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Innovative Education in VT

A blog exploring innovative, personalized, student-centered school change

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      • John Downes
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  • Our book
    • How to use this Educator’s Guide
    • Ch 1: Defining Personalized Learning
      • 1.1 The Three Pillars of Personalized Learning
      • 1.2 The Definition of a PLP
      • 1.3 New Student & Teacher Roles
    • Ch 2: PLPs Aren’t Just For The Teacher
      • 2.1 Knowing Students Well
      • 2.2 Avoid the Pitfalls!
    • Ch 3: Laying The Groundwork for PLPs
      • 3.1 What Are Your Pedagogical Priorities?
      • 3.2 Structures to Support Personalized Learning
    • Ch 4: Starting with the Learner Profile
    • Ch 5: Flexing Your Pathways
      • 5.1 Engaging Pedagogies for All
    • Ch. 6: Scaffolding for Equitable, Deeper Learning
    • Ch 7: PLPs & Proficiency-Based Assessment
    • Ch 8: Student-led PLP conferences
    • Ch 9: Sustaining Innovation
    • Chapter References
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Author: Susan Hennessey

Voices Heard: learning from our students
Learning Lab VT 

Voices Heard: learning from our students

May 28, 2021June 2, 2021 Susan Hennessey 0 Comments student voice

 In the past few months, we’ve been meeting with groups of students from six Vermont schools, asking them about their

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SEL and mindfulness at Proctor
Action Research Learning Lab VT 

SEL and mindfulness with the Learning Lab

May 21, 2021 Susan Hennessey 0 Comments

Drew Kutcher, an art teacher in her first year teaching at Proctor High School has built Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) and

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hyperdocs
Remote Learning 

Hyperdocs 101

November 17, 2020November 24, 2020 Susan Hennessey 0 Comments Hyperdocs, nearpod

What in the world are hyperdocs? A hyperdoc is a mini lesson. Almost like a small, self-directed learning module. It

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hybrid teaching toolkit
Remote Learning 

Building a blended & hybrid teaching toolkit

October 28, 2020October 28, 2020 Susan Hennessey 0 Comments

Hybrid and remote teaching environments require us to tap into everything we know about designing engaging and targeted learning opportunities.

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breakout rooms
Remote Learning 

6 ways to help students create the best Breakout Rooms

October 26, 2020October 26, 2020 Susan Hennessey 0 Comments

Those of us holding virtual synchronous meetings with our learners recognize the need to build in opportunities to collaborate. Just

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thematic and integrated learning
Integrated Learning 

The power of thematic and integrated learning at Randolph Middle School

June 16, 2020October 22, 2020 Susan Hennessey 0 Comments integrated unit, Randolph Union High School

Middle level educators at Randolph Union Middle School believe integrated and thematic learning help students see their place and role

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Innovative Edtech Classrooms 

How to use Google Keep for video note-taking

January 17, 2020March 2, 2020 Susan Hennessey 0 Comments Randolph Union High School

A recent study from Common Sense Media confirms what those of us who spend time with young adults already believe

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how to change assessment
Assessment Learning Lab VT Proficiency-Based Learning 

How to change assessment & grading practices

December 2, 2019December 3, 2019 Susan Hennessey 0 Comments Lamoille Union Middle School

…in a middle level math classroom Deirdre Beaupre, a 7th grade math teacher at Lamoille Union Middle School took a

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top 10 ways to spend your snow day
Learning Lab VT 

Top 10 ways to spend a snow day

November 12, 2019November 13, 2019 Susan Hennessey 0 Comments

#1. Making lists As a fan of lists, I went to bed Monday night mulling over my top 10 list

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Learning Lab VT News 

Meet Learning Lab VT 2019!

