January 2012
2 posts
ICT Freedom - With great power comes great...
“Bored” from lanier67 on Flickr
My Twitter feed is full of retweets this morning … “Michael Gove to scrap ‘boring’ IT lessons” from the Guardian. In his opening speech to the BETT show, Michael Gove will slam the boring and constrictive programme of study that is in place for ICT and will allow schools to choose their own curriculum.
Gone are the...
2012: My Year of Coding
This year I won’t be making any new year’s resolutions. For me I am focusing on using my skills more at school. As an ICT teacher it’s easy to get on the treadmill of Word, PowerPoint, Excel and the occasional Access database if you’re getting really technical. This year I am going all out for coding at school.
In my previous life (before I was a teacher), I worked...
December 2011
1 post
Microsoft in Education Forum
It’s been quite some time since I last wrote a blog post and in that time I’ve had a couple of significant incidents that have changed my perspective on ICT and Computing in schools.
The first was the Microsoft in Education forum held at the Microsoft UK headquarters in Reading. This was a great event organised by Sean O’Shea, James Marshall and Tim Bush. A small group of...
November 2011
1 post
Are you rounding up student answers? Teach like a...
“Deep in thought” by RPatts on Flickr
An essential part of being a better teacher, manager, student or leader is the ability to review and refine your practice and to be open to new ideas. I am currently reading a book “Teach Like a Champion: 49 techniques that put students on the path to college” by Doug Lemov. Lemov is managing director of a group of ‘Uncommon...
June 2011
2 posts
Why I'm an Amazon Prime member
I signed up for Amazon Prime two years ago but I didn’t mean to. I signed up for the free trial and didn’t cancel in time but now it’s one of the best things and I wouldn’t be without it.
For those of you who don’t know what it is, Amazon Prime gives you
unlimited FREE One-Day Delivery on millions of eligible items sold by Amazon.co.uk
free shipping with no...
Paid for checking in? Quidco goes social.
A number of people enjoy checking in with apps like Foursquare and Gowalla but after you’ve been riding high at the top of the leader board for a couple of weeks it gets boring pretty quickly.
Foursquare has specials if you are the mayor of nominated places but these have never been useful or relevant. The only one I could possibly imagine using is Domino’s but it takes time to earn...
March 2011
1 post
Inspire magazine
A few months ago I saw the excellent C Magazine from Jamie Portman at Campsmount and was incredibly impressed so when I started at my new school I wanted to start our own learning magazine. I worked on this with a colleague (Jay Davenport) and initially this was published internally only but we are now pleased to publish this far and wide on the Internet!
We have now completed our third issue...
February 2011
1 post
1 tag
ActivInspire
One of the ICT crimes in schools is buying technology but not using it. One of the most common technologies that suffer from this is the interactive whiteboard.
Rather than buying new stuff, we are focusing on making the best of what we have got. Our school has lots of Promethean Activboards but many of the staff do not know how to use the ActivInspire software or are stuck on the older...
January 2011
1 post
Can you afford Office365 for Education?
Earlier this week Microsoft announced the pricing plans for Office365 for Education, the successor to the free live@edu. Anyone who manages ICT services or is a budget holder will always we filled with dread when they read “pricing plan” as this often means expensive tiers and reduction of features.
So is Microsoft pulling a “bait-and-switch” on our schools with...
October 2010
1 post
Making a successful start
From Ousedale School Blog - Friday 15th October 2010
Change is always a difficult part of life and changing jobs is a stressful exercise. This is my first year at Ousedale School as an Assistant Headteacher having moved from a local secondary school. I’m sure many of us remember the nerves of starting at a new workplace and all those questions that went through our head before the first day...
August 2010
4 posts
Errrrm security HBSC?
I was in the bank today with my wife at the counter service section. A girl goes to the next counter, hands over a card to withdraw money. The member of staff asks why she doesn’t use the machine but the girl says she’s exceeded her daily limit.
The member of staff asks for her to sign a withdrawal slip. The signature doesn’t match.
The member of staff asks if she has any...
Has everyone gone ga-ga for Google?
