#2ndchat Archive
#2ndchat is a Twitter hashtag that can be used to chat, collaborate, and grow with other second grade educators from around the world. Every other week we will discuss a different topic. It's a great way to help grow your PLN (Professional/Personal Learning Network) and share ideas with others.
Wednesday January 13, 2016
Good evening everyone! Welcome to ! Our guest moderator tonight is Noght Zookeeper Paul!
. Good evening everyone! I hope you've all had a great day at school today!
Welcome, Paul! Thanks for staying up for us!
I'm a second grade teacher from PA.
No problem at all. It's great to be able to join you all the way from London!
Hi! I'm Carol from Birmingham, AL.
Hi Mary, so happy that you're here tonight!
Good evening Mary, great you can join us tonight!
I LOVE London! I have been there twice!
wohoo! Welcome to this evening Sheri :-)
Thanks so much for hosting tonight!
Yay, Sheri, so nice to meet you! I here you are doing great stuff using
Hi Carol, how are you tonight?
Yeah, it is a wonderful place. I have to say, I had an awesome time in the states at the end of last year too :-)
Excited to talk to everyone! Love my nightzookeepers!
Greetings to my South lurker friends that may be out there!
I am awesome. Ready for !
no problem at all. It is great to meet everyone on here so far.
Hi friends! Karen from Alabama.
Sheri's 2nd graders are so enthusiastic... It's fantastic!!!
Hi Karen, glad you are with us tonight! Meet the !
Hi Karen, great that you can join us this evening!
Thanks! It's been a wonderful year. Hope everyone can work with these wonderful gents!
Glad you joined us Simon Buzz Burman. :)
I second that! They are really developing their writing skills this year!
First question in a few minutes!
good evening from the London Leah
Hi Leah, pleased to meet you.
The 1st question is coming up!
My class is this engaged because of the work you do to keep everything amazing!
Hi Colleen, greetings from London :-)
Do you have anything you want to say before we start?
I am looking forward to hearing everyone's ideas around online writing this evening! Let the questions begin :-)
Hi Colleen, so glad to have you at !
Hi all! Hayley from NC here supporting my friend !!
#1581 Hide not your talents. They for use were made. What's a sundial in the shade? — Benjamin Franklin
https://t.co/qj0N71sLRR
Q1: What online tools do your students use to help develop their writing?
Hi Hayley, how are you? Hope all is going well since we caught up in NC!
We just starting using sway.
Hey Paul! Things are going great, and I'm doing well!! Glad to see you here at !
My kids did some blogging too.
my Ss create blogs about experiences outside of school, book they've read or research they've completed.
what would you say the best feature of Kidblog is?
looking for beg./Jr. Novel about energy. Doing a school-wide inquiry on energy. Pls rt
That's great Mary. Do the kids find it easy to use? Do you set them regular tasks on there?
A1: I use kidblog and Google drive.
A1: I also like Storybird.
A1: I use , , am also using docs in google drive for first year. We are 1:1 for the first time in 2nd.
Ss comment on other blogs on Kid Blog as well. They ❤️ this! Secretly they're reading and writing.
Love how easy it is to use. Kids figured out how to add pics.
Indeed it is Mrs Stoufer! We're chatting online writing tools. Specifically which ones you are using at the moment.
Yes, I like that as well. Haven't used it this year. Sometimes don't like the pictures.
Happening right now! join us!
I have seen this in action. Your kids are really benefiting from 1:1 devices!
Hey Hayley, so glad you are here! Can you tell us how you used last year?
we love padlet for our wonder of the week and brainstorming!
I am not 1:1 but I LOVE using Google Drive with 2nd graders!
do the S's find they get many receive comments other S's from around the world?
ah wow, I haven't heard of Story Bird for a while. I should check that out.
A1: Using mainly and some google classroom activities. They love NZK best though!
Love what I see my 2nd gr team doing w/Google Docs as a tool for writer's workshop. Revision/editing is no longer a chore & its fun
what do they use to blog Mary? Which programmes?
Just starting exploring seesaw - new feature for them - blog. Have not tried yet
I've never heard of sway.
Some. I need to make more connections
Ok I am here, sorry. I guess I didn't see any reminders.
yeah it's a late one, but really enjoying it so far!