November 6, 2019March 10, 2021 Susan Hennessey 1 Comment

Now that you understand the why of proficiency-based and personalized learning, are you ready to see the how? Learning Lab

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documenting learning
Proficiency-Based Learning 

The powerful practice of documenting learning

October 19, 2019October 22, 2019 Susan Hennessey 0 Comments Allison Zmuda, Angela Stockman, Don Taylor, Janet Hale, Kelli Ohms, Melissa Anders Thompson, microcredentials, reflection, student reflection

How do we know what our students know and can do? What, when, and how are we asking them to

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Self-directed learning Transferable Skills 

How to craft questions for deeper learning

September 15, 2019September 16, 2019 Susan Hennessey 0 Comments "Ask Away Alley", NGSS, Socratic Seminar, The Question Formulation Technique, The Question Game

Question generation is key to inquiry, goal-setting, and negotiated curriculum. And asking the right kinds of questions pushes students further.

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Learning Lab VT educators gathered at a lodge for a lecture on one of the overnight sessions
Action Research 

What’s your inquiry question?

May 6, 2019May 9, 2019 Susan Hennessey 0 Comments

The why and how of personalization An inquiry question forms the backbone of action research in the classroom. It guides

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Melissa Williams Learning Lab VT
Learning Lab VT 

The role of students in the Learning Lab

April 10, 2019March 31, 2021 Susan Hennessey 0 Comments

Students are an integral part of Learning Lab VT. They have to be. When educators sign up to host Learning

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Learning Lab VT 

Welcome to Learning Lab VT

April 5, 2019August 19, 2019 Susan Hennessey 0 Comments

Welcome to Learning Lab VT Ever wonder whether you’re really up to the task of meeting your learners’ needs? We

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Proficiency-Based Learning 

What can we learn about proficiency from special education?

March 18, 2019August 20, 2019 Susan Hennessey 0 Comments Lamoille Union Middle School, special education, Vermont Agency of Education, VT AOE

 Equitable access for each & every student Many of us doing proficiency work in the state see it as a

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Stowe student leadership
Uncategorized 

Stowe students lead school change

January 2, 2019April 12, 2022 Susan Hennessey 0 Comments Stowe Middle School, Up for Learning

How student-adult partnerships can scaffold student leadership “Did you know that the same areas in the brain light up when

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Proficiency-Based Learning 

Paths to proficiency

November 30, 2018April 29, 2022 Susan Hennessey 0 Comments Deck Toys, Google Slides, Hyperdocs

Choose Your Own Adventure with 3 easy tech tools Students in blended learning classrooms benefit from taking control over the

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the role of the teacher in a blended learning classroom
Innovative Edtech Classrooms 

The shifting role of the teacher in a blended learning classroom

October 16, 2018June 22, 2021 Susan Hennessey 2 Comments Lamoille Union Middle School, Rutland Town School

Adding playlists into the mix We often hear about the need to move from the sage on the stage to

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Reflection 

The power of documentation in meaningful learning

June 11, 2018April 29, 2022 Susan Hennessey 2 Comments reflection, Stowe Middle School, student reflection

Exercises for an LMS This past spring, a small group of Stowe Middle School students gathered to help their teachers

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Flexible Pathways 

Students design digital badges

May 16, 2018November 3, 2019 Susan Hennessey 0 Comments digital badges, micro-credentials, Peoples Academy Middle Level

Badging growth toward goals’ attainment A small group of these 6th grades at Peoples Academy wondered how they could help

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Stowe Protean
Uncategorized 

A tale of two tech tools

April 23, 2018September 10, 2018 Susan Hennessey 0 Comments Stowe Middle School

Students test drive tools to enhance & amplify project work When Stowe Middle Level educators met to plan for the

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Uncategorized 

Telling a complex story through imagery

March 19, 2018March 26, 2018 Susan Hennessey 0 Comments Learning Lab

The power of metaphorical thinking A picture can speak a thousand words and convey a complex concept that text on

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Flipped Classrooms 

How to run a unit across multiple schools

February 5, 2018April 29, 2022 Susan Hennessey 0 Comments flipgrid, Google Drive, Google Team Drive, Hazen Union School, Lamoille Union Middle School, Peoples Academy Middle Level, Schoology, Slack, Trello

Get organized, then get tech Many of your current — or future — collaborators teach at other schools around the

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Pear Deck
Proficiency-Based Learning 

Using PearDeck in a proficiency-based environment

January 19, 2018April 29, 2022 Susan Hennessey 0 Comments Green Mountain Union High School, Leland & Gray Union Middle & High School, PearDeck

