ItsTheMitchell

Google has been quietly at work in the Computer Science / STEM / STEAM Education world. A couple weeks ago I found out that Google had acquired Workbench Education . Look for a write up on that in the coming weeks. I'm really excited about integrating Workbench into my drone programming unit. That being said, today I'm working through the Google CS First Storytelling Unit. When I Say I'm working through it, I mean I'm going to walk through the process of creating a class, add myself to the class, and see what kinds of activities are included. I'll pop back in periodically with bullet points to keep you informed of my progress. That being said... here we go. Banners talking about a transition to Scratch 3.0 on January 2nd. I'm not sure how in depth the changes to the new version of Scratch are, but that is something to keep in mind. I was able to log in using my school credentials. It looks like the programming is Scratch based. Setting up classes doe...

I love it when the Post Office drops off a book I had forgotten I ordered. Looks like over the break I'll be reading Teaching AI: Exploring New Frontiers for Learning by Michelle Zimmerman. This book was just put out by ISTE, and I'm excited about learning a thing or 20 from it. Hopefully there are some sections in there where I will have the opportunity to put what I'm learning into practice. Check back towards the new year for more thoughts on the book. Have you read it? Drop a comment below and let me know if there's something I should look out for in the book, or let me know your favorite tip you picked up and how you implemented it.

Teachers. Students. Parents. People of the Earth. Do you love Internet points? Do you enjoy having nifty little certification images in the signature of your email? Want something to put on your resume that is easy, relatively inexpensive, and will only take a couple of hours? Teachers, Consider Google Certification. Teachers, Google has tons of information available at their Teacher Center , but honestly, if you work in a G-Suite system, you probably already know enough to pass at least the Level 1 test. Take a look through the resources, and sign up. The level 1 exam is only $10, so give it a shot. The Level 2 test takes you a bit more in depth in the basic G-Suite tools, and adds a couple other things in there. Once again, there is training available at the Teacher Center. The level 2 exam is $25. For the Level 1 and Level 2 test, you need a nice quiet place to take the test on a computer with a webcam. You will have three hours to complete the test. Google also offers Tr...

Image via  www.vpnsrus.com  (No Affiliation) In today's world of Infobesity, you need to have a finely tuned truth detector when online. So how do we equip ourselves, and our students to navigate the maze of falsehoods, fake news, and alternative facts online? Here's a few quick resources for you. Play with them. You'll find a way to integrate them into a digital citizenship lesson in no time. Check out Snopes  for the truth behind those social media "news" stories. Play Factitious and see if you can tell true news from fake news. Try Bad News and earn a legion of followers (and learn a lesson about why people make fake news.) Leave a comment sharing your ideas about how to integrate these sites in your classroom.

Welcome to the launch of Itsthemitchell.com. If you're here, you're probably lost. It's okay. This will be the hub for my journey into Instructional Technology. We'll talk 3D printers, drones, programming, tech tips for teachers, etc. This will also be a storage bin for all my staff development sessions. In the meantime, here is a random picture of me from my phone. Come back later. I'll be getting some content worth reading soon.