Shorten A Web Address With Google URL Shortener

You can shorten URLs to make them easier to share using the Google URL shortener.
You can see how many people have clicked on your URL by visiting goo.gl

Visit the "How-To" link below for directions on how to use this great tool!  Remember to sign into your Google account for complete access!  

How to use The Google URL Shortener

Newsela combines real-time assessments with differentiated content from premier daily news sources like the Associated Press, Washington Post, and Scientific American and eminent nonfiction publishers like Smithsonian, The King Center, and Biography.com. Newsela makes reading to learn relevant, interesting, and effective regardless of interest or ability. All articles are published at five reading levels.  This is a great reading tool for your classroom and it's free!

https://newsela.com

OverDrive: eBooks, Audiobooks, and Videos from your Local Library

OverDrive is an app that allows you to borrow eBooks, audiobooks, and streaming video from your library on your iPhone, iPad, Android, Chromebook, Windows Phone, Windows 8 & 10, and Kindle Fire HD. More than 30,000 libraries worldwide offer titles from OverDrive, so download the app and find your next book today!

• Available 24/7, now the library comes to you.
• No more late fees. Titles are automatically returned.
• Place holds, create wish lists, and return titles easily.
• Sync libraries, bookmarks, and recent positions across mobile devices.

I LOVE THIS APP!!!!!

ClaroSpeak: Free Word Prediction for G-Suite (formerly GAFE)

ClaroSpeak is a reading and writing Google Chrome app with high-quality text-to-speech, formatting controls, a wide range of fonts and styles, and cloud storage integration. ClaroSpeak offers the option of visual highlighting in-sync with the spoken words, a great range of color and font settings to allow for optimum reading and word prediction to help with writing.

This tool can be found in the Google App Chooser (colorful waffle in the upper left corner). Check it out!

Free Professional Development Webinars

The NYS Teacher Centers Technology Committee 

is pleased to present the

Smart Schools Bond Act Support Series

In 2014, New York State enacted the Smart Schools Bond Act, which allocated funds for New York schools to purchase technology and strengthen infrastructure. This Act gave NYS educators access to new technology with no guidance on how to implement it effectively into instruction. NYS Teacher Centers are offering over fifty professional development webinars in the fall of 2016 to showcase exemplary technological resources available, and the best practices for using these resources to increase student achievement.

Dates:               September 27- November 22, 2016

Times:              Varied, see schedule

Cost:                 Free

Registration:    Online, see the link below for more information

All webinars are open to administrators, teachers, and paraprofessionals in New York State.  Participants may take as few or as many webinars as they wish.

CTLE professional development certificates are available with subsequent work and small registration fee. (See page 16 for details.)

* Link to catalog with more information:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BxCzn08wyH7kdkhXdTdJcFlxcGs/view

 Questions? Contact Carol Weintraub, Director, InterCounty Teacher Center

intercountytc@gmail.com

YouTube Educational Shortcuts

Powerful educational videos are available in abundance on YouTube, but it can be a daunting task to search through them to find the best clips for your needs. The link below will bring you to a database of YouTube channels organized by subject area.  
(Note: Subjects are organized by tabs along the bottom of the Google Sheets document.)

Click this link to get there: Database of YouTube Channels

Three Village Central School District - Tapped into Technology

Click this link:  Three Village Central School District - Tapped into Technology

This was being shown on the Three Village School District web page

Class Tech Tips

http://www.techlearning.com/blogentry/10790

With Zaption - Turn online videos into interactive learning experiences that engage students and deepen understanding. 

• DISCOVER - Find high quality videos on any topic.  Browse the gallery for great ready-to-use lessons.  

• CUSTOMIZE - Add images, text, and questions to any online video, creating interactive lessons that meet your learners needs.  

• SHARE - Share video lessons with a simple link, or embed directly into your Google Classroom, Blog, or website.  

• TRACK - Get actionable data on personal responses from learners with award-winning analytics.  Instantly measure understanding and differentiate instruction.

* Use the following link to see what Zaption has to offer and sign up for a free account:

https://www.zaption.com

* Use this link to view a short introductory video on what Zaption has to offer:

https://youtu.be/SxEu112XMNw

*Use this link for more detailed video on how to use Zaption:

https://youtu.be/sPqGfk6wt60 

MathPapa for GAFE

MathPapa is a step-by-step calculator to help you learn concepts in algebra interactively. It can be used either as a teaching aid or to help students practice concepts on their own. I love this app!!!!

You And Your Students Can Make An E-book

Click the link below to view a great how-to on how you and/or your students can make a great looking e-book using PowerPoint or Google Slides!

http://www.cultofpedagogy.com/student-e-books/

Check Out This Google Chrome Video Tutorial

This is great introduction to using Google Chrome, a wonderful way to become familiar with the Google  Chrome browser. Geared for beginners. Includes: Signing in/out, using multiple google accounts, browser components, introduction to keyboard shortcuts, home & startup page settings.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VSztmyOgNdQ

There is some great information on the Three Village District website.  In the pull down menu Department and Programs - Instructional Technology - Teachers and Staff 2015-2016 you can find information on: iCampus directions, Microsoft tutorials, Citrix home access instructions and how to link your iPad to the Citrix system. You should check it out! Use the following shortcut link to get you there quickly and easily!

 http://threevillagecsd.org/department_and_programs/instructional%20technology%20directions

Free Google Word Prediction for Teachers

How to get your free Google Read & Write subscription:

1. Download the Read & Write App from the Chrome Store: http://goo.gl/a38oFZ

2. After installing Read & Write go to https://rwchrome.texthelp.com/drive/Home/RegisterTeacher to register and activate your premium subscription.

Try this online video converter

With convert2mp3.net you can download your music for free and convert your favourite videos from YouTube, Dailymotion, Vevo and Clipfish online to MP3, MP4 and more. It's fast, free and there is no registration needed.  (The default language is German so go to the flag in the upper right) - This tip submitted by Donna Alaimo!

Convert PDF documents

Ever want to convert a PDF file into another type of file like Microsoft Word?  Try one of the following converters.  They both are easy to use.  To get to either, use the included links below!

Zamzar - http://www.zamzar.com/

Docs Zone -
https://docs.zone/pdf-to-word

SmartAppsForKids

I want to make you aware of a phenomenal resource that provides free and reduced educational iOS apps. The site is called SmartAppsforKids and their website is www.SmartAppsforKids.com. Each Friday a number of educational apps go FREE for 24 hours and you may download them to your iTunes account for permanent ownership. In addition, there are other links provided that offer temporary discounts or freebies. You may sign up with your email address and the free apps will be sent directly to you to download. Even if you do not yet have a mobile device, I encourage you to set up an iTunes account so that you may accumulate educational apps for future use. Enjoy!

Creating a Signature in Microsoft Outlook

I highly recommend that you include a signature when sending district email. To do this, open up your web-based email account. Click the Options button on the right side of the menu bar and it will open a window like the one below. Here is where you have many options to customize both your outgoing and incoming messages. It would best to include your building, phone extension, and any other information you would like to share with everyone. Looking forward to your creative sign-offs!!!!

Google Speech Recognition Add-on

The Speech Recognition add-on will allow you to use speech recognition to write your Google Docs documents. Express yourself as you've never done. Be free from the keyboard and faster than ever.

Note: Works only in Chrome browser.

To get to this add-on, open a Google Doc, Go to Add-ons on the top menu, choose Get add-ons. A window will open. You need to scroll down to find the orange colored Speech Recognition app. Click the blue +FREE button, choose Allow. Once you've done this, it will show up in your Add-ons pull-down on the top menu bar.