#FallCUE: A Tech Conference Worth Tweeting About

Last week I went to the Fall CUE conference. For those of you who have

never been to a CUE conference I strongly recommend that you go. It is an opportunity to get some really great ideas for how to use tech in your classroom in a way that perhaps you hadn't thought of, or to refine a practice you are doing.

This year my takeaways were podcasting with students, using Garage Band for podcasting and student-created (either as a whole class, small group, or independently) music that teaches, or reinforces, as skill or concept that was taught.

In recent months I have become obsessed with interested in podcasts (thank you Instragram and Serial for this obsession). So the idea of using them in class as a means to measure student progress and learning, as well as an alternative for those who struggle with writing. So attending the Podcasting session by Brian Briggs and Ryan O'Donnell as they described how to blog in and out of the classroom as they led the session while simultaneously podcasting for their show Check This Out! (check out the Fall CUE Recap episode as well as the live show from their session). I am so excited about trying this with my students and starting a podcast with two of my friends and co-workers. As soon as we get this up and running I will be sure to add the links to my blog - or even embed the podcasts here for you to listen to.

Badgelist.com

Another giant takeaway was the use of badges. I have been intrigued with Cate Tolnai which had me so excited about the use of badges as a way to students to demonstrate their understanding of skills and concepts while also earning a badge to show their accomplishment. After all we all love to share what we know...that is what all of those great badges in our signature blocks indicate, right? So why not allow the kids to have the same pride in what they know and to share their expertise with others?
this concept in the classroom for a while but haven't really done much with it. I attended a session presented by

There were several other great presentations that I attended at Fall CUE (for those who teach the upper grades check out Classcraft - a way to gamify your classroom) that it is impossible to add all that I learned here. These were my great takeaways. I will be sure to blog about my successes (and failures) as I attempt to add these to my class experience.

In addition to the great seminars Fall CUE is a great way to connect with other teachers who are excited about using technology in the classroom. That is refreshing, particularly when you may be working with those who are not as excited to experiment with technology and how to make it work for you. Something that really struck me was when a special education teacher stated that the use of technology allowed her to take the learning in a 5 week unit and address it in 1 week which gave her and her students 4 weeks to really experiment with cooking. Isn't that what it is all about? Using the technology to improve the classroom experience and give students the opportunity to work on other skills in greater depth? I think so.