Looking at tech tools for formative assessment In a proficiency-based learning environment, frequent, flexible, and transparent assessments become cornerstones of

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tech tools for PLPs
PLPs 

3 easy tech tools for PLP reflections

November 29, 2017November 22, 2019 Susan Hennessey 4 Comments Adobe Spark, Answer Garden, flipgrid, Stowe Middle School

Answer Garden, Flipgrid and Adobe Spark “What are you grateful for?”  We posed this question to 7th grade Stowe Middle

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Uncategorized 

Choose Your Own Adventure with Google Earth

October 20, 2017April 14, 2022 Susan Hennessey 0 Comments Google Earth, Schoology, Stowe Middle School

The virtual reality cure for wanderlust Despite this gorgeous fall weather here in central Vermont, I’m suffering from a bad

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Teaming 

Maintaining a teaching team

September 28, 2017April 29, 2022 Susan Hennessey 0 Comments Peoples Academy Middle Level, Randolph Union High School, Stowe Middle School

5 exercises your team can try today School is off to a rollicking start thanks to you and your team’s

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Innovative Edtech Classrooms 

4 ways Vermont educators are sharing their practice

September 13, 2017June 18, 2018 Susan Hennessey 1 Comment #everydaycourage, Crossett Brook Middle School, Learning Lab, Shelburne Community School

The #everydaycourage of being seen Take the iconic back-to-school prompt for students — what I did on my summer vacation — and

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Proficiency-Based Learning Transferable Skills 

J-Term at Hazen Union

June 28, 2017April 29, 2022 Susan Hennessey 0 Comments Hazen Union School

Personalized, proficiency-based PBL or bust During a faculty meeting in late December of 2016, educators and staff talked about the

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Proficiency-Based Learning 

Three Pillars in Practice: Team Extreme IDU

June 25, 2017August 25, 2017 Susan Hennessey 0 Comments Lamoille Union Middle School

Every May for the past 10 years, Lamoille Union Middle School’s Team Extreme launches an integrated unit. This year found

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Flexible Pathways 

How to win the VT Tech Bridge Building competition

June 21, 2017August 25, 2017 Susan Hennessey 0 Comments Peoples Academy Middle Level

Standard 3-part story-driven post: 1) what it is, 2) what it looks like in a school, 3) how to do it in your school

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Transferable Skills 

Build personal connections in teacher advisory

June 1, 2017December 7, 2018 Susan Hennessey 0 Comments Peoples Academy Middle Level

“Every student gets greeted at the start of every day.” At Peoples Academy Middle Level, educators have taken the role

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Tools We Like 

4 ways students can control the pace of content delivery

April 14, 2017April 14, 2017 Susan Hennessey 0 Comments Blendspace, EdPuzzle, nearpod, screencasting

Deliver the goods! Rather than creating a unit on the Civil War, imagine working with an individual student or small

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Tools We Like 

The tech-rich social studies classroom

April 5, 2017April 29, 2022 Susan Hennessey 2 Comments EdPuzzle, Kahoot, nearpod, Newsela, Socrative

Standard 3-part story-driven post: 1) what it is, 2) what it looks like in a school, 3) how to do it in your school

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Uncategorized 

Peer collaboration on PLPs

March 13, 2017April 29, 2022 Susan Hennessey 3 Comments Google Hangout, Peoples Academy Middle Level, personalized learning, personalized learning plan, personalized learning plans, PLP, PLPs, portfolio, portfolios, Stowe Middle School

Standard 3-part story-driven post: 1) what it is, 2) what it looks like in a school, 3) how to do it in your school

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Proficiency-Based Learning 

Assessment in Proficiency-Based Classrooms

December 4, 2016June 25, 2017 Susan Hennessey 0 Comments Edmunds Middle School, Lamoille Union Middle School

3 examples using blended learning Let’s explore how some Vermont teachers are shifting their instruction and assessment practices to move

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proficiency-based learning: setting a goal with a guitar
Goal-setting Proficiency-Based Learning 