Recently I have seen increasing mention of Google Apps and its use in schools in my Twitter feed from my personal learning network. More and more educators are looking to switch their whole school across to using Google Docs instead of Microsoft Office, GMail instead of Outlook and Google Apps with single sign-on instead of multiple login accounts for the various services.
Why have we...
#newleaders appeal - Please help!
So a while back we asked the wonderful people of Twitter to post their #newleaders tweets to help people who are taking on a new leadership role. The tweets came flooding in and since this time I have been working to strip out RTs, decipher meaning where people are limited to 140 chars and categorise the tweets to organise into an eBook.
There is a problem though, the #newleaders tweets are...
Exciting new features for teachers in plannerLIVE!...
Since I started teaching, students have had problems with homework - either getting it wrong … or not doing it at all! Students have homework diaries or planners but those students who need most help don’t fill them in properly or forget them. One solution is to use a VLE but for many staff the VLE has too many features for them and is too complex or not fit for purpose.
I...
July 2010
5 posts
Write just like me - iFontMaker Review
Admit it, you’ve needed a ‘handwritingy-looking’ font, trawled the web and then either given up or used the dreaded Comic Sans. What you really wanted was to use your own handwriting as a font … right?
Personalised handwriting fonts can cost $20 or more depending on the complexity of the font and your handwriting. Now it is quick and easy for you to create your own...
Hands On with The Early Edition on the iPad
We all like news, we all like bed. What could be better than an easy way to catch up with the news whilst in bed?
The Early Edition is a brilliant app for the iPad priced at £2.99 from the iTunes Store. It is a aggregator that pulls in news stories from all your favourite websites and presents them in a newspaper format.
The best thing about this is that the dynamic newspaper updates every...
Stantonbury Campus - a very special school
It’s finally come; today is my last day at Stantonbury Campus. It seems so long ago that I got the job at Ousedale School and I’m really looking forward to starting in September but I will miss Stantonbury … a lot!
Stantonbury Campus is different from other schools I’ve experienced. Not because there are nearly 2800 students on site, not because students don’t...
Logos quiz from TeachMeet Milton Keynes
In the words of the Big Breakfast from 1994 … “Don’t phone, it’s just for fun!”
We ran a table quiz at TeachMeet Milton Keynes to win Camtasia licences that had been generously donated by TechSmith. Congrats to the winners.
A few people have asked for the quiz so they could use it at school. So here it is, if you want the answers you’ll need to DM me your...
Implementing electronic behaviour management
“Bees!” by Todd Huffman on Flickr
Learning is paramount in school. I know it is an obvious thing to say but it’s easy to forget and to get caught up with the day-to-day things like behaviour. Of course, if you have good teaching then it usually leads to good behaviour which allows outstanding learning, but that’s for another post at another time!
It’s easy to let...
June 2010
2 posts
Are Facebook fan pages paving the way for viruses?
In the last few years society has become much more computer safety and virus savvy. That’s not to say that all viruses, spyware and malware have disappeared off the radar but people are starting to question content a little bit more. Many more people don’t open attachments from unknown senders although it is still easy to get caught by an email hoax.
The latest fashion of fan...
Hands On with Wired Magazine on the iPad
I heard all the buzz about the Wired Magazine iPad app so downloaded it for myself to see if it warranted the hype. Here’s my short tour and review of the online magazine.
May 2010
2 posts
My iPad experience ... so far!
It’s no secret that I’m an Apple guy! I don’t want to be labelled as a fanboi but I love my iPhone, iMac and my MacBook Pro.
The big question for me was did I need an iPad with this much Mac in my life? The answer was NO!
The next question was did I WANT an iPad with this much Mac in my life? The answer was maybe.
I think I did extremely well resisting a US import of the...
4 tags
Exciting new Storybird features for teachers
For those of you who haven’t see it, Storybird is a great website when you can write and publish electronic books using artwork supplied by a range of artists. If you want more information you can read about it in this post. Storybird is brilliant but the difficulty occurs when trying to collaborate and keep track of a whole class set of users and their work.
Thankfully Storybird have...
