Hello Everyone,

I hope you are having a wonderful Tuesday!



Here are your tech tips for the week 🙂

Important Reminders ✏️✔️

Ed Tech Ambassador Program

Ed Tech Ambassador Program is due May 5th! Remember to submit your Ed Tech Ambassador Program application here

Howe ISD's Ed Tech Ambassador Program is a great way for you to become a technology leader on your campus.  You will get to pilot the latest devices with your class, attend groundbreaking conferences and webinars and earn a $1,000 stipend.  If you enjoy teaching your peers, learning new things, and being a part of the decision-making process, then this program is for you!

Bulldog Connect 1st Annual Conference

The Howe ISD IT Department is excited to announce Bulldog Connect 1st Annual Conference on August 3, 2021. We invite each of you to join us for a one-day, highly interactive conference featuring exciting new tools and ideas for your classroom! Check out the attached flyer for more details.

Who should attend?
All Howe ISD instructional staff (including support staff) should attend to satisfy their required technology training.

How Do I Register?
Click here to register using Eduphoria. After you are logged in using your Howe ISD network credentials, select the green Register button in the top right of the screen. Next, you will browse the various course offerings and select the Enroll button to enroll in the class.

We are excited to include "Escape the Conference!" an interactive STEM based escape room as one of our featured sessions. Each attendee is required to attend with their campus at the designated times outlined below and shown in the Eduphoria conference schedule. After you have registered for your Escape the Conference class you must select 3 other classes to complete your schedule.

Session 1 (8:30 AM - 10:05 AM) Summit Hill Elementary School - Escape the Conference!
Session 2 (10:10 AM - 11:40 AM) Howe Intermediate School - Escape the Conference!
Session 3 (12:35 PM - 2:05 PM) Howe Middle School - Escape the Conference!
Session 4 (2:10 PM- 3:45 PM) Howe High School - Escape the Conference!  

Each attendee's schedule should include an Escape the Conference class, the opening and closing keynote, and 3 other classes of your choice. Registration must be completed no later than May 28th!




Google Docs 📄

​Google docs is the Google equivalent of Microsoft Word.  You can create documents, edit templates, insert in charts/graphs and more!  Google docs offers tons of modern fonts and a simplified menu.  The best part of creating a Doc is that once you start typing, it is automatically saved to your Google Drive.  There are no extra steps needed!

Here are some other things I love about Google Docs:
  • You can talk to type on the screen by clicking on "tools" and then "voice typing."
  • You can convert any Google Doc to a Word or PDF document by going to "File" and then "download as"
  • Google Docs has a TON of add-ons that you can install by going to "add-ons" in the doc menu.  Add-ons in Google are special tools that allow you to create   Here are some of my favorites:
    • MathType- allows you to type math equations on a google doc if you are creating a math quiz from scratch
    • Extensis- this has THOUSANDS of extra fonts for you to add to your Google Doc!
    • Create and Print Labels- access to the Avery templates to make labels quickly and easily.
    • Icons for Slides and Docs- a huge library of icons for you to insert directly into your Google Doc
Make sure to check out the attachment to this email- it is a Google Docs "cheat sheet" from Kasey Bell!

​Apple Teacher 🍎💻

​Did you know that Apple has a dedicated Teacher Resource page for amazing resources and free lesson plan templates?  Click here to sign up for FREE and get access to thousands of lessons, join a community of other educators and work toward your certification of "Apple Teacher."



Remove Video Background 🎬🎥
Unscreen can be used to easily remove the background from short videos and convert them to a .gif. Add these .gifs to your Slides, google docs, etc. to engage your students!
The free version allows you to upload a 5-second video.
  • Open unscreen.com.
  • Click Upload Clip.
  • Locate your video clip and click Upload Clip.
  • Click Download.
  • Supported formats: .mp4, .webm, .ogg, .mov and .gif
Tutorial with a great example: https://bit.ly/unscreentutorial

How could you use this?  You can take a short video of you pointing to an object, waving at your class, dancing, etc.  Removing the background from your video lets you insert that same video into a custom background of your choice.  You can point to a historical landmark, wave to your class in front of a location you have been studying in front of a map, and so much more.  This is just a fun and easy way to engage your kids!  You can take a short video on your webcam from your computer and upload that video file directly to "Unscreen" to start creating your own GIF!




Thanks,


Maggie Donohoe, M.Ed. | Instructional Technology Specialist

Howe Independent School District | | www.howeisd.net

P: 903.745.4021 | 105 W Tutt Street, Howe, Texas 75459  


March & April Newsletter:  https://wke.lt/w/s/lkLizn



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