3 visualization exercises for proficiency-based learning

October 27, 2016December 7, 2018 Susan Hennessey 1 Comment Harwood Union Middle School, Hazen Union School, Stowe Middle School

Outcomes, process and automaticity I worked with a group of teachers this summer to re-think goal-setting with their students. We

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Proficiency-Based Learning 

Proficiency-based teaching and learning in Vermont: who, why and how

October 6, 2016April 29, 2022 Susan Hennessey 1 Comment #readytolaunch, integrated unit, Peoples Academy Middle Level

Two examples of implementing proficiency-based scales of learning Vermont educators and their students are on a journey. Let’s look at

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Uncategorized 

(Re) Designing PLPs with students

September 14, 2016April 22, 2022 Susan Hennessey 1 Comment #readytolaunch

What Vermont students really think about personal learning plans Put 47 middle-level students together, challenge them to think differently about

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Uncategorized 

Assessing tech-rich instruction

June 13, 2016June 13, 2016 Susan Hennessey 1 Comment reflection, The Compass School, Touchcast

The Six Question Framework for reflection As the end of June nears and students take their final exams, clear out

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ubiquitous learning
Education for Sustainability 

How mobile devices can enhance field trips

June 2, 2016April 22, 2022 Susan Hennessey 1 Comment scavenger hunts, The Cabot School, Touchcast

Deepen place-based learning and boost emotional engagement Having signed the permission slips, helped raise money, converted US dollars to Canadian,

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Augmented Reality 

Going on Google Expeditions

May 13, 2016May 9, 2016 Susan Hennessey 1 Comment Google Expeditions, Lamoille Union Middle School

Too many ‘awesomes’ to count. That was a note I took while experiencing students’ reactions to Google Expeditions at Lamoille

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Goal-setting 

Cross-school goal-setting for PLPs

April 18, 2016June 22, 2021 Susan Hennessey 2 Comments Google Hangout, Lamoille Union Middle School, Peoples Academy Middle Level

Motivating students around goals by connecting schools Many Vermont students have worked hard this year establishing personal and academic goals

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Uncategorized 

A community-based interdisciplinary unit

April 4, 2016November 16, 2016 Susan Hennessey 6 Comments 1:1, Hazen Union School, MGC, Middle Grades Institute (MGI), Popplet

A tech-rich case study from rural Vermont The team from Hazen Union Middle School, in Hardwick, Vermont, conducted an action research project

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Innovative Edtech Classrooms 

How ubiquitous learning spaces can spur reflection

March 28, 2016February 22, 2021 Susan Hennessey 5 Comments GoPro, Shadow Puppet, the littlest birds sing the prettiest songs, The Sycamore School, ubiquitous learning

Ubiquitous learning at the Sycamore School (Ed Note: Susan Hennessey recently traveled to Malibu, California to check out some innovative

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Uncategorized 

Managing time in blended classrooms

March 11, 2016March 11, 2016 Susan Hennessey 7 Comments Google Forms, Google Keep, Peoples Academy Middle Level

Shifting the way we manage time to personalize learning in a blended space In my former professional life, I had

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Self-directed learning 

Self-directed learning and playlists

March 3, 2016April 22, 2022 Susan Hennessey 5 Comments Act 77, Digital Promise, playlists, Up for Learning

Curating lists of online resources for deep dives into content research We have been spending much of our time here

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Uncategorized 

Finding joy in the classroom

February 12, 2016June 27, 2017 Susan Hennessey 9 Comments Franklin West Supervisory Union, Hazen Union School, joy, Lamoille Union Middle School, nearpod

Is joy in learning an innovation? Recently, I was charmed and inspired upon seeing a first grade student’s take on

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Uncategorized 

Using Google tools to connect with other schools

January 27, 2016January 29, 2016 Susan Hennessey 5 Comments Google+ Communities, Google+ hangouts

Reaching beyond the walls I’m always looking for ways for educators and students at different schools to use technology to

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Tools We Like 

Exploring identity and current events with Chatterpix

January 13, 2016April 12, 2022 Susan Hennessey 2 Comments advisory, Chatterpix, goal-setting, identity, Peoples Academy Middle Level, political science