It's great! I feel so fortunate, but we made it work as well with fewer devices. My class LOVES the Night Zoo!
ah that sounds interesting. I have never heard of it. Do you have a link to share?
Lookie here... here after we just Skyped today with him. How cool is that!
is awesome for books, comics, recountings. You name it and you can do it!
It is great. I didn't use it last year but really like it.
Sorry! I forget everyone doesn't know the short code for nightzookeeper is NZK.
I'm bummed that they started charging though :-(
We are following you Terry...literally ;-)
Not familiar with Night zoo - more info pleas
Yeah but it wasn't that much considering how much I use it
Great! I'll share with my teachers.
A1: I also LOVE using literacyshed! It is great for writing!
I'm not familiar with Night Zoo either.
A2: We do a lot of written response. We HAVE to do it, but try to make it fun!!
Just this week I made a shift in my schedule to get back to a writer's workshop. I missed it and so did my Ss.
I am hoping at the end we will have time for to share!
really worth it's! It has a pen, photo, text and audio option. It's one stop shopping!
I would recommend for making connections with other classrooms
I am hoping at the end we will have time for to share!
Ayana from NC late but catching up on the convo!
I have it but it's not long enough. I need more time!
I LOVE best app out there in my humble opinion
what is 'writers workshop' Terry?
joining late also, needed to walk my dogs. Excited to catch up.
Hi, Mandy. Glad you could make it!
I teach a mini lesson, Ss go off to write on topics of their choice and then we share out.
hey Ayana! Not too late at all.
A2 Thanks. I will check it out.
I love my WW but time is always an issue.
While they write, I am moving about and conferring with writers
Have you got any examples of recent books made?
A2: I try to incorporate writing into all subjects. Sometimes we all write off 1 prompt, other times free choice!
A1: I have had great success using Kidblog with my students in K and now in 2nd
Hi Ayana. Glad you can join us.
Hey, Mandy! Didn't those dogs know we needed you at :-)
we do science journals (informational), news articles, response to text and opinion. Soon narrative, which I find the trickiest
I do have one on youtube we did with book creator. We collaborated with a class in Iowa and we wrote a book together.
Welcome, Ayana!!! Happy to see another of our South Stars here!
A2: Agree w/ there's a lot of response to text, but Ts are better at getting creative with how Ss present responses
I also integrate writing across subjects
Hey friend! Glad you're here!
jumping in - best feature of Kidblog is the kid friendly - easy to use!
I used google docs and one of my writer's worked on a story with a student in England. The story went back and forth. It was lovely!
A2: We are writing lab reports soon. I love to see how serious they take it .
I LOVE doing that! We have a regular class from UK that we collaborate w/also.
A2: My class created games for a K class & they had to write game directions. That's difficult! https://t.co/heWjJnboay
I want a class from the UK that I can collaborate with. :) I love the UK!
These connections are very cool. I hope we can help to facilitate some more!
that is AWESOME I am sure your students enjoyed the experience!
wow this does look very professional! They did a great job :-)
A3: I love how it widens their audience. On their blogs they love to get comments from other readers.
I can help you find a partner, of course and could probably help.
Got some good connections through and I know how to hook you up!
This sounds like a great idea for our Stars
A2: Writing workshop where Ss have a choice for their topic and work to grow their writing via our mini lessons
A3 I think it would be very motivating to make those connections.
This is so powerful. I have seen students that wouldn't normally engage, get very excited about writing! https://t.co/eHQyvJhB2B
A3: I love how it widens their audience. On their blogs they love to get comments from other readers.
is a weekly writing task set by a selected Teacher where S's comment on each other's writing
Carol has great ideas, great in my PLN!
Made lots of connections with and
. Hi mark cottone principal in NC lurking!!!
most def, we can link you up with a NZK school no problem
Thanks! It took trying the game out & then many revisions but fun project. :)
Awh..thanks! :) I have the best PLN!
A3: Writing online helps students make global connections, which makes writing authentic!
I've noticed the more authentic the audience, the more dedicated the Ss are to doing their best and beyond!
Hi! Welcome! We love principals that lurk in our chats!
Interesting how to writing, idea!
Welcome lurker!!! Glad to have you at !
Hi Mark, pleased you can join us tonight!
I'm having to eat chocolates to stay awake!
Thanks.They took writing the directions seriously because they want the kinders to play the games the way they planned.
Paul, , can you tell us how global connections are made using Night Zookeeper?
