Earth Day 2018 Ideas (tech and non tech)!

Earth Day is on Sunday, April 22, 2018!  Have you thought about what you and your students can do to make this an exciting event?  As a former high school science teacher, I always used to come up with activities that my students could participate in that would bring awareness to the importance of taking care of our earth, not just for us, but for generations to come!  Consider making your classroom paperless (if it's not already) for the week of Earth Day 2018!  Using FREE tools like Google Classroom, Twitter, YouTube, Microsoft, and Flipgrid (to name a few) to deliver your content and have students create AMAZING products that allow them to do things like raise awareness, start conversations, change minds and drive change (for example) will make a HUGE difference in the way that you teach and the way that they learn!  

I LOVE this graphic that I found on social media a few years ago and I STILL see floating around the Twitter-sphere.  I have no idea where it came from originally, although I wish I did so I could give credit to the creator!  I did not create it and can't take credit for it, however all these years later, it's STILL extremely relevant!  

Keep in mind that technology is NEVER the b all and end all about what we do as educators in our classrooms!  Technology is simply the tool to deliver the content to the students AND for students to to create products that do those things you see on the right hand side of the graphic above!

So, Earth Day is all about raising awareness about the way that we treat our precious earth!  I wanted to share some tech and non-tech options for Earth Day activities.  Some of the things that you can do with your students are here:

• Have students take Earth Day quizzes:  https://www.earthday.org/earth-day-quiz/
• Have students calculate their Ecological Footprint:  https://www.earthday.org/take-action/footprint-calculator/   

• Have students create their own memes about what the earth might have said in the year 1900 versus in the year 2018!  Here's a template you can use here:  https://docs.google.com/drawings/d/1H4EtDSyScuOG7cT-kPkAzhUgSehAN-pANjxC5EA63QU/copy
• Have students create a poster via Google Drawings about saving the earth and have them post them around the school.
• Have students sign a "Digital Pledge" to pledge to make a difference for the week of Earth Day.  Here's an example:  https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1gr6x8S1_95kQB3GScvGQkWwctc5rxo1faEYdm9YpgsA/copy

• Here are a TON of Earth Day activities found on TeacherVision:  https://www.teachervision.com/holidays/earth-day
• Have students create their own YouTube videos (maybe using green screen) about why taking care of the earth is important.
• Students can create their own interactive Sways  (www.sway.com) about the importance of saving our earth. 
• What would Earth Day be without The Lorax by Dr. Seuss? I would show The Lorax to my class every year on Earth Day! We would even create Truffela Trees...YES, in HIGH SCHOOL! Here's a link to some resources and activities surrounding one of my favorite Dr. Seuss books/movies:  http://www.seussville.com/loraxproject/

• There are some great resources on the My Garbology site that allow kids to understand which items should be recycled, composted, reused and put into a landfill:  http://www.naturebridge.org/garbology.php
• Flipgrid is a NO BRAINER to use for Earth Day and will allow for your kids to verbalize their pledges to make the earth a better place! There are OVER 2,000 educator created topics about Earth Day waiting for you to check out!

 Flipgrid is FREE, but if you are interested in exploring the FULL classroom version FREE for 45 days, you can use the code: RACHELL to check it out!

So there you go!  A few Earth Day activities to get you going!  This is JUST the top of the iceberg!  What will you be doing with your students surrounding Earth Day?  Let us know!  

Courageous Edventures Challenge - Day 6

Day 6's challenge asked that we create 3 goals for new things that we'd like to try and discuss them via blogging.  Let's see.....

1.  Sketchnoting
This has been on my "list of things to do" ever since I returned from ISTE this summer.  I just have not yet delved into it.  I need to go ahead and order Sylvia Duckworth's book (Sketchnotes for Educators) and just get started!  I've spent hours watching YouTube videos about it, but haven't started to implement it, which is surprising to me as I am very much so a visual learner! 

2.  Start creating YouTube content
This is another goal of mine that's been on my "things to do" list.  I spend sooooo much time on YouTube watching all kind of videos from inspirational videos, how to videos, daily vlogs, makeup videos (don't judge), cooking videos, etc...the list goes on and on!  I need to go on ahead and begin to add to what's out there!  Who knows....maybe the way that I present some content will be better received than someone else out there.  Won't know unless I try, right?

