned  a lot about photo composition. We also engaged in many fun and challenging projects that include: slow shutter speeds, forced perspective, rule of thirds, puddle reflections (#puddlegrams) and much, much, more. Here is just a sample of what these amazing photographers have accomplished!

Student Blogging Challenge

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We are so excited to participate in the Student Blogging Challenge. We call ourselves, “The Challengers” from Room 30, so naturally we would jump on the opportunity to learn something new! Since you’re already here, feel free to click on some student blogs (located on the right) and check out our first posts! Thanks for visiting!

How do you challenge yourself with your learning? Please comment below.

Guess My Idiom!

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Have you ever thought about where your photos come from when you search the web? If not, you should. There are many pictures that are floating around out there that are not allowed to be used even for classroom projects.  Our class is participating in the Student Blogging Challenge, and we are learning how to search for photos and give them the proper attribution. Click on the hyperlinks to find out how you can use and post photos properly.

We have been practicing using photos in our blog posts and giving the proper attribution (photo credit). Can you READ the following pictures and guess my idiom?guess-my-idiom

If you think you have an idea, leave a comment below. We’d love for you to create one and challenge us! Don’t forget to leave a link to your post in the comments.

 

 

 

The Truth About Your Brain

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You can train your dog to do cool tricks. You can train your cat to use the litter box. And you can even train a horse to dance, but can you train your brain to get smarter? According to current research, you CAN!

Researchers are stating that even when we make mistakes, our brain is growing. Little synapses in our brain are firing when we engage our brain. Yes, that’s right! When we make mistakes, even if we don’t know they’re mistakes, our brain is getting smarter. As we continue to engage our brain and learn new information, the brain grows even more!

The students of Room 30 have researched the difference between a growth mindset and a fixed mindset and created some “mind-blowing” presentations to share with our readers. Visit their blogs and view their presentations to learn some terrific tips on how to train your brain.

Here’s one from Trent, Nelly, Mateo, Dominque, and Xavier.

Do you have any cool facts about the brain? Please share with us in the comments below.

Meet the Team

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Student Blogging Challenge: Week #1

This is our chant that we created together. We say it every morning “loud and proud.” It describes who we are and what we believe in:

“I, a member of the Tech City Team, pledge to step out of my comfort zone and achieve my goals. I will work hard and give 110%. I am an engineer, a Noodler, and a READER! I check my S.W.A.G. and think outside the box. Every day is a new day. I will do my best and forget the rest!”

We are Engineers!

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tower1Room 30 has been exercising our minds by engaging in some engineering projects. The first challenge was to create a sturdy paper tower that could survive Hurricane Vazquez (teacher huffs and puffs and tries to blow it down). Students were given 4 pieces of newspaper and 12 inches of masking tape.  They were to go through “The Engineering Process” and construct a sturdy tower. It was quite a learning experience for most of us. There was a lot of reflecting and improving! As Michael Jordan says, “I can accept failure, I just can’t

accept not trying.”

Ask: Define the problem

Ask: Define the problem

Imagine: Brainstorm possible solutions

Imagine: Brainstorm possible solutions

Plan: Draw a diagram

Plan: Draw a diagram

Create: Follow your plan and test it!

Create: Follow your plan and test it!

Improve: Modify your design and make it better!

Improve: Modify your design and make it better!

Has your class tried something like this? Do you have any ideas or challenges for us? We’d love to try something new! Please comment below.