My students will do about anything I ask them to if they know that or may leave them a comment!
Only 15 more minutes! Thanks for hanging in there with us!
writing questions on padlet really pushes my students to deepen their own questions/wonders based on peers responses
Mary, you need to try . They see writing from all over the world, connections galore!
Q3 I think writing is difficult to motivate but writing online stimulates S's interests!
Chocolate helps everything!
A3: Students also tend to write more because of the audience and feedback piece that naturally happens.
Do you connect outside of your school with padlet?
Yes, chocolate helps everything. :)
well we have a weekly global writing challenge: https://t.co/s5cBSmREQ0 plus classes around the world that we connect
It can also be motivating in showing them what NOT to do!
A3: Yes, online writing allows students to share their writing in so many places. It's not just a conversation between tcher/stdnt
Sheri how did your connection with come about?
exactly! It's also an important skill to develop, to be able leave a good comment on peer work.
Does anyone use in their rooms for student writing?
yes we've collaborated with other classes for the global read aloud.
UPDATE: NO CHOCOLATE LEFT!
OH NO! That is an emergency!
My Ss are so excited when comments are made from others around the country and world!
Is it hard to motivate students to write on paper, with so much online writing happening?
:( That is the one of the saddest sentences ever!
My students still seem to prefer paper most of the time.
That is a great event! We use a lot to connect around the world...
I think paper writing is still easier and faster for most 2nd graders
Online just adds so many more choices- font, color, add pictures, global connections, easy revisions
My students like both. I have loved being able to comment and edit at home thru google docs.
Do all teachers at your school participate in global read aloud?
Mine do not. They love using Google drive for most things.
During the world writing challenge we commented on each other's class stories.
I agree I think typing presents its own challenges
It's not for mine. I think it was in the past but the last few years they are able to pick up keyboarding faster.
I have an event similar to GRA in the spring that I will get in touch about, we are reading "The One & Only Ivan"
No just me. I tell them about it but no one does it but me. :(
I believe mine find value in both. They like to choose their paper, and something about holding it. They like typing too.
Photos for Class is also a great safe website for schools/kids.
It can, I think you'd be surprised how fast they pick it up. They make it work for them
I say paper for those who need the structure but online for the final copy most of the time.
I love that book. It was the global read aloud a few years ago. LOVE
I taught mine to use the dictionary app today, they were amazed. I was stunned that they were amazed.
Typing is a challenge for my kids too.
I'd like to know more if you can add me to that get in touch list.
It may be because our device is iPad...not typing or Google friendly.
There is value in both and both are needed!
do you see a difference between typing on a device to keyboard?
Do students in struggle with their typing speed still? Or is this getting better as the years pass?
I observed it in class, we HOPE our whole school will participate next year Great experience for students!
Wait..I need to make a clarification most of the time they write it in a notebook and just type it on Google Drive or kidblog.
We don't have a lot of time left :-(. I'd like for and to tell you about great facets of N/Zoo!
I found some cheap bluetooth/wireless keyboards that have helped that situation. :)
ah yes, laptops are much easier for younger children. I find it tough typing on iPad even now...
Great!!! Thanks for sharing Josh!
MT We don't have a lot of time left I'd like for & to tell you about great facets of N/Zoo!
Ugh . . . mine struggle. Keyboarding needs to used more to help- my opinion.
Oh yeah? That sounds good. Where? https://t.co/dzSryXd2hz
I found some cheap bluetooth/wireless keyboards that have helped that situation. :)
Dell tablets I have this year have a keyboard, 2-1 tablet. Love that feature
We also set word milestones that the children can try and reach as a class to earn new desktop backgrounds! https://t.co/hlmjqDN6U0
Great! I need to look into some of those mentioned.
Carol, we have to keep suggesting, nudging, they need to know how fun AND relevant. too!
Me too. They seem to be better than me though. :)
All of our 2nd grade classes participated. We all connected globally as well.
gotta go all but shout out to all Ts who spend time doing this! are Experts!
We need a program like Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing from the 90s. Remember that?
Suggestion student blog post with video?
Everyone adds this as their screen saver. Working to get to the 100,000 word one next!!
I think it's a mix but so is writing it by hand. Ive some that can write quicklyl by hand & for others it's painful
Thanks for chatting tonight , good to think about digital writing.