3.  Create a dynamic, inspirational keynote speech....and deliver it!
This is one thing that I know will get crossed off in the next couple of months and I am UBER excited about it!  I have started a list of topics to cover and ideas to speak about in my Google Keep app and have been adding to it like crazy!  I've also, no surprise, been watching a ton of YouTube videos about inspiration and how to deliver keynote speeches.  I used to work in customer service prior to teaching, was a high school teacher, taught teachers while working in the professional development department, so I've always been a people person.  I think it'll be interesting to put together a keynote that I not only create, but deliver as well!  Honestly, I don't think I'm any more special than the next person.  I put my pants and shoes on one at a time, just like everyone else.  I have been told in the past that I have a story to tell, that I'm inspirational and relatable.  I receive these compliments when they're given, however I'm just myself.  I treat others as I'd want to be treated.  With the things that I have been through, especially over the past year, people have asked me how I do it all, and how do I continue to be so positive.  Well, I know that I'm blessed.  I have a purpose to fulfill while I'm here on earth.  Although, I'm still trying to figure out what I'm going to be when I grow up...lol....I know that it involves helping others and being a positive, glass half full, inspirational, sunshiny person while I'm here.  I hope to be able to convey that through my developed keynote soon!

The scary thing about writing about goals, is that you make yourself vulnerable, transparent, and are putting them out there for others to read, maybe judge, and hold you accountable.  Not an easy thing to do.  I look forward to seeing how I develop and nurture these goals over the next year!

What are your top three goals that you'd like to accomplish?

Courageous Edventures Challenge - Day 3

Today's #courageousedventures Challenge was to spend an hour on educational technology YouTube playlists.  I spent some time on the YouTube channels of Tony Vincent, EdTechTeam and Teacher's Tech (Jamie Keet).  You definitely want to search for all of these on YouTube and follow their channels as they offer a TON of educational technology information, how to videos, tutorials, etc. You could really fall into the YouTube "time suck" with these channels!

Tony Vincent in the man behind the website, Learning in Hand.  You definitely want to check that out as well!  He is chalk full of all kinds of information from creating your own avatars, to using emojis, all kinds of web 2.0 information and everything else in between!  You can find a ton of videos on his website, but his YouTube channel also provides a lot of great videos as well.  I love the ease of his videos and how when he teaches you something, he goes step by step.

EdTechTeam is another channel that I spent some time on today.  I love this channel because there are so many different "presenters" of information that you get to gain a ton of different perspectives and you are able to learn a lot of information from a lot of different people all across the world!  I may be a little partial to this channel because I was able to present at the Best Year Yet Virtual Summit last month!  I blogged about it when it happened and I am still in awe that I was given the opportunity to present alongside some of my educational technology idols!  I digress....this channel is definitely one that you need to check out and subscribe to for all kinds of ideas!  Here you can find live author chats, demo slams, recorded webinars, etc!

The last YouTube channel that I explored today was one called Teacher's Tech and Jamie Keet is the man behind the channel.  He pretty much walks you step by step through different educational technology tools and resources. His videos are really simple and streamlined.  I like that he makes all of the content simple and easy to understand to the point that you could follow along with him and do what he's doing at the same time.  He has playlists for EVERYTHING!!!  His tutorials are Google and MAC heavy and that works for me, because so am I!  Like the two previously mentioned channels, subscribe to this one as well!  

I loved being able to explore different educational technology YouTube channels.  I heard recently, at a conference, that people are relying more heavily on learning how to do things via YouTube rather than looking for the information on Google.  With the videos that these three channels have created, I can definitely see this being true.  About a year ago I was putting together a piece of IKEA furniture for my mother and instead of reading their instructions, I found someone on YouTube that had put the same piece of furniture together and followed along with them!  If we do that for our day to day activities, like putting furniture together, then why not for learning how to better incorporate technology into our classrooms?

There you have it!  Day 3....DONE!  What YouTube channels did you explore today?