Yesterday astronauts on the International Space Station had to go to emergency shelters due to space junk (https://www.theverge.com/2021/11/15/22782946/russia-asat-test-satellite-international-space-station-debris). The idea of space junk and rogue satellites causes many issues for governments and companies. Interestingly enough though, you and your students can track satellites and other space debris using this LeoLabs interactive resource: https://platform.leolabs.space/visualization. Check this website out and see what you can do. 

​I also recommend to try searching for Starlink in the LeoLabs interactive and check out the possible future of internet access (https://www.discovermagazine.com/technology/how-do-spacexs-starlink-satellites-actually-work).

Curating and managing a classroom library of books is no easy task. Also keeping it up to date with new material and/or material relevant to you curriculum is expensive! If your classroom has access to some devices or your school is 1:1, EPIC! can help. EPIC! has a tiered price structure, but educators can create a classroom that students can use their platform for free Monday through Friday, from 7am-4pm. They also have a variety of non-fiction books to supplement your curriculum and audiobooks for struggling readers.

Watch the video below to see a little demo of how EPIC! works and how you can easily implement it in your classroom.

Having students create a story can help them improve their oral language skills, help them retain knowledge, encourage critical thinking, and so much more. Creating a story can be tough for a student and tough for the teacher trying to motivate them to do so. Giving learners a variety of options on how to create their story though and one of these options could be Make Beliefs Comix. Make Beliefs Comix allows students to create a comic from scratch or use a template to tell a story. Watch the view below to see a little overview of how Make Beliefs Comix works and how you can use it in your classroom.

Videos are a great way to share information with students. They get awesome visuals and audio that otherwise may not be possible in a classroom environment. The issue as educators we run into though, is if the watchers actually understand what they have watched. Some of this issue can now be eliminated by using PlayPosit (​www.playposit.com). PlayPosit allows you to take any YouTube video and make it into an interactive response. You can ask students simple yes/no questions, multiple choice questions, free response questions, and even host a discussion right within a video! 

All the students and/or learners responses are recorded and can be graded to see how well they did. With just a few clicks you can make your own interactive video and get rocking. To see how, watch the short tutorial below or jump right in by going to www.playposit.com! 

If you want to try PlayPosit as student, check out this link to learn about the Seaweed Sheep: ​www.playposit.com/listcode/922359/e71a4a/open/anonymous

There are several resources out there to create screencasts, but few of them are as simple and neat looking as Loom!

Educators and students alike can use Loom to help highlight how to use websites, explain ideas, and just about anything you need to talk about. One of the great features of Loom is that it makes it super simple to embed yourself into the video! 

Watch the tutorial below to see how you or your students can use Loom.

Recently I came across this pretty neat math resource called Knowledgehook. The best way I can describe it is, is if Kahoot and Freckle Math (previously known as Front Row) had a software baby, this would be it. Knowledgehook allows teachers to push 'Missions' to students that they must complete. The questions look very similar to state standardized tests and provides them in a non-overwhelming amount. It also features a 'Gameshow' ability. Gameshow is a Kahoot styled activity that can be not only done in a competitive mode, but also in a collaborative mode. The collaborative mode promotes students taking their time to solving the problem and also gives them the ability to submit proof of how they solved the problem.

Knowledgehook provides content for grades 3-12, but younger or more advanced classes could take advantage of the 'Custom Content' feature to make it fit their needs. If you want to see Knowledgehook in action, please watch the tutorial below to see a overview of it's features. 

ClassroomScreen is a great classroom management resource for all grade levels and subjects. It can allow a teacher to help facilitate class discussions, redirect students who are off task, display information, and do easy exit polls of a class. It works on any device you would use, Windows, Mac, Chromebooks, iPads/iPhones, and Android devices. If you have an interactive projector you could even control it from there! Watch the video below to see how ClassroomScreen can be used in your class.

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In this edition of the Holiday Special you will find nine resources for your classroom. You can find fun games, a Smart Notebook activity, and even two Google Slides projects.

All activities, besides the Smart Notebook activity, should work without a hitch on any computer or laptop, and this includes Chromebooks!