The Universe decides…
For a number of years now, instead of a fixed (or no) seating plan for my classroom, I’ve been using visibly random grouping (PDF). I have an Excel spreadsheet (link) that takes my class list and randomly assigns them to…
Year 2018
This is a Test… this is only a test…
This post wouldn’t have been possible without Eric in our IT Dept — he fixed a network setting that prevented us from using TakeATest last year… so a huge shout-out to him (he’s likely relieved because I’ve been pestering him…
Post It Notes go universal
Microsoft recently began rolling out an update to their Post-It Note software, which they call StickyNotes – now at version 3. You can get it in the Microsoft Store here. For the sake of clarity, I’ll continue to refer to…
Snip&Sketch
So the October 2018 Windows 10 Update has provided a new snipping tool … now, it surprises me that this would be the thing I’m most happy about, but it is! Making things we do very often each day as…
Making your own font
Slid in amongst all the announcements for Ignite, Microsoft’s big conference in September, as a tool that I thought was quite cool. Not original, since similar things have existed elsewhere & when, but a nice option nevertheless.Microsoft’s Font Maker allows…
Other folks, doing stuff in OneNote
When I’m working in OneNote on the night before classes, I always find it interesting to see who else is there working. The Windows10 version of OneNote (and OneNote Online) both include a People Presence option to show you who…
Teacher as Student in Anonymous Desmos
I thought that everybody did this! But apparently, not. So this was my XKCD 10,000 moment this week. I happened to tweet the following — and I think it’s my popular tweet of all time. And as you can see, I…
How do you know you’re right?
So I’m only on the 2nd class of the year in my Grade 10 Math course so far. We start late, and we only see them for 3 hours a week, so yes, we move a little slow.I had set…
Book ’em, Dano… using Office365
I don’t usually talk about aspects of Office365 that require one of the paid subscriptions because, well, they cost money and I know teachers and schools have to prioritize their budgets (or have it prioritized for them). Remember that Office365…
Your Team’s Files, where you want them
Even though everything is in the cloud, we really like to have a copy on our computers (we work on public transit, in places with no or poor wifi, and we never really trust the cloud). So when we’re working…