Students tackle politicians’ identities Students at Peoples Academy Middle Level in Morrisville, Vermont, are exploring the theme of identity in their humanities

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Uncategorized 

Act 77, Flexible Pathways and best middle level practices

December 19, 2015April 13, 2022 Susan Hennessey 4 Comments Thinglink, Vermont

Grappling with implementation In my current work with a number of Vermont middle schools, we have been trying to grapple

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Uncategorized 

Personalize learning with Open Educational Resources

December 9, 2015June 22, 2021 Susan Hennessey 9 Comments Bennington Rutland Supervisory Union, Coursera, EdX, genius hour, Gooru, open educational resources, Udemy

What they are and how to use them In a recent blog post, I suggested access to technology can empower teachers

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Uncategorized 

Blended learning in the math classroom

November 20, 2015April 22, 2022 Susan Hennessey 5 Comments Christ the King School, EdPuzzle, Hazen Union School, Schoology

Where is the tech in math classrooms? According to recent studies, math teachers, tend to integrate technology into their teaching less

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Identity Innovative Edtech Classrooms 

Augmented reality and student identity

November 13, 2015February 22, 2021 Susan Hennessey 6 Comments augmented reality, Hazen Union School, iMovie, Lamoille Union Middle School, QR codes, Shadow Puppet, Thinglink, Vermont

Students explore the geography of self(ies) An innovative way for students to explore who they are happens in Lori Lisai’s

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Uncategorized 

Learning as a social activity

October 26, 2015 Susan Hennessey 10 Comments digital video, Vialogues

Using Vialogues for social learning Vialogues: visual dialogues. Video dialogues. (Visible violet dogs? Risible eyelet hogs? Dirigible side-slit frogs?) Vialogues

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Uncategorized 

W is for Weekly Geek Podcast

October 13, 2015April 19, 2018 Susan Hennessey 1 Comment #ABCsofedtech, Doink, Edmunds Middle School, Harwood Union Middle School, Lamoille Union Middle School, public service announcements, Voice Record

Creative ways to share learning opportunities Teachers at Lamoille Union Middle/High School learn about the latest tools and resources available

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Uncategorized 

P is for Performance Tasks

September 21, 2015April 13, 2022 Susan Hennessey 10 Comments #ABCsofedtech

Using performance tasks as a way to measure student knowledge When working with a group of middle school science teachers recently

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Uncategorized 

Serious PD fun with Chatterpix

September 19, 2015April 22, 2022 Susan Hennessey 5 Comments Chatterpix, Lamoille Union Middle School, Peoples Academy Middle Level

“Candy apps”, or how to have fun and still learn anyway   During a five minute reflection, if a student is given

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Uncategorized 

N is for Nearpod

September 17, 2015July 25, 2019 Susan Hennessey 11 Comments #ABCsofedtech, Hazen Union School, iPad, iPad tutorial, nearpod

How these educators used Nearpod for professional development Educators instinctively understand the engagement power of a tool that allows learners to

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Uncategorized 

K is for Kahoot

September 7, 2015April 19, 2018 Susan Hennessey 7 Comments #ABCsofedtech, Kahoot

Extend learning communities beyond the classroom For a review game “killer app” recommendation, Kahoot is by far at the top

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Innovative Edtech Classrooms 

Multiple platforms, multiple voices: scenes from a 1:1 rollout

September 3, 2015September 3, 2015 Susan Hennessey 7 Comments 1:1, Blogger, family communication, Hazen Union School, student voice

Collaborative blogging puts students’ voices out front Hazen Union School 8th grade student Elijah Lew-Smith shared the first student post of the

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Augmented Reality 

B is for Booktracks

August 19, 2015April 22, 2022 Susan Hennessey 12 Comments Booktracks

Augmented reality enhances reading — with sound After being introduced to Booktrack Classroom at an ISTE 2015 session, it struck

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Tools We Like 

Collaborative digital tools for faculty meetings

June 21, 2015April 22, 2022 Susan Hennessey 4 Comments leadership, MoveNote, padlet

Go beyond back-channeling and unlock creative communication This summer, look for ways to liven up your faculty meetings and delve a little

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