Weekly Blend Summer Edition Week 1

Welcome to the Weekly Blend!

The Summer Weekly Blend will last for a total of 12 weeks.  Each week, we will provide Tips and Tricks for getting started with Blended Learning, an overview of key elements of Blended Learning, and ideas that you can use in the classroom.  Week One will showcase, eGlass a new White Board for the classroom, design vs decorating the blended learning classroom, and Blended Learning resources.  Let's Get Started 

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eGlass - The New White Board 

Let's start by talking about eGlass, the New White Board for the classroom. I love eGlass, especially for the onsite classroom, the virtual classroom, and the hybrid learning environments because I never lose eye contact with the students. eGlass allows the educator to face the classroom at all times while writing out key terms, drawing diagrams, showcasing how to solve a problem, or even how to shade a piece of artwork. There are endless uses for how to eGlass in the classroom. For the Blended Learning environment, I would use eGlass for my small group instruction or allow the students to demonstrate their thinking in the independent studio or future-ready environment. eGlass is a must for the New Blended Learning classroom. 

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Design vs Decorate 

CyPark High School: Biology Classroom Great example of designing the the space with Lab Tables 

As you start to purchase new items for the classroom, I recommend that you start with the design process first before adding in posters. Why? If the layout does not work in the blended learning classroom, students might have difficulty moving from one studio to the next. Take the time to design the space. Think outside of the box. Does every student NEED a desk? Can students share learning spaces? The 2021 school year is the time to take chances and reimagine the classroom from a new lens. If you would like help designing your area, feel free to reach out to me at marcia@blendedlearningpd.com. I would love to virtually walk through your classroom and give you tips and tricks on how to layout your space. 

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Blended Learning Resources

To round out Week One of the Weekly Blend Summer Edition, we wanted to share out fantastic resources and guides for the getting started with the New Blended Learning Classroom.  Take a look at some of the links listed below. 

• FREE Blended Learning Tool Kit App for iPhones and Google Play
• FREE Snappy Class: a resources for parents, students, and teachers that are using Google Classroom
• Blendedlearningpd.com: Blog post, Store, and videos 
• Blended Learning YouTube: watch, learn, and dive deeper into implementing blended learning 
• Blended Learning Starter Kit: get ready for Blended Learning with the essentials 
• Twitter Post: follow us on Twitter for quick tips and tricks
• Facebook: we are on Facebook! 
• ISTE 2021: we will be presenting at the virtual ISTE conference

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Join Us Next Week

Join us next week for Week Two of the Weekly Blend Summer Edition where we will showcase how a blended learning deployment plan, define "Studios",  provide a list of technology websites, and the Blended Learning Starter Kit.  See you next week!