April 2010
6 posts
Do you like this? Engaging learners with Facebook
No matter how much you deny it, Facebook is more interesting than learning as far as many students are concerned. However, we could spice things up a little by mixing the social world of Facebook with the educational content by using some of the new plugins available from the social networking giant.
Mark Zuckerberg launched a number of new ways to integrate your site with Facebook at the F8...
Tips for new tweeters
I think Twitter is great. I go on about it all the time to everyone I meet and justify my usage as ‘excellent professional development’. Today one of the ICT teachers from my team joined Twitter! Shane Gallaher @shanegallaher signed up.
Apparently I joined Twitter on 14th May 2007. It doesn’t seem like it was that long ago but that’s...
Can you afford to integrate free tools into your...
image courtesy of whartz on Flickr
We all love something for nothing and the range of free web tools is amazing. Schools have ever decreasing budgets and we need to get as much value for money as possible but with free tools closing or moving to subscription models can you afford to integrate them into the curriculum?
TechCrunch are reporting that Ning, the “build your own social network”...
Microsoft UK Schools Blog
I was excited to see a tweet in my @replies today from the Microsoft UK Education team (@Microsoft_Ed_UK) saying that my Kodu tutorials had been featured in their blog.
The post covers my Kodu tutorials (which I must finish!) and gives a little nod to the “visualising revision” poster too.
You can read the full article at the Microsoft UK Schools Blog
How to recognise an email hoax
Recently my mother in law opened an email purporting to be from Facebook, claiming that her password had been reset and that the new one was attached. She duly opened the attached zip file and followed the instructions to install a password logger on her computer.
It was a pain in the backside to sort out and when she told me that she opened it I was a little frustrated. On reflection I decided...
March 2010
3 posts
WatchNow is the time that people should be planning their revision. You need something that is …
• easy to do • quick to change • free • will get your parents off your back You can do all of that using Google Calendar by following this easy tutorial video
Use your iPod Touch or iPhone for revision
There are lots of ways to use technology to revise for upcoming exams; most of these focus on using websites such as BBC Bitesize, SAM Learning or your school’s VLE.
What about when you are on the move? How can you make the best use of your time by using your iPod Touch or iPhone when you are on the bus, in the car or those forced visits to grandma?
Here are a selection of apps and techniques to...
4 tags
Visualising revision help as a poster
Each year my school runs a revision evening for Year 11 students.
We have a couple of presentations (one from me about online revision resources and e-learning tools - blog post to come!) and parents and students are given two booklets.
- a general revision tips booklet with advice on good practice and things to avoid
- a subject specific revision booklet that contains information about what...
February 2010
3 posts
4 tags
PacKodu Tutorial - Part Two
This is the second video (of four) that shows you how to create a PacMan clone using Kodu Game Lab. This part focuses on setting up characters and basic behaviours using “See” and “Wander”. It also shows how to control characters using XBOX 360 controllers and keyboard.
If you have any questions please post in the comments or contact me via Twitter.
PacKodu Tutorial - Part One
This is the first video (of four) that shows you how to create a PacMan clone using Kodu Game Lab. This one just focuses on creating the environment to play in and adding objects to eat.
If you have any questions please post in the comments or contact me via Twitter.
1 tag
Watch
This is my first tutorial using Kodu demonstrating how to make a simple collection game. You can create games either by using a wired XBOX 360 controller or using the keyboard.
If you have any questions please comment below or contact me on Twitter.
January 2010
15 posts
Student Voice and the VLE: Questionnaires on...
Student voice is a big part of modern school life and senior management teams need to take more notice of what students think. Part of the way we achieve this is by using the Questionnaire functionality of our virtual learning environment (Moodle) to poll our students and get their opinions.
Two ways that we have used this recently is “The BIG ICT Survey” and “Have YOUR say on...
Improvements to Storybird [an email]
Hi, My name is Stuart and I’m an Assistant Headteacher and Head of ICT at one of the largest schools in the UK (2800 students).
Firstly … we LOVE Storybird!
It’s a great site and I’ve tweeted and blogged about how we used it in the classroom - http://www.stuartridout.com/post/347591517/writing-with-storybird The only thing that’s a little iffy for me/us is the...
Will the iPad revolutionise education?
Many of us have been waiting for the Apple iTablet, iSlate, iPad for some time. Some thought the announcement would come a year ago but were left disappointed. Fast forward a year to 27th January 2010 and Steve Jobs announces the iPad to the world. This has been overhyped almost as much as the iPhone but without the ingenuity and innovation that came on the iPhone.
In the run up to the...
Writing with Storybird
Today we had a collapsed curriculum day; we call it a hall day. This is a day where the timetable is abandoned (!) and students work in a subject all day. Today in ICT we had half of our Year 9 classes working with us (that’s about 210 students) on a project to write stories for younger children.
We were using Storybird for the stories and Moodle for the delivery. The fictional scenario...
Netbook Project: Review point 1
We have been using netbooks with two classes for over three months now. This is part of a pilot to test the effects of 1:1 computing. We investing in three sets of netbooks …
- two class sets that are assigned to students as their personal equipment. They are allowed to take the netbooks home and they are encouraged to treat it as if it were their own
- a class set that is assigned to a...
Students as bloggers
If you’ve read my post about the great BIG netbook competition at my school, you’ll know about our project where we are trialling the use of netbooks with two classes to provide one to one computing.
The Year 9 class who are participating in the trial are helping us out by blogging their experiences. Some have really taken to it and some haven’t. This is obvious as many people...
4 tags
BETT2010 and #TMBETT2010 ... a review
Exciting times are ahead if teachers carrying on their excellent practice in the way I observed over the last couple of days.
Firstly, BETT itself had a couple of highs for me. If I wasn’t out supporting someone by watching their #tmtakeover talk then I was concentrating on the “little stands”, those hidden gems that are a bargain price and can make a big difference. I was really excited by a...
Movemeon Downloads
Just a reminder that you can download Movemeon for FREE!
Download as A4 Download as A5
#movemeon - same great tips ... better value for...
When we released #movemeon as a printed book we wanted it to look the best it could, so designed it in full colour … but colour costs £12.24 (still an excellent price)
Now you can buy #movemeon with a full colour glossy cover but black and white printed inners for only £2.64.
£2.64?!? You could buy a few copies for school and share them with your nearest and dearest colleages!
Seriously...
Learn Something Every Day →
Learn Something Every Day is an outstandingly fun site. Each day they have a postcard sized fact which is often quite obscure and interesting.
Today’s is
You should definitely check it out as a nice little intro to the day that could be used in registration.
Using Storybird in the classroom
We’ve got a collapsed curriculum day coming up in January and we’re going to be using Storybird in ICT to create stories for primary school children.
The Storybird website is really easy to use and has a massive collection of images that aspiring writers can use in their books. Currently you can only view them online but they are hoping to create a section where you can have hard...
#movemeon ... a reminder!
As the new term starts here’s a little reminder that the AWESOME #movemeon book is available for download (FREE) or for purchase as hard copy (at cost price).
If you are responsible for mentoring an NQT, managing a department or in charge of whole school professional development this is the book for you!
Download #movemeon FREE Buy #movemeon
So have you downloaded it yet?
If not...
TeachMeet BETT 2010
Are you going to BETT in January? Do you want to see some examples of real teachers using AMAZING ICT in the classroom ? Then you need to come to TeachMeet on Friday 15th January!
What is a TeachMeet?
I could explain but this excellent video does a much better job than I could. It’s on YouTube so you might have trouble watching if you’re at school.
Sounds great? Want to sign-up...
#movemeon book
I’m always amazed when people do something for nothing! From sharing a useful link on twitter to a whole scheme of work on a blog, it makes everyone’s life a little easier and shares best practice.
When Doug Belshaw mooted the idea of #movemeon the twitter community was engaged immediately and hundreds of great teaching tips came flooding in.
Doug and I have worked hard to collate...
A – Z Internet Resources for Education - Box of... →
Jose Picardo has collated an awesome list of tools that can be used in education. Many of these are free (or have free versions).
Make sure you check them out as they are a fantastic way to inject some ICT in